Jeff Beck - "Emotion & Commotion"

[Blaze]

LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 01/19/10 -- For his first studio album in seven years, Grammy-winning guitarist Jeff Beck returns with an eclectic mix of tracks that find the guitar virtuoso accompanied by a handpicked cast of talented musicians, as well as several songs accompanied by a 64-piece orchestra. Rhino unleashes the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer's restless genius with EMOTION & COMMOTION. The album will be available on Atco Records, an imprint of Rhino Entertainment, on April 13 at all retail outlets, including www.rhino.com, for a suggested list price of $18.98 (CD) and $9.99 (digital).

Beck recorded EMOTION & COMMOTION late last year at Sarm Studios in London with award-winning producers Steve Lipson and Trevor Horn. To create the album's diverse sound, Beck used a number of musicians, including appearances by frequent collaborators Vinnie Colaiuta (drums), Jason Rebello (keyboards), and Tal Wilkenfeld (bass). The album also includes contributions from a trio of singers: Imelda May ("Lilac Wine"), Olivia Safe ("Elegy For Dunkirk"), and Grammy-winner Joss Stone ("I Put A Spell On You" and "There's No Other Me").

To complement the innovative tones he coaxes from his guitar, Beck recorded with a 64-piece orchestra on songs that range from Puccini's immortal aria "Nessun Dorma" and "Elegy For Dunkirk" from the film "Atonement" to "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" from "The Wizard Of Oz" and Jeff Buckley's interpretation of "Corpus Christi Carol."

Beck says the idea of pairing his guitar with an orchestra evolved from the version of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5 he recorded a few years ago. "It turned out amazingly well, but I didn't want to commit to an entire album of classical music. What appealed to me instead was the idea of bringing together these seemingly contradictory sounds on different kinds of nonclassical music."

In addition to the orchestral pieces, EMOTION & COMMOTION showcases a number of original compositions. For "Hammerhead," Beck fires the rocker's opening salvo through his wah-wah pedal before falling into a deep groove carved out by the rhythm section and horn arrangement. At the opposite end of the sonic spectrum, the airy arrangement that elevates "Never Alone" provides a wide-angle soundscape for Beck's imagination to freely explore the high-flying melody.

Before launching a world tour to support EMOTION & COMMOTION, Beck will unite with Eric Clapton in February for a series of exclusive shows in London, New York City, Toronto, and Montreal. The guitarists -- both former members of the Yardbirds -- will play separately before taking the stage to perform together.

After the shows with Clapton, Beck will play South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, and Japan before returning to America for the U.S. leg of the tour starting mid-April and including an appearance at the New Orleans Jazz Festival on May 1.

For Beck, the new album and tour follows in the wake of a triumphant 2009 -- his most successful year ever. Among the many highlights were a sold-out world tour; his second induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; the release of the platinum-selling "Performing This Week... Live At Ronnie Scott's," which earned a Grammy nomination for "A Day In The Life"; and magnificent performances with his band at the 25th Anniversary Concert of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at Madison Square Garden.

For additional information regarding EMOTION & COMMOTION, please contact Melissa Dragich-Cordero at MAD Ink, PR (310) 547-1212 or MelissaDragich@... or Jason Elzy at Rhino at (818) 238-6220 or jason.elzy@....

EMOTION & COMMOTION
Track Listing

1. "Corpus Christi Carol"
2. "Hammerhead"
3. "Never Alone"
4. "Somewhere Over The Rainbow"
5. "I Put A Spell On You" featuring Joss Stone
6. "Serene"
7. "Lilac Wine" featuring Imelda May
8. "Nessun Dorma"
9. "There's No Other Me" featuring Joss Stone
10. "Elegy For Dunkirk" featuring Olivia Safe

[ZMAN]

I really liked his early stuff, but lately he is doing a lot of John Mclachlan type of stuff. Jazz fusion. I had a DVD given to me by a friend, his concert at Ronnie Scotts, and I have only played it once. Of course he jumps back and forth from Jazz to rock to blues. He knows his instrument and can get some wild sounds out of it, but not my cup of tea any more.

[player***]

Still like his stuff being I grew up on him and Clapton

[Robert****]

I'm gonna have to get this... I don't know why, but I didn't discover Jeff Beck until fairly recently. He's one of the best guitar players of all time, in my opinion. And he's still alive!

[Tig***]

I really liked his early stuff... ...He knows his instrument and can get some wild sounds out of it, but not my cup of tea any more.

I feel the almost the same way. I listened to the Blow By Blow vinyl over and over as a kid in the late 70's. "Live at Ronnie Scotts" is better to watch as a DVD than just listen to. The chemistry he and his band has is beyond words!

[msteeln]

For a legitimate legend/HoFer, he's got to have the smallest canon of truly great music. The chance of multiple listens to his post early 70s releases is slim. Maybe it's too techy, which I do appreciate, but if music isn't memorable then few will remember to care, and I've never heard anybody whistling a JB tune.

[marnold***]

You can get it today at Amazon's MP3 store for $4.99.

[bigG]

I loved the Live at Ronnie Scott's DVD. I think you have to see the man and his band to truly appreciate that one.

I listened to this new one most all the way thru earlier today. While impressive (and somewhat bombastic), it's not my cup of tea. I imagine on DVD it would be more impressive, but still...

OTOH, Jeff Beck has always pretty much done what HE likes, and I guess he liked this enough to release it, so more power to him! By now, he doesn't have to impress anybody...and, w this disc, likely won't.

[mrmudcat]

I love joss stone and tal..combined with jeff............nuff said!

[helliott***]

We saw Jeff with Clapton in Toronto, and Beck's set was fantastic. Sadly, Tal was replaced by tour by the woman who played in Prince's band, who is an awesome player, but ....
Beck is a true original. Not my favourite genre, but you have to respect the heck out of his talent and creative forces.

[birv2]

I listened to the whole thing on NPR and I actually liked it. Which surprised me.

[msteeln]

Just came upon this Beck int. - http://fender.com/news/index.php?dis...4-R4WB-RNW0-v1