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I'm not convinced the music of Jeff Beck has a place on a web site devoted to Progressive Rock, but then again this is a musician who has never been content to rest on his laurels. And isn't that a part of what Prog is supposed to be about?

Judging by his scores here at Prog Archives, Beck has certainly been pushing the envelope with his latest change of pace. Classic Rock purists (and doctrinaire Progheads) might cringe, but this current musical detour could be his most rewarding yet, embracing (with a vengeance) all the energy of the emerging 21st century in a sequel of sorts to his electronica-laced 2001 mini album "You Had It Coming".

He can still play the role of the blue-collar grease monkey, explicitly in the song of the same name, and as a tongue-in-cheek lampoon in "Hot Rod Honeymoon" . And that lyrical guitar style is more fluent than ever, soloing gracefully over "JB's Blues", and (with spiky percussive accents) in the hip-hop pastiche "Pay Me No Mind".

But elsewhere the album shows his affection for the same post-modern cyberpunk pulses championed by (among other trendsetters) KING CRIMSON's virtual drummer Pat Mastelotto. You can hear it in the staccato cut-and-paste rhythms of "Line Dancing With Monkeys", and also in the lush orchestral veneer of the climactic "Bulgaria"/"Why Lord Oh Why" medley closing the album.

Rated strictly as Progressive Rock I can understand how the album might ruffle the feathers of diehard Prog aficionados, perhaps deserving no more than two stars (for fans only). But on the merits of the music itself, and ignoring the sometimes wacky sub-genres of the Prog Rock hierarchy (Eclectic Prog, Crossover Prog, Heavy Prog, you name it) this is simply another sharp effort from a guitarist always somewhere close to the cutting edge.

Short on good vibrations

Released in 2003, this was until this year's "Emotion & commotion" Jeff Beck's latest album. While it received critical acclaim, including a Grammy award for the track "Plan B", the album failed to find commercial success on either side of the Atlantic. This lack of recognition in terms of sales can most easily be explained by the fact that while the tracks bear the Beck (guitar) watermark, they remain largely annonymous.

Here we have what essentially boils down to 13 or so variations of Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein", overdubbed with guitar pyrotechnics by the legendary maestro. The tracks offer a limited diversity, but remain rooted between the jazz fusion of "Plan B" and the whimsical west coast pastiche of "Hotrod honeymoon", complete with Beeched boys (sic) backing vocals.

Beck's mastery of his instrument is never in question, but while the funky electronica which prevails here is admirable from a progression point of view, it rather seems to indicate Beck is wandering up an industrial cul-de-sac. On the plus side, I do get the impression that the man is enjoying himself, while drawing heavily on the influences of the many guests who appear throughout. Whether though this translates into a satisfactory album is certainly debatable.

Rather perversely, I actually found this album made better background listening than something to sit in a darkened room with. Tracks such as the slightly more orthodox "JB's blues" would offer a budding documentary maker some fine accompanying music for a travelogue or natural world film.

In all, an album which will satisfy those who enjoyed Beck's more recent albums, but not one for those wishing to discover the great man's true identity.