Grateful Dead facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead, ca. 1970
Background information
Also known as	The Warlocks, The Dead
Origin	San Francisco, California, USA
Genres	Rock
Years active	1965–1995
Labels	Warner Bros. (1966–1972) Grateful Dead (1973–1976) Arista (1977–1989) Rhino (Remasters) (2001–present)
Associated acts	Jerry Garcia Band Phil Lesh and Friends Ratdog The Other Ones The Dead Rhythm Devils New Riders of the Purple Sage Bobby and the Midnites Bruce Hornsby Legion of Mary
Past members	Jerry Garcia Bob Weir Phil Lesh Bill Kreutzmann Ron "Pigpen" McKernan Mickey Hart Tom Constanten Keith Godchaux Donna Godchaux Brent Mydland Vince Welnick

The Grateful Dead was a famous rock band from Palo Alto, California, United States. They started playing music in 1965. The band was well-known for their exciting concerts and their very loyal fans, who were called "Deadheads."

Their music was a cool mix of different styles. It included psychedelic rock, which is known for its unique sounds. They also blended in blues, country, folk, and bluegrass. The Grateful Dead also had famous artwork and logos, like dancing bears and skeletons.

The band was honored in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Rolling Stone magazine also named them among the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time." The Grateful Dead sold over 35 million albums worldwide. They played for more than 25 million people, which is a huge number for any band!

The Band Members and Their Journey

The Grateful Dead played together for a long time, from 1965 to 1995. The band stopped performing after Jerry Garcia, their lead guitarist and singer, passed away. Many people saw him as the band's leader.

The main members of the band were:

• Jerry Garcia (lead guitar and singing)
• Bob Weir (guitar and singing)
• Phil Lesh (bass guitar)
• Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (keyboards, harmonica, and singing)
• Bill Kreutzmann (drums)

Most of these members were with the band for its entire journey. Ron "Pigpen" McKernan was a key member until he passed away in 1973. Other important musicians who joined the band later included:

• Mickey Hart (drums, 1967–1971 and 1974–1995)
• Keith Godchaux (keyboards, 1971–1979)
• Donna Godchaux (singing, 1972–1979)
• Brent Mydland (keyboards, 1979–1990)
• Vince Welnick (keyboards, 1990–1995)

Live Performances and Jamming

The Grateful Dead were famous for their live shows. They loved to "jam," which means they would improvise and make up parts of their songs as they played. This made every concert unique and exciting. Fans often recorded these shows, and many "Deadheads" have huge collections of these live recordings.

Images for kids

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  The Grateful Dead in 1980. Left to right: Jerry Garcia, Bill Kreutzmann, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, Phil Lesh. Not pictured: Brent Mydland.

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  The Mantra-Rock Dance promotional poster featuring the Grateful Dead

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  Bob Weir onstage in 2007, playing a Modulus G3FH

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  Mickey Hart leading a drum circle in February 2005

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  Bob Weir and Mickey Hart performing at the 2009 Mid-Atlantic Inaugural Ball during the Obama Inaugural

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  Panorama of the Fare Thee Well performance at Soldier Field, Chicago on July 5, 2015

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  An acoustic performance at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco in 1980. Left to right: Garcia, Lesh, Kreutzmann, Weir, Hart, Mydland.

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  Phil Lesh (left) performing with TelStar in 2008

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  New York artist Greg Speirs wearing the "Skully" tie-dyed T-shirt which he designed and became a symbol of Lithuanian basketball

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  Grateful Dead members in the early 1980s: Brent Mydland, Bob Weir, and Jerry Garcia watch Bill Kreutzmann play the drums. Not pictured are Phil Lesh and Mickey Hart.

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  Mail-ordered Grateful Dead concert tickets for their spring 1994 Nassau Coliseum run of shows

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  Mickey Hart and Bob Weir at the Library of Congress 200th birthday, 2000

See also

In Spanish: Grateful Dead para niños