Neal Casal, guitarist for The Cardinals and Chris Robinson Brotherhood, dead at 50

Very prolific and very talented musician Neal Casal has passed away at age 50. Casal was a member of Blackfoot, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, and Chris Robinson Brotherhood, and he was also a solo artist, a member of The Skiffle Players (with Cass McCombs and others), and a collaborator of The Grateful Dead’s Phil Lesh, Lucinda Williams, Willie Nelson, Amanda Shires, Fruit Bats, and so many others. He was also the founder of Circles Around the Sun, who recorded the music that played during intermissions at the Grateful Dead’s Fare Thee Well shows, and he had been recording a new Circles Around the Sun album last week. His body was found on Monday night. He had died by suicide.