Question(s) of The Day (08/09/04): Jerry Garcia

[MarcO]

Scenario: Jerry Garcia survives his heart attack of August 9, 1995.

Question(s): What are the implications of this scenario? What would Jerry be up to these days?

I'd like to hear what you would have to say about this, they're relatively open-ended questions. I'll offer my thoughts later.

[bradm]

My guess/hope is that, after his exit from rehab, the Dead would have called a hiatus, for maybe a year or two, to let "the scene" calm down (and to figure out how to prevent stuff like the craziness at Deer Creek '95 from happening again). In that time, Jerry would have got himself healthy, physically and mentally, and gone into a more acoustic thing, maybe doing some bluegrass-based music with people like Tony Rice and Bela Fleck.

Then, around '97 or '98, the Dead would have come back, and all would be rolling pleasantly now.

Aloha,

Brad

[Guest Low Roller]

Or like so many other rock stars that were given that second chance, he probably would've squandered it, kept up with the usual, and died of another massive heart attack shortly thereafter.

[Ms.Huxtable]

Hopfully he would have reassembled the Legions of Mary lineup. Oh man that would have been sweet. There isn't enough of that stuff out there.

[MarcO]

bradm - that's pretty much what I thought, although with a more specific emphasis on the bluegrass/folk collaborations. At this point, Garcia Band would be in jeopardy following the death of John Kahn, the Dead would have gone through Phil Lesh's health tribulations, who knows how poor Vince would have handled things. I'd think we'd have seen by now that permanent performance space the Dead always spoke of, in the San Francisco area, the result being less coast-to-coast touring and a scaling down of their business infrastructure.

I think that aside from the psychedelic freedoms and questing spirit of his form of rock and roll, the other gift Garcia would be offering the world is his full circle return to the old-timey bluegrass/country/folk traditions that we loved so much as a young man, and was returning to in his later days with the likes of Grisman and Tony Rice. Surely, this would have developed, netting a rich catalogue of songs, delighting theatre-sized audiences and perhaps the jamband festivals and roots music festivals also. It's not hard to imagine a Bonnaroo with a Garcia/Grisman kind-of-thing headlining.

I also believe that under this scenario, the differences in the current "jamband" scene would be by degrees, not entirely different. Phish would still do well and their shadow would not be obscured, their influence felt. The festivals would still start popping up. The Disco Biscuits would still be torturing ears all over the place.

I think Garcia would have naturally moved so far to the folk tradition side of his personality that the continued presence of the Dead on the "scene" would still be absorbed by the developments we live with today.

[Booche]

Laying on a couch, eating chicken wings and raising/lower venetian blinds that are attached to his big toe.

[Esau]

I make mine short & simple,without the deep thoughts but just emotion instead.

Making sweet music.

I wouldn't care what he was doing,as long as he was still around to share with us.

[NewRider]

vote Garcia/Weir in November

[paisley]

lol

truly wish I had've picked up a "Jerry Garcia for President!" shirt back in the 80s

[Palms]

Love the dude to death, but I am pretty sure that had he survived he still wouldn't be here today.

[paisley]

still Jerry still given'r?

special guest appearance at Hampton tonight playin Scarlet > Fire > Stella

[Rob Not Bob]

I gotta go with Palms ... Jerry went when his time came, he had medical crises before and didn't seem to learn from them (no more than temporarily, at least) . I miss the grand old bastard ...

RnB