He hung out with Hendrix, got shock treatment with Ronnie Wood, shared girlfriends with Keith Moon, and was friends and rivals with Clapton and Page: Jeff Beck’s wild times

Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page pose in the press room during the 24th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Public Hall on April 4, 2009 in Cleveland, Ohio. .

Best of 2025: One of our most-read stories this year was this archive piece from 2009, in which the always-genial Jeff Beck looked back over his career via some of the people he knew and worked with.

Jeff Beck was the guitar hero’s guitar hero. The British axeman – who died in 2023 – dazzled with his sizzling six-string sonics for more than half a century. From the psych-tinged R&B of The Yardbirds, to the Jeff Beck Group with Ronnie Wood and Rod Stewart, to the radio-friendly jazz/rock instrumental masterpiece Blow By Blow, a Who’s Who of guest appearances (Mick Jagger, Roger Waters, Brian May, Paul Rodgers, Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner) and beyond, Beck was constantly exploring and moving forward. In 2009, he sat down with Classic Rock to look back on some of his more memorable encounters.