Steve Morse offers a caveat before he breaks into a heartfelt cover of Jeff Beck's "Cause We've Ended as Lovers" in a brand-new video. "I apologize for what's about to happen," the shred virtuoso deadpans to his backup band.
But there's certainly nothing to make amends for. The result is a dazzling display of virtuosity that features the impressive tapping, muscular bends, emotive vibrato and delicate pinch harmonics for which Morse has long — and rightly — been celebrated.
The feat is all the more remarkable when you consider that Morse has been dealing with arthritis, for which he's forcibly adapted his picking technique.
Recorded and filmed for American Musical Supply's YouTube channel with assistance from the AMS band, the Beck cover gives Morse a chance to break in his brand-new signature Engl head. At just 20 watts, the small tube amp is packed with features, including a highly tweakable clean channel with plenty of headroom, a built-in noise gate and a midrange boost to give single-coils a more humbucker-like, full-bodied flavor.
Morse pairs the new amp with his Music Man signature guitar, which looks distinctly roadworn, but oozes with the purring quality of Beck’s crooning tone. Uniquely, the guitar features four pickups, split evenly between humbuckers and single-coils.
Morse’s rendition of "Cause We've Ended as Lovers" sees him following in the footsteps of guitarists Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa and Matteo Mancuso, each of whom has covered the track. (Matteo recently made his devotion to another guitar hero evident with "Paul Position," his tribute to Paul Gilbert.)
Morse's tribute is a world away from his new collaboration with Charvel signature artist Angel Vivaldi: a violin-propelled cover of Jean-Luc Ponty's "New Country," released earlier this week.
Ponty, the famed French fusion violin virtuoso, wrote the tune for his celebrated 1976 album, Imaginary Voyage. The new arrangement, crafted by Vivaldi, offers a modernized take on the classic and features a a slew of galloping clean guitar licks from Morse, along with some supple playing from Vivaldi and impressive playing by violinist Siobhan Cronin. The highlight, undoubtedly, is Morse's jaw-dropping 30-second solo toward the end.
“This song is one I’ve dreamed of working with for well over a decade,” Vivaldi explained to Ultimate Guitar. “Jean-Luc’s work has been instrumental in shaping my musical foundation, introducing me to artists like Chick Corea. Steve Morse, and this incredible band elevated this project to extraordinary levels. I’m truly thrilled that we had the opportunity to create music together.”
Adds Morse, “This is a very difficult tune to play well. I love the fact that Angel is spreading his wings and taking on other genres than what he has already proven so good at.”
Morse’s name may now be etched in the annals of guitar history, but he has recently opened up about how he quit music twice before, only for Lynyrd Skynyrd to pull him back, and feature him on a live album.
