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Guitar Virtuoso Jeff Beck Dies at 78

Jeff Beck playing guitar In my humble opinion, one of the best post-60s onward rock guitar players of all time passed away.

Jeff Beck had a technique that stood out, to say the least. He had the ability to play any music style with expertise, yet his signature playing was hard to duplicate by other great players. It made him a stand-alone giant!

In his later concert days, it was beautiful how he introduced many bass players on tour, especially outstanding women bass players… Tal Wilkenson as one example comes to mind.

Beck died Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at the age of 78.

Jeff will be missed by a ton of fans. Yet, we’ve been privileged enough to have many of his recordings and videos to enjoy for the rest of the time we each remain on this planet.

Enjoy Your Music!
Best!
-Ron Greene

Credit is given: Rolling Stone .com article: Hall of Fame musician and former Yardbird guitarist [Jeff Beck] dies following a short bout with bacterial meningitis… By: Daniel Kreps, Kory Grow

As noted in this RS press release…

“Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page, Beck’s Yardbirds bandmate who inducted the guitarist into the Rock Hall in 2009, wrote on social media Wednesday, “The six stringed Warrior is no longer here for us to admire the spell he could weave around our mortal emotions. Jeff could channel music from the ethereal. His technique unique. His imaginations apparently limitless. Jeff I will miss you along with your millions of fans. Jeff Beck Rest in Peace.”

It further mentioned…

In 2009, 17 years after Beck was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Yardbirds, he delivered one of the greatest induction speeches of all time when he reentered the Rock Hall for his solo work. “Someone told me I should be proud tonight. But I’m not, because they kicked me out. They did. Fuck them,” he quipped at the 1992 ceremony. “I couldn’t believe I was even nominated,” Beck told Rolling Stone at the time. “I thought the Yardbirds was as close as I’d get to getting in. I’ve gone on long after that and gone through different musical changes. It’s very nice to hear that people have been listening.”

Learn more insights about Jeff Beck in the Rolling Stone article, here…
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/jeff-beck-dead-at-78-obit-1234659559/

Charlie Watts of the Rolling Stones Died

Wow, usually the drummer is the individual that out-lasts the rest of the band (generally) till death. Not that it matters and especially in this instance… Yet, every instance counts!

Here we go… Charlie Watts of the Rolling Stones has passed this day Tuesday, August 24th 2021, ‘He was just fu*kn 80 fsg!.’

Damn!

Figuring that Charlie joined the Rolling Stones in 1963 we might as well consider him as the/our most original ‘rock drummer’ icon! (eh?)

Anyway, wow, a wacky day in the life of seeing an original rock ‘n Roll r’ absorbed into the ether.

Hopefully we hold on to rock for many, many, generations to come!

Jam On!

-Ron
Music Dials .com

Credit is given: rollingsonte.com and journalist, Joe Gross @ https://www.npr.org/people/2100615/jon-hamilton

As noted in this article…

“He passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier [Tuesday] surrounded by his family.” The statement referred to Watts as “one of the greatest drummers of his generation!”

It continues…

Watts’ death comes several weeks after it was announced that the drummer would not be able to perform on the Rolling Stones’ No Filter Tour of U.S. stadiums. “Charlie has had a procedure which was completely successful, but his doctors this week concluded that he now needs proper rest and recuperation,” a rep for the band said in a statement at the time. “With rehearsals starting in a couple of weeks, it’s very disappointing to say the least, but it’s also fair to say no one saw this coming.”

Duane Allman’s 1957 Gibson Les Paul Played On “Layla” Sells for Big Buck$

Collecting guitars can not only be fun but profitable. Case in point, in early August 2019 Duane Allman’s ’57 Les Paul Goldtop that was used to track parts of “Layla” sold for one and a quarter ($1.25) million dollars.

Greg’s Gibson SG played on the band’s, At Fillmore East live album, sold for almost $600k. Yet to date the top auction seller for collectable classic rock nostalgia instrument played by rockers is still, Jerry Garcia’s, ‘Wolf’ guitar.

In this article you’ll discover a list of other famous musician guitars that sold for some big bucks.

Keep on collecting and jamming!

-Ron

The 1957 Goldtop was Duane’s main guitar during the first two years of the Allman Brothers Band, and was used to play on recordings included on the famous rock band’s first two studio albums. Most notably, it was the guitar used by Duane to play on the famous outro solo of Eric Clapton and Derek and the Dominos’ 1970 anthem, “Layla”.

In more recent years, the guitar has been used by notable players including… >Learn more here<

Credit given: Tom Shackleford via:liveforlivemusic.com

Paul McCartney Playing Live…

“Some of that natural reverb gets initiated by the stage sound itself, as things get pretty loud up there. Only Wickens wears in-ear monitors, as the rest of the band opts for Clair R4 sidefills and old-school Showco SRM wedges.”

That’s a quote from the interesting article that talks about the equipment used on Paul McCartney’s late 2017, eight night (3 hour gigs) mini-tour of New York City.

Many of us musicians understand what a good 3 hour show will take out of you… but, to do it eight nights in a row… that’s a damn workout!

Anyway, take a peak at this in-depth review of the type of gear Paul used on this mini-tour and discover some hidden secrets you probably didn’t know about.

Jam On!
-Ron

(Courtesy of ProSoundNetwork.com and Clive Young Dec 7, 2017)

This article goes on to state…

“Watching a Paul McCartney concert is a lesson in irony. At their height, the 20-something Beatles played 45-minute sets, but 50-plus years later, at an age when most stars of his era are taking it easy, a Macca show clocks in at three hours.

As if to prove the point, Sir Paul did it over and over in September as he tore through eight sold-out shows around New York City, playing two nights a piece at Madison Square Garden; Brooklyn’s Barclays Center; across the Hudson River at Newark, NJ’s Prudential Center; and on Long Island at the newly refurbished NYCB Live Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.”

Guitar Legend John McLaughlin Retires

Jazz-rock legacy of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, John McLaughlin (age 75 at the time of this blog post) is retiring from touring.

Many of us musicians have known John as an esoteric monster on the strings. His departure from mainstream songs to introspective nuance has been instrumental (no pun intended) in providing for insightful creative considerations of arpeggiated themes in playing styles.

The article below mentions some fun highlights of McLaughlin’s final performance in Los Angeles at UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance at Royce Hall in December 2017.

Appreciations for John’s input in our wonderful world of music!

Jam On!
Ron

(credit given via: Richard S. Ginell released in sfcv.org)

Article December 12, 2017

“The 75-year-old English guitarist (now a resident of Monaco) has said that his The Meeting Of The Spirits tour would be his last in North America, and the concert at Royce — where he played way back in 1974 — was the last stop. Fellow guitar-slinger Jimmy Herring, one of the few McLaughlin acolytes capable of dueling mano-a-mano with the master, shared the bill…”

Read more about this John’s farewell tour here…

https://www.sfcv.org/reviews/none/guitar-legend-john-mclaughlin-retires-with-an-incendiary-farewell-concert

Tom Petty Exits Stage…

As a musician you no doubt had a least one Tom Petty album in your library of classic references to straight ahead rock. Unfortunately Tom passed away in Oct of this (2017) year at the very young age of 66. It was a heart attack.

Petty had a way of taking what appeared to be soft folk songs of his own and placing some power behind them to create a unique rock ambience. He just had a way of keeping rock n’ roll alive within its original roots.

He’ll be missed… play a few tribute songs at your next gig… for Tom!

Jam On!
– Ron

As quoted from Rolling Stone (credit – online magz.)…
“In the late 1970s, Petty’s romanticized tales of rebels, outcasts and refugees started climbing the pop charts. When he sang, his voice was filled with a heartfelt drama that perfectly complemented the Heartbreakers’ ragged rock & roll. Songs like “The Waiting,” “You Got Lucky,” “I Won’t Back Down,” “Learning to Fly” and “Mary Jane’s Last Dance”

“Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, which came out in 1976. It failed to make an impact at the time – the album’s lead single “Breakdown” didn’t even chart – but they picked up heat after touring England as support for future E Street Band member Nils Lofgren. They soon became headliners on the tour, with the album topping the U.K. chart. ”

Tom’s Website…
https://www.tompetty.com/

#riptompetty

Ozzy Osbourne and Earth, Wind, & Fire?…

According to societyofrock.com (as of the date of this blog post) this video is… “Probably The Best Mashup We’ve Ever Seen!”

Well, ok… I’m not a big ‘mashup’ fan, but I’ll have to admit the timing reference the tempo on this DJ’s version of a Ozzy Osbourne being mashed up with Earth, Wind, & Fire… is quite entertaining.

I mean, mixing light metal with pop and pulling it off with a sense of continuity is a decent feat for sure.

Anyway… see what you think…

Jam On!
– Ron

As further quoted…
“Both are truly amazing musical acts, but they couldn’t be anymore different in their music styles. Then again, as they say, opposites attract, and that much is proven, here!”

More here…
https://societyofrock.com/someone-made-a-mashup-of-ozzy-osbourne-and-earth-wind-fire-and-we-cant-stop-laughing/

Soundgarden and Audioslave, Chris Cornell, dead at 52…

According to wikipedia… Cornell was known for his role as one of the architects of the 1990s grunge movement, for his extensive catalog as a songwriter and for his near four octave vocal range] as well as his powerful vocal belting technique.

Chris released four solo studio albums, Euphoria Morning (1999), Carry On (2007), Scream (2009), Higher Truth (2015) and the live album Songbook (2011). Cornell received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his song “The Keeper” which appeared in the film Machine Gun Preacher and co-wrote and performed the theme song to the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006), “You Know My Name”.

He was voted “Rock’s Greatest Singer” by readers of Guitar World, ranked 4th in the list of “Heavy Metal’s All-Time Top 100 Vocalists” by Hit Parader, 9th in the list of “Best Lead Singers of All Time” by Rolling Stone, and 12th in MTV’s “22 Greatest Voices in Music”.

The singer had played a show with Soundgarden, who were midway through their tour, when shortly after Chris Cornell was found dead on his MGM hotel by an apparent hanging.

But many are asking, why would a man who was worshiped by his fans, had a beautiful family and successful career, take his own life? Well, his wife and family attorney have come forward with a potential reason, here…
https://countercurrentnews.com/2017/05/chris-cornells-wife-just-blamed-his-death-on-an-fda-approved-psychoactive-drug/

Here’s a clip of his last performance before this unfortunate event…

(By Kory Grow via Rolling Stone)

“Born Christopher John Boyle in Seattle on July 20th, 1964, Cornell – who took his mother’s maiden name after his parents divorced – was the son of a pharmacist father and accountant mother in Seattle. He had two brothers and three sisters and jokingly likened his family to The Brady Bunch in interviews. Cornell eventually carved a path for himself after taking piano and guitar lessons before finding his way to the drum kit, which he played in an early incarnation of Soundgarden.”

More on Chris Cornell’s death here…
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/soundgardens-chris-cornell-dead-at-52-w482882

Tower Records, the history of…

The history of Tower Records goes way back…

Wikipedia mentions that In 1960, Russell Solomon opened the first Tower Records store on Watt Avenue, in Sacramento, California. He named it for his father’s drugstore, which shared a building and name with the Tower Theater, where Solomon first started selling records.

By 1976, Solomon had opened Tower Books, Posters, and Plants at 1600 Broadway, next door to Tower Records. In 1995, Tower.com opened, making the enterprise one of the first retailers to move online.

You probably remember your first encounter with a brick and mortar record store… heck even if it weren’t selling vinyl and only CDs, you no doubt can still flash back to the earliest of days that you experienced the ambiance of music in an actual walk in store…. Russell Solomon and Tower encouraged that experience.

We now see that vinyl is back, but a touch to late to save the iconic Tower Records from moving on into the music history books.

Jam On!
-Ron

All Things Must Pass’ is a documentary that explores the rise and fall of Tower Records, and its legacy forged by its rebellious founder, Russ Solomon…

History of the Double Bass Drum and Louie Bellson

Many think that the double bass drum set-up was started by the Hair or Metal bands of the eighties, however…

It actually started with ‘jazz’ legend Louie Bellson, a gifted musical school kid @ 15 in ‘1939 !’ who sketched out a double bass drum kit for his art class. That drawing earned him a high grade and served as a vision of what he would become… the most famous and arguably the very first double bass drummer.

So, the history of the double kicker goes way back further than one might expect. Now of course, you can use double kicker foot peddles to achieve the same affect (but not the same look) on a single bass trap.

Jam On!
-Ron

Here with his Rogers set-up…