How Jerry Garcia’s Bluegrass Beginnings Led to Founding The Grateful Dead

If one is ever curious about how the Grateful Dead adopted their jam band style, there is seemingly one foundational reason—Jerry Garcia’s bluegrass background. Their improvisational style, lengthy songs, and intricate arrangments all derive from the age-old genre. However, Garcia didn’t just pick up a book about bluegrass and decide this is what he and the group would sound like. Rather, it was years of experience in the field that inspired the combination of rock and bluegrass.

If one is familiar with the Dead and bluegrass, the similarities are apparent. On the contrary, if one is not, all the things that make the Dead the Dead are also what makes bluegrass, bluegrass—except for a few towering differences between electric vs acoustic and the use of percussion. Regardless, Garcia’s fondness for the roots genre is one of the staple reasons the Grateful Dead is considered one of the most innovative bands of all time.

The Banjo & Bill Monroe

The first instrument Jerry Garcia ever played in front of an audience was the banjo. Garcia started playing the instrument in 1950 and after playing for years he became a master picker. Inspired by Bill Keith and Earl Scruggs, Garcia wanted his career to be that of a bluegrass player. That being so, he took one massive leap of faith.

The massive leap of faith Garcia took was trying out for Bill Monroe’s band, The Blue Grass Boys. It’s unclear how exactly the audition went. Nevertheless, Garcia met Monroe in 1963 and carried his influence with him for the entirety of his career.

Jerry Garcia & The Black Mountain Boys

Garicia’s love for the genre resulted in numerous recordings, both original and covers, with his group The Black Mountain Boys. Consisting of numerous of Garcia’s friends, including the main lyricist for the Dead, Robert Hunter; The Black Mountain Boys were a bluegrass group stationed in Palo Alto, California.

Before the band ceased to exist, they released some pretty incredible tunes. Some of the tunes are “Salt Creek,” “Raw Hide,” and “Who Will Sing For Me?” The most famous of the three is “Salt Creek,” which was made famous by Bill Monroe in 1963 and later covered by Garcia’s group shortly after. Despite the band’s evident talent they had to split, given the lack of the genre’s popularity in California. Shortly after, Garcia made his transition to the electric guitar in 1965. Garcia might have changed his musical means, although, bluegrass always reappeared within the Dead’s music in one way or another.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images