Donna Jean Godchaux, the dynamic singer who left an indelible mark on the Grateful Dead’s music during the 1970s, has died at the age of 78. Originally from Alabama, she passed away on Sunday, November 2, at a hospice in Nashville after battling cancer, as reported by Rolling Stone.

In a heartfelt statement to the magazine, her family expressed: “She embodied a sweet and warmly beautiful spirit, and all who knew her feel the weight of her absence. During this time of mourning, the family asks for privacy. Echoing the words of Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, ‘May the four winds blow her safely home.’” Known later as Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, she joined the Grateful Dead in 1971 with her husband, keyboardist Keith Godchaux. Her powerful harmonies became an integral part of the band’s cherished period, contributing to legendary albums such as Europe ’72, Wake of the Flood, and Terrapin Station.

Her remarkable performances spanned from the iconic Cornell ’77 concert to the memorable 1978 shows at the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Before her time with the Grateful Dead, Donna established herself as a highly sought-after session singer in the South. She honed her craft at the iconic Muscle Shoals studios, lending her voice to numerous soul and rock hits, including Percy Sledge’s “When a Man Loves a Woman” and Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds.”

Her vocal talents also graced recordings by an array of artists, such as Cher, Neil Diamond, Boz Scaggs, Duane Allman, and Ben E. King.

Reflecting on her sessions with Presley in 1969, Donna told Rolling Stone in 2014 that recording with the King was a “very intense” experience: “We were so professional when we were singing,” she said.

“But after the session ended, we went into the International House of Pancakes in Memphis and screamed bloody murder for about an hour, holding up that little Polaroid picture of us and Elvis together.”

After moving to San Francisco in 1970, Donna met the Grateful Dead through her future husband. “I told Jerry [Garcia] that Keith needed to be in the band and I needed his home phone number — and I got his number!” she recalled. Both she and Keith joined the band soon after.

Donna later admitted that transitioning from the studio to the stage was challenging: she had built her career as a controlled studio vocalist, and performing live with the Dead’s freeform improvisation tested her limits.

“I was used to having headphones and being in a controlled environment,” she said, acknowledging there were moments where her live vocals were “pitchy.”

After leaving the Dead in 1979, Donna continued to perform and record music, releasing a self-titled album with Keith in 1975 and later fronting her own groups — including Donna Jean and the Tricksters and the Donna Jean Godchaux Band.

Her final album, recorded with Jeff Mattson, was released in 2014.