_Photo via Jess Wolfe_

Richard Swift was a go-to producer and collaborator for countless marquee acts, including The Shins, The Black Keys, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, John Prine, Guster, Foxygen, Marco Benevento and Kevin Morby.

News broke in June that Swift was fighing a serious medical condition and on July 3 a message posted to his Facebook informed friends and fans of his passing. He was 41.

“Today the world lost one of the most talented musicians I know,” Dan Auerbach wrote on Instagram of his Arcs bandmate. “I will miss you my friend.”

Swift was known in indie circles as a reliable sideman (the toured as a bassist with The Black Keys in 2014) as well as a creative tour de force (he was a member of The Shins from 2011-2016 and was an entirely self-taught multi-instrumentalist). He also served as the drummer for Dan Auerbach’s psychedelic rock band The Arcs.

Benevento went so far as to name his 2014 collaboration with the producer Swift. ““I’ll always remember his genius, his ridiculous sense of humor and how much of a legend he was. He will be missed,” the keyboardist, who also played a few days with The Arcs, said. “The times I’ve had with him will never be forgotten and will always be inspiring.”

Swift also put out seven solo releases between 2005 and 2010, and Pitchfork applauded his forceful willpower and an unflagging self-confidence on his first two releases The Novelist and Walking Without Effort.

“We hit it off right away. Worked really hard. I think I laughed more than I ever had. He’s a funny guy. He’s a sweet dude,” Nathaniel Rateliff told Jambands.com in 2014, regarding his work with Swift on his band’s eponymous solo album.

Most recently, Swift made Other People’s Songs Vol. 1 a 2016 album of covers with Damien Jurado.

“To the ether that now carries you, Richard: I’ve never met anyone like you and you changed the way i think about music forever and ever,” Ryan Miller of Guster said, reflecting on Swift’s passing. “What an immense loss, for all of us. I love you and I miss you and I wish you peace, old buddy. You were a singular burst. I’m heartbroken.” Swift had produced Guster’s most recent record Evermotion.