Keith Strickland

Originally the band\'s drummer, Strickland switched to guitar after the death of guitarist Ricky Wilson in 1985. Strickland also plays keyboards and bass guitar on many of The B-52s recordings, and has occasionally provided backing vocals. Strickland composes the music for The B-52s. He said of the process: "Ricky and I used to write the music together, but now I write the individual instrument parts and arrange the instrumental compositions myself. I\'m trying to convey a feeling when I compose. I think of my instrumentals as soundscapes - the chord progressions, rhythms, harmonics and musical direction are used to evoke various sonic atmospheres or moods."[citation needed]\n', '

Strickland came out as gay in 1992.\n', '

On December 13, 2012, Strickland retired from touring for the B52s. Fred Schneider said of Strickland\'s announcement, "We had known about Keith’s decision for a whil…