Song Premiere: Grateful Dead Unearth 'Sugar Magnolia' From 1990 Concert

The Grateful Dead perform at The Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland.

Click to listen to the Grateful Dead's 'Sugar Magnolia' (from Copps Coliseum on March 22nd, 1990)

Grateful Dead Week rambles and rolls on, and today we've got an exclusive cut of the group performing an extended version of American Beauty classic "Sugar Magnolia" live at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario, on March 22nd, 1990. Be sure to check out our interview with Dead guitarist Bob Weir where he talks about the band and the late, great Jerry Garcia. Check out the new set Spring 1990 here.

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Members Of Grateful Dead, National, Walkmen Come Together For 'Bridge Session' Webcast

Sam Cohen, Thomas Bartlett, Aaron Dessner, Conrad Doucette, Bob Weir, Bryan Devendorf, Scott Devendorf, Walter Martin and Josh Kaufman perform during the Yahoo! Music Presents 'The Bridge Session.'

An assemblage of East Coast indie rockers flew to the Bay Area to collaborate with the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir for a one-time-only performance on Saturday night. Called the Bridge Session, the nine-person collective included three members of the National – Aaron Dessner, Bryan and Scott Devendorf – along with Walt Martin from the Walkmen, Sam Cohen and Josh Kaufman from the Yellowbirds, Conrad Doucette of Takka Takka, and National contributors Thomas "Doveman" Bartlett and Kyle Resnick. The performance took place in front of a live studio audience of just over 100 at Weir's TRI Studios in San Rafael, California, and was webcast live on Yahoo! Music.

"For us, the night definitely exceeded expectations," Scott Devendorf told Rolling Stone immediately following the show. "We were surprised that it was even going to happen in the first place, and then as we were rehearsing it became more and more real."

Devendorf says that he and his National bandmates were "big fans of the Grateful Dead for a long time" and recently got back into them. Working with Weir – and seeing his dedication to the music during several 10-hour rehearsal sessions – "kinda blew our minds ... It was definitely inspirational for us."
Saturday's two-set performance drew mostly from the Grateful Dead's vast catalog. Weir led the pack through what was no doubt familiar territory to him but strange waters to his sudden bandmates, as they ripped through jams such as "The Other One," "Brown Eyed Woman" and "Friend of the Devil."

But given the nine-person ensemble – and the musicians' somewhat disparate musical backgrounds – Weir was forced to rethink some of his approaches and, in some cases, alter the arrangements on tunes he's been performing for decades. Instead of morphing into "Slipknot," as was the Grateful Dead's custom, "Help on the Way" segued into a cover of Cass McCombs' "Love Thine Enemy." And in "Standing on the Moon," Weir even experimented with the melody, deviating from the way Jerry Garcia used to approach it when he sang it with the Dead.

"This next one, I had to park for 20 years," Weir told the audience while introducing the buried rarity, "My Brother Esau," explaining that it was a song the other guys specifically asked him to dust off for the show. "And I'm kinda glad they did," he said, "because it forced me to rework the bridge." No pun intended, of course.

The Bridge Session included two National tunes – "Daughters of the Soho Riots" and "Fake Empire." Weir handled vocals for the former, which he tinkered with in a way that referenced the original but which met him halfway towards his more characteristic vocal delivery. It proved a great match. The group also covered Bob Dylan's "Most of the Time."

For their encore, the entire ensemble ventured into the middle of the audience and huddled around a microphone, holding all acoustic instruments, for a singalong to "Ripple," "Uncle John's Band," and "Brokedown Palace" – all of which appear on the Dead's stripped-down 1970 albums, Workingman's Dead and Reckoning.

The Disco Biscuits' Marc Brownstein served as the night's emcee. As he told the audience at the start of the show, the idea behind the Bridge Session was to literally bridge the gap between genres, geographies and ideologies. Images of both the Brooklyn Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge – which reflected the musicians' two distinct home bases – served as a backdrop.

Between sets, Weir joined a roundtable political discussion moderated by Andy Bernstein of the voter registration group, HeadCount, which produced the event as a benefit for their organization. The discussion also featured independent presidential candidate Buddy Roemer, climate change activist Jessy Tolkan, No Labels cofounder Mark McKinnon and Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow. They debated topics such as money in politics, personal freedom and the upcoming presidential election. But, as Weir told Rolling Stone a few days before the show, his main goal for the night was to just "have fun." Mission accomplished.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Members Of Grateful Dead, National, Walkmen Come Together For 'Bridge Session' Webcast

Sam Cohen, Thomas Bartlett, Aaron Dessner, Conrad Doucette, Bob Weir, Bryan Devendorf, Scott Devendorf, Walter Martin and Josh Kaufman perform during the Yahoo! Music Presents 'The Bridge Session.'

An assemblage of East Coast indie rockers flew to the Bay Area to collaborate with the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir for a one-time-only performance on Saturday night. Called the Bridge Session, the nine-person collective included three members of the National – Aaron Dessner, Bryan and Scott Devendorf – along with Walt Martin from the Walkmen, Sam Cohen and Josh Kaufman from the Yellowbirds, Conrad Doucette of Takka Takka, and National contributors Thomas "Doveman" Bartlett and Kyle Resnick. The performance took place in front of a live studio audience of just over 100 at Weir's TRI Studios in San Rafael, California, and was webcast live on Yahoo! Music.

"For us, the night definitely exceeded expectations," Scott Devendorf told Rolling Stone immediately following the show. "We were surprised that it was even going to happen in the first place, and then as we were rehearsing it became more and more real."

Devendorf says that he and his National bandmates were "big fans of the Grateful Dead for a long time" and recently got back into them. Working with Weir – and seeing his dedication to the music during several 10-hour rehearsal sessions – "kinda blew our minds ... It was definitely inspirational for us."
Saturday's two-set performance drew mostly from the Grateful Dead's vast catalog. Weir led the pack through what was no doubt familiar territory to him but strange waters to his sudden bandmates, as they ripped through jams such as "The Other One," "Brown Eyed Woman" and "Friend of the Devil."

But given the nine-person ensemble – and the musicians' somewhat disparate musical backgrounds – Weir was forced to rethink some of his approaches and, in some cases, alter the arrangements on tunes he's been performing for decades. Instead of morphing into "Slipknot," as was the Grateful Dead's custom, "Help on the Way" segued into a cover of Cass McCombs' "Love Thine Enemy." And in "Standing on the Moon," Weir even experimented with the melody, deviating from the way Jerry Garcia used to approach it when he sang it with the Dead.

"This next one, I had to park for 20 years," Weir told the audience while introducing the buried rarity, "My Brother Esau," explaining that it was a song the other guys specifically asked him to dust off for the show. "And I'm kinda glad they did," he said, "because it forced me to rework the bridge." No pun intended, of course.

The Bridge Session included two National tunes – "Daughters of the Soho Riots" and "Fake Empire." Weir handled vocals for the former, which he tinkered with in a way that referenced the original but which met him halfway towards his more characteristic vocal delivery. It proved a great match. The group also covered Bob Dylan's "Most of the Time."

For their encore, the entire ensemble ventured into the middle of the audience and huddled around a microphone, holding all acoustic instruments, for a singalong to "Ripple," "Uncle John's Band," and "Brokedown Palace" – all of which appear on the Dead's stripped-down 1970 albums, Workingman's Dead and Reckoning.

The Disco Biscuits' Marc Brownstein served as the night's emcee. As he told the audience at the start of the show, the idea behind the Bridge Session was to literally bridge the gap between genres, geographies and ideologies. Images of both the Brooklyn Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge – which reflected the musicians' two distinct home bases – served as a backdrop.

Between sets, Weir joined a roundtable political discussion moderated by Andy Bernstein of the voter registration group, HeadCount, which produced the event as a benefit for their organization. The discussion also featured independent presidential candidate Buddy Roemer, climate change activist Jessy Tolkan, No Labels cofounder Mark McKinnon and Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow. They debated topics such as money in politics, personal freedom and the upcoming presidential election. But, as Weir told Rolling Stone a few days before the show, his main goal for the night was to just "have fun." Mission accomplished.

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Members of Grateful Dead, the National Form Band for 'The Bridge Session'

Bob Weir performs with Furthur at the Murat Theater in Indianapolis.

Fresh from a collaboration with Phish's Trey Anastasio, members of the National have announced a project with another towering figure of jam rock, the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir. Anchored by the National's Scott and Bryan Devendorf, and fronted by Weir, the all-star group will perform a special one-off concert under the name the Bridge Session on March 24th. The show will go down at Weir's TRI Studios in San Rafael, California which means that only around 50 fans will be in attendance – but the show will be webcast live, for free, to anyone with an Internet connection.

"They're a good, young band and this is going to be fun," Weir told Rolling Stone, en route to the Mayan ruins in Tulum, Mexico where he is vacationing.

Fans can expect a selection of National tunes, Grateful Dead classics and politically-minded cover songs. The Bridge Session's title reflects the event's aim to "bridge the gaps" between people of different ideological standpoints while also nodding to geography – TRI Studios is located just beyond the Golden Gate Bridge, while the National live a stone's throw from the Brooklyn Bridge.

Between sets, Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow will anchor a roundtable discussion, alongside Weir, discussing unifying issues such as First Amendment rights and Occupy hot topics like getting the money out of politics. Home viewers will be able to interact directly through social media and submit questions to the panelists, in real time, via Twitter. Disco Biscuits bassist Marc Brownstein will act as the evening's MC.

Weir recently built TRI Studios – which stands for Tamalpais Research Institute – precisely to host events such as this. The state-of-the-art performance space broadcasts live HD video and audio streams to a variety of end user equipment including mobile devices, game consoles, tablets, computers and Internet equipped HDTV. The research facility is currently exploring ways to support interactivity among an audience of fans the wide world over by way of real-time social media.

The Bridge Session is being produced by HeadCount, a non-profit voter-registration organization that has found ways to promote discussion of the democratic process at live music events and has encouraged political involvement among music fans. Weir serves on the Board of Directors.

While anybody and everybody will be able to watch the Bridge Session from their iPads or MacBooks or whatever, if you want to be an actual part of the studio audience, HeadCount is giving away two tickets through an online contest. Visit HeadCount's official website for details.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Read more »

Members of Grateful Dead, the National Form Band for 'The Bridge Session'

Bob Weir performs with Furthur at the Murat Theater in Indianapolis.

Fresh from a collaboration with Phish's Trey Anastasio, members of the National have announced a project with another towering figure of jam rock, the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir. Anchored by the National's Scott and Bryan Devendorf, and fronted by Weir, the all-star group will perform a special one-off concert under the name the Bridge Session on March 24th. The show will go down at Weir's TRI Studios in San Rafael, California which means that only around 50 fans will be in attendance – but the show will be webcast live, for free, to anyone with an Internet connection.

"They're a good, young band and this is going to be fun," Weir told Rolling Stone, en route to the Mayan ruins in Tulum, Mexico where he is vacationing.

Fans can expect a selection of National tunes, Grateful Dead classics and politically-minded cover songs. The Bridge Session's title reflects the event's aim to "bridge the gaps" between people of different ideological standpoints while also nodding to geography – TRI Studios is located just beyond the Golden Gate Bridge, while the National live a stone's throw from the Brooklyn Bridge.

Between sets, Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow will anchor a roundtable discussion, alongside Weir, discussing unifying issues such as First Amendment rights and Occupy hot topics like getting the money out of politics. Home viewers will be able to interact directly through social media and submit questions to the panelists, in real time, via Twitter. Disco Biscuits bassist Marc Brownstein will act as the evening's MC.

Weir recently built TRI Studios – which stands for Tamalpais Research Institute – precisely to host events such as this. The state-of-the-art performance space broadcasts live HD video and audio streams to a variety of end user equipment including mobile devices, game consoles, tablets, computers and Internet equipped HDTV. The research facility is currently exploring ways to support interactivity among an audience of fans the wide world over by way of real-time social media.

The Bridge Session is being produced by HeadCount, a non-profit voter-registration organization that has found ways to promote discussion of the democratic process at live music events and has encouraged political involvement among music fans. Weir serves on the Board of Directors.

While anybody and everybody will be able to watch the Bridge Session from their iPads or MacBooks or whatever, if you want to be an actual part of the studio audience, HeadCount is giving away two tickets through an online contest. Visit HeadCount's official website for details.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon MP3 Download Center

Read more »

Grateful Dead's Bob Weir Reopens Landmark Sweetwater Venue

Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh recently announced plans to open a new mixed-use performance space called Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael, Calif. Not to be outdone by his bandmate, guitarist Bob Weir has now revealed his involvement in a similar venture just down the road from Lesh’s spot. The two musicians still perform together in the group Furthur.

Before shuttering in 2007, the Sweetwater Music Hall was a musicians’ gathering spot in the artistic Bay Area community of Mill Valley. This week, Weir and his partners reopened the landmark venue in new digs a couple blocks away from its original location.

“Marin County used to be a real hub for music,” Weir tells Rolling Stone. “It was a hotbed for music. And I miss that. And Phil misses that. And we’re trying to bring that kind of consciousness back to Marin County. The music kind of disappeared from Marin about 20 years ago when people stopped going to clubs and stuff because everybody got married and had kids. Well, now those kids are growing up and they’re going to be playing in the clubs, so I think it’s going to happen again.”

Sweetwater’s new location in the Masonic Hall allowed for the complete renovation of a space that has hosted live music and events for more than a century. The remodeled interior is modern sleek, boasting state-of-the-art sound and streaming video technology, with clean sight lines and cozy hangout spots. It also features a gourmet cafe offering locally-sourced, organic fare.

In addition to a full performance schedule from both local and national bands, the reopened venue will revive its open mic night. In the past, the event has attracted national musicians like the late Clarence Clemons. The Talking Heads’ Jerry Harrison used to frequent the club and was seen there earlier this week at a private pre-opening function. So was Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow.

Weir expects that he will find plenty of opportunities to play in his hometown’s new hangout when he’s not touring. He’s set to perform a private show there with his band Ratdog this week, and he also says he plans to sit-in with guitar virtuoso Steve Kimock on Sunday.

“I’ll do whatever is appropriate in there,” he says. “A lot of the bands I play with might bring trouble to the area if we tried to play there, so maybe I’ll do solo concerts or little projects; I can think of a number of things.”

Sweetwater will also host master classes, workshops, a Sunday music brunch and a Wednesday night jam session led, initially, by Ratdog’s Mark Karan. The full schedule launches this Friday with a sold-out show by the Outlaws.
"For years, the Sweetwater was the place many of us local and visiting musicians headed to when we were looking to play for fun,” said Weir. “Well, our clubhouse is back – and it belongs to all of us. Woo-hoo!”

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Grateful Dead's Bob Weir Reopens Landmark Sweetwater Venue

Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh recently announced plans to open a new mixed-use performance space called Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael, Calif. Not to be outdone by his bandmate, guitarist Bob Weir has now revealed his involvement in a similar venture just down the road from Lesh’s spot. The two musicians still perform together in the group Furthur.

Before shuttering in 2007, the Sweetwater Music Hall was a musicians’ gathering spot in the artistic Bay Area community of Mill Valley. This week, Weir and his partners reopened the landmark venue in new digs a couple blocks away from its original location.

“Marin County used to be a real hub for music,” Weir tells Rolling Stone. “It was a hotbed for music. And I miss that. And Phil misses that. And we’re trying to bring that kind of consciousness back to Marin County. The music kind of disappeared from Marin about 20 years ago when people stopped going to clubs and stuff because everybody got married and had kids. Well, now those kids are growing up and they’re going to be playing in the clubs, so I think it’s going to happen again.”

Sweetwater’s new location in the Masonic Hall allowed for the complete renovation of a space that has hosted live music and events for more than a century. The remodeled interior is modern sleek, boasting state-of-the-art sound and streaming video technology, with clean sight lines and cozy hangout spots. It also features a gourmet cafe offering locally-sourced, organic fare.

In addition to a full performance schedule from both local and national bands, the reopened venue will revive its open mic night. In the past, the event has attracted national musicians like the late Clarence Clemons. The Talking Heads’ Jerry Harrison used to frequent the club and was seen there earlier this week at a private pre-opening function. So was Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow.

Weir expects that he will find plenty of opportunities to play in his hometown’s new hangout when he’s not touring. He’s set to perform a private show there with his band Ratdog this week, and he also says he plans to sit-in with guitar virtuoso Steve Kimock on Sunday.

“I’ll do whatever is appropriate in there,” he says. “A lot of the bands I play with might bring trouble to the area if we tried to play there, so maybe I’ll do solo concerts or little projects; I can think of a number of things.”

Sweetwater will also host master classes, workshops, a Sunday music brunch and a Wednesday night jam session led, initially, by Ratdog’s Mark Karan. The full schedule launches this Friday with a sold-out show by the Outlaws.
"For years, the Sweetwater was the place many of us local and visiting musicians headed to when we were looking to play for fun,” said Weir. “Well, our clubhouse is back – and it belongs to all of us. Woo-hoo!”

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Grateful Dead Exhibit Coming to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart in San Francisco in 1968.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

A massive new exhibit chronicling the Grateful Dead's 30-year odyssey is coming to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Grateful Dead: The Long, Strange Trip opens at the Cleveland museum on April 12th, two days before the Rock Hall's annual induction ceremony. The Mickey Hart Band will perform at the exhibit's opening event. "The band gave their full blessing to the project," says Howard Kramer, the Hall of Fame's Director of Curatorial Affairs. "They allowed me unfettered access to their warehouse and offered up items from their personal collection, which is how you want this process to work."

The exhibit will feature five Jerry Garcia guitars; handwritten lyrics to "Box of Rain," "Truckin'," Sugaree" and many other classics; Micky Hart's custom-painted drum kit; and artifacts from the band's longtime sound designer Owsley "Bear" Stanley, alongside many other objects from the group's long career. "Jerry Garcia's guitars carry a lot of emotional weight with the fans," says Kramer. "And the handwritten manuscripts, including a working version of 'Fire on the Mountain,' are stunning."

The artifacts will be presented in a non-linear manner, and will focus not only on the band – but on their hugely devoted fanbase as well. "The Grateful Dead created a culture around them that is a much richer story to tell than just the recounting of events that they were part of," says Kramer. "The story of the Grateful Dead is as much about the people around them as it is about the band themselves."

The exhibit is scheduled to close in December. 

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Grateful Dead Exhibit Coming to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart in San Francisco in 1968.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

A massive new exhibit chronicling the Grateful Dead's 30-year odyssey is coming to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Grateful Dead: The Long, Strange Trip opens at the Cleveland museum on April 12th, two days before the Rock Hall's annual induction ceremony. The Mickey Hart Band will perform at the exhibit's opening event. "The band gave their full blessing to the project," says Howard Kramer, the Hall of Fame's Director of Curatorial Affairs. "They allowed me unfettered access to their warehouse and offered up items from their personal collection, which is how you want this process to work."

The exhibit will feature five Jerry Garcia guitars; handwritten lyrics to "Box of Rain," "Truckin'," Sugaree" and many other classics; Micky Hart's custom-painted drum kit; and artifacts from the band's longtime sound designer Owsley "Bear" Stanley, alongside many other objects from the group's long career. "Jerry Garcia's guitars carry a lot of emotional weight with the fans," says Kramer. "And the handwritten manuscripts, including a working version of 'Fire on the Mountain,' are stunning."

The artifacts will be presented in a non-linear manner, and will focus not only on the band – but on their hugely devoted fanbase as well. "The Grateful Dead created a culture around them that is a much richer story to tell than just the recounting of events that they were part of," says Kramer. "The story of the Grateful Dead is as much about the people around them as it is about the band themselves."

The exhibit is scheduled to close in December. 

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Grateful Dead Drummer: Jerry Garcia 'Wasn’t Really Happy Playing' at Band's End

Grateful Dead's Bill Kreutzmann performs with 7 Walkers on Jam Cruise 10.

Leaving the Grateful Dead behind in 1995 was as much a defining force in drummer Bill Kreutzmann's life as was forming the band with Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan 30 years earlier. And, in some ways, he's still dealing with the fallout. As Kreutzmann discusses exclusively with Rolling Stone, when the group disbanded following Garcia's untimely death, he took off for Hawaii and disappeared for awhile. Part of the reason for Kreutzmann's reclusive period was to honor his word to his fallen bandmate and partly to get his health – and his head – back together. Surprisingly, he says that he believes the Grateful Dead were at the end of the line, even if Garcia had survived.

And while Kreutzmann toured off and on with Grateful Dead spinoff bands such as the Dead and the Other Ones throughout the following decade, it wasn't until much more recently that he finally found a musical project as satisfying as performing in the Grateful Dead proper. Last year, Kreutzmann formed 7 Walkers with bluesman Papa Mali, bassist George Porter Jr. (the Meters) and keyboardist Matt Hubbard (Willie Nelson). Joined by special guest Steve Kimock on guitar – and featuring ample cameos from Karl Denson and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, among others – the group set sail on the high seas with Jam Cruise last week, performing a pair of shows on a sold-out ship bound for Haiti, Jamaica and all points jammed between. Between his sets with 7 Walkers and late-night appearances in the never-ending Jam Room, Kreutzmann sat down with Rolling Stone in the ship's wine bar to take a look back at yet another long strange trip.

The Grateful Dead are often credited as the forefathers of the jam band scene upon which the vibe of Jam Cruise is based. Can you talk about being one of the elder statesmen on the ship?
First of all, I love doing Jam Cruise. This is the second one I've done. I like doing it so much. The audience, the people on board are just as cool as can be and they're all into jam music. And I get to meet all these musicians that I don't normally get to hang with. So I get to rub shoulders and hang out with these different people and we get to play, like tonight in the Jam Room – it's going to be insane. I heard it's been kinda quiet in there the last few nights, so I figured I better show up. George Porter Jr. is going to show up and then Papa Mali too, so we'll get it raging in there; we'll warm it up.

Jam Cruise is sort of because of the jam scene, and the Grateful Dead often get complimented for starting the jam band scene. And maybe that is true, but in my head jazz musicians jammed forever, way before rock musicians. We might be one of the first rock bands to really jam and that might be the truth and that's cool; when I see all these new musicians playing great music and jamming like crazy, I'm really honored. It's not that I'm honored personally, I'm honored to the music – the music is being honored by musicians keeping it alive. And that's what I really like.

You've already been in one of the world's most successful bands – for three decades. You don't need to do anything for a living anymore. You could retire and live happily ever after. So why still do it?
I just don't see myself as retiring. As long as I'm healthy and can play the drums, that's what I'm going to do because that's the most fun thing that I know how to do. And to make people happy from playing music is the best reward you can have in your life – instead of being an insurance salesman or whatever, whatever, you know. Playing music is just one of the best things. I can't retire.

When Jerry left us in '95, besides being totally hurt and forlorn, basically lonesome, I was lost in every direction. I didn't know what to do. I went to Kauai mostly to heal. Jerry and I had this gentlemen's agreement that if the Grateful Dead ever stopped, we were both going to move to Hawaii. Unfortunately he couldn't keep his part of the deal, but I moved there after the Grateful Dead ended in the Summer of '95 because I needed to heal. I had really been burning hard and doing the things that everybody knows that rockers do on the road and this gave me a chance to really catch my breath and heal again. And get healthy. I surf and I got in much better shape and took care of my life. That was very, very important.

But the thing that was missing was a band that could fill the level that I like to have with music that the Grateful Dead did. And I don't mean a copy band of any sort; the bands that I played in afterward, the Dead and the Other Ones and all that, up until 2009, they were okay bands – the musicians were always really great – but I always missed one guy. I couldn't help that in my heart. The Grateful Dead without Jerry Garcia was like the Miles Davis Band without Miles Davis.

So, finally, 15 years after Jerry left, I got to meet Papa Mali. And that was like one of the most fortunate things to ever happen to me. My girlfriend Amy, who is now my wife, introduced me to Papa Mali. She played his music for me at home in Hawaii and I just went, "Oh man, that cat's for real!" And I've always loved New Orleans music. I always loved it when the Neville Brothers opened up for the Grateful Dead, and the Dirty Dozen and all that.

And finally I met a guy that I could totally believe in as a musician. As Jerry did, [Mali] has total knowledge of all kinds of music. He's got like 10,000 vinyl records, got them on every wall on his house, so knowledgeable and just a really wonderful person to play music with and he sings great and he's the one person I've heard sing Jerry songs that I really like his voice doing it. I mean, 7 Walkers doesn't have all the instrumentation that the Grateful Dead did, but I just like the way we approach it. What I'm getting at is that I've had to wait this long, 15 years, to really get back. And that's the reason I'm here on Jam Cruise; I'm back playing again with musicians I really believe in. And that's very important to me. These guys have got to be the guys or else I don't want to do it.

You say you can't retire from music. All of the other remaining members of the Grateful Dead seem to feel the same way. Do you think if Jerry Garcia was still around that the Grateful Dead would still be touring?
No, I don't think so. I think that Jerry had gotten kind of bored with the Grateful Dead, and it was sort of like a marriage that had maybe gone on too long. And other people in the band wanted to start to express themselves in their bands and so forth and so on, that I'm pretty sure Jerry would've stopped playing in the Grateful Dead. I think a lot of it, I hate to say, was really a financial obligation. He needed to earn the money for some things and that's too bad. But it's hard. He was a true artist and I can tell you he wasn't really happy playing in the Grateful Dead at the end. I hate to say that. I know the audience is going to hear me say that and go, "Oh, that's not true," but if people really think about some of the shows that were there in the last year and some of the troubles that poor Jerry had, they know that I'm not BS'ing.

I really like to go for the essence of things, the most beautiful parts of things, of human beings or of music. If there are things in there that are getting in the way and complicating it, it's just not good for me. It's hard for me, too. Once again, I said it earlier, but the reason I went to Hawaii was to heal those things.

In talking about the new Dave's Picks live release series, Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux recently told Rolling Stone that he informs everyone in the band what the next live release will be. He sends them advance copies, but he's not sure any of the band members actually ever put them on. When a new live Grateful Dead release comes out, do you listen to it?
I do. And the one that comes to mind right away is the new Europe '72 [The Complete Recordings] release. I went back and listened and on a couple of the CDs in that set – there's one that has "The Other One" into some kind of jam back into "The Other One" – the music is just fantastic. It blows my mind to this moment. I like that music, the looser music like "Bird Song" or "The Other One," because they're really heavily jam-oriented. The Garcia songs are always my favorite, but the jam parts are really my favorite.

There's now even a Grateful Dead video game on the market. Do you pay attention to that stuff? I mean, the non-musical commercial releases, licensing and merchandising?
I don't always; some of it I do and some of it I don't. I trust David Lemieux a million percent and when he says something is worth going for, then I do it. And I don't have to listen to everything or get everything – my house would be awful full of stuff. Whatever it is: dog collars . . . there's a company now that makes Grateful Dead dog toys, and since I'm a dog lover and have dogs at home I said, "Yeah, go ahead."

While on Jam Cruise, do you go on shore and take advantage of the port stops?
I do. I got in the water today. We were in Haiti, and I got off at the port and went swimming at the designated beach, because the water is so warm; it's warmer than where I live in Hawaii right now . . . they had to drag me out of the water, just about.

Do you have a favorite Jam Cruise memory?
Yes, I do. It's from the last Jam Cruise I went on. It was after my last show with the Rhythm Devils – I played that cruise with the Rhythm Devils and Mickey Hart – and I went to the Jam Room after midnight and George [Porter Jr.] was holding court there, and I played with him for awhile. I got a little tired, and I stopped and then Johnny Vidacovich sat in, a fantastic drummer. And that guy, Johnny V., is the reason drumming is what it is in New Orleans today, a lot of it. A lot of really good studio stuff, too. George was holding court, playing in the Jam Room, and I couldn't leave. Me and Amy sat back there, we were beat, we actually sat back a bit off to the right side of the stage, behind it, and my jaw just dropped just listening to them play. So I remember that the most because that was just so much fun.

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Grateful Dead Drummer: Jerry Garcia 'Wasn’t Really Happy Playing' at Band's End

Grateful Dead's Bill Kreutzmann performs with 7 Walkers on Jam Cruise 10.

Leaving the Grateful Dead behind in 1995 was as much a defining force in drummer Bill Kreutzmann's life as was forming the band with Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan 30 years earlier. And, in some ways, he's still dealing with the fallout. As Kreutzmann discusses exclusively with Rolling Stone, when the group disbanded following Garcia's untimely death, he took off for Hawaii and disappeared for awhile. Part of the reason for Kreutzmann's reclusive period was to honor his word to his fallen bandmate and partly to get his health – and his head – back together. Surprisingly, he says that he believes the Grateful Dead were at the end of the line, even if Garcia had survived.

And while Kreutzmann toured off and on with Grateful Dead spinoff bands such as the Dead and the Other Ones throughout the following decade, it wasn't until much more recently that he finally found a musical project as satisfying as performing in the Grateful Dead proper. Last year, Kreutzmann formed 7 Walkers with bluesman Papa Mali, bassist George Porter Jr. (the Meters) and keyboardist Matt Hubbard (Willie Nelson). Joined by special guest Steve Kimock on guitar – and featuring ample cameos from Karl Denson and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, among others – the group set sail on the high seas with Jam Cruise last week, performing a pair of shows on a sold-out ship bound for Haiti, Jamaica and all points jammed between. Between his sets with 7 Walkers and late-night appearances in the never-ending Jam Room, Kreutzmann sat down with Rolling Stone in the ship's wine bar to take a look back at yet another long strange trip.

The Grateful Dead are often credited as the forefathers of the jam band scene upon which the vibe of Jam Cruise is based. Can you talk about being one of the elder statesmen on the ship?
First of all, I love doing Jam Cruise. This is the second one I've done. I like doing it so much. The audience, the people on board are just as cool as can be and they're all into jam music. And I get to meet all these musicians that I don't normally get to hang with. So I get to rub shoulders and hang out with these different people and we get to play, like tonight in the Jam Room – it's going to be insane. I heard it's been kinda quiet in there the last few nights, so I figured I better show up. George Porter Jr. is going to show up and then Papa Mali too, so we'll get it raging in there; we'll warm it up.

Jam Cruise is sort of because of the jam scene, and the Grateful Dead often get complimented for starting the jam band scene. And maybe that is true, but in my head jazz musicians jammed forever, way before rock musicians. We might be one of the first rock bands to really jam and that might be the truth and that's cool; when I see all these new musicians playing great music and jamming like crazy, I'm really honored. It's not that I'm honored personally, I'm honored to the music – the music is being honored by musicians keeping it alive. And that's what I really like.

You've already been in one of the world's most successful bands – for three decades. You don't need to do anything for a living anymore. You could retire and live happily ever after. So why still do it?
I just don't see myself as retiring. As long as I'm healthy and can play the drums, that's what I'm going to do because that's the most fun thing that I know how to do. And to make people happy from playing music is the best reward you can have in your life – instead of being an insurance salesman or whatever, whatever, you know. Playing music is just one of the best things. I can't retire.

When Jerry left us in '95, besides being totally hurt and forlorn, basically lonesome, I was lost in every direction. I didn't know what to do. I went to Kauai mostly to heal. Jerry and I had this gentlemen's agreement that if the Grateful Dead ever stopped, we were both going to move to Hawaii. Unfortunately he couldn't keep his part of the deal, but I moved there after the Grateful Dead ended in the Summer of '95 because I needed to heal. I had really been burning hard and doing the things that everybody knows that rockers do on the road and this gave me a chance to really catch my breath and heal again. And get healthy. I surf and I got in much better shape and took care of my life. That was very, very important.

But the thing that was missing was a band that could fill the level that I like to have with music that the Grateful Dead did. And I don't mean a copy band of any sort; the bands that I played in afterward, the Dead and the Other Ones and all that, up until 2009, they were okay bands – the musicians were always really great – but I always missed one guy. I couldn't help that in my heart. The Grateful Dead without Jerry Garcia was like the Miles Davis Band without Miles Davis.

So, finally, 15 years after Jerry left, I got to meet Papa Mali. And that was like one of the most fortunate things to ever happen to me. My girlfriend Amy, who is now my wife, introduced me to Papa Mali. She played his music for me at home in Hawaii and I just went, "Oh man, that cat's for real!" And I've always loved New Orleans music. I always loved it when the Neville Brothers opened up for the Grateful Dead, and the Dirty Dozen and all that.

And finally I met a guy that I could totally believe in as a musician. As Jerry did, [Mali] has total knowledge of all kinds of music. He's got like 10,000 vinyl records, got them on every wall on his house, so knowledgeable and just a really wonderful person to play music with and he sings great and he's the one person I've heard sing Jerry songs that I really like his voice doing it. I mean, 7 Walkers doesn't have all the instrumentation that the Grateful Dead did, but I just like the way we approach it. What I'm getting at is that I've had to wait this long, 15 years, to really get back. And that's the reason I'm here on Jam Cruise; I'm back playing again with musicians I really believe in. And that's very important to me. These guys have got to be the guys or else I don't want to do it.

You say you can't retire from music. All of the other remaining members of the Grateful Dead seem to feel the same way. Do you think if Jerry Garcia was still around that the Grateful Dead would still be touring?
No, I don't think so. I think that Jerry had gotten kind of bored with the Grateful Dead, and it was sort of like a marriage that had maybe gone on too long. And other people in the band wanted to start to express themselves in their bands and so forth and so on, that I'm pretty sure Jerry would've stopped playing in the Grateful Dead. I think a lot of it, I hate to say, was really a financial obligation. He needed to earn the money for some things and that's too bad. But it's hard. He was a true artist and I can tell you he wasn't really happy playing in the Grateful Dead at the end. I hate to say that. I know the audience is going to hear me say that and go, "Oh, that's not true," but if people really think about some of the shows that were there in the last year and some of the troubles that poor Jerry had, they know that I'm not BS'ing.

I really like to go for the essence of things, the most beautiful parts of things, of human beings or of music. If there are things in there that are getting in the way and complicating it, it's just not good for me. It's hard for me, too. Once again, I said it earlier, but the reason I went to Hawaii was to heal those things.

In talking about the new Dave's Picks live release series, Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux recently told Rolling Stone that he informs everyone in the band what the next live release will be. He sends them advance copies, but he's not sure any of the band members actually ever put them on. When a new live Grateful Dead release comes out, do you listen to it?
I do. And the one that comes to mind right away is the new Europe '72 [The Complete Recordings] release. I went back and listened and on a couple of the CDs in that set – there's one that has "The Other One" into some kind of jam back into "The Other One" – the music is just fantastic. It blows my mind to this moment. I like that music, the looser music like "Bird Song" or "The Other One," because they're really heavily jam-oriented. The Garcia songs are always my favorite, but the jam parts are really my favorite.

There's now even a Grateful Dead video game on the market. Do you pay attention to that stuff? I mean, the non-musical commercial releases, licensing and merchandising?
I don't always; some of it I do and some of it I don't. I trust David Lemieux a million percent and when he says something is worth going for, then I do it. And I don't have to listen to everything or get everything – my house would be awful full of stuff. Whatever it is: dog collars . . . there's a company now that makes Grateful Dead dog toys, and since I'm a dog lover and have dogs at home I said, "Yeah, go ahead."

While on Jam Cruise, do you go on shore and take advantage of the port stops?
I do. I got in the water today. We were in Haiti, and I got off at the port and went swimming at the designated beach, because the water is so warm; it's warmer than where I live in Hawaii right now . . . they had to drag me out of the water, just about.

Do you have a favorite Jam Cruise memory?
Yes, I do. It's from the last Jam Cruise I went on. It was after my last show with the Rhythm Devils – I played that cruise with the Rhythm Devils and Mickey Hart – and I went to the Jam Room after midnight and George [Porter Jr.] was holding court there, and I played with him for awhile. I got a little tired, and I stopped and then Johnny Vidacovich sat in, a fantastic drummer. And that guy, Johnny V., is the reason drumming is what it is in New Orleans today, a lot of it. A lot of really good studio stuff, too. George was holding court, playing in the Jam Room, and I couldn't leave. Me and Amy sat back there, we were beat, we actually sat back a bit off to the right side of the stage, behind it, and my jaw just dropped just listening to them play. So I remember that the most because that was just so much fun.

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