Guitar Shop represents guitar hero Jeff Beck's return to the scene following his 1985 pop/rock-based recording, Flash; an outing that featured his one time lead vocalist, Rod Stewart. Essentially, this 1989 release provides Beck's ardent admirers with a power-packed outing, brimming with memorable melodies, drummer Terry Bozzio's often blistering rock drumming, and keyboardist Tony Hymas' effective synth textures.
Released in 1988, Guitar may be the most important and ironically one of the least-known entries in Frank Zappa's voluminous discography – which spans over seven-dozen LPs as of this writing. His proficiencies as a composer and instrumentalist have long been lauded. However, anthologies of this nature provide an outlet for the remarkable breadth and depth of Zappa's manual dexterity and improvisational scope, which can now be enjoyed on a myriad of levels…
Mastered by Bob Ludwig, Gateway Mastering, 2012. Vaultmeisterment & Analog Transfers by Joe Travers, March 2012, UMRK. 1981 Analog Master, remastered by Bob Ludwig from the original tapes. Reverts to two CDs (mimicking the approach taken on the pre-1995 CDs), and eliminates the 1995-era segue between "Why Johnny Can't Read" and "Stucco Homes." Reports on sound quality are very positive. Who would ever want to hear half an hour of wall-to-wall guitar instrumentals? When the soloist in question is Frank Zappa, the answer is anyone who should ever require proof that Zappa was one of the most gifted electric (and occasionally acoustic) guitarists of the rock & roll era.