The late Jeff Beck played Worcester twice, with the Yardbirds in '66 and Stevie Ray Vaughan in '89

Whammy bars across the globe are at half-staff this week with word of the passing of legendary guitarist Jeff Beck.

A crucial player of the second wave of the British Invasion, Beck died Tuesday after suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, his representatives said in a statement Wednesday. He was 78.

A guitar virtuoso who pushed the boundaries of blues, jazz and rock ‘n’ roll, Beck influenced generations of shredders and was often heralded alongside Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page as one of the greatest rock guitarists to emerge out of the ‘60s.

And, yes, Beck played in Worcester. Twice.

On Oct. 21, 1966, the Yardbirds (with Beck and Page) played The Comic Strip in Worcester.

More:Jeff Beck, influential guitar god of The Yardbirds, dies at 78

Worcester-native and Nashville-transplant Dave Agerholm saw the Yardbirds at The Comic Strip when he was 12. The Comic Strip, a long-gone club in Lincoln Square, was a popular music venue.

“Beck was incredible then. And, amazingly, he kept getting better,” Agerholm said Wednesday night from his Nashville home. “Totally unique style. Nobody else sounded like him.”A professional drummer who was inspired to take up the instrument after seeing Dino Danelli of The Young Rascals perform at The Comic Strip, Agerholm - who grew up on Frothingham Road off Lincoln Street and graduated from Burncoat High School in 1974 - was standing next to the stage, right in front of Jimmy Page during the Yardbirds’ Worcester show.

And he remembers the Yardbirds playing in Worcester like it was yesterday.

“I was just a kid standing in front. But, I’ll say this, I was right in front,” Agerholm said. “At one point, Page dropped a guitar pick and I scooped it up. I kept that thing for years. I wish I still had it.”

During another point in the show, Agerholm said he thought his young eyes were witnessing Jim McCarty, the Yardbirds’ drummer, having a heart attack onstage.

“Jim McCarty was a great drummer,” Agerholm said. “But, at one point during their ‘rave up,’ he had to stop playing to catch his breath, while (bassist) Chris Dreja, Beck and Page raved on.”

The house band at The Comic Strip, The New Breed — featuring lead guitarist Leon R. “Lee” Vachon, rhythm guitarist Paul Lirange, bassist Matt Gentile, organist Frankie Savastano and drummer Paul Zecco — opened for the Yardbirds in Worcester.

“The Yardbirds were a huge influence on young guitarists. We knew Eric Clapton had left the band but now they had Jeff Beck. So we’re excited to meet him and see him play,” Lirange said. “They also had another change in personnel. They got this relatively unknown London session guitarist to take over on second guitar named Jimmy Page.”

After the Yardbirds broke up in 1968, Page would go on to form Led Zeppelin, one of the best-selling music artists of all times.

The New Breed used to practice in Vachon’s garage on Fairmont Avenue. Four of the band’s members were from the Grafton Hill area, while Zecco was from Shrewsbury. In addition to the Yardbirds, The New Breed also opened up for The Animals, The Young Rascals, Neil Diamond, The Associations, Tommy James and The Shondells, Sam the Sham and The Pharaohs and many other national touring acts.

Worcester was the first gig of The Yardbirds’ American tour with Beck (Clapton’s replacement) and Page together in the lineup and it was the band’s first performance after filming their scene in “Blow Up,” in which Beck famously smashes up his guitar.

“Beck didn't smash his guitar at the show (in Worcester),” Agerholm said. “But, he smashed his Jordan amplifier!”

The following night, on Oct. 22, 1966, The Yardbirds played Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut. Future Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler opened the show with the band he was in at the time, Agerholm said.

“Fifty-five years later, Aerosmith still aspires to be the American Yardbirds,” Agerholm said.

The next night, Oct. 23, 1966, The Yardbirds played historic Fillmore West in San Francisco.

“At this point, the Yardbirds join the 'Dick Clark Caravan Of Stars' package tour with Gary Lewis & The Playboys, Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs, Bobby Hebb and Brian Hyland,” Agerholm said. “They only play two or three songs on each show. After two shows in Texas, Jeff Beck leaves the band. So I'm glad I got to see them.”

After the Yardbirds, Beck broke out on his own in various groups gracing his name and as a soloist, while building a reputation for his improvising skills, love of harmonics and the whammy bar on his preferred guitar, the Fender Stratocaster.

After the Yardbirds, Beck's career highlights include two Jeff Beck Group albums, 1968’s “Truth” and 1969’s “Beck-Ola,” with Rod Stewart and Ron Wood; 1973’s “Beck, Bogert and Appice” with bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice; and genre-melding, jazz-fusion classic albums, 1975’s “Blow by Blow” and 1976’s “Wired” with legendary Beatles producer George Martin.

Agerholm’s personal favorite Jeff Beck band was with drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and bassist Tal Wilkenfeld, which released 2010’s “Emotion & Commotion.”

On Nov. 8, 1989, Jeff Beck played the Centrum in Worcester with Stevie Ray Vaughan.

On Oct. 6, 2022, Beck played at MGM Music Hall in Boston alongside Johnny Depp. This would be Beck’s last show in the Bay State.

As the news broke of Beck’s death, tributes came pouring in from former bandmates Page, Stewart and Wood, as well as Mick Jagger, Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, Ozzy Osbourne, Kiss’ Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, Black Sabbath’s guitarist Tony Iommi and other rock ‘n’ roll legends.

“Jeff Beck is a guy who was a star in the ‘60s and he never coasted. Whether you liked what he was doing or not, some of his fusion stuff was a little outside for me, he kept moving forward, never looked back. He was also always doing something different, something new,” Agerholm said. “You can’t say that about Clapton or any of them. Jeff Beck was like a jazz musician, always something different. Jeff Beck is a legend for a good reason.”

Material from The Associated Press was used in this story.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: The late Jeff Beck played Worcester twice, with the Yardbirds in '66 & Stevie Ray Vaughan in '89