A drummer's drummer and a Texan's Texan

Frank Beard, the drummer who locked down the beat for ZZ Top across 56 years, has died at the age of 77. The band announced on August 18 that Beard died the previous day while receiving hospice care at his ranch in Richmond, Texas. His family was at his side. No cause of death has been shared.

Beard was the last surviving member of ZZ Top's classic lineup. Bassist Dusty Hill passed away in July 2021 at the age of 72. Guitarist Billy Gibbons now stands as the sole remaining founder of the trio that sold more than 50 million records worldwide and entered the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.

The sound that kept ZZ on top

Gibbons paid tribute to his longtime partner in rhythm, calling Beard “one of the most naturally innovating drummers” and “a great and true son of Texas.” He noted that Beard’s “signature backbeat was key to keeping ZZ on top.”

That backbeat is the engine behind every ZZ Top hit you know by heart. Think of the opening shuffle of “La Grange” - That loping, almost lazy groove that somehow drives harder than a freight train. Or the rock-steady pocket of “Tush,” “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” and “Sharp Dressed Man.” Beard didn't just keep time. He made the whole band sound wider, deeper, and heavier.

Fellow drummers often pointed to his right hand. He could play a shuffle pattern that swung like a screen door in a Gulf breeze, then snap into a crisp rock beat without losing a single grain of feel. That skill - Making complicated rhythms sound easy - Is rare. Beard made it sound like breathing.

From Texas bars to worldwide stages

Born in Frankston, Texas in 1949, Beard picked up the drums as a teenager. That is when he met Dusty Hill. The two played together in a string of local bands - The Cellar Dwellers, The Warlocks, and The Outlaws - Before Beard joined Gibbons in ZZ Top in 1969. Beard introduced Gibbons to Hill, and the classic lineup clicked into place.

The trio became synonymous with a raw blend of rock and blues in the 1970s. Music news outlets have often called that era the band's “blue-chip” period. The songs were lean, the riffs were hot, and the drums never wobbled.

Then came the 1980s. The album “Eliminator” made them global superstars. Beard's drumming on “Legs,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” and “Gimme All Your Lovin’” rode a wave of synthesizers and production polish, but his pocket never changed. The man was a constant.

The band will carry on

Beard had stepped away from the road earlier this year, with drummer Michael Monahan filling in. He had taken a temporary break in March 2025 for surgery, returning three months later. His return was short-lived.

Gibbons said the band intends to keep playing, honoring Beard's wishes. Concerts scheduled in Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs have been cancelled. But ZZ Top plans to play two shows at The Moody Theater in Austin this weekend. The band said that venue was one of Beard's favorites - A second home for him.

For fans who have followed the band on the Hot 100 chart or caught their blues-rock genre sets for decades, that weekend show will likely feel heavy. The beat will be missing the man who invented it.

A beat that still rings

Losing Frank Beard means losing a sound that defined not just a band, but a certain idea of Texas: dusty, patient, swaggering, and deeply musical. His shuffle remains one of the most copied, most sampled, and most beloved rhythmic signatures in rock.

For listeners who want to revisit his work, the catalogue is deep. Start with “La Grange.” Then “Tush.” Then “Cheap Sunglasses.” Then everything from “Eliminator.” You will hear the same steady hand and swinging soul every time.

Gibbons put it simply: “His signature backbeat was key to keeping ZZ on top.” There is no higher praise for a drummer than that. Frank Beard's beat is gone, but it will never stop ringing.

Reported by the AskLyrics newsroom from corroborated public announcements. More music news →