Grateful Dead
Formed
Disbanded
Members
Jerry Garcia (lead guitar, vocals), Bob Weir (rhythm guitar, vocals), Phil Lesh (bass, vocals), Bill Kreutzmann (drums), Pigpen (keyboards, harmonica, vocals, 1965-72), Mickey Hart (drums, 1967-71, 1975-95), Tom Constanten (keyboards, 1968-70), Keith Godchaux (keyboards, 1971-79), Donna Jean Godchaux (vocals, 1972-79), Brent Mydland (keyboards, vocals, 1979-90), Bruce Hornsby (keyboards, 1990-92), Vince Welnick (keyboards, vocals, 1990-95)
Related Artists
Bobby & The Midnites, Crusader Rabbit Stealth Band, David & the Dorks, The Dead, Dead & Company, Furthur, Jerry Garcia Band, The Ghosts, Go Ahead, The Heart of Gold Band, Robert Hunter, Mickey & the Hartbeats, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions, New Riders of the Purple Sage, The Other Ones, Psychedelic Keyboard Trio, Rhythm Devils, Bob Weir & RatDog
Also Known As
The Grateful Dead, The Dead, ...
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The Twilight Zone: Original Soundtrack Recording, Volume One [tv soundtrack]
1998 • The Grateful Dead and Merl Saunders
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Live Album
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Whiskeyclone
"I love The Dead - no band overall gives me the same joyous feeling that they do. They've got a strong claim to being the greatest American rock band of all time, with their incorporation of elements of Americana like folk, blues, and bluegrass and their cracking of the cosmic rock and roll code. There have been a lot of half-assed jam bands over the years (and some great ones), but with these guys as founding fathers, it's no surprise they all took inspiration and gave it a try - who wouldn't want to try to create the kind of highs the Dead did almost at will for so many years? The development of their sound and the way they continued to add new classics to their setlists through at least the '70s speaks is impressive and gives their catalog enormous replay value: "Do I want rootsier, more concise rock-Dead? OK, '72-era! Do I want funky, danceable Dead? OK, '77! Raw psychedelic Dead? '69!" I feel like they're also the patron saints of lost travelers, or maybe just travelers in general - I can think of numerous times when I was lost on the road or otherwise under duress, only to have, say, "Franklin's Tower" come on and everything promptly smooth itself out. There's so much more I could say about them - the strength of their songwriting in a genre notorious for lacking craft, the fun of being one of their fans, the ecstasy of listening to Garcia's guitar peak - but this doesn't need to turn into the rough guide equivalent of a "Dark Star", so I'll just leave it at how glad I am that I got into this wonderful and timeless band."
RYM Rough Guide for Grateful Dead
Biography
In 1964 Bill Kreutzmann was added on drums and Dana Morgan Jr., son of music store owner Dana Morgan, was put on bass. The new group was renamed .... After a few gigs Dana Morgan Jr. was replaced by Phil Lesh and in 1965 the group changed its name to the Grateful Dead.
They played a lot of gigs around the San Francisco area and were among the innovators of psychedelic rock along with contemporaries Jefferson Airplane and Quicksilver Messenger Service. In 1967 The Dead got a contract with Warner Bros. Records and recorded the album Grateful Dead, which sold poorly. Drummer Mickey Hart was added alongside Kreutzmann and the band released Anthem of the Sun in early 1968. This album also sold very poorly.
Organist Tom Constanten was added around this time to supplement Pigpen who had been reduced to percussion and vocals due to his declining health from heavy drinking. In 1970 the group released two succesful albums, Workingman's Dead and American Beauty which gained them some mainstream appeal. In 1971 pianist Keith Godchaux and his wife Donna were added as a new keyboardist and backing vocalist respectively. Shortly after, Pigpen McKernan lost his battle with alcoholism and died of a gastrointestinal hemorrhage in early 1973.
Over the next decade the band developed a reputation as a live act. They often extended songs out to 15 or 20 minutes and improvised a lot of what they were playing. They developed fans known as Deadheads who would sometimes follow the band for several shows or even entire tours. The band was also know for originally tacitly allowing their shows to be recorded by fans, until by the 80s they were selling "Tapers Section" tickets and openly encouraging Deadheads to tape and trade recordings of their shows. The thousands of shows which circulated among fans was one of the major factors in the Dead's ability to grow a passionate fanbase without large scale record sales.
In 1979 the Godchauxs left the band and keyboardist Brent Mydland joined. Keith would die in a car accident just a year later. Mydland played with the Dead for 11 years, contributing and singing several original songs as well as covers.
In early 1990 Brent Mydland died of a drug overdose. He was replaced by Vince Welnick and, for two years, Bruce Hornsby. During this period the band did not release any studio albums but their persistent touring and devoted fans made them one of the highest grossing acts in the world.
In August 1995 bandleader Jerry Garcia passed away in a drug rehabilitation clinic of a heart attack. He was 53 years old. This was the end of the Grateful Dead and members went on to pursue solo projects such as Bob Weir & RatDog, Phil Lesh & Friends and The Rhythm Devils.
Since 1998, on and off, Weir, Lesh, Kreutzmann and Hart have reunited in bands called The Other Ones, The Dead, Furthur, and Dead & Company.
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