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Garcia : An American Life
He was there when Dylan went electric, when a generation danced naked at Woodstock, and when Ken Kesey started experimenting with acid. Jerry Garcia was one of the most gifted musicians of all time, and he was a member of one of the most worshiped rock 'n' roll bands in history. Now, Blair Jackson , who covered the Grateful Dead for twenty-five years, gives us an unparalleled portrait of Garcia--the musical genius, the brilliant songwriter, and ultimately, the tortured soul plagued by his own addiction. With more than forty photographs, many of them previously unpublished, An American Life is the ultimate tribute to the man who, Bob Dylan said, "had no equal."
520 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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947 people want to read
About the author
Blair Jackson
25 books10 followersBlair Jackson is a music journalist and author best known for Garcia: An American Life and Grateful Dead: The Music Never Stopped. He edited 27 issues of The Golden Road fanzine and has contributed to Mix and Electronic Musician. His books include Classic Tracks, exploring iconic rock and soul recordings. A passionate reader of history and music biographies, he shares his insights on Dead.net. He lives in California and is the father of two children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
May 27, 2014
A well-written biography, especially an extensive one, is a gift and that's the case with Garcia: An American Life. It is thorough and beautifully constructed to chronicle events and to capture the cultural conditions and essence of relationships in Garcia's world.
The power of the book to me was the insights it provided into the genius of a great musician who is so completely given over to his talent for a lifetime. It was fascinating to be absorbed by the extraordinary diversity of musical influences that Garcia mastered and brought to his song-writing and gigs as part of the Grateful Dead, the JGB, and other musical collaborations.
Garcia's lifetime in music spanned more than three decades, during which his drive to create music and to experiment with it (yes, and with drugs) was insatiable. But what was most fascinating to me was the way success and fame evolve, often without intention. And then how it takes on a life of its own and consumes the artist, in this case Garcia. He never really sought fame; it sought him. And one day it was clear that he was the leader of a multimillion dollar enterprise for which hundred of people and families depended. The clutches of those responsibilities, coupled with his mindset as an artist, and later his abuse of drugs and poor health habits, took a deadly toll.
As a beginning student of the acoustic guitar, I received from my teacher Grateful Dead, Garcia and Grisman music to listen to, and then he shared this book with me. The awarenesses that were opened have broadened my appreciation of music, musicians, and the musicians life.
I was in awe.
The power of the book to me was the insights it provided into the genius of a great musician who is so completely given over to his talent for a lifetime. It was fascinating to be absorbed by the extraordinary diversity of musical influences that Garcia mastered and brought to his song-writing and gigs as part of the Grateful Dead, the JGB, and other musical collaborations.
Garcia's lifetime in music spanned more than three decades, during which his drive to create music and to experiment with it (yes, and with drugs) was insatiable. But what was most fascinating to me was the way success and fame evolve, often without intention. And then how it takes on a life of its own and consumes the artist, in this case Garcia. He never really sought fame; it sought him. And one day it was clear that he was the leader of a multimillion dollar enterprise for which hundred of people and families depended. The clutches of those responsibilities, coupled with his mindset as an artist, and later his abuse of drugs and poor health habits, took a deadly toll.
As a beginning student of the acoustic guitar, I received from my teacher Grateful Dead, Garcia and Grisman music to listen to, and then he shared this book with me. The awarenesses that were opened have broadened my appreciation of music, musicians, and the musicians life.
I was in awe.
October 17, 2023
…It was like cracking a combination lock. I slowed the records down and painstakingly listened to every lick and worked them out. I did a complete breakdown—as close as I was able—to learn how to play bluegrass banjo. And having gone through that process with banjo, when I went to electric guitar I knew how to learn it. And my taste in music is kind of informed by the banjo in a way, too. I like to hear every note. I like that clarity and separation of notes. And that characterizes my guitar playing, too. So I came at it sort of backwards…
Please read the rest of my review here:
https://rogueliterarysociety.com/f/ga...
Please read the rest of my review here:
https://rogueliterarysociety.com/f/ga...
April 2, 2025
Solid read for fans, accessible for the rest of us
I'd rank this alongside publicist Dennis McNally's Long Strange Trip as the best surveys of respectively Jerry and the band. While sharing with Robert Greenfield's oral history Dark Star a comprehensive narrative of the entire arc of Garcia's life, career, music, and legacy, I aver that Jackson, as a veteran journalist, possesses the skills to provide a study which incorporates Robert Hunter's lyrics and the songs which in their melodic and technical structures articulate the reasons why his subtitle might resonate. He doesn't belabor the rationale.
Jackson begins with a glimpse of Garcia's paternal roots in La Coruña, in Spanish Galicia, demonstrating a broad context within which to place Garcia and his colleagues, as they gravitated towards San Francisco, the Peninsula, and the California scene of beatnik to hippies. In the opening, Jackson admits he's leaning towards the better nature inherent in his flawed subject. Like Greenfield, another longtime witness to many a classic rock spectacle, Jackson draws on intimate knowledge, personal interviews, and wide research. He takes time to document details, such as where in the Santa Cruz Mountains the family getaway cabin lurked (Lompico, built 1945) which other guides to this topic never bother to mention. I found it comprehensive without being nitpicking. While the author tends towards interpreting events directed by Garcia, or not so managed, with a generous spirit, he calls out Jerry when the record, or testimony, demands truth.
One correction: Wally Legate, an early crony in Palo Alto, probably didn't attend the College of the Redwoods (Eureka, CA) but the U. of Redlands down at the other end of the Golden State, if Wally's drug trip revealed none majesty of a "gingerbread" chapel. The latter, formerly Baptist-founded, campus in the Inland Empire has that. I doubt a public junior college has a match...But overall, that's the only slip I caught, with only one misspelling, rare among publications nowadays. It finds the right pacing, like an ideal gig of the man himself.
I'd rank this alongside publicist Dennis McNally's Long Strange Trip as the best surveys of respectively Jerry and the band. While sharing with Robert Greenfield's oral history Dark Star a comprehensive narrative of the entire arc of Garcia's life, career, music, and legacy, I aver that Jackson, as a veteran journalist, possesses the skills to provide a study which incorporates Robert Hunter's lyrics and the songs which in their melodic and technical structures articulate the reasons why his subtitle might resonate. He doesn't belabor the rationale.
Jackson begins with a glimpse of Garcia's paternal roots in La Coruña, in Spanish Galicia, demonstrating a broad context within which to place Garcia and his colleagues, as they gravitated towards San Francisco, the Peninsula, and the California scene of beatnik to hippies. In the opening, Jackson admits he's leaning towards the better nature inherent in his flawed subject. Like Greenfield, another longtime witness to many a classic rock spectacle, Jackson draws on intimate knowledge, personal interviews, and wide research. He takes time to document details, such as where in the Santa Cruz Mountains the family getaway cabin lurked (Lompico, built 1945) which other guides to this topic never bother to mention. I found it comprehensive without being nitpicking. While the author tends towards interpreting events directed by Garcia, or not so managed, with a generous spirit, he calls out Jerry when the record, or testimony, demands truth.
One correction: Wally Legate, an early crony in Palo Alto, probably didn't attend the College of the Redwoods (Eureka, CA) but the U. of Redlands down at the other end of the Golden State, if Wally's drug trip revealed none majesty of a "gingerbread" chapel. The latter, formerly Baptist-founded, campus in the Inland Empire has that. I doubt a public junior college has a match...But overall, that's the only slip I caught, with only one misspelling, rare among publications nowadays. It finds the right pacing, like an ideal gig of the man himself.
August 12, 2019
Jerry Garcia is perhaps the most unassuming and understated of all the towering figures of 20th century popular music. Therefore, a thorough account such as this book is invaluable in shedding light on a life that has influenced (and will continue to influence) so many other lives. Written unapologetically by a fan (as Blair Jackson makes it clear from the outset), it is a book for fans, containing detailed references to some of the best Grateful Dead concerts (and those of JG’s other bands), but it also posits a very interesting relationship between the lyrics of GD songs (written by JG’s spiritual brother, Robert Hunter) and the particular circumstances of JG, or the GD, which perhaps explains why these songs have been able to move the spirit in such a way. And perhaps out of all the songs in the GD canon, it’s JG’s ballads that appear all the more powerful when relating their lyrics to the (ultimately tragic) life of their creator. That this music is timeless, has a universal appeal and speaks to each and every listener, are proven by the unrelenting following the GD have had since Jerry’s moving to another plane(t). This music doesn’t need explaining. But by knowing something about the man, one gets to appreciate the man’s music even more.
July 19, 2025
A long and interesting read, and it seemed to be quite thoroughly researched. I found it surprisingly gripping for non-fiction, it got me turning the pages with grim fascination towards the end. As well as offering an interesting life story well told there is a lot of material on the Grateful Dead, Garcia's other bands, and other related bands and musicians. The story covers over 30 years including lots of references to albums, concerts, and live recordings. Some of it is uplifting and inspiring, other parts are grim and frustrating, but that's the way things happened. The author's voice comes across as reasonably fair and relatively unobtrusive, telling the story without being distracting or annoying. At the back of the book there are lists of references and also a 'critical discography' with notes and ratings of recordings featuring Garcia including records by other artists that featured him as a guest. Highly recommended!
April 1, 2015
This is a big summer for Grateful Dead fans, both the 20th anniversary of Jerry Garcia’s death and the 50th anniversary of the band’s formation. It’s no wonder the band is getting back together and playing a few shows – albeit at a rather expensive ticket price.
And in the years since the band’s legacy has changed a bit: people generally look past the troubles of their later years (rough performances, riots among fans, a grueling tour schedule) and focus on the brighter spots. Recent archival releases include their gig at the Gaza Pyramids, two box sets of their spring 1990 tour and an incendiary show from February 1968. So, lots of good times, then.
So with the big anniversary, it seemed appropriate to finally get around to Blair Jackson’s biography of the Dead’s lead guitarist: Garcia: An American Story. It’s a thoroughly researched, interesting book and does a good job charting his unlikely rise and all-too-predictable fall.
Garcia was born into a musical family: his father played in local bands and opened a bar that featured live music. But his upbringing was rough and troublesome: his dad drowned and Garcia wound up splitting time between his mom and grandparent’s place. He drifted into a rough crowd, dropped out of high school and spent time in the Army before falling into a burgeoning folk music scene.
These early years in San Francisco had a lasting impact: he met future band mates, his first wife and Robert Hunter, who’d have a life-long working relationship with Garcia: Hunter wrote the words and Garcia the music for many of the Dead’s most famous songs.
Jackson takes readers through these years fairly quickly, showing Garcia as a drifting, rootless musician: he’d crash with friends, play around in bands and didn’t seem to have much of a future planned. Eventually, one of his bands went electric and started playing around as The Warlocks; soon, they’d rename themselves as The Grateful Dead. They were certainly in the right place at the right time, quickly becoming the house band for Ken Kesey’s infamous Acid Tests.
From there the story is generally familiar to heads: the band slowly shot to fame, playing both Monterey and Woodstock and started releasing albums. But even at this point, Jackson shows Garcia’s darker side: he left his first wife and child to hook up Carolyn Adams, aka Mountain Girl, coming across as someone who doesn’t really think about consequences. It’s an attitude that comes up again and again.
As Jackson points out, Garcia’s musical career was long and varied. But except for the Dead, most of his side projects were very short lived. His bands with Merl Saunders lasted five years before Garcia abruptly fired him; Old and In the Way lasted just more than a year before falling apart. Despite his image as a friendly, almost grandfatherly figure, Garcia was a demanding musician for most of his career while also being someone who’d change directions on a whim – and leave the firing to someone else. It was often the same in his personal life, where he’d leave one partner for another, often leaving them hanging in the wind.
Early in the book, Jackson says he tried to write a positive biography – “the Forces of Light win in this book,” as he writes – but even so, Garcia’s story is tragic: starting in the mid-70s, he started using cocaine regularly and eventually graduated to smoking heroin. Compounded with a poor diet and a serious smoking habit, Garcia’s body gave out several times; a diabetic coma in 1986, a serious illness in the early 90s and eventually a massive, fatal heart attack in 1995.
However, the unspoken aspect of Jackson’s statement isn’t about how he’s treating Garcia, but about the reaction to an earlier oral biography of Garcia: Robert Greenfield’s Dark Star, a book that paints a dark picture of Garcia and his final years: already in poor health and surrounded by enablers, Garcia worked himself to death by relentlessly touring, both as part of the Dead and in his solo vehicles.
While Greenfield’s book is much darker than Garcia, both work well together: Greenfield for the darker elements of the life (including his relationships with doctors and enablers), Jackson’s for the positive aspects. It’s worth noting Jackson never specifically blames anyone for Garcia’s problems, but does come to the same general conclusion as Greenfield: the Dead just toured too much and for too long, especially when Garcia probably should’ve been relaxing and taking care of his health.
As a biography, Jackson’s book is packed with first-hand sources and interviews and provides a reasonably clear picture of Garcia: a talented musician, but someone who didn’t like taking responsibility and didn’t like (or react well to) the pressures and trappings of fame. There are moments where he perhaps overwrites a bit:
“His guitar could cry tears born of existential longing one moment and roar like a firebreathing dragon the next. Sometimes one crystalline, perfectly formed note was all it took to draw a tear or a smile or even ask a question.”
But then again, it’s The Grateful Dead, so you’ve got to expect a bit of hyperbole.
All in all, a fully enjoyable, well-researched biography and one I’d recommend to fans of the Dead or Garcia’s solo music. There’s a nice annotated discography in the back, too, although it’s quite out of date at this point.
And in the years since the band’s legacy has changed a bit: people generally look past the troubles of their later years (rough performances, riots among fans, a grueling tour schedule) and focus on the brighter spots. Recent archival releases include their gig at the Gaza Pyramids, two box sets of their spring 1990 tour and an incendiary show from February 1968. So, lots of good times, then.
So with the big anniversary, it seemed appropriate to finally get around to Blair Jackson’s biography of the Dead’s lead guitarist: Garcia: An American Story. It’s a thoroughly researched, interesting book and does a good job charting his unlikely rise and all-too-predictable fall.
Garcia was born into a musical family: his father played in local bands and opened a bar that featured live music. But his upbringing was rough and troublesome: his dad drowned and Garcia wound up splitting time between his mom and grandparent’s place. He drifted into a rough crowd, dropped out of high school and spent time in the Army before falling into a burgeoning folk music scene.
These early years in San Francisco had a lasting impact: he met future band mates, his first wife and Robert Hunter, who’d have a life-long working relationship with Garcia: Hunter wrote the words and Garcia the music for many of the Dead’s most famous songs.
Jackson takes readers through these years fairly quickly, showing Garcia as a drifting, rootless musician: he’d crash with friends, play around in bands and didn’t seem to have much of a future planned. Eventually, one of his bands went electric and started playing around as The Warlocks; soon, they’d rename themselves as The Grateful Dead. They were certainly in the right place at the right time, quickly becoming the house band for Ken Kesey’s infamous Acid Tests.
From there the story is generally familiar to heads: the band slowly shot to fame, playing both Monterey and Woodstock and started releasing albums. But even at this point, Jackson shows Garcia’s darker side: he left his first wife and child to hook up Carolyn Adams, aka Mountain Girl, coming across as someone who doesn’t really think about consequences. It’s an attitude that comes up again and again.
As Jackson points out, Garcia’s musical career was long and varied. But except for the Dead, most of his side projects were very short lived. His bands with Merl Saunders lasted five years before Garcia abruptly fired him; Old and In the Way lasted just more than a year before falling apart. Despite his image as a friendly, almost grandfatherly figure, Garcia was a demanding musician for most of his career while also being someone who’d change directions on a whim – and leave the firing to someone else. It was often the same in his personal life, where he’d leave one partner for another, often leaving them hanging in the wind.
Early in the book, Jackson says he tried to write a positive biography – “the Forces of Light win in this book,” as he writes – but even so, Garcia’s story is tragic: starting in the mid-70s, he started using cocaine regularly and eventually graduated to smoking heroin. Compounded with a poor diet and a serious smoking habit, Garcia’s body gave out several times; a diabetic coma in 1986, a serious illness in the early 90s and eventually a massive, fatal heart attack in 1995.
However, the unspoken aspect of Jackson’s statement isn’t about how he’s treating Garcia, but about the reaction to an earlier oral biography of Garcia: Robert Greenfield’s Dark Star, a book that paints a dark picture of Garcia and his final years: already in poor health and surrounded by enablers, Garcia worked himself to death by relentlessly touring, both as part of the Dead and in his solo vehicles.
While Greenfield’s book is much darker than Garcia, both work well together: Greenfield for the darker elements of the life (including his relationships with doctors and enablers), Jackson’s for the positive aspects. It’s worth noting Jackson never specifically blames anyone for Garcia’s problems, but does come to the same general conclusion as Greenfield: the Dead just toured too much and for too long, especially when Garcia probably should’ve been relaxing and taking care of his health.
As a biography, Jackson’s book is packed with first-hand sources and interviews and provides a reasonably clear picture of Garcia: a talented musician, but someone who didn’t like taking responsibility and didn’t like (or react well to) the pressures and trappings of fame. There are moments where he perhaps overwrites a bit:
“His guitar could cry tears born of existential longing one moment and roar like a firebreathing dragon the next. Sometimes one crystalline, perfectly formed note was all it took to draw a tear or a smile or even ask a question.”
But then again, it’s The Grateful Dead, so you’ve got to expect a bit of hyperbole.
All in all, a fully enjoyable, well-researched biography and one I’d recommend to fans of the Dead or Garcia’s solo music. There’s a nice annotated discography in the back, too, although it’s quite out of date at this point.
September 16, 2020
jerry was awesome and did a lot of cool stuff and i loved reading about him + the music 🪕
July 5, 2022
A year after Jerry Garcia died, Robert Hunter wrote an open letter to him and published it online. In it, he said, "Could I write a book about you? No. Didn't know you well enough. Let those who knew you even less write them. You were canny to keep your own self to yourself and let your fingers do the talking. Speaking of 'personal matters' was never your shtick."
Jackson seems to have taken the "own self" line to heart, because this book is not indelicate or overly speculative. He acknowledges several times that many people close to Garcia felt that he closed a certain extent of himself off from them; that he was not one to easily share his feelings. And that maybe later in life he took extra care to keep people at arm's length, because he was somewhat aware of his pattern of letting people get close and then disappointing them.
Garcia: An American Life provides a thorough account of Garcia's life and career and was clearly researched thoroughly. When it comes to his personal life, it's never "Garcia did X because of Y." Rather, it's "person A says he may have done X because of Y, and person B says it may have been because of Z." The account of his career is extremely detailed, with information about tours, recording sessions, band formations, abandoned projects, etc. Garcia was incredibly productive; the Grateful Dead played over 2300 shows in their 30-year run, and during periods when they weren't active, he actively pursued other projects: Jerry Garcia Band, David Grisman collaborations, drawing/painting, etc. As an artist, he was incredibly driven. He accomplished a great deal in his 53 years despite recurrent issues with addiction.
By far the hardest parts of the book to get through (emotionally, that is) deal with his inability to establish a stable home life (there are many instances of promptly cutting off romantic partners and not being around for his kids) and the extreme degree to which he just didn't take good care of himself (poor sleep, very little exercise, steady diet of junk food, 2-3 packs-a-day smoker, cocaine user, smoking heroin through tin foil...). You find yourself saying "if only he'd done this, if only, etc." The thing is, at every stage in his life there were people around who were trying to help him, but for every one person who was trying to help, there were seemingly 100 people who were stepping over themselves to indulge whatever vice he had in mind. Regardless, Garcia left behind a legacy of incredible music that, in the information age, is easily within reach for the curious listener. As of today there are over 16,000 recordings of over 2,000 Dead concerts available on the Internet Archive--not to mention the dozens and dozens of official Dead releases, JGB releases, and other projects he was involved with, all available in various listening formats. And on YouTube, there are several full concerts, many hosted on the official GD channel.
This is the first music biography I've read in quite some time, and I enjoyed it. Jackson should be commended for his extensive research and thoughtful approach.
Jackson seems to have taken the "own self" line to heart, because this book is not indelicate or overly speculative. He acknowledges several times that many people close to Garcia felt that he closed a certain extent of himself off from them; that he was not one to easily share his feelings. And that maybe later in life he took extra care to keep people at arm's length, because he was somewhat aware of his pattern of letting people get close and then disappointing them.
Garcia: An American Life provides a thorough account of Garcia's life and career and was clearly researched thoroughly. When it comes to his personal life, it's never "Garcia did X because of Y." Rather, it's "person A says he may have done X because of Y, and person B says it may have been because of Z." The account of his career is extremely detailed, with information about tours, recording sessions, band formations, abandoned projects, etc. Garcia was incredibly productive; the Grateful Dead played over 2300 shows in their 30-year run, and during periods when they weren't active, he actively pursued other projects: Jerry Garcia Band, David Grisman collaborations, drawing/painting, etc. As an artist, he was incredibly driven. He accomplished a great deal in his 53 years despite recurrent issues with addiction.
By far the hardest parts of the book to get through (emotionally, that is) deal with his inability to establish a stable home life (there are many instances of promptly cutting off romantic partners and not being around for his kids) and the extreme degree to which he just didn't take good care of himself (poor sleep, very little exercise, steady diet of junk food, 2-3 packs-a-day smoker, cocaine user, smoking heroin through tin foil...). You find yourself saying "if only he'd done this, if only, etc." The thing is, at every stage in his life there were people around who were trying to help him, but for every one person who was trying to help, there were seemingly 100 people who were stepping over themselves to indulge whatever vice he had in mind. Regardless, Garcia left behind a legacy of incredible music that, in the information age, is easily within reach for the curious listener. As of today there are over 16,000 recordings of over 2,000 Dead concerts available on the Internet Archive--not to mention the dozens and dozens of official Dead releases, JGB releases, and other projects he was involved with, all available in various listening formats. And on YouTube, there are several full concerts, many hosted on the official GD channel.
This is the first music biography I've read in quite some time, and I enjoyed it. Jackson should be commended for his extensive research and thoughtful approach.
July 13, 2024
I have been a Deadhead more on than off since being a teenager in 1980. In the days of vinyl and tapes I had everything anyone could have by them. They were my go to place to calm my OCD tendencies before the acronym OCD had been coined.
I started reading this book not expecting major revelations, but willing to have the condensed, or garbled, versions of how and where Jerry grew up I had learned in the past improved on, by some degree. At that level the book worked very well. The book tells the reader how many homes went through in his peripatetic childhood, where the great depression was always in the background for his parents generation, and the family finances were wobbly, at best.
What I had not expected with this fuller explanation was the realisation was how much his childhood made his feet and imagination itch to keep moving. How his always being on the move added to his character as a musician and band member and made touring and playing live a necessity. But that inference is easy to read into Jerry's early life, and later life. When change is your greatest constant how do you stop? Take a breather? Garcia had to forced to rest, quite often.
One of the narratives that gets too near cliche with repeated use in modern rock biographies is the descriptions of the lifecycle of the modern musician writing, recording, touring, resting, writing more..... and repeat to rinse or to exhaustion. Jackson half alters this narrative by describing what The Grateful dead do to stop repeating themselves, and renew themselves creatively in order to renew the bond the have with the people who see them live. But even relaying those changes, well told in previous books about the band, does not change the proximity of the book to lifestyle cliche. New songs, new venues, a new sound system, a new record label, are all of these become pieces of the bands renewal in the early 1970's.
More shocking for me was the band's apparent responses to the deaths within their community orbit. The deaths of Ron 'Pigpen' McKernan and of Janis Joplin where both musicians died when the band were in the middle of tours and responses were to bat news of the death away seemed offhand at best. Jackson could have made some comment about how immersive the touring life is, about it's temptation for those in it to become a part of a bubble for each other, cutting off awareness of what was happening outside the bubble. Jackson said nothing like that, though I suppose that for my being able to read what Blair Jackson write he allowed for people like me to draw the conclusion that I did of the bubble-like effect of being on tour as a musician. Maybe it was the drugs that the band members took to have the energy to commit to such consistent touring that causes the bubble/insularity effect where privately they still grieved for Janis and Pigpen. But they medicated the grief with the same substances that also helped them maintain a hectic touring schedule, LSD and cocaine.
I knew about the 'The Grateful Dead The Movie'. I used to have it on video cassette. I had known that it was Garcia's grand statement to the future from the present of 1974, when the concert footage was recorded. In the late 1980s/early 1990's I held the impression that Garcia took heroin to find the energy to finish the the film, and that was how he got addicted to it. My impression was that the film was what made him take the heroin. The impression that I was encouraged to have back than was well wide of the mark. The truth was that Jerry was clearly a workaholic from about 1972 and took on project and live combination after project after project alongside his commitments to The Grateful Dead and the addiction 'just crept up on him'. Some of his resistance to the drug was reduced by how it was sold to the him and many others by professional acquaintances of The Grateful Dead under the name of 'French opium'.
By page 300 or so The Grateful Dead had been hyper creative for being in the early years of having signed to Arista, they had recorded three studio albums, played in Egypt, and had reached their 15th year of being a band little realising how little gas was in the tank for their future studio recordings. Garcia himself had made more recordings outside of The Grateful Dead and after 'The Grateful Dead The Movie had become immersed in the editing and sound of several television/video projects where the band were well captured live. He also was also featured in, and was part of the support behind, the 1983 film 'Hells Angels Forever'.
Garcia still had yet to have the reality check that would make him attempt to be a reformed character, and that reality check was slow to emerge. The first sign of of it was Garcia being shut down as a person outside of playing to audiences. Group meetings had to be held at his house or not held at all, and very few were held. After 1982 new songs by Hunter/Garcia became much rarer and were played live but not recorded-Garcia disliked studio recording that much he simply refused to attempt/attend them-and whilst he married his long time partner, Mountain Girl, it was for tax reasons much more than for him to plan a new life with her. is long time partner.
Garcia and The Grateful Dead managed to give themselves a wide berth around one rock and roll cliche-'the final tour that should never have been undertaken/would be their ruin', in the 1980's at least, by making it two or three tours. With the first tour Jerry played well but was clearly the worse for personal wear and did not move or communicate much on stage. By the end of the second tour he had weaned himself off the heroin and pulled well back from the brink of destruction. But then came the move that was unique to him and The Dead-aged 44 he fell into a diabetic coma after up to that time not being slightly diagnosed with diabetes. All this whilst Ben and Jerry named a chocolate cherry and vanilla ice cream after Jerry which he was banned from tasting. Then there was the return tour and touring with Bob Dylan in different permutations as a final, decidedly mixed, return to form.
The period from 1987 to 1990 is covered in the least personal terms that it is reasonably possible to do. Garcia recovers from his coma, relearns how play guitar and begins to enjoy family life, both the Jerry Garcia Band and The Grateful Dead benefited hugely from the recovery that Garcia presented, with even lyricist Robert Hunter being the recipient of some of Jerry Garcia tasty guitar work that made the 1988 Hunter solo album 'Liberty' seem more complete than it otherwise would have been.
Between page 376 to page 455 the book details Jerry's life from 1989 to 95. It starts with Chapter 20, subtitled 'Show me something Built To Last' I felt that every chapter after and including that could have been subtitled titled 'Warning signs that were ignored' numbered 1, 2,3, or more depending on how the sequence flowed. Every sign of optimism and continuity that the band grasped led to further complications that compromised the plan they set up after it. It was as if The Grateful Dead were becoming a tightening Gordian knot around Jerry's life where quitting to outlive the band became beyond him. the corporate pressure increased as his health declined, the pressure became inescapable.
Up to 1989 Jerry had been in The Grateful Dead for twenty four years and on heroin for fourteen of those years. He had been off heroin for the three most recent years. From 1989 onwards, with the awkward details of the recording of 'Built To Last' and it being a relative flop, commercially where the upside was the relative lack of success gave the band breathing room to plan how and where to tour, through to how to keep tours more sustainable after, through to 'the 1995 tour from Hell' the optimism seemed to be more desperation than sure planning. The band went through deaths-Brent Mydland in 1990 and Bill Graham in 1991, they went through stalled studio sessions for the post 1990 songs, there were two relatively minor relapses in Garcia's health/addiction where hiding them made them harder to recover from, the list went on. Brent's decline and departure was explained by how good a player he was vs how he grew up without the wealth of personal development resources that the rest of the band had received without them even realising it. But discussing what level of personal development was required to make The Grateful Dead Inc seem personal to followers in the 1990's remained unexplored.
Bruce Hornsby breathed new life into the band and the text here. But it was clear that he resisted being subsumed into The Grateful dead Inc from the off. Hornsby was out on his own, an intermittent guest of the band and absent when in a 1991 group management meeting Jerry rhetorically asked fellow band members 'Am I the only one here who thinks stadium shows suck?', as if the pressure of playing such huge scale shows placed on the band was not worth the band being on the treadmill of a tour circuit that completing such shows meant. And yet a few pages later the author, Blair Jackson praises the 1991 tour as refreshing and reaching new heights of creative playing-partly because of the freshness Bruce Hornsby brought. All the while Garcia was more enthused by the new acoustic guitar adventures that opened up to him. Behind Jerry's band meeting comment was a coded plea for help/release - the pressure of work had once again made him be secretive towards himself and others and return to using Heroin after his 1986/7 crisis and personal repudiation of taking hard drugs.
Jerry was just not blunt enough with the band for them to realise that however much they would have been poorer financially, reducing the scale of the touring would have rebalanced both him and the band, and got more song writing completed. Being the highest grossing touring band in the world was a position that it was temptation The Grateful Dead found it impossible to give up. By 1992 new tunes were squeezed out by Jerry and Robert Hunter. Other band members also wrote songs that lifted their stage performances. Worse than the bluntness required for the band to give themselves a break, seemingly the band planned one year ahead but the venues they booked planned two years ahead. This meant that the band had to plan any break from touring two years ahead and stick with the plan; they didn't not plan two years ahead like they needed to.
1993 brought forth the final batch of new songs from Hunter/Garcia, written in one the periods of new love/relative rest for Garcia, where even there-out of the rest-came new complications in Jerry's personal commitments. He paid for his falling in and out of love with multiple payments to these ex-partners. By 1994 had three ex-partners to make palimony payments to, and a wife to keep, and the man to officiate over the 1994 wedding ceremony was the Creation Centred Spirituality priest Mathew Fox, who was some sort of mentor/support to Jerry. What Mathew Fox said to Jerry in private about all the multiple unsustainable commitments that Garcia undertook can only be guessed at. What was left unsaid but was more evident was how badly Jerry's playing had become in both the Grateful Dead, where the rest of the band had their musical work-arounds to Jerry sounding exhausted, and The Jerry Garcia Band where the choice with bad playing was pack up, go home, and cancel the rest of the immediate dates.
Less than two years after officiating over Jerry's third marriage Mathew Fox was officiating at Jerry's funeral. The last twenty nine pages of the book are all about the fall out that everybody brought up and shared with each other after the death of Jerry from 'natural causes', the arteries if his heart being so thickly lined that a heart attack was the only realistic option. There is a ghostly quality to much of the postscript, and that is without me adding that I read this improvised afterword to Jerry's life some twenty five years after it was written-past lives that were lived that fast but that recently/but that were long enough ago in technological and music business time to make for odd reading.
I started reading this book not expecting major revelations, but willing to have the condensed, or garbled, versions of how and where Jerry grew up I had learned in the past improved on, by some degree. At that level the book worked very well. The book tells the reader how many homes went through in his peripatetic childhood, where the great depression was always in the background for his parents generation, and the family finances were wobbly, at best.
What I had not expected with this fuller explanation was the realisation was how much his childhood made his feet and imagination itch to keep moving. How his always being on the move added to his character as a musician and band member and made touring and playing live a necessity. But that inference is easy to read into Jerry's early life, and later life. When change is your greatest constant how do you stop? Take a breather? Garcia had to forced to rest, quite often.
One of the narratives that gets too near cliche with repeated use in modern rock biographies is the descriptions of the lifecycle of the modern musician writing, recording, touring, resting, writing more..... and repeat to rinse or to exhaustion. Jackson half alters this narrative by describing what The Grateful dead do to stop repeating themselves, and renew themselves creatively in order to renew the bond the have with the people who see them live. But even relaying those changes, well told in previous books about the band, does not change the proximity of the book to lifestyle cliche. New songs, new venues, a new sound system, a new record label, are all of these become pieces of the bands renewal in the early 1970's.
More shocking for me was the band's apparent responses to the deaths within their community orbit. The deaths of Ron 'Pigpen' McKernan and of Janis Joplin where both musicians died when the band were in the middle of tours and responses were to bat news of the death away seemed offhand at best. Jackson could have made some comment about how immersive the touring life is, about it's temptation for those in it to become a part of a bubble for each other, cutting off awareness of what was happening outside the bubble. Jackson said nothing like that, though I suppose that for my being able to read what Blair Jackson write he allowed for people like me to draw the conclusion that I did of the bubble-like effect of being on tour as a musician. Maybe it was the drugs that the band members took to have the energy to commit to such consistent touring that causes the bubble/insularity effect where privately they still grieved for Janis and Pigpen. But they medicated the grief with the same substances that also helped them maintain a hectic touring schedule, LSD and cocaine.
I knew about the 'The Grateful Dead The Movie'. I used to have it on video cassette. I had known that it was Garcia's grand statement to the future from the present of 1974, when the concert footage was recorded. In the late 1980s/early 1990's I held the impression that Garcia took heroin to find the energy to finish the the film, and that was how he got addicted to it. My impression was that the film was what made him take the heroin. The impression that I was encouraged to have back than was well wide of the mark. The truth was that Jerry was clearly a workaholic from about 1972 and took on project and live combination after project after project alongside his commitments to The Grateful Dead and the addiction 'just crept up on him'. Some of his resistance to the drug was reduced by how it was sold to the him and many others by professional acquaintances of The Grateful Dead under the name of 'French opium'.
By page 300 or so The Grateful Dead had been hyper creative for being in the early years of having signed to Arista, they had recorded three studio albums, played in Egypt, and had reached their 15th year of being a band little realising how little gas was in the tank for their future studio recordings. Garcia himself had made more recordings outside of The Grateful Dead and after 'The Grateful Dead The Movie had become immersed in the editing and sound of several television/video projects where the band were well captured live. He also was also featured in, and was part of the support behind, the 1983 film 'Hells Angels Forever'.
Garcia still had yet to have the reality check that would make him attempt to be a reformed character, and that reality check was slow to emerge. The first sign of of it was Garcia being shut down as a person outside of playing to audiences. Group meetings had to be held at his house or not held at all, and very few were held. After 1982 new songs by Hunter/Garcia became much rarer and were played live but not recorded-Garcia disliked studio recording that much he simply refused to attempt/attend them-and whilst he married his long time partner, Mountain Girl, it was for tax reasons much more than for him to plan a new life with her. is long time partner.
Garcia and The Grateful Dead managed to give themselves a wide berth around one rock and roll cliche-'the final tour that should never have been undertaken/would be their ruin', in the 1980's at least, by making it two or three tours. With the first tour Jerry played well but was clearly the worse for personal wear and did not move or communicate much on stage. By the end of the second tour he had weaned himself off the heroin and pulled well back from the brink of destruction. But then came the move that was unique to him and The Dead-aged 44 he fell into a diabetic coma after up to that time not being slightly diagnosed with diabetes. All this whilst Ben and Jerry named a chocolate cherry and vanilla ice cream after Jerry which he was banned from tasting. Then there was the return tour and touring with Bob Dylan in different permutations as a final, decidedly mixed, return to form.
The period from 1987 to 1990 is covered in the least personal terms that it is reasonably possible to do. Garcia recovers from his coma, relearns how play guitar and begins to enjoy family life, both the Jerry Garcia Band and The Grateful Dead benefited hugely from the recovery that Garcia presented, with even lyricist Robert Hunter being the recipient of some of Jerry Garcia tasty guitar work that made the 1988 Hunter solo album 'Liberty' seem more complete than it otherwise would have been.
Between page 376 to page 455 the book details Jerry's life from 1989 to 95. It starts with Chapter 20, subtitled 'Show me something Built To Last' I felt that every chapter after and including that could have been subtitled titled 'Warning signs that were ignored' numbered 1, 2,3, or more depending on how the sequence flowed. Every sign of optimism and continuity that the band grasped led to further complications that compromised the plan they set up after it. It was as if The Grateful Dead were becoming a tightening Gordian knot around Jerry's life where quitting to outlive the band became beyond him. the corporate pressure increased as his health declined, the pressure became inescapable.
Up to 1989 Jerry had been in The Grateful Dead for twenty four years and on heroin for fourteen of those years. He had been off heroin for the three most recent years. From 1989 onwards, with the awkward details of the recording of 'Built To Last' and it being a relative flop, commercially where the upside was the relative lack of success gave the band breathing room to plan how and where to tour, through to how to keep tours more sustainable after, through to 'the 1995 tour from Hell' the optimism seemed to be more desperation than sure planning. The band went through deaths-Brent Mydland in 1990 and Bill Graham in 1991, they went through stalled studio sessions for the post 1990 songs, there were two relatively minor relapses in Garcia's health/addiction where hiding them made them harder to recover from, the list went on. Brent's decline and departure was explained by how good a player he was vs how he grew up without the wealth of personal development resources that the rest of the band had received without them even realising it. But discussing what level of personal development was required to make The Grateful Dead Inc seem personal to followers in the 1990's remained unexplored.
Bruce Hornsby breathed new life into the band and the text here. But it was clear that he resisted being subsumed into The Grateful dead Inc from the off. Hornsby was out on his own, an intermittent guest of the band and absent when in a 1991 group management meeting Jerry rhetorically asked fellow band members 'Am I the only one here who thinks stadium shows suck?', as if the pressure of playing such huge scale shows placed on the band was not worth the band being on the treadmill of a tour circuit that completing such shows meant. And yet a few pages later the author, Blair Jackson praises the 1991 tour as refreshing and reaching new heights of creative playing-partly because of the freshness Bruce Hornsby brought. All the while Garcia was more enthused by the new acoustic guitar adventures that opened up to him. Behind Jerry's band meeting comment was a coded plea for help/release - the pressure of work had once again made him be secretive towards himself and others and return to using Heroin after his 1986/7 crisis and personal repudiation of taking hard drugs.
Jerry was just not blunt enough with the band for them to realise that however much they would have been poorer financially, reducing the scale of the touring would have rebalanced both him and the band, and got more song writing completed. Being the highest grossing touring band in the world was a position that it was temptation The Grateful Dead found it impossible to give up. By 1992 new tunes were squeezed out by Jerry and Robert Hunter. Other band members also wrote songs that lifted their stage performances. Worse than the bluntness required for the band to give themselves a break, seemingly the band planned one year ahead but the venues they booked planned two years ahead. This meant that the band had to plan any break from touring two years ahead and stick with the plan; they didn't not plan two years ahead like they needed to.
1993 brought forth the final batch of new songs from Hunter/Garcia, written in one the periods of new love/relative rest for Garcia, where even there-out of the rest-came new complications in Jerry's personal commitments. He paid for his falling in and out of love with multiple payments to these ex-partners. By 1994 had three ex-partners to make palimony payments to, and a wife to keep, and the man to officiate over the 1994 wedding ceremony was the Creation Centred Spirituality priest Mathew Fox, who was some sort of mentor/support to Jerry. What Mathew Fox said to Jerry in private about all the multiple unsustainable commitments that Garcia undertook can only be guessed at. What was left unsaid but was more evident was how badly Jerry's playing had become in both the Grateful Dead, where the rest of the band had their musical work-arounds to Jerry sounding exhausted, and The Jerry Garcia Band where the choice with bad playing was pack up, go home, and cancel the rest of the immediate dates.
Less than two years after officiating over Jerry's third marriage Mathew Fox was officiating at Jerry's funeral. The last twenty nine pages of the book are all about the fall out that everybody brought up and shared with each other after the death of Jerry from 'natural causes', the arteries if his heart being so thickly lined that a heart attack was the only realistic option. There is a ghostly quality to much of the postscript, and that is without me adding that I read this improvised afterword to Jerry's life some twenty five years after it was written-past lives that were lived that fast but that recently/but that were long enough ago in technological and music business time to make for odd reading.
November 17, 2018
I read this concurrently with "A Long, Strange Trip" by Dennis McNally. Of the two books, this one may be slightly more breathlessly idolatrous, but they're both written by insiders, and thus, true believers. (Full disclosure: I attended about 24 GD shows between the years 1972 and 1981.) Also, the account of certain events in GD history are not consistent between the two books.
Since this one concentrates on Garcia, you get a much better idea of how this tremendous engine of creativity affected the lives of the other band members, inside and outside of music. You also get somewhat of a feel of JG's shortcomings in his relations with wives, girlfriends, daughters, and fellow musicians, but somehow I felt that we aren't given the full story.
It's also kind of annoying to hear BJ pronounce JG's playing "brilliant" at certain concerts late in his life, when I could easily listen to those on-line and come away with a much, much different take. Maybe brilliant in comparison with the many dismal shows during those years, but his playing and singing obviously peaked much sooner.
It's probably an unintentional effect, but I came away with a definite disappointment in the people around JG. I think it's too self-serving to say that he was going to do what he wanted -- there are examples of how controlling people like Manasha and Deborah dictated to Jerry. There were people around him who could have helped the guy, but that whole "let everyone do their own thing" and "don't be uncool" mindset wasn't going to help. Even with those around him who said "we really tried" aren't very specific.
Since this one concentrates on Garcia, you get a much better idea of how this tremendous engine of creativity affected the lives of the other band members, inside and outside of music. You also get somewhat of a feel of JG's shortcomings in his relations with wives, girlfriends, daughters, and fellow musicians, but somehow I felt that we aren't given the full story.
It's also kind of annoying to hear BJ pronounce JG's playing "brilliant" at certain concerts late in his life, when I could easily listen to those on-line and come away with a much, much different take. Maybe brilliant in comparison with the many dismal shows during those years, but his playing and singing obviously peaked much sooner.
It's probably an unintentional effect, but I came away with a definite disappointment in the people around JG. I think it's too self-serving to say that he was going to do what he wanted -- there are examples of how controlling people like Manasha and Deborah dictated to Jerry. There were people around him who could have helped the guy, but that whole "let everyone do their own thing" and "don't be uncool" mindset wasn't going to help. Even with those around him who said "we really tried" aren't very specific.
August 9, 2012
This is one of the first books I ever read that wasn't in some way, shape, or form mandatory. It really sparked the love of reading I have today and the stories are just amazing. I haven't gone back to it in some time and should probably download it and read it again soon. It was an awesome portrait of Jerry and the band and really makes you feel like you were there with them. The Acid Test parts especially where they mess up the dosage were great.
June 18, 2015
As he once so beautifully sang, "You gave all you had. Why you wanna give more? The more that you give, the more it will take. To the thin line beyond which you really can't fake."
A musician I am glad to have heard perform dozens of times.
A musician I am glad to have heard perform dozens of times.
October 29, 2016
I've been wanting to read this for quite some time now, glad I came across a copy of it at my local library. It's probably the most thorough and thoughtful Dead related book I've read yet, it was great that Blair Jackson had access to so many in his circles.
October 15, 2020
Blair Jackson's 1999 biography of Jerry Garcia is the best known biography of the artist. Jackson did an impressive amount of research to construct this book, and made it as full in scope as he could without allowing the book to balloon out of control. It's almost certainly the best starting point for anybody interested in studying the life of Garcia and the days of the Grateful Dead.
Notoriety and research aside, though, this book is uneven at best. Jackson's writing focuses on the bookends of Garcia's output. There is a lot of information about the early years, ranging from his birth to the days of the Warlocks in 1965. Jackson also provides a lot of coverage of the final years of Garcia's life, particularly the bad-old days of 1993-1995. Most fans of Garcia's work are likely to be interested in the years in between. Unfortunately, Jackson allows the whirlwind days of the Grateful Dead to pass through quickly, with little more than a token mention of the poetical lyrics of this song or of the controversy surrounding that show.
In particular, the sacred monuments of the Deadhead world are largely passed over: there is nothing on the May 8, 1977 Barton Hall concert (but more than enough about the 1978 Egypt debacle); the excellent March 29, 1990 show with Branford Marsalis receives parts of two paragraphs; crazy shows like the April 24, 1978 "Staying Alive" show and the June 20, 1983 "lightning strike" mudfest are not mentioned at all, and so on. True, we can't have all of our favorite shows mentioned without this turning into Deadbase or the Trader's Compendium - but Jackson's decisions certainly could be better.
I could accept having fewer stories of legendary performances in trade for more information on who Garcia really was. Unfortunately, we don't really get much insight into him at all. The idealistic hippie we learn to love in the beginning goes away with the rest of the band in 1974, replaced within a matter of pages by an overweight, heroin-addicted multi-millionaire who doesn't seem to be interested in the music anymore. The all-too-real stories of Jerry's recurring heroin addiction in the last 15 years of his life is guaranteed to make all readers feel unhappy - but where is the analysis into why he kept turning to the hug of death? Death itself is a constant theme within this book - and yet the deaths of Pigpen, Keith Godchaux, and Brent Mydland are passed over quickly, nothing more than a landmark in the journey from tour to tour.
We could have used less of the Tour from Hell and more of the Jerry we all love. Was it really necessary to report all the eulogies that were given at Garcia's death? Why spend so many pages talking about the myriad of post-Grateful Dead projects, most of which are no longer relevant? Instead of breaking down the alimony payments Garcia made during his final years, and instead of idle speculation about Deborah's spending habits, why don't we do a mathematical analysis of the frequency of songs played?
In the end, this book left me feeling cold and empty. I'm done with the biographies, and will focus my efforts on listening to the music from here on out. This book isn't awful, but it really doesn't come close to expressing the majesty of the man.
Notoriety and research aside, though, this book is uneven at best. Jackson's writing focuses on the bookends of Garcia's output. There is a lot of information about the early years, ranging from his birth to the days of the Warlocks in 1965. Jackson also provides a lot of coverage of the final years of Garcia's life, particularly the bad-old days of 1993-1995. Most fans of Garcia's work are likely to be interested in the years in between. Unfortunately, Jackson allows the whirlwind days of the Grateful Dead to pass through quickly, with little more than a token mention of the poetical lyrics of this song or of the controversy surrounding that show.
In particular, the sacred monuments of the Deadhead world are largely passed over: there is nothing on the May 8, 1977 Barton Hall concert (but more than enough about the 1978 Egypt debacle); the excellent March 29, 1990 show with Branford Marsalis receives parts of two paragraphs; crazy shows like the April 24, 1978 "Staying Alive" show and the June 20, 1983 "lightning strike" mudfest are not mentioned at all, and so on. True, we can't have all of our favorite shows mentioned without this turning into Deadbase or the Trader's Compendium - but Jackson's decisions certainly could be better.
I could accept having fewer stories of legendary performances in trade for more information on who Garcia really was. Unfortunately, we don't really get much insight into him at all. The idealistic hippie we learn to love in the beginning goes away with the rest of the band in 1974, replaced within a matter of pages by an overweight, heroin-addicted multi-millionaire who doesn't seem to be interested in the music anymore. The all-too-real stories of Jerry's recurring heroin addiction in the last 15 years of his life is guaranteed to make all readers feel unhappy - but where is the analysis into why he kept turning to the hug of death? Death itself is a constant theme within this book - and yet the deaths of Pigpen, Keith Godchaux, and Brent Mydland are passed over quickly, nothing more than a landmark in the journey from tour to tour.
We could have used less of the Tour from Hell and more of the Jerry we all love. Was it really necessary to report all the eulogies that were given at Garcia's death? Why spend so many pages talking about the myriad of post-Grateful Dead projects, most of which are no longer relevant? Instead of breaking down the alimony payments Garcia made during his final years, and instead of idle speculation about Deborah's spending habits, why don't we do a mathematical analysis of the frequency of songs played?
In the end, this book left me feeling cold and empty. I'm done with the biographies, and will focus my efforts on listening to the music from here on out. This book isn't awful, but it really doesn't come close to expressing the majesty of the man.
March 20, 2023
Blair Jackson is one of the most renowned Dead scholars out there, and this is a well written, even-handed biography of Jerry Garcia that doesn't shrink from dealing with the less savoury side of the Head Dead while never descending into prurience. Garcia comes across as a mess of contradictions - a bandleader who refused to lead, a peacenik who consorted with Hell's Angels, a generally kind soul whose treatment of wives and girlfriends was frequently appalling, a counterculture icon who ended up designing neckties and being welcomed to the White House by Al and Tipper Gore, an unworldly anti-materialist who ended up heading a multimillion-dollar corporation.
One could argue that Garcia and the Dead as a whole never really got the critical kudos they deserved after about 1970, but nearly thirty years on their various offshoots keep on truckin' and playin' to new generations of fans which is a special kind of immortality.
As is often the case, the early years are the most interesting, though JG never really slowed down despite the multiple health issues brought on by heroin and a terrible diet. Probably most fans would agree that peak Dead was 1969-1979 but Jackson makes the case that later periods, though undoubtedly patchy, have their glorious moments.
Perhaps the most moving tribute after his death came from the famously taciturn Dylan, not normally one for broadcasting his feelings to the world: “There’s no way to measure his greatness as a person or as a player. I don’t think eulogizing will do him justice. He was that great—much more than a superb musician with an uncanny ear and dexterity. He is the very spirit personified of whatever is muddy river country at its core and screams up into the spheres. He really had no equal.... There are a lot of spaces between the Carter Family, Buddy Holly and, say, Ornette Coleman, a lot of universes, but he filled them all without being a member of any school. His playing was moody, awesome, hypnotic and subtle. There’s no way to convey the loss. It just digs down really deep.”
One could argue that Garcia and the Dead as a whole never really got the critical kudos they deserved after about 1970, but nearly thirty years on their various offshoots keep on truckin' and playin' to new generations of fans which is a special kind of immortality.
As is often the case, the early years are the most interesting, though JG never really slowed down despite the multiple health issues brought on by heroin and a terrible diet. Probably most fans would agree that peak Dead was 1969-1979 but Jackson makes the case that later periods, though undoubtedly patchy, have their glorious moments.
Perhaps the most moving tribute after his death came from the famously taciturn Dylan, not normally one for broadcasting his feelings to the world: “There’s no way to measure his greatness as a person or as a player. I don’t think eulogizing will do him justice. He was that great—much more than a superb musician with an uncanny ear and dexterity. He is the very spirit personified of whatever is muddy river country at its core and screams up into the spheres. He really had no equal.... There are a lot of spaces between the Carter Family, Buddy Holly and, say, Ornette Coleman, a lot of universes, but he filled them all without being a member of any school. His playing was moody, awesome, hypnotic and subtle. There’s no way to convey the loss. It just digs down really deep.”
August 7, 2020
Garcia: An American Life by Blair Jackson is a fantastic read. Every detail of Jerry’s life is explored and explained in thorough detail, from his early years growing up right through his passing. Obviously the book explores in detail all of Garcia’s work with the Grateful Dead, so if you’re a fan like I am, you won’t be disappointed.
While the book is well written, it could have been even better if there had been more perspectives, specifically from other band members. While there are bits and pieces in this regard, I have to assume they did not want to contribute to this book. It’s a shame, because everything else that is here gives you a real sense of Garcia.
There is no doubt after reading this that Jerry had problems with drugs, and he also had many other issues as well. It’s a shame, because the book makes you wonder how great Jerry REALLY could have been if he had his act together. As a fan, it was hard to read some of this, but to be honest, it’s one of the best rock biographies I’ve read and I couldn’t put it down.
While the book is well written, it could have been even better if there had been more perspectives, specifically from other band members. While there are bits and pieces in this regard, I have to assume they did not want to contribute to this book. It’s a shame, because everything else that is here gives you a real sense of Garcia.
There is no doubt after reading this that Jerry had problems with drugs, and he also had many other issues as well. It’s a shame, because the book makes you wonder how great Jerry REALLY could have been if he had his act together. As a fan, it was hard to read some of this, but to be honest, it’s one of the best rock biographies I’ve read and I couldn’t put it down.
August 15, 2021
Everything you wanted to know about Jerry Garcia, and a lot you didn't, more than likely.
This was an epic journey about the life and death of Jerry Garcia. Much of it was moving, loads of it was heart-breaking, and some of it was amusing. Loads of discussions about music, naturally, with various shows and albums dissected and picked apart in detail, which you may or may not agree with.
One bit that did not sit particularly well with me was the description of events that unfolded at Deer Creek in 1995. The band was playing Desolution Row when a flood of people flowed over the fence. I still don't like listening to that song 26 years later. And, the flow of people did not stop until after that song which never ends ended. We could taste the tear gas in the air inside the venue. It was hell.
When it's all said and done, I still miss Jerry. And, his far-too-early death still stings like it was yesterday. #NFA #faretheewell
This was an epic journey about the life and death of Jerry Garcia. Much of it was moving, loads of it was heart-breaking, and some of it was amusing. Loads of discussions about music, naturally, with various shows and albums dissected and picked apart in detail, which you may or may not agree with.
One bit that did not sit particularly well with me was the description of events that unfolded at Deer Creek in 1995. The band was playing Desolution Row when a flood of people flowed over the fence. I still don't like listening to that song 26 years later. And, the flow of people did not stop until after that song which never ends ended. We could taste the tear gas in the air inside the venue. It was hell.
When it's all said and done, I still miss Jerry. And, his far-too-early death still stings like it was yesterday. #NFA #faretheewell
August 10, 2020
I wanted to finish this yesterday, but couldn’t get motivated. So I finished it today, which turns out to be the day after the anniversary of Jerry Garcia’s passing. Maybe The Universe was speaking?
This is a book about the man. Not the Grateful Dead. The book details his relentless focus on music, his continual challenges with lifestyle choices, and his deep down appreciation for people, humor, and Life. The book is also about Escapism, and how music, self destructive behavior, and relationships all played a role.
I recently finished a 60 day listening session of The Grateful Dead 1972 Europe tour and although not necessary, I feel as though that experience helped me to understand the many layers of Meaning in this book, and the Life of Jerry Garcia.
This is a book about the man. Not the Grateful Dead. The book details his relentless focus on music, his continual challenges with lifestyle choices, and his deep down appreciation for people, humor, and Life. The book is also about Escapism, and how music, self destructive behavior, and relationships all played a role.
I recently finished a 60 day listening session of The Grateful Dead 1972 Europe tour and although not necessary, I feel as though that experience helped me to understand the many layers of Meaning in this book, and the Life of Jerry Garcia.
May 8, 2024
The midcentury religion of psychedelic hedonism found an unlikely prophet in this young banjo player from San Francisco. The story of the Grateful Dead runs through strange backwoods in the late 20th Century and this book tells you a lot -- possibly too much -- about the musical magician at the center of the band's signature noise. Jackson warns the reader up front that this is not a disinterested biography but that doesn't help the pages-long descriptions of individual concerts, though the music is an enormous part of the story. The later chapters, on the band's later years, victims of their own success, include some genuinely nightmarish bits.
Well-written, detailed, and inclusive in its sources. This old Deadhead enjoyed it.
Well-written, detailed, and inclusive in its sources. This old Deadhead enjoyed it.
March 22, 2017
The only reason it took me forever to read this one is because I read several music books before it, including two other Dead books (Long Strange Trip and Phil Lesh's memoir). I am glad that I finally finished it, because it was an amazing, balanced, well-informed but not slanderous book. I was fully expecting there would be nothing but, or mostly hero worship, with the writing supporting that. Another really good music book, and not just for Dead Heads. I love how you get the whole story, and not just white washed pieces to make Garcia seem like a hero. Now, everyone knows that while he was a wonderful guitar player, writer, and also an overall pretty nice guy, he sure as hell wasn't perfect, or an idol, which is what some books would lead the reader to believe.
October 5, 2020
Couldn't put it down, yet it left me wanting more. Luckily the author maintains a website with another hundred or so pages worth of material that was excised after the publisher, at the last minute, reduced the maximum length they would produce. Oddly, the material on the website has felt, perhaps, even more compelling than the book itself. Having read the book, may colir that perception. The author explains on his webite the reason no interviews with Garcia's wife at the time of his death were included. However, it remains somewhat of a mystery why not a single interview with Brent Mydland found its way into the narrative.
May 4, 2025
Started out great than really hard to read very slow saw myself turning pages ,the best parts are the early years on how the band took shape and achieved that sound
Sad that in 1990's more intervention by the band to help Jerry overcome his addiction and why he didn't have a " family doctor " I-asked )to help him ,it seemed he wanted to get better he needed aggressive care
He died in a non medical rehab he needed to be in a hospital ,he was a overweight sleep apneic diabetic chain smoker with serious drug addiction
It was only mater of time
He left a void in that band that can never be filled
No offense John Mayer
Sad that in 1990's more intervention by the band to help Jerry overcome his addiction and why he didn't have a " family doctor " I-asked )to help him ,it seemed he wanted to get better he needed aggressive care
He died in a non medical rehab he needed to be in a hospital ,he was a overweight sleep apneic diabetic chain smoker with serious drug addiction
It was only mater of time
He left a void in that band that can never be filled
No offense John Mayer
November 27, 2020
An incredibly detailed account of the life and times of Jerry Garcia and all of the characters, events, music, culture and history around him. Unlike many other similar books I’ve read, this one does a nice job with Garcia family history which had a huge impact on JG’s life. Blair Jackson did a ton of research for this book, and sometimes gets too deep in the weeds. However, I applaud his storytelling and the wonderful poetry in parts of the book. In the end the book left me fulfilled, entertained, amazed and enthralled. Jerry’s end of life was sad but he lived hard.
September 8, 2025
For-Ever Garcia
This is the story of a man who touched the hearts of many a human kind. If you were ever put in a place by fate to meet him and his guitar and his giant caring heart, you have friends across the world. He is and was a shining light in this tumultuous life we live now. This book captures the times from the 60's to the 90's using Jerry's guitar as a solid piece of wood to hold onto with your heart. If you are a friend to Jerry,,,read this book.
This is the story of a man who touched the hearts of many a human kind. If you were ever put in a place by fate to meet him and his guitar and his giant caring heart, you have friends across the world. He is and was a shining light in this tumultuous life we live now. This book captures the times from the 60's to the 90's using Jerry's guitar as a solid piece of wood to hold onto with your heart. If you are a friend to Jerry,,,read this book.
December 23, 2025
Overall my favorite Grateful Dead/Jerry Garcia biography. It thoroughly details every era of Jerry's life, from losing his finger as a boy to his brother's axe, through the early days of folk, bluegrass and jug band music, to his untimely death and the celebrations of this life that followed. This the most balanced Jerry biography, showcasing his deep artistry while telling the honest story of his failings. Must read!
July 29, 2022
I’ve read a lot about Jerry Garcia, his life, music, and the Dead. This is one of the best. If there is any one book I’d suggest for someone who wanted to find out what made this groundbreaking musician and counterculture icon so important and mesmerizing to so many of us I think this is the one I’d suggest. I love you Jerry. I’m still in mourning. 5*****
August 18, 2023
Assuming you’re a fan of the Dead, it’s a solid read. At times could be dry and repetitive specifically talking about setlists and tour repetitions. Jerry’s early years specifically were handled with much intrigue and new information. I felt Jackson handled Jerry’s complexity with the treatment it deserved, highlighting both the triumphs and the tribulations of JG.
March 6, 2025
Great Garcia Primer
When it all came down to it, it always started and ended with Jerry. Been listete him most of my life without knowing much about him. He was always an enigma (kind of where I wanted him). That being said, it was good to delve deeply into his realm. The book is well written and honest. Thanks
When it all came down to it, it always started and ended with Jerry. Been listete him most of my life without knowing much about him. He was always an enigma (kind of where I wanted him). That being said, it was good to delve deeply into his realm. The book is well written and honest. Thanks
October 4, 2017
Until the end, feels more like a chronicle of the Grateful Dead than a biography of Jerry.
August 3, 2018
what a life
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