This boy was Bob Weir, a wealthy child from Atherton California, who had his trouble with school also, and had been expelled from seven different private schools. He was excellent in sports, and was smart and talkative, and when he wanted to he got great grades. He suffered from Dyslexia, where his reading ability would be greatly handicapped. He along with Garcia, he had played the guitar since mid-teens, when he got his first guitar. They got together and formed a little jug band, with the banjo, guitar, harmonica, and washboard. They found a guy, a local DJ at the radio station named Ron McKernan also called Pigpen. He had a great blues voice, rough and strong. Pigpen dressed in jeans, sunglasses, cowboy hat, and leather or denim jacket, so frequently that is was basically a uniform. They named themselves, “Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions.” Within a year they had earned a substantial local following. Ron urged Jerry and band mates to go electric. They ditched the washboard and kazoo and decided to go all out to play rock and roll. They searched out for a drummer and percussionist; they found a young drummer named Bill Kreutzmann. He had always played percussion instruments, ever since his mother urged him to. She was a Stanford dance teacher, who used his beat to practice her steps. Bill later got a set of drums his dad sent to his boarding school in Arizona. Early on he was teaching people older then him how to play. He was married and working stocking shelves when Garcia and crew discovered him. Last they signed on the son of the music store’s owner, and he provided necessary equipment to play. They renamed themselves the, “Warlocks.” (Carnegie 24-27)
In the crowd of their first performance, a friend of Jerry was present, his name was Phil Lesh. Phil has been around music ever since his parents brought him to Symphonies as a kid. He immediately became mesmerized. His parents bought him a violin, and could immediately play this instrument. Phil was in symphonies and performed and played trumpet at parties and so on, through college he was known as a composer and very talented also. He also excelled with digital instrumentation’s, like the keyboard and the mixer. Working for a local radio station, he arranged to have Garcia’s band play live on a program called “The Midnight Special.” Garcia recommended Lesh to pick up Bass guitar, so he could play with them and they could get rid of Morgan. They started to appeal to kids everywhere, and their shows seemed to be a great time and place to get stoned. Word got out the Warlocks shows were incredible and they were and experience of their own. (Piccoli, p.19-35) They soon became the house band at Ken Kesey’s Acid Tests, the idea of having a big party, where everyone would get stoned and listen to the music. The first one was in San Jose, right after the Rolling Stones concert, that same night. It was huge, the equipment nearly filled the room they were in, and there were just people everywhere, warming the house. Their music was very loud, and there were hundreds and hundreds of people around. They came up with a better idea for their “acid tests” they would move around each time. It was the beginning of the “free” stage in the sixties. There were thousands of people, all stoned in different rooms, and they all just chilled, “It was magic,” says Jerry. They only played acid tests for six months, and completely fell out of the music scene. (Gans, p. 41-42)
On the afternoon of October 6, 1966, the day LSD became illegal in California, some thousand people came, to see Grateful Dead, and Big Brother, and The Holding Company perform. Nearby, the Pranksters, the roadies for the Grateful Dead who traveled around in a school bus painted with bright colors, hung a huge flag with a marijuana leaf, proclaiming freedom. (Troy, p.6) At this time, Grateful Dead’s drug dealer, “Bear” who was out of business now, decided to join the band in his own way, he designed and bought all the equipment for them while they got back to the The Grateful Dead started to record that winter. The Grateful Dead refused to submit to the meticulous, studio grooming or editing, they finished the album in three days, when later all of them agreed that the record could have used some “studio magic” as they called it. Released in 1967, “Grateful Dead” was the debut album from the band. The record showed the band’s live sound, yet did not transform well to vinyl, and the album was less than satisfactory to the members of the band. One good thing that came out of the album, it started to give listeners outside of California a chance to listen to their music. Local radio stations began to play their music, and the sound of the Dead spread far beyond northern California.
The two primer music scenes remained largely segregated; in fact a musical rivalry had begun, between Los Angeles, and San Francisco music. The bands wanted to join their styles for one great music scene. This was made possible with a huge weekend festival of the worlds best bands, which proceeds donated to charity; it was to be held in Monterey, California, in the middle. A lucky soul, named Paul Simon, a songwriter and singer from New York was chosen to call upon the bands and gather them together for the concert. He was immediately uneasy when he entered the home of the Grateful Dead, and eventually they agreed to play, with their list of demands. The Monterey Pop Festival was held in mid June, for about 90,000 people with an incredible lineup with famous acts such as Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix, The WHO, Steve Miller Band, Jefferson Airplane, Buffalo Springfield, Mamas and Papas, among others (Gans p. 42-25).
The growing population of the Grateful Dead was great at first, but when random people started hanging out outside their house, and coming in and so on, got the band into some trouble. The house was raided by the cops and the band was arrested for possession of marijuana, and other minor charges. The Grateful Deads reputation was crushed, and Warner Bros. realized that they were not the best band to have signed, they spent more money than allowed, and they were disobedient to their requests. The Vice-president of Warner Brothers finally sent a heavily worded letter to Grateful Dead’s manager telling him what he thought. The band began to go back to playing their so popular concerts, in parks, in hotels, and wherever they could find. Jerry’s great friend with whom he lived with, turned out to be a writer. Just what Grateful Dead needed, he was hired. Their next album release, “Aoxomoxoa”, had left Grateful Dead over 100,000 dollars in debt to Warner Brothers. Warner Brothers timidly agreed to release the album on one condition, that they released a live album, from recorded concerts. They readily agreed.
As the seventies began, the Dead recouped their debt to Warner Bros. with three comparatively inexpensive albums; Live Dead (recorded in concert), Workingman’s Dead, and American Beauty. Live Dead featured extended psychedelic explorations, such as the classic “Dark Star,” while in sharp contrast the latter two found the dead writing concise country-ish songs and working out clear-cut, well rehearsed arrangements. Workingman’s Dead received considerable radio airplay, sole respectably, and provided much of the Dead’s concert repertoire into the nineties. With a nationwide following the Dead expanded their touring schedule and started various side, and solo projects. They worked themselves up to a 23-ton sound system and a large entourage of roadies, family, friends, and deadheads. The Dead finished out their contract with Warner Bros. with a string of live albums. In 1973 they played for over a half of million people in Watkins Glen, New York, on a bill with the Allman Brothers. By then they had formed their own Grateful Dead records. Europe ‘72 was the last album to feature keyboardist Pigpen, a heavy drinker who died in 1973 of liver disease. Keith Godchaux, who had played piano with Dave Mason, joined the band and brought his wife, Dona, as background vocalist. The pair toured and recorded with the Dead until 1979, when they were asked to leave and were replaced by pianist Brent Mydland. The following year, Keith was killed in a car crash in Miane County.
In 1974 the Dead temporarily disbanded while members pursued outside projects, but they resumed touring in 1976. After signing with Arista in 1978 they played a set of three concerts at the foot of the Great Pyramid in Egypt, which were recorded but not released. The Dead’s main support continued to be their touring six months out of the year. They celebrated their 15th anniversary with the release of two more live albums, including the mostly acoustic “Reconing”. The band took a hiatus from recording until 1987, during which time the Dead toured with Bob Dylan, while Garcia’s health and personal habits made disturbing headlines: In January ‘85 arrested for possession of Heroin, in July 1986 just fifteen months after being in a drug rehabilitation center collapsed into a five day, near fatal diabetic coma brought on by drug abuse. Once he recovered, the Dead made a triumphant return with “In the Dark.” Two years later, however, trouble suddenly began following the Dead and its usual mellow hippies. In April 1989 there were fifty five arrests and violent encounters with police at two Pittsburgh shows, as a result, the Dead recorded a public service announcement asking fans to act responsibly at their shows (Carnegie 3).
In July 1990 Mydland died of an overdose of injected heroin and morphine. He was later replaced by Vince Welnick. In September 1992 the bearish, Garcia was hospitalized with diabetes, an enlarged heart, and fluid in the lungs. The Dead returned to the scene with a healthier Jerry, in 1992 with a series of Bay Area concerts. That same year Garcia- whose paintings, often pastel watercolors, had been exhibited internationally- unveiled a line of designer silk ties bearing his artwork. By then the massive catalogue of Dead merchandise also included skis and snowboards as well as T-shirts and even a line of toddler wear. (Carnegie, 1-4) With the obvious troubles Garcia has had with drugs, he checked himself into the Betty Ford clinic for drug rehabilitation. “To work on a new album and get strained out,” he says. But his body has had too much trouble already. He checked himself out to go home for his birthday, his 53rd. Soon after he checked himself into a clinic closer to his home. His hard work and dedication were not enough (Piccoli 102-104).
Sometime before dawn on Wednesday, August 9, Jerry Garcia’s heart stopped. He was pronounced dead later that day, after hours of help from paramedics. Deborah Garcia had later told friends that he had died with a smile on his lips; the long strange trip was over. At sunrise August 9th, the news was released. Hours after word spread, followers gathered with flowers, and candles, to offer their sorrow. Garcia’s death made the front page of every major newspaper in the USA. The world felt his death. (Piccoli, p.105-112) Jerry Garcia was one of the most influential people in the music scene now and forever. There are no words that can describe how his music made people feel. Like Jerry always said, “Good music can make sad times better.” But interesting things had happened along the way (Carnegie 1). The Grateful Dead had created a world within a world, a microcosm with its own customs, currency, language, dress, and movable landscape. In a society addicted to violence, they sought peace. In a “disposable” culture, Deadheads wanted a lasting world. The Grateful Dead’s music, and the collective memories stored in the hearts, and home tapes, of countless Deadheads, will no doubt continue to preserve that world long after its demise.
Works Cited
ABC News Internet Ventures, The Grateful Dead. , GO network,
“www.wallofsound.go.com/artists/thegratefuldead/home.html”
Carnegie, M.D. “Jerry’s Kids.” American Spectator, Oct. ‘95, Vol.28 Issue10, p.56
Gans, David and Peter Simon. Grateful Dead : Playing in the band. New York : St.
Martin’s Press, 1985
Piccoli, Sean. The Grateful Dead. Philadelphia : Chelsea House Publishers, 1997
Troy, Sandy. One More Saturday Night. New York : St. Martin’s Press, 1991
