The Beck - Page Yardbirds 1966

Yardbirds, Staples High School, Westport, Connecticut, 22 October 1966. Photograph: Cindy Gough Stalnaker. One of only three known photographs of Beck and Page on stage together sharing lead guitar duties. This is the clearest, and in colour. Two others are known from a Fillmore West performance the following day.

One of the most exciting and innovative British rhythm 'n blues / rock / pop band lineups of the 1960s involved the brief, six month-long pairing of Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page in the Yardbirds. This short-lived collaboration took place between late June and early November of 1966. Unfortunately, there are no live recordings of the two legendary guitarists interacting on stage together, with Beck wielding a classic '59 sunburst Gibson Les Paul and Page the famous '58 / '59 Fender 'Dragon' Telecaster given him by Beck and later used in the formative years of Led Zeppelin. All that apparently survive are three studio recordings - Happening Ten Years Time Ago, Stroll On and a Great Shakes milk shake commercial - and two filmed mimed performances of the first two songs, one within the 1967 cinema release Blow Up, and the other on an American television show from late October 1966. Also, we only have three photographs of the twin lead guitar lineup - one taken by a fan during a concert at Staples High School, Connecticut on 22 October and another two, black and white and blurry shot from their Fillmore West concert the following day, on 23 October. This is due in no small part to the stage set up, whereby Page was at one end and Beck at the other, with the rest of the band spread out between them. As a result, amateur photographers often captured one or other of the guitarists, and rarely both.

Background

The Yardbirds had formed in May 1963 with Top Topham on lead guitar, Keith Relf vocals, Jim McCarty drums, Chris Dreja rhythm guitar and Paul Samwell-Smith bass guitar. The young Topham was replaced in October 1963 by Eric Clapton. Throughout 1964 the band produced a number of classic recordings, including the Five Live Yardbirds LP and two singles. In December 1963 they recorded backing visiting American bluesman Sonny Boy Williamson, though that was not released until 1966. On 13 March 1965, following the release of the band's worldwide smash For Your Love, Clapton left the band to pursue his interest in blues. On the recommendation of Jimmy Page, he was replaced by the somewhat rough and ready, but incredibly talented, Jeff Beck of The Tridents. Over the following 18 months the band produced a collection of ground breaking recordings, including the famous Roger the Engineer album and a number of hit singles, including Heart Full of Soul and Shapes of Things. They also greatly enhanced their live reputation, with tours through Britain, Europe and initial forays into the burgeoning United States market.

Together - Beck and Page

The story of the Beck - Page collaboration within the Yardbirds begins with a famous incident which occurred on 18 June 1966 at Oxford University.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 18 June 1966 - Oxford University May Ball. A raucous performance by the Yardbirds takes place, with Keith Relf getting drunk on the free alcohol, and Jimmy Page watching as proto-punk mayhem breaks out. Bass player Paul Samwell-Smith was not amused by the behaviour and quit the band that night, having wearied of the constant touring and seeking to become more involved in the production side of recording. As the band members noted in a 2003 interview within the documentary The Yardbirds Story:

Beck: And remember the May Ball, at the Oxford University?

Others: Yes, Yes...

Beck: [to Samwell-Smith] That was the end of the road for you. Jimmy Page actually came to that gig.

Samwell-Smith: Did he? I didn't know he was there.

Beck: Yeah. He came there to see band. And I told him that things were not running very smoothly.

And it was: "Oh, here we are!" - all these kind of Princess Di types.

Others: [Laughing]

Beck: They were! It was like trays of drinks and proper stuff with sticks and everything. And, so we started chunka chunka [Train Kept a Rollin'] and Keith goes "Caught a train ...." and Smack! falls straight over backwards into Jim's drums.

McCarty: Yeah.

Beck: And Mama Cass came, and The Hollies - Graham Nash - were there. When we were in the tent afterwards, sort of drinking our troubles away, I said: "Look Jim, I'm really sorry about this. You know, I expect you don't want to know, you know, about joining the band. And he goes 'It was the best thing ever! I can't tell ya. When Keith fell over backwards....Oh, fantastic!' It wasn't going to put him off that evening."

Samwell-Smith was immediately replaced by Page, who was at the gig as a guest of his long time friend Beck. Page, like Beck, had been playing the guitar since the late 1950s, in bands and as an A-level session musician. However, he was becoming increasingly weary of working in the studio, where he had built a substantial reputation. By mid' 1966 Page was interested in the exploding international rock and pop music scene, and ever on the lookout for interesting sounds from countries such as India and the Middle East. After enjoying the wild May Ball performance, he was excited by the opportunity to join the Yardbirds, in any capacity, and realised the bass guitar would be a good starting point, though from the very start the intention of the band was to move him on to lead guitar and Dreja over to bass. By the time he joined the band Page could play guitar, bass, harmonica and sitar. He was also a burgeoning record producer, having studied for a number of years the work of engineers he encountered during sessions. In addition, he had been experimenting with use of the violin bow and various pedals, such as fuzz and wah. Beck had been playing in bands almost continuously since the late 1950s, and Page was now keen to build upon his live performance skills, having performed during 1962, for example, with Neil Christian and the Crusaders. An article by Keith Altham in the London-based New Musical Express late in June 1966 outlined to the fans the reasons Samwell-Smith left the Yardbirds, and why Page joined.

New Musical Express, London, June/July 1966.

Samwell-Smith was a consummate musician and looking to reverse roles with Page by undertaking more studio work. To date he had produced some Yardbirds tracks, including a stint as musical director for their hit single For Your Love, and various tracks on the forthcoming Roger the Engineer LP. He would go on to a successful career in this field, producing albums such as Cat Stevens' Tea for the Tillerman. For three months following his departure (21 June - 22 August 1966) Page replaced Samwell-Smith on bass and made use of the band's bass guitar - a sunburst Epiphone Rivoli. His first gig took place just 3 days after the May Ball, at London's famous Marquee Club where, in fact, he had performed with bands and in jams from as early as 1962.


Beck and Page tuning up / playing - the latter with the band's sunburst Epiphone Rivoli bass guitar.

The relatively short six-month life of the Beck and Page Yardbirds, would prove an exciting and turbulent time as the band's hectic touring schedule - especially across the United States - took its toll and, unfortunately, limited the opportunity for studio work or, for that matter, the production of professional live recordings. Nothing therefore exists of the live lead guitar interplay between these two famous guitarists during the second half of 1966. Their management team at the time failed to realise the significance of the evolution of the band and its innovative sound, especially on the live stages of the US and UK.

Chronology

Below is a chronological listing of events wherein Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page were members of the Yardbirds. It started on 21 June 1966 and ended early the following November, when Beck left the band / was fired following a period of intermittent illness and bad behaviour. The Yardbirds then stayed a 4-piece through to their eventual demise in June 1968.

England

LIVE SHOW: 7.30-11pm, Tuesday 21 June 1966 - Marquee Club, 90 Wardour Street, London, England. Billed with The Clayton Squares. This was Jimmy Page's first appearance with the Yardbirds, following the departure of Paul Samwell-Smith the previous Saturday. In the photograph below, which is likely from that gig, Page is seen in the checkered shirt next to Beck, with the distinctive striped Marquee backdrop.The band can be seen using VOX amps.

Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Keith Relf, Marquee Club, London, 21 June 1966.

Christopher Dolmetsch (Facebook): I was there!!! Marquee Club for the last Yardbirds' gig there and Page had just joined the band. Keith introduced the group quickly and said "...and this is the new guy on bass named Jimmy." I had heard the name Jimmy Page before but did not immediately put two and two together until about midway through the set. Opened with "Train" and closed with "I'm A Man." I do not recall "Over Under" being in the repertoire then. I think "Shapes" was still their latest hit. Opening act was Clayton Squares (with two sax players!).

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 23 June 1966 - Mecca Palais, Ashton-under-Lyne.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 24 June 1966 - June Ball '66, University of Durham, Durham. Plus The Roulettes, The Action and the Graham Bond Orchestra.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 25 June 1966 - Palais de Danse, Bury, Manchester. Plus Frankenstein & His Monsters and The Sheffields.

On 27 June Page received £75 from the band's management for the first three gigs (Page 2020).

France

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 26 June 1966 - Le Weekend Club, Paris, France.

LIVE SHOW + FILMING: Monday 27 June 1966 - Provins Rock Festival, Tour de Cesar, Provins, France. The following songs were filmed for French television and telecast on 22 July: * Train Kept A-Rollin', * Shapes Of Things, and * Over, Under, Sideways, Down (I'm Waiting For The Man). Duration: 7 minutes. Also at the festival was Simon and Garfunkel and the Small Faces.


Page and Beck during the pre-concert warm up, Provins Rock Festival, Paris, 27 June 1966. For the concert they would be dressed in all white. Note the TV camera in the foreground of the second photograph. The top photograph appeared on the rear cover of the French release LP Over Under Sideways Down on Riviera. During these early weeks, Page was situated next to Beck on the stage. They are using VOX amps in this photograph.

Yardbirds (live), Provins Rock Festival, Paris, France, 27 June 1966. Duration: 7 minutes. The quality of the recording is poor, with emphasis on vocals, drum and bass. The guitars of Beck and Dreja can barely be heard.

PROMOTIONAL SHOTS: During the second half of 1966 the band undertook a number of studio and outdoor photo sessions. Many are undated and comprise basic shots of the band members looking to the camera. These were used for magazine articles, fan fodder, record sleeves and other promotional opportunities.

The white suit brigade.

England

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 29 June 1966 - Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 1 July 1966 - Chiselhurst Caves, Chiselhurst.

BBC RADIO: 1 July 1966 - The Joe Loss Pop Show. Broadcast of Jeff's Boogie, recorded on 9 June, prior to Page joining the band.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 2 July 1966 - Ram Jam club, Brixton, London.

Record Mirror, London, 2 July 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 3 July 1966 - North Pier Pavilion, Blackpool. Billed with The Troggs.

TELEVISION APPEARANCE: Sunday 3 July 1966 - Yardbirds (with Paul Samwell-Smith) appear on French TV miming I'm A Man. This single had been released in the US back in October 1965.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 5 July 1966 - Winter Gardens, Malvern.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 7 July 1966 - Town Hall, Elgin, Moray, Scotland. During one of the Scotland gigs, Jimmy and Jeff were spat upon by a member of the audience for wearing a German Cross and other military medals (Page 2020). Beck can be see wearing the offending medal in the studio photograph below.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 8 July 1966 - Raith Ballroom, Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 9 July 1966 - Bass Recreation Grounds, Derby.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 10 July 1966 - Pier Pavilion, Hasting, East Sussex.

BBC RADIO: Tuesday 12 July 1966 - Easy Beat program. No details of the specific performance, or copy is known.

STUDIO RECORDING: Tuesday 12 July 1966 - Marquee Studios. Record Great Shakes commercial. The audio begins with the Over Under Sideways Down riff. In the background the band can be heard playing live. The sound is very muddy and it is not known whether both Page and Beck participated, though the lead guitar sounds like Beck's Les Paul. The song ends with a 'Hey!', possibly by McCarthy. The Who also recorded a Great Shakes commercial around this time. Record Collector magazine # 452 (23 March 2016) stated that this has been recorded at the Marquee studio, London, shortly after Page joined the band, on 23 June, whilst another report stated that Beck was not present (Clayson 2002).

pYardbirds, Great Shakes commercial, October 1966. Duration: 0.56 minutes.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 14 July 1966 - Town Hall, Kidderminster.

LP RELEASE: 15 July 1966 - Yardbirds / Roger the Engineer LP released in the UK. Recorded during April - June, prior to Page joining the band. Cover art: Chris Dreja. Rear cover notes: Jim McCarty.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 15 July 1966 - Palais De Danse, Cowdenbeath, Scotland.;

LIVE SHOW: Friday 15 July 1966 - City Hall, Perth, Scotland. Billed with Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Underminded.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 16 July 1966 - Ice Rink, Ayr, Scotland.Plus Maureen & The Thunderbirds.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 17 July 1966 - Victoria Ballroom, Dunbar, Scotland.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 20 July 1966 - Town Hall, Stourbridge, West Midlands.

Page from an autograph book, signed by all the Yardbirds, Stourbridge, 20 July 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 21 July 1966 - Assembly Rooms, Worthing, West Surrey.

TELEVISION PRESENTATION: Friday 22 July 1966 - Music Hall de France. French TV broadcast of the 27 June concert at the Provins Rock Festival.

TELEVISION BROADCAST: Friday 22 July 1966 - Ready Steady Go!, London. The Yardbirds mime two song on this TV show - Farewell and Lost Woman. No footage survives, however there are a number of black and white photographs of the band members in the studio (Clayson 2002).

Yardbirds, Ready Steady Go, London, 22 July 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 22 July 1966 - Co-op Hall, Gravesend.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 23 July 1966 - Pavillion Gardens Ballroom, Buxton, Derbyshire.

PHOTO SHOOT: Monday 25 July 1966 - Tottenham Court Road, London, for German magazine O.K. It is possible that this is the famous alleyway, legs spreadeagled shoot by Gered Mankowitz.

Yardbirds, London, ?25 July 1966. Photographer: Gered Mankowitz.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 25 July 1966 - Bath Pavilion, Bath.

TELEVISION APPEARANCE: Wednesday 27 July 1966 - Hey Presto, Rolf Harris Show, London. The Yardbirds performed Rack My Mind live (Page 2020). No copy of this is known to have survived. Broadcast on Friday 29 July.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 28 July 1966 - Palace Ballroom, Douglas, Isle of Man. Cancelled due to Jeff Beck's tonsillitis.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 30 July 1966 - Jazz and Blues Festival, Windsor. The Yardbirds were due to headline on the Saturday night with the Who. However, they had to cancel due to Jeff Beck's illness.

LP RELEASE: Monday 1 August 1966 - Over, Under, Sideways, Down, LP, Epic, US. A variant of the UK Yardbirds LP, with a collaged artwork cover image of the band members and cut up text.

Everything Blows Up!

The period August-October 1966 was a busy one for the Yardbirds. In amongst filming an appearance in the movie Blow Up, there was a brief UK tour supporting the Rolling Stones. The band also undertook two US tours, between 4 August - 15 September 1966 (4 1/2 weeks) and 21 October - 4 December 1966 (7 weeks). After a brief break they carried on through 25 December 1966 - 7 January 1967 (2 weeks). They also did some studio recording, producing Stroll On, alongside Beck's Psycho Daisies and Happening Ten Years Time Ago. This period kicked off with their departure from London for the US on 4 August.

Yardbirds departing for the US with their Air Canada tickets, 4 August 1966.

1st US Tour of 1966 - 40 cities

During the US tour in August, Page was forced on occasion to switch from bass to lead, following Beck's continuing illness and subsequent disenchantment with the hectic work schedule. When he returned to the band at some point mid tour, it was decided that Page should remain on lead, alongside Beck, and Dreja move over to the bass. It is unclear precisely when, or how often, the two guitarists shared the stage as lead guitar players. A number of reminiscences of this period have been recorded by band members and fans on sites such as Facebook and other online forums. Some of these sites also include photographs, though, surprisingly, no bootleg recordings are known to exist. This is possibly due to the fact that, though they toured a lot, they tended to concentrate on performance and the music, rather than promotion. As Steven Tyler of Aerosmith later noted of the Yardbirds at the time, they were something of a mystery, working hard to build up a fan base in the US. The band left the UK on 4 August and played their first gig on the afternoon of 5 August in Minneapolis. They returned to the UK on 11 September, with Jeff Beck having left the tour around 22 August.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 5 August 1966 - Auditorium, Daytona Department Store, Minneapolis, Minnesota (afternoon). Plus The Escapades. A brief, silent, 12 second long piece of 8mm colour footage was posted on Facebook on 7 August 2023, briefly showing all members, except Jim McCarty on drums, supposedly near the end of Over Under Sideways Down:

5 August 1966, Auditorium, Daytona Department Store, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Source: Gary Schwartz.

Jimmy Page at the Daytona Department Store, 5 August 1966.

Jake Rudh (Facebook 2013): [Photograph above] A 22 year old Jimmy Page at the Dayton's parking ramp. He played bass at this show. At right in the background is the Plymouth Building at 6th and Hennepin. View is looking north towards the warehouse district.

Kathy Martenson Sanko (Facebook 2017): I was there by chance with a friend. I was 15 and shopping. A "person" approached us and asked if we wanted to see Twiggy and the Yardbirds up on the 8th floor. Of course we wanted to, so we were ushered up there and put in the front section. It was a fluke that I was even there, and now all of a sudden I was seeing the Yardbirds and Twiggy! For years I would tell people about this .... and I don't think anyone ever believed me. In fact, sometimes I began to wonder if it really happened (LOL) but I found this thread proving it.

Yardbirds, Daytona Department Store, 5 August 1966. Photo: John Morris. Left to right, Chris Dreja, Jimmy Page, Keith Relf, Jim McCarty (drums) and Jeff Beck.

Jake Rudh (Facebook 6 March 2010): The Yardbirds at Dayton's 8th floor auditorium, August 1966. I attended this show with one of my 7th grade guitar buddies. They opened with "Shapes of Things" and my first impression was that something had exploded on stage! High point for me was "Mister You're a Better Man Than I" as I had been working on that particular guitar solo that summer. To see it played live was a real revelation."

LIVE SHOW: Friday 5 August 1966 - Col Ballroom, Davenport, Iowa (evening). Plus The XLs.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 6 August 1966 - Civic Opera House, Chicago, Illinois. Billed with Konqueror Worm Blues Band and Red, White & Blues Band.

Jimmy Page and Jeff beck signing autographs after a gig with the Yardbirds at the Civic Opera House, Chicago, on 6 August, 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 7 August 1966 - Maple Lake Pavilion, Mentor, Minnesota.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 8 August 1966 - Detroit Lake Pavilion, Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. Billed with The Unbelievable Uglies.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 9 August 1966 - Roof Garden Ballroom, Arnolds Park, Iowa. Billed with The Dark Knights.

Estherville Daily News, 4 August 1966

Around this time there was a newspaper report from Spirit Lake mentioning the band's misplacement of their VOX amplifiers and speakers, and the resultant rescue by the US representative of VOX.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 10 August 1966 - Green's Pavilion, Lakeview Park, Manitou Beach, Michigan.

Max Cornish (Facebook, May 2023): I was at this show. The Rationals were second billed. I was already a Yardbirds lover but became a Rationals lover that night. The very next night I saw the Yardbirds again at Hamilton Lake, Indiana, just south of the Michigan line. That was even better because the venue was smaller - an old 1930s roller rink - and the stage was elevated all of 18”. Fun!

Karl Krueger (Facebook, May 2023): I remember a comment I overheard at this show. One way-out hipster said to his buddy, "I think everybody that’s in a band in Detroit is here.”

Rick Cenci (Facebook, May 2023): I was at that show we hitchhiked from Detroit. Stood right in front of stage. Nobody really knew who Page was at that point. I was expecting Paul Samwell Smith.

Yardbirds, Green's Pavilion, Michigan, 10 August 1966. Photographer: (?)Ron Domolici.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 12 August 1966 - Indiana Beach Amusement Park ballroom, Monticello, Indiana. Two performances. Photographs (below): Rick Knapp. Note the band are using VOX amps.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 12 August 1966 - Cold Spring Resort, Hamilton, Indiana.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 13 August 1966 - Checkmate Young Adult Club, Amarillo, Texas. Billed with The Page Boys. Tom McCarty of The Page Boys recorded the following in 2010:

Of all the bands we toured with, The Turtles were the most fun! The Yardbirds were not fun at all. Jeff Beck was on bad behavior every night we played with him, and he was really into destroying every piece of equipment on the stage. He was a wild man. Beck didn’t like us much as we would not let him use our Vox Super Beatles amps when he would tear up his own equipment. We had brand new amps and were not about to let him tear them up. We had to pay for our equipment. Vox paid for the Yardbirds’ equipment. He was really PO’d about that and we didn’t care. (McCarty 2010)

TELEVISION APPEARANCE / BROADCAST: 13 August 1966 - It's A Mod Mod World, television program, United States. The Yardbirds perform Over Under Sideways Down and Turn Into Earth. No footage or audio of this performance is known to survive.

Undated arrival at an American gig.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 14 August 1966 - 4-H Building, State Fairgrounds, Great Falls, Montana. Photographs below by Rick Knapp, plus newspaper clipping of band arriving for the show. There was an airline strike at the time, and the band had to hire an old DC3.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 15 August 1966 - Cotillion Ballroom, Wichita, Kansas. With The Frantics.

Chris Dreja and Jimmy Page with members of The Frantics, 15 August 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 16 August 1966 - Hal-Baby's, Aurora near Denver, Colorado. Supported by Crystal Palace Guard.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 17 August 1966 - J.P.'s Palace, Santa Fe, New Mexico. The gig ended abruptly when Jeff Beck stormed out after two or three songs due to poor sound. At this point it appears that Page was not ready to take over on lead guitar.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 18 August 1966 - Tulsa Assembly Center Exhibit Hall, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Keith Relf was sick for this performance, so Jim McCarty sang.

LIVE SHOWS: Friday 19 & Saturday 20 August 1966 - Wedgewood Amusement Park, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. One of the last appearances by Beck with the band on this tour.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 21 August 1966 - Thrift City on Speedway, Tucson, Arizona. The venue was located on Speedway Street. Billed with The Five of Us, The Lewallen Brothers, The Showmen & The Bow Street Runners. The following comment from Mark Soccio (Facebook 2017) is relevant:

[I] saw them a week later to the day in Tucson, Arizona. Page was wearing the pea coat in an old warehouse without electricity, near 100 degrees and muggy. On the way to Texas from Tucson, Jeff Beck quit. So I saw [the] last show with Beck and Page. What would become [the] Alice Cooper band was in [the] audience (fairy tail they opened this show. It was a band called Lewallen Brothers).

TELEVISION SPOT: Monday 22 August 1966 - Where the Action Is!, Dick Clark's television program, Los Angeles, California. No further information, audio or footage is available regarding this performance.

PRESS ARTICLE: Detroit Free Press, 22 August 1966. Review of concert by Loraine Alterman.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 23 August 1966 - Casino Ballroom, Avalon, Catalina Island, California. Billed with The Danes, Mike Clifford and Stanley & The Fendermen. Jeff Beck pulled out of the gig due to equipment problems. Jimmy Page - possibly for the first time - played lead, using Beck's Gibson Les Paul.

PRESS ARTICLE: Record Mirror, 23 August 1966. Review of Roger the Engineer by Richard Green.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 25 August 1966 - Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, California (without Jeff Beck). This was likely the band's first or second outing as a four-piece. Beck had collapsed as he was still sick with meningitis and tonsillitis. Apparently he did not perform again on this tour through to 10 September, though this has not been confirmed.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 26 August 1966 - Rollarena, San Leandro, California.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 27 August 1966 - Earl Warren Showgrounds, Santa Barbara, California. In photographs from this concert, Page is seen playing lead due to Beck's absence.

Earl Warren Fairgrounds, California, 27 August 1966. Source: Facebook.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 27 August 1966 - Ventura High School Auditorium, Santa Barbara, California.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 30 August 1966 - San Jose Civic Auditorium, San Jose, California.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 31 August 1966 - Rose Garden Ballroom, Pismo Beach, California.

Whilst on their US tour during August - September 1966, the Yardbirds also engaged in various social activities. At one point, journalist Ann Moses arranged for Jimmy Page to visit the set of the popular television show The Monkees.

American magazine article, August 1966.

LIVE SHOW: August/September ??, 1966 - Whiskey A Go Go, Los Angeles, California.

Page backstage at the Whiskey a Go Go, Los Angeles. Possibly with Ellie Greenwich.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 1 September 1966 - Civic Auditorium, Stockton, California.

Gino Santana: .... I saw them in Stockton, California in about September of 1966. They were a quartet with Kieth as the singer. Chris on bass, Jimmy Page on guitar and Jim McCarty on drums. The boys played loud and hard. It still shivers me timbers today...The Yardbirds Rock and Rule. (Facebook 2012)

LIVE SHOW: Friday 2 September 1966 (Labor Day weekend) - Potters Hut, Ruidoso, New Mexico.


Yardbirds in (?) California, 1966.

Yardbirds on stage, ?US September 1966. Source: Phil Ochs Collection.

On 2 September 1966 Jeff Beck entered a hospital in California. Jimmy Page and the band were forced to continue on without him, just as they had done with Keith Relf the previous year when he was briefly hospitalised in England with a collapsed lung. Beck subsequently returned to England to recuperate and record, whilst the band spent just over a week on completing the tour. It was quickly realised that Page was wasted on bass, due to his superb musicianship, youthful energy, experience and stage presence. As such, a twin lead guitar setup for the band was proposed when Beck returned, and for a brief period from late September through to October 1966 it was hoped that the Yardbirds would be fronted by two stellar lead guitarists.


Unknown concert, Page with Beck's Gibson Les Paul, circa August - September 1966.

Artificially coloured image of Page with Beck's Les Paul, 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 3 September 1966 - Salem Armory-Auditorium (Oregon State Fair), Salem, Oregon.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 4 September 1966 - Honolulu International Centre Exhibition Hall, Honolulu, Hawaii.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 7 September 1966 - Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California.. See The Big Whistle blog site for a review of the concert. This was one of Page's earliest on solo lead, and according to the review, his playing was tentative.

Jimmy Page with Beck's Les Paul, and Jim McCarthy, 7 September 1966. Source: The Big Whistle.

Review of concert: My first concert! So excited to finally get to see Jeff Beck and the band play live. 2 weeks earlier, my older brother had seen them play at the Avalon Ballroom on Catalina Island CA where Jimmy Page was still playing bass for the Yardbirds and Jeff Beck holding down the lead duties. Apparently a terrific show. The Yardbirds were the headlining act supported by Los Bravos who were having chart success with their hit song "Black Is Black". A local band called the Inroads were the opening act. Unfortunately, for the Santa Monica Civic show, Jeff was absent due to illness or his girlfriend Mary Hughes. The band played as a 4 piece with Jimmy Page placed on guitar using Jeff's 50's Les Paul with Chris Dreja relegated to playing bass instead of backup/rhythm guitar. We were disappointed with Jeff Beck's no show. Jimmy Page's soloing work was pretty choppy and not up at the level that Beck was playing at that time. Jimmy's backup guitar work was strong and solid. Another show negative was the use of the Civic auditorium's house pa for the bands vocals. The house pa consisted of only two separate single 12 inch speaker cabinets mounted high above the stage and placed one on the left and the other on the right. You simply could not hear the vocals and that included Keith Relf's harmonica playing. This was a few years prior to pro sound reinforcement being the norm. Bad enough that this happened for this show but the same mistake was made when the Yardbirds played the Civic again the following year. That concert made use of the pathetically under-powered house pa system once again. So here are a few photos taken of the Yardbirds first show at the Santa Monica Civic. Those with a keen eye can see that Jimmy was using a Maestro Fuzz tone for that gig. Also note the solid state Jordan Amplifier stacks in the back lineup. The Jordan amps were rather stiff and sterile sounding. I finally did see Jeff Beck in concert with Rod Stewart a few years later at the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium when they first came through town in support of the Truth album. A fantastic band and great concert. Pink Floyd and Blue Cheer shared the bill.

EVENT: Thursday 8 September 1966 - Keith Relf and Jimmy Page attend an event where they meet Andy Warhol, who had been working with the band The Velvet Underground. The Yardbirds included the Lou Reed drug song I'm Waiting for the Man in their set.

Keith Relf, Andy Warhol and Jimmy Page, 8 September 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 9 September 1966 - Alexandria Roller Rink, Alexandria, Virginia.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 10 September 1966 - Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland.

The second Baltimore show on the 11th was cancelled and the band returned to the UK to tour and record. Meanwhile Jeff Beck, following his hospitalisation in California on 2 September, had returned to the UK. Here he recuperated, but also spent some time in the studio, both alone and with the band. This was prior to commencement of the Rolling Stone tour on 23 September. In a 1983 BBC radio interview he noted the following regarding this period:

Beck: I'd just recovered from some bloody meningitis or something, and I couldn't go on the road, so they [the Yardbirds management]said: 'Right, well if you prove your goodwill, that you are going to play in the band, by recording...' I think they were playing without me - Pagey was taking over on lead and enjoying every minute of it - but I was brewing up these weird solos in the studio [that] he didn't know about. On Happening Ten Years Times Ago - he wasn't in the studio when I played that. And when they came back [from the US] they were sort of delighted with the two tracks, I think, and I was in good stead [with the band and management] again.

19 September 1966.

STUDIO SESSIONS: Monday - Wednesday 20 -21 September 1966.

* Happenings Ten Years Time Ago (Yardbirds). Duration: 2:54 minutes. IBC Studios / De Lane Lea Studios, London. Released UK 11 October 1966; US 4 November 1966. Possibly initially recorded on 26 July at 6.30 pm session and developed over later sessions by Beck and the band (Page 2020). John Paul Jones played bass on the recording.

* Psycho Daisies (Jeff Beck). Duration: 1:45 minutes. Advision Studios, London. The lyrics refer to Beck's experiences in the US whilst on tour, and his Californian girlfriend Mary Hughes, a "bikini actress" from Los Angeles who he met on the band's first visit to the US in 1965:

Jeff Beck and Mary Hughes.

Pennsylvania snow is pretty thick
Michigan ain't where I get my kicks

Texas is fine but it gets too hot
And New York City's not a place to stop

New Orleans is the home of the blues
But California's my home with Mary Hughes

Down in Mississippi I'm told is nice
And all the meals there, they come with rice

Oregon and Iowa are not for me
The Colorado mountains are something you must see

But back in California there's nothing to lose
'Cos everything's swinging there with Mary Hughes

Although these two tracks were not recorded for the US Over Under Sideways Down album, they do show up on the reissues because they were recorded while the Yardbirds had the same manager - Georgio Gomelsky - as those sessions. Beck said that he did these initial two recordings whilst the band was touring without him, due to a bout of meningitis / tonsillitis. This seems possible, as Simon Napier Bell had said that he could have some studio time for the productions of solo material. However, the two recordings were so good that the band took them up when they returned to London, and they were released as a single in October.

UK Rolling Stone Tour

The Yardbirds joined the Rolling Stones tour from 23 September through to 9 October, along with the Ike and Tina Turner Review and Peter Jay and the Jay Walkers. There would be two short performances by the band on each date.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 23 September 1966 - Royal Albert Hall, London (2 shows). With Beck and Page on lead guitars and Dreja on bass. Director Michelangelo Antonioni saw the band live and decided to use them in his forthcoming film Blow Up.

Yardbirds, Royal Albert Hall, 23 September 1966.

A contemporary review (recent YouTube video compilation) of the Royal Albert Hall gig and tour, with brief mention of the Yardbirds:

Some of the tour concerts were taped, but no Yardbirds excepts are known to this author. They would comprise the only live recordings of the twin-guitar lineup.

My Beck Pages - Yardbirds Fans (Facebook 17 April 2015): Mr. Geoffrey [Beck] in his Yardbirds t-shirt, Royal Albert Hall, Friday, September 23rd, 1966. The Stones '66 Tour. Pagey's first night on co-lead guitar. By all accounts, they were amazing, despite it being a short, package tour style set. They got a pissy review in the New Musical Express, with Beck and Page singled out for drowning out Keith Relf. The reviewer didn't realize he was a witness to history in the making!

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 24 September 1966 Odeon Theatre, Leeds, Yorkshire (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 25 September 1966 Empire Theater, Liverpool (2sh ows)

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 28 September 1966 ABC Theatre, Ardwick, Manchester (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 29 September 1966 ABC Theatre, Stockton (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Friday 30 September 1966 Odeon Theatre, Glasgow, Scotland (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 1 October 1966 City Hall, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne (2 shows)

ARTICLE: Record Mirror 1 October 1966. Report on Rolling Stones tour.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 2 October 1966 Gaumont Theatre, Ipswich, Suffolk (2 shows)

STUDIO SESSIONS: Monday 3 - Wednesday 5 October 1966 Recording Stroll On at Sound Techniques and Advision studios, London, for the soundtrack of Blow Up. Duration: 2.43 minutes. The photograph below is likely of that session, with (left to right) McCarty on drums, Dreja on bass, Relf on vocals, Beck with back to camera using his Les Paul, and Page on the far right playing Jeff Beck's Telecaster.

Yardbirds in the studio recording Stroll On, circa 3-5 October 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 6 October 1966 Odeon Theatre, Birmingham, Staffordshire (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Friday 7 October 1966 Colston Hall, Bristol (2 shows). Yardbirds joined on stage by Long John Baldry.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 8 October 1966 Capitol Theatre, Cardiff, Wales (2 shows)

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 9 October 1966 Gaumont Theatre, Southampton (2 shows)

SINGLE RELEASE: 11 October 1966 Happening's Ten Years Time Ago / Psycho Daisies released in the UK on Columbia / EMI.

(?)UK release 7" picture sleeve.

German release 7" picture sleeve.

Released UK 11 October 1966.

Danish release 7" picture sleeve.

FILM SESSIONS: Wednesday 12 - Friday 15 October 1966 - Blow Up - Lip syncing to Stroll On - variant of the previously recorded Train Kept a Rollin - at Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, London.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 14 October 1966 - Elstree Film Studios, Borehamwood, North London. Performance for the crew after filming wrapped up for Blow Up.

Yardbirds, Stroll On, October 1966, from the film Blow Up. Duration: 4.00 minutes.

Page can be seen playing Beck's Telecaster in Blow Up (1967). With money received from the filming, Beck had purchased a silver Corvette Stingray, and it was in this car that he drove up to where Page was living in London and handed over the Telecaster to him as a gift. This would facilitate the new twin lead guitar lineup of the band for the upcoming US tour. It also removed the need for Page to use Beck's Les Paul. Shortly after completion of filming Blow Up the band prepared to return to the US for a number of gigs prior to joining the Dick Clark Caravan of Stars tour later in the month.

PRESS REPORT: Monday 17 October 1966 Imminent band split reports denied by management.

TELEVISION APPEARANCE: Wednesday 19 October 1966 Happening's Ten Years Time Ago, Top of the Pops, BBC, London. No further information is available on this performance.

2nd US Tour of 1966

The Beck - Page second US tour took place between 21 October - 4 December 1966, though Jeff Beck returned to the UK on 1 December after leaving the group early in November. From this point on Page used the Telecaster given him by Beck.

Yardbirds after a gig in Los Angeles, ?October 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 21 October 1966 Bridgeport, Connecticut.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 21 October 1966 The Comic Strip, Worcester, Massachusetts. Supported by The New Breed. Jeff Beck smashed a Jordan amp during this performance.

Yardbirds in the dressing room at The Comic Strip, 21 October 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 22 October 1966 Staples High School Auditorium, Westport, Connecticut. Supported by Thee Strangeurs (Chain Reaction), with Steve Tyler (later of Aerosmith) on vocals. A 2017 documentary entitled The High School That Rocked! records, in part, the visit by the Yardbirds to Westport, and contains one of the only known photographs of the band performing with the twin lead guitar setup of Beck and Page. There was also a review of the concert in the school magazine. After the concert, one of the student organisers - Dick Sandhaus - took the band home for cheese burgers, a cup of tea and whisky for Jimmy Page. It appears that Linda Eastman was also in the audience and took a photograph of Page and Beck restringing their guitars and tuning up.

Page and Beck tune up for Staples High School show. Photograph: Linda Eastman.

The High School That Rocked!, 2017. Duration: 27 minutes. Yardbirds section begins at 12.35 minutes.

Yardbirds, Staples High School, 22 October 1966. Photograph: Cindy Gough Stalnaker.

Yardbirds, Staples High School, Westport, Connecticut, 22 October 1966. Photograph: Cindy Gough Stalnaker.

Steve Tyler of Aerosmith fame later wrote about the influence of the Yardbirds on his music, and the encounter with them at Staples High School:

Listen to "Somebody," a song I wrote for Aerosmith's first album: It's all from the Yardbirds. They were the shit to us, out of all the British bands in the Sixties. The Yardbirds were a bit of a mystery. They had an eclecticism — the Gregorian chant-ness of the vocals, the melodic diversity, the way they used guitar feedback. I loved that weirdness. In the Sixties, I was in a band called Chain Reaction. We got to know the Yardbirds because they played at Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut, in 1966. We had a friend, Henry Smith, who had been our manager for a while, and he had gone to school there. He called me and said, "Steven, the Yardbirds are playing here, and you can open up." It was the lineup with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, who was playing bass on that tour. We waited all day for them to arrive. I grabbed their amps, they grabbed ours. We carried each other's gear in, because back then, that's what you did. Hence began the rumor that I was a roadie for the Yardbirds. They did "Shapes of Things," "Beck's Boogie," among other songs. I was in such awe. They played like no other band. They weren't concerned with clothes or looks or hit singles. Their thing was "What do we do with these sounds?" They did things with harmonics — minor thirds and fifths — that created this ethereal, monstrous sound. You hear it in every song — the way they could take the blues and turn it into a pop song like "For Your Love," then something psychedelic like "Shapes of Things," which has that weird middle. You can hear the click when Beck hits his fuzz box. Page, in the end, was the one who took those ideas all the way with Led Zeppelin. The two shows I remember where I just sat with my mouth open was that Yardbirds show, and Led Zeppelin at the Boston Tea Party in 1969. As a singer, the thing I got out of the Yardbirds was that you don't have to have a great voice. It's all about attitude. Keith Relf wasn't great, but how he sang it made him a master. He was a white boy who pushed it to the max. And he was a great harmonica player. You never heard Jagger hanging out on a single note the way Keith Relf could. The shame is, I know how great the Yardbirds were. But I don't think everyone else knows it. The Yardbirds' music is a gold mine waiting to be stumbled upon. Aerosmith did, because we grew up in that era. The riff in "Walk This Way" is just us trying to explore the blues in the Yardbirds model. What the Yardbirds did is something you don't hear in today's blue-plate-special, cookie-cutter music. Everything is so canned and sliced up now. This was back when a band was a band. You had all those personalities, and they were all truly playing together. And I don't hear that today. The day of those bands, that wild stepping out, is gone. [Steve Tyler interview, part of Rolling Stones 100 Greatest ARTISTS Ever, Lipstick Alley Website].

Yardbirds, Fillmore, San Francisco, 23 October 1966, original poster. Original Gered Mankowitz photograph illustrated below.

The Yardbirds, London, 1966. Photographer: Gered Mankowitz.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 23 October 1966 Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, California. Two photographs by Gordon Linden from this gig - one blurry - show both Page and Beck performing. It is one of only three such images known (Clayson 2002). The famous One Sunday Afternoon concert poster was also produced by the Fillmore for this event, using a Gered Mankowitz photograph of the five musicians.

Jimmy Page (2020): The Yardbirds played in the afternoon at the Fillmore, San Francisco, and it was an amazing show. Jeff Beck and I got a lift from the venue with some guys and one of them had recorded it. It was a pleasant surprise to hear it played back en route from the gig. The recording quality was poor from the small dictaphone type recorder, but the playing of the band was great. I guess this tape just disappeared into the ether.


Yardbirds, Fillmore, San Francisco, 23 October 1966. Photographer: Gordon Linden.

Review of concert: Eleven amplifiers, eleven amplifiers, the Yardbirds have 11 amplifiers! Jesus Christ the words seemed to spring from the air in the Fillmore last Sunday as the other groups on the afternoon show waited for the Yardbirds, the stars, and the amplifiers, and their equipment to arrive. Standel advertises that 10 of theirs have the power to kill anyone standing in front of them ... [The Yardbirds'] first note reveals the meaning of the eleven amplifiers. The guitar has a power, a fullness of tone, a depth that has not been often heard outside a recording studio. The sound moves out of the three amplifiers and possesses you, driving the normal impulses out of your nervous system and replacing them with music. But not a music that you've ever heard before. It has the textures and rhythms of Chicago blues, like almost all rock now, but as they play the bass player turns his body so that his instrument is facing the 27 square feet of amplifier and speakers that stand behind him, taller than he, and the feedback tones fill the room with a sound more powerful than anything before it, and touching more on what is happening, and then the lead guitarist goes into an incredible distorted run with notes and feedback blending into a beautiful new sound ... No other group has been as close to it as the Yardbirds. Beatles, Stones? - forget it. At the back of the hall it is too loud, muddy, much of it inaudible and the sound system has utterly failed to match the eleven amplifiers. Not a word can be heard.... I am convinced, I am converted, the Yardbirds are the best group in the world. It took a day to come down from that idea. After it was over I watched them leave, clear smiles on their faces and plane schedules on their minds, and I remembered what they had done to my favorite music, and how my mind ached with the glory of today [but] all the songs sounded the same ... They don't have the variety or didn't choose to on stage that day. Like Butterfield they did one thing, and really well. (Berkeley Barb, 28 October 1966).

Perhaps in their one last great performance, a glimpse of the promise of this line-up of the band is realized this day. Greg Douglass, an aspiring guitarist who later plays with Steve Miller, also attends this show and equally impressed recalls: "It was just incredible. When I saw Jeff Beck it was like,'Whoa, what's going on here?"' Page himself has said the dual line-up only yielded two or three successful performances and this seemed to be one of them. Despite the lack of a PA powerful enough to project an audible vocal over the wall of amplifiers, like Jeff Beck did in Los Angeles at the Hullabaloo the previous January, he and the Yardbirds as a band make a grand impression on a nascent music scene with this show. It is undeniable that the influence would seep in through local musicians in attendance. One might argue that this show and the recently recorded Stroll On could be considered the partial embodiment of what the band might have been, given the proper direction and opportunity... (Facebook 2012).

TELEVISION SPOT: Monday 24 October or Tuesday 25 October 1966 - Milton Berle Show, Los Angeles, California. Recorded Happening's Ten Years Time Ago (mimed). Jimmy Page appears to be playing Beck's Fender Esquire whilst Beck mimes with his Gibson Les Paul. The performance was broadcast on 2 December.

Yardbirds, Happening's Ten Years Time Ago (mimed extract), Milton Berle Show, US television, taped 24 October 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 28 October 1966 Tri-State Fair Grounds Coliseum, Amarillo, Texas.

The Dick Clarke horror tour

29 October 1966 - Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars 1966 - The Yardbirds join this multi-concert, 4 week tour across America on this date. They usually perform two shows per night, with two songs at each performance. They then hopped on a crowded bus to go to the next gig. Musically and physically it would prove horrendous for Beck, especially after the highs of the Fillmore performance.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 29 October 1966 Dallas Memorial Auditorium, Dallas, Texas.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 30 October 1966 Harlingen Civic Auditorium, Harlingen, Texas. According to Clayson, it was on this date that Beck decided to leave for Los Angeles, though another reference indicates it was after the Louisana show on 1 November (see below).

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 30 October 1966 Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, Texas.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 31 October 1966 Municipal Auditorium, Beaumont, Texas (2 shows).

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 1 November 1966 Parrish Coliseum, Louisiana State University, Alexandria, Louisiana. It was at this stop that Jeff Beck disappeared from the tour and Jimmy Page took over sole rhythm and lead guitar duties. Beck's illness had flared up and he decided he had had enough. He left the band, and stayed in California until the end of the month to spend some time with his girlfriend. He was subsequently fired by management due to his unreliability. Page took over the guitar duties full time and completed the US tour, utilising the Beck Telecaster now in his possession.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 2 November 1966 Southern State College Field House, Magnolia, Arkansas.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 3 November 1966 Decatur High School Auditorium, Decatur, Alabama.

SINGLE RELEASE: Friday 4 November 1966: Happening's Ten Years Time Ago / The Nazz Are Blue released in the US on Epic.

Baton Rouge Advocate, Los Angeles, 11 December 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 5 November 1966 Memorial Building Auditorium, Kansas City, Kansas.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 6 November 1966 Bartlesville Civic Center, Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 6 November 1966 Tulsa Assembly Center Arena, Tulsa, Oklahoma.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 7 November 1966 Chanute Auditorium, Chanute, Kansas.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 8 November 1966 RKO Orpheum Theater, Davenport, Iowa

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 9 November 1966 Memorial Field House, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 10 November 1966 Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 11 November 1966 Indiana Fairgrounds Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 12 November 1966 Akron Civic Center, Akron, Ohio.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 12 November 1966 Grover Center, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 13 November 1966 Baltimore Civic Center Arena, Baltimore, Maryland.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 14 November 1966 Paintsville High School Gymnasium, Paintsville, Kentucky

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 15 November 1966 Diddle Arena, University of Western Kentucky, Bowling Green, Kentucky.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 16 November 1966 Memorial Gymnasium, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, TN

TELEVISION BROADCAST: Thursday 17 November 1966 Happening's Ten Years Time Ago, Top of the Pops, BBC, London. Originally filmed on 19 October.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 17 November 1966 Field House, University of Tennessee, Martin, Tennessee.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 17 November 1966 Murray, Kentucky

LIVE SHOW: Friday 18 November 1966 Michigan State Fair Coliseum, Detroit, Michigan.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 19 November 1966 Michigan State Fair Coliseum, Detroit, Michigan.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 20 November 1966 Michigan State Fair Coliseum, Detroit, Michigan.

LIVE SHOW: Monday 21 November 1966 Richmond Civic Hall, Richmond, Indiana.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 22 November 1966 Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

LIVE SHOW: Wednesday 23 November 1966 Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 24 November 1966 Raleigh County Armory, Beckley, West Virginia.

ARTICLE: Detroit Free Press, Friday 25 November 1966. Review of concert by Loraine Alterman.

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 26 November 1966 Washington Coliseum, Washington, D.C. (2 shows).

Winston-Salem Journal, Saturday, 26 November 1966.

LIVE SHOW: Sunday 27 November 1966 Cabell County Memorial Field House, Hunting, West Virginia. This show marked the end of Dick Clark Caravan of Stars tour. The Yardbirds continued to tour the US through to 4 December, then returned home to England, where the departure / sacking of Beck was announced shortly thereafter.

LIVE SHOW: Friday 2 December 1966 Union Ballroom, Baldwin-Wallace College, Berea, Ohio.

LIVE SHOW: 4 December 1966 Springbrook Gardens Teen Club, Lima, Ohio (2 shows). For further information see the Rob Branigin Facebook page.

Dreja and Page, Ohio, 1966.

"To Seymour [Duncan] our friend, best wishes, Jimmy Page", Lima, Ohio.

Yardbirds interview, Lima News, 11 December 1966.

England

LIVE SHOW: Saturday 10 December 1966 Going Down Dance, Student Union, Bristol University, Bristol.

A band meeting is held to officially inform Beck that he is no longer a member of the Yardbirds.

LIVE SHOW: Tuesday 13 December 1966 Abbeysworth University, Abbeysworth.

LIVE SHOW: Thursday 15 December 1966 Hull University, Hull.

PRESS REPORT: Saturday 17 December 1966, New Musical Express, London.

Yardbirds Split is Definite

Lead guitarist Jeff Beck is no longer a member of the Yardbirds, the group's manager Simon Napier-Bell confirmed this week. He added: "Beck has not been playing with the Yardbirds during their tour of the U.S., due to ill health, and it has been agreed that he should leave. There will be only four members of the group in future: Jimmy Page on lead guitar, plus Jim McCarty, Chris Dreja and Keith Relf." Speaking on behalf of the rest of the Yardbirds this week McCarty told New Musical Express: "Beck is out, no matter what he says." He was referring to reports that Beck was still a member of the group.

In a recent interview Jim McCarty said the following in regard to the departure of Beck:

Jeff was always very keyed up, very wound up when he played, and a sensitive guy so he ended up deserting us a bit when we were on tour. He wasn’t showing up for gigs, and in the end, he had to go. (Press Connect)

PRESS REPORT: Saturday, 17 December 1966, Beat magazine, London.

Jeff Beck: Alone In The Yardbirds

By Elen

A young man named Jeff Beck - a very important and integral part of a group called The Yardbirds - nearly always stands alone. He is possibly the most reverred guitar player on the pop scene today. Rock and roll musicians worship him; the highest compliment they can receive is to be called "the Jeff Beck of the group." What does Jeff Beck, leader of pop music, think about the developments occuring in the field today?

"The main thing about it is that the quality of musicianship has gotten better and the songs have gotten stronger. The meanings of the words have gotten better. The introduction of weird instruments shows a strong sign of musical interest-more than just a bit of moneymaking."p>

What does Jeff think about the exchange of ideas between popular groups?

"The main influence is the Beatles, isn't it? It's got to be, because without the Beatles, there wouldn't be half the groups there are today. And without half the groups today there wouldn't be any musical ideas going around. Because groups give ideas to one another - or steal an idea might be more like it! It is, in a way, an exchange because what we've 'stolen' from other people, they don't know about. We prefer to take the credit for what we do like any other person."

Although there were sounds of people all around us - jingling of water glasses, clanging of silverware - Jeff sat quite still, moving only to pick up his sandwich or emphasize a point in his conversation. But suddenly he came alive to rebel against the label of "electronic" so often tagged on his music.

"The original concept of our music was to just play what was inside us, and the best way of putting it over was by making 'electronic' sounds. You see, it's not like electronic music - if anybody thinks it is, go out and buy an album of electronic music and see how much different it is. I mean, one or two bits might remind them of electronic music, but it really isn't - the idea isn't. It's just a means of using a guitar to put over a different sound, a different feel. We don't like people tagging our music, but if they're going to make a tag, then obviously we're going to have to fall in line with what they want to call it. We'd just like to be recognized for the things we do. I've heard an example of 'psychedelic' music, but it was just rubbish. It was just a noise - it was somebody just having what they call a 'freak-out. It sounded like me giving my guitar to Mum and saying Mum - play it! It's just musically rubbish. But I'm not going to say that that matters nowadays!"

What would Jeff like to do with his future?

"I'd like to do record producing, but only by myself, and only my own music, because I have no idea of record production on any other thing, like strings and brass, and all that. I'd like to produce our records - but I'm not going to try, because it would ruin the Yardbirds' sound. It wouldn't ruin it, but it would alter it, and therefore, perhaps lose some of the individualism. That's because each of our records isn't produced by any body - it just happens. The record is built up from the ground and no one person can take the credit for it at the end. It's everybody's combined efforts. I've got an example of my production together with Jimmy Page and it's an instrumental. It's very stirring and its got an intensive, pulsating beat, which goes on and on and on, and it just explodes at the end. We designed it to affect a man's mind, or to make it sound as if the man was affected when he wrote it. I think we'll release it in an album, but it's going to be put out as a single by me. It's been finished three months, and there's no name for it!"

Did Jeff ever set out to make Jeff Beck what he is today, or did it just happen?

"I never wished to be where I am, status wise. When I was at home, I was quite content to be myself and just go on out and play to anybody. I'd play my heart out, even if there were only ten people in the audience, because I really wasn't aware of all this. But now, I've been placed up really, on a pedestal, without even wishing it, where as if the kids hear that, they'll think: 'Only give me a chance! I spent my last cent buying a guitar - just give me a chance! But, believe me, if they ever had the chance, and they got up and did as much work as we've done, they'd be regretting it!"

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Acknowledgements

Thanks to all the journalists and Yardbirds fans who have contributed to this blog, especially the outstanding Chrome Oxide website, and the Facebook site - Yardbirds (Official) Fan Page.

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References

Clayson, Alan, The Yardbirds, Backbeat Books, San Francisco, 2002, 208p.

Happening's Ten Years Time Ago, Record Collector, 452, 23 March 2016.

Jones, Stephen A., Jimmy Page Public Performances pre Led Zeppelin [webpage], 6 August 2008.

McCarty, Tom, The Page Boys, Garagehangover [webpage], 2 February 2010.

My Beck Pages - Yardbirds Fans, Facebook, 2018.

Page, Jimmy, Anthology, 2020.

Platt, John, Dreja, Chris and McCarthy, Jim, Yardbirds, Sidgwick & Jackson, 1983, 160p.

Schaal, Eric, The highlight of the Yardbirds with Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck on lead guitars, Showbiz CheatSheet [blog], 21 April 2020.

Spirogis, Jeremy, Why Jimmy Page started out playing bass in the Yardbirds, Sawhiwal.tv [blog], 4 May 2020.

The Yardbirds were changed forever when Jeff Beck fell ill: 'It was two lead guitars from then on', Something Else [blog], 22 November 2014.