Geoffrey Arnold Beck

Jeff Beck (1944–2023) was universally acclaimed by fellow guitar gods as the ultimate master of the electric guitar. Replacing Eric Clapton in The Yardbirds in 1965 on the recommendation of his childhood friend Jimmy Page, Beck spearheaded British psychedelic rock with pioneering feedback experiments on \"Heart Full of Soul\" and \"Shapes of Things\".

In 1967, he formed The Jeff Beck Group featuring a young Rod Stewart on vocals and Ronnie Wood on bass, releasing Truth (1968)—an influential heavy blues album that laid the direct blueprint for Led Zeppelin and hard rock. In the mid-1970s, he transitioned to instrumental jazz-rock fusion with masterworks Blow by Blow (1975) and Wired (1976), produced by George Martin.

Foregoing guitar picks to play directly with his fingers and using the Stratocaster whammy bar with microtonal vocal expression, Beck was twice inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and won eight Grammy Awards.