JEFF BECK, "CAUSE WE'VE ENDED AS LOVERS"

This Stevie Wonder tune is the vehicle for some of Beck's best ballad playing. I'll admit there are aspects of this performance that I don't love-- while Beck has always used crazy excess as an element of his playing, arguably there's more of that here than necessary. I'd also make the generalization that the crazy excess was used in shorter bursts in his earlier work, and with more humor. But regardless of whether you agree with me on that, a few things remain clear about Beck's playing, from any period. He consistently demonstrates a large number of virtuoso techniques, enabling him to mix unusual sounds with unusual phrasing and articulation.

In his more contemplative moments, some of his idiosyncracies lead to very beautiful and expressive playing. There are some of those here if you listen for them.

It's also important to note that Beck's basic approach here is taken from Roy Buchanan-- the use of volume knob to create a variety of "faded-in" attacks was the main ingredient in Buchanan's soulful sound, and Beck incorporated this approach into his own sound after hearing Roy. Beck often plays a Strat, and heavy whammy-bar use colors his tone much of the time. Here you can see him working to get some of the same effects without the bar. It's interesting to hear the different tone he gets on a Tele.