Jeff Beck

Jeff Beck – born June 24, 1944, in Wallington, Surrey, England – was one of Britain's greatest guitarists and has been credited with introducing fuzz, feedback and distortion into rock music. Jeff Beck learned to play as a teenager, originally building his own guitar from cigar boxes. His career began in the 1960s as a session guitarist and, on the recommendation of Jimmy Page (later of Led Zeppelin), was recruited as Eric Clapton's replacement in The Yardbirds. Jeff Beck played a key role in some of the Yardbirds’ biggest hits including “Heart Full Of Soul,” “I'm A Man” and “Shapes Of Things.” After being fired from the Yardbirds in 1967, Jeff Beck recorded his most famous solo song, “Hi Ho Silver Lining,” which was never a major hit but became an obligatory ingredient of late 1960s clubs and parties. That same year, he formed the Jeff Beck Group which featured Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood in the original line-up. Jeff Beck's increasingly ambitious experiments with guitar technology paved the way for heavy metal, while producing two albums, Truth in 1968 and Beck-Ola in 1969. Internal disputes led to the group's split in the summer '69 after which Beck formed a new band adopting a more soulful style, including bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice. The three of them subsequently formed the power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice who became a major live attraction before splitting in 1974. Jeff Beck continued his solo career and released now-classic albums such as Blow by Blow (1975) and Wired (1976). Ill-health limited his subsequent work, although he still made sporadic recordings and live show appearances which proved his groundbreaking skill remained undiminished. In 2009, Beck embarked on a world tour and was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. The following year, he released the album, Emotion & Commotion, which featured a combination of new songs and covers including his takes on “Over The Rainbow” and “Nessun Dorma,” the latter of which earned him a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance, one of a total of eight Grammy Awards during his career. Jeff Beck joined up with Brian Wilson in 2013 to record as well as tour together around the US. The following year saw the start of another world tour for Jeff Beck, followed by a performance with Joss Stone at the Royal Albert Hall in London. In 2016, he released the Loud Hailer, which proved to be his final solo album. In 2022, he collaborated with actor and musician Johnny Depp on the album 18, and then toured to support the release. Jeff Beck died on January 10, 2023, of bacterial meningitis at the age of 78.