The Grateful Dead was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area amid the rise of the counterculture of the 1960s. The founding members were Jerry Garcia (lead guitar, vocals), Bob Weir (rhythm guitar, vocals), Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (keyboards, harmonica, vocals), Phil Lesh (bass, vocals), and Bill Kreutzmann (drums). Members of the Grateful Dead had played together in various San Francisco bands, including Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions and the Warlocks. Lesh was the last member to join the Warlocks before they became the Grateful Dead; he replaced Dana Morgan Jr., who had played bass for a few gigs. Drummer Mickey Hart and non-performing lyricist Robert Hunter joined in 1967. With the exception of McKernan, who died in 1973, and Hart, who took time off from 1971 to 1974, the core of the band stayed together for its entire 30-year history. The other official members of the band are Tom Constanten (keyboards; 1968–1970), John Perry Barlow (nonperforming lyricist; 1971–1995), Keith Godchaux (keyboards; 1971–1979), Donna Godchaux (vocals; 1972–1979), Brent Mydland (keyboards, vocals; 1979–1990), and Vince Welnick (keyboards, vocals; 1990–1995). Bruce Hornsby (accordion, piano, vocals) was a touring member from 1990 to 1992, as well as a guest with the band on occasion before and after the tours.
The name "Grateful Dead" was chosen from a dictionary. According to Phil Lesh, "[Jerry Garcia] picked up an old Britannica World Language Dictionary ... [and] ... In that silvery elf-voice he said to me, 'Hey, man, how about the Grateful Dead?'" The definition there was "the soul of a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". According to Alan Trist, director of the Grateful Dead's music publisher company Ice Nine, Garcia found the name in the Funk & Wagnalls Folklore Dictionary, when his finger landed on that phrase while playing a game of Fictionary. In the Garcia biography, Captain Trips, author Sandy Troy states that the band was smoking the psychedelic DMT at the time. The term "grateful dead" appears in folktales of a variety of cultures.
Live performances
The Grateful Dead toured constantly throughout their career, playing more than 2,300 concerts. They promoted a sense of community among their fans, who became known as "Deadheads", many of whom followed their tours for months or years on end. Around concert venues, an impromptu communal marketplace known as 'Shakedown Street' was created by Deadheads to serve as centers of activity where fans could buy and sell anything from grilled cheese sandwiches to home-made t-shirts and recordings of Grateful Dead concerts.
In their early career, the band also dedicated their time and talents to their community, the Haight-Ashbury area of San Francisco, making available free food, lodging, music, and health care to all. It has been said that the band performed "more free concerts than any band in the history of music".
With the exception of 1975, when the band was on hiatus and played only four concerts together, the Grateful Dead performed many concerts every year, from their formation in April 1965, until July 9, 1995. Initially all their shows were in California, principally in the San Francisco Bay Area and in or near Los Angeles. They also performed, in 1965 and 1966, with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters, as the house band for the Acid Tests. They toured nationally starting in June 1967 (their first foray to New York), with a few detours to Canada, Europe and three nights at the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt in 1978. They appeared at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, the Woodstock Festival in 1969 and the Festival Express train tour across Canada in 1970. They were scheduled to appear as the final act at the infamous Altamont Free Concert on December 6, 1969 after the Rolling Stones but withdrew after security concerns. "That's the way things went at Altamont—so badly that the Grateful Dead, prime organizers and movers of the festival, didn't even get to play", staff at Rolling Stone magazine wrote in a detailed narrative on the event.
Their first UK performance was at the Hollywood Music Festival in 1970. Their largest concert audience came in 1973 when they played, along with the Allman Brothers Band and the Band, before an estimated 600,000 people at the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen. They played to an estimated total of 25 million people, more than any other band, with audiences of up to 80,000 attending a single show. Many of these concerts were preserved in the band's tape vault, and several dozen have since been released on CD and as downloads. The Dead were known for the tremendous variation in their setlists from night to night—the list of songs documented to have been played by the band exceeds 500. The band has released four concert videos under the name View from the Vault.
In the 1990s, the Grateful Dead earned a total of $285 million in revenue from their concert tours, the second-highest during the 1990s, with the Rolling Stones earning the most. This figure is representative of tour revenue through 1995, as touring stopped after the death of Jerry Garcia. In a 1991 PBS documentary, segment host Buck Henry attended an August 1991 concert at Shoreline Amphitheatre and gleaned some information from some band members about the Grateful Dead phenomenon and its success. At the time, Jerry Garcia stated, "We didn't really invent the Grateful Dead, the crowd invented the Grateful Dead, you know what I mean? We were sort of standing in line, and uh, it's gone way past our expectations, way past, so it's, we've been going along with it to see what it's gonna do next." Furthermore, Mickey Hart stated, "This is one of the last places in America that you can really have this kind of fun, you know, considering the political climate and so forth." Hart also stated that "the transformative power of the Grateful Dead is really the essence of it; it's what it can do to your consciousness. We're more into transportation than we are into music, per se, I mean, the business of the Grateful Dead is transportation." One of the band's largest concerts took place just months before Garcia's death — at their outdoor show with Bob Dylan in Highgate, Vermont on June 15, 1995. The crowd was estimated to be over 90,000; overnight camping was allowed and about a third of the audience got in without having purchased a ticket.
Their numerous studio albums were generally collections of new songs that they had first played in concert. The band was also famous for its extended musical improvisations, having been described as having never played the same song the same way twice. Their concert sets often blended songs, one into the next, often for more than three songs at a time.
Tapes
Like several other bands during this time, the Grateful Dead allowed their fans to record their shows. For many years the tapers set up their microphones wherever they could, and the eventual forest of microphones became a problem for the sound crew. Eventually, this was solved by having a dedicated taping section located behind the soundboard, which required a special "tapers" ticket. The band allowed sharing of their shows, as long as no profits were made on the sale of the tapes.
Of the approximately 2,350 shows the Grateful Dead played, almost 2,200 were taped, and most of these are available online. The band began collecting and cataloging tapes early on and Dick Latvala was their keeper. "Dick's Picks" is named after Latvala. After his death in 1999, David Lemieux gradually took the post. Concert set lists from a subset of 1,590 Grateful Dead shows were used to perform a comparative analysis between how songs were played in concert and how they are listened online by Last.fm members. In their book Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead: What Every Business Can Learn From the Most Iconic Band in History, David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan identify the taper section as a crucial contributor to increasing the Grateful Dead's fan base.
After the death of Garcia in 1995, former members of the band, along with other musicians, toured as the Other Ones in 1998, 2000, and 2002, and the Dead in 2003, 2004, and 2009. In 2015, the four surviving core members marked the band's 50th anniversary in a series of concerts that were billed as their last performances together. There have also been several spin-offs featuring one or more core members, such as Dead & Company, Furthur, the Rhythm Devils, Phil Lesh and Friends, RatDog, and Billy & the Kids.
Promised Land
Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Virginia, California on my mind
Straddled that Greyhound
It rode me past Raleigh
And on across Caroline
Stopped in Charlotte and bypassed Rock Hill
And we never was a minute late
We was ninety miles out of Atlanta by sundown
Had motor trouble, it turned into a struggle
Half way across Alabama the Hound broke down
Left us all stranded in downtown Birmingham
Straight off bought me a through train ticket
Right across Mississippi clean
And I was on that midnight
Flyer out of Birmingham
Smoking into New Orleans
Somebody help me get out of Louisiana
Just help me get to Houston town
People are there who care a little about me
And they won't let the poor boy down
Sure as she bore me
She bought me a silk suit
Put luggage in my hands
And I woke up high over Albuquerque
On a jet to the promised land
Working on a T-bone steak a la carte
Flying over to the Golden State
When the pilot told us in thirteen minutes
We'd be heading in the terminal gate
Swing low sweet chariot, come down easy
Taxi to the terminal zone
Cut your engines, cool your wings
And let me make it to the telephone
Los Angeles give me Norfolk Virginia
Tidewater four ten oh nine
Tell the folks back home this
Is the promised land calling
And the poor boy's on the line
"Promised Land" is a rock and roll song by the Grateful Dead that is considered to be one of the band's most popular songs. It was written by Chuck Berry and first recorded by him in 1964. However, the Grateful Dead's version is unique in that they adapt the song to be more relevant to their own experiences. The song is about a man who leaves his home in Norfolk, Virginia, to travel cross country to California, which was seen as a "promised land" with more opportunities and a more carefree lifestyle. He takes a Greyhound bus and stops in various cities throughout Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas, experiencing setbacks along the way, including a breakdown in Birmingham, Alabama.
The lyrics convey a sense of determination and hope, as the singer continues on his journey despite obstacles and seeks the help of others along the way. The song also showcases the Grateful Dead's love for Americana and travelling, as well as their ability to adapt old songs to make them their own.
Line by Line Meaning
I left my home in Norfolk Virginia, California on my mind.
I was homesick and ready for a change, to head out west to California.
Straddled that Greyhound, it rode me past Raleigh, and on across Caroline.
I hopped on a Greyhound bus and traveled through Raleigh, North Carolina, and on through South Carolina.
Stopped in Charlotte and bypassed Rock Hill, and we never was a minute late.
During a brief stop in Charlotte, we managed to stay right on schedule and didn't waste any time in Rock Hill.
We was ninety miles out of Atlanta by sundown, rollin' 'cross the Georgia state.
We made good time and were already 90 miles past Atlanta when the sun began to set, cruising through Georgia.
Had motor trouble it turned into a struggle, half way 'cross Alabam, The 'hound broke down left us all stranded in downtown Birmingham.
Unfortunately, we encountered engine trouble halfway through Alabama, which turned into a struggle and ended with the bus breaking down and leaving us stranded in downtown Birmingham.
Straight off bought me a through train ticket, right across Mississippi clean, And I was on the midnight flyer out of Birmingham Smoking into New Orleans.
As soon as I could, I purchased a train ticket that would take me across Mississippi with no additional stops, which eventually led to me boarding a midnight flight that would take me to New Orleans.
Somebody help me get out of Louisiana Just help me get to Houston town. People are there who care a little 'bout me And they won't let the poor boy down.
I need assistance getting out of Louisiana and making my way to Houston, where I know there are folks who genuinely care for me and will offer their support.
Sure as she bore me, she bought me a silk suit, put luggage in my hands, And I woke up high over Albuquerque On a jet to the promised land.
My mother provided me with a new silk suit and luggage before I took off on a flight over Albuquerque, en route to my desired destination.
Workin' on a T-bone steak a la carte, Flying over to the Golden State, When the pilot told us in thirteen minutes We'd be headin' in the terminal gate.
I was en route to the Golden State, enjoying a lovely T-bone steak as a passenger on the flight when the pilot informed us we would be landing soon.
Swing low sweet chariot, come down easy Taxi to the terminal zone, Cut your engines, cool your wings, And let me make it to the telephone.
Just like how a sweet chariot would come down without a sound, the plane should make an easy landing and taxi to the terminal, letting me get off and make a phone call.
Los Angeles give me Norfolk Virginia, Tidewater four ten oh nine Tell the folks back home this is the promised land callin' And the poor boy's on the line.
I'm calling from Los Angeles, but want to reach the folks back home in Norfolk, Virginia by way of Tidewater using the phone number 4109. I want to let everyone know that I feel like I've reached the promised land, and that things are looking up for me.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Russell Brown
This song rips! When people ask why im such a hard core fan of the dead i tell them no band before or ever again will do what the dead did. They experience and camaraderie this band and following affords you is unmatched and and unrivaled by any other. Hell jerrys been dead for almost 25 years still millions of people are following them around. Now thats phenomenonal.
wangson
This is one of my all time favourite versions!! Keith is on FIRE!!!
Adam Jacob Rogers
This is among my top 10 greatest picks, where is the rest of this stellar show with many inspired moments?
Michon Danielle Adams Main
Gotta love them....creative...clever...awesome... .lyrical geniuses....makes me smile...and feel good when I turn them on....thanks GD and JC...
South Forest
This is a chuck berry original
Jesse Snyder
There is only one Master of guitar. Thanks Jerry.
Not Fade Away
Wow, actually seeing this show would have been amazing. Too young to appreciate the dead until after Jerry's passing. Thanks for sharing.
Wrangler Cody
I’m just gettin into the Grateful Dead, it’s good shit. Thanks sirusxm for introducing me to awesome music.
Dick Hedd
Cowboy Neil's at Tha Wheel!!
Dick Hedd
Welcome to "The Bus"!!