Jeff Beck: Was he ever considered the best rock guitarist?

[2HBStrat]

The new issue of Guitar World magazine has an article about Jeff Beck after his passing. I haven't read it all but so far it is a good article, but...I DO have a couple (so far) of quibbles. And I know it's one person who wrote the article so it is, after all, opinions. However...

Quibble #1: the writer said that (sic) many consider Jeff Beck the greatest rock guitarist of all time. Is this true? I know Beck is in the upper echelon of rock guitarists but I don't think I've ever seen him in an "Best Rock Guitarists" List as #1. Even Guitar World magazine listed him as #9.

The 100 greatest guitarists of all time

A comprehensive rundown of the best guitarists of all time, featuring the trailblazers, the early innovators, the best jazz, rock, indie, blues, metal and acoustic players – and the top guitarists around today...

www.guitarworld.com

Quibble #2: He says that the cover of Rave-Up, the first Yardbirds album with JB as lead guitarist, is just as iconic as the back cover of John Mayall's 'Beano' album because it shows Beck's beat up Esquire. Well, it doesn't really show the Esquire. In fact, it shows so little of the guitar that (1) you can't really tell that it isn't a Telecaster, and (2) you can't see the wear/modification to the body that Beck did to the guitar. He said that that cover influenced a lot of guitarists to get Esquires. We all know about the modded Esquire NOW but you sure couldn't tell it from that Rave-Up cover pic.

 

[NWinther]

All this best business…..
Makes no sense.

 

[2HBStrat]

All this best business…..
Makes no sense.

I don't disagree but they all do it. All of the guitar magazines have "best of" lists. Movies have awards every year. Same for recordings. Even in my line of work there are awards for best of...

 

[brookdalebill]

He was great because he had his own unique approach to playing.
He was great because he never stopped growing.
He was great because he transitioned from sideman/guitarist to soloist/leader.
He sounded like absolutely no one else.
That’s why he’s in the pantheon, IMO.

 

[Peegoo]

Some rock commentators as well as players have considered Beck the best rock guitarist, but that is all subjective opinion.

Ref: see other thread here re: The Best Movie Ever. Did you notice the consensus?

Neither did I

 

[BigDaddyLH]

When someone dies, you expect these sorts of articles.

I would call him "a guitarist's guitarist". How many non-guitarists know about him?

 

[nvilletele]

And he could really play anything, and make a guitar sound exactly what he wanted it to sound like.

He had a natural ability that I’ve never seen in anyone else.

Best? Not sure what that exactly means.

He was amazingly special. No one else was really like him.

 

[effzee]

I stopped reading when I got to the Guitar World.

Full stop.

There's far better info and more informed opinions to be found right here in these forums.

 

[Red Ryder]

There's a best guitarist on every street corner.

 

[Old Plank]

He was considered the best.

There are 217 non-guitarists that know about him.

This is all official info, feel free to share!

 

[421JAM]

Quibble #1: the writer said that (sic) many consider Jeff Beck the greatest rock guitarist of all time. Is this true?

Yes, it is true. I've been reading guitarists say this in interviews for years. For example:

Bonamassa said it:

https://guitar.com/news/music-news/...ock-n-roll-guitarist-eric-clapton-eric-gales/

John McLaughlin called him the best:

https://theconversation.com/jeff-be...-that-made-him-such-a-unique-guitarist-197840

The Guardian thinks so:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2...70th-birthday-super-guitarist-rocks-backpages

Joe Perry, Alice Cooper, and Brian May agree:

https://www.vulture.com/2023/01/jeff-beck-death-tributes.html

 

[2HBStrat]

Yes, it is true. I've been reading guitarists say this in interviews for years. For example:

Bonamassa said it:

https://guitar.com/news/music-news/...ock-n-roll-guitarist-eric-clapton-eric-gales/

John McLaughlin called him the best:

https://theconversation.com/jeff-be...-that-made-him-such-a-unique-guitarist-197840

The Guardian thinks so:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2...70th-birthday-super-guitarist-rocks-backpages

Joe Perry, Alice Cooper, and Brian May agree:

https://www.vulture.com/2023/01/jeff-beck-death-tributes.html

Those are all post-death?

 

[bottlenecker]

Quibble #1: the writer said that (sic) many consider Jeff Beck the greatest rock guitarist of all time. Is this true? I know Beck is in the upper echelon of rock guitarists but I don't think I've ever seen him in an "Best Rock Guitarists" List as #1. Even Guitar World magazine listed him as #9.

Guitar magazines are terrible. I couldn't care less who they rate as number 1. There is no number 1. That's a silly idea. I also don't care about rock guitar players. But of all the tired old noodlers in the marshall stack crowd who were constantly on guitar magazine covers, there are only two I actually like and still listen to the music of. Jeff Beck is one.
Of course there are lots of people who've thought Jeff Beck was the best rock guitarist. People who's opinions are worth more than a guitar magazine ranking, and worth more than mine.
I don't even want to know who GW's 1-8 was.
But there's no numbers anyway.

 

[Chiogtr4x]

No need for a label for Jeff Beck

We all know who he was and what he could do.
Just honor Jeff with a great tribute-maybe fellow musician and friends' testimonials, photos, bio/bands...

and play his music, keep it alive

Jeff's passing got me by surprise.
Unlike a lot of his contemporaries that are still out there and still playing ( say Paul, EC, Stones, Bob Dylan, etc.,) and getting old, I just never thought of that with Jeff.
He seemed ageless & invincible

 

[421JAM]

Those are all post-death?

Some are, some aren't.

 

[rdjones]

From Wiki:
"Beck was voted No. 1 lead guitarist of 1966 in the British music magazine Beat Instrumental."

Then along came Hendrix.
Although clearly at the time Clapton, Beck and Page were running head-to-heads in the pop guitarist rankings, if any such ranks had any real meaning other than popularity.
I do remember hearing Beck's name being mentioned as "one of the best" in those days before I actually heard his work (and before the emergence of Hendrix).
Hs reputation had preceded him.

 

[2HBStrat]

From Wiki:
"Beck was voted No. 1 lead guitarist of 1966 in the British music magazine Beat Instrumental."...

That was probably before the Beano album came out. Clapton was out of the Yardbirds, Beck was in. "Having a Rave Up" came out in November 1965...Beano came out in July 1966 and Are you Experienced in May 1967. Those albums changed everything.

I got interested in The Yardbirds when I heard a local cover band play "Mister You're a Better Man than I" back in the 60's, probably just after, or maybe even before, I was even in a band. I became aware of Jeff Beck at that time. I always thought his playing was quirky and weird, even on his own records.

 

[AAT65]

Guitar magazines are terrible.

Fixed that for you…

 

[schmee]

it's just so subjective. There is no "best" IMO. Best often = "what you like", or "popular sales".

If there were "best" it likely wouldn't be any of the names commonly mentioned.
Beck was never on my "gotta listen" list. Be he was of course an excellent player.

 

[2HBStrat]

it's just so subjective. There is no "best" IMO. Best often = "what you like", or "popular sales".

If there were "best" it likely wouldn't be any of the names commonly mentioned.
Beck was never on my "gotta listen" list. Be he was of course an excellent player.

Sure, it's subjective. But it's also the norm. No different than Motor Trend's "Car of the Year." You're always going to have best-of's.