Phil Lesh, a founding member of the US rock band the Grateful Dead, has died aged 84. The bass player featured in the original line-up of the band alongside Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. His death on Friday was confirmed in a post on his Instagram account.
It read: "Phil Lesh, bassist and founding member of The Grateful Dead, passed peacefully this morning. He was surrounded by his family and full of love. "Phil brought immense joy to everyone around him and leaves behind a legacy of music and love.
We request that you respect the Lesh family's privacy at this time." The statement did not cite a specific cause of death but Lesh had previously survived bouts of prostate cancer, bladder cancer and a 1998 liver transplant necessitated by the debilitating effects of a hepatitis C infection. Lesh, a classically trained violinist and jazz trumpeter, found his true calling as a founding member of the Grateful Dead.
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