OAN’s James Meyers
10:12 AM – Wednesday, December 13, 2023
The Beach Boys musician Jeffrey Foskett has passed away at the age of 67 after battling anaplastic thyroid cancer.
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The Beach Boys co-founder Brian Wilson confirmed his death in a post on Instagram on Monday, giving a tribute to the late member.
“I’m so heartbroken that my dear friend Jeff Foskett has passed. Jeff was always there for me when we toured and we couldn’t have done it without him. Jeff was one of the most talented guys I ever knew. He was a great musical leader and guitarist and he could sing like an angel,” the singer-songwriter penned. “I first met Jeff in 1976 when he knocked on my door in Bel Air and I invited him in, and we were friends ever since. I don’t know what else to say. Love and Mercy to Jeff’s family and friends, we will remember him forever.”
Foskett posted in March this year, showing a video of himself ringing a bell at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston after spending four years in treatment there.
“These people have given me what no one else on earth could have… LIFE…. Some of the past four years has been trying (I guess that’s why it’s called a clinical trial). It tries your body, mind and spirit but it has left me THRIVING and most importantly able to meet my grandson Domenic,” Foskett wrote.
Foskett talked to the Los Angeles Times in 2012 about meeting Wilson for the first time, saying, “Brian opened the door and said ‘Hey, come on in’ — like he’d been expecting us! I said, ‘Great!’ We hung around and went to the music room … He said, ‘Stay in touch.’ And I did — and I’m glad that I did.”
After a few years passed from the time of the meeting, Foskett was recruited by Mike Love, another co-founder of the Beach Boys, to join the band. At the same time, Carl Wilson decided to step away from the Beach Boys in favor of a solo career, and Love suggested that Foskett replace him.
Foskett told Rolling Stone in 2019, “Two months later Carl came back and I assumed that I would be gone. We had a big rehearsal at the Beach Boys’ building on Lincoln Boulevard. We got out four songs and Carl stopped it. I remember this very clearly. He said, ‘First of all. I’m not responsible for anyone’s personal financial situation. I’m responsible to make this band sound as good as it can sound. So there will be some changes made.’ And everybody left with their tails between their legs, thinking that no one was coming back. So fortunately, Dennis [Wilson] pulled me aside and said, ‘You’re good, man, you’re in the band, don’t worry.’ I felt really good about that.”
Eventually he left the band in 1990 after being with them for almost a decade. However, in 1998, he rejoined Wilson and began touring with him again.
Additionally, John Stamos, who has played with the band over the years also paid tribute to Foskett.
“Today, I lost more than a friend; I lost a part of my soul, my history — Jeffrey Foskett, my dearest friend, brother, and the brightest light in my life, has left this world. This morning, when I got the news, uncontrollable tears streamed down my face, a physical manifestation of the heartache within,” Stamos captioned a throwback photo of the pair.
“My son Billy heard my cries, joined my wife in holding me up, and then ran off, only to return with a small, tender offering — a drawing. His innocent hands sketched a picture of Jeff with hearts ascending to heaven, with me, waving goodbye. A stairway of hearts, and next to the top heart, he wrote God. A simple yet powerful symbol of love and loss that pierced through my grief,” he continued.
“Jeff was more than just a friend; he was the one who brought the harmonies of The Beach Boys into my life, and with them, a spectrum of color and joy I never dreamed would be part of my life,” wrote Stamos.
Al Jardine, who is another member of the Beach Boys, told Rolling Stone, “He was so talented on so many different levels but it was his wonderful sense of humor that kept him balanced and helped him navigate all the hard knocks you get in the music business. Jeff had a contagious positive spirit and never gave up hope. God bless his beautiful spirit and zest for life, we will really miss him and cherish all the great times we shared together. Keeping his wife Diana, his daughter and family and fans everywhere in our thoughts. Rest in peace Jeff and thanks for always making us smile.”
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