The Grateful Dead (Paperback)(Oop) (Pop Culture Legends) [Paperback]

Sean Piccoli (Author), See Editorial Dept (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Series: Pop Culture Legends

From a fledgling local jug band in the tie-dyed, drug-soaked, anything-goes atmosphere of San Francisco in the '60s, the Grateful Dead evolved into the quintessential tour band. Their bluesy, countrified rock-and-roll sound defied categorization yet won millions of listeners. For three decades, unswervingly loyal Deadheads flocked to concerts to hear the freewheeling, experimental band perform hits like "Uncle John's Band," "Truckin'," "Box of Rain," and "Touch of Grey." The Grateful Dead's long, strange trip under Jerry Garcia's leadership ended with his death in 1995. But their influence on American music - and on generations of listeners - lives on.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up. The story of the Grateful Dead is primarily the story of its founder and lead singer, the late Jerry Garcia. Piccoli begins with a pivotal event in the singer's childhood?losing half of his finger in an accident. The band's story is put into the context of the whole San Francisco hippie milieu and the Haight-Ashbury scene of the early '60s, a background that is important in understanding the group's roots and eventual impact. The later history of the band is also presented, including the rise of the fanatical fans known as Deadheads and the Dead concert experience that became a kind of traveling caravan show. The book covers events through Garcia's death, but does not include the group's decision to disband. Black-and-white photos chart the band through all its different phases, showing the transformation of Garcia himself from dark-haired kid to bearded, white-haired rock patriarch.?Tim Wadham, Dallas Public Library, TX
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 7^-9. This look at the Grateful Dead is as much a portrait of an era as of the legendary band. Better written than many series biographies, the book will capture the attention of Deadheads as well as young people more casually interested in rock. Piccoli's focus is often Jerry Garcia, but he also introduces the other band members and vividly describes life in San Francisco at the time the band was being formed. Piccoli doesn't pull any punches about the band's drug use; in fact, one of the most interesting parts of the book is Piccoli's discussion of the evolution of LSD, first used in experiments by the U.S. military (which is where author Ken Kesey first got the drug). He also makes it clear that Garcia's early death was a cumulative result of years of drug use. Various (if innocuous) antidrug messages by other band members are worked into the text. The black-and-white photos are unfailingly interesting, but the best part of the art is the reproductions of Stanley Mouse's skull-and-roses designs that are synonymous with the Dead. One factual (and hilarious) error--Piccoli refers to The Donna Reed Show as The Donna Mills Show. Discography and chronology appended. Ilene Cooper --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: Chelsea House Publications (April 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0791044548
• ISBN-13: 978-0791044544
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,829,612 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Still Dead, February 22, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Grateful Dead (Paperback)(Oop) (Pop Culture Legends) (Paperback)

Why would anybody want to read The Greatful Dead, by Sean Picoli? They might wnat to read it because it tells many great stories about the Greatful dead. Maybe they read it because the were a fan of the Greatful Dead. I read it becuase I was curious about the band. The Greatful Dead was a good choice for me because it gave lots of imformation about the band's members, its past, and stories about their daily life, tours, and concerts. All-in-all I think that The Greatful Dead is a must-read for Greatful Dead fans, and even people who aren'tdie hard dead fans would still enjoy this book.