I'm no Jerry Garcia expert, I'm just his kid, born right into this scene and still trying to figure it out. When I was younger, it was natural to rebel away from the Grateful Dead. Now I have a very honest appreciation for it and have set out to learn more. Mark Pincus of Rhino Records helped explain Jerry's significance to me one day: "Your dad deserves to be one of the faces on the Mount Rushmore of rock & roll." For some reason, this explanation laid it all out for me in a way that the seas of hippies hadn't. Jerry Garcia is a great American musician whose legacy will endure long past my own lifetime.
As far as I can tell, Jerry fans all have one thing in common besides their kindness, the way their eyes sparkle and their generally freedom-loving tendencies: They all share a story about how their lives truly began the day the saw my dad play, how a particular show or moment introduced them into a whole new perspective on life. I don't know how, but it's true: music heals, and good vibes are better for you than bad. There is now science behind these truths the hippies rediscovered in the 60s.
The band may have said "Fare thee well," but what Jerry built isn't going anywhere. It's a monolith of a thing that no one can ever tear down or shut off.
...so true..!
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