The Jeff Beck Group was formed by lead guitarist Jeff Beck (one of the most famous and influential guitarists of all time), lead singer Rod Stewart (whose career we will be following after he leaves the Jeff Beck Group), and rhythm guitarist Ronnie Wood (who would later join the Rolling Stones in 1975) with constantly rotating bass and drum players. Jeff Beck formed the group in 1967 after leaving the British blues rock band the Yardbirds.
The Jeff Beck Group's first studio album Truth was released in 1968. The album is sometimes considered a precursor to heavy metal for its fusion of blues rock and hard rock. It includes the instrumental song "Beck's Bolero," which was recorded in 1966 by Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and Keith Moon. and Nicky Hopkins. It was during the session for this song that Jimmy Page first got the idea for forming a supergroup of musicians, which he would follow through on in late 1968 when he formed Led Zeppelin. Truth was a commercial and critical success and retrospective reviews are often very positive.
Despite the star-studded cast, the only great moments on the album come from Jeff Beck when he is trekking new ground on his guitar, often during solos. Additionally, the track list is more than mediocre--the three Beck-Stewart songs are the album's most forgettable cuts and the blues covers suffer from static arrangements and Stewart's vocals, which are passionate to the point of pretentiousness. Which leaves only two songs: the Yardbirds' song "Shape of Things" and "Beck's Bolero," which are superb examples of 60s hard rock and blues guitar. Truth will, perhaps rightly, remain on vinyl shelves of guitarists who admire Jeff Beck's technique and tout the album's influence for years to come, but the rest of us will get a better kick out of Cream, Beck's former group The Yardbirds, and even Led Zeppelin's first two records, which I don't listen to anymore. C+ [Later: C]
