Johnny Depp visited Jeff Beck's bedside before his death

Johnny Depp reportedly visited his close friend and collaborator Jeff Beck's bedside before he died.

The English guitarist died at the age of 78 on Tuesday after "suddenly" contracting bacterial meningitis, a representative for his family announced on Wednesday night.

A source told People that the Pirates of the Caribbean star is "totally devastated" by Beck's death and "was by Jeff's bedside" along with "some other rock stars" before he passed away.

"They had a really tight friendship, they were extremely close, and he got even closer over this past summer when they were touring together," the source said. "The sickness came on really quickly and it all deteriorated rapidly in the last couple weeks."

In July last year, Depp and Beck released their musical collaboration, the studio album 18. They also debuted the official music video for This Is a Song for Miss Hedy Lamarr, the first single from the album, and went on tour.

Discussing the album, Depp noted in a press release that it was an honour to play and write music with Beck, calling him his "brother".

Beck, in turn, praised Depp, explaining, "I haven't had another creative partner like him for ages. He was a major force on this record. I just hope people will take him seriously as a musician because it's a hard thing for some people to accept that Johnny Depp can sing rock and roll."

Depp has yet to publicly comment on Beck's death.