The band known as the Grateful Dead have been around for years – since 1965. The original members of the group were Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Ron McKernan, Phil Lesh, and Bill Kreutzmann. They are still touring as Dead and Company with John Mayer replacing Jerry Garcia and Micky Hart replacing Phil Lesh.
The followers of the group are called Deadheads and will buy all types of souvenirs to show their love to the group. They will even buy clothing such as Grateful Dead pants that will have images of the group. They will buy anything that has the name of the group or images from it.
This article will give you some interesting facts about this awesome group. There might even be facts that you hadn’t heard before. You can do research and find out so much more about this legendary group.
Little Known Facts
- Jungle – The band owned a jungle in Costa Rica because they wanted to save the jungle. They cared very much about environmental issues: https://www.jambase.com/article/grateful-dead-joined-many-guests-rainforest-benefit-date-1988. They wanted to protect all the world’s jungles but could only buy one at that time.
- Ice Cream – Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream named a flavor of their ice cream after the band’s leader. It is called Cherry Garcia and is cherry ice cream that has real cherries in it. It also has fudge flakes to increase the flavor of this amazing treat.
- Missing Part of a Finger – When he was younger and camping with his family, Jerry Garcia’s brother chopped of the top 2/3 of Jerry’s middle finger. It was an accident that should have cost him his ability to play. Fortunately, it didn’t affect his ability at all, and he was an amazing guitarist.
- Other Name – The group wasn’t always called the Grateful Dead. They started out as the Warlocks, and they were formed from members of the group called Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions. They had to change their name from the Warlocks because there was another band with that name.
- Name from the Dictionary – The name of the band came directly from the dictionary. Jerry Garcia was flipping through the dictionary and found the term Grateful Dead. The band liked the sound of it and the rest is history.
- One Number One – Even though they were one of the top earning bands of all time, they only had one number-one hit. It was the song Touch of Grey and only hit number one on the Mainstream Rock Charts. See here for a list of their songs. Although it was the only number-one song they had, they were still one of the most popular groups.
- Top Earning Concerts – The Grateful Dead had very little airtime on mainstream radio. They also didn’t sell very many records but were still very popular. They went on to have the highest earnings of any other group.
- 30-Year History – The band started in 1965 and only stopped touring in 1995 when Jerry Garcia passed away. That is a thirty-year history that cannot be matched by many other groups. Some of the original group is still touring under the name of Dead and Company.
- Many Tunes – The group had many songs that they played in concerts. They had 184 original songs they played, and they had 317 cover hits. They thrilled their audiences with these tunes for thirty years.
- Twilight Zone – When the remake of the Twilight Zone was made in the 1980s, they needed music for the opening and closing credits. They turned to the Grateful Dead, who contributed their music to the show. The show lasted for many years with their music at the beginning and end of it.
- Pizza Parlor – Their first show was at a pizza parlor in Menlo Park – it was called Magoo’s Pizza Parlor. The site still exists, but it is now a furniture store. Seems like there would be a more fitting setting – maybe a Grateful Dead Museum.
- Pseudonym – The group used a pseudonym for their writing if the entire group had some hand in composing the songs. This name was McGannahan Skjellyfetti, and it appeared in the credits of many songs. It was just an easier way for everyone to get credit for the composition.
Conclusion
The band called The Grateful Dead was and is a very popular group. Their followers are called Deadheads and there are many of them that follow the band everywhere they go. They also have many souvenirs that are still bought today.
They toured for thirty years as the Grateful Dead and are still touring under the name of Dead and Company. Although there are a few new members, it is still a favorite of many thousands of people. They will continue to play and be favorites for many years to come.
There are many interesting facts that you can still learn about this group. It seems that everyone has a story about them. You can do some more research and find out even more about this amazing group.