Jeff Beck Les Pauls

[Rotovibe]

I've been on a Jeff Beck kick lately and I am looking for some history on Jeff Beck and his Les Pauls through the years. Info and pictures would be great. I was listening to a bootleg of The Jeff Beck Group from the Fillmore West in '68and his tone is the kind you can only dream about. Thanks a bunch.

[Guido.c]

I think he had an Oxblood 69 lester, can help more though

[billy]

It mentions in the BOTB book that burst 9 1864 (page 90) is believed to be owned by jeff beck when he was playing in the first jeff beck group, but it doesn't say for sure.

[sgberry]

Didn`t he played 1954 LP routed out for humbuckers and painted in oxblood colour?

[BurstintoFlames]

Originally Posted by sgberry

Didn`t he played 1954 LP routed out for humbuckers and painted in oxblood colour?

You are correct. Im not sure if he had more than one tho.

[Guido.c]

Originally Posted by BurstintoFlames

You are correct. Im not sure if he had more than one tho.

so it was ´54 how could I confuse

[refin]

Beck had a couple of bursts in the '60s.
Here's one---------
http://members.aol.com/tjvirus/jb1.jpg

[billy]

Originally Posted by refin

Beck had a couple of bursts in the '60s.
Here's one---------
http://members.aol.com/tjvirus/jb1.jpg

That looks like the one mentioned in the BOTB the flame looks very similar and it has the same zebra neck PAF.

A few more pics i found....

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-02.jpg

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-03.jpg

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-01.jpg

[Liam]

There are a few pics of Beck's Les Pauls in Bacon and Day's "The Les Paul Book."

[Rotovibe]

Originally Posted by billy

That looks like the one mentioned in the BOTB the flame looks very similar and it has the same zebra neck PAF.

A few more pics i found....

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-02.jpg

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-03.jpg

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i.../9_1864-01.jpg

Is that a '58 or '59? I know he had a '58 for a while because he likes guitars with thick necks. His Strat signature neck is like a baseball bat. I played one a few years back and it was almost rediculous how thick the neck was.

[G-Minor]

IN his yardbirds tenure he had a burst withy covers on then to me it seemed he took the covers off but others may think its another paul but if you watch some old yardies clip-s on youtube youll see that he had mainly one paul in the band

[Axeman16]

Originally Posted by sgberry

Didn`t he played 1954 LP routed out for humbuckers and painted in oxblood colour?

yes.

[jomo]

Please forgive the side note: \
Have you seen the Jeff Beck Strat and Tele? Very cool as well. (Of course we know the LP would be cooler)
I didn't know there was a Jeff Beck LP.

[billy]

Originally Posted by Rotovibe

Is that a '58 or '59? I know he had a '58 for a while because he likes guitars with thick necks. His Strat signature neck is like a baseball bat. I played one a few years back and it was almost rediculous how thick the neck was.

It's a '59 the serial is.... 9 1864

[Oh Teh Noes!!!]

I have always been a big Jeff Beck fan. His signature strat looks great.

[Guido.c]

Originally Posted by jomo

Please forgive the side note: \
Have you seen the Jeff Beck Strat and Tele? Very cool as well. (Of course we know the LP would be cooler)
I didn't know there was a Jeff Beck LP.

I bet the tele is worth 5k+ just for the aging

[Emerald]

How about this one lads? Rare pic showing also Jeff's Marshall stack with tall bottom cab, ala Hendrix, but in black and white basketweave, or salt and pepper to use the US description. This is a rare beast as it is a 30H cab, without the metal handles, but with the newer grillcloth. I had a tall bottom cab in England back in the sixties, that was basketweave, but has 25M's and had metal handles, so this is a rare transition cab. Also you may notice the infamous JB Burst, which some say is still out there and is featured in The Beauty Of The Burst:
[/
Emerald

[Emerald]

[size="3"]How about this one lads? Rare pic showing also Jeff's Marshall stack with tall bottom cab, ala Hendrix, but in black and white basketweave, or salt and pepper to use the US description. This is a rare beast as it is a 30H cab, without the metal handles, but with the newer grillcloth. I had a tall bottom cab in England back in the sixties, that was basketweave, but has 25M's and had metal handles, so this is a rae transition cab. Also you may notice the infamous JB Burst, which some say is still out there and is featured in The Beauty Of The Burst:
[/

EmeraldSIZE]

[John Catto]

Beck is mostly associated with one of 3 Les Pauls over his career. The first one appeared when he was in the Yardbirds, it's always seen with it's covers off showing double whites so it's a 59 or 60. It always had a single layer black pickguard in the beginning never a cream one.



... after a while it lost the pickguard and the switch-ring.



When Beck throws a tantrum and leaves the Yardbirds in the middle of their American tour he supposedly smashes this guitar up to some degree, however it's repaired and back in action for the Jeff Beck Group.

By now it's had all it's top finish stripped off.





Another tantrum and Beck smahes it up yet again, once again in the middle of an american tour probably destroying the neck this time. Luckily Rick Nielsen (of later Cheap Trick fame) is on hand to sell Jeff a considerably nicer flametop 59 burst, this is absolutely the guitar that's in the Beauty Of The Burst. Beck uses this till it is eventually stolen.









sometime around here Jeff gets back the first guitar. Going by the photo in the bacon book it got renecked with a new fingerboard, big headstock with flowerpot and script logo inlays and jeffs intials at the end of the fingerboard. the enterprising (but unnamed) luthier also made off with the double white Pafs that were in it. apparently Jeff never really liked the result and I've only seen a couple of photos of him using it (circa Rough & Ready) in this state, he still has it.



Lastly around BB&A he picked up the "Oxblood" (really very dark brown) 50's conversion that he is often pictured with, it came from Strings & Things who I think have some sort of blurb on their web page about it's history.

[Emerald]

[font="Arial Black"][size="3"]Here is the one sold to him by Rick Neilsen and this photo is from the Roundhouse, Chalk Farm, London, 1969.
Also is a rare transition Marshall tall bottom cabinet stack, which has basket weave grillcloth. I ahd a tall bottom cab with basketweave, but it was the last version with metal handles. Also a compensated tailpiece with top wrapped strings and an early Tonebender:



Sorry multiple post!

Emerald

[maegnus]

This one is for sale here in Norway at about 60 000 usd. It was sold as Jeff Beck's previous guitar in 71. Its most likely a 56 gold top conversion.

[John Catto]

A couple of additional notes about Jeffs guitars picked browsing through "Crazy Fingers"

1: Jeff bought the first burst from Selmers on Charing Cross Road around Feb/March 1966, he paid £175 for it.

2: This got broken on October 11 1968, it wasn't in fact Jeff but rather it was lying on top of a Marshall and got knocked off breaking the neck. It was then renecked with a normal looking but narrow neck (going by photos circa JBG 2), this was the luthier who changed the double white PAFs out for T-Tops.

3: Jeff immediately bought a 54 Strat which he used briefly on 22 October in Boston but then bought the Flametop (9_1864) from Rick Nielsen on 24 October 1968 in Philadelphia for $350. Apparently it still had a Bigsby on it when it was delivered which Beck removed. Beck apparently kept the guitar for some time, it was finally stolen during the last JBG 2 shows in late '72 which is when Jeff picked up the "Oxblood" conversion.

4: The large headstock with the flowerpot inlay and script logo plus the intitials were added to burst 1 when the it was broken yet again in the mid 70's, after that he put it away.

[citrixmeta]

i found this vid today, YouTube - Jeff Beck Group & Rod Stewart - Shape Of Things
FF to 1:20 , what lespaul is he using there?

[jomo]

Originally Posted by John Catto

A couple of additional notes about Jeffs guitars picked browsing through "Crazy Fingers"

1: Jeff bought the first burst from Selmers on Charing Cross Road around Feb/March 1966, he paid £175 for it.

2: This got broken on October 11 1968, it wasn't in fact Jeff but rather it was lying on top of a Marshall and got knocked off breaking the neck. It was then renecked with a normal looking but narrow neck (going by photos circa JBG 2), this was the luthier who changed the double white PAFs out for T-Tops.

3: Jeff immediately bought a 54 Strat which he used briefly on 22 October in Boston but then bought the Flametop (9_1864) from Rick Nielsen on 24 October 1968 in Philadelphia for $350. Apparently it still had a Bigsby on it when it was delivered which Beck removed. Beck apparently kept the guitar for some time, it was finally stolen during the last JBG 2 shows in late '72 which is when Jeff picked up the "Oxblood" conversion.

4: The large headstock with the flowerpot inlay and script logo plus the intitials were added to burst 1 when the it was broken yet again in the mid 70's, after that he put it away.

Thanks for that info, I love reading these type of "factoids".