Tag Archives: Jeff Beck

Song of the Week – Running Scared, Roy Orbison; Beck’s Bolero, Jeff Beck; White Rabbit, Jefferson Airplane; The Bomber: Closet Queen / Bolero / Cast Your Fate to the Wind, James Gang

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Ignored           Obscured            Restored

In 1927, Joseph Ravel was commissioned to compose his final and most famous piece – Boléro.  Though most people know Bolero as a musical composition, the commission was originally to provide a score for Ida Rubinstein’s ballet company.  But Boléro has become most famous as the score to a different dance.  (More on that later.)

Is the SotW venturing into classical music?  Hell no!  There are quite a few notable rock songs that reference Boléro, and that’s today’s topic.

Roy Orbison (aka “Lefty Wilbury”) is often credited as the first rock musician to use the Boléro theme in a rock song – “Running Scared” (1961).

“… Scared” opens with a simple guitar strumming, then builds with each verse, much like Ravel’s piece.  All of the instruments are layered on, piece by piece, building to an immense climax.  It is also notable that the song has no chorus.

In 1966 Jeff Beck, soon after leaving the Yardbirds, decided to record his first single and called on his old friend Jimmy Page to help out.  They proceeded to lay down “Beck’s Boléro,” which would become the b-side to the “Hi Ho Silver Lining” single.

They called on John Paul Jones to play bass and Keith Moon for drums.  Page agreed to play 12-string electric rhythm so Beck could take on lead guitar responsibilities.

The Jefferson Airplane hired Grace Slick to replace Signe Anderson as their lead singer in 1966. Slick brought a couple of her own songs to the group, including the Boléro based classic, “White Rabbit.”

“White Rabbit” reached #8 on the Billboard pop chart in 1967.  The military march that ties back to Ravel’s Bolero is immediately recognizable.  The song is currently featured in an ad for a cruise line!  Ugh!!!

Joe Walsh, of the James Gang (and later Eagles), was also influenced by Boléro.  The Gang’s second album, Rides Again (1970), included a suite — “The Bomber: Closet Queen”/ “Bolero”/ “Cast Your Fate to the Wind.”

The rights holders to Ravel’s Boléro objected to the James Gang’s use of the composition in their recording and forced the band to delete that section from future pressings of the album, instantly creating a collector’s item.

Ravel’s Bolero received a boost in popularity in 1979 when it was featured in the movie 10.  In the movie, Bo Derek’s character (physically a perfect “10”) tells Dudley Moore’s character “Boléro was the most descriptive sex music ever written” and asks “Did you ever do it to Ravel’s Boléro?”  Millions of copies of Boléro were sold following the commercial success of 10.

In 2012, London based music psychologist Dr. Daniel Müllensiefen analyzed the results of a Spotify survey of songs in “music to make love to” playlists.  The winner?  Marvin Gaye for “Sexual Healing” and “Let’s Get It On.”  But Ravel’s Boléro was next in line.

Enjoy… until next week.

Song of the Week – Epistle to Dippy & Barabajagal, Donovan

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IGNORED OBSCURED RESTORED

My appreciation for the music of Donovan (Leitch) has been somewhat of a roller coaster ride.

When I was a kid I was captivated by some of the early hits by Donovan. “Sunshine Superman” reached #1 and “Mellow Yellow” came close, stopping at #2, both in 1966.

As my taste in music became more mature, I looked back on those hits as novelties and moved on. That caused me to ignore future hits like “Hurdy Gurdy Man” (a weak Dylan rip off) and “Atlantis.”

But several years later I learned that he wrote a Judy Collins song I liked, “Sunny Goodge Street,” and “Season of the Witch” that was the highlight of the Kooper/Stills/Bloomfield Super Session album.

More importantly, I learned that Donovan went with the Beatles (my heroes) to Rishikesh, India in 1968. While there he taught Lennon and McCartney a finger picking guitar style that they soon employed on several White Album songs, like “Dear Prudence,” “Julia,” “Mother Nature’s Son” and the lovely evergreen “Blackbird.” That earned him some mega cred in my book.

So I did more digging and discovered this credibility and respect carried over to a long list of rock royalty… which brings me to the SotW.

“Epistle to Dippy” features Jimmy Page on guitar. Actually, Page played on numerous Donovan songs including the aforementioned “Season of the Witch” and “Sunshine Superman.”

This track “only” reached #19 in the US. The lyrics of “Epistle…” are written in the form of a letter to a friend that joined the army. In subsequent interviews Donovan has shared that he hoped is friend Dippy would hear the song and contact him. He also claims to have “bought” Dippy out of his service enlistment, apparently something you could do in England back then.

In 2008 the ithinkihatemy45s blog wrote:

The non-LP “Epistle to Dippy” is one of the best from this period, a lysergic, almost Barrett-esque single with sproingy guitars, sawing cellos, and a harpsichord break. Even though some of the lyrics are, uh, dated (“Look on yonder misty mountain / See the young monk meditating,” “Elevator in the brain hotel,” etc.), give it a pass for its great arrangement, great spaced-out vocal, and great melody; this is easily in the same league as killers “Hurdy Gurdy Man” and “Sunshine Superman.” Donovan’s psychedelic pop – “Dippy” in particular – seems to be the reference point for the Rolling Stones’ strange attempts at the form in 1967: “Dandelion” and “We Love You” take more from records such as this one than they do any, say, Beatles disc.

Another great Donovan song is the title track from the album Barabajagal (1969).

On this one, Donovan is backed by the Jeff Beck Group – including Beck (guitar) Ron Wood (bass) and Nicky Hopkins (keys). They rock out while at the same time giving the cut a jazzy feel. The blue chip trio of woman background singers — Lesley Duncan, Madeline Bell and Suzi Quatro – adds a special spark to the recording.

The lyrics are incomprehensible – mostly nonsense syllables – but fun to sing and listen to.

So I vote that you take Donovan seriously (if you don’t already) and give his back catalog a listen. You won’t be disappointed!

Enjoy… until next week.

Song of the Week – Live in the Dark & Blues Deluxe, Jeff Beck

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IGNORED OBSCURED RESTORED

In a couple of weeks I’ll be going with a friend to see Jeff Beck and Buddy Guy. It should be a fun evening of rock and blues.

Guitar hero Jeff Beck has been the focus of the media recently, touting his new album Loud Hailer. This is the first release in six years from the 72 year old axe man and it has received pretty good notices,mostly applauding the modern sound he captures by working with the young women of London based Bones — vocalist Rosie Bones and guitarist Carmen Vandenberg.

The first SotW is “Live in the Dark” from Loud Hailer.

Many of the songs on Loud Hailer have political themes, but not “Live in the Dark.” This is just a simple sample of modern garage rock.

Although I’m digging the new release, I still relish going back to his first solo album, Truth, for great blues based rock. His band for that album had Rod Stewart on vocals and Ronnie Wood on bass with a little help from friend Nicky Hopkins (piano) on a few cuts.

The next SotW is “Blues Deluxe” from that album.

The song sounds like a live recording but I’m not sure if it really is live or just overdubbed with audience applause to make it appear that way. I can’t understand why they would do that but it doesn’t really matter.

In a 1973 article by Charles Shaar Murray in New Musical Express, he writes of “Blues Deluxe”:

“After Rod and Nicky have slugged out several identical choruses, Beck comes in for his solo, stopping the entire band to play a totally extraneous riff, and then producing assorted gabbles and screeches, finally divebombing into a minor conflagration at the bottom of the neck before leading it back into the next verse.”

Beck has always demonstrated flamboyance and independence in his playing!

True to the folk/blues tradition, Beck/Stewart avail themselves of a bit of “borrowing” for this number. It is a reworking of B.B. King’s “Gambler’s Blues.” Check it out sometime.

Enjoy… until next week.