Emotion & Commotion | 
| Artist: Jeff Beck
Label: Rhino Records
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $7.39
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Seller: megahitrecords
Rating:  115 reviews
Sales Rank: 415
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.6
UPC: 081227981105
EAN: 0081227981105
ASIN: B003405MF6
Release Date: April 13, 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Corpus Christi Carol | | • | Hammerhead | | • | Never Alone | | • | Somewhere Over The Rainbow | | • | I Put A Spell On You featuring Joss Stone | | • | Serene | | • | Lilac Wine featuring Imelda May | | • | Nessun Dorma | | • | There s No Other Me featuring Joss Stone | | • | Elegy For Dunkirk featuring Olivia Safe |
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Product Description
For his first studio album in seven years, Grammy-winning guitarist Jeff Beck returns with an eclectic mix of tracks that find the guitar virtuoso accompanied by a handpicked cast of talented musicians, as well as several songs accompanied by a 64-piece orchestra. Rhino unleashes the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer s restless genius with EMOTION & COMMOTION.
Beck recorded EMOTION & COMMOTION late last year at Sarm Studios in London with award-winning producers Steve Lipson and Trevor Horn. To create the album s diverse sound, Beck used a number of musicians, including appearances by frequent collaborators Vinnie Colaiuta (drums), Jason Rebello (keyboards), and Tal Wilkenfeld (bass). The album also includes contributions from a trio of singers: Imelda May ('Lilac Wine'), Olivia Safe ('Elegy For Dunkirk'), and Grammy-winner Joss Stone ('I Put A Spell On You' and 'There s No Other Me').
To complement the innovative tones he coaxes from his guitar, Beck recorded with a 64-piece orchestra on songs that range from Puccini s immortal aria 'Nessun Dorma' and Elegy For Dunkirk from the film Atonement to 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' from The Wizard Of Oz and Jeff Buckley s interpretation of 'Corpus Christi Carol.'
Beck says the idea of pairing his guitar with an orchestra evolved from the version of Gustav Mahler s Symphony No. 5 he recorded a few years ago. 'It turned out amazingly well, but I didn t want to commit to an entire album of classical music. What appealed to me instead was the idea of bringing together these seemingly contradictory sounds on different kinds of nonclassical music.'
In addition to the orchestral pieces, EMOTION & COMMOTION showcases a number of original compositions. For 'Hammerhead,' Beck fires the rocker s opening salvo through his wah-wah pedal before falling into a deep groove carved out by the rhythm section and horn arrangement. At the opposite end of the sonic spectrum, the airy arrangement that elevates 'Never Alone' provides a wide-angle soundscape for Beck s imagination to freely explore the high-flying melody.
Before launching a world tour to support EMOTION & COMMOTION, Beck will unite with Eric Clapton in February for a series of exclusive shows in London, New York City, Toronto, and Montreal. The guitarists both former members of the Yardbirds will play separately before taking the stage to perform together.
After the shows with Clapton, Beck will play South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, and Japan before returning to America for the U.S. leg of the tour starting mid-April and including an appearance at the New Orleans Jazz Festival on May 1.
For Beck, the new album and tour follows in the wake of a triumphant 2009 his most successful year ever. Among the many highlights were a sold-out world tour; his second induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; the release of the platinum-selling Performing This Week... Live At Ronnie Scott s, which earned a Grammy nomination for 'A Day In The Life'; and magnificent performances with his band at the 25th Anniversary Concert of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at Madison Square Garden.
Album Description
2010 release, the Grammy-winning guitarist's first studio album in seven years. On Emotion & Commotion, Jeff Beck returns with an eclectic mix of tracks that find the guitar virtuoso accompanied by a handpicked cast of talented musicians, as well as several songs accompanied by a 64-piece orchestra. Beck recorded the album late last year at Sarm Studio's in London with award-winning producers Steve Lipson and Trevor Horn. To create the album's diverse sound, Beck used a number of musicians, including appearances by members of his current band - drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, bassist Tal Wilkenfeld and keyboardist Jason Rebello. The album also includes contributions from a trio of singers: Imelda May ("Lilac Wine"), Olivia Safe ("Elegy For Dunkirk") and Grammy -winner Joss Stone ("I Put A Spell On You" and "There's No Other Me").
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 115
 Wow! April 13, 2010
Satchmo (Kansas City, KS)
65 out of 71 found this review helpful
"Emotion and Commotion" is Jeff Beck's much-anticipated new release. Clocking in at just about 40 minutes, there is no wasted space on the disc. I will not go through track by track, as the other reviewers have done a nice job summarizing each song. Basically on this album, Beck leaves behind the high-powered techno and electronica flavors of his previous albums "Jeff," "You Had It Coming" and "Who Else" and goes for a more laid-back, worldly groove of classic rock fusion with classical undertones. Besides his amazing tone, these songs are wonderful. The covers are arranged well and tastefully done. Anyone who can transition from the beautiful "Somewhere over the Rainbow" to Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put A Spell On You" and back to Jeff Buckley's "Lilac Wine" and make it cohesive within the album is doing something right. The Beck originals, "Hammerhead" and "Serene" are also well-written.
I recently started listening to Jeff Beck a couple years ago. I admit that I am a newcomer to his music. As a guitar player, I cannot even begin to comprehend Beck's tone and virtuoso skills. I am blown away by what he is able to achieve on his instrument. This album is highly recommended to 1)Any Jeff Beck fan (obviously), 2)Anyone who plays the guitar and wants to understand what is capable on the instrument, 3)Anyone who wants to explore creative and exciting new music, produced by one of the most criminally under-rated musicians of our time. Hope this helps!
The Peerless Jeff Beck's Most Diverse And Tender CD ! April 13, 2010
Brien Comerford (Glenview, Illinois United States)
53 out of 62 found this review helpful
MONUMENTAL HIGHLIGHTS "Elegy For Dunkirk","Corpus Christi Carol","Hammerhead", " Somewhere Over The Rainbow","Nessum Dorma (the guitar parts)"
"Emotion and Commotion" is Jeff Beck's newest studio album in the aftermath of his gloriously frenetic Jeff CD (2003). This CD is another classic but it's far different than all his previous releases. An Orchesta and three female vocalists play major roles and the CD embraces classical, opera, new age and cinematic genres in addition to Beck's awesome rock, blues and jazz fusion forte.
The opening track is a marvellous interpretation of "Corpus Christi Carol" that features Beck playing sustained single notes that swoop and soar with the stirring hurt of a human voice. The ensuing "Hammerhead" is laden with Beck's arsenal including wah wah pedal, whammy bar dynamics, brawny riffs and knifing solos. Song three is the virtuosic "Never Alone" which has a new age sound that is audibly assuaging. "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" is a major highlight as the guitar weeps and laments with a visceral tone that only Jeff Beck can coax and caress. Joss Stone energetically sings "I Put A Spell On You" accompanied by some stellar funk and blues chops delivered by Beck.
"Serene" is a pastoral and bucolic instrumental that further demonstrates Beck's eclecticism and it's bolstered by great bass playing and atmospheric soundscapes. Next is "Lilac Wine" sung by Irish phenom Imelda May. It's a nice song that imbues the album with some torch and pure jazz. It transitions into the poignant, edgy and ravishing "Nessun Dorma" that fuses Beck's fretboard prowess with the rousing sounds of the orchesta. ("Nessun Dorma" has been an incredible live performance at Jeff Beck's 2010 US concerts without the orchestra.) Joss Stone returns to sing "There's No Other Me", but the star is Beck who delivers some explosive and psychedelic sounds.
The emotive and stunning "Elegy For Dunkirk" closes the album. Beck's riffs and notes are replete with heartrending pathos that ascend to astounding beauty as Olivia Safe's wordless but angelic vocals help to compel the listener to be awed by the grandeur of a song that is almost on a par with the inimitably transcendent "Where Were You."
Note: The Japanese CD has an adroitly austere and melancholic instrumental song "Cry Me A River in addition to the captivating "Poor Boy" that is sung by Imelda May.
Jeff Beck is not a great writer or composer and he's indebted to people like George Martin, John McLaughlin and Tony Hymas who have inspired him. However, no other guitarist can create and generate such a plethora of otherworldy, sensitive and blistering sounds and tones with bare fingers and very few effects. Jeff Beck's a nonpareil guitarist who is invariably revered by his axeman peers ranging from the late Les Paul to Joe Satriani.
The most beautiful guitar album ever recorded? April 18, 2010
Scott Hedegard (Fayetteville, AR USA)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
I'd give this CD a galaxy full of stars if that would help further my admiration and love for this man's music. "Emotion & Commotion" is like no other Jeff Beck album ever, but what parallels it does draw are to his most beautiful work from the past, including the now classic "Where Were You", "Nadia" and "Two Rivers".
To my ears, there really is very little "commotion" on this album unless you count the crunch of "Hammerhead". Even that rocker has a full string arrangement, which makes what would normally be a bluesy riff burst with new life and depth. Whether it's age, Beck's increasing interest in classical music, his always present desire to take guitar where nobody else has or even can, or all of the above, "Emotion & Commotion" is a stunningly beautiful piece of music.
With the delicate touch and love of melody that Jeff Beck possesses, he takes the familiar and sends it into the stratosphere. His reading of "Over The Rainbow" is absolutely gorgeous. The remake of "I Put A Spell On You" thumps along quite nicely to balance the CD out, with great vocals by Joss Stone, who also appears on "There's No Other Me."
"Lilac Wine" is a fine torch ballad with smoky vocals courtesy of Imelda May, with Jeff's guitar always at the right place and right time. What makes his playing so superior is his choice of notes. One could play other notes over a similiar arrangement, but nobody would hit the right ones like Beck does. It simply can't be improved upon.
Don't let the word "opera" scare you in some reviews. There is no operatic bellowing anywhere on this CD, much to my relief. The appearance of opera singer Olivia Safe is background melody without the runaway vibrato you'd expect. In fact, her contributions add a wonderful atmospheric touch to "Serene" and the CD closer "Elegy For Dunkirk".
This album is so beautiful, with its orchestral arrangements and Jeff's touch, that I was near tears by its end. My late father used to play old classical music on scratchy beat up turntables when I was a kid, and they were more or less the "greatest hits" of the classical world. Like all forms of music, classical music can be horrendously boring, like so many symphonies over the ages, but when it was done right, it reached right into your soul. I remember listening to "Clair De Lune" by Debussy, the closing section of Edward Grieg's "Morning" and a few others like them over and over, letting the beauty sink into my soul. Popular music doesn't often dig that deep, and in fact almost never does. "Emotion & Commotion" does, though. It's truly music of the cosmos and places Jeff Beck in sole first place as the best rock guitarist ever, Hendrix included, and probably in a very close running to Chet Atkins, the best overall guitarist ever. I'm still stunned by what I've just heard.
Guitar magic! April 13, 2010
Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria)
29 out of 38 found this review helpful
65 year old British guitar virtuoso Jeff Beck's new album "Emotion & Commotion" is a largely instrumental work, featuring a 64 piece orchestra on some tracks, and guest vocalists Imelda May on the lush Jazzy "Lilac wine", and a fiery Joss Stone on both the Bluesy "I put a spell on you" and the experimental Soul "There's no other me". Stone repays a favour as Beck appeared on the track "Parallel lines" from her "Color me free" album.
Opening is the mournful hymn "Corpus Christi carol" with majestic theatrical strings. In a similar mould are the upbeat "Hammerhead" (with guitars squealing and growling in turn), the melancholic yet groovy "Never alone", a tender reading of "Somewhere over the rainbow" (with a haunting guitar riff), and "Nessum dorma", all beautiful.
The midtempo smooth Jazz "Serene" is just that, while the beautiful dirge "Elegy for Dunkirk" features Olivia Safe adding some operatic fluorish without lyrics. Her vocals and the guitar intertwine at times till you can't distinguish between them.
It's amazing the amount of emotion Beck is able to wring out of his guitar (though I hear little or no commotion). This is an album that perfectly conveys emotion. Splendid stuff!
smorgasbord April 21, 2010
muzo (p.e . I . canada)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I am a long time fan of Mr Beck, and apart from a few things on Flash, He has always delivered for me. I didn't know what was coming here, although I heard him in concert in February, and when the string section came out to set up I thought " this will be interesting". Beck does the utmost to appeal to a wide array of listeners here, from classic rock/blues like " you put a spell on me". to Puccini's " Nessun Dorma" He still rocks with the best of them, and for those that can't get enough of that, perhaps he will do an album just for you. But here are some beautiful moments, from "there's no other me " with a great vocal from Joss Stone, to "Elegy for Dunkirk" ( he always includes an emotional end piece, ) variety is first and foremost .Even " Somewhere over the rainbow" which made me think hmm when I read the cd case, is a great vehicle for a master rock guitarist, He still is the man !
Showing reviews 1-5 of 115
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