Life lessons on two wheels to the tunes of the

Grateful Dead

This Week in Grateful Dead History

Week 1

I wish I was a headlight on a northbound train.

 

 

Even the most cursory examination of the lyrics of Grateful Dead songs quickly uncovers one of the most fundamental aspects of the band’s identity: This is an American band, rooted in American culture, and built around easily recognizable locales and deeply American principles and history. 

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Other Posts

This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 33 - August 13, 1975It’s fireworks, calliopes and clowns

This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 33 - August 13, 1975

It’s fireworks, calliopes and clowns

As we reach the week following the “Days Between” (the period from Jerry Garcia’s August 1 birthday through his August 9 passing), one can’t help but be struck by the enduring nature of the Grateful Dead. More than 50 years have gone by since the band’s first performance under the name, “Grateful Dead,” and almost half of that period has passed since their final performance on July 9, 1995. And yet, quite literally, the “music never stopped.” What is it about the Grateful Dead that has captivated millions the world over from multiple generations over the course of more than a half-century?

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This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 16 - April 12, 1978Is there anything a man don’t stand to lose

This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 16 - April 12, 1978

Is there anything a man don’t stand to lose

I was first exposed to bigotry at the age of five when my family unwittingly became the only Jewish residents of what proved to be a passionately anti-Semitic neighborhood in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The year was 1960, and the hateful echoes of the Holocaust were still plainly audible, particularly among the already settled Scandinavian and Protestant Anglo-Saxon population, which made no effort to conceal their displeasure at the significant influx of Jewish families to the Twin Cities.

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This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 39 – September 22, 1991The bottle was dusty

This Week in Grateful Dead History: Week 39 – September 22, 1991

The bottle was dusty

The Deadhead Cyclist was recently the special guest on the Deadhead Cannabis Show, and I was asked, “What was your favorite period in Grateful Dead history?” The timing of this question was particularly interesting, as just the day before the interview I was listening to the 9/22/91 show from the Boston Garden, while riding my favorite trails in the foothills just west of my home in Boulder, CO. This show is truly a gem, and I had already decided to make it my pick for T.W.I.G.D.H., making the prospect of a response a bit trickier than it might have been otherwise.

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Stew Sallo, A.K.A., The Deadhead Cyclist

Stew Sallo is the author of the book, The Deadhead Cyclist, and founder/owner of Boulder Weekly, an award-winning alternative weekly in its 30th year of publication in print and online at BoulderWeekly.com. After graduating from the University of California, Santa Cruz, he cut his teeth as a publisher in Santa Cruz for 10 years before relocating to Boulder to start the Boulder Weekly. He has been a Deadhead since the summer of 1974, attended his first Grateful Dead concert at Winterland in San Francisco on October 19, 1974, and has since been to some 200 Grateful Dead concerts. Stew is an avid mountain biker, plays competitive baseball on three teams in his home state of Colorado, and travels each year to play tournament baseball in California, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina, South Dakota and Florida. In 2003, Stew founded the classic rock band, Hindsight. He plays a Martin D-41 in the band and sings lead and backup vocals. Stew lives in Boulder, CO with his wife of 23 years, Mari, and their 12-year-old dog, Bella.

All Material Copyright 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 by Stewart Sallo