Beck, who rose to fame as part of the Yardbirds and the Jeff Beck Group, died Tuesday, according to a statement from his official Twitter account.
Jeff Beck, recognized as one of the most admired and influential guitarists in rock ‘n’ roll history, died on Tuesday at age 78.
« On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck’s passing, » Beck’s representatives wrote Wednesday on his official Twitter account. « After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday. »
Beck rose to fame in the 1960s after joining the Yardbirds, a flourishing British rock group, and quickly went on to form his solo career with his band, the Jeff Beck Group. The rock legend was an eight-time Grammy Award winner, earning his first in 1985 for best rock instrumental performance for his single, « Escape. »
Beck was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice—once as a member of the Yardbirds in 1992 and as a solo artist in 2009. Last year, the guitar virtuoso toured with actor Johnny Depp, amid Depp’s legal entanglements with his ex-wife, after the duo recorded a cover album together, titled « 18. »
Tributes from fellow rock ‘n’ roll legends poured in within minutes after news of Beck’s death. Singer-songwriter Rod Stewart tweeted a two-part thread in honor of Beck’s influence on his own career, as Ronnie Wood, now of The Rolling Stones, and Stewart helped fill out the Jeff Beck Group in 1967.