In Concert: Jeff Beck at the Nokia Theater, Los Angeles

By Phil Gallo / LiveDaily Contributor
In switching to a new label, Atco, to make his first studio album in seven years, "Emotion & Commotion," Jeff Beck opted for vehicles that would allow nuance and delicate moments to glimmer as brightly as take-no-prisoners blues-rockers and variations on jazz.

In assembling a new band to back him on tour, he opted for all power--a band that takes ferocity seriously and assists Beck in presenting a model different in spirit from other recent outfits. There's no change in his style--Beck still appears to be working effortlessly, striking poses for dramatic effect and generally putting all other players to shame--but there's clearly a new attitude in the air.
That becomes apparent within three songs. Beck is not trying to be all things to all people in this show, so no bouncing between mid-'70s jazz fusion, rockabilly and vintage blues covers. The aggressive playing is broken with a few old faves--"People Get Ready," "A Day in the Life"--and new interpretations of softer material, such as Puccini's aria "Nessun Dorna," "Over the Rainbow" and a piece from Dario Marinelli's score for the film "Atonement."

Keyboardist Jason Rebelo, drummer Narada Michael Waden and bassist Rhonda Smith start at a boiling point and attempt to increase the heat from there with one fireball of a tune after another. Solos from musicians without the initials JB are practically nonexistent and if there's one instrument the audience hears beyond the guitar, it's the drums. This is a showcase for Beck's guitar.

Beck's recent tours have attempted to encapsulate, in a balanced form, nearly 40 years of recordings. The shows emphasized his prowess, but they also reminded the crowd that no one today writes or records music as he did in the 1970s, not even Beck himself. "Freeway Jam" abutted against blues rock and the Beatles; a rock interpretation of Thelonious Monk would preface a mad dash to showcase each instrumentalist.

Beck is still performing in a sleeveless shirt and mostly switching between two Fender Stratocasters, but this show is significantly different. Two of the covers--Muddy Waters' "Rollin' and Tumblin'" and Sly Stones "I Want to Take You Higher"--were ostensible starting points in Saturday night's (4/17) 90-minute show, their energy and groove displaying the sonic spectrum Beck worked in all night.

At the Nokia performance, a 22-piece orchestra added lushness to several of the ballads and the new Hendrixian number "Corpus Christi Carol." Rebello's synthesizer parts, however, were not sufficiently altered to allow the strings to effectively blend with the band.

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Setlist:
Stratus
Led Boots
Corpus Christi Carol
Hammerhead
Mna Na Eireann (beautiful instrumental)
Funk Groove (Rhonda bass solo)
People Get Ready
Rollin' & Tumblin' (Rhonda vocal)
Never Alone
Big Block
Over The Rainbow
Blast From The East
Angel (Footsteps)
Dirty Mind (Narada drum solo) [not the Prince tune]
Brush With The Blues
Higher
A Day In The Life

Encore:
How High The Moon
Nessun Dorma

The show was without a doubt an example of "Emotion" combined with elements of "Commotion".
For me the emphasis leaned more toward the "Emotion" side of things when it came to Jeff Beck's guitar skills. This has a lot to do with the compositions chosen which require very specific melodies to be played. I've always regarded him as the King of the Instrumental Rock Guitar Ballad. He's solidified that title even further based on the current material.

The new kids, Rhonda Smith and Narada Michael Walden handled themselves admirably as Beck's new rhythm section. Narada, when called for, echoed flashes of his serious drum chops from the Mahavishnu Orchestra days.

There were only 2 head-scratchers for me.

1) Rhonda singing Rollin' & Tumblin' just didn't work for me.
2) Unless he's just wants to have fun playing it, which it appears that he does, I don't understand the inclusion of I Want To Take You Higher in the set with all the excellent material he has available.


During this set in particular it became very clear against all odds, why he's become such a great draw without benefit of a lead vocalist.
His guitar, quite literally, does all the singing.







Music for adventurous listeners


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[Edited 4/20/10 12:06pm]