Steely Dan keyboardist Jim Beard dead at 63

Sign up to Roisin O’Connor’s free weekly newsletter Now Hear This for the inside track on all things music Get our Now Hear This email for free Get our Now Hear This email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Jim Beard, a musician and solo artist who had been the touring keyboardist for Steely Dan since 2008, has died. Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up R.E.M., Timbaland, Hillary Lindsey and Dean Pitchford were also inducted at the same time. Steely Dan, co-founded by Donald Fagan and the late Walter Becker in 1971, are a staple of classic rock with songs like “Reelin’ in the Years,” “Do It Again” and “Hey Nineteen.” They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. The Independent’s Robert Webb took a deep dive into the story behind Steely Dan’s “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number”, a 1974 hit that had otherworldly inspiration.