During an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Jon Bon Jovi named Jeff Beck as the greatest guitarist of all time.
When probed by the legendary radio host on the topic, Bon Jovi didn’t hesitate before saying “Beck, Jeff Beck.” Stern was shocked by his answer and expected him to name Jimi Hendrix. In response, the musician explained to the broadcaster: “Jimi Hendrix, would of course be in the starting lineup, but you put me on the spot.”
Bon Jovi continued: “Eddie, Prince… all different, but I was in the room with Jeff Beck when he took a guitar out of a cardboard box with a rented amplifier and no pedals and created that sound when we did the ‘Young Guns’ record and he was my guitar player.” He added: “I sat there flabbergasted because Jeff Beck did things with his fingers, with his thumb that would blow your mind.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Bon Jovi explained why he doesn’t like his early music videos. He said of the video for his debut single ‘Runaway’: “Wait a minute, I just learned to play the guitar and write a song. You want me to be a filmmaker? What the hell do I know?”.
He added: “I fell for it hook, line and sinker, and the stupid record company with the stupid video director who says Fahrenheit 451 or whatever with his niece starring in the video, it’s like Jesus God. You want to embarrass me? Tie me to a chair and make me watch videos from my first two albums”.
