Jeff Beck was a king of collaboration. Throughout his distinguished career he expanded his musical horizons, lending his guitar wizardry to a wide range of artists. Some associations were more successful — commercially and/or critically — than others. But all were interesting and worth exploring. One of the most provocative, Beck, Bogert & Appice, is ripe for rediscovery. And a lavish new release should hasten that process.

Splintering off from an iteration of The Jeff Beck Group, this thrilling threesome qualified as one of the top 70s supergroups. Beck had long admired bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice. These two had previously been together in both Vanilla Fudge and Cactus. With Appice handling the bulk of the vocals, the new power trio achieved a Cream-like vibe. And they should have risen to the top. But their life span was short.

Fortunately, their magic was preserved powerfully with “Live in Japan, 1973, Live in London, 1974.” The far out Far East shows were recorded at Koseinenkin Hall in Osaka. The live recordings were released in Japan, but never in the U.S. (other than in inferior bootleg forms). The show’s at London’s Rainbow Theatre had never been officially available anywhere… until now. ATCO/Rhino has issued these dynamite performances in handsome 4-CD and 4-LP box sets (available digitally, as well). Beck (who passed last January) and Appice mixed the material from the original multi-tracks that had been stored in Beck’s vault for half a century. (Bogert passed in 2021.) The sets found fantastic — fresh and ferocious.

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Source: Pop Culture Classics