After a GoFundMe for former Grateful Dead keyboardist Tom Constanten made headlines earlier this month, Sweet Relief Musicians Fund has launched a new campaign for the 81-year-old as he battles lung cancer. Constanten, nicknamed “TC,” toured and recorded with the Dead from 1968–1970, taking over keyboard duties for co-founder Ronald “Pigpen” McKernan as he focused on vocals and percussion.
“Sweet Relief is honored to help Tom during this difficult time in his life,” Aric Steinberg, Executive Director at Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, said. “Our Directed Artist Funds can provide a meaningful solution when the community rallies around the recipient, and we know that Tom’s community cares about him deeply. His influence on the musical landscape with the Grateful Dead is long-lasting, and he has touched many people around the world.”
Constanten went public with his health issues on August 11th, when charitable organizer Greg Martens launched a GoFundMe campaign. As of publication, that fundraiser has generated over $44,000 for TC as he begins radiation therapy for what Sweet Relief revealed is lung cancer. Though he cites Ralph Waldo Emerson‘s essay on self-reliance as a profound influence, Constanten said that a “taxman adventure” ravaged his finances a quarter century ago, and with an anticipated $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid over the next decade, courtesy of President Donald Trump‘s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, he is asking the community for financial support.
“Over the years I have experienced such generosity that it boggles the mind,” Constanten wrote. “I count my wealth in friends, and it’s a blessing I’d never want to trade away. Still, situations change and things come up…”
Constanten joined the Grateful Dead as a permanent member on November 23rd, 1968, one day after his honorable discharge from the Air Force. He recorded keyboards on studio albums Anthem of the Sun and Aoxomoxoa, plus 1969 live favorite Live/Dead. Just like Pigpen, TC did not partake in psychedelics during his time with the band, and left the Grateful Dead reportedly on good terms following the group’s infamous bust down on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on January 31st, 1970.
“I’ve seen remarks presuming on the generosity of my former bandmates,” Constanten wrote on social media, referring to those online who chastise his former Grateful Dead bandmates for presumably not coming to his financial aid. “I indulge in no such presumptions. It’s the easiest thing in the world to decide how other people should spend their money. I instead celebrate their success (like, is that their fault?) and don’t expect anything from them. … My attitude remains 100% gratitude. And it’s growing.”
Donate to the new Sweet Relief fund for former Grateful Dead keyboardist Tom Constanten here. Sweet Relief is a 501(c)3 non-profit that provides financial assistance for career musicians, including grants for medical expenses and other basic necessities. Find out more on the organization’s website.