Pubdate: Wed, 01 Jul 2015
Source: Seattle Weekly (WA)
Column: Higher Ground
Copyright: 2015 Village Voice Media
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Website: http://www.seattleweekly.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/410
Author: Michael A. Stusser

FARE THEE WELL

Five shows commemorate a decade each for the Grateful Dead.

In this era of fly-by-night fame, one-hit wonders, and lame-ass 
reality "stars," any group of artists who can create a true following 
over half a century needs to be recognized and respected.

The Grateful Dead, the legendary improvisational stoner band, is 
celebrating its 50th anniversary with a five-show "Fare Thee Well" 
tour, which started June 27 in Santa Clara, Calif., and will wrap up 
July 5 at Soldier's Field, Chicago. The long-sold-out shows (which 
will be streamed on YouTube) offer a chance to reflect on what makes 
this band so unique and beloved.

The original Grateful Dead consisted of lead singer and guitarist 
Jerry Garcia, rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, bass player Phil Lesh, 
drummer Bill Kreutzmann, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, a bluesy genius 
who played organ and harmonica.

The group started under the name Warlocks in 1965, playing house 
parties during author Ken Kesey's "acid tests." (Drummer Mickey Hart 
and lyricist Robert Hunter were added in 1967, and Pigpen passed in 
1973 when his liver gave out.)

Though I'm no Deadhead, I loved Garcia's soulful, often mournful 
voice and damn fine picking (including his pedal-steel work on 
Crosby, Stills, and Nash's "Teach Your Children"); so when Jerry 
passed in 1995 at age 53 from a heart attack (pretty good for a 
chain-smoking, fast-food-chowing heroin addict) I stopped paying 
attention. Not that the band needed me-hardcore fans have continued 
to follow the "Core Four" (aka the Walking Dead or Almost Dead): 
Weir, 67; Lesh, 75; and drummers Kreutzmann, 69, and Hart, 71. 
Joining them on the last hurrah will be singer/piano man Bruce 
Hornsby and Phish singer and kick-ass guitarist Trey Anastasio.

As has been well recorded, the Grateful Dead were most likely the 
original "jam band." Never playing a tune the same way twice, the 
Dead performed songs that often went on for 30 minutes or more, 
filled with blues and hillbilly licks as well as spacey jazz and rock 
'n' roll. Though that formula may not fit the Top 40 format (the 
band's only Top 10 hit was 1987's "Touch of Grey"), the free-form 
nature of the sets dove-tailed nicely with the drug trips most 
listeners were taking.

My favorite show was opened by Carlos Santana, and then turned into a 
strange journey of blurring colors and what I thought were flying 
sheep in the Tacoma Dome parking lot. (It should be noted that a 
sober group of Deadheads, the Wharf Rats, has been following the band 
for decades.)

Anyone old enough to be tripping and traveling the country in the 
'60s has to be at least 60 by now, which makes Deadheads both a 
wonderful and dying breed.

But behind the tie-dye and LSD and bootleg tapes comes a dedicated 
(deadicated?) vibe that's still the backbone of the counterculture. 
Peace, love, and understanding are great notions for any generation. 
Tell me we couldn't use a little more peace in the Middle East, love 
among our races, and understanding in our individual lives, no matter 
the situation.

And if ya think hippies are lazy stoners, take a hard look at the band members.

They've toured pretty much nonstop in various forms since 1967 
(including incarnations as the Other Ones, Further, RatDog, and the 
Dead), selling more than 35 million albums. Officially, the Guinness 
Book of World Records has the band etched in stone, with 2,318 live 
concerts (thus far) in front of a collective audience of more than 25 
million, the most in history.

And if ya think hippies are a bunch of commie-pinkos, take another 
look. While they had wonderful progressive values (the loyal road 
crew were given both benefits and insurance), the gents were 
money-making ganjapreneurs long before the latest Green Rush. Led by 
Hal Kant, an entertainment lawyer who's made Harvey Weinstein look 
demure, the Dead scored merchandising deals galore (have you tried 
the Steal Your Face wine?), and was one of the first acts to retain 
the ownership of its songs and all-important master tapes.

The combo also didn't put up with TicketBastards, forming their own 
ticketing company and raking in more than $300 million.

The band was always socialistic when it came to bootlegs, allowing 
fans to record and trade at will . . . so long as they weren't sold.

Of course it wasn't just the band that made money-an entire village 
of traveling artists and vendors (and dope-dealers and massage 
therapists) followed the group from town to town for decades on end. 
I've got the Tibetan prayer flags flying off my deck to prove it. For 
a band that spent so much time rocking in a bygone era, their music 
has been carefully preserved and modernized, going from tapes and 
reel-to-reel systems to a digital library called The Internet Archive 
(archive.org), which contains 8,976 recordings of the Grateful Dead. 
If you've never really heard the band, do yourself a favor and scroll 
to, say, 1973 and click on one of the concert links.

You may find yourself on a long strange trip, indeed.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom