April 26, 2003 - May 26, 2003 - June 18, 2003 - July 8, 2003 - July 18, 2003 - July 24, 2003 - July 30, 2003
August 8, 2003 - August 28, 2003 - September 12, 2003 - September 24, 2003 - September 29, 2003
October 18, 2003 - November 19, 2003 December 9, 2003
From what we've heard, the Jools Holland show was spectacular. We're guessing Jeff did his contribution to Jool's latest CD 'Small World Big Band', "Drowning In My Own Tears" (the CD by the way we've found is only available as an import in states). Jeff also did "Be Bop A Lula" with Tom Jones, "Shake, Rattle And Roll" with Robert Plant, Tom Jones and Soloman Burke as well as Jool's band. Later Jeff and Robert Plant were said to be 'arm in arm' singing 'Auld Lang Syne'. The show ended with 'Hi Ho Silver Lining' with Robert Plant was singing backup vocals.
Seems Jeff Beck nostalgia is on a roll in Britain. Last week BBC Radio re-aired and an entire Jeff Beck Group MkII concert from 1972. We heard a while ago that this show would be aired on XM Satellite Radio but we never mentioned because, 'Who's got XM radio?'.
This weekend, January 18th and 19th, Jeff will be traveling across the channel to perform with Tony Hymas' group 'Ursus Minor' at a festival outside Paris. Ursus Minor consists of; Tony Hymas, Jef Lee Johnson, Francois Corneloup and Dave King. We understand the show will actually be in a small 750 seat theater and will also include a bunch of people we've never heard of here in states, some of which are French rappers. They include; Ada Dyer, Boots Riley(The Coup), Stic-Man, M1(Dead Prez), Spike and D'de Kabal.
Next on our menu, a note we got from our Japanese friend Toshiaki Igarashi who tells us that Jeff's new CD, title not yet revealed, is due to be released March 12th in Japan, March 18th in the USA. Toshi's never steered us wrong before so we felt pretty confident about these dates. It seems however, Sony steered Toshi wrong and the CD won't be out til later. Toshi also mentioned a new bootleg CD boxset that is available in Japan and is quite a find for all Beckologists. This unbelievable 5 CD set consists of the entire master reels from the 'Rough And Ready' album sessions and is appropriately titled, "Jeff Beck Group/Rough And Ready Reel Masters". It includes all the alternate takes and mixes of such songs as; "Got The Feeling", "Situation" and more. Dick W. will have more on this find and it's signifigance in a feature later.
Now this is really good news. The long awaited new Yardbirds' CD 'Birdland' with Jeff's cut, "My Blind Life" is due to be released April 22. It's the first album released under the Yardbirds name since 1967's 'Little Games'. The band which includes original members Chris Dreja on guitar and Jim McCarty on drums also includes former Dr. Feelgood lead guitarist Gypie Mayo, John Idan on bass and lead vocals and Alan Glen on harmonica. Everyone also does backing vocals. The guests on the album beside Jeff also include Brian May, Steve Vai, Slash, Joe Satriani and Steve Lukather.
Also came across a couple of pictures of Jeff you can view on the web...the first of Jeff and Stanley Clarke at: http://www.stanleyclarke.com/mvtemp/photogal/stan_&_jeffbeck.htm. The second has got just some great stuff: http://www.wireimages.com/. Just search for 'Jeff Beck'.
Also here's the LA Times article on the upcoming Yardbirds' album by our old bud Steve Hochman.
Yardbirds revival is a guitarists' fest By Steve Hochman Special to The Times Sunday, January 5, 2003 "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" happened 36 years ago, when the Yardbirds stood at the peak of psychedelic blues rock and launched budding guitar gods Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. They're happening again -- although the company isn't quite that illustrious. The first album under the Yardbirds name since 1967's "Little Games" is being finished, with plans for an April release. Although Beck, who guests on the new song "My Blind Life," is the only one of the three ax idols to appear on the new album, it showcases a parade of stellar guitarists influenced by the band. Brian May, Slash, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter and Steve Lukather take the role on new versions of such '60s Yardbirds hits as "For Your Love," "Shapes of Things" and "Over, Under, Sideways, Down." The Goo Goo Dolls' John Rzeznik provides lead vocals on "For Your Love." The revival is being anchored by two founding members, rhythm guitarist and bassist Chris Dreja and drummer Jim McCarty. Guitarist Gypie Mayo and harmonica player Alan Glen, both members of rowdy '70s English pub-rock band Dr. Feelgood, are also on board, and young bassist John Idan takes the lead vocal slot (original singer Keith Relf died in 1976). It comes at a time when the Yardbirds' influence can be felt in the emergence of the White Stripes, the Hives, the Strokes and other neo-garage rock acts, as well as "Little Steven's Underground Garage," the popular syndicated radio program devoted to the music with the E Street Band guitarist as host. Dreja says the current interest in garage rock is merely the surfacing of a longtime subculture. "I guess I've been hearing the Yardbirds' sound for the last 37 years," he says. "It's surprising that these bands are into it right now, though I, for one, after the techno years, love to hear live music in the raw manner. I've been playing around and had my ear to the ground. This music never went away." This venture was set in motion after the Yardbirds were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. A European concert promoter contacted Dreja and McCarty about touring. The two, who had worked together in a band called Box of Frogs in the '80s, were up for it. "The Yardbirds is difficult to put together," says Dreja, who spent most of his non-music years as a photographer. "It's not a drawing-board band where you can just say let's get a guitarist and a singer. But we felt we had the right musicians, played a few gigs and found ourselves enjoying it immensely. There were a few more personnel changes and we became a working band four years ago. Then you start doing that and you think it would be great to do an album with this band." Vai, with his own Favored Nations Recordings label, provided a home for the project, with Ken Allardyce (Goo Goo Dolls, Green Day) producing. Dreja says that even with the passage of time, the songs' spirit remains. "I think we were just as weird then as we are now," Dreja says. "Look at the lyrics and songs, and they are very eclectic. Maybe we were old then. The new material, though new songs, is instantly recognizable. You won't mistake the stamp."*****This is our late addition regarding Jeff's new CD. We just talked to the 'home office' as it were because we were having some email snafus and we mentioned the release dates of March 12th and 18th. The office said that is absolutely not true and they didn't know where Sony got that information. We've heard that 'as we speak' Jeff is still recording material for the new CD. Also we've heard that this CD will be more varied in style than the previous two.
Also, as we've said at this moment Jool's album with Jeff on it is only available as an import however it will be released in the U.S. next month.
The French 'Ursus Minor' show that Jeff guested on was videotaped by a German/French TV outfit. Word is portions will air in France next month somewhere. Also the show was recorded and some sort of CD release is thought to be forthcoming.
Lastly, remember that track Jeff did for Steve Alexander? Supposedly it's on some soccer commercial in the UK, when we figure it out we'll let you know.
We've found out that the French/German network ARTE had permission to tape three numbers and those were the first three of the show and did not include Jeff.
First there was Tina Turner's autograph on Jeff's pink Jackson guitar. Then Little Richard's on Jeff's surf green Strat. We noticed while watching the Jools Holland New Years show that Jeff now has new autograph on his guitar. Who's is it? We will not rest until we get the answer! Stay tuned. Also noticed those red marks on the pickguard from the last tour are gone. Is it the same guitar? So many questions!
We recently put in a query to London about the status of Jeff upcoming CD of new material and got the following reply, "new album progressing well, expect mid-summer, tour likewise". More good news.
And a couple of odds and ends....we all need to keep our ears to the ground as to well PBS will be airing that blues documentary that features Jeff with Tom Jones. We know it should be out sometime this year, just don't know when. And a random 'hearing' to report. Seems 'Comcast', a cable outfit which I'm not sure where in the states they operate (up north and in parts of Florida anyway), have been airing an ad which has Jeff's 'Roy's Toy' as a bed, another features 'Rosebud'. We think there's also another that features 'Left Hook'. The two we've seen also feature Tour De France champion Lance Armstrong doing 'what else', riding his bike.
I love it when people do research for me. It saves so much time and usually it's a better job than I can do. Such is the case of David Ingram who got all the info on the PBS blues documentary with Jeff performing with Tom Jones we mentioned last update. The 7 part series will air in the fall and there will be an accompanying CD set and book released. The episode featuring Jeff is called 'Red, White and Blues'. The whole project is being produced by Martin Scorsese. The episode with Jeff is being directed by Mike Figgis, who used to play in a band with Bryan Ferry. Figgis includes conversations and music in the episode which examines how American blues influenced British musicians. Besides Jeff and Tom Jones, in also includes Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. For more info visit; http://www.pbs.org/theblues/index.html and http://www.theblues.it/films.html. Thanks again David.
As we've said before Jeff's new CD is scheduled to be out mid-summer. However we've learned from our bud Mike Carlucci (Subterranean Records, NYC) that you can pre-order the Japanse
release of the CD (they,(Epic/Sony) claim the date May, 15th, we're not so sure about that). The first pressing will also include an autographed souvenir guitar pick. The price, $32.99.
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As you can see they used the old 'Truth' pic....here's the track rundown;
It Ain't Right Tony Holland & Jeff Beck RGM 1964 2.19 Dracula's Daughter Screaming Lord Sutch Oriole 1964 3.38 Come Back Baby Screaming Lord Sutch Oriole 1964 2.23 I'm Not Running Away Fitz And Startz Parlophone 1964 2.15 So Sweet Fitz And Startz Parlophone 1964 2.42 Stormy Monday The Nightshift Piccadilly 1965 That's My Story The Nightshift Piccadilly 1965 Heart Full Of Soul The Yardbirds Charley 1965 2.30 Evil Hearted You The Yardbirds Charley 1965 2.26 Still I'm Sad The Yardbirds Charley 1965 3.04 Shapes Of Things The Yardbirds Charley 1966 2.27 Jeff Boogie The Yardbirds Charley 1966 2.25 Train Kept A Rollin' The Yardbirds Charley 1966 3.26 But She's Mine John's Children C.Red 1967 2.00 And The Sun Will Shine Paul Jones Columbia 1967 3.06 The Dog Presides Paul Jones Columbia 1967 2.47 Hi Ho Silver Lining Jeff Beck RAK 1967 2.45 Becks Bolero Jeff Beck RAK 1967 2.50 Rock My Plimsoul Jeff Beck RAK 1967 4.12 Steelin' Beck / Page Immediate 1968 2.38 Chuckles Beck / Page Immediate 1968 2.21 Barabajagal Donovan EMI 1969 3.18 Bed With Me (Trudi) Donovan EMI 1969 2.25 The Eureka Springs GTO'S Warners 1969 3.46 The Captain Fats ThearsaGTO'S Warners 1969 1.55 The Ghost Chained GTO'S Warners 1969 1.44 BONUS TRACK Utterly Simple The Smoke Sanctuary 1968 2.36
Again, thanks to Steve Hammonds....now, if you want to pre-order this CD (price $21.99)or that Japanese release of Jeff's next CD (price $32.99) with the limited edition souvenir guitar pick, you can do it through our friend Michael Carlucci at Subterranean Records in New York City. But know that you must first send him a $10.00 deposit either check or money order. For more info contact Michael at:
Subterranean Records 5 Cornelia St. New York, NY 10014 Ph:(212)463-8900 Fx:(212)675-6795 www.recordsync.com
Lastly, in the never ending saga of that cut Jeff did for Steve Alexander....from Steve's website we gather that it is now possible to hear it on SKY TV, the British TV cable\satellite channel. Seems that it is an orchestral theme that they play before every FA cup soccer (or football) game on the network.
What we know for absolutely sure is yes, Jeff will be a part of the 'B.B. King Bluesfest 2003 Featuring Jeff Beck'. However, up until a week or so ago we were told negotiations weren't finished and the dates hadn't been pinned down. Now, I guess they have. Overall the tour will start in the northwest on or around July 15th. Via the JBAS board we understand VH1 will have a formal tour announcement in NYC with Jeff in attendance (we'll see) on June 23rd. The dates that are set for moment are;
Concord Chronicle Pavillion, Concord, CA 8/1 PNC Center, Holmdel, NJ 8/14 Scene Pavillion, Cleveland, OH 8/20 DTE Energy Music Theater, Detroit, MI 8/22Some 'leaked' venues;
Tweeter Center, Mansfield, MA date unknown Westbury Music Theater, Westbury, NY date unknown Chastain Theater, Atlanta, GA 9/5 or 9/6
So, who will be touring with Jeff? Only person we know of for sure is Terry Bozzio. How? His website; www.terrybozzio.com/tour.html, which says; 6/30 to 7/18, rehearsals with Jeff Beck, 7/21 to 9/10, US tour with Jeff Beck....who else? Don't know yet.
And lastly all of this is to support Jeff's new CD, title unknown, release date not certain. According to our friend Michael Carlucci who runs Subterranean Records in NYC, those of you who pre-ordered the Japanese release of the new CD with the guitar pick, the CD is supposed to be shipped to him either the 2nd or 3rd Tuesday in May. So I guess that means a mid-May Japanese release. We've heard the USA release could be July 8th but if the Japanese version is coming out in May, July seems a little late. Also, Michael says that you who pre-ordered the "Shapes Of Things" CD, that will be shipped to him either the 5th or 7th of May.
So, that's what we've got so far, stay tuned when we get the hold schedule and tour info, we'll pass it on. Also stay tuned for the first installment of our interview with Jimmy Hall.
First things first. The new CD "Hot Rod Honeymoon" will be released in the states on June 24th as reported. Someone sent us something about it coming out a few days earlier than that in Scandanavia. As for the Japanese release our latest word from Michael Carlucci is that the date is 'TBA'. As far as we know the special edition release is still a go but the release might coincide with the US release. Anyone who pre-ordered with Michael should be hearing from him. Anyone who didn't pre-order we believe the time has passed to do so. Michael also says the 'Shapes Of Things' (Sessionman) CD is in stock for $21.99. In the liner notes they actually included a quote from this very webpage that we got from Jeff regarding the 'Dog Presides' session....we didn't get a credit or a courtesy though.
Okay, now the tour. All the dates are in place as far as we know. They are available at www.pollstar.com, search for 'Jeff Beck'. But here is the list anyway;
Fri 7/25 Las Vegas, NV - Mandalay Bay Events Center Sat 7/26 Reno, NV - Reno Hilton Resort & Spa Sun 7/27 Kelseyville, CA - Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa Tue 7/29 W. Sacramento, CA - Raley Field Wed 7/30 Fresno, CA - Grizzlies Stadium Fri 8/1 Concord, CA - Chronicle Pavillion Sat 8/2 Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre Sun 8/3 Santa Barbara, CA - Santa Barbara Bowl Tue 8/5 Phoenix, AZ - Dodge Theatre Wed 8/6 Alburquerque, NM - Journal Pavillion Thu 8/7 Englewood, CO - Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre Sat 8/9 Tampa, FL - USF Sun Dome Sun 8/10 Boca Raton, FL - Mizner Park Amphitheatre Thu 8/14 Holmdel, NJ - P.N.C. Bank Arts Center Fri 8/15 Wantagh, NY - Tommy Hilfiger at Jones Beach Theatre Sun 8/17 Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center Tue 8/19 Toronto, ON - Molson Amphitheatre Wed 8/20 Cleveland, OH - Scene Pavillion Fri 8/22 Clarkson, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre Sat 8/23 Madison, WI - Madison Blues Festival Sun 8/24 Hinckley, MN - Grand Casino Hinckley Tue 8/26 Chicago, IL - Arie Crown Theatre Thu 8/28 London, ON - Boler Mountain Sun 8/31 Bridgeport, CT - Seaside Park Mon 9/1 Lewiston, NY - NY Artpark Festival Tue 9/2 Vienna, VA - Wolf Trap Filene Center Thu 9/4 Daniel Island, SC - Family Circle Magazine Stadium Fri 9/5 Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheatre Sat 9/6 Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheatre Sun 9/7 Cary, NC - Regency Park
As we noted on our marquee, BBC6 Music will be airing an archived Jeff Beck show from 1972. The time is from 11:00PM to Midnight (we're assuming GMT), go to www.bbc.co.uk/6music for details.
And the ever-wonderful Max Middleton has his own new CD out! The album, "Land Of Secrets" is on the RL-2 label and you can hear some cuts and get more info at; www.maxmiddleton.com.
The track list for the new CD is out;
1. My Thing 2. Line Dancing With A Monkey 3. Trouble Man 4. Seasons 5. Plan B 6. Porqupine 7. Bulgarian 8. Why Lord Oh Why 9. Grease Monkey 10. Hot Rod Honeymoon 11. Take A Ride 12. Pay Me No MindThese titles are supposedly from the Japanese Sony site...we'll see.
We got a report that jazz fusion guitarist David Torn has helped write, produce and play some of the new CD. We haven't confirmed this yet.
Sad news I'm sure you all know about....Mickie Most passed away several weeks ago at the age of 64. He did so much for British rock producing some of Jeff's biggest commercial successes as well as hits for the Animals and many more. Here's a photo of Jeff and Chrissie Hynde at the funeral held on June 9th.
On the above tour list we've added two new dates announced...the first, 8/30 in Fairfax, Virginia. This is according to the tour list at www.VH1.com, I didn't see it on www.pollstar.com. Also pollstar has a 9/7 date in Anderson, SC...VH1 says it's at Marion, SC. We'll have to watch these straighten themselves out.
Random Jeff Beck 'hearings'....during game 1 of the NBA finals between the Nets and the Spurs on June 4th (ABC) two promos aired featuring Jeff tracks.... "Space For The Papa" was one and later another with "Dirty Mind".....cool.
Another thing about that 'Shapes Of Things' CD we mentioned last time...as we had heard previously, the cut "It Ain't Right" (Joe Meek) isn't even on the CD!
You know that Led Zeppelin DVD and CD thing that came out recently? Seems there two seconds of Jeff in it circa 1970. The band, Zep, is backstage at the Royal Albert Hall and someone shouts, "Jeff Beck", Jeff walks in the door and then isn't seen again.
Lastly check out Bruce Stringer's interview with Max Middleton and a review of Max's new CD in JBB #10.
Well, we've been off on vacation lately, that's why no updates since the A&E show. It sure looked like B.B. and Jeff were having a great time together. And B.B.'s band was fantastic, hope they go out on the road with him this summer. It was great seeing Jeff play with a full horn section. For the record, as if you don't already know, Jeff played three songs with B.B.; 'Rock Me Baby', a slow 'Key To The Highway' and the show ender, 'Paying The Cost To Be The Boss'.
Jeff will be the cover feature of the September issue of 'Guitar Player' magazine, on newstands in early August. Seen some previews of the interview on the 'boards' and it looks cool.
As we reported last time Jeff has David Torn as well as other collabortors re-mixing and changing the album. Seems Jeff had a copy of a 'Spattercell' album and loved what Torn did on it. You can check some of this for yourself at www.splattercell.com.
As we speak Jeff and the boys are rehearsing in the UK and as far as we know the album is still going to be in stores July 22nd. Some have been saying August 5th but we think (we're not sure) we think, the August 5th date refers to the date the CD would arrive at your house if you were to order it via jeffbeckmusic.com or amazon.com. Also, and this is cool, according to Michael Carlucci, the Japanese release of 'Jeff', which was supposed to come out before the U.S. release won't be out until August 6th. So how is this cool? Well, we thought the Japanese release was going to have a souvenir pick, which we're not sure about, but what it will have is a track that won't be on the domestic release. Supposedly the Japanese CD will be titled "Jeff + 1 (T.B.C.)". Michael has asked me to pass on to anyone who wants their deposit back on the pre-release to contact him.
The track listing and track titling for the new CD has changed somewhat and we don't have the name for the extra Japanese track yet. The new listing is;
1. So What 2. Plan B (which you can hear on www.jeffbeckmusic.com, co-written and co-produced by David Torn.) 3. Pork-U-Pine (slight spelling change) 4. Seasons 5. Trouble Man 6. Grease Monkey 7. Hot Rod Honeymoon 8. Line Dancing With Monkeys 9. JB's Blues (was Take A Ride) 10. Pay Me No Mind 11. My Thing 12. Bulgaria 13. Why Lord Oh Why?
Lastly, we've amended the above concert date list for the umpteenth time. We hope it's correct but make no guarantees.
The U.S. release date of "Jeff" is now officially set for August 5th. Our speculation over the previous dates were wrong but hey, we tried. Also we've heard that the Japanese release, now set for August 6th will definately have at least one extra track. We're not totally sure (what else is new) what the deal is, when we asked Jeff's management about the Japanese CD they replied it would have 'bonus tracks', plural, but we still think it will be only one.
According to www.pbs.org/theblues/thefilmseries.html, the Mike Figgis film, "Red, White and Blues" with Jeff and others will air on PBS Friday, October 3rd.
Lastly we have been having some correspondence recently with another British blues guitarist, Roger Dean. Roger of course was an original 'Bluesbreaker' in John Mayall's band. Roger was replaced as lead guitarist in that band by none other than Eric Clapton in 1965 when he left the Yardbirds giving someone near and dear to us a very unique opportunity. We asked Roger if he had any 60's stories he could tell us and this is the part of what he wrote about Jeff;
Hello Dick, I thought I'd drop you a couple of yarns from the 60's as promised. The first one concerns Jeff Beck.... When I was a Bluesbreaker, we used to frequently play at 'Eel Pie Island' and getting the gear across the Thames to the old hotel was accomplished by means of an old minivan. We would stash drumkits, hammonds, leslie speakers, guitars, women, everything used to go inside, or on the top of the van. We would look the other way and hope for the best, while the van set off across a rickety old bridge with about 30 feet of water underneath it !! Jeff often used to play on the same bill with his band 'The Tridents' To save hassle, Jeff would use my old Vox AC30, and we would normally start the proceedings with a couple of pints of cider and guinness. I used to listen to Jeff's playing very closely, because even then he was head and shoulders above most of the guitar competition. He was getting some sounds that I'd never heard before, and I was trying to be cool, so I didn't ask how he did it. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Jeff turned up at my flat in Earls Court one afternoon with a mutual friend, and I was fooling around with a Cliff Gallup/Chet Atkins type lick that I used to use in 'Berry's Boogie' Fair exchange being no robbery, he nicked my lick, and he told me the SECRET...... Well I'm sorry guys, but I've never told anyone the secret for 40 years, and I sure don't intend to give it away now!!! I'll give you a clue, it can only be done on a Telecaster. All the best, Roger Dean.
Well, this is intriguing...what could 'the secret' be? When and if we found out we'll let you know. If you think you know give us a shout.
Jeff's tour with Mr. King starts tommorrow and we're looking forward to anyone who wants to send us a review, report, set list, whatever. We will once again be compiling all of our reports from the fans and from the press in the latest edition if the Jeff Beck Bulletin which as it stands would be #10.
Just annouced this week...Jeff will be performing at the Royal Albert Hall in London on October 3rd. For info check out www.royalalberthall.co.uk.
1. So What 2. Plan B 3. Pork-U-Pine 4. Seasons 5. Trouble Man 6. Grease Monkey 7. Hot Rod Honeymoon 8. Line Dancing With Monkeys 9. JB's Blues 10. Pay Me No Mind 11. My Thing 12. Bulgaria 13. Why Lord Oh Why?This can be compared to the US track listing according to Tower Records;
1. My Thing 2. Line Dancing With Monkeys 3. Trouble Man 4. Seasons 5. Plan B 6. Pork-U-Pine 7. Bulgaria 8. Why Lord Oh Why? 9. Grease Monkey 10. Hot Rod Honeymoon 11. Take A Ride
And while we're talking CD's, according to the new ICE Magazine, Jeff will be appearing on one track of the new Wynonna Judd album, "What The World Needs Now Is Love".
And lastly, we got an email from Phil Rae who thinks he knows 'The Secret' referred to by Roger Dean in our last update. Phil writes;
Hi Dick! I reckon that Roger Dean is referring to the way Beck used to play on the metal cover of the neck-pickup of the Tele on "I'm A Man" and other "rave-up" tunes in the Yardbirds, and most likely before that time too...You can't do this on the plastic covers of a Strat, and it doesn't have the same effect when its done on the metal covers of the bassier sounding Gibson humbucker pickups..Let us know what you think!
1. So What 2. Plan B 3. Pork-U-Pine 4. Seasons 5. Trouble Man 6. Grease Monkey 7. Hot Rod Honeymoon 8. Line Dancing With Monkeys 9. JB's Blues 10. Pay Me No Mind 11. My Thing 12. Bulgaria 13. Why Lord Oh Why?The Japanese track listing;
1. So What (Album Version) 2. Plan B (Album Version) 3. Pork-U-Pine (Album Version) 4. Seasons (Album Version) 5. Trouble Man (Album Version) 6. Grease Monkey(Album Version) 7. Hot Rod Honeymoon (Album Version) 8. Line Dancing With Monkeys (Album Version) 9. JB's Blues (Album Version) 10. Pay Me No Mind (Jeff Beck Remix) 11. My Thing (Album Version) 12. Bulgaria (Album Version) 13. Why Lord Oh Why? (Album Version) 14. Take A Ride (On My Bottleneck Slide) 15. My Thing(David Torn Remix)We got the new Japanese track listing from someone who had it in hand, if it ain't right, that's it, I ain't doing this again!(Dick) Oh and get this, Apple Computers has had 'Jeff' in it's download store (13 tracks) since July 26th.
The tour is off and running. We got a few reports for you in JBB #10 but no one sent us a set list per se, so we stole one off the JBAS Board and combined it with one of our reports. Here's the set list from the Sacremento show;
Still I'm Sad Big Block New Tune (Very hard intro into a melodic breakdown - for some reason I feel that it's going to sound very different on record) Psycho Sam Savoy Freeway Jam Behind the Veil Roy's Toy New Tune (slow blues type) Goodbye Porkpie Hat Rollin and Tumblin Nadia Scatterbrain ENCORE You Never Know People Get ReadyWhich is slightly different from the Mandalay Bay setlist;
-Opened with a new song and played only one other new song during the show. -Freeway Jam -Brush With The Blues -Savoy -Big Block -Angel (Footsteps) -Goodbye Pork Pie Hat -You Know, We Know -Roy's Toy -Rollin' and Tumblin' -Nadia -ScatterbrainWe can add from what we've heard so far is that Jeff's set runs about 1 hour 5 minutes or so and precedes B.B.. Also we know in Vegas he didn't come back and play during B.B.'s set. And, since his set is short, we kind of figured he was going to (as you can see above) mix things up a bit. Also it seems that in his set, Jeff is playing two or three (not sure) songs from the new CD.
Both the Guitar World and Guitar Player articles on Jeff were interesting. We suggest you get a hold of them for yourselves. One question we posed last February was answered in the GW article and that was, who's signature was that on Jeff's guitar on the Jool Holland's New Year's Eve show? As we said, first Jeff had Tina Turner's autograph on his pink Jackson. Then Little Richard's on his green Strat. Now on his white Strat it's Anoushka Shankar's autograph. Anoushka, Ravi's daughter, Norah Jones' half sister, is an accomplished sitarist and has quite the career going, check out www.anoushkashankar.com/ for more info on her. Seems Jeff and her met at Sting's Rainforest benefit last year. We hear Jeff didn't do too much socializing during that gig and spent most of the evening sitting with Anoushka and her friends and that is where and when his guitar was signed.
In our July 24th update we shared with you a letter we got from Phil Rae who thought he knew the 'secret' Roger Dean tempted us with in his letter to us. Well it turns out Phil was right! Here's a recent reply we got from Roger;
Well Dick, looks like Phil Rae got it in one!! Raise the Tele neck pickup, push strings down onto pickup cover with left palm, drink bottle of Jack Daniels, turn amp up to 14, put the cat/dog outside, hammer on with a bottleneck held in right hand, look out for the imminent arrival of the cops !! Good luck, Roger Dean.Way to go Phil!
Lastly, Bill is taking next week off and will be catching Jeff's show on August 18th in Mansfield, MA. So we won't have any updates/reports until he gets back to work. Also if you should email him with any news or whatever keep in mind it will be a week or so before he can answer you.
The Live By Request show on A&E that featured B.B. and a guest appearance by Jeff will be available on DVD the end of next month. Check out www.cduniverse.com.
Latest from Michael Carlucci....the 'Jeff' Japanese imports are in....with a pick and the two extra tracks....send in your balances and he'll ship them. $27.99 for 'Jeff' and $40.98 for 'Jeff' and 'Shapes Of Things'.
Well as of last night, I guess you could say the the 2003 is officially over. Here's the setlist from Wednesday the 10th, the 11th was the same as far as we know;
Roy's Toy Psycho Sam Big Block Freeway Jam Brush With The Blues Scatterbrain Goodbye Pork Pie Hat Nadia Savoy Angel (Footsteps) Seasons Where Were You You Never Know A Day In The Life (encore) People Get Ready My ThingSounds like it was pretty much a carbon copy of the tunes he played throughout the tour except for 'Scatterbrain' and 'Where Were You'. We also understand the show was recorded both audio and video, for what we'll see. We hear the main set ran a little under an hour, a little over with the encore, the stage was pretty small, the place was packed and on Thursday night the New York Fire Department gave Jeff a jacket that he showed the crowd as he said a couple of words about those lost that day.
On to other business, the October 3rd gig at the Royal Albert Hall has been postponed to June 24, 2004. Obviously it will be a 60th birthday bash. Prior to this we had heard it was to be quite a production including the London Symphony Orchestra, no word if that is still the case.
The next thing for all of us to look forward to is the PBS blues documentary 'Red, White and Blues'. The episode with Jeff in it will air Friday, October 3rd and then be repeated on Tuesday, October 7th. Jeff's contributions to the show include and instrumental version of 'Rollin' and Tumblin', another two tracks playing lead guitar with British pop veteran Lulu, those being; 'Cry Me A River' and 'Drown In My Own Tears' and three more on lead with Tom Jones; 'Going Down Slow', 'Love Letters' and 'Hard Times'. If you miss recording it don't worry, the producers plan to release CD's, VHS and DVD's of the entire series that will include performances not seen in the show itself, including some by Jeff.
Someone wrote us and said Jeff will be guesting on David Bowie's "N'America" tour, March 2004 but this is so much a rumour I probably shouldn't be mentioning it as it will further drag down our credibility rating.
Lastly we will be closing out Jeff Beck Bulletin #10 with some backstage reports from the tour. We saw Jeff following his September 5th show in Atlanta and discussed among other things his future with Sony/Epic now that his present contract obligations have been fulfilled and the story behind "3 O'Clock Blues", the song Jeff did with B.B. King that was never released.. And who did we run into backstage in Atlanta? None other than Jimmy Hall, whose interview we will wrap up in JBB #10.
As everyone knows by now the Royal Albert Hall show has been pushed back to June 24th, 2004. What we heard about the orchestra seems to have been correct and somewhat responsible for the postponement since www.jeffbeck.com is reporting that Jeff felt there wasn't enough time for rehearsals with the orchestra to go on. The site is also reporting that this June 24th date is supposed to be the last date on a 2004 UK Tour which we haven't heard any details of yet. By the way the Royal Albert Hall website as well as the UK Ticketmaster site have no mention of Jeff's June 2004 date, however if you go to www.wayahead.com they claim you can buy tickets now for the event. How this works we haven't a clue.
Oh and we've added some pics to the Atlanta backstage report, just wanted to mention that.
Speaking of the Royal Albert Hall, the June 24, 2004 tickets are now on sale at www.royalalberthall.com. However we've learned that the tickets that were sold for the October 3, 2003 show will be honored for the June 24th show, so we guess that many fewer tickets are available.
Michael Carlucci wants to pass on his thanks to everyone who got the Japanese 'Jeff' thru him. Right now he just got some killer Jeff Beck Japanese tour programs. They range from BBA's 1973 tour thru the '89 Guitar Shop tour, they all have great pics. Go to www.recordsnyc.com for more info.
We got a note from Lisa Brooke who has a new Yardbird's Photo website up and running so we checked it out;
http://members.tripod.com/cathead9tx/index.htm
This has got to be the best Yardbirds photo site out there. Just tons of great stuff. An enormous effort and our congrats go out to Lisa!
Guitar.com and Adam St. James have just put up (10/17) a new interview with Jeff...check it out at: www.guitar.com.
A few corrections on the story of Jeff's session for the Pavorotti's 'Ti Adoro' album. Seems Jeff did his bit at Metropolis Studios not Olympic. The strings were recorded on a different day without him. There may be a TV appearance of Jeff and Pavorotti in the offing but nothing concrete yet.
We may be hearing more from the 'Blues Collaborators'. There has been some talk that Tom Jones, Lulu and Jeff may be planning some more work together in the future.
Just got some good news from our friend Toshi....'Jeff' is still #5 on the Japanese charts this week.
Lastly a little trivia question, not too hard.....what two classic blues numbers featuring Jeff have been released twice in the last several years? A hint, each was released as an instrumental and with vocals. What are the names of the songs and what albums did they appear on? Answers next time.
After that everything else is a little anticlimatic I'm afraid. Those rumours of Jeff doing something with David Bowie in '04 we just haven't been able to confirm. Also that TV appearance that Jeff was supposed to be doing with Pavorotti never panned out and won't happen. However we hear Jeff might be doing a solo on another Italian artist's album soon. When we find out more we'll let you know.
Jools Holland has come out with a 'best of' DVD from his 'Later' program. Jeff's performance of 'Brush With The Blues' in included. Not sure if the 'at the piano' interview is though.
Lastly, Jeff's 'Plan B' was a first round nominee for a 'Best Rock Instrumental' grammy. This is kind of like the last grammy he was nominated for. It's great and everything but are they picking his strongest contender on the album?
Oh, and answers to last month's questions. That would be 'Rollin' And Tumblin'' and 'Drowning In My Own Tears'. 'Rollin' And Tumblin' vocal version, 'You Had It Coming', instrumental, 'Red, White And Blues'. 'Drowing In My Own Tears', vocal version, 'Red, White And Blues', instrumental, 'Jools Holland And Friends'.
Category 19.....Jeff has been nominated again for 'Best Rock Instrumental' for his 'Plan B'. Awards to be announced February 8, 2004.
That interview with Jeff's guitar tech Steve Prior is now on www.guitar.com. I couldn't find it when they first published the interview with Jeff but it's there now. It's a little difficult to navigate to though. From the home page click 'column corner', then go to 'technically speaking'. The interview is right there. It's pretty good.
Also pretty soon (not sure when) we'll have the Nordiff Robbins charity story.....stay tuned.
Be seeing you....