Beck's Bolero - Instrumental

Beck recorded "Beck's Bolero" with Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, Keith Moon and Nicky Hopkins during a single-day recording session in 1966. They planned to record a whole album, but contractual obligations prevented them from recording together again, and this was the only song from that session that was released. This Beck/Page/Jones/Moon/Hopkins combination had the makings of a supergroup, and it nearly happened, but they couldn't find a suitable lead singer, failing to pry Steve Marriott away from Small Faces. Page and Jones then formed Led Zeppelin.

Jimmy Page is the only credited songwriter on this one. In a 1977 interview with Guitar Player magazine, he explained how the song came together after Simon Napier-Bell, who was producing the track, vanished. "On the 'Beck's Bolero' thing I was working with that, the track was done, and then the producer just disappeared," Page said. "He was never seen again; he simply didn't come back. Napier-Bell, he just sort of left me and Jeff to it. Jeff was playing and I was in the box (recording booth). And even though he says he wrote it, I wrote it. I'm playing the electric 12-string on it. Beck's doing the slide bits, and I'm basically playing around the chords. The idea was built around (classical composer) Maurice Ravel's 'Bolero.' It's got a lot of drama to it; it came off right. It was a good lineup too, with Keith Moon, and everything."

"Beck's Bolero" first appeared in 1967 on the B-side of Beck's first single, a novelty-ish song called "Hi Ho Silver Lining," which has a rare lead vocal by Beck (on some pressings, the song is titled "Bolero"). In 1968, it was included on Truth, the first Jeff Beck Group album. It's the only instrumental on the album, which has lead vocals by a young Rod Stewart, the group's frontman.