18

18 is a collaborative studio album by guitarist Jeff Beck and actor, film producer and musician Johnny Depp. Released on 15 July 2022 on Rhino Records, it is Beck's final studio album released before his death in January 2023. The 13-track collection features two Depp-penned originals and a selection of cover songs by Killing Joke, the Beach Boys, Marvin Gaye, the Miracles, the Velvet Underground, the Everly Brothers and Janis Ian. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews from music critics. Background and release Beck and Depp first met in 2016 and quickly got along very well, forming a close friendship. According to Beck, he found a "kindred spirit" in Depp and the two bonded over "cars and guitars and spent most of their time together trying to make each other laugh". Beck was convinced they should record music together and began to do so in 2019. Beck and Depp felt that them playing together "ignited their youthful spirit and creativity" and according to Beck, both of them would joke about how they felt 18 again, hence their decision for the album title. Depp added: "It's an extraordinary honour to play and write music with Jeff, one of the true greats and someone I am now privileged enough to call my brother." In September 2019, Depp joined Beck on stage for some concerts of the latter's US tour and they performed the song "Isolation" live for the first time. "Isolation" would later be officially released, as Beck and Depp's debut single, on 16 April 2020. Beck said in a statement that the decision to release this song early, before finishing the album, was made due to the fact that many people were still self-quarantining amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Beck stated: "We weren’t expecting to release it so soon, but given all the hard days and true 'isolation' that people are going through in these challenging times, we decided now might be the right time to let you all hear it."