Beck ranked in the top five of Rolling Stone and other magazine's list of 100 greatest guitarists. He was often called a "guitarist's guitarist". Rolling Stone describes him as "one of the most influential lead guitarists in rock". Although he recorded two hit albums (in 1975 and 1976) as a solo act, Beck did not establish or maintain the sustained commercial success of many of his contemporaries and bandmates.
Beck earned wide critical praise and received the Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance six times and Best Pop Instrumental Performance once. In 2014 he received the British Academy's Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. Beck was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: as a member of the Yardbirds (1992) and as a solo artist (2009).
Beck was born on 24 June 1944 to Arnold and Ethel Beck at 206 Demesne Road, Wallington, England. As a 10-year-old, Beck sang in a church choir. He attended Sutton Manor Schoo and Sutton East County Secondary Modern School.
Beck cited Les Paul as the first electric guitar player who impressed him. Beck said that he first heard an electric guitar when he was 6 years old and heard Paul playing "How High the Moon" on the radio. He asked his mother what it was. After she replied it was an electric guitar and was all tricks, he said, "That's for me". Cliff Gallup, lead guitarist with Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps, was also an early musical influence, followed by B.B. King and Steve Cropper. Beck considers Lonnie Mack "a rock guitarist [who] was unjustly overlooked [and] a major influence on him and many others."
As a teenager he learned to play on a borrowed guitar and made several attempts to build his own instrument, first by gluing and bolting together cigar boxes for the body and an unsanded fence-post for the neck with model aircraft control-lines and frets simply painted on.
Upon leaving school, he attended Wimbledon College of Art, after which he was briefly employed as a painter and decorator, a groundsman on a golf course and a car paint-sprayer. Beck's sister Annetta introduced him to Jimmy Page when both were teenagers.
Beck stopped regular use of a pick in the 1980s. He produces a wide variety of sounds by using his thumb to pluck the strings, his ring finger on the volume knob and his little finger on the vibrato bar on his signature Fender Stratocaster. By plucking a string and then 'fading in' the sound with the volume knob he creates a unique sound that can resemble a human voice, among other effects. He frequently uses a wah-wah pedal both live and in the studio. Eric Clapton once said, "With Jeff, it's all in his hands".
Along with Stratocasters, Beck occasionally played Fender Telecaster and Gibson Les Paul models as well. His amplifiers were primarily Fender and Marshall. In his earlier days with the Yardbirds, Beck also used a 1954 Fender Esquire guitar (now owned by Seymour W. Duncan, and housed in the Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) through Vox AC30s. He also played through a variety of fuzz pedals and echo units along with this set-up and has used the Pro Co RAT distortion pedal. The pickup was based on a Gibson pickup rewound by Duncan and used in a salvaged Telecaster dubbed the "Tele-Gib" which he had constructed as a gift to Beck. Scott Morgan of the Rationals, who at one point shared a dressing room with the Yardbirds, recalls how Beck amplified his lead guitar through a Vox Superbeetle while using banjo strings for the unwound G string on his guitar because "they didn't make sets with an unwound G at that point."
During the ARMS Charity Concerts in 1983 Beck used his battered Fender Esquire along with a 1954 Stratocaster and a Jackson Soloist. On Crazy Legs (1993) he played a Gretsch Duo Jet, his signature Stratocaster and various other guitars. In 2007, Fender created a Custom Shop Tribute series version of his beat-up Fender Esquire as well as his Artist Signature series Stratocaster.
Described by Rolling Stone as "one of the most influential lead guitarists in rock", Beck cited his major influences as Les Paul, the Shadows, Cliff Gallup, Ravi Shankar, Roy Buchanan, Chet Atkins, Django Reinhardt, Steve Cropper and Lonnie Mack. Of John McLaughlin, Beck said: "[he] has given us so many different facets of the guitar and introduced thousands of us to world music, by blending Indian music with jazz and classical. I'd say he was the best guitarist alive."
According to musicologist and historian Bob Gulla, Beck is credited for popularising the use of audio feedback and distortion in rock guitar. Prior to Beck's arrival, guitar playing generally conformed to the "clean, bright, and jangly" sounds of early-1960s British Invasion bands or the bluesy aesthetic of 1950s African-American performers like Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley. During his short time with the Yardbirds, Beck's experimentation with feedback, distortion, and "fuzz" tone "pushed the band into directions that would open the door for psychedelic rock" while "jolt[ing] British rock forward", according to Gulla. While Beck was not the first rock guitarist to experiment with electronic distortion, he nonetheless helped to redefine the sound and role of the electric guitar in rock music. Beck's work with the Yardbirds and the Jeff Beck Group's 1968 album Truth were seminal influences on heavy metal music, which emerged in full force in the early 1970s. Gulla identifies one of Beck's characteristic traits to be his sense of pitch, particularly in exercising the whammy bar to create sounds ranging from "nose-diving bombs to subtle, perfectly pitched harmonic melodies".
According to guitarist and author Jack Wilkins, Beck is regarded alongside Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton as one of his generation's greatest guitarists, receiving praise for his technical skill and versatile playing. Stephen Thomas Erlewine finds him to be "as innovative as Jimmy Page, as tasteful as Eric Clapton, and nearly as visionary as Jimi Hendrix", although unable to achieve their mainstream success, "primarily because of the haphazard way he approached his career" while often lacking a star singer to help make his music more accessible. On his recorded output by 1991, Erlewine remarked that "never has such a gifted musician had such a spotty discography", believing Beck had largely released "remarkably uneven" solo records and only "a few terrific albums". In Christgau's Record Guide (1981), Robert Christgau essentialised Beck as "a technician" and questioned his ability to "improvise long lines, or jazz it up with a modicum of delicacy, or for that matter get funky", although he later observed a "customary focus, loyalty, and consistency of taste".
In 2015, Beck was ranked No. 5 in Rolling Stone' magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists". In an accompanying essay, guitarist Mike Campbell applauded Beck for his "brilliant technique" and "personality" in his playing, including a sense of humor expressed through the growl of his wah-wah effects. Campbell also credited Beck with expanding the boundaries of the blues, particularly on his two collaborations with Stewart.
Rock My Plimsoul
Jeff Beck Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Listen!
You can rock me, rock me all night long.
Keep on rockin' me baby, rock me all night long.
'Cause you know what, when you rock me,
My poor back it ain't got a bone.
Way down in the country.
Keep on rollin' me baby, roll me all night long.
You know, you can shake, rattle, and roll me,
Till my back it ain't got a bone.
And I won't mind that! Yea!
Ow! Over here!
Keep on rollin' me baby, just roll me all night long,
I won't mind it.
Keep on rollin' me baby, roll me all night long.
'Cause you know what, when you shake, rattle, and roll me,
My old back ain't got a bone.
So will you do it?
Keep on rollin' me baby,
Rollin' me baby.
Any old way you choose it,
Keep on rollin' me.
Ha, ha. Keep rollin' me honey,
'Till my old back ain't, got a bone. Over there!
Rockin' me baby,
Rockin' me baby,
Rock me honey,
Rockin' me baby, whoa whoa
I don't mind which way that ya', come on honey, keep on.
Rockin' me baby,
Rockin' me baby,
Keep on rockin' me baby,
You know you'd better keep on rockin' me all night long.
You can rock me baby, yeah, yeah, ow!
The song "Rock My Plimsoul" by Jeff Beck, featuring Rod Stewart on vocals, is a classic blues rock tune with sexually charged lyrics. The song is all about the pleasure that the singer receives from the physical act of rocking, rolling and shaking by his lover whom he addresses as baby. The singer asks the baby to keep rocking him all night long, promising that his "poor back ain't got a bone" when he is rocked. He then asks her to roll him down like they do with the wagon wheels way down in the country. The singer enjoys being rocked so much that he doesn't mind being rolled, shaken, and rattled all night long. The song concludes with the singer repeating that he wants to be rocked all night long.
The lyrics of the song are typical blues lyrics that revolve around sexual pleasure. The song is about the physical pleasures that one receives from being rocked, rolled, shaken, and rattled. The lyrics are not explicit, but the sexual undertones are quite clear. The song is an upbeat blues-rock tune that features excellent guitar work by Jeff Beck, and the vocals by Rod Stewart are fantastic.
Line by Line Meaning
Listen!
Pay attention, what follows is important
You can rock me, rock me all night long.
You can satisfy me sexually for the entire night
Keep on rockin' me baby, rock me all night long.
Please don't stop sexually satisfying me for the entire night
'Cause you know what, when you rock me, My poor back it ain't got a bone.
My pleasure is so intense that it leaves me feeling boneless
You can roll me, just like they roll the wagon wheel, Way down in the country.
You can move me and manipulate me as easily as a wagon wheel in the country
Keep on rollin' me baby, roll me all night long.
Please keep moving me all night long
You know, you can shake, rattle, and roll me, Till my back it ain't got a bone. And I won't mind that! Yea!
You can pleasure me so much that I'll become boneless, and I'll enjoy it
Keep on rollin' me baby, just roll me all night long, I won't mind it.
I don't mind if you move me and pleasure me all night long
'Cause you know what, when you shake, rattle, and roll me, My old back ain't got a bone. So will you do it?
I become boneless when you pleasure me this way, are you up for it?
Keep on rollin' me baby, Rollin' me baby. Any old way you choose it, Keep on rollin' me. Ha, ha. Keep rollin' me honey, 'Till my old back ain't, got a bone. Over there!
Keep moving me in any way you want to, until I become boneless
Rockin' me baby, Rockin' me baby, Rock me honey.
Sexually satisfying me really feels like rocking me
Rockin' me baby, whoa whoa
Sexually satisfying me gives me such an intense feeling that is hard to describe
I don't mind which way that ya', come on honey, keep on.
I don't care how you satisfy me sexually, please keep doing it
Keep on rockin' me baby, You know you'd better keep on rockin' me all night long.
Please keep satisfying me sexually for the entire night
You can rock me baby, yeah, yeah, ow!
You can sexually satisfy me and make me feel pleasure
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JEFFREY ROD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@olly8
Just love this whole album!! This is from when they FIRST (1968) came across The Pond-but a much HEAVIER sound than other Brits at this time. Sounds better than ever listening now!! Jeff's guitar playing grabs you and doesn't let you go!! SPECTACULAR 💥💫
Your will be missed, Jeff-- IMMENSELY...."TRUTH"!!
🎸⚡️🔥 RIP ✨️
@jerzybecik1120
RIP Jeff Beck.Big thank you for the music you gave us. "Truth" goes to us straight from heaven. I hope there is a place for you there.
@josephlemko3027
It is unbelievable how good this band was. It was a shame that their time together was so short.
@familiarpurrson8744
Yes. You can say that about pretty much all of Beck's groups, though. The man was always restless, which was both a disappointment and a amazement at what he'd be doing next.
@brucejackson6519
Beck's Motorcycle accident loosened Rod Stewart & Ronny
@Xporttek777
RIP Jeff Beck
One of the realest, period.
@johnhowell7339
I was 15 when I saw The Jeff Beck Group at the Filmore West in SF with Rod Stewart vocals and Ronnie wood on bass. Thought they were the best live band I had ever seen and there were a lot of bands in the City at that time! Truth is one of the greatest albums of all time!!
@fritzduerst1875
yes , the first free pirate radio station in swiss , called r a d i o 24 , bring in the blues -special the album Truth , i was graved for , and buy . S m IL E
@kevinobrien1259
Great version of this on the flip side of one of his singles, possibly hi ho silver lining.
@robertatherley7761
@@kevinobrien1259 spot-on. Preferred the more up-tempo version to listen and play