British guitarist Jeff Beck died at the age of 78 from meningitis on Tuesday, January 10. In a press release published on its website, we can read: On behalf of his family, it is with deep sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck’s passing. After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he died peacefully yesterday His virtuosity and sense of innovation have made him a legend in rock, blues and even jazz, over a nearly 60-year career.
The one who won eight Grammy Awards for his music carved his legend within the group The Yardbirds by Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton in the 1960s. From Mick Jagger to Ozzy Osbourne, everyone hailed a ” genius “.
Tributes from his colleagues
On Instagram, fellow Yardbirds Jimmy Page praised “ the six-stringed warrior (who) is no longer here for we admire the spell he was able to cast on our mortal emotions “. For his part, Mick Jagger, leader of the Rolling Stones, paid tribute in a video on Twitter to ” a wonderful man and one of the greatest guitarists in the world “.
Check out this post on InstagramA post shared by Jimmy Page (@jimmypage)
For fellow heavy metaller, Black Sabbath founder Tony Iommi, ” there will never be another Jeff Beck “. He saw in him an incredible icon, a great guitarist “, while the group’s singer, Ozzy Osbourne, evoked” the incredible honor of having played with him on (his) last record “.
Musician Paul Young told himself the same ” devastated by the sudden and tragic death of the legendary guitarist “, adding that Geoffrey Arnold Beck, real name, was” the guitarist of guitarists “. ” Nobody played guitar like Jeff “, he also welcomed Gene Simmons, of the hard rock band Kiss.
Passed through all styles
Driven by his passion for music, Jeff Beck innovated, moving from rock to blues, all the while circling jazz or hard rock. After the Yardbirds, he founded at the turn of the 60s and 70s, the hard rock group The Jeff Beck Group, with Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones, and the still unknown singer Sir Rod Stewart. The latter estimated on Wednesday evening that ” Jeff Beck (was) from another planet “.
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Jeff Beck was on another planet. He took me and Ronnie Wood to the US in the late 60’s with his band, the Jeff Beck Group
and we haven’t looked back since. pic.twitter.com/uS7bbWsHgW—Sir Rod Stewart (@rodstewart) January 11, 2023
Jeff Beck then began a long solo career where he found success in the mid-1970s. In the 1980s and 1990s, he played with the greats: Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Roger Waters and even Jon Bon Jovi. He said he was influenced by Les Paul, Ravi Shankar and Django Reinhardt. In 2015, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him fifth on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
Source : Le JDD
