All Rise...

Appellate Judge Tom Becker's reviewing this week...live in his own living room.

Editor's Note

Our review of Jeff Beck: Performing This Week... Live At Ronnie Scott's (Blu-Ray), published March 30th, 2009, is also available.

The Charge

"I love it when people hear my music but can't figure out what instrument I'm playing. What a cool compliment."
—Jeff Beck

The Case

In 2007, guitar great Jeff Beck played a series of concerts at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London. In his band were Jason Rebello on keyboards, Tal Wilkenfeld on bass, and Vince Colaiuta on drums. Jeff Beck: Performing This Week…Live at Ronnie Scott's is a record of one of those performance nights.

Of course, this is no ordinary performance night: singers Joss Stone and Imogen Heap, along with Beck contemporary Eric Clapton, drop in for a song or two.

The set list:
"Beck's Bolero"
"Eternity's Breath"
"Stratus"
"Cause We've Ended as Lovers"
"Behind the Veil"
"You Never Know"
"Nadia"
"Blast From the East"
"Lead Boots"
"Angel (Footsteps)"
"People Get Ready" (with Joss Stone)
"Scatterbrain"
"Goodbye Pork Pie Hat/Brush With the Blues"
"Space Boogie"
"Blanket" (with Imogen Heap)
"Big Block"
"A Day in the Life"
"Little Brown Bird" (with Eric Clapton)
"You Need Love" (with Eric Clapton)
"Rollin' and Tumblin'" (with Imogen Heap)
"Where Were You"

As you might expect, this is pretty great stuff. Beck, of course, is remarkable, and he's surrounded himself with fantastically talented people, including the amazing Wilkenfeld. Stone, Heap, and of course Clapton are in top form.

While Beck has made appearances on several concert DVDs—including Eric Clapton's Crossroads festivals—having his own concert on DVD is rare, which makes this disc that much more special.

This is a very well-shot and well-edited piece. There is not so much movement that the camera becomes the star, but it's not a stagnant picture, either. The transfer is strong, and like Ronnie Scott's, there is an intimate feel to it all. The DTS and Dolby Surround tracks are excellent, though the stereo track is quite thin.

For extras, we get interviews with Beck and with the band. These are not especially enlightening, but given the minimal banter during the show, it's nice hearing Beck talk about his career, his band, and the guest stars.

The Verdict

A must-own for fans and a good bet for anyone with an even passing interest in rock legendry, this one is not guilty.

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