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Truth

Jeff Beck - Truth Audio CD

A fair review of the Jeff Beck "Truth" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Jeff Beck reviews here, or go back to the Jeff Beck tabs.

Band: Jeff Beck
Title: Truth
Rating:

Release Date: 2000-07-04
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Shapes of Things 2: Let Me Love You 3: Morning Dew 4: You Shook Me 5: Ol' Man River 6: Greensleeves 7: Rock My Plimsoul 8: Beck's Bolero 9: Blues Deluxe 10: I Ain't Superstitious

Timeless
Post Yardbirds it seems that this guy moved from project to project and never really found bandmates with which he could develop into a cohesive unit. It is hard to understand why Jeff Beck could never find a way to be part of a group that could really make the payday. His guitar work has always been inovative and intense. I personally feel that he is by far a more inventive guitarist than Clapton or most certainly than Jimmy Page who basically ripped off a ton of Beck's licks and called them his own. Truth really showed promise when it came out. I remember my buddies and I holding the 1st Zeppelin album and Truth next to each other debating which we preferred. Truth won out everytime, but of course Rod Stewart blew our minds as well. This Jeff Beck group just faded away and you always heard how hard Beck was to work with and that is why nothing ever lasted. Years later comes Blow by Blow ushering in a new phase of Jazz fusion, and once again Beck is breaking ground. Truth is a landmark album and certainly one that is a must have if for nothing other than hearing a young Rod Stewart busting out with possibly the classiest sounding rock guitarist that has ever played. .

Beck's turn to shine
It mixes blues, hard rock and some boogie rock elements together to create a very satisfying listen. I didn't believe it at first, but yeah, Jeff Beck's "Truth" is a really good groundbreaking album. This version of "Shapes of Things" is pretty different compared to the Yardbird's version, because Rod Stewart has his own sound and style. It's not better, but it's certainly not any worse.

This version of "Morning Dew" is *much* better than Nazareth's version from their debut album (released two years later). That version dragged, whereas the version here is shorter and features some excellent and innovative guitar playing. I also think this version of "You Shook Me" (dominated with keyboards) blows Zeppelin's version to pieces. It's the same story with the previous song- Zeppelin's version from the first album DRAGS and a shorter version is a big improvement in my opinion, so that's why I prefer this one.

"Greensleeves" is an odd choice, but it's short and harmless, "Beck's Bolero" has a catchy and snappy little guitar riff, and "Blues Deluxe" is a fantastic blues song. Maybe it's equal to Led Zeppelin's "Since I've Been Loving You". I love Rod's vocals and of course the guitar work totally blows my mind.

Is "Truth" a classic? Yes. It's no Blow By Blow or Wired (my two favorite Beck albums) but third place ain't a bad place to be. .

Tasty indeed
That is pure hogwash. I read with amusement the other reviews comparing Beck to Page and insisting you must make an either/or choice between the two. . . it is both/and.

Although the Page contributions to this project are appreciated, Beck and Stewart are the rightful stars, and they pale to no one.

Beck's guitar work is far superior on Truth compared to anything in the Yardbirds era, and in my opinion any of his later work. The sounds he makes with the rudimentary effects of that era are phenomenal, and sound like they could have been recorded yesterday. When you hear this, you can hear the influence he had upon musicians like Trower, Vaughn and even his contemporary, Page.

This was the breakout for Stewart, and his raw, strained vocals add an edge to these blues that will make you bleed at times. He never sounded better.

I wish that Beck/Stewart would have recorded more than two albums (see Beck-Ola). But because they didn't, the mighty Zep was able to fill that void.

Perhaps his most soulful recording
No skipping ahead to the "good tracks" as they are all good. This is one of those albums/CD's that you can put on and just sit back and enjoy. I first heard this album back in my childhood as my older sister had this on vinyl. I rediscovered it in the late eighties and even today it does not sound dated. Rod Stewart is in fine form on this as is Beck. Awesome stuff. I disagree with the last review. "Old Man River" works for me just fine. "Ain't Superstious" is perhaps my fav.

A great album.
Possibly because as a Led Zeppelin fan, this album is soundwise, a precurser to Led Zeppelin. I own 5 Jeff Beck albums and in a way, this one is the most fascinating of them. That being said, it has a life and fire all it's own. Jeff Beck is one of the greatest guitarists ever to pick up the instrument. The album keeps me whipping along, though I get a little lost on "Old Man River".

"Shape of Things" is a great re-working of the Yardbirds tune. This is the introduction of the world to Rod Stewart, who sings with a passion that does this song justice. The song was also covered in this form by Gary Moore and Jimmy Page and the Black Crowes.

"Let Me Love You" is another great tune. Comes in with a rocking guitar riff and contains some tasty guitar and vocal interplay between Beck and Stewart.

"Morning Dew" fades in with a haunting sound followed by a bass and drum beat before going into the song. The song, while played in a major key, has an extremely haunting flavor to it. A prime cut from the band.

"You Shook Me"-This is NOTHING like the Led Zeppelin version. Jeff Beck boasts that he wanted to make the rudest and sickest sounds with his guitar on this song. And he did that. It is sad that this song became a major point of contension between Beck and Page when Page recorded his own version for Zeppelin. Back on topic though, this is a great rendition of the song and is worth listening to just to juxtapose with Zeppelin.

"Old Man River"-Probably my least favorite track from the album. In this case, the only real positive is the fact that Rod Stewart sings it with such passion. Sadly, he hasn't sung with that kind of passion since his early solo/Faces days.

"Greensleeves"-Not familiar with the traditional version, but I love the way Beck takes some time to show off his skills on an acoustic guitar. It has a very medieval and majestic feel to it.

"Rock My Plimsoul"-Back to the straightahead blues rock. Another track with vocal and guitar interplay between Beck and Stewart. Beck's guitar playing was top notch here.

"Beck's Bolero"-An excellent instrumental featuring Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Keith Moon. The interplay between Beck and Page alone make this one worthwhile, however everybody contributed greatly. It is very evocative of early Zeppelin. This track was not recorded during the "Truth" sessions. There are some differing accounts to when it was recorded. Probably in 1966 or 1967. Another point of contension between Beck and Page. Mainly over the writing credit. This bolero rhythm was used on "How Many More Times" from Zeppelin I.

"Blues Deluxe"-The longest track on the album. This is supposed to be the blues in a live setting, however, many believe that the audience was dubbed in to give it the feel of a live track. However it is still a great track. Being the longest song on the album, it has the feel of being improvised. Joe Bonamassa also covered this song for his album of the same name.

"I Ain't Superstitious"-IMO, the best track on the album. The leads that Beck pulls out during the course of this song are great. In many ways this is the tastiest sounding Beck's guitar playing has been during the course of this album. Stewart's voice here shows that he was meant to be a bluesman. And the grand finale capped this song off well. Megadeth also covered this song for their 1986 album "Peace Sells. . . But Who's Buying". .

You can see a complete list of all Jeff Beck discography, or go back to the Jeff Beck tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.