Ultimate Guitar recently caught up with Whitesnake guitarist Reb Beach, who discussed the formative years of his career as a professional guitarist. An excerpt is available below.

On what made him want to become a guitarist

Beach: "Well, I wanted to be a piano player. I thought I was going to be a pianist. I wanted to be Elton John or Billy Joel. I had been playing the piano since I was 4. So I was really into it and I thought it was really cool until I saw KISS. That was the end of the piano for me. I took one look at Ace Frehley - I saw them live at Madison Square Garden when I was 13. That was it. I just knew, right when I saw it, that's what I was supposed to do. My mom had gotten me a guitar for Christmas and it sat under my bed for months. I mean, I tried to play it but it hurt so I never played it. But after that (KISS show) I took up this huge interest in guitar. This guy I knew was a folk guitar player so he knew how to play chords, just the basic chords, so he taught me to play those and I took it from there."

On attending Berklee

Beach: "It was in 1982 and I dated the only girl there (laughs), the only cute girl there, so that was fun. I was just jamming at Berklee. I never went to class. My guitar teacher was an asshole. He told me I was holding the pick wrong and that I was sitting wrong and he told me, 'You'll never make it. You'll never make as much money as I do, the way you play guitar.' That's basically when I got in my car and drove away. I was voted most likely to be a rock star in high school. I always knew that I belonged on the stage. I'm an extrovert and I'm really comfortable up there. I have a great ear and I just knew that I was just meant for it. Not that I think of myself as a rock star, I don't think of myself that way, but I have had a lot of success."

Read the complete interview here.

Whitesnake has released behind-the-scenes footage from their music video for "Shut Up & Kiss Me", the single from their upcoming Flesh & Blood album, out on May 10th via Frontiers Music Srl. Watch the new clip, as well as the official music video, below:

"Shut Up & Kiss Me" video behind-the-scenes:

"Shut Up & Kiss Me" video:

Fresh off celebrating their 40th anniversary, rock legends Whitesnake return with their latest studio album, Flesh & Blood. This album follows the 2011 critically acclaimed studio album Forevermore and 2015’s The Purple Album, a reimagining of Deep Purple classics from Whitesnake mastermind’s David Coverdale’s time in that band. The 13 original, visceral tracks on Flesh & Blood, the band’s 13th studio album, are, luckily for you dear reader, “all killer, no filler”, as the saying goes. But would you expect anything less from the ’Snakes?

David Coverdale, the mastermind behind Whitesnake & co-composer of "Shut Up & Kiss Me" with guitarist Reb Beach, commenting on the forthcoming release said that "after the intense darkness of our last video 'Burn', if anything, it’s ‘light’ snake, you know? We’ve got some really dark energy going on in the world right now, so we’re gonna write & record a fun, knees up, song about falling in love with a fabulous babe. You’re over-talking, over-compensating & she just looks at you, takes the reins & says, 'Shut Up and Kiss Me!' and that’s it!! My video director and creative partner Tyler Bourns and I discussed a great storyline for the video, which involves a surprise guest: my fabulous old white Jaguar. We ended up cleaning and detailing it, as it has been in storage since I moved to Lake Tahoe, then we dusted off my old turquoise silk jacket from the original ‘Here I Go Again’ video and I was thinking, "man, this is going to be fun!" It’s a respectful acknowledgment and positive nod to the past, just fun stuff.”

Joining Coverdale on Flesh & Blood is the powerhouse band comprised of Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra on guitar, Michael Devin on bass, Tommy Aldridge on drums, and Michele Luppi on keyboards.

Since joining the band four years ago, and just in time for 2015's The Purple Album, Chicago native Joel Hoekstra has really come into his own, not only as a highly impressive axe-slinger, but also as a very accomplished songwriter too, co-writing six of the songs for Flesh & Blood with singer David Coverdale. Of course Joel’s talents are hardly surprising, considering he’s the son of two classical musicians.

Guitarist Reb Beach, who originally joined Whitesnake in 2002, has stepped up to become the group’s bandleader and guides the band to implement Coverdale’s musical vision. As well as bringing his impressive musical chops to the band, Reb has co-written five songs on the new album, the fourth studio album he has appeared on, commencing with 2008’s highly acclaimed Good To Be Bad.

It was the Good To Be Bad follow-up, Forevermore (2011), that saw the debut of bassist Michael Devin. The New Englander’s four-string-depth-charge-bass-bombs definitively underpin and drive the sound of Whitesnake in the 21st century.

Rounding out the rhythm section is David’s longest serving ’Snake, the renowned drummer and unstoppable percussionist Tommy Aldridge, who has been with Whitesnake in some capacity for 30 years. Tommy made his debut with Whitesnake way back in 1987 in the "Still Of The Night" video, becoming a mainstay behind the kit for successive albums and tours.

Last, but certainly not least, the band is completed by the inventive keyboards and vocals of Italian maestro Michele Luppi, who made his live debut in 2015, as documented on The Purple Tour live CD/DVD (2018).

The current incarnation of the band carries on the long and unwavering tradition of main man David Coverdale being surrounded by cream of the crop players who go all in to bring fans the best hard rock humanly possible. 40+ years into their existence, the ‘Snakes fangs have only grown sharper and are ready to inject fans with more of that rock ‘n roll venom they crave.

Flesh & Blood will be released May 10, 2019 via Frontiers Music Srl in multiple formats.

* CD (Jewel Case)
* CD+DVD Deluxe Edition (Digipak) - Includes two studio bonus tracks on CD. DVD includes "Shut Up & Kiss Me" (classic jag version) (video), "Shut Up & Kiss Me" (club mix version) (video), Behind the Scenes of 'Flesh & Blood' video + 3 DVD Audio Tracks (remixes of album tracks)
* Super Luxury Boxset - Includes CD+DVD Deluxe Edition, 2xLP Standard Color LP, Poster, Numbered Lithograph, Box Set
* 2xLP - Black, 180g, Gatefold (Worldwide)
* 2xLP - Silver, 180g, Gatefold (Frontiers' U.S. Store Exclusive) - Limited to 300 Copies
* 2xLP - Gold, 180g, Gatefold (Frontiers' UK Store Exclusive) - Limited to 500 Copies
* 2xLP - Red, 180g, Gatefold (Frontiers' EU Store Exclusive) - Limited to 350 Copies

Pre-order "Flesh & Blood" here.

Signed CDs (Limited to 100), Limited Edition Silver Vinyl (Limited to 300 copies worldwide), & more available from Frontiers' US webstore here.

Signed CDs (Limited to 100), Limited Edition Gold Vinyl (Limited to 500 copies worldwide), & more available from Frontiers' UK webstore here.

Signed CDs (Limited to 100), Limited Edition Red Vinyl (Limited to 350 copies worldwide) & more available from Frontiers' EU webstore here.

Tracklisting CD / 2xLP:

"Good To See You Again"
"Gonna Be Alright"
"Shut Up & Kiss Me"
"Hey You (You Make Me Rock)"
"Always & Forever"
"When I Think Of You (Color Me Blue)"
"Trouble Is Your Middle Name"
"Flesh & Blood"
"Well I Never"
"Heart Of Stone"
"Get Up"
"After All "
"Sands Of Time"

Bonus tracks on CD+DVD Deluxe Edition and Digital Version:

"Can’t Do Right For Doing Wrong" (Bonus Track - New Studio Song)
"If I Can’t Have You" (Bonus Track - New Studio Song)
"Gonna Be Alright" (X-Tendo Mix) - DVD Audio Track
"Sands Of Time" (Radio Mix) - DVD Audio Track
"Shut Up And Kiss Me" (Video Mix) - DVD Audio Track

Mixed by Christopher Collier
Produced by Beach, Hoekstra & McIntyre
Executive Producer: David Coverdale