R.I.P.: Phil Lesh, Founding Member of Grateful Dead

Phil Lesh (1940-2024)

Phil Lesh, a founding member of the Grateful Dead whose bass lines powered the band’s songs over three decades and contributed to hits such as “Box of Rain,” died Oct. 25 at age 84.

The Washington Post reports the death was announced in a statement posted to his official Instagram page.

Lesh, alongside bandmates Bob Weir and Jerry Garcia, were the front three of the Grateful Dead from the band’s early years in San Francisco’s 1960s music scene until Garcia’s death in 1995.

While Garcia’s roots were in bluegrass and American folk music, Lesh influenced the band with his interests in experimental bass lines and avant-garde riffs. 

Lesh was seen as pushing the band toward some of its signature concert experiences such as the free-form “space” interludes.

One of America's most enduring musical groups, The Grateful Dead was formed as a quintet in California in 1965, according to their official website. Jerry Garcia, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Phil Lesh made up the original band members. They signed to Warner Brothers in late 1966, releasing their self-titled debut later that spring.

The band went on to tour for the next half-decade — an era, the band said was their most creatively fertile. Somea members left, some died, and others were added, but the original magic of Phil Lesh and Jerry Garcia stayed intact through some of their most tumultuous years. Garcia died in 1995.

After Garcia’s death, Lesh founded Phil Lesh and Friends, which carried on some of the Grateful Dead’s music.