[rkubik]

My 7 year old son asked me the other day why I always listen to the Dead and it got me really thinking about it. Unfortunately I was not old enough to get out and see Jerry before he passed so I only have the videos to actually see his performances with the whole group. For most people there is some connection whether it be a place in time or the atmosphere of being there or some type of memory associated with a song or show. I don't have that to fall back on.

Whether it is the lyrics, tone, or who knows I am always constantly drawn back to the Dead when listening to music. I am a fan of music and listen to a wide variety. I am a big Stones fans and have seen them live half a dozen times and enjoy their shows but the main difference is I can listen to Jumpin Jack Flash, Satisfaction, etc hundreds of times and enjoy the music but it lacks the personal feeling. With the Dead I can hear Stella Blue from the Starlight Show in 1982 for the 200th time and it still gives me goosebumps which I can't quite explain and the same can be said about numerous other shows and songs. As Bill Graham said the Dead are not just music but an experience and I guess most importantly for me an idea of what IT was and what IT can be.

I guess for me the Dead were successful and laying the bait and setting the hook. Why do you listen and keep coming back?

[astroman99]

Well '82 was a great year for Stella Blue, check out the one before that…. 7/27 red rocks

there is other great music, but the dead is the dead they invented a genre!

[RiseandFall]

Back in the day, family and friends always asked me why I followed the Grateful dead around.
My standard response went something like "When the Dead play, at that time, for those 3 or 4 hours, there is nothing better, more enjoyable or more gratifying happening anywhere on the planet. I'm a musician...if I were an artist and I could go watch Picasso or Gainsborough paint for 4 hours, do you think I'd miss the opportunity?"
It never satisfied them, but that was kinda my response.
Without belaboring the specifics, I think somewhere in there is my answer to the subject line of your post.

[aiq]

In Sixth grade when the Beatles played Ed Sullivan, into them and Stones. Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Doors, Airplane...Then the rest of the SF bands along with Cream and Jimi.

Entered the drug culture in 1967 and listened to Golden Road my first time getting high. CSN, then the ABB.

Went to my first Dead show in Atlanta two weeks after Duane Allmans death. Been into jam, jazz, bluegrass, and good country ever since.

I really could not avoid it.

[tcsned]

I was into to classic and southern rock in high school - 80-84. I went to every concert that I could make it to no matter who it was for the most part. Saw the Who (my favorite band in high school), the Stones, Van Halen, Ozzy, AC/DC, Black Flag, Bowie, The Police, Springsteen, SRV, Allmans, Marshall Tucker, pretty much everything. A buddy had the K-Tel cassette of southern rock tunes (my high school was a little red necky), the last song was Alabama Getaway. We partied and listened to that tape a bunch and a few months later the Dead played Baltimore Civic Center. I got tickets and found American Beauty and Workingman's Dead in the cutout bin at the local record store. I went to that show with some vague knowledge of the songs on those records and knew nothing else about the band. Cumberland Blues and Truckin' were the only songs I knew (but they sounded nothing like the records ). I dug Jerry's playing and something about it hit home for me. Saw them a few month later at the Cap Centre and had gotten a few more records in the meantime. Still thought they were cool but not really "on the bus" - I was 16 there were no deadheads in my high school. I didn't really jump on the bus till I was in college and started partying with some of the deadheads in my town. I'm a live music junkie and I was realizing that they were about the best in the world at it. There's something about the sound of live Dead music that strikes a chord with me. I was never that into the parking lot scene I just wanted to go to the shows.

Why? My answer is, why not

[gmchart]

When I stumbled into this scene I had no idea that 40 something years later I'd still be here. Taking into account some of the other decisions I was making at the time, I consider myself lucky. What if I'd gotten all twisted up in the BeeGees?

[mtjam]

I was only able to see the boys 3 times and the first time was Watkins Glen. Having them open the show for 3 hours set the hook deep. The entire scene opened my eyes to the endless possibilities available to all and no one has to get hurt. Before I started playing guitar their music just made me feel good, about myself, the world, everything. When I decided to try playing Friend of the Devil and Ripple were the first 2 songs I learned. Over time I'm able to play more of the Dead and I'm able to get into that zone by me playing their songs. Plus, without the Dead I still might be struggling with the barre B chord.

[mgbills]

Like others I've seen tons of bands.

This is how I explain it to non-believers. The Dead lives ...to this day. I think my first 3 shows (Spring '81) they didn't play a single tune I knew…which was challenging. Pan forward a couple yearsto 1983-1984. The "Popular" bands are delivering shows that mimic their albums. Maybe an extended solo plus a drum solo. Every act still does this. It's tired. I too saw the Stones. Man…I could never do it again. Those Stones songs were great. We all listened to them 10,000 times on the classic rock station. But they're just…dead to me.

So for two weeks I've been listening to late '70's Big River's. Notably 5/7/77 & 5/9/77. Jerry must've been listening to Jerry Reed. And he said…"Well…I can throw those licks down…and then there's these…Ohh…and how about this!" It crazy loony freaky blindingly awesome. Jerry Reed could rip that song up, but he played it that way every night. Jerry Garcia played it Live and he gave it Life…time and time again and always different. I still am putting shows on my phone thanks to the Grateful Grabber tip. I buy some of the releases as well.

How do you come down off that trip?? I never did. Never will.

[pula58]

I think Jerry G explained it well when he said, and this is not an exact quote: "It's like licorice: not everyone likes it, but the ones who do REALLY like it"

[jefkahn]

I think if I could use words to explain why I like the Grateful Dead then I probably wouldn't like them as much. They do something that is indescribable, and that is what I like about them.

[Stella Bloo]

I always tell people, "If I have to explain it to you, you wouldn't understand." Either you get it or you don't,I guess. I listen to it almost exclusively, my wife on the other hand, cannot understand it at all. She says it sounds like Jerry is trying to get a nose booger off his finger, using guitar strings to get it off!!

I tell her it is pure magic!

[alcorelectric]

I always explained it this way
If you like country The dead do it
if you like jazz the dead do it
if you like the blues the dead do it
zydeco, traditional, folk, motown, gospel etc
What other band would play The Young Rascals John Phillips (Mamas and Papas), Buddy Holly and Merle Haggard all in one night
It opened the door to so many different styles
T

[amyjared]

I am still into live music. Always preferred live to pre-recorded stuff and tried to find bootlegs and such for most of my life. I went to every band that came around for a lot of high school and saw the Dead come through in '81. I only knew a few songs (they did Casey Jones encore) and was surprised that they jammed them out for so long. While it was good, it lacked the energy of some of the music that I was into in high school. A couple of years later in college, some friends were deadheads and we all went to Hampton '83 and that was it. 3 shows, partying with friends, hanging in the parking lot, learning Dead songs on the guitar, playing footbag, staying at the Sheraton with people I had never met before and being on the floor, dancing the whole time. I had been searching for that my whole life. Never looked back.

I will add that I still see live and listen to live music and while I LOVED the Dead (saw 300+ shows), I still love seeing the Stones, Springsteen, Who, etc. as well as the smaller acts such as Steve Earle, Drive-by Truckers, and most every other genre. I listen to all different music at home and on the road and to answer the question, Why the Grateful Dead: Because like others, they have the X factor. I stopped explaining it to friends, relatives, etc. a long time ago. It's a personal choice. I made mine and you'll make yours.

[Staredge]

I don't know why, it's the same reason why you like some music and you don't like others. There's something about it that you like. Ultimately I don't find it's in my best interests to try and analyze it, since it's fundamentally emotional.
(Jerry Garcia)

[gr8fullfred]

What I find fascinating is that younger people are into the GD. I m talking about people who are in their teens or twenties. I call them "near misses" because these folks missed Jerry simply by the twist of fate of their birthday. I estimate that there are 1000 GD cover bands in the US. Not a scientific survey, but there are several in most major metro areas.

This to me shows that there is "something" to the music, the fact that the music can continue on after Jerry died and the band disbanded. It seems like there are more GD cover bands out there, by far, compared to any other cover band. There is clearly something there, although it is unclear what is is. I like the music because 1) I like the music 2) I grew up on the GDs music 3) I saw the GD over 100 times 4) Most of my friends were and are deadheads (admittingly most not quite the deadhead I am.)

But the fact that many young people like the music, without having the live concert experience clearly shows that that there is something that is enduring. I find that amazing and wonderful...............