Phil Lesh

Best-known as a founding member of Grateful Dead, Phil Lesh is a bassist from Berkeley, California who is renowned for his role as an innovative force of the electric bass. During his 30-year run with the pioneering jam band, he helped establish the San Francisco sound of the 1960s with his melodic basslines and affinity for avant-garde music. After Grateful Dead front man Jerry Garcia passed away and the band dissolved in 1995, Lesh continued to play in Grateful Dead-inspired projects, most notably Phil Lesh and Friends, a band that has existed in several different incarnations since 1999. Preserving the spirit of the Dead for new generations of fans, Phil Lesh and Friends has been acclaimed for its reinterpretations of the legendary band's music, along with the music of other artists such as Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, whose work embodies the pioneering essence of the 1960s music scene.