Jeff Beck Dead of Bacterial Meningitis at 78

Jeff Beck, the beloved guitar player who rose to fame with English rock band The Yardbirds, has died at 78.

His family confirmed Beck’s death in a statement on Wednesday.

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

Beck rose to fame in 1965 when he took over as guitarist for The Yardbirds, replacing Eric Clapton. The next year, he founded his own group, The Jeff Beck Group with Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood. They released two albums together: Truth and Beck-Ola.

After The Jeff Beck Group broke up, he joined Vanilla Fudge for a short stint and later recreated The Jeff Beck Group with new members. In 1972, he fronted Beck, Bogert & Appice before breaking up in 1974.

He also recorded two albums in the ’70s as a solo act called Blow by Blow and Wired. He released Loud Hailer in 2016.

“I really wanted to make a statement about some of the nasty things I see going on in the world — greed, lies, injustice — and I loved the idea of being at a rally and using this loud device to shout my point of view,” he said in a bio on his official website.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice — as a member of the Yardbirds in 1992 and as a solo act in 2009.

Most recently, the rocker released a collaborative album titled 18 with Johnny Depp in July.

“It’s an extraordinary honor to play and write music with Jeff, one of the true greats and someone I am now privileged enough to call my brother,” Depp said in a release at the time.

The duo also released an official music video for their first single off the album, titled “This is a Song for Miss Hedy Lamarr.”

“I haven’t had another creative partner like him for ages,” Beck said of Depp in the release. “He was a major force on this record. I just hope people will take him seriously as a musician because it’s a hard thing for some people to accept that Johnny Depp can sing rock and roll.”

The duo also performed several shows together in honor of the release.

Through the years, Beck was featured in iconic moments in music from his role as lead guitarist on Mick Jagger’s debut album She’s the Boss to the title track on Ozzy Osbourne’s latest album titled Patient Number 9.

The eight-time Grammy winner is survived by his wife Sandra Beck.