From Slash to David Gilmour: The influence of Jeff Beck in the words of those he inspired
In the realm of great guitarists, it would be odd—if not slightly offensive to the genre—if Jeff Beck wasn’t immediately cited as a leader. Beck wasn’t just a guitar-playing virtuoso; he was a living example of how impactful the intersection of earlier American rock ‘n’ roll legends and the British invasion could be, exhibiting how such an explosion of two forces could erupt into a legion of irrefutably brilliant musicians.
Starting out as a member of The Yardbirds before developing as a dynamic player within the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice, Beck innovated an intricate style of guitar playing that encouraged others to attempt to follow suit. He approached the guitar like a professional architect, blending styles and creating musical landscapes never before imagined.
For this reason, and due to Beck’s effortless ability to blur lines previously left unexplored, it’s safe to say he quickly became one of the most worshipped guitarists of all time, reaching the souls of many coveted artists across almost every genre. One such figure is Eddie Van Halen, who never became anything other than besotted with Beck’s sheer dynamism whenever he picked up a guitar.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2011, Halen discussed the reasons he became drawn to Beck’s playing, alongside the work that first introduced him to his style. He said: “I didn’t get into him until Blow By Blow. Just the instrumentalness of it. And Wired. Interesting stuff in there. I guess it was just the experimentation in there that I liked.”
The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards has also shared his awe-inspired feelings towards the guitarist in recent times, telling Guitar World in 2023 that “he was a tremendous player”. As someone who has witnessed the realm of guitar music transition and transform over the years, Richards consistently viewed Beck as a class act. “The odd times we got together, I was always amazed by the stuff that he did with his tremolo bar. He was one of the best, man,” he added.
Eagles’ Joe Walsh shared a similar sentiment when he described Beck as someone who effortlessly took guitar playing to “another galaxy”. In his view, Beck never really played guitar, he played his own instrument, transforming what others describe as a guitar to something that took on a life of its own. “I listen to that and just shake my head,” he explained. “I don’t know”.
Nile Rodgers also touched upon this when he said: “He’s a unique individual. He just sounds like Jeff Beck and no one else”.
David Gilmour might have discussed a range of favourite guitar players over the years, but his appreciation for Beck is perhaps one of his most consistent, mostly due to how much he inspired him in terms of innovative qualities. “I have lots of favourite guitar players,” he said. “Probably the person who I have admired the longest and the most consistent is Jeff Beck, in the guitar playing stakes. A lovely guy.”
Although Beck’s style was irrefutably brilliant, another thing Gilmour appreciated was the way he often shattered boundaries by being completely fearless. “He is a maverick,” Gilmour added. “A maverick guitar player who doesn’t like to repeat himself. [One] who takes big risks all the time and has done all the way throughout his career”.
Although Ritchie Blackmore is many musicians’ favourite guitarist, namely due to the way he seamlessly blended classical with hard rock and heavy metal, he regarded Beck as the one true aficionado who “got the ball rolling” for hard rock. In fact, he once admitted that Beck not only inspired him but is “the only person I admire in the business”. This is a similar line of thinking Brian May exhibited when discussing how Beck influenced his style, especially considering the fact that May has admired Beck since watching one of his first shows with The Yardbirds at the Marquee Club.
Although it’s relatively obvious why someone like Jimmy Page would admire Beck, his appreciation makes even more sense when you consider the fact that Beck was there for him during one of his most challenging chapters. Specifically when Led Zeppelin disbanded and when he lost one of his closest friends, John Bonham.
Page reflected on his admiration of Beck in the 2018 documentary Still On The Run: The Jeff Beck Story, saying: “Everybody respects Jeff,” he said. “He’s an extraordinary musician and he’s developed a technique which is so complex, it’s just a beauty to behold and hear and to feel his playing”.
He added: “He’s having a conversation with you when he’s playing. It’s just he’s not singing”.
According to Slash, the world owes a lot to Beck, whose song ‘Superstition’ he once described as “one of the best rock guitar sounds of all time.” Elaborating on this strong statement, he added: “The sound this group gets out of the wah-wah bar and the distortion pedal, it’s a little bit funky, but it still rocks real fucking hard.”
Receiving an endorsement from Slash is perhaps a compliment of the highest order, but no one seems more worthy of such high-end praise than Beck himself. The Guns N’ Roses musician told Guitar Magazine in 1988: “I’m completely taught by ear. If there was something that I liked, that I thought was cool, I’d learn it. I’d learn Jeff Beck like you wouldn’t know”.
Continuing: “I’d learn any lick that I thought was really good from Wired, Truth and Blow by Blow. Then he got into There and Back and it was too jazzy for me. Jeff Beck is the most amazing guitar player out of anybody that I can think of.”
He added: “He is the only guy that blows me away. So I would sit down and learn licks that hit me”.
As one of the finest rock guitarists of the contemporary era, an endorsement from Joe Bonamassa is always going to be worthy of note, and even more so if he calls you the “best rock ‘n’ roll guitar player in the world”. While describing the exact reason anybody immediately becomes spellbound when in the presence of Beck, he recalled the magical moment he played alongside the musician at a festival some years back.
“[Beck] would retreat into his dressing room and he’d take his guitar and plug it into his little practice amp – it was probably just some little battery-powered thing,” Bonamassa said. “And I should have been playing too because we had to go on before; I couldn’t even look at the guitar while I was listening to that.”
He added: “It made you want to weep and you’re like ‘it’s him, it comes out of him, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a little practice amp, you just give him a guitar and he’ll figure out a way to get these sounds out of it, and that’s complete raw talent, it’s not the equipment, it’s just him.”
Beck remained active in the years leading up to his tragic passing, proving that even in his later years, he was as dedicated and committed to the craft as ever. His immense talent has left a lasting impact on the world of music, and his legacy lives on through those who continue to respect and admire his unparalleled contributions.
