Chris Montez beat up John Lennon, that still has me snickering.
I never did “get” the grateful dead and Garcia’s guitar playing, but I never was a stoner either. I think you had to be stoned to like the Dead. The only one on that list I still listen to is Fogerty in his CCR days.
Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead were not always the cleanest, tightest sound onstage but his leads were mellow and creative sweet. The band could jam and flow well onstage and they played long concerts__ you got your money’s worth.
One other thing— they allowed amateur recordings of their concerts and didn’t tie any exclusive copyright restrictions to the public performances. Hardly a ‘douche’ classification for Jerry and band.
hear, hear!
The Grateful Dead belong on the all-time list of great hucksters. Look at photos of their concerts, progressively from the early ones. The tie-dye, cult-type fashion, the SanFrancisco hippie druggie ambiance, was skillfully and gradually filtered in. Providing an atmosphere where outsiders were the insiders made them a huge money making machine.
I'm not into drugs, never have been. I used to enjoy going to the concerts, straight, and taking it all in. The music was for the most part pretty awful. The crowd was like something out of Zombie Apocalypse. It was more entertaining and baffling than a circus performance.