A product of the psychedelic sixties, The Grateful Dead first emerged as The Warlocks in 1965 as the house band for the Acid Tests, an infamous series of experimental parties held by a group of proto-hippies known as The Merry Pranksters. The Merry Pranksters, the subject of Tom Wolfe's "The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test," led by novelist Ken Kesey, also included as a notable member Neal Casady, immortalized as Cody in Jack Kerouac's "On The Road." Thirty years later, in August of 1995, the death of the group's leader, lead guitarist and vocalist, Jerry Garcia, affectionately known as "Captain Trips," would end the dead's reign as rock and roll's most successful touring entity. With a loyal fanbase of nomadic hippies, the 'Deadheads,' the Dead's reputation grew over the years despite mediocre record sales (it took the group 22 years to produce a Top 10 single). Over the years, the band's live concerts drew increasingly larger crowds. These crowds created logistical problems for the band as its following grew in the latter part of the '80s.
The group's live shows featured long, improvised jams, and the spontaneous nature of the Dead's live show created an entire culture devoted to documenting and analyzing the band's live shows. Recording Grateful Dead concerts was allowed and even encouraged by the band. Eventually, an area was set up behind the soundboard at shows solely for 'tapers.' Over the years, the core line-up remained relatively stable, despite a number of keyboardists who died, left, or were asked to leave the band.
The best examples of the band's work in the studio can be found on the first two studio albums the band released in the seventies, "AMERICAN BEAUTY" and "WORKINGMAN'S DEAD." However, these albums, featuring beautiful vocal harmonies and rustic country blues respectively, do not reflect the band's live material which evolved over the band's thirty years on the road. The best example of the band's live material is the double album "LIVE DEAD" featuring material recorded in 1968. In recent years, the Dead has begun to issue live material culled from the band's vast archives of concert recordings. In the wake of the death of Garcia, the group announced that although the remaining members would not attempt to replace Garcia, a tour featuring a number of former band members' side projects was slated for the summer of '96.
Selected Discography:
"HUNDRED YEAR HALL" - 1995
(Arista)
"DICK'S PICKS" - 1993 (Grateful
Dead)
"TWO FROM THE VAULT" - 1992
(Grateful Dead)
"INFRARED ROSES" - 1991 (Grateful
Dead)
"ONE FROM THE VAULT" - 1991
(Grateful Dead)
"LIVE WITHOUT A NET" - 1990
(Arista)
"DEAD IN A DECK" - 1989 (Arista)
"BUILT TO LAST" - 1989 (Arista)
"BUILT TO LAST" - 1989 (Arista)
"DYLAN & THE DEAD" - 1988
(Columbia)
"IN THE DARK" - 1987 (Arista)
"DEAD SET" - 1981 (Arista)
"FOR THE FAITHFUL" - 1984 (Arista)
"RECKONING" - 1980 (Arista)
"GO TO HEAVEN" - 1980 (Arista)
"SHAKEDOWN STREET" - 1978
(Arista)
"TERRAPIN STATION" - 1979 (Direct
Disk Labs)
"TERRAPIN STATION" - 1977
(Arista)
"WHAT A LONG STRANGE TRIP IT'S
BEEN" - GD (Warner Bros.)
"STEAL YOUR FACE" - 1976 (United
Artists)
"BLUES FOR ALLAH" - 1975 (UA GD)
"GRATEFUL DEAD FROM THE MARS
HOTEL" - 1985 (Mobile Fidelity
MFSL)
"GRATEFUL DEAD FROM THE MARS
HOTEL" - 1974 GD (Grateful Dead
GD)
"GARCIA" - 1974 (Round)
Jerry Garcia
"SKELETONS FROM THE CLOSET" -
(Warner Bros.) a 'best of'
release.
"WAKE OF THE FLOOD" - 1973
(Grateful Dead)
"HISTORY OF THE GRATEFUL DEAD,
VOL. 1" - 1970 (Bear's Choice)
"EUROPE '72" - 1972 (Warner Bros.)
"ACE" - 1972 (Warner Bros.)
Bob Weir
"GARCIA" - (Warner Bros.) Jerry
Garcia
"THE HISTORY OF THE GRATEFUL
DEAD" - 1973 (Pride/MGM)
"GRATEFUL DEAD" - 1971 (Warner
Bros.)
"HISTORIC DEAD" - GD
(MGM/Sunflower)
"VINTAGE DEAD" - 1966
(Sunflower/MGM)
"AMERICAN BEAUTY" - 1970 (Warner
Bros.)
"WORKINGMAN'S DEAD" - 1970
(Warner Bros.)
"LIVE/DEAD" - 1969 (Warner Bros.)
"AOXOMOXOA" - 1969 GD (Warner
Bros. WS 1790)
"ANTHEM OF THE SUN" - 1968
(Warner Bros.)
"THE GRATEFUL DEAD" - 1967
(Warner Bros.) Mono/Stereo
"THE EMERGENCY CREW" - 1965
(Warlocks Demo)
(c) MTV
