Dawn of the Dead: The Grateful Dead & the Rise of the San Francisco Underground

This profile of the early Grateful Dead chronicles the ‘60s rise of the famed Bay Area band. Although hailing from different backgrounds, the members aimed to combine their interests in folk, blues, jazz, and modern classical music. Peter Albin of Big Brother and the Holding Company remembers meeting frontman Jerry Garcia—a jug band and bluegrass enthusiast—in Palo Alto, where he was developing a reputation for his guitar and banjo expertise. Along the way, Garcia met Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan with whom he formed the Warlocks, who took further inspiration from the amped-up R&B of the British Invasion (songwriter Robert Hunter was also part of their extended circle). The group graduated to gigs in San Francisco, including Ken Kesey's famed Acid Test gatherings, at which point they became the Grateful Dead. Says biographer Dennis McNally, "They always thought the audience was the show; they were simply the soundtrack." Their popularity grew at venues such as Fillmore West and the Avalon Ballroom, after which they set up shop on Haight Street, signed to Warner Bros., and played the Monterey Pop Festival. Drummer Mickey Hart came on board in time for their second record. The documentary proceeds through Altamont and the group's later ‘60s recordings, ending in the 1970s as they started to shift away from psychedelia. In addition to contemporary interviews with critics, peers, and auxiliary players, the documentary features archival comments from Garcia, Lesh, and promoter Bill Graham. DVD extras include a sampling of bebop poetry from Kesey's fellow Merry Prankster Ken Babbs. Recommended. (K. Fennessy)