As another new year rolls in, I can’t say how excited I am to see the Grateful Dead family not only thriving but flourishing. We Deadheads can take pride in having become a borderless, boundless global community where a simple Steal-Your-Face sticker on your pack and a smile will find you a safe haven. And with thankfulness being one of the defining criteria of a Deadhead for the life-changing, enlightening experience the Dead brought to our lives, we have a healthy desire to express that gratitude. What is “it” we’re so thankful for?

Almost 17 years ago, back in 2003, I played my first show with Melvin Seals in Albuquerque, NM and had an absolute blast.

Last weekend, the legendary jam band Zero concluded a prolific 35th anniversary run aptly named “Back to Zero.” Core members Steve Kimock, Greg Anton, Pete Sears, Melvin Seals, and Hadi Al-Saddoon were joined by friends and family for an invigorating reunion that pleased newer fans and decade-spanning devotees alike.

Organizers of the 12th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival released their “early bird band lineup” today, with The Infamous Stringdusters at the top of the initial band list.

The Grammy-winning progressive bluegrass band will be making its third appearance at Rooster Walk, and will be joined on the bill by Melvin Seals & JGB, Fruition, BIG Something, Yarn, The Vegabonds, Big Daddy Love and Sexbruise?.

This incarnation of the band, which was established in the early 1980s, included Melvin Seals (keyboards), Pete Sears (bass, backing vocals), Hadi Al-Saadoon (trumpet, backing vocals), and Sebastian Saint James (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), with Miles Kimock contributing additional guitar passages in the second set. Steve Kimock had worked with Seals and Sears in the recent past, and with Al-Saadoon in Zero’s early days. Saint James, who was new to the Zero fold, gelled well with the group.

Acclaimed experiential theme park, Wisdome.LA, will host a four-night festival of live, immersive musical experiences dedicated to Pink Floyd’s iconic album, ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’, and to the music of Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead from November 7th-10th.

Thirty-five years ago, having met when Steve Kimock auditioned for former Grateful Dead members Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux’s Heart of Gold Band (which already had Greg Anton as its drummer), Greg and Steve recorded an album, Greg on drums and piano, Steve on guitars and bass.  Then they started a band to play the music.

Our band and the music have evolved over the years. We feel now, it’s the best its been in a very long time. Zach Nugent contributed to that and we thank him for the last few years. As the men who came before him, we don’t doubt he will succeed in the telling of his own story…channeling the man we all love so much.

Zach will be with us through June, July, and up to August 1 at The Werk Out Festival.

The Werk Out Festival has announced its daily lineup schedule for August 1st-August 3rd, 2019. In its 10th year founded and curated by The Werks, this year presents the most robust lineup yet with Big Gigantic, STS9, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, Steel Pulse, The Floozies, Twiddle, Matisyahu, and more rounding out the genre-spanning lineup handpicked by the festival’s namesake band. In addition, the festival has announced single-day tickets available for the first time in their history.