Wired (Jeff Beck album)
Wired is the second solo album by British guitarist Jeff Beck, released on Epic Records in 1976. An instrumental album, it peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified platinum by the RIAA.
| Wired | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 1976 | |||
| Studio | AIR Studios (London, England) Trident Studios (London, England) Cherokee Studios (Los Angeles, US) | |||
| Genre | Jazz fusion, Funk, instrumental rock | |||
| Length | 37:21 | |||
| Label | Epic | |||
| Producer | George Martin, Chris Bond, Jan Hammer | |||
| Jeff Beck chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background and content
Of the album tracks, four are originals by Narada Michael Walden and one by Hammer. Max Middleton contributed the homage to Led Zeppelin, "Led Boots", and Beck chose to interpret the Charles Mingus ode to saxophonist Lester Young, "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat", from the classic 1959 jazz album Mingus Ah Um. These last two tracks have been long-time staples of Beck's performance repertoire.
On 27 March 2001, a remastered edition for compact disc was reissued by Legacy Records, Epic and its parent label Columbia Records are now a division of Sony Music Entertainment.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B–[2] |
| PopMatters | (positive)[3] |
| Rolling Stone | (positive)[4] |
Wired received mostly positive reviews when it was released. In Rolling Stone, the reviewer cited it as being full of "fire and imagination".[4] However, Robert Christgau faulted it as technically proficient but soulless, calling it "mindless trickery".[5] Engineer Peter Henderson later said of the album, "I listened to that a few years later and it sounded like it had been recorded direct to cassette. I don't think it was one of my finer moments."[6]
Writing for AllMusic, Mark Kirschenmann said, "Within a two-year span, the twin towers Blow by Blow and Wired set a standard for instrumental rock that even Beck has found difficult to match. On Wired, with first-rate material and collaborators on hand, one of rock's most compelling guitarists is in top form."[1]
The album peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200 in August 1976, spending a total of 25 weeks on the chart.[7] In the UK it spent five weeks on the chart and reached No. 35.[8] The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA.[9]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Led Boots" | Max Middleton | 4:03 |
| 2. | "Come Dancing" | Narada Michael Walden | 5:55 |
| 3. | "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" | Charles Mingus | 5:31 |
| 4. | "Head for Backstage Pass" | Wilbur Bascomb, Andy Clark | 2:43 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blue Wind" | Jan Hammer | 5:54 |
| 2. | "Sophie" | Narada Michael Walden | 6:31 |
| 3. | "Play with Me" | Narada Michael Walden | 4:10 |
| 4. | "Love Is Green" | Narada Michael Walden | 2:30 |
Personnel
- Jeff Beck – guitars
- Max Middleton – Hohner clavinet, Fender Rhodes electric piano
- Jan Hammer – synthesizer; drums (on "Blue Wind")
- Wilbur Bascomb – bass
- Narada Michael Walden – drums (on "Led Boots", "Come Dancing", "Sophie" and "Play with Me"); piano (on "Love Is Green")
- Richard Bailey – drums (on "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" and "Head for Backstage Pass")
- Ed Greene – second drum kit (on "Come Dancing")
Additional personnel
- George Martin – producer
- Chris Bond – assistant producer
- Jan Hammer – producer on "Blue Wind"
- Pete Henderson, Dennis McKay, John Mills, John Arias – engineers
- Geoff Emerick – mixing engineer
- Bruce Dickinson – reissue producer
References
- Kirschenmann, Mark. "Jeff Beck - Wired (1976) album review | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: B". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
- Warner, Simon (26 March 2001). "Jeff Beck: Blow by Blow (1975) / Wired (1976) > Album Reviews". PopMatters. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
- Swenson, John (29 July 1976). "Jeff Beck - Wired (1976) album review". Rolling Stone (218). Archived from the original on 2 October 2007. Retrieved 22 July 2007.
- Christgau, Robert. "Jeff Beck > Consumer Guide Reviews". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
- Buskin, Richard (July 2005). CLASSIC TRACKS: Supertramp's 'Logical Song', Sound on Sound.
- "Jeff Beck Chart History: Wired (1976)". Retrieved 13 January 2018.
- "Jeff Beck: Full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
- Giles, Jeff (31 May 2016). "40 Years Ago: Jeff Beck Releases 'Wired'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 13 January 2018.