Fans lined up outside a house in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood to pay their respects to Phil Lesh, the founding bassist of the Grateful Dead. According to a post on his official Instagram account, Lesh died Friday morning at 84.
The cause of his death was not immediately clear.
Patrick Farrel, visiting from Illinois, arrived at the memorial with flowers as the Grateful Dead's "Box of Rain" blared from a VW van.
"The Grateful Dead has gotten me through some of the toughest times in my life," Farrel said. "I was only here for a three-day work trip, so it's poetic that I get to be here and the day he leaves the planet."
The Instagram post on Friday morning read as follows: "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."
It was not clear who wrote the post.
Many Deadheads, what the band's devoted followers are referred to, brought something to offer.
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"A lot of their songs have lyrics about roses, so it's a symbol for the band, and it's the appropriate thing to do," said Rust Drake, a deadhead visiting from New York.
Many fans said it was a huge loss and that the music he created will be cherished.
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Lesh, along with Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Ron McKernan and Bill Kreutzmann, formed the Grateful Dead in Palo Alto in 1965.
According to the New York Times, in addition to playing bass, Lesh sang high harmonies for the band and provided the occasional lead vocal. He also co-wrote some of the band's most noteworthy songs, including "St. Stephen," "Dark Star," "Cumberland Blues," "Truckin'," and "Box of Rain. "
San Francisco City Hall was also lit up in rainbow colors to honor Lesh. Mayor London Breed said he was a city icon who helped define an era and shape the music world.
Sunshine Powers, owner of Love on Haight, said they will never forget the first time they met Lesh in 1999.
"Phil registered me as an organ donor, and that's one of the reasons why I'm an organ donor. It's because of Phil Lesh," Powers said.
Philip Chapman Lesh was born in Berkeley, California, on March 15, 1940.
"The solid part of what the Grateful Dead had and what kept the feet moving was Phil Lesh's bass playing and his musical training in musical theory," said Paul "Lobster" Wells, a classic rock DJ.
