Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in Palo Alto, California in 1965 around Jerry Garcia — the foundation of jam band music, with more than 2,300 concerts and a live archive that never stops giving. American Beauty and Workingman's Dead (both 1970) are the studio essentials; Europe '72 captures the road. Browse Grateful Dead vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Grateful Dead formed in Palo Alto, California in 1965 around Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, and Ron Pigpen McKernan. Mickey Hart joined as second drummer in 1967. The band became central figures in the San Francisco psychedelic scene and the broader American counterculture. They are widely considered foundational to jam band music as a recognized genre, with their extended improvisational live performances becoming a defining model for the form. The band's extensive touring (more than 2,300 concerts) and the Deadhead fan community made them one of the most commercially successful touring acts of the late 20th century despite limited radio play. Jerry Garcia died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, ending the band. The remaining members have performed under various configurations since. Phil Lesh died on October 25, 2024.
Grateful Dead's sound combines rock, country rock, psychedelic rock, folk rock, blues rock, and jazz fusion with extensive improvisational extension of songs in live performance. Their work is widely cited as foundational to jam band music as a recognized genre, with influence on Phish, Widespread Panic, Goose, and countless other acts.
Original Warner Bros. and Grateful Dead Records pressings are foundational items in classic rock and jam band collecting. The band's extensive official live release program through Dick's Picks, Dave's Picks, the From the Vault series, and Europe '72 Complete Recordings has produced hundreds of archival releases.
Listeners new to Grateful Dead typically start with American Beauty (1970) or Workingman's Dead (1970).
