Beach Boys member passes away
Bansho Biz – December 13, 2023 / 3:49pm | Story: 462422
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Beach Boys member Jeffrey Foskett has died at the age of 67.
Best known as a touring and studio musician with Brian Wilson and his iconic group since the 1980s, he was also known as the “Vice Principal” who kept the band going in the 1960s.
Devastated Beach Boys co-founder Brian, 81, announced Jeffrey’s death after a battle with anaplastic thyroid cancer on Instagram, writing: “My dear friend Jeff… It is with great sadness that Foskett has passed away.”
“Jeff has always supported me on tour and I couldn’t have done this without him. Jeff was one of the most talented guys I’ve ever known.
“He was a great musical leader and guitarist and could sing like an angel. I first met Jeff in 1976 when he knocked on my door in Bel Air and asked me invited him into my home, and we’ve been friends ever since.
“I don’t know what else to say. Love and compassion to Jeff’s family and friends, we will remember him forever.”
In March 2023, after completing a round of radiation treatments, Jeffrey posted a video online of himself ringing a bell in a cancer ward, calling himself one of “God’s walking miracles.”
The musician added that after a four-year battle with cancer, treatment has left him “in good spirits.”
Born in San Jose, California, Jeffrey began playing in bands as a teenager. He loved the Beach Boys so much that he followed the group and became friends with Brian before he joined the band and went on tour for decades.
Jeffrey wrote alongside a video of him ringing a bell taken at a cancer hospital in Houston. “I rang the bell on Friday, March 3rd, after my second round of radiation therapy. Over the past four years, there have been several attempts (I guess that’s why they’re called clinical trials).
“It tests your body, mind and spirit, but it has allowed me to thrive and most importantly, see my grandson Domenic.
“I don’t often post on social, but I thought this milestone was important. Thank you for everyone’s prayers. They work! I am living proof.
“I am one of God’s walking miracles. God bless you all and God bless MD Anderson as well.”
