JEFFREY Foskett, longtime member of the Beach Boys, has died at the age of 67 after a battle with thyroid cancer.
Bandmate Brian Wilson announced Foskett’s death in an Instagram post on Monday, remembering him as “one of the most talented musicians.”
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Beach Boys musician Jeffrey Foskett dies at 67 Credit: Getty
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(L-R) Jeffrey Foskett, Bruce Johnston, John Cowsill, Mike Love and Scott Totten of The Beach Boys perform at the Fox & Friends All American Concert Series outside Fox Studios in June 2016. Credit: Getty
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(L-R) Beach Boys’ Jeffrey Foskett, Sugar Rays’ Mark McGrath, Bruce Johnston and Full House actor John StamosCredit: Getty
“I am so heartbroken that my dear friend Jeff Foskett has passed away,” Wilson wrote.
“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’ve ever known.
“He was a great music leader and guitarist and could sing like an angel.”
Wilson recalled when he first met Foskett more than three decades ago, and they’ve been friends ever since.
“I first met Jeff in 1976 when he knocked on my door in Bel Air and I invited him in, and we’ve been friends ever since.
“I don’t know what else to say. Love and mercy to Jeff’s family and friends, he will be remembered forever.”
Full House actor John Stamos, who has long been friends with the California-based band, shared a series of photos of himself with Foskett in a touching tribute on social media.
“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, left this world,” Stamos mourned.
“This morning, when I heard the news, uncontrollable tears streamed down my face, a physical manifestation of the pain in my heart.
“My son Billy heard my cry, joined my wife to pick me up, then ran away, only to return with a small tender offering – a drawing.
“His innocent hands drew a picture of Jeff with hearts going up into the sky, with me waving goodbye.
“Stairs from the heart, and next to the top heart is written God. A simple but powerful symbol of love and loss that broke through my grief.”
Stamos continued, “Jeff was more than a friend; he was the one who brought the harmony of The Beach Boys into my life, and with them, a spectrum of color and joy that I never dreamed would be a part of my life.
“Jeff taught me that love is a beautiful and necessary part of our lives, but it comes with a price – the unbearable pain of loss.
“It’s the kind of pain that can make us wonder if we should ever allow ourselves to love so deeply, so completely.
“But then, as I reflect on Jeff’s remarkable life and the profound impact he had on mine, I realize that this pain is the price we pay for the privilege of knowing and loving someone like him.
“Yes, the pain is excruciating and cuts deep into our souls, but it is proof of the depth of our connection.”
Stamos ended his tribute by saying the two had been friends for more than 40 years and thanked him for “every moment and wisdom” Foskett shared.
BEACH BOYS
Growing up in San Jose, California, Foskett became a Beach Boys fan after hearing their single I Get Around.
In 1976, on his 20th birthday, he bravely knocked on Wilson’s door in Los Angeles and was greeted with open arms.
Brian opened the door and said, ‘Hey, come in’ — like he was expecting us,” Foskett told the Los Angeles Times in 2012.
“I said, ‘Great!’ We hung out and went to the music room… He said, ‘Let’s keep in touch.’ And I did – and I’m glad I did.”
Years later, Beach Boys singer Mike Love visited the restaurant in Santa Barbara where Foskett was playing and invited him to join his band, Endless Summer Beach, to record his album.
Around the same time, Wilson’s brother, Carl, left the band to focus on his solo career, and Love offered Foskett to fill the void in the Beach Boys.
After nearly a decade of touring with the band, Foskett left in 1990 to focus on his solo career.
Between 1998 and 2013, he toured with Wilson before rejoining the Beach Boys in 2014 under Love’s direction.
In 2018, Foskett was diagnosed with terminal cancer.
He disappeared from the public eye and updated his fans on his status on March 4, sharing a video of himself ringing the bell at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston after spending four years in treatment.
“These people have given me what no one else in the world could have… LIFE… Some of the past four years have been trials (I guess that’s why it’s called a clinical trial),” Foskett said.
“It tests your body, mind and spirit, but it left me FUTURE and most importantly able to meet my grandson Domenico.”
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Foskett first joined the Beach Boys in the early 1980s Credit: Getty
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Jeffrey Foskett was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2018. Credit: Getty
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