Sometimes the way we intend for things to happen and what actually occurs become two completely different things. Over six full years of writing Ted Tocks Covers the goal has always been to feature as many of the finest musicians of our lifetime, and in many cases the artists who inspired them. Tracing this often goes back to the early part of the 20th century. Occasionally I am struck by some performers who for one reason or another, I have not been able to give the attention they deserve. It happens.
So today we will devote a post to the guitar virtuosity of the late-great Jeff Beck. Please sit back and enjoy a little ‘Freeway Jam’ and as we travel that highway together, we can celebrate just some of the intriguing cast of artists that worked with Jeff Beck along the way.
It seems appropriate to begin with the first known studio recording of Jeff Beck. Here he is adding a funky groove to Fitz and Startz single ‘I’m Not Running Away’/’So Sweet’ exactly sixty years ago. This is both fun and interesting to listen to all these years later.
Beck’s guitar work caught the attention of another highly regarded musician in the studio scene. His name was Jimmy Page. In March of 1965, Page recommended Jeff Beck as the replacement for Eric Clapton in the Yardbirds. Just reflect on that sentence for a moment. Three of the greatest guitarists in music history.
While Jeff Beck’s time in the Yardbirds consisted of just 20 months, it is noteworthy for being the band’s most commercially successful period. Two significant recordings during this time are ‘Over Under Sideways Down’, heard here;
In May of 1966, Jeff Beck created his famous track ‘Beck’s Bolero. It is intriguing to note that he opted to employ a studio cast to record this piece. Check out the lineup that he assembled. Jimmy Page played 12-string guitar. Nicky Hopkins was on piano. Another highly regarded session player was on bass. None other than John Paul Jones played bass, and to round out the ensemble, the legendary Keith Moon sat behind the drum kit. Here is a Ted Tocks Covers piece that speaks of this celebrated musical union.
Jeff Beck’s time in the Yardbirds was known to be somewhat tumultuous. And he was ultimately fired for his erratic behavior. Perhaps buoyed by the critical acclaim afforded by his time in the Yardbirds and the excitement surrounding ‘Beck’s Bolero’, Jeff Beck created his own supergroup that consisted of several rising stars in the London music scene. Say hello to the Jeff Beck Group which consisted of Rod Stewart on vocals, Ronnie Wood on bass, Nicky Hopkins on piano and Aynsley Dunbar on drums, who was ultimately replaced by Micky Waller. Following the release of two phenomenal albums; ‘Truth’ heard here;
and ‘Beck-ola’…
…the Jeff Beck Group disbanded when Stewart and Wood opted to move on to form the Faces.
This is what led to Jeff Beck’s first solo album ‘Rough and Ready’ in 1971. The lineup for this album consisted of Bobby Tench on vocals and rhythm guitar, Clive Chaman on bass, Cozy Powell on drums and Max Middleton on piano and keyboards. Middleton becomes a key player in this story because his contribution to ‘Rough and Ready’ was the instrumental piece known as ‘Max’s Tune’.
Never one to sit still for long, Jeff Beck set his solo work aside for a couple of years, opting to form a new collaboration with bass player Tim Bogert and drummer Carmen Appice. This group’s only studio album would be the appropriately titled ‘Beck Bogert & Appice’ which is full of incredible recordings, but is perhaps most noteworthy for the quality version of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’ which was borne out of a jam session between the legendary Motown performer and Jeff Beck. Stevie Wonder had a history of performing most of the instruments on his recordings, but he frequently invited noteworthy guitar players to participate. Having been informed that Jeff Beck was an admirer of his work, Wonder invited him to sit in on his sessions for the ‘Talking Book’. It was Jeff Beck that came up with the opening drum beat which inspired Stevie Wonder to improvise the earliest form of ‘Superstition’ including the great riff that we all know and love to this day. Here is that story.
Because Jeff Beck played such a key role in ‘Superstition’, Stevie Wonder allowed him to record it on his ‘Beck Bogert & Appice’ album. The plan was for Beck’s version to be released first, but Motown CEO Berry Gordy was adamant that Wonder’s song would be a hit, and the best way of ensuring it would not be overshadowed was to lead the way. Ultimately, Gordy’s fast-tracking and a delay on the Beck, Bogert and Appice end led to the Stevie Wonder release coming out first in the fall of 1972. It went on to become a #1 single on the U.S Billboard charts. Bring on the clavs…
By early 1974, Beck, Bogert and Appice had decided to discontinue their collaboration. This led to Jeff Beck’s decision to go pursue his second solo venture, but not before he famously auditioned to be a member of the Rolling Stones. By all accounts this one-day jam session was a bit of a mutual admiration society but it was determined that their musical styles were not compatible. The position would ultimately go to Beck’s former Jeff Beck Group player, Ronnie Wood.
Beck’s decision to go solo was accompanied by a determination to record an instrumental album. For this recording, he assembled an eclectic cast that saw him bring back Max Middleton on piano and keyboards. As mentioned above, Middleton plays an integral role because he wrote ‘Freeway Jam’. The possibilities were apparent following Middleton’s strong contribution to ‘Rough and Ready’.
The bass player would be Phil Chen who has a long list of impressive credits on his musical resume including Rod Stewart, Pete Townshend, Eric Clapton, Ray Charles, Bob Marley and Jackson Browne, as well as John Densmore and Robby Krieger of the Doors in their incarnation as the Butts Band. The drummer for this group was Richard Bailey whose credits include Johnny Nash, Bob Marley, Billy Ocean and The Who.
Stay tuned, because the names get bigger. Part of Jeff Beck’s attraction to the possibilities of an instrumental album as the success of the Mahavishnu Orchestra’s 1974 album ‘Apocalypse’. The producer of this acclaimed album was none other than George Martin whose incredible run with the Beatles made him a highly sought after visionary in the studio. When you add a couple of key contributions from Stevie Wonder in the form of ‘Thelonius’ which he wrote but never recorded, and the stunning track “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers’ which he recorded with his wife Syreeta Wright.
Jeff Beck dedicated his instrumental version of “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers’ to his friend Roy Buchanan. He also acknowledges Stevie Wonder in the liner notes.
If you listen to ‘Blow by Blow’ in its entirety you will get a sense of Jeff Beck’s pure inspiration from the opening note through to the final cut. This is yet another must own on any music lovers record collection. ‘Blow by Blow’ is regarded by many as his finest recording and to this day it exists as his highest charting album.
Before I move to the cover versions of today’s feature, let’s enjoy a few additional versions of ‘Freeway Jam’.
Initially, ‘Blow by Blow’ was celebrated more among Jeff Beck’s loyal audience and music aficionados. It wasn’t until Jeff Beck released his 1977 album ‘Jeff Beck with the Jan Hammer Group Live’ that ‘Freeway Jam’ caught the attention of radio stations and began to receive a ton of airplay. The connection to Hammer who is a celebrated keyboard virtuoso was intriguing. This album captures a 1976 performance from the Spectrum in Philadelphia. Listen to the literal freeway sounds as the song begins. When the traffic is bumper to bumper, sometimes the best thing to do is take a deep breath and turn up the music.
Going back through the years of ‘Freeway Jam’ performances, few offered a more dynamic combination of performers than this 1986 show from Japan. We are treated with the dual guitar attack of Jeff Beck and Steve Lukather of Toto fame. Mix in a rhythm section that includes Jan Hammer on keyboards ‘80s style, Simon Phillips on drums (Peter Gabriel, Pete Townshend, Frank Zappa, Judas Priest, Toto, Michael Schenker and Tears for Fears) and Doug Wimbish on bass guitar. In the ‘80s Wimbish was turning heads in the music world and by 1993 he was on the shortlist to replace Bill Wyman as the bassist for the Rolling Stones.
Moving on to 2007, enjoy Jeff Beck and his band featuring Tal Wilkenfeld on bass guitar. The 21-year-old Wilkenfeld is seen here at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London.
Now let’s check out some cover versions of ‘Freeway Jam’. When you are rated by your peers as one of the best guitars players to ever live, many of the industry’s finest are more than happy to take a shot at recreating your work. Here is Steve Morse doing a phenomenal job on a 2007 compilation called ‘This is Fusion Guitar’. Best known for his work with the Dixie Dregs, Deep Purple and even a brief stint with Kansas, Morse is expected to release a new album this April.
Fans of Genesis and Phil Collins will recognize Daryl Stuermer. This abbreviated version of ‘Freeway Jam’ was recorded at Heid Music in Appleton, Wisconsin. It was just too interesting to pass up.
Here’s another treat. Check out this live version from renowned bassist Billy Sheehan at Club Tucuman Quilmes in Argentina in 2019. This stellar moment includes Adrian Esposito on drums and Javi Vinas on guitar. I love this. It doesn’t always have to be about the guitar.
Before the traffic clears up and we bring it on home, here is Jeff Beck live at the Meridian Hall in Toronto in October of 2022. This lineup included Canadian, Rhonda Smith on bass (Prince, Chaka Khan and Beyonce), Anika Nilles on drums and Robert Stevenson on keyboards.
Today’s ride was all about the legend of Jeff Beck.
Last January, I was working in my home office when news of his shocking death came over my news feed. I scrambled to some trusted news sites in order to verify this information. So sudden, it was one of those times where you couldn’t quite believe your eyes. He succumbed to a bacterial meningitis infection in Rivenhall. England. Almost immediately musicians the world over began to share their thoughts on this guitar master. I will leave the words of Jimmy Page here to summarize the way so many of his peers felt about Beck, not only as a player, but as a person.
The six stringed Warrior is no longer here for us to admire the spell he could weave around our mortal emotions. Jeff could channel music from the ethereal. His technique unique. His imaginations apparently limitless. Jeff, I will miss you along with your millions of fans”
Jimmy Page
If you have read all the way down to this point you are clearly a huge fan of Jeff Beck so here are a couple of other Ted Tocks Covers that feature Beck’s guitar work. Check out the story of ‘Goin’ Down Slow’ by Howlin’ Wolf. This concludes with an unbelievable version featuring Jeff Beck on guitar and Tom Jones on vocals.
Then we move on to the old Curtis Mayfield classic ‘People Get Ready’. When you get to Jeff Beck’s guitar work on the Rod Stewart cover your hair will stand on end. It begs to be played more than once. The Beck/Stewart magic is tough to match.
Before I sign off, here is a brief anecdote.
I actually wrote this feature twice. In preparation for today’s date, I had something written a few days in advance. Through some sort of computer glitch, it didn’t save properly and during a power surge my computer shut down and since it wasn’t saved, I was unbale to restore it despite every effort.
Now, there was no way I was going to cop out and just re-post an old feature that included Jeff Beck. So, I hammered out a new version.
No problem.
While I typed away ‘madly’ in more ways than one, I just listened to Jeff Beck’s guitar wash over me in waves of brilliance. There are a lot of ways to pass the time, but listening to Jeff Beck through the many stages of his career can definitely be filed under Q for quality time.
So here you go. I hope you enjoy reading and listening as much as I did, as I both painstakingly and enjoyably pieced it all together.
The joy of Ted Tocks Covers starts with the love of music. Through this appreciation comes the willingness to invest the time to share the story and the songs.
And Jeff Beck’s guitar will ring through the air on this day as we remember this immense talent who shared the stage with so many greats, and only reluctantly did he stand in the spotlight.
Guitars really do talk.
Ted Tocks Covers 