Keith Godchaux

Keith Richard Godchaux (July 19, 1948 – July 23, 1980) was a musician best known for his tenure in the rock group the Grateful Dead. Keith Godchaux was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in Concord, California. He met and married Donna Jean Godchaux in 1970; their son Zion, of the band BoomBox, was born in 1974. The couple introduced themselves to Jerry Garcia at a concert in 1971. At the time, Godchaux had been appearing with Dave Mason (formerly of Traffic). He was also known to Betty Cantor-Jackson, a Grateful Dead sound engineer. His first show with the Dead was October 19, 1971 at the Northrop Auditorium at the University of Minnesota, filling in for a hospitalized Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. In 1972 and for much of his career,...