With music fans still mourning the recent deaths of Ozzy Osbourne, Terry Reid, Mick Ralphs, Brian Wilson, and Sly Stone comes the 30th anniversary tomorrow of the death of Jerry Garcia.
He was found dead of a heart attack on August 9th, 1995 at 4:23am PT in his room at the Serenity Knolls residential treatment facility in Forrest Knolls, California, eight days after his 53rd birthday.
Garcia, who had a long history with substance abuse, diabetes, smoking and a poor diet, had checked into the facility shortly after the Grateful Dead finished their summer tour on July 9th, 1995 at Soldier Field in Chicago on a bill with The Band.
The Grateful Dead's Bob Weir was the first band member to publicly comment on Garcia's passing, having done so from a tour stop in New Hampshire.
And Dead drummer Mickey Hart was home in Northern California when he found out.
"I always remember where I was when I heard. You never forget those kinds of things. Jerry wasn’t well to begin with, and he was winding down. He was living on borrowed time. Everybody was ready for it, but you can never really be ready for it.
"It was the morning, and I went to my yoga instructor, who lived in a little shack over the hill from my house [in Sonoma County]. I used to walk over there through a redwood grove. He never played music; we always tried to make it a bit more zen. But as I approached his place, he was playing music. And it was Jerry Garcia Band music. That put me off immediately. Right then, I knew something was in the air. I knew something was really wrong.
"I walked up to the front door and he was sweeping the floor, getting ready for a session. I said, 'What’s with the music?' He said, 'Haven’t you heard?' He didn’t have to say anything else. It was early and I don’t know how he found out about it. But I turned around and walked back through the woods. It could have been a rumor, but I knew it wasn’t. I just knew it. It felt like someone had hit me with a hammer..."
Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh, who joined Garcia in the afterlife last October.
And Bruce Hornsby, a part time member of The Dead, was in Houston when he heard the news. Later in the day he flew to Boston for an in-store appearance at Borders Books. Plugging his Hot House album, Deadheads crowded into the store, turning it into what he says was a "de-facto wake.
"They were clearly looking for comfort wherever they could find it. I guess they figured I was a sympathetic kindred spirit and was there for them. And I was, and they were there for me. I played songs and talked to the audience. It was very collegial and very interactive. I might have played my favorite Grateful Dead song, 'Wharf Rat.' It seemed appropriate for that moment...
"I miss him so much. He was such a deep soul, but also a really funny guy. He ready to laugh and had the sharpest wit and just a great recall. Great memory, great knowledge of the world. He was a great hang."
A private funeral was held on August 12th at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere, California, followed by a public memorial the next day at the Polo Fields in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. His ashes were scattered by his widow, Deborah Koons, and Bob Weir into the Ganges River at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, and into the San Francisco Bay.
In addition to Koons, Jerry was survived by four daughters, three ex-wives and his brother, Clifford.
Since his passing, the surviving members of the Dead have reunited on several occasions under an array of names including The Other Ones, The Dead, Furthur and their current incarnation, Dead & Company with John Mayer.
Garcia was the fourth member of the Dead to die after:
- Ron "Pigpen" McKernan – 1973
- Keith Godchaux – 1980 (he left the band in 1979)
- Brent Mydland – 1990
And following Garcia was Vince Welnick in 2006
IN OTHER DEAD RELATED NEWS................
Bob Weir and Mickey Hart have both taken to social media to share their thoughts on Dead & Company's three shows last weekend in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park as they celebrated The Grateful Dead's 60th anniversary.
Weir writes, "What big fun it was playing with Billy Strings, Sturgill Simpson, and Trey Anastasio…stylistically, the three couldn’t have been more different, and that was the real treat! We were honored to have these special guests opening for us and sitting in throughout the weekend."
Hart adds, "This weekend was three days of coming home and in those final moments of the weekend, it was truly profound. I saw 60,000 people sparking light, in love, entrained big time and coming our way. Different than applause after a song, it sounded more like an ahhhhhh. All the peace and love in proximity generated a collective energy that was shared by all. Very rare stuff indeed.
"I saw [the late Grateful Dead members] Jerry [Garcia] and Phil [Lesh] and [Ron] "Pigpen" [McKernan] hovering over the crowd smiling like Cheshire cats. I saw [our lyricist Robert] Hunter and [president of Grateful Dead Productions Laurence] "Ram Rod" [Shurtliff] through the beauty of the fog and lights.
"In the final moments of the weekend standing right next to Bob [Weir] and feeling the raw emotion coming our way from our fans, I felt Bob’s heartbeat, along with mine, and the deep connection we have with all of you.
"All the years combine. They melt into a dream."
Dead & Company have no other dates on the docket.