“I almost believe Jeff got the letter inviting him to Hogwarts, but they taught him guitar”: Joanne Shaw Taylor on the magic of Jeff Beck
Joanne Shaw Taylor is one of many guitarists who admires the great Jeff Beck, so much so that she even wants one of his tracks played at her own funeral.
Beck passed away in 2023 at the age of 78 after a colossal music career, from his work in blues-rock band The Yardbirds to his solo career, cementing him as “the guitarist’s guitarist”. Even over a year after his passing, his influence is still discussed regularly by artists both established and new.
READ MORE: Joanne Shaw Taylor: “Dudes, please stop saying favourite ‘female player’… all that means is we’re not your favourite guitar player”
Speaking to Classic Rock to share the soundtrack to her life, Shaw Taylor selects Beck as her personal guitar hero. She says, “Jeff Beck just transcended the instrument. Y’know, it could sound like a violin, it could sound like anything.
“I love Harry Potter, and I almost believe that Jeff got the letter inviting him to Hogwarts, but they taught him guitar. I did three shows with him on his Emotion & Commotion tour, and that was another very important album for me.”
Later on, Shaw Taylor also picks Beck’s Somewhere Over The Rainbow as her funeral song: “When he played that live, it made me think about my mum passing away and how beautiful life is,” she explains.
“I made the mistake a few years ago of telling my five-year-old nephew Oscar that I wanted a Viking funeral. Then my brother told me Oscar had signed up for archery lessons because he was worried that at my Viking funeral there wouldn’t be a bowman there to set me on fire!”
In other Beck news, his famed White Strat has been recently loaned to a number of guitarists in an ongoing project to honour his legacy. The project was confirmed by Steve Lukather, as John Mayer was spotted on stage with the guitar, and Lukather himself was also spotted performing a rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing using the same axe too.
Joanne Shaw Taylor will begin touring in October. Tickets are still available.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
