#33814  by bucketorain
 
Is it true that Phil was only in the Warlocks for 2 months before they became the Grateful Dead?

I pulled this clip from an article on dozin...

"By 1965 the Beatles and Bob Dylan had helped pave the way for the return of electric instruments in popular music, and Garcia and Pigpen had been pressing the issue. Because Weir and other members of the band were then working at a music store, they had access to electric instruments and took the bait. After enlisting one of the store's drum students, Bill Kreutzmann, and getting the son of the store owner to play bass, they plugged in and became the Warlocks. When the work got to be too much for the bassist, Phil Lesh was recruited to take over, and all of the major elements locked into place. Two months later they made it official when they adopted the name the Grateful Dead."
 #33817  by tigerstrat
 
bucketorain wrote:Is it true that Phil was only in the Warlocks for 2 months before they became the Grateful Dead?

I pulled this clip from an article on dozin...

"By 1965 the Beatles and Bob Dylan had helped pave the way for the return of electric instruments in popular music, and Garcia and Pigpen had been pressing the issue. Because Weir and other members of the band were then working at a music store, they had access to electric instruments and took the bait. After enlisting one of the store's drum students, Bill Kreutzmann, and getting the son of the store owner to play bass, they plugged in and became the Warlocks. When the work got to be too much for the bassist, Phil Lesh was recruited to take over, and all of the major elements locked into place. Two months later they made it official when they adopted the name the Grateful Dead."
In a word, "no".

Jerry, Pig, Bob and Bill had only been together as a band for two months... Phil joined in June 65 and the name change came six months later, just before the San Jose Acid Test, 12/4/65.

Other items in the above paragraph are inaccurate as well:

Kreutzmann was a drum instructor at the store, not a student... and Dana didn't quit; they actually fired him because Jerry had it stuck in his head that he just had to have Phil on bass (even though he was a primarily a trumpeter and composer and had never played bass before!)

 #33821  by bucketorain
 
that is what i thouht. i remember from reading "what a long strange trip" that the above article seemed inacurate....