Classic Rock Musings, Rants & Raves

Every year around this time, I think about the life and death of Jerry Garcia. Maybe it’s because he was born on August 1, 1942, and he died on August 9, 1995. To this day, I mourn his passing with great reverence — recalling all those Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia Band shows I attended, and marveling at the man’s determination to play his music his way without intervention from the suits in the peanut gallery. It was a long, strange and successful trip with a high price. Garcia paid with his life; many of his fans paid with their hearts and lost their way in the process.

That day, in 1995, when news of Garcia’s passing spread, I was living near Carlsbad and listening to the radio for updates (why people, myself included, listen to updates when someone famous dies is beyond reason). Come late afternoon, it was announced that fans could go to Balboa Park, down near the San Diego Zoo, and pay their respects. It sounded more like a party, so naturally I felt compelled to investigate. As could be expected, Grateful Dead music floated through the air, mingling with the scent of pot and patchouli. Seasoned devotees plotted their next move. Who would buy their veggie burritos and grilled cheese sandwiches? The cancelled Fall tour was a major blow. Everyone was gassed up with no where to go. There was Bob Weir, on tour at the time (I caught an emotional Ratdog performance at the Warfield, two weeks after Garcia’s demise). But it wasn’t going to be the same without Jerry. It was never going to be the same without Jerry.

Thirteen years later, the thing I miss most is watching Garcia on stage, leading the band through a marathon of hits, misses, oldies, newbies and whatever else stuck. The shows are forever embedded in my brain as the most pure and wistful rock and rock moments of my life. Every other artist I have followed hasn’t aged as well as Jerry and the Dead (well, maybe Neil Young). The older and crustier they got, the more refined and fascinating they became. If only Jerry Garcia could come back and reclaim the mantle. We sure could use his magic right about now.

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