Keith Richards reflected on the time Jeff Beck almost ended up joining The Rolling Stones, explaining that the late icon was too much of an “individualist” for the teamwork his band required.
His prodigious solo career aside, the late blues rock trailblazer Jeff Beck also played with a few other massively talented outfits, including the legendary Yardbirds and Beck, Bogert & Appice, but word on the street has it that he almost ended up another — The Rolling Stones themselves. The ill-fated joining of forces was meant to take place in 1974, when Mick Taylor, who had previously replaced the band’s late heavyweight Brian Jones in 1969, departed shortly after the release of “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll” LP.
The story further suggests that Beck found himself at the audition for the job — alongside the consummate Irish blues guitarist Rory Gallagher, no less — but eventually dropped out of the equation as his own professional philosophy clashed with that of the Stones. Speaking to Guitar World in a recent interview, Keith Richards said that it never would’ve worked either way. Reflecting on the audition, the guitarist said:
“We felt that Jeff had his own furrow to plow and that he was not a team man. He was a soloist to the max. He was such an individualist. It wouldn’t have worked with the Stones at all. We’re all about teamwork.”
Similarly to Jeff Beck himself, who on several occasions noted it was never meant to be but still praised his colleagues’ work, Richards has nothing but the best to say about the late icon:
“But don’t get me wrong, he was a tremendous player. The odd times we got together, I was always amazed by the stuff that he did with his tremolo bar. He was one of the best, man, and he’s going to be missed.”
Jeff Beck’s whammy bar theatrics were also recently praised by Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine, who said earlier this summer:
“Somebody who, for example, was a master with the whammy bar, [and] who we recently lost, was Jeff Beck. And Jeff was a guy that I liked to listen to, his technique with the whammy bar. More so than anyone else, because most other people, besides David Gilmour, did not really know how to use the trem bar.”
The Rolling Stones’ new album “Hackney Diamonds” will be released this Friday (October 20).
