Truth (Jeff Beck album)

"Truth" is the debut studio album by English guitarist Jeff Beck, released on July 29, 1968, in the United States by Epic Records and on October 4, 1968, in the United Kingdom by Columbia Records. The album marked the introduction of the Jeff Beck Group, which featured Rod Stewart on vocals and Ronnie Wood on bass, to a wider audience. Truth received significant acclaim and reached number 15 on the Billboard Top LPs chart. The album is celebrated for its pioneering blend of rock and blues, showcasing Beck’s innovative guitar work and the emerging talents of his band members.

After leaving the Yardbirds in late 1966, Jeff Beck released three commercial singles: two in 1967 featuring his own vocals and one in 1968 without vocals. All these singles were hits on the British charts and were characterized by pop-oriented A-sides, a direction suggested by producer Mickie Most. In contrast, the B-sides of these singles featured harder rock and blues tracks. For his album, Beck decided to focus on the latter.

The recording sessions for the album took place over four days: May 14–15 and May 25–26, 1968. The sessions produced nine diverse tracks, including covers of "Ol' Man River" by Jerome Kern, the Tudor-era melody "Greensleeves," and Bonnie Dobson's "Morning Dew," which had been a hit for Tim Rose in 1966. Beck also paid homage to Chicago blues with renditions of Willie Dixon's "You Shook Me" and Howlin' Wolf's "I Ain't Superstitious."

The album opens with "Shapes of Things," a song from Beck's time with the Yardbirds. Three original tracks, credited to "Jeffrey Rod" (a pseudonym for Beck and Rod Stewart), are reworkings of blues songs: "Let Me Love You" by Buddy Guy, "Rock My Plimsoul" (derived from B.B. King's "Rock Me Baby"), and "Blues Deluxe" (based on B.B. King's "Gambler's Blues"). For "Blues Deluxe," Beck added overdubbed audience reactions from a sound effects record to create a live atmosphere, a decision he later regretted.

"Plimsoul" had previously been recorded as the B-side to the 1967 single "Tallyman." The album also includes "Beck's Bolero," an instrumental featuring Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, Keith Moon, and future Beck group pianist Nicky Hopkins. This track was edited and remixed for stereo from the earlier B-side of "Hi Ho Silver Lining." Due to contractual issues, Moon was credited on the original album as "You Know Who."

The album's cover art features a double exposure photograph of model Celia Hammond, who was dating Beck at the time, taken by photographer Stephen Goldblatt.