{"id":7444,"date":"2026-01-05T14:33:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T14:33:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shindig-magazine.com\/?p=7444"},"modified":"2026-01-05T14:33:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T14:33:24","slug":"issue-171-grateful-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shindig-magazine.com\/?p=7444","title":{"rendered":"Issue #171 \u2013 Grateful Dead"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s been six decades since the birth of the phenomenon known as THE GRATEFUL DEAD. Rarely has a musical act generated such devotion from its fans, one that shows no sign of diminishing, as generations of Deadheads continue their loyalty to the band and its many offshoots. <\/strong><\/p>\n

In celebration of this significant anniversary, ALEC PALAO surveys their formative recordings with a lightly controversial take on why we might cherish the very earliest of Dead<\/strong><\/p>\n

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As much, or more, verbiage exists in regard to the life and times of San Francisco\u2019s Grateful Dead as there are thousands of hours of sound recordings pertaining to the group. Study of the Dead and their music generates an academic zeal that is really quite remarkable in the realms of popular cultural scholarship. But then very few acts have ever had such a thorough documentation of their career from its relative inception.<\/p>\n

I say this not as a Dead scholar, or even a Deadhead. Certainly, I love the lawlessness of Anthem Of The Sun<\/em>, the baroque splendour of Aoxomoxoa<\/em>, and the rich Americana of American Beauty<\/em> and Workingman\u2019s Dead<\/em>, where the songwriting and the harmonies were finally in synch, equally. I don\u2019t dismiss the band\u2019s subsequent achievements and long-lived career at all, but I personally find pre-1971 Dead the most rewarding, and the primal rock \u2019n\u2019 roll electricity of their first couple of years, in particular, endlessly engaging.<\/p>\n