The artist Jeff Beck thought music would be better without: “I don’t think we need another”
There’s always been a lot of spectacle around every generation of rock stars. As much as people might like the idea of playing music because they like performing with their fellow bandmates, that doesn’t necessarily get the public’s attention as much as those willing to stick a knife through the heart of whatever genre came before them and pave the way for something new. Although Jeff Beck remained one of the few that seemed to exist outside of genre boundaries, he was aware enough to realise that some musicians didn’t need to be heard from again.
But Beck always had a different definition of what a rock star should be compared to everyone else. His music always revolved around instrumental-based music, and while there would be icons like Rod Stewart who made appearances on his records, it was much better to let his guitar do the talking half the time than worry about the baggage that comes with something trying to hog the stage.
And throughout rock history, Beck did see his fair share of frontmen who seemed far too high on their own self-esteem. The 1980s might have been a fine time for Beck to lay down licks for people like Tina Turner, but he knew that things could end up getting out of hand if he were to have been behind someone like David Lee Roth when he first arrived.
The grunge movement should have stomped out that flavour of rock and roll star, but once Noel Gallagher started making waves with Oasis, Beck was less than thrilled with that kind of unchecked ego, saying in 2001, “That would be the downside of it. Aside from not looking and sounding as great as you want to sound, or how you want to sound or look, if you did like the way you looked, you’d go, ‘Hey, I’m great!’” When grilled about Gallagher specifically, though, Beck was far less kind, saying, “I don’t think we need another one of those!”
Then again, comparing Noel’s style of songwriting against Beck’s approach to music is like walking into two completely different musical worlds. Yes, both of them fall under the rock umbrella, but Beck seemed to be in it for the pure art of making music, usually crafting a song that was about playing off each of his band members and pushing himself whenever he made a new album.
That’s not to say that Noel didn’t push himself, but he knew he had a limited vocabulary on the instrument. He figured he wasn’t going to be the next Eric Clapton or even the next Johnny Marr, but by sticking to one scale shape throughout most of his career, he understood that melody was the number-one thing that people kept coming back to, even if it was incredibly simple.
There’s also the odd tip of the hat to the blues in some of Noel’s work, but it’s not like he was trying to learn the same licks that Beck was. He was more than happy to talk himself up as one of the greatest musical forces that England had ever produced, but when listening to a song like ‘Live Forever’ or ‘Champagne Supernova’, it’s clear that he had a good argument for himself when legions of fans started singing along.
While Beck and Gallagher did have an overarching love of rock and roll throughout their time in the sun, their styles might be like comparing an apple to a grilled cheese sandwich, respectively. Beck’s music might be a lot healthier for you and can be added to many different artists’ songs and still sound great, but there’s nothing wrong with the kind of comfort that keeps you engaged on every single track.
