According to Consequence.net, Donna Jean Godchaux, best known for singing with the Grateful Dead during the 1970s, has died at the age of 78 years old. As Rolling Stone reports, Godchaux died at a hospice facility in Nashville on Sunday, November 2, after a “lengthy struggle with cancer,” according to a statement from her representative, Dennis McNally. “She was a sweet and warmly beautiful spirit, and all those who knew her are united in loss. The family requests privacy at this time of grieving… In the words of Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, ‘May the four winds blow her safely home.”

Born Donna Jean Thatcher on August 22, 1947, in Florence, Alabama, Godchaux was first a Muscle Shoals session singer before joining the Dead in 1971. In that capacity, she sang backup on number one hits such as “When a Man Loves a Woman” by Percy Sledge and Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds.” She also contributed to records by Duane Allman, Cher, Boz Scaggs, Neil Diamond and other artists.

In 1970, she married fellow future Grateful Dead member Keith Godchaux and subsequently introduced him to lead singer Jerry Garcia the following year. While a member of the group from 1971 through 1979, Donna Jean contributed backing and lead vocals, appearing on the classic albums including Europe ’72, Wake of the Flood and Terrapin Station.