R.I.P. Jeff Beck

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Jeff Beck

Guitarist and blues and rock legend Jeff Beck has died, according to a statement made from his publicist, SPIN reports. He was 78.

“On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck’s passing,” the statement read. “After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday. His family ask for privacy while they process this tremendous loss.”

Born in England in 1944, Beck first began playing guitar as a kid after first hearing Les Paul play guitar. In the 1960s, as he attended Wimbledon College of Art, Beck began to play guitar in a number of different groups, including Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages, as well as The Nightshift, The Rumbles and The Tridents.

In 1965, Beck joined the Yardbirds after the departure of Eric Clapton, and though he was only in the band for 20 months, he recorded Roger the Engineer with the group, as well as a number of singles. He made his solo debut in 1968 with Truth.

Beck’s discography includes 18 albums credited to either Jeff Beck or Jeff Beck Group, and he’s performed on records by Stevie Wonder, Donovan, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Kate Bush, Diana Ross and Ozzy Osbourne. His last album was 18, with Johnny Depp.

Beck was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the Yardbirds in 1992, and then again as a solo artist in 2009. He’s also won eight Grammy awards throughout his career, beginning in 1986 with Best Instrumental Performance for “Escape,” and most recently for “Hammerhead” in the same category in 2010.

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