On their fiftieth anniversary comes a groundbreaking rock-and-roll memoir by one of the founding members of the Grateful Dead.
The Grateful Dead are perhaps the most legendary American rock band of all time. For thirty years, beginning in the hippie scene of San Francisco in 1965, they were a musical institution, the original jam band that broke new ground in so many ways. From the music to their live-concert sound systems and fan recordings, they were forward-thinking champions of artistic control and outlaw artists who marched to the beat of their own drums.
Bill Kreutzmann, one of their founding members and drummer for every one of their over 2,300-dd concerts, has written an unflinching and wild account of playing in the greatest improvisational band of all time. Everything a rock music fan would expect is here, but what sets this apart is Bill’s incredible life of adventure, which was at the heart of the Grateful Dead experience. This was a band that knew no limits, and Bill lived life to the fullest, pushing the boundaries of drugs, drums, and high times, through devastating tragedy and remarkable triumph.
But at this book’s beating heart is the music—theirs and others. Some of the greatest musicians and concerts were a part of the Grateful Dead’s career, from sharing the stage with Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, and the Who, to playing in the Acid Tests, the Monterey Pop Festival, Woodstock, and Altamont. Bill’s life is a chronicle of American music and pop-culture history, and his epic personal journey is one of sonic discovery and thrilling experiences.
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“A memoir of his years with the anarchic band that became an unlikely American institution…Kreutzmann and co-author Benjy Eisen recount the Dead’s formation, its zigzagging rise, and many low points. Unlike other books about the Grateful Dead’s history, Mr. Kreutzmann homes in on his own experiences with the group. Deal chronicles partying with John Belushi, riding camels through the desert to a Bedouin musical jam, and encountering George McGovern’s presidential campaign in 1972.”
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Wall Street Journal