Jim Irsay, the longtime owner of the NFL‘s Indianapolis Colts and noted collector of historically significant instruments owned by Jerry Garcia, Kurt Cobain, Prince, and more, died on Wednesday at age 65. His passing was confirmed in a statement circulated by the Colts.
As the announcement of Irsay’s passing noted, “Jim’s generosity can be felt all over Indianapolis, the state of Indiana and the country. He made philanthropy a daily endeavor, He never hesitated to help countless organizations and individuals live better lives. Music was one of Jim’s passions and the ability to share his band and collection with millions of people across the world brought him tremendous joy. Simply put, he wanted to make the world a better place and that philosophy never wavered.”
Although football was always Jim Irsay’s professional focus, along with his stewardship of the Colts came passions for music and collecting artifacts from pop culture history. In 2016, he acquired Prince’s “Yellow Cloud” guitar. He purchased the Lake Placid Blue 1969 Fender Competition Mustang guitar that Kurt Cobain used in the video for “Smells Like Teen Spirit” for $4.5 million at auction in 2022, adding to a collection that also includes a drum set from The Beatles, the original scroll manuscript of Jack Kerouac’s On The Road, and guitars played by Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, John Lennon, Walter Becker, David Gilmour, and others. Peruse the contents of the incredible Jim Irsay Collection here.
Related: A Brief History Of Jerry Garcia’s Most Well-Known Guitars
Perhaps his most notable instrument acquisition, however, was the 1979 Doug Irwin “Tiger” guitar played by the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia throughout the 1980s and—thanks to a malfunction on the night of the band’s final show (7/9/95)—the last guitar Garcia played live before his death a month later. After Garcia’s death, Doug Irwin won the guitar back in a legal settlement and put it up for auction in 2002. Jim Irsay placed the winning bid, dropping $850,000 to own this piece of rock and roll history.
But Irsay didn’t just buy it to hang it on his wall: He did his best to get it in the hands of meaningful musicians at significant moments. He reportedly offered it to Trey Anastasio to use for Fare Thee Well in 2015, though Trey declined. In 2016, at the encouragement of MLB pitcher and noted Deadhead Jake Peavy, the guitar made its way backstage during a Dead & Company show. The next day, Tiger headed to Terrapin Crossroads, where Phil Lesh was reacquainted with the instrument for the first time in over 20 years. The guitar wasn’t used during the performance that night, but was a major topic of discussion during the pre-show conversation with Jay Blakesberg about the Dead during 1987.
Related: Major League Deadhead: Jake Peavy’s Unlimited Devotion To The Grateful Dead [Interview]
Later that summer, Tiger made it into Warren Haynes‘ hands at Red Rocks Amphitheatre and various other notable venues for a run of symphonic shows celebrating Garcia’s birthday. Those shows marked the first time the guitar had been played live since 1995.
Warren Haynes Plays Tiger at Jerry Garcia Symphonic Celebration – “Ripple” – 8/1/16
[Video: Jeremiah Rogers (Colorado Concert Archives)]
Irsay had endured a number of health setbacks in recent years, often due to his self-described struggles with opioid addiction. He eventually became an advocate for mental health and the destigmatization of asking for help via his Kicking the Stigma initiative.
Jim Irsay often used his own namesake band as a vehicle for getting his collection of instruments onstage for fans and musicians to enjoy. The last such summit by the Jim Irsay Band took place at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium in January 2024. While Irsay himself was not in attendance—reports indicated at the time that he was receiving treatment for a respiratory illness following a suspected overdose—his absence was more than made up by an all-star cast that included Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Buddy Guy, Ann Wilson (Heart), Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon), Peter Wolf (The J. Geils Band), and Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), among others. Read about that night here.
Our thoughts are with the family of Jim Irsay and the Indianapolis Colts organization.
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