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Indybay Feature
The Grateful Dead Hour to Celebrate Twenty Years On Air With KPFA Benefit Marathon Feb. 19
Sixteen Hour Radio Program Serves as Fundraiser for KPFA Community Radio, Hosted by David Gans and Will Feature Grateful Dead and Dead-Related Music; Afternoon Live Music by Dark Star Orchestra Acoustic
Oakland, CA – January 13, 2005 -- The Grateful Dead Hour radio program will celebrate its twentieth anniversary of weekly, nationwide broadcasting on Saturday, February 19, 2005 with a radio marathon from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. PST consisting of sixteen hours of Grateful Dead and Dead-related music serving as a fundraiser for KPFA-FM.
Hosted by David Gans, the show will be broadcast live on KPFA 94.1 FM in the Bay Area and KFCF 88.1 FM in Fresno, CA. Additionally the broadcast may be heard around the world via a web cast to any internet connection with an audio streaming program via http://www.nugs.net, http://www.kpfa.org and http://www.kfcf.org.
Grateful Dead Hour host David Gans has been doing a benefit radio marathon every winter since 1986, raising thousands of dollars for the venerable listener-supported radio station KPFA and pleasing untold numbers of music lovers around the globe.
David Gans’ first broadcast on the radio was February 18, 1985 on the KFOG Deadhead Hour, and he will be featuring some of his favorite musical moments, interviews and other material from the Grateful Dead Hour archives, as well as some newly-unearthed gems.
”The Grateful Dead Hour continues to preserve, protect, and promote the Grateful Dead legacy so people can continue to be turned on to this music. Jerry Garcia has been gone almost ten years and the Grateful Dead is receding into history, but the program is able to keep it fresh in people's mind by playing new music each week. Gans expands, "I see my mission as putting the Grateful Dead's best musical foot forward every week and looking at the roots and branches of their creative tree."
The broadcast will also feature live music by Dark Star Orchestra performing a brief acoustic set in the studio, taking place during the afternoon of February 19. DSO recreates historic Grateful Dead set lists with compelling accuracy; additionally, Rolling Stone recently praised "Dark Star Orchestra's fanatical attention to detail."
In coordination with the 20 Year Anniversary Celebration of the Grateful Dead Hour listeners or supporters who contribute to KPFA will receive a CD entitled "Live from Berkeley" as a premium, with performances from David Gans’ additional radio show, “Dead to the World” featuring artists such as Keller Williams, Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, Donna the Buffalo, David Nelson and Friends, Wake the Dead, Jemimah Puddleduck, and more.
- To support KPFA programming, contributions can be made online via http://www.kpfa.org at any time, or by calling 510-848-5732 or 1-800-439-5732 during the marathon February 19.
- Visit http://www.gdhour.com for more information regarding the KPFA Grateful Dead Hour Marathon, playlists, station list, and other links.
- Listen to KPFA Grateful Dead Hour Marathon here:
http://www.kpfa.org/cgi-bin/gen-mpegurl.m3u?server=aud-one.kpfa.org&port=8000&mount=icy_0&file=dummy.m3u
About the Grateful Dead Hour:
* David Gans, the producer/host of the Grateful Dead Hour, is the author of three books about the Dead: “Playing in the Band: an Oral and Visual Portrait of the Grateful Dead” (with Peter Simon); “Conversations with the Dead”; and “Not Fade Away: The Online World Remembers Jerry Garcia”.
* The radio program is broadcast weekly to an estimated national audience of over 200,000 listeners per week, covering 79 stations, and is carried twice each week on XM Satellite Radio (currently with over 2 million subscribers)
* The Grateful Dead Hour has been in national syndication since 1987.
* The Grateful Dead Hour began as the "Deadhead Hour" on KFOG-FM in San Francisco and began its current spot as an American radio institution February 18, 1985 when David Gans appeared as a guest to promote his newly released book “Playing in the Band: an Oral and
Visual Portrait of the Grateful Dead”. David put together a little radio piece called the 'Greatest Pump Song Ever Told' about the song about 'Greatest Story Ever Told'. He enjoyed making and airing this feature on the "Deadhead Hour" so much and that he invited himself back. The host at the time wasn't that much of a Deadhead, so he welcomed David's participation. Eventually David was given sole responsibility for the program. So David, showing up there as a guest promoting a book - and it turned into a career.
* David has interviewed all the members including Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart, Bill Kruetzmann, Brent Mydland, Donna Jean Godchaux, Bruce Hornsby, and Vince Welnick. In addition, David has included in conversation numerous peripheral people to the Grateful Dead Family including sound engineers, road crew, record producers, songwriters, and archivists.
* The Grateful Dead Hour has broadcast over 850 weekly episodes since 1987.
On the web: http://www.gdhour.com
About KPFA-FM:
Founded in 1949 by Lewis Hill, a pacifist, poet, and journalist, KPFA was the first community supported radio station in the USA. KPFA broadcasts on 94.1 FM and KPFB 89.3 FM, Berkeley, and KFCF 88.1 FM, Fresno, California. The signal reaches one third of the state, utilizing 59,000 watts.
Much of KPFA’s programming is local, original and eclectic, with a well produced mix of news and in depth public affairs, an ongoing drama, literature and performance series, interviews, and reviews. Music ranges from folk to hip hop, Bach to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. KPFA travels the region to broadcast live music, demonstrations, and cultural events. The majority of station staff are unpaid community volunteers donating their time and energy to bring the programming to life.
On the web: http://www.kpfa.org
Hosted by David Gans, the show will be broadcast live on KPFA 94.1 FM in the Bay Area and KFCF 88.1 FM in Fresno, CA. Additionally the broadcast may be heard around the world via a web cast to any internet connection with an audio streaming program via http://www.nugs.net, http://www.kpfa.org and http://www.kfcf.org.
Grateful Dead Hour host David Gans has been doing a benefit radio marathon every winter since 1986, raising thousands of dollars for the venerable listener-supported radio station KPFA and pleasing untold numbers of music lovers around the globe.
David Gans’ first broadcast on the radio was February 18, 1985 on the KFOG Deadhead Hour, and he will be featuring some of his favorite musical moments, interviews and other material from the Grateful Dead Hour archives, as well as some newly-unearthed gems.
”The Grateful Dead Hour continues to preserve, protect, and promote the Grateful Dead legacy so people can continue to be turned on to this music. Jerry Garcia has been gone almost ten years and the Grateful Dead is receding into history, but the program is able to keep it fresh in people's mind by playing new music each week. Gans expands, "I see my mission as putting the Grateful Dead's best musical foot forward every week and looking at the roots and branches of their creative tree."
The broadcast will also feature live music by Dark Star Orchestra performing a brief acoustic set in the studio, taking place during the afternoon of February 19. DSO recreates historic Grateful Dead set lists with compelling accuracy; additionally, Rolling Stone recently praised "Dark Star Orchestra's fanatical attention to detail."
In coordination with the 20 Year Anniversary Celebration of the Grateful Dead Hour listeners or supporters who contribute to KPFA will receive a CD entitled "Live from Berkeley" as a premium, with performances from David Gans’ additional radio show, “Dead to the World” featuring artists such as Keller Williams, Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, Donna the Buffalo, David Nelson and Friends, Wake the Dead, Jemimah Puddleduck, and more.
- To support KPFA programming, contributions can be made online via http://www.kpfa.org at any time, or by calling 510-848-5732 or 1-800-439-5732 during the marathon February 19.
- Visit http://www.gdhour.com for more information regarding the KPFA Grateful Dead Hour Marathon, playlists, station list, and other links.
- Listen to KPFA Grateful Dead Hour Marathon here:
http://www.kpfa.org/cgi-bin/gen-mpegurl.m3u?server=aud-one.kpfa.org&port=8000&mount=icy_0&file=dummy.m3u
About the Grateful Dead Hour:
* David Gans, the producer/host of the Grateful Dead Hour, is the author of three books about the Dead: “Playing in the Band: an Oral and Visual Portrait of the Grateful Dead” (with Peter Simon); “Conversations with the Dead”; and “Not Fade Away: The Online World Remembers Jerry Garcia”.
* The radio program is broadcast weekly to an estimated national audience of over 200,000 listeners per week, covering 79 stations, and is carried twice each week on XM Satellite Radio (currently with over 2 million subscribers)
* The Grateful Dead Hour has been in national syndication since 1987.
* The Grateful Dead Hour began as the "Deadhead Hour" on KFOG-FM in San Francisco and began its current spot as an American radio institution February 18, 1985 when David Gans appeared as a guest to promote his newly released book “Playing in the Band: an Oral and
Visual Portrait of the Grateful Dead”. David put together a little radio piece called the 'Greatest Pump Song Ever Told' about the song about 'Greatest Story Ever Told'. He enjoyed making and airing this feature on the "Deadhead Hour" so much and that he invited himself back. The host at the time wasn't that much of a Deadhead, so he welcomed David's participation. Eventually David was given sole responsibility for the program. So David, showing up there as a guest promoting a book - and it turned into a career.
* David has interviewed all the members including Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart, Bill Kruetzmann, Brent Mydland, Donna Jean Godchaux, Bruce Hornsby, and Vince Welnick. In addition, David has included in conversation numerous peripheral people to the Grateful Dead Family including sound engineers, road crew, record producers, songwriters, and archivists.
* The Grateful Dead Hour has broadcast over 850 weekly episodes since 1987.
On the web: http://www.gdhour.com
About KPFA-FM:
Founded in 1949 by Lewis Hill, a pacifist, poet, and journalist, KPFA was the first community supported radio station in the USA. KPFA broadcasts on 94.1 FM and KPFB 89.3 FM, Berkeley, and KFCF 88.1 FM, Fresno, California. The signal reaches one third of the state, utilizing 59,000 watts.
Much of KPFA’s programming is local, original and eclectic, with a well produced mix of news and in depth public affairs, an ongoing drama, literature and performance series, interviews, and reviews. Music ranges from folk to hip hop, Bach to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. KPFA travels the region to broadcast live music, demonstrations, and cultural events. The majority of station staff are unpaid community volunteers donating their time and energy to bring the programming to life.
On the web: http://www.kpfa.org
For more information:
http://www.gdhour.com
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One of the worst shows on kpfa across the board is going to be on for 16 hours, turn kpfa off and possibly never tune it back on. There are few things that suck and represent the worst of white lifestylist progressiveism as the grateful dead does. I think I might have to throw up my cherry garcia after seeing this here.
I agree with the comment. The Grateful Dead are one of the most overrated bands ever (along with the Doors and U2)!
May Jerry Garcia rest in Peace. But spare us the endless, boring, unimaginative cliche riffs and horribly recorded spaced out jams.
If KPFA is going to do a 16 hour musical marathon then play some worthwhile, quality music like Leonard Bernstein or Fela Kuti, Caetano Veloso, Pete Seeger, Frank Zappa, or John Cage!!!!!
enough already with the Dead!
May Jerry Garcia rest in Peace. But spare us the endless, boring, unimaginative cliche riffs and horribly recorded spaced out jams.
If KPFA is going to do a 16 hour musical marathon then play some worthwhile, quality music like Leonard Bernstein or Fela Kuti, Caetano Veloso, Pete Seeger, Frank Zappa, or John Cage!!!!!
enough already with the Dead!
Yes, let's have some marathons of great music by truly forward thinking musicians like Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Lila Downs, Natacha Atlas, Sinead O'Connor, Evelyn Glennie. They rock, the dead died after aoxomoxia, IMHO
. . . . . is like comparing a 1970 Chevy Impala to a BMW Mini-Cooper
and this Dead-A-Thon proves it
listeners under the age of 30 during the program: 0.5%
--Richard
and this Dead-A-Thon proves it
listeners under the age of 30 during the program: 0.5%
--Richard
Oh really? The Grateful Dead were regressive, non-innovative, boring...? Someone forgot to tell Ornette Coleman, who enjoyed jamming with them. Of course, maybe you think Ornette is all those things too, or David Murray, or Branford Marsalis, or Ken Nordine, or for that matter Miles Davis, who liked them. But what do/did any of those people know about music?
The Grateful Dead have their fans and their detractors. Really its a matter of taste.
The Grateful Dead were not a "movement" band and I find this to be an inappropriate type of listing for Indybay.
The Grateful Dead were not a "movement" band and I find this to be an inappropriate type of listing for Indybay.
had a different vision for KPFA than playing the music of a commercially successful rock band that sold millions of albums and concert tickets for 16 hours straight
apparently, it's not just PBS and NPR that are being dumbed down for the audience
--Richard
apparently, it's not just PBS and NPR that are being dumbed down for the audience
--Richard
What makes a band a "movement" band? The Grateful Dead did a shitload of benefits back in the late '60s and early '70s, some of which were ill advised, eg the promoters took off with the money, including benefits for People's Park, perhaps the most radical gesture in the Bay Area, an act which took aim at the Enclosures, the basis of capitalism. They played on the plaza at MIT 2 days after Kent State, a benefit for the student strike, even played on the occupied Columbia campus in May '68. Did a fundraiser for a hospital in Vietnam bombed by US planes, in Feb '73. Their Rex Foundation, for which they did many shows beginning in the '80s, bestowed funds on all sorts of dubious ventures, but also provided funds to Earth First (yeah, that outfit had problems as well, placing emphasis on misanthropy vs a social analysis of ecocide, but at least favored direct action over electoralism and lobbying)
And in many interviews, band members quite explicitely talked about how their construction of long jams via immediate musical conversations between the musicians, feeding off the energy of the audience, were intended to show what people can do via cooperation, without anyone in charge, vaguely the idea behind anarchy.
The current "Dead" is a greatly degenerated version of something that used to be much bigger than its parts, and which at least implicitely had positive social effects.
As for the crap about "jams", all that shows me is the short attention span of most young activists, brought up on TV, computers and cellphones. Jams have been an integral part of grassroots music, as for example African Americans, that's where music becomes an emotional output instead of a series of rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes.
And in many interviews, band members quite explicitely talked about how their construction of long jams via immediate musical conversations between the musicians, feeding off the energy of the audience, were intended to show what people can do via cooperation, without anyone in charge, vaguely the idea behind anarchy.
The current "Dead" is a greatly degenerated version of something that used to be much bigger than its parts, and which at least implicitely had positive social effects.
As for the crap about "jams", all that shows me is the short attention span of most young activists, brought up on TV, computers and cellphones. Jams have been an integral part of grassroots music, as for example African Americans, that's where music becomes an emotional output instead of a series of rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes.
Miles Davis did open for the Grateful Dead in 1970, which was an insult to him and the amazing band he had at the time, whose members crapped bigger than the Grateful Dead. But I challenge you to provide any proof that he "liked" them.
"Jams have been an integral part of grassroots music, as for example African Americans, that's where music becomes an emotional output instead of a series of rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes."
Um you are referring to step music, hip hop, or house music which are all forms of African American music that are based on "rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes"? What are you talking about, why must boomers like yourself insist that your music is the only true music and that somehow all the young ums need to learn from how it has been done right in the past?
Hip hop and house music have very little representation on kpfa, hip hop and commentary has 1 hour a day + a couple of hours at night. While house music is not on at all.
Someone who I was talking about this with said that they believed that the GD are counter-revolutionary and helped to contribute to the packaging of a counter culture, and a move away from radical politics that defined the counter culture to more of an identity/consumption based counter culture. I don't really think this is true, the GD are just a band and to some degree their cultural phenomeon "deadheads" were more of a curse than a blessing to any radical counter culture. I have met some ok deadheads, but being around hate street for 20 years you realize real quick that deadheads are not a new progressive force. Escapism and partying are good american family values when you have a nice middle class background to return to.
I need to straighten my jerry garcia tie and get back to work.
keep on truckin,
Um you are referring to step music, hip hop, or house music which are all forms of African American music that are based on "rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes"? What are you talking about, why must boomers like yourself insist that your music is the only true music and that somehow all the young ums need to learn from how it has been done right in the past?
Hip hop and house music have very little representation on kpfa, hip hop and commentary has 1 hour a day + a couple of hours at night. While house music is not on at all.
Someone who I was talking about this with said that they believed that the GD are counter-revolutionary and helped to contribute to the packaging of a counter culture, and a move away from radical politics that defined the counter culture to more of an identity/consumption based counter culture. I don't really think this is true, the GD are just a band and to some degree their cultural phenomeon "deadheads" were more of a curse than a blessing to any radical counter culture. I have met some ok deadheads, but being around hate street for 20 years you realize real quick that deadheads are not a new progressive force. Escapism and partying are good american family values when you have a nice middle class background to return to.
I need to straighten my jerry garcia tie and get back to work.
keep on truckin,
in a post that did not go through for some reason last night
[Hip hop and house music have very little representation on kpfa, hip hop and commentary has 1 hour a day + a couple of hours at night. While house music is not on at all.]
the narcissism of this enterprise is breathtaking, especially given the ready accessibility of the GD on albums and CDs, and reflects the kind of self-absorbed mentality that results in hours of Yanni and Irish dance shows on PBS during pledge month, when stations blatantly cater to the cultural biases of an older, predominately white, wealthier audience
--Richard
"Jams have been an integral part of grassroots music, as for example African Americans, that's where music becomes an emotional output instead of a series of rehearsed dance steps and digitalized notes."
Um, excuse me? The racism of that statement would be flooring if it wasn't for the tsunami of ignorance surrounding it. To compare the GD to african music while dismissing hip hop (on the completely incorrect assumption that improvisation isn't an integral part of the musical forms hip hop encompasses) is just surreal in the worst possible way.
ps: if you want people who are younger than you to listen to what you have to say, you may want to start with eliminating the callous form of condescension that you and your ilk seem to wallow in.
Um, excuse me? The racism of that statement would be flooring if it wasn't for the tsunami of ignorance surrounding it. To compare the GD to african music while dismissing hip hop (on the completely incorrect assumption that improvisation isn't an integral part of the musical forms hip hop encompasses) is just surreal in the worst possible way.
ps: if you want people who are younger than you to listen to what you have to say, you may want to start with eliminating the callous form of condescension that you and your ilk seem to wallow in.
As a runaway kid who lived in Greatful Dead parking lots (scrounging for drugs and money that people dropped on the ground usually near the nitrous tanks), I have a rather mixed view of the band. There were positive times like when I was bored and waiting around to get "miracled" when someone handed me a ten stip and plenty of times that were not so good like watching kids get severely cut on concertina trying to get over the fences at Shoreline. For every News Years show where everyone got free ketamine because it was about to be made illegal there were all those other times getting scabies and lice, watching kids get raped, have their dogs die of parvo or fall off the button of ski lifts when trying to sneak into shows near Tahoe. Then there were the cults like the Spinners, the Krishnas, the Yahways (or something like that) who preyed on tripping kids at shows and tried to issolated them from all outside contact on their various compunds. The only times I ever actually got into shows I didnt really like the music, but its hard to know if that was just because I was tweaking on bad acid or because it often sounds a lot like country. You can debate the quality of their music but it really hardly matters in terms of their overall societal impact which esentially acted as a massive distribution network for LSD. On the whole, being homeless on Dead Tour was better than being homeless in New York or even San Francisco but not quite up to the level of smaller college towns like Eugene or Madison. All the kids I knew who were hitchiking to Dead shows with no place to go back to probably died or ended up in jail since the money at shows was just too tempting and the danger changed city by city. But the whole city to city thing was part of the fun; I mean how else could you take one hunded hits of acid on the East Coast and then somehow end up somewhere on the West Coast without a clear recognition of how you got there ( I guess Rainbow Gatherings but those used to be largely the same people ).
Looking back on the whole Greatful Dead thing, I wouldnt call it part of any political movement. The one argument Ive heard people use is that it took kids from well off backgrounds and exposed them to the realities of life around the country. While there most be something positive if one had children of conservative Congressmen ODing on heroin or freaking out on bad acid trips, on the whole the rich kids kept to themselves and got their own hotel rooms or had suped up busses and RVs they lived in.
Perhaps the one positive element of the Dead can be summed up in Ginsberg's Howl:
"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn
looking for an angry fix"
but as with the entire scene there is an element of racism to that poem and I can hardly call the messed up kids on dead tour the "best minds of my generation".
Looking back on the whole Greatful Dead thing, I wouldnt call it part of any political movement. The one argument Ive heard people use is that it took kids from well off backgrounds and exposed them to the realities of life around the country. While there most be something positive if one had children of conservative Congressmen ODing on heroin or freaking out on bad acid trips, on the whole the rich kids kept to themselves and got their own hotel rooms or had suped up busses and RVs they lived in.
Perhaps the one positive element of the Dead can be summed up in Ginsberg's Howl:
"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn
looking for an angry fix"
but as with the entire scene there is an element of racism to that poem and I can hardly call the messed up kids on dead tour the "best minds of my generation".
Re Miles Davis: From "Miles", Simon and Schuster, '89 or so?
He talked about how the Deadheads at that show really seemed to get into his music, which included Sketches of Spain (a theme from which got played by the Dead starting in '68) and Bitches Brew, and after that time, every time he played in San Francisco, these young white Deadheads would show up. And he said "Jarry Garcia and i hit ot off great, talking about music---what [the Dead] liked and what i liked--and I think we all learned something, Jerry Garcia loved jazz, and i found out that he loved my music and had been listening to it for a long time." (So had bassist Phil Lesh). In the same section about the Fillmore he slams Steve Miller as a sorry ass cat and "non-playing motherf*$ker" who didn't have a thing going for him", so it's hardly like he was always complimenting people, quite the contrary.
Re the next 3 responses. My bad, i had no idea hip hop people would think i was talking about them, i was talking of Madonna, Brittney Spears, Christine Aguillera and the large majority of what passes for pop music or even Rock today. Not that all hip hop is great, it varies like anything, as even many hip hoppers, the more political ones, would readily say (see the current SF Bay Guardian). Sorry.
There is a daily political hip hop program on KPFA, by the way, not to say it's perfect or anything of course.
Re "The Whole Dead Thing": all you talk about is the lot. Any notion that the lot scene had much to do what went on inside is ludicrous. Did you expect the band to police the scene and keep out the weird sects? Or to walk around busting the nitrous-selling scum? The Grateful Dead was not a political movement, it was a rock band that happened to encourage lots of people to adopt an alternative lifestyle, and that stood for a certain aesthetic and for a certain way of doing things without anyone in charge. That's all. They were far more positive than the vast majority of what went down in the music scene during their existence. And they no longer exist.
He talked about how the Deadheads at that show really seemed to get into his music, which included Sketches of Spain (a theme from which got played by the Dead starting in '68) and Bitches Brew, and after that time, every time he played in San Francisco, these young white Deadheads would show up. And he said "Jarry Garcia and i hit ot off great, talking about music---what [the Dead] liked and what i liked--and I think we all learned something, Jerry Garcia loved jazz, and i found out that he loved my music and had been listening to it for a long time." (So had bassist Phil Lesh). In the same section about the Fillmore he slams Steve Miller as a sorry ass cat and "non-playing motherf*$ker" who didn't have a thing going for him", so it's hardly like he was always complimenting people, quite the contrary.
Re the next 3 responses. My bad, i had no idea hip hop people would think i was talking about them, i was talking of Madonna, Brittney Spears, Christine Aguillera and the large majority of what passes for pop music or even Rock today. Not that all hip hop is great, it varies like anything, as even many hip hoppers, the more political ones, would readily say (see the current SF Bay Guardian). Sorry.
There is a daily political hip hop program on KPFA, by the way, not to say it's perfect or anything of course.
Re "The Whole Dead Thing": all you talk about is the lot. Any notion that the lot scene had much to do what went on inside is ludicrous. Did you expect the band to police the scene and keep out the weird sects? Or to walk around busting the nitrous-selling scum? The Grateful Dead was not a political movement, it was a rock band that happened to encourage lots of people to adopt an alternative lifestyle, and that stood for a certain aesthetic and for a certain way of doing things without anyone in charge. That's all. They were far more positive than the vast majority of what went down in the music scene during their existence. And they no longer exist.
" Any notion that the lot scene had much to do what went on inside is ludicrous"
Except when people say "dead head" they really mean the people in the lot scene who dont always make it inside since tickets cost too much. The actual music may have some merit but the scene was what made the Dead phenomena what it was (it was also the subject of many of their songs). Sure some dead heads always had money and just went inside but watching them from the lot it always seemed like a mixture of libertarian yuppie types and frat guys (speaking of which, the only time I hear dead music blasted these days its from fraternity houses... whats up with that? Ive also noticed a large number of S Bay software moghul types are libertarian thinking but Republican voting dead heads). The Dead did take a stand on People's Park (a rather vague stand considering the war and other more contraversial stands they could have taken) but were pretty damn nonpolitical for a band that could have taken stands on major issues. How come we had Bonnie Rait and others at major antiwar demos and never members of the Dead? Where were the former members during globalization protests? Did they ever take a stand on the wars in Central America? Did they ever even take a stand against ticket master or the companies that profitted from them? In many ways their politics seemed a lot weaker than mainy "mainstream" pop bands.
Except when people say "dead head" they really mean the people in the lot scene who dont always make it inside since tickets cost too much. The actual music may have some merit but the scene was what made the Dead phenomena what it was (it was also the subject of many of their songs). Sure some dead heads always had money and just went inside but watching them from the lot it always seemed like a mixture of libertarian yuppie types and frat guys (speaking of which, the only time I hear dead music blasted these days its from fraternity houses... whats up with that? Ive also noticed a large number of S Bay software moghul types are libertarian thinking but Republican voting dead heads). The Dead did take a stand on People's Park (a rather vague stand considering the war and other more contraversial stands they could have taken) but were pretty damn nonpolitical for a band that could have taken stands on major issues. How come we had Bonnie Rait and others at major antiwar demos and never members of the Dead? Where were the former members during globalization protests? Did they ever take a stand on the wars in Central America? Did they ever even take a stand against ticket master or the companies that profitted from them? In many ways their politics seemed a lot weaker than mainy "mainstream" pop bands.
There are interesting perspectives here but the original point of discussion was the complaint that 'free speech pacifica radio' was wasting 16 hours of time on an overrated jam band that could be devoted to much higher quality music, non-commercial music, musicians/cultural workers who work at the grassroots level for peace and justice, or for that matter, some public affairs programing that has relevance beyond the cult of the dead.
Re "more thoughts": exactly which of their songs is about the parking lot scene? Are you thinking Shakedown Street, because that's what it became to be known as? Except that when the song first came out, there was little to the lot scene. Stereotyping deadheads is is inaccurate as most cases of stereotyping are. Yeah, their ranks included yuppies and frat rats, they also include working class folks, radical/"green" organizers,...I remember a big clash between the cops and deadheads outside the Greek Theater in Berkeley in June '85, which got an edge as cops recognized many in the crowd as familiar from previous several weeks of anti-Apartheid sit-ins. I've personally encountered many in the scene who are quite open to radical politics, in fact espouse them. And many i've talked to are far more open to the idea of 9/11 being an "inside job" than much of the so-called "Left", which swallows the gov't conspiracy story whole. Maybe because the Dead community has been the target of gov't conspiracies?
People's Park is not at all "vague", it was about control of land, which is at the very heart of capitalism, Enclosures is how capitalism started and has survived and grown, it is an essential feature of the system. And it was quite connected to the war. For that matter, they also did benefits for anti-war protests, played at MIT plaza 2 days after Kent State, with pro-student strike posters on stage. Some band members (Weir and Hart, i believe) were arrested in anti-nuke protests in the '80s. As to recent times, as i've said the band has degenerated since Jerry's death, for sure.
Time wise, Dead related shows are 120 hours a year, at least half of which is not the Dead per se, but rather bands in the same wavelength, most of which cannot be described as "commercial", at least not yet.
Hard Knocks, a hip hop show, gets 260 hours a year. The regular world music show gets 2 hours every weekday, 520 hours a year. The station is far from perfect, in fact i would like to see a lot more truly *radical* politics on it, ie anarchist/communist analysis, news and discussionsm instead of milquetoast liberal crap that is practically NPR, and a lot more than one hour a week on 9/11 and related material (ie Guns N' Butter).Just noting the time allocations.
People's Park is not at all "vague", it was about control of land, which is at the very heart of capitalism, Enclosures is how capitalism started and has survived and grown, it is an essential feature of the system. And it was quite connected to the war. For that matter, they also did benefits for anti-war protests, played at MIT plaza 2 days after Kent State, with pro-student strike posters on stage. Some band members (Weir and Hart, i believe) were arrested in anti-nuke protests in the '80s. As to recent times, as i've said the band has degenerated since Jerry's death, for sure.
Time wise, Dead related shows are 120 hours a year, at least half of which is not the Dead per se, but rather bands in the same wavelength, most of which cannot be described as "commercial", at least not yet.
Hard Knocks, a hip hop show, gets 260 hours a year. The regular world music show gets 2 hours every weekday, 520 hours a year. The station is far from perfect, in fact i would like to see a lot more truly *radical* politics on it, ie anarchist/communist analysis, news and discussionsm instead of milquetoast liberal crap that is practically NPR, and a lot more than one hour a week on 9/11 and related material (ie Guns N' Butter).Just noting the time allocations.
It was vague in the sense that it wa a "no risk" cause. If the Greatful Dead came out against a war in Central American they would be going up against both the federal government as well as the proWar conservatives in the US population. If former members of the dead had tried to help lead antiwar protests they would have risked alienating all the proWar dead-heads. People's Park may have been about capitalism but it was a fight with UC Berkeley. While the UC system does act as a major corporation it was a demand that was local and unlikely to alienate anyone aside from a few UC beurocrats. While the People's Park struggle can be portrayed as a radical struggle its safety as an issue was in line with the many causes conservative Hollwood celebrities take on to fake a social concience without risking any of thier potential fans.
The Dead was disliked by social conservatives for the scene associated with it (the punk, hippe-gangster, homeless scene more visible in the Dead lots than the wine and cheese SUV driving scene one tended to see inside). One could say that certain drug war issues were major issues the Dead did take on but even there they wavered distancing themselves in interviews from the very scene that created them.
In terms of the Dead's impact on politics, I think overall its been a negative one. It would be interesting to do a survey of ex-dead-heads but I wouldnt be too surprised if they vote more conservatively than the general public. One has on one side the libertarian aspects of that scene that worked to undermine the old left and then left very little in its wake (by the time the 80s rolled around) and on the other side one has the social conservatives who reacted to the the seeder side of the whole thing (the CIA may have been the major force behind the crack epidimic but I overheard several conversations in various lots where hippe types were flying in coke from S America). If I were prone to conspiracy theories I would suggest that Ken Kessey, LSD, the Dead and that whole scene was an attempt by the government to undermine opposition to Viet Nam by diverting energies from resistance (unfortunately I think it has a more plausible explanation in a drop-out culture created out of politically apathetic youth as a result of the Draft) The fact that one saw various activists rioting at Dead shows if anything confirms this view; the counter-culture and the Dead drugged up activists creating paranoia and irrational cult groups and allowed the war on drugs to be used as an excuse to target activists over something that could be portrayed as nonpolitical.
I do think one can make a counterargument that VietNam helped prevent major wars by the US for a decade or so because the counter-culture resulting from disillusionment and the draft was seen as destabilizing by those in power. But I think this is a little questionable since the "war at home" didnt really amount to much with conservative areas of the US remaining relatively uneffected and able to operate fine (the economy did well during the time of the counter-culture since there were elements of it that were very Capitalist at their core)
I would guess KPFA sees the Dead as representative of the activist movement of the 60s, but I dont think this stands up to closer inspection. If you look back at activist movements in the 60s and look at the timeline and participation of the counterculture, the counter culture emerged seperately and only took over many former activists as movements were in decline. While one cant demonize any counter culture (or culture) )as bad since they all evolve for rather strange reasons and in the end its all a matter of taste, the long run impact of Ken Kesey, the Merry Pranksters, the Grateful Dead seems to only be viewed with nostaglia by older Leftists with little analysis of their impact on the political direction of the US (which has been moving to the right ever sense).
The Dead was disliked by social conservatives for the scene associated with it (the punk, hippe-gangster, homeless scene more visible in the Dead lots than the wine and cheese SUV driving scene one tended to see inside). One could say that certain drug war issues were major issues the Dead did take on but even there they wavered distancing themselves in interviews from the very scene that created them.
In terms of the Dead's impact on politics, I think overall its been a negative one. It would be interesting to do a survey of ex-dead-heads but I wouldnt be too surprised if they vote more conservatively than the general public. One has on one side the libertarian aspects of that scene that worked to undermine the old left and then left very little in its wake (by the time the 80s rolled around) and on the other side one has the social conservatives who reacted to the the seeder side of the whole thing (the CIA may have been the major force behind the crack epidimic but I overheard several conversations in various lots where hippe types were flying in coke from S America). If I were prone to conspiracy theories I would suggest that Ken Kessey, LSD, the Dead and that whole scene was an attempt by the government to undermine opposition to Viet Nam by diverting energies from resistance (unfortunately I think it has a more plausible explanation in a drop-out culture created out of politically apathetic youth as a result of the Draft) The fact that one saw various activists rioting at Dead shows if anything confirms this view; the counter-culture and the Dead drugged up activists creating paranoia and irrational cult groups and allowed the war on drugs to be used as an excuse to target activists over something that could be portrayed as nonpolitical.
I do think one can make a counterargument that VietNam helped prevent major wars by the US for a decade or so because the counter-culture resulting from disillusionment and the draft was seen as destabilizing by those in power. But I think this is a little questionable since the "war at home" didnt really amount to much with conservative areas of the US remaining relatively uneffected and able to operate fine (the economy did well during the time of the counter-culture since there were elements of it that were very Capitalist at their core)
I would guess KPFA sees the Dead as representative of the activist movement of the 60s, but I dont think this stands up to closer inspection. If you look back at activist movements in the 60s and look at the timeline and participation of the counterculture, the counter culture emerged seperately and only took over many former activists as movements were in decline. While one cant demonize any counter culture (or culture) )as bad since they all evolve for rather strange reasons and in the end its all a matter of taste, the long run impact of Ken Kesey, the Merry Pranksters, the Grateful Dead seems to only be viewed with nostaglia by older Leftists with little analysis of their impact on the political direction of the US (which has been moving to the right ever sense).
1959: Novelist Ken Kesey (Menlo Park Hollister study at the V.A. hospital) and poet Allen Ginsberg (Mental Research Institute at Stanford University, Gregory Bateson study, mid-May) take LSD for the first time.
http://wild-bohemian.com/leary-2.htm
The patriarch of the communal outing, Kesey had first come across LSD when as a graduate student at Stanford he wanted to earn some extra money on the side (he was married and the father of a boy, with another child on the way). He volunteered at Menlo Park VA Hospital in a government-sponsored program, participating in experiments conducted to study the effects of hallucinogenics. The experiences gained with "the best LSD he ever had . . ., sponsored by the government"
http://www.univie.ac.at/Anglistik/easyrider/data/KeseyPrs.htm
http://wild-bohemian.com/leary-2.htm
The patriarch of the communal outing, Kesey had first come across LSD when as a graduate student at Stanford he wanted to earn some extra money on the side (he was married and the father of a boy, with another child on the way). He volunteered at Menlo Park VA Hospital in a government-sponsored program, participating in experiments conducted to study the effects of hallucinogenics. The experiences gained with "the best LSD he ever had . . ., sponsored by the government"
http://www.univie.ac.at/Anglistik/easyrider/data/KeseyPrs.htm
This last response proves Kesey is a Fed? Wow!! Standards of proof keep getting ever lower.
To "Thoughts": You sound like your notion of what happened in the '60s was obtained entirely second hand, from some *wacky* conspiracy sources (i don't at all reject "conspiracy theories" a priori, i'm a 9/11 researcher). People's Park involved a lot more than UC bureaucrats, the California National Guard employed armoured vehicles and helicopters in Berkeley, people were gassed and rounded up en masse, Cal gov Ray-gun promised a "bloodbath" and delivered, as one person was shot dead, others severely injured, one paralyzed. This entire issue was also linked to everything going on at the time, including the Vietnam War, something you keep ignoring.
You likewise ignore the fact that the band did LOTS of benefits for all sorts of causes, played on the student-occupied Columbia campus in '68 and at MIT for the post Kent State student strike. They most certainly pissed off important people in doing so. And yes, they were right out there re the War on (some) Drugs, which the "Left" for the most part went along with. Yes, they could have done more.
Mostly SUV driving brie eating yuppies inside shows? Did you ever go inside? Doesn't sound like my experience. Were such people at shows? Yes. Were they the large majority? Heck, no. Was the entire counterculture a CIA operation to divert the opposition movement? You are seriously f*%ked up, dude, for saying that. There were two rebellions going on, a political one and a cultural one. The cultural one in many ways was more dangerous to the status quo, if anything, because it questioned the whole mode of living under capitalism, ie work, consume, defer pleasure while you accumulate possessions, in favor of attempting to live in an autonomous way. The most radical element in the Haight, the Diggers, held a "death to money" parade in December '66, they were very explicitely anti-capitalist. Meanwhile, the political movement largely strove to bring into the Amerikan high-consumption lifestyle groups that had been excluded, not realizing that this lifestyle is at the heart of modern capitalism, and it's the system's inherent characteristics that led to Vietnam then and Iraq today, not some "bad decisions". Increasingly many people had feet in both groups, as politicos got high and challenged their ways of living, while many hippies got radicalized politically thanks to one too many encounter with "the man". The counterculture was also very instrumental in the events in Italy in '77, which saw a mass social movement which threatened capital's control.
Every study i've seen shows that if anything, Deadheads are less conservative than the population as a whole, your assertions to the contrary, they seem to be based entirely upon conjecture, that's all. Surviving members of the band nowadays are lefty liberals, not something i am at all happy about, but hardly "conservatives".
And yes, there were Deadheads like myself who also liked Punk, back in the day when it meant something, i know for a fact that at least one member of Black Flag was a Deadhead.That supposed opposition has also been overdone.
To "Thoughts": You sound like your notion of what happened in the '60s was obtained entirely second hand, from some *wacky* conspiracy sources (i don't at all reject "conspiracy theories" a priori, i'm a 9/11 researcher). People's Park involved a lot more than UC bureaucrats, the California National Guard employed armoured vehicles and helicopters in Berkeley, people were gassed and rounded up en masse, Cal gov Ray-gun promised a "bloodbath" and delivered, as one person was shot dead, others severely injured, one paralyzed. This entire issue was also linked to everything going on at the time, including the Vietnam War, something you keep ignoring.
You likewise ignore the fact that the band did LOTS of benefits for all sorts of causes, played on the student-occupied Columbia campus in '68 and at MIT for the post Kent State student strike. They most certainly pissed off important people in doing so. And yes, they were right out there re the War on (some) Drugs, which the "Left" for the most part went along with. Yes, they could have done more.
Mostly SUV driving brie eating yuppies inside shows? Did you ever go inside? Doesn't sound like my experience. Were such people at shows? Yes. Were they the large majority? Heck, no. Was the entire counterculture a CIA operation to divert the opposition movement? You are seriously f*%ked up, dude, for saying that. There were two rebellions going on, a political one and a cultural one. The cultural one in many ways was more dangerous to the status quo, if anything, because it questioned the whole mode of living under capitalism, ie work, consume, defer pleasure while you accumulate possessions, in favor of attempting to live in an autonomous way. The most radical element in the Haight, the Diggers, held a "death to money" parade in December '66, they were very explicitely anti-capitalist. Meanwhile, the political movement largely strove to bring into the Amerikan high-consumption lifestyle groups that had been excluded, not realizing that this lifestyle is at the heart of modern capitalism, and it's the system's inherent characteristics that led to Vietnam then and Iraq today, not some "bad decisions". Increasingly many people had feet in both groups, as politicos got high and challenged their ways of living, while many hippies got radicalized politically thanks to one too many encounter with "the man". The counterculture was also very instrumental in the events in Italy in '77, which saw a mass social movement which threatened capital's control.
Every study i've seen shows that if anything, Deadheads are less conservative than the population as a whole, your assertions to the contrary, they seem to be based entirely upon conjecture, that's all. Surviving members of the band nowadays are lefty liberals, not something i am at all happy about, but hardly "conservatives".
And yes, there were Deadheads like myself who also liked Punk, back in the day when it meant something, i know for a fact that at least one member of Black Flag was a Deadhead.That supposed opposition has also been overdone.
Just a couple more things (for now):
The counterculture had major effects upon the economic system, in that many young workers, often Viet vets and increasingly counterculture-ish, were much less content to play the same game, to allow the company to speed them up endlessly with the hopes that this will lead to future material rewards. The early '70s were some of the most contentious in terms of labor relations, and researchers connected that pretty directly to the cultural/political insurgency of the time, work has been done on the events in Lordstown, Ohio GM plant in particular, also see Strike by Jerermy Brecher,
As for clashes at shows, the one i talked of was not connected to the War on (some) Drugs, as you so dismissively assert, and as i pointed out, it followed weeks of clashes between the same cops and some of the same people, over UC investments in then Apatheid South Africa.
The counterculture had major effects upon the economic system, in that many young workers, often Viet vets and increasingly counterculture-ish, were much less content to play the same game, to allow the company to speed them up endlessly with the hopes that this will lead to future material rewards. The early '70s were some of the most contentious in terms of labor relations, and researchers connected that pretty directly to the cultural/political insurgency of the time, work has been done on the events in Lordstown, Ohio GM plant in particular, also see Strike by Jerermy Brecher,
As for clashes at shows, the one i talked of was not connected to the War on (some) Drugs, as you so dismissively assert, and as i pointed out, it followed weeks of clashes between the same cops and some of the same people, over UC investments in then Apatheid South Africa.
All the discussion about whether the GD played some benefits 30 years ago or took any political stands misses the point: this is the ARTS and ACTION section of IndyBay and the GD are irrelevant to both Arts and Action. They were an overrated commercially successful band with a cult following.
The only positive action they inspired was to create a space for some young fans to develop an alternative economy - selling their wares or food or drugs at shows to support themselves in their quest to be modern gypsies and exist outside the mainstream economy. A radio program on this phenomenon would have much more relevance to arts and action than re-playing yet again the endless, unimaginative, poorly recorded and self-indulgent jams.
So what if Miles Davis says Jerry Garcia liked his music. Play Miles for 16 hours instead, or David Grisman. The other jazz players who jammed with or had something positive to say about the dead are entitled to their opinions; there are probably many more who wouldn't be able to tolerate 30 seconds of a GD space jam.
May Jerry Garcia rest in Peace.
The only positive action they inspired was to create a space for some young fans to develop an alternative economy - selling their wares or food or drugs at shows to support themselves in their quest to be modern gypsies and exist outside the mainstream economy. A radio program on this phenomenon would have much more relevance to arts and action than re-playing yet again the endless, unimaginative, poorly recorded and self-indulgent jams.
So what if Miles Davis says Jerry Garcia liked his music. Play Miles for 16 hours instead, or David Grisman. The other jazz players who jammed with or had something positive to say about the dead are entitled to their opinions; there are probably many more who wouldn't be able to tolerate 30 seconds of a GD space jam.
May Jerry Garcia rest in Peace.
it sure is interesting hearing everyone's opinions about the grateful dead and their apparent lack of positive influence. I now know why the 'add comment' button is there -- so everyone can contribute their trite thoughts and opinions on a subject they absolutely abhor.
the music of the grateful dead and the associated cultures that they spawned may not have been the most perfect in each of your eyes, but it did make millions of people happy for decades.
The Rex Foundation created by the Grateful Dead in 1984 has since provided over $7 million in grants to some 900 programs nationwide. These include some grassroots organizations that you may volunteer with or have given some of your hard earned dollars.
The Rex Foundation (started by the Grateful Dead - that awful musical monster compared to Miles Davis, among others, in these threads) focuses on providing grants in such industries as:
-Healthy environment
-Individuality in the Arts
-Social & Economic Justice
-Preservation of Indigenous Cultures
-Strong Community
-Education of Children and Adults
Sure there are numerous comebacks and flaming that will come aimed to my response, and to that, I offer no rebuttal. Instead of ripping the offering because you don't like the music or are put off by the 'scene' they created...
Read between the lines and see that David Gans' program has raised thousands of dollars for a listener supported radio station...how many have 'leeched' off of their free, non-commericial airwaves without giving a cent.
i'm sure the person who posted this news will reconsider offering any further related information up to an audience of a community that at a brief glance is assumed as 'open-minded'.
For you all - I share all the Garcia noodling in the world...
the music of the grateful dead and the associated cultures that they spawned may not have been the most perfect in each of your eyes, but it did make millions of people happy for decades.
The Rex Foundation created by the Grateful Dead in 1984 has since provided over $7 million in grants to some 900 programs nationwide. These include some grassroots organizations that you may volunteer with or have given some of your hard earned dollars.
The Rex Foundation (started by the Grateful Dead - that awful musical monster compared to Miles Davis, among others, in these threads) focuses on providing grants in such industries as:
-Healthy environment
-Individuality in the Arts
-Social & Economic Justice
-Preservation of Indigenous Cultures
-Strong Community
-Education of Children and Adults
Sure there are numerous comebacks and flaming that will come aimed to my response, and to that, I offer no rebuttal. Instead of ripping the offering because you don't like the music or are put off by the 'scene' they created...
Read between the lines and see that David Gans' program has raised thousands of dollars for a listener supported radio station...how many have 'leeched' off of their free, non-commericial airwaves without giving a cent.
i'm sure the person who posted this news will reconsider offering any further related information up to an audience of a community that at a brief glance is assumed as 'open-minded'.
For you all - I share all the Garcia noodling in the world...
[Read between the lines and see that David Gans' program has raised thousands of dollars for a listener supported radio station...how many have 'leeched' off of their free, non-commericial airwaves without giving a cent].
this is exactly the kind of self-absorbed arrogance that makes the Deadhead scene so unappealing
so, I guess the response to the criticism against turning an alternative radio station over to a commercial rock band for 16 hours is . . . . we did it for the money
--Richard
this is exactly the kind of self-absorbed arrogance that makes the Deadhead scene so unappealing
so, I guess the response to the criticism against turning an alternative radio station over to a commercial rock band for 16 hours is . . . . we did it for the money
--Richard
how do you mean that this comment was "self-absorbed arrogance"? the man stated a fact and you decided to give a curt, opinionated, response with very little explanation... seems like you are just trying to attack the man for defending music he likes.
the dead were never commercially successful until "touch of grey" was released in the mid 80's... this gives about 20 years of touring out of the spotlight of mainstream music. their music was truly unique and experimental, open to the flow of the natural world, where randomness is key. they provided the backdrop for people experimenting with new ideas, new ways of being, of understanding, albeit usually with the aid of LSD or whatever.
i am not saying there were not negative things about the scene, there were lots of people fried from doing too many drugs, and not living in the real world as well as partying in the parking lot but that doesn't mean you have to attack the band that toured for 30 years giving people a chance to celebrate.
when do we start blaming bands when the kids who listen to them commit suicide or kill somebody. get a grip people, the music is going to be on the radio for 16 hours, don't listen, put in your miles davis cd and be happy.
the dead were never commercially successful until "touch of grey" was released in the mid 80's... this gives about 20 years of touring out of the spotlight of mainstream music. their music was truly unique and experimental, open to the flow of the natural world, where randomness is key. they provided the backdrop for people experimenting with new ideas, new ways of being, of understanding, albeit usually with the aid of LSD or whatever.
i am not saying there were not negative things about the scene, there were lots of people fried from doing too many drugs, and not living in the real world as well as partying in the parking lot but that doesn't mean you have to attack the band that toured for 30 years giving people a chance to celebrate.
when do we start blaming bands when the kids who listen to them commit suicide or kill somebody. get a grip people, the music is going to be on the radio for 16 hours, don't listen, put in your miles davis cd and be happy.
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