Phil Lesh, founding bassist We Rock band The Grateful Dead died Friday morning at the age of 84, according to A post on his official Instagram account,
The cause of Lesh’s death was not immediately clear.
“Phil Lesh, bassist and founding member of The Grateful Dead, died peacefully this morning.” social media the post said.
Know news from 7NEWS app: Download today
“He was surrounded by his family and filled with love.
“Phil brought so much joy to everyone around him and leaves behind a legacy of music and love.
“We ask that you respect the Lesh family’s privacy at this time.”
It was not clear who wrote this post.
Lesh was born on March 15, 1940 in Berkeley, California.
With Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Ron McKernan, and Bill Kreutzmann, Lesh formed the Grateful Dead in Palo Alto in 1965, and the band had a devoted following known as “Deadheads”.
In addition to playing bass, Lesh also sang high notes for the band and occasionally provided lead vocals, According to the New York Times,
He also co-wrote some of the band’s most notable songs, including St. Stephen, Dark Star, Cumberland Blues, Truckin’ and Box of Rain, the Times reports.
more to come …
