Notice
When word leaked out in 1975 that Jeff Beck was recording an all-instrumental album, no less a luminary than his fellow fret-grinder Jimmy Page expressed a keen interest in the anticipated event. "Jeff can be very tasty when he wants to be," Pagey intoned, and his words of wisdom turned out to be an accurate prediction of the "shapes of things to come." Released in 1976, Blow by Blow had every guitarist worth his salt clamoring to check out El Becko's quicksilver licks, revolutionary whammy bar maneuvers, and exquisite melodic sense on a selection of fusion tunes that ran the gamut from jazz to rock to funk. Smack dab in the middle of the sensitive singer/songwriter decade, he let the guitar be his voice and created a classic with "Freeway Jam."
THE FORM
Each section is labeled with rehearsal letters [A-H]. Letters C and F contain the head, or melody, played over a G7 vamp. Letters D and G provide harmonic release from the overriding I chord. Note that the tune has been arranged for one guitar, even though Beck adds subtle overdubs in various places throughout.
THE BLUES ACCORDING TO BECK
Letter B is a compendium of "Beckisms." In measures 5-9 of the second ending, Beck rips the G minor pentatonic scale (G-Bb-C-D-F) in 15th position with blues licks from Jupiter. Dig the woozy wobbles on the root and b7th (F) notes at the phrase's end. Measure 10 of the second ending contains one of Beck's famous trills of the root to the b3rd, all with whammy bar vibrato. Rapidly hammer on and pull off between the 12th-fret G (fretted with your index finger) and the 15th-fret Bb (fretted with your pinky), while shaking the vibrato bar with your pick hand. Two measures later, the b7th (F) octave leaps represent a dynamic, dramatic change of register that creates heavy tension, resolving up to the root in bar 13 of the second ending. A subsequent, time-warping dive of the open B harmonic at the 12th fret sings like a siren. In measure 18 of the second ending, tension is ratcheted back up with wide-interval 16th-note triplets involving the b3rd (Bb) and b7th (F) notes. The section ends with a nasty C/F dyad with the C (4th) pulled down toward the floor with the middle finger to sound D (5th).
THE HEAD
In the head, Beck cruises the G Mixolydian mode in 14th position to invent a melody (Riff A) as smooth as a 1949 Caddy. Though he uses the whammy bar sparingly for vibrato in the head, its application makes a great exercise in attempting to gain the magic wand-like control Beck possesses. This requires extremely accurate pitch manipulation, so experiment with your axe to get a feel for whole- and half-step dives and bends before trying to nail the melody. When you're ready, pre-dip the 19th-fret A to G, and release the bar to sound the A. Next, pull up one step to B; then pull up an additional half-step to C. Play the 15th-fret D on string 2, bend up one step to E, then release back to D. Follow with the fretted C and D notes, using the bar to add vibrato.