3.5/5 stars
The recording of Jeff Beck’s last album, 2010’sEmotion & Commotion, was delayed after Beck sliced off the end of his finger while prepping carrots for a dinner party at his London home. Thankfully, Live+, a collection of live tracks from last year’s US tour with ZZ Top, sees the guitar virtuoso back at top form.
Here, Beck plays the role of ventriloquist. He deftly coaxes an array of abstract sounds from his signature white Stratocaster like a snake charmer. They’re sounds so diverse you begin to expect an orchestra to reveal itself from the side of stage. A renowned instrumental guitarist, Beck has added vocals to this recording, accentuating his classic material whilst still allowing his instrument to take centre stage. He shreds, picks and distorts his way through old favourites like ‘Big Block’, ‘Hammerhead’ and ‘Morning Dew’, and on to subtle arrangements of Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come, ‘Superstition’ (a track originally penned for Beck by his friend Stevie Wonder) and his popular Beatles cover, ‘A Day In The Life’.
At Beck’s last show at the Enmore Theatre in 2010, two men sitting next to me, born a generation apart, were simultaneously shaking their heads in disbelief. Hopefully the guitarist will be back to tour his new material soon.
Jeff Beck Live+is out now through Warner.
