Force a beat to recede (5)
I believe the answer is:
abate
'recede' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'force a beat' is the wordplay.
'force' indicates an anagram (letters must be forced into a new order).
'a'+'beat'='abeat'
'abeat' anagrammed gives 'ABATE'.
'to' is the link.
(Other definitions for abate that I've seen before include "Become less strong like storm" , "Die down, slacken off" , "Become less intense" , "Subside, grow less" , "Relax" .)