| Release Date | Genre | Chart US | Chart Aust | Rating |
| March 1975 | Instrumental Jazz Rock Fusion | US Billboard #4 | Aust Albums #28 | 9/10 |
I was fortunate enough to grow up in a time when rock music wasn’t necessarily pure, but it still had the energy and driving spirit that created it in the first place. Somewhere between the late seventies and mid-eighties, the industry sold its soul and dissolved into a corporate-driven “content creation” cesspit.
Fortunately, I’m old enough to remember when albums like Blow by Blow were not only allowed to be made, but actually charted. Blow by Blow has no formulas, not even the faintest nod to FM radio. Each piece is a work of art created by a musician at the top of his game, pushing the envelope as far as he can. Listening to it today is a privilege. And I really do mean LISTEN. Beck’s mastery of the guitar is compelling, and his exploration of jazz fusion and funk separates him from his contemporaries, who, for the most part, were content to operate within the limitations that rock progressions and chords imposed.
When I bought the album in 1978, it was already considered “dated,” having been released in 1975. My sixteen-year-old ears did not fully appreciate the genius and musicianship involved. I was pretty much a metalhead then. I immediately understood the dexterity and skill Beck possessed, but I couldn’t help thinking he would be better served running a band like Rainbow, with a leather-lunged vocalist up front assailing our senses with all the subtlety of a mechanised sledgehammer. I was sixteen. I can forgive myself for that stupidity.
A little later, I found myself studying jazz under Paul Rettke, and as a matter of course, gave Beck’s albums another listen. I almost got it then, but Van Halen was on the rise, Deep Purple had just reformed, and I still loved the attitude that Blackmore, in particular, had. Jeff Beck was maybe a little too subtle for my somewhat educated, but still immature, musical tastes. But Beck’s guitar playing stunned me.
It still does.
But now I really get it. Maybe that’s because I don’t view the world through the eyes of an angry young man who wanted that anger reflected back to him in the music he listened to. Maybe it’s simply because my tastes have mellowed and matured to the point that I have a wider listening palette. Whatever it is, I can now comfortably say that Jeff Beck’s Blow by Blow is a must-have album that should be listened to regularly, not just occasionally.
There are no weak tracks on this album, although some, like Constipated Duck, take some time to fully appreciate.
Standout tracks for me are the Stevie Wonder-penned “Because We’ve Ended as Lovers ” (the guitar lines here are perhaps the most emotive I’ve ever heard), Airblower, Scatterbrain, and the closing track Diamond Dust.
If you play guitar, you MUST have this album. If you like jazz rock, you should add this to your collection. If you simply like instrumental music that encourages you to sit and listen, buy it.
On the other hand, if you’re content with AI-generated, lowest-common-denominator, radio-friendly content, you’re probably better off giving this a miss.