With many of us Jeff Beck enthusiasts mourning his passing and celebrating his incredible body of work, I thought it would be interesting to engage in a discussion about his studio work that he recorded with other artists. Beck was known to frequently guest on other’s recordings, and not only did some of the results contain some of his greatest guitar work, but it highlights his incredible versatility and diversity as an artist. I tried to narrow my list to 20, but went slightly over. I left some cool stuff on the cutting room floor trying to narrow it down. The Dog Presides (Paul Jones, b-side, 1968) Looking For Another Pure Love (Stevie Wonder, Talking Book, 1972) White Lady (Badger, White Lady, 1974) Saint And The Rascal (Narada Michael Walden, Garden of Love Light, 1976) Rock N Roll Jelly (Stanley Clarke, Modern Man, 1978) Jamaican Boy (Stanley Clarke, I Wanna Play For You, 1979) Hot Rock (Cozy Powell, Tilt, 1981) Private Dancer (Tina Turner, Private Dancer, 1984 Infatuation (Rod Stewart, Camouflage, 1984) House of The Blue Danube (Malcolm McClaren & The Bootzilla Orchestra, Waltz Darling, 1989) The Ballad of Bill Hubbard (Roger Waters Amused To Death, 1991) What God Wants, Pt.3 (Roger Waters Amused To Death, 1991) Mustang Sally (Buddy Guy, Damn Right I’ve Got The Blues, 1991) (F****d Up) Beyond Belief (Duff McKagan, Believe In Me, 1993) Drive (Jan Hammer, Drive, 1995) Django (John McLaughlin, The Promise, 1995) The Guv’nor (Brian May, Another World, 1999) I, Who Have Nothing (Joe Cocker, Heart & Soul, 2004) Black Cloud (Morrissey, Years of Refussal, 2009) Mna Na h’Eireann (Sharon Corr, Dream of You, 2010) Do To Me (Trombone Shorty, For True, 2011) Say It’s Not True (Roger Taylor, single, 2014) Patient Number 9 (Ozzy Osbourne, Patient Number 9, 2022)
A wonderful and diverse list. In particular, I always have loved Jeff's guitar work on Stevie Wonder's "Looking For Another Pure Love". Even in the background throughout the song, Jeff is playing subtle stuff, but something always interesting and with great tone. And I still get a kick when Stevie says "Do it Jeff" at about the 1:58 mark:
I was going to mention his solos on Rod's "Infatuation" and Stevie Wonder's "Looking for Another Pure Love", but I see you've got them. Well, let's remember his uncredited contribution to the writing of "Superstition" by rewatching the epic appearance with Stevie at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Jeff does his thing from the 1:25 mark, and it is ****ing blinding.
with Imelda May on her own album... though they did a lot of stuff together it was usually in pursuit of Jeff's '50s passions... he repaid her in full with this sublime one...
I forgot all about that Malcom McLaren album. I bought it when it came out just because of Jeff’s track. There are several tracks on this thread I wasn’t aware of like Tom Jones and The Pretenders. Good idea for a thread.
Phil Collins put out a box set called “Plays well with others” that was a collection of tracks he was a guest on throughout his career- I think Jeff Beck could easily have the same and it would be killer. A licensing nightmare for sure but if Phil could get it done I am sure the Beck Estate could too.
Allegedly, there was supposed to be a fourth disc for Beckology consisting of a selection of live tracks and Beck’s guest recordings, but it was excised due to cost (presumably the licensing became prohibitive, especially in 1991 when competing labels were less open to such projects).
Beck’s cover of A Day In The Life became a well-known in-concert staple, but his studio rendition on George Martin’s final project is an astonishing performance, somewhat of a lost gem due to its hard to find nature.
Manic Depression - JB & Seal The 25th Anniversary Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Concerts: o People Get Ready - JB & Sting (my favorite version) o Foxey Lady - JB & Billy Gibbons
Here is another gem, Beck guesting on Jimmy Copley’s 2008 solo album Slap My Hand (former UPP drummer).
Love this. I'm a big-time Becko-phile and didn't know about this one. Thanks for sharing. Wow. Hard to find is right. The album at Qobuz download store doesn't include this track. Bummer.
Beck’s lead work on this Buddy Guy track is blistering. For whatever reason, recent CD and vinyl reissues now contain a watered-down mix with most of JB’s guitar mixed out except for the song’s coda.
