I was jammin out today to Dozin' At the Knick, listening to Jerry sing Black Peter .. and when he sang that verse, I pulled up the Annotated Lyrics page by David Dodd ... the bottom of the page says it was posted August 8th, 1995 .. literally on that day that verse, sad enough, rung true ...

If they don't use the music of jerry or the Dead they pay no royalties, ergo an easy way to make a lot of money

I have not done an exhaustive search but it was clear that Jerry and the boys supported any number of causes that were both political and non-political. At a certain point in the early 80s they consolidated to the Rex Foundation and did shows every year to support that. Rex gives out grants and has an application process which you can check out on their website.

I think there is a bit of reaction to the boys in the post-Jerry era supporting political candidates, which Jerry never did. To be fair, the only thing I've ever heard Weir say is "Get out and vote. We don't care who you vote for as long as you vote." Many people are uncomfortable with even voting.

I think it's not hard at all to make the argument that the Grateful Dead, with Jerry and without, have a left-wing perspective. The post-Jerry boys are supporting the political process by encouraging people to vote, and even to vote for one political candidate -- that is where there is a powerful reaction. But you just can't invoke Jerry and say "they were never political" which is what a few heads are saying on this site. Supporting causes is political whether or not you are involved in electoral matters.

This reminds me of Amnesty International people telling me they are not political. The mere fact of inserting yourself in a situation where human rights are being withheld is a bold political statement, like it or not.

In any case, why would you feel that your favorite musicians have that much influence on your viewpoint??

silentlyscreaming posted:

"Apparently, your band mates and fans have forgotten your stance on politics."

While the Grateful Dead didn't do fundraisers for political candidates, Jerry Garcia did shows to benefit the anti-nuclear movement in the 1970's. I recall going to one in Boston for example, December of '77, that raised money for the Clamshell Alliance. I don't think that what Phil, Billy, Bob and Mickey having been doing the past 10 years is at all out of line with that.

"When it comes to humility, I'm the greatest!" - Bullwinkle Moose

http://cgi.ebay.com/1976-Travis-Bean-Guitar-Jerry-Garcia-Grateful-Dead-/150481586509?pt=Guitar

anyone got $325k or more?