Steely Dan Keyboardist Jim Beard Dies At 63
OAN’s Brooke Mallory
2:50 PM – Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Jim Beard, a musician who spent the previous 16 years touring as Steely Dan’s keyboardist and performing solo, has passed away at the age of 63.
“Beard is survived by his two children, son Victor and daughter Caitlin Beard, and by his mother, Sarah, sister Nancy Canale, and brother, Bill Beard,” according to People Magazine.
The pianist, composer, keyboardist, and producer passed away on March 2nd as a result of “complications from a sudden illness,” according to a statement released by the band on Wednesday, March 6th.
The cause of death was not disclosed at the time of publication.
In addition to performing with the jazz-influenced rock group, which included his last gig on January 20th in Phoenix, Arizona, Beard also toured with the Eagles on their Long Goodbye tour in 2008 after joining the live Steely Dan band for the Think Fast Tour.
Beard was born on August 26th, 1960, in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. As a teenager, he studied jazz at Indiana University and excelled at playing the clarinet, saxophone, and sting bass. He also played in a bar band with trumpet player Chris Botti and session drummer Kenny Aronoff, who has also worked with John Mellencamp and John Fogerty.
An official biography of the now-deceased musician states that Beard began a busy career of composing after relocating to New York in 1985. He collaborated with musicians like Pat Metheny, Wayne Shorter, and John McLaughlin on tracks.
In addition, he composed music for TV and film scores and performed with the Metropole Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Meshell Ndegeocello, Dianne Reeves, Al Jarreau, and rock guitar virtuoso Steve Vai on recordings.
In between his tours with Metheny and McLaughlin’s Mahavishu Orchestra, Beard taught at the Sibelius Academy in Finland, the Mason Gross School of Arts at Rutgers University, the Aaron Copland School of Music in New York, and the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He also released six solo CDs.
Additionally, Beard’s productions and compositions were nominated for seven Grammy awards. In 2007, he was awarded a Grammy for his rendition of Randy and Michael Brecker’s “Some Skunk Funk.”
“It is with great sadness that we announce the loss of our friend and colleague,” Steely Dan said in a joint statement, with the group currently led by co-founder Donald Fagen.
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