Since the beginning of 2023, the rock world has lost several notable names, such as CSNY legend David Crosby, Lisa Marie Presley, and Tom Verlaine. One of the most untimely losses was that of Jeff Beck. His death caused a tremendous shockwave that echoed throughout the industry. Being a close friend of Beck, Alice Cooper recently shared his thoughts on his ‘unexpected’ passing while speaking to Fox Digital News.
The 78-year-old rockstar passed away after contracting a brief illness. Jeff Beck had made headlines only a couple of months ago by releasing a joint album with Johnny Depp, gaining praise for covering some iconic songs and coming out with original materials. In addition, last year, he collaborated with Ozzy Osbourne for ‘Patient Number 9.’
Many rockers shared their condolences upon hearing the tragic news, his fellow guitarists Jimmy Page and David Gilmour being among the ones that paid homage by releasing tribute messages across social media platforms. It was apparent how much Beck’s peers and fellow rockers respected and even admired him, as Geddy Lee and Eric Clapton also had posted their own tributes.
During an interview, Alice Cooper recently shared some details about Jeff Beck’s passing. Cooper revealed that he had actually watched Beck performing with Johnny Depp only two weeks before his passing. Alice also mentioned that he thought Jeff’s passing was quite unexpected since he seemed very healthy.
He commented on the matter as follows:
“I was so sorry to see Jeff Beck go. Jeff Beck was my favorite guitar player of all time. And I’d just seen him two weeks before this happened. I mean, that was a surprise to me.
I saw him two weeks ago with Johnny Depp. They were playing in Phoenix. And he was great. I mean, I didn’t see – I didn’t notice anything at all. It must have happened very quickly. The funeral was actually yesterday in London, so we couldn’t make it there. We’re in rehearsal right now for our next show.”
Cooper also revealed that Jeff Beck was his favorite guitar player of all time. What would come as a shocker, then, would be his inability to attend the funeral. But when you’re in a world as busy as the rock scene, things don’t always go according to plan.