Legendary guitar player Jeff Beck has denied that a character in ‘Spinal Tap’ was based on him.
Released in 1984, ‘This Is Spinal Tap’ has become the benchmark for musical comedies. A spoof history of an English group, many of its jokes have become stock material for writers ever since.
Exploding drummers, Stonehenge and more have entered rock folklore. However one joke which resonated particularly hard with Jeff Beck was the invention of amplifiers which turned up to eleven.
Owned by the group’s guitarist Nigel Tufnel, the character is widely believed to be based on guitarist Jeff Beck. Now the axe slinger has denied any resemblance to the character – although he claims he loves the movie.
“I think the hair was but it ends there,” he tells Undercover. “I knew that Christopher Guest had been watching me but Nigel is based on different characters from Glam Rock. Ironically, I was the only one who wasn’t Glam Rock. I loved every minute of that movie”.
Continuing, Jeff Beck claimed that he is a massive fan of the movie. “I heard it on recommendation,” he says.
“I was watching it at a cinema in Westwood and I was laughing so loud people were telling me to shut-up. It was the funniest thing. They couldn’t see the funny side of it”.
‘This Is Spinal Tap’ has gone on to enjoy lasting popularity, although members of the rock royalty famously loathed the film. At a screening in 1984 the movie was premiered to an audience of rock stars – to an awkward, stony silence.
