Frank Beard, the longtime and legendary drummer of ZZ Top, has died at age 77. He passed away on Monday, August 17th, in hospice care at his ranch in Richmond, Texas. It was just last week that TMZ reported that Beard had to step away from touring with ZZ Top due to serious health issues.
Legacy of ZZ Top
A statement from the band’s publicist reads, in part, “It was announced today that Frank Beard, ZZ Top’s drummer for the past 56 years, has died. He was in hospice care when he passed away at his ranch in Richmond, TX with family members at his side. Beard, together with guitarist Billy Gibbons and bassist Dusty Hill were one of music’s most enduring line-ups continuing until 2021 when Hill’s passing saw Elwood Francis join the band, who have continued to tour throughout North America, Europe and South America to this day.”
Beard, known as the one ZZ Top member without a beard, was the galvanizing force for the little band from Texas that formed in 1969 in Houston. The drummer, along with singer-guitarist Billy Gibbons and bassist Dusty Hill, made up the classic lineup that would record and tour together for 50 years until Hill’s death in 2021.
Beard’s steady beat was an integral part of the band’s vitality, but it was his self-realized sobriety that played a crucial part in the trio’s longevity and their 1980s success.
Rise to Fame
The band gained a huge following through the 1970s with their driving blues-rock and outlandish live shows that played up their Texas roots. But the troubadour lifestyle led Beard into addiction in the latter part of the decade. He openly discussed over the years how he spent his first large, paycheck of $72,000 entirely on drugs. Weary from the road and knowing Beard needed to address his drug use, the band took a three-year hiatus. Beard checked himself into a rehab program and his eventual sobriety helped propel their band to their peak.
Beard’s solid 4/4 drumming literally kicked off the band’s most successful era. His beat, with its no-time-off kick drum, starts “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” the first single from their 1983 album Eliminator, their most commercially successful record that went on to sell 11 million copies.
With songs like “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Legs” and “<strong<velcro Flyer” from 1985’s Afterburner that came with videos featuring the band’s signature hotrods, salacious women characters and the trio of cool outsiders, ZZ Top rode into households as darlings of MTV in the mid-1980s, riding their success on the channel to their commercial peak.
But the band wouldn’t have done it without Beard, Gibbons said in a 2019 interview with Good Morning America on the band’s 50th anniversary.
“There is no other drummer,” Gibbons said when asked if he thought of replacing Beard as he sought addiction treatment. “There’s one guy.”
Our condolences go out to Frank Beard’s family, friends, and bandmates during this difficult time. The legacy of ZZ Top and Frank Beard’s contributions to the band will continue to be celebrated by fans around the world. With a career spanning over five decades, ZZ Top has left an indelible mark on the music industry, and Frank Beard’s passing will be deeply felt by all who knew him and his music.
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