Johnny Depp joins Jeff Beck onstage at weekend concert
Actor Johnny Depp played alongside friend Jeff Beck Sunday during the latter's concert in Sheffield. Credit: Pool / AP / Steve Helber
With a verdict expected as early as Tuesday in his defamation lawsuit against his actor ex-wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp spent part of Sunday in England, jamming in concert with his friend, guitar legend Jeff Beck.
"Well…what a surprise we got last night when @johnnydepp joined @jeffbeckofficial on stage," posted the venue, Sheffield City Hall, on Instagram Monday, accompanied by a video snippet of Depp, who turns 59 on June 9, and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Beck, who turns 77 later that month, playing guitar together. The post additionally included a photo of Depp onstage and a short video of Depp solo, singing and playing guitar.
"We couldn't believe it and I don't think our audience could either," the venue continued. "Wishing @jeffbeckofficial good luck for the rest of his amazing tour and a big thank you to @johnnydepp for joining us!"
YouTube videos shot by attendees show a beret-wearing Depp onstage at the concert hall in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, about 160 miles from London, where Beck held the second stop on his current tour. The two jammed together on Jimi Hendrix's 1967 "Little Wing," from the album "Axis: Bold as Love," as well as Marvin Gaye's 1971 R&B anthem of despair for humanity, "What's Going On," from the same-name album.
As well, Depp sang lead on "Isolation," by singer-composer John Lennon from his 1970 side-project album "Plastic Ono Band." Musical collaborators Depp and Beck had released a cover of "Isolation" in 2020, and Beck's Instagram account still uses the song's logo, with their names, as the page's portrait. According to Vanity Fair, Depp owns a home in the English county of Somerset, about a four-hour drive from Sheffield.
Depp has sued Heard in Virginia's Fairfax County Court, alleging she defamed him in a Washington Post editorial she penned on domestic abuse, in which she did not directly state his name. Heard is countersuing for $100 million.
Eight-time Grammy Award winner Beck is one of rock's most storied and influential guitarists, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice, first in 1992 as a member of the Yardbirds and then as a solo performer in 2009. Depp has long been a musician, and formed his occasional group Hollywood Vampires with Alice Cooper and Aerosmith's Joe Perry. In addition to recording with Beck, Depp plays guitar and appears in Paul McCartney's 2012 music video for "My Valentine." Both Depp and Jericho-raised Academy Award winner Natalie Portman appear in an alternate official music video for the song.
Beck has not commented on social. Depp, a three-time Oscar nominee, has no social media.
