1 00:00:04,640 --> 00:00:09,959 Speaker 1: Double Elvis seven Club is the production of I Heart 2 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:16,480 Speaker 1: Radio and Double Elvis Ron. Pigpen mccernan died at the 3 00:00:16,520 --> 00:00:20,280 Speaker 1: age of seven and include to life that was constantly 4 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:23,480 Speaker 1: slipping through his fingers. I can give you twenty seven 5 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:27,160 Speaker 1: reasons why that statement is true. Sixteen would be the 6 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:29,280 Speaker 1: number of months that it took for Pigpen and the 7 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:33,199 Speaker 1: Grateful Dad's digs at seven ten Ashbury to go from 8 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:38,360 Speaker 1: a countercultural mecca to a commodified tourist haven. Another two 9 00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:40,800 Speaker 1: would be the number of cities the Grateful Dead would 10 00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:44,080 Speaker 1: record in while searching for the perfect sound to complement 11 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:48,479 Speaker 1: their musical evolution, an evolution pig Pens struggled to keep 12 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:51,760 Speaker 1: pace with. Two more would be the number of proficient 13 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 1: musicians becoming full time members of the Grateful Dead, the 14 00:00:55,280 --> 00:01:00,200 Speaker 1: band Pigpen helps start rendering Pigpens musical input near obs lee. 15 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:03,240 Speaker 1: Another three would be the number of weeks he would 16 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:06,399 Speaker 1: consider his future while taking a sabbatical from the group. 17 00:01:07,200 --> 00:01:09,600 Speaker 1: In four will be the number of years he'd have 18 00:01:09,680 --> 00:01:12,319 Speaker 1: left to live when he finally accepted that he was 19 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:14,960 Speaker 1: no longer in control of the group that he had 20 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:21,360 Speaker 1: created all totally on this our fifth episode of season 21 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:26,479 Speaker 1: five Commodified Tourists Haven, searching for the sound becoming obsolete 22 00:01:26,840 --> 00:01:32,959 Speaker 1: in Ron Pigpen mcernin um Jake Brennan and this is 23 00:01:33,000 --> 00:02:22,160 Speaker 1: the cloth. The driver of the greyhound bus was being 24 00:02:22,200 --> 00:02:25,000 Speaker 1: paid by the hour, so he took his time creeping 25 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: through the winding streets of San Francisco. The occupants didn't 26 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:32,800 Speaker 1: seem to mind, and they had no destination. This was 27 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: a pleasure cruise. A group of senior citizens and middle 28 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:41,240 Speaker 1: class businessman, all dressed in suits, eagerly flipped through the 29 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:43,760 Speaker 1: pamphlets they had been handed when they stepped on board. 30 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: They didn't know what to expect or what they might see. 31 00:02:47,919 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: The conservative newspapers made it seem like they were about 32 00:02:50,320 --> 00:02:53,799 Speaker 1: to witness the decline of Western civilization. Nothing was off 33 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:56,160 Speaker 1: the table. When he came to the depths of debauchery. 34 00:02:57,680 --> 00:03:01,120 Speaker 1: The passengers opened the pamphlets to find a dictionary of terms, 35 00:03:01,680 --> 00:03:05,160 Speaker 1: a special collection of words used by the locals. Stoned 36 00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:09,079 Speaker 1: trip speed straight. This was how these people spoke, how 37 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:12,560 Speaker 1: they thought, how they lived. It all seemed so foreign 38 00:03:12,600 --> 00:03:15,440 Speaker 1: to these buttoned up recipients of pension benefits and ores 39 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 1: of stock options. Surely people couldn't live like this had 40 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: they no sense at all. As the hate Ashbury section 41 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:26,360 Speaker 1: of San Francisco came into view, the scene outside was 42 00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:30,720 Speaker 1: getting stranger. The tour guide droned on about the dangerous 43 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:34,320 Speaker 1: citizens walking the streets, separated from the passengers by only 44 00:03:34,360 --> 00:03:37,920 Speaker 1: the safety of the greyhounds sidewall. The inhabitants of this 45 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:40,280 Speaker 1: area were the ones who claimed that the bus passengers, 46 00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 1: the upper middle class were ruining the country. Impossible, these 47 00:03:44,400 --> 00:03:48,280 Speaker 1: freaks on the streets, they were the invaders, dirty hippies. 48 00:03:49,720 --> 00:03:52,160 Speaker 1: The Greyhound was the vehicle of choice for the Hippie 49 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:55,440 Speaker 1: Hop Bus Tour, which had started running in nineteen sixty seven, 50 00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:57,960 Speaker 1: just as the Summer of Love was reaching its peak. 51 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:01,080 Speaker 1: It was an effort to com modify what plastered nearly 52 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:04,880 Speaker 1: every front page in America. This trip, the bus trip 53 00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:08,000 Speaker 1: promised to be well worth the cost of admission. The 54 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 1: passengers weren't like the people they ogled on the streets. 55 00:04:11,200 --> 00:04:14,000 Speaker 1: The passengers would never tune in and drop out. More 56 00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:17,920 Speaker 1: judgmental than curious, they ogled the citizens of the Hate 57 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,120 Speaker 1: like animals in a zoo. They couldn't buy into what 58 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 1: was happening because it would contradict everything they had ever 59 00:04:23,920 --> 00:04:27,040 Speaker 1: been taught and told. The very concepts they modeled their 60 00:04:27,200 --> 00:04:30,360 Speaker 1: entire lives around. They reflected the thoughts of most of 61 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:34,600 Speaker 1: America's population. Cynicism was far easier than a long, hard 62 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:39,200 Speaker 1: look in the mirror. A few blocks away, pig Pen 63 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:41,599 Speaker 1: sat in the bathrobe on the front steps of seven 64 00:04:41,640 --> 00:04:45,040 Speaker 1: ten Ashbury, with an acoustic guitar across his lap. He 65 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:48,120 Speaker 1: stubbed out a cigarette and lit another one. An empty 66 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: beer can sat on the ground next to mid Day 67 00:04:50,839 --> 00:04:53,800 Speaker 1: had given way to afternoon, and Pigpen was just trying 68 00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:55,920 Speaker 1: to get a little fresh air, pick a little guitar, 69 00:04:56,040 --> 00:04:58,960 Speaker 1: and chase off the last remaining hurts of his hangover 70 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 1: before heading to the evening's gig. As the cool San 71 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:06,880 Speaker 1: Francisco breeze blew through his long black hair, he inhaled 72 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:11,240 Speaker 1: deeply on his cigarette. He tilted his head back, eyes closed. 73 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:13,840 Speaker 1: It was a rare moment of peace, one that was 74 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:16,799 Speaker 1: becoming harder and harder to find, and they hate these days. 75 00:05:17,440 --> 00:05:21,200 Speaker 1: And then it was shattered. And if you look to 76 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:23,840 Speaker 1: the right, we have oh, look there's one on the 77 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:27,600 Speaker 1: porch now. Pig stared at the tour bus that had 78 00:05:27,600 --> 00:05:31,080 Speaker 1: planted itself in front of the old Victorian home. Faces 79 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:35,840 Speaker 1: pressed up against the glass, some smiling, others horrified, all 80 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:39,159 Speaker 1: of them completely out of place. Pig gave them an 81 00:05:39,200 --> 00:05:42,520 Speaker 1: obligatory quick smile. He quickly turned and entered the house 82 00:05:42,600 --> 00:05:45,600 Speaker 1: where he could drop the fourth smile and the act altogether. 83 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: He opened the fridge and cracked another beer. Just then 84 00:05:49,960 --> 00:05:52,880 Speaker 1: a knocking came on the door. Here we go again, 85 00:05:53,480 --> 00:05:58,120 Speaker 1: another reporter. This was becoming all too common. It seemed 86 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:01,280 Speaker 1: like an everyday occurrence. A con stream of local and 87 00:06:01,360 --> 00:06:06,280 Speaker 1: national reporters flooded the hate seven ten Ashbury. Specifically, they 88 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:08,320 Speaker 1: wanted to know what was happening in the most happening 89 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 1: spot in the country. Time magazine, Life Magazine. They want 90 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:15,760 Speaker 1: to know what's going on at seven ten Ashbury. Fucking unreal. 91 00:06:16,600 --> 00:06:19,320 Speaker 1: When pig wasn't answering questions about where he got his bandanna, 92 00:06:19,400 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 1: he was answering questions about what he thought a hippie 93 00:06:21,560 --> 00:06:25,159 Speaker 1: was hippie? Who the hell knew what that meant. Pigpen 94 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:27,560 Speaker 1: didn't come up with that word, and they weren't hippies, 95 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:31,719 Speaker 1: they were just people. But the questions never stopped, even 96 00:06:31,720 --> 00:06:34,320 Speaker 1: once about pig Pen being the star of the Grateful Dead. 97 00:06:35,080 --> 00:06:37,480 Speaker 1: His face was the only one on the band's merchandise. 98 00:06:37,560 --> 00:06:41,240 Speaker 1: After all, pig Pen boxed he was being cast as 99 00:06:41,279 --> 00:06:44,839 Speaker 1: the palot piper of the Hate. There were, of course, 100 00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:48,560 Speaker 1: ernest journalists who were actually interested in the San Francisco 101 00:06:48,640 --> 00:06:52,200 Speaker 1: sound and scene, but that didn't sell magazines. Then they 102 00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:55,159 Speaker 1: Hate wasn't only overrun with journalists looking for scandalous front 103 00:06:55,160 --> 00:06:58,320 Speaker 1: page fodder, who was also overrun with young people there 104 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:01,040 Speaker 1: for the wrong reasons, on the wrong track and headed 105 00:07:01,080 --> 00:07:03,920 Speaker 1: for the hate. The word was out about the Summer 106 00:07:03,960 --> 00:07:05,960 Speaker 1: of Love, and everyone wanted to light up and have 107 00:07:06,120 --> 00:07:09,640 Speaker 1: themselves a ball. It was as if they thought just 108 00:07:09,840 --> 00:07:13,160 Speaker 1: arriving in San Francisco would enlighten them like that should 109 00:07:13,200 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 1: happened by osmosis. Pig Pen have been living this life 110 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,480 Speaker 1: as far back as he could remember, and the Grateful 111 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:22,360 Speaker 1: Dead weren't some experiment in a cage for the public 112 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:25,840 Speaker 1: to gag at. They were artists just trying to create, 113 00:07:26,200 --> 00:07:29,560 Speaker 1: and they've been living their art. Paul alto the acid 114 00:07:29,600 --> 00:07:34,800 Speaker 1: tests all empolylagnitas. Now they hate. Each stage of the 115 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:38,040 Speaker 1: trip lifted the group to a new level, influenced their direction, 116 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:41,120 Speaker 1: altered their minds, and their existence in San Francisco was 117 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:44,680 Speaker 1: just the continued pursuit of that life to live deeply. 118 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:47,680 Speaker 1: As Henry David Threau would say, to suck out all 119 00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:51,520 Speaker 1: the marrow. This wasn't an overnight operation, and yet the 120 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:54,920 Speaker 1: arriving masses thought it was. They infiltrated the bubble of 121 00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:57,440 Speaker 1: the hate, and they did as many drugs as they could. 122 00:07:57,480 --> 00:08:00,240 Speaker 1: This over eager population didn't pair well with the that 123 00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:04,520 Speaker 1: those same streets were becoming increasingly violent. Rape, robbery, and 124 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,080 Speaker 1: murder was quickly becoming more commonplace than love and kindness. 125 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 1: But San Francisco police weren't amused. They already had their 126 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:15,520 Speaker 1: hands full with civil rights marches in Vietnam protests. Now 127 00:08:15,600 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 1: they had to deal with an overdrugged, overpopulation. The counterculture 128 00:08:20,160 --> 00:08:23,400 Speaker 1: mecca of the world was crumbling. The sunny side of 129 00:08:23,440 --> 00:08:25,320 Speaker 1: the street was starting to get dark with all the 130 00:08:25,360 --> 00:08:28,000 Speaker 1: negative vibes, and it felt as though the Hates bubble 131 00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:31,480 Speaker 1: would burst at any moment. The Dead, too, were quickly 132 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:36,560 Speaker 1: reaching the end of their rope. This first album had 133 00:08:36,640 --> 00:08:39,760 Speaker 1: barely broken into the charts, peaking at number seventy three, 134 00:08:39,800 --> 00:08:41,520 Speaker 1: and there was not a hit single to be found 135 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:45,040 Speaker 1: on either side of the LP, and despite a commercial 136 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:47,840 Speaker 1: flop in the frustrations that were building around their beloved 137 00:08:47,880 --> 00:08:51,480 Speaker 1: Hates Facelift, the Grateful Dead still felt a duty to 138 00:08:51,559 --> 00:08:54,640 Speaker 1: the streets of San Francisco, and there was nothing like 139 00:08:54,679 --> 00:08:57,400 Speaker 1: a handful of free shows to help Melo things out. 140 00:08:57,880 --> 00:08:59,960 Speaker 1: But these were some bad vibes that even a free 141 00:09:00,040 --> 00:09:03,800 Speaker 1: show couldn't mellow out. Warner Brothers Records and their record 142 00:09:03,880 --> 00:09:06,680 Speaker 1: label wouldn't quit hassling them. It would have been nearly 143 00:09:06,720 --> 00:09:10,160 Speaker 1: five months since The Dead's debut record was released. The 144 00:09:10,280 --> 00:09:13,400 Speaker 1: follow ups do within the year. Moves had to be made. 145 00:09:14,480 --> 00:09:16,560 Speaker 1: Pig Pen was always able to level out wherever the 146 00:09:16,600 --> 00:09:19,280 Speaker 1: Dead went, but he was starting to get comfortable with 147 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:22,280 Speaker 1: his life and the Hate. Spending time with me, playing 148 00:09:22,280 --> 00:09:25,480 Speaker 1: old blues tunes and drinking at local bars before performing 149 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:29,319 Speaker 1: at night. He was settled in. But Jerry and Phil 150 00:09:29,679 --> 00:09:32,679 Speaker 1: didn't settle. They were already on the next phase of 151 00:09:32,720 --> 00:09:36,320 Speaker 1: the Grateful Dead's evolution. The Dead didn't stand still, and 152 00:09:36,360 --> 00:09:39,600 Speaker 1: they certainly weren't in the business of being sentimental. Once 153 00:09:39,679 --> 00:09:42,760 Speaker 1: something stopped serving them, they went in a new direction. 154 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:46,720 Speaker 1: What could pig Pen do about a new direction, even 155 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:48,839 Speaker 1: if he was a prominent member of the group. It 156 00:09:49,040 --> 00:09:51,840 Speaker 1: was but one voice of five, and by the fall 157 00:09:51,880 --> 00:09:55,840 Speaker 1: of seven that direction would begin a never ending revolving 158 00:09:55,880 --> 00:09:59,320 Speaker 1: door of band members, altering the dead sound and career forever. 159 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:03,600 Speaker 1: But first, a respite from the madness was needed. The 160 00:10:03,679 --> 00:10:37,960 Speaker 1: dead had to get out of San Francisco. The sun 161 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:41,200 Speaker 1: beat down on pig Pan's face. He sat in a 162 00:10:41,280 --> 00:10:44,280 Speaker 1: long chair on a platform overlooking the water, holding a 163 00:10:44,280 --> 00:10:47,920 Speaker 1: bottle of bourbon. The bed's gear sat next to him. 164 00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:50,920 Speaker 1: His long black hair was still wet that hung over 165 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:54,599 Speaker 1: his stomach, which was continuing to increase in size. He 166 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:57,360 Speaker 1: lifted the bottle to his lips and took in the scene. 167 00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:01,560 Speaker 1: The Russian River, one miles north of San Francisco, was 168 00:11:01,600 --> 00:11:04,520 Speaker 1: an ideal slice of solitude that the grateful dead were 169 00:11:04,520 --> 00:11:09,040 Speaker 1: in desperate need of. In the place was paradise. San 170 00:11:09,080 --> 00:11:13,000 Speaker 1: Francisco was a drag bill Kurtzman's friend offered the group 171 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:16,440 Speaker 1: the spot, a large house surrounded by several cabins right 172 00:11:16,480 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: on the river. How could they say now? The steady 173 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:24,200 Speaker 1: stream of topless women floated by on rafts. A fleet 174 00:11:24,200 --> 00:11:27,400 Speaker 1: of canoes provided endless hours of entertainment. There was a 175 00:11:27,440 --> 00:11:30,280 Speaker 1: sense of seclusion here that the dead had an experienced 176 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:34,120 Speaker 1: since the Lagnita's days. They could stretch their creative legs. 177 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:38,000 Speaker 1: Pigs studied the lyric sheet in front of them, versus 178 00:11:38,040 --> 00:11:40,720 Speaker 1: that Jerry's friend Robert Hunter sent a few months back. 179 00:11:41,520 --> 00:11:44,960 Speaker 1: Robert Hunter was a fellow California native, a friend and 180 00:11:45,000 --> 00:11:49,120 Speaker 1: collaborator of Jerry's in the Paol Alto days. Robert took 181 00:11:49,120 --> 00:11:52,400 Speaker 1: off to both Los Angeles and New Mexico, volunteering as 182 00:11:52,440 --> 00:11:55,640 Speaker 1: a psychedelic test subject for the CIA's top secret mk 183 00:11:55,800 --> 00:11:58,720 Speaker 1: Ultra program, and then battling both metha and phetamine and 184 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:02,760 Speaker 1: speed addictions. The Robert never stopped writing, and he maintained 185 00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:06,920 Speaker 1: his friendship with Jerry. Jerry constantly attempted to convince Robert 186 00:12:06,920 --> 00:12:09,960 Speaker 1: to return home. He raved about the dead as bait, 187 00:12:10,360 --> 00:12:14,280 Speaker 1: and Robert instead sent lyrics, and now from one thousand 188 00:12:14,280 --> 00:12:18,479 Speaker 1: miles away, Robert Hunter had made his first meaningful contribution 189 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:22,800 Speaker 1: to the Grateful Dead. The lyrics described a reptile basking 190 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:25,760 Speaker 1: in the sun and drinking whiskey. Pig bang could dig 191 00:12:25,800 --> 00:12:29,160 Speaker 1: it ship, pig could be that reptile. It was the 192 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:32,160 Speaker 1: first time pig style perfectly suited in original work by 193 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:34,520 Speaker 1: the dead, so he added a verse of his own. 194 00:12:35,120 --> 00:12:37,720 Speaker 1: The verse was inspired by the serene setting the group 195 00:12:37,720 --> 00:12:40,640 Speaker 1: had found on the river in Olempolly and in Lagnitas. 196 00:12:41,360 --> 00:12:44,199 Speaker 1: The Dead had already been working out the music, a big, 197 00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:48,920 Speaker 1: fat bluesy jam. One by one, the rest of the 198 00:12:48,920 --> 00:12:51,400 Speaker 1: band slowly made their way out to the platform to 199 00:12:51,480 --> 00:12:55,360 Speaker 1: begin the day's work. A funky drama, raunchy simple guitar 200 00:12:55,440 --> 00:12:59,160 Speaker 1: lick and pigs sensual bluesy lyrics, slipping and sliding over 201 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:03,400 Speaker 1: it all, the song Alligator was coming together, with pig 202 00:13:03,440 --> 00:13:05,960 Speaker 1: Pen once again placed at the center of the band. 203 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:09,280 Speaker 1: Pig Pen felt like he could live on that river forever. 204 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:13,160 Speaker 1: But Warner Brothers needed their album, and so just as 205 00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:17,400 Speaker 1: the Ompoly and Lognitis experiences ended, so too do the 206 00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:21,720 Speaker 1: Russian River excursion. The Grateful Dead found that the tent 207 00:13:21,880 --> 00:13:26,040 Speaker 1: scene they left behind in San Francisco had become downright grim. 208 00:13:26,120 --> 00:13:28,240 Speaker 1: There were already too many people in the city, but 209 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:31,439 Speaker 1: now the con men had moved in as well. Origuno 210 00:13:31,640 --> 00:13:35,520 Speaker 1: sold as grass aspir and ponnd Off as acid. And meanwhile, 211 00:13:35,880 --> 00:13:37,760 Speaker 1: the people who did know what they were buying and 212 00:13:37,880 --> 00:13:43,080 Speaker 1: moved away from psychedelics to a darker selection of drugs, speed, cocaine, 213 00:13:43,480 --> 00:13:47,880 Speaker 1: Harold the summer of love had peaked and was now 214 00:13:47,920 --> 00:13:52,679 Speaker 1: slouching towards something deeply sinister. Pig wasn't about the acid, 215 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:55,080 Speaker 1: he wasn't about the weed, and he was certainly not 216 00:13:55,120 --> 00:13:58,560 Speaker 1: about the newest narcotics presence in the neighborhood. When The 217 00:13:58,559 --> 00:14:02,120 Speaker 1: Grateful Dead's manager, Rock Scully had an overdose scare upstairs 218 00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:05,559 Speaker 1: at seven ten Ashbury, pig Pen found himself seconds away 219 00:14:05,559 --> 00:14:09,040 Speaker 1: from killing the guy who had supplied the smack. Pigpen 220 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:12,840 Speaker 1: felt something dark creeping in, and as the hate became 221 00:14:12,920 --> 00:14:16,839 Speaker 1: more complicated to navigate, so too did the Grateful Dad's music. 222 00:14:19,280 --> 00:14:24,360 Speaker 1: In September nine, a second drummer joined the group, Mickey Hart. 223 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:27,120 Speaker 1: Mickey had just finished up a stint in New York 224 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,160 Speaker 1: as a session drummer after being discharged from the Air Force. 225 00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 1: Mickey style was straight ahead, no nonsense, schooled and military 226 00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:38,240 Speaker 1: drumming technique. He kept the train on time, reducing the 227 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:42,480 Speaker 1: capacity for meandering raps or musical lines you know, pig pens, 228 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:45,960 Speaker 1: bread and butter. Mickey also allowed the group to experiment 229 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,680 Speaker 1: with time signatures not commonly found in rock and roll 230 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:51,880 Speaker 1: or blues music. While a majority of the band relished 231 00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:55,480 Speaker 1: the opportunity to expand their musical horizons, Pigpen once again 232 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:59,000 Speaker 1: found himself on the outs. Pigpen didn't just play the blues, 233 00:14:59,320 --> 00:15:02,520 Speaker 1: He lived the blues, and the blues didn't funk around 234 00:15:02,560 --> 00:15:07,200 Speaker 1: with time signatures. Those complex time signatures also gave way 235 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:10,720 Speaker 1: to longer, more experimental pieces. Pig Bank could no longer 236 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:13,200 Speaker 1: show up to rehearsal after a few stiff drinks, and 237 00:15:13,280 --> 00:15:15,120 Speaker 1: he would no longer have the luxury of nursing a 238 00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:17,920 Speaker 1: bottle of bourbon while the group pieced together new compositions. 239 00:15:18,720 --> 00:15:20,880 Speaker 1: Just as Pigpenn thought he was getting a grasp on 240 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:23,200 Speaker 1: the Grateful Dead and the music they were playing, just 241 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:25,240 Speaker 1: when he thought he was contributing to the direction that 242 00:15:25,280 --> 00:15:29,360 Speaker 1: the group was taking, everything turned on its head only 243 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:32,040 Speaker 1: days after Mickey joined the band, face down that thirty 244 00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:34,800 Speaker 1: years sentence for the Acapulca Gold hash found at seven 245 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:39,280 Speaker 1: ten Ashbury. There wasn't pigs fucking stash, pig cash in 246 00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:42,120 Speaker 1: his chips and folded on the full house. He knew 247 00:15:42,120 --> 00:15:46,280 Speaker 1: things were going sideways. He and his girl v moved 248 00:15:46,280 --> 00:15:48,480 Speaker 1: out of the Ashbury House and then eventually out of 249 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:52,960 Speaker 1: San Francisco entirely. But first the entire band left San 250 00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:56,360 Speaker 1: Francisco together, headed to l A to record their second 251 00:15:56,360 --> 00:15:59,240 Speaker 1: album and fulfill their commitment to Warner Brothers and then 252 00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:00,960 Speaker 1: get to do it with the Nupper hand. To their 253 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:04,920 Speaker 1: record company overlords, a clause in their contract allowed for 254 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:08,920 Speaker 1: unlimited time in the studio. Producer David Hassinger, who had 255 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:11,800 Speaker 1: rushed The Dead through their first album, could tell right 256 00:16:11,800 --> 00:16:15,440 Speaker 1: away that this time around would be different. The band 257 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:20,160 Speaker 1: spread out in the studio. Experimentation was king. The Beatles 258 00:16:20,160 --> 00:16:23,200 Speaker 1: had just released Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band that summer, 259 00:16:23,560 --> 00:16:25,680 Speaker 1: pushing the envelope for what a band could do with 260 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:28,960 Speaker 1: studio space and how an album could sound, and The 261 00:16:29,000 --> 00:16:32,280 Speaker 1: Grateful Dead endeavored to do the same. Just like their 262 00:16:32,320 --> 00:16:35,520 Speaker 1: first effort, the sessions for the second album weren't going 263 00:16:35,520 --> 00:16:38,440 Speaker 1: out the band had envisioned. They soon moved to New 264 00:16:38,560 --> 00:16:41,440 Speaker 1: York for the confines of a more technically advanced studio. 265 00:16:42,120 --> 00:16:45,080 Speaker 1: Their type A producer was quickly losing his patients with 266 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:47,680 Speaker 1: all the hippies in his control room, and then Bob 267 00:16:47,680 --> 00:16:51,000 Speaker 1: Weir requested thick air to fill in the silent spaces 268 00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:55,600 Speaker 1: of a record I think what I think. Air Passier 269 00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:58,640 Speaker 1: called it quits. These space cadets could do whatever the 270 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:00,480 Speaker 1: funk they wanted. They had free reign of the studio 271 00:17:00,480 --> 00:17:02,920 Speaker 1: and the label signed off on the whole thing, passing 272 00:17:02,920 --> 00:17:04,480 Speaker 1: her head to get the hell out before they drove 273 00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:07,800 Speaker 1: him insane in In an instant, there was like someone 274 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:11,360 Speaker 1: hit or release valve. The pressure to perform on command, 275 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:14,879 Speaker 1: to be not only precise but concise, to have the 276 00:17:14,960 --> 00:17:17,560 Speaker 1: cow to how to a producer standing over their shoulders. 277 00:17:18,440 --> 00:17:21,880 Speaker 1: It all melted away. The Grateful Dead weren't collapsing under 278 00:17:21,880 --> 00:17:26,280 Speaker 1: a cloust phobic studio environment. Instead, they explored the studio space. 279 00:17:26,840 --> 00:17:30,359 Speaker 1: They took their time with the music. Pigpen nailed the 280 00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:33,240 Speaker 1: lyrics for Alligator, and The Grateful Dead even decided to 281 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:37,000 Speaker 1: revive an old tune from called Caution Do Not Stop 282 00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:40,680 Speaker 1: on tracks another Pigpen lead vocal, and these two songs 283 00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:43,360 Speaker 1: will make up the entire B side of the album, 284 00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:47,600 Speaker 1: an entire side for Pigpens vocals. Dan. It was a 285 00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:50,960 Speaker 1: throwback to the Powell Alto days, but there was a 286 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,560 Speaker 1: clear distinction between the songs. Pig Pen was leading in 287 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:57,520 Speaker 1: the songs he wasn't Pigpen songs were the Dead from before. 288 00:17:58,160 --> 00:18:00,600 Speaker 1: The other tunes sounded like a much different group, and 289 00:18:00,680 --> 00:18:02,760 Speaker 1: the shift was only enhanced from the Dead Flu and 290 00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:05,840 Speaker 1: Phil's old college buddy Tom Constant and to record some 291 00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:09,240 Speaker 1: prepared piano parts for the A side of the album. 292 00:18:09,440 --> 00:18:12,760 Speaker 1: Tom was more proficient and sophisticated on the keys, bringing 293 00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:15,680 Speaker 1: a style to the album that Pig Pang could never provide. 294 00:18:16,359 --> 00:18:21,879 Speaker 1: Creative madness ensued. The Grateful Dead destroyed microphones for seconds 295 00:18:21,880 --> 00:18:25,320 Speaker 1: of audio, stuffed pianos full of quarters, hot box many 296 00:18:25,359 --> 00:18:27,760 Speaker 1: of the studios they took up residence in. They took 297 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:30,320 Speaker 1: their time and told Joe Smith that Warner Brothers that 298 00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:33,240 Speaker 1: they planned to mix in live recordings with studio recordings 299 00:18:33,240 --> 00:18:37,960 Speaker 1: to achieve the right ambiance. By December, Smith was skeptical 300 00:18:38,040 --> 00:18:40,879 Speaker 1: at best, and when producer David Hassinger's account to the 301 00:18:40,880 --> 00:18:44,679 Speaker 1: group's behavior reached him, he was furious. This wasn't the 302 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:47,600 Speaker 1: Avalon ballroom where the Grateful Dead lorded over a freaky 303 00:18:47,640 --> 00:18:50,560 Speaker 1: scene of their own design. This wasn't a game, This 304 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:54,359 Speaker 1: was the big time. This was fucking Warner Brothers. Smith 305 00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:56,720 Speaker 1: sent the letter to the band. Heared them to send 306 00:18:56,720 --> 00:18:59,520 Speaker 1: their artwork a sap and wrap up their recording. They 307 00:18:59,520 --> 00:19:02,399 Speaker 1: were out of time, tough shit. The record was going 308 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:04,439 Speaker 1: to be released in two months, whether they liked it 309 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:07,400 Speaker 1: or not, and furthermore, they all needed to grow up 310 00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:12,760 Speaker 1: and stop behaving like stone little pranksters. The Grateful Dead's 311 00:19:12,800 --> 00:19:17,359 Speaker 1: response was brief. They wrote fuck you and giant letters 312 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:19,960 Speaker 1: on Joe Smith's letter and sent it right back to him. 313 00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:22,800 Speaker 1: Nothing was going to stand in their way when it 314 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:25,919 Speaker 1: came to the development of their sound, not even Joe Smith. 315 00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:28,800 Speaker 1: And if pig pens reduced role was beginning to get 316 00:19:28,840 --> 00:19:32,359 Speaker 1: to him, it didn't outwardly show. Pig Pen kept his 317 00:19:32,440 --> 00:19:35,840 Speaker 1: head down, kept chugging, riding that train. But when you 318 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:38,200 Speaker 1: don't take the time to look up, you can miss 319 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:44,680 Speaker 1: all the warning signs. We'll be right back after this 320 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:55,760 Speaker 1: word word word. Pig Pens stood behind the him and organ, 321 00:19:56,040 --> 00:20:00,159 Speaker 1: flanked on either side by two massive Leslie speakers. He 322 00:20:00,280 --> 00:20:03,800 Speaker 1: felt dwarfed behind the new instrument. His vox organ was 323 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:06,399 Speaker 1: at released half the size and a far less complicated 324 00:20:06,480 --> 00:20:09,720 Speaker 1: beast to boot, and the Hammond felt like a spaceship 325 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:13,000 Speaker 1: had played like one too. Pig Pen desperately tried to 326 00:20:13,040 --> 00:20:16,240 Speaker 1: figure it out, but it was different, the fingerings, layout, 327 00:20:16,280 --> 00:20:20,000 Speaker 1: the levels, it was all so different. God damn it. 328 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:22,639 Speaker 1: The thing was too complicated in the music that was 329 00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:26,520 Speaker 1: becoming a beast within itself. Pig Pen's head spun as 330 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:29,919 Speaker 1: the band jam which drummer did he fall? Bill Mickey? 331 00:20:30,119 --> 00:20:32,400 Speaker 1: The music sounded like some advanced class back at Dana 332 00:20:32,400 --> 00:20:35,880 Speaker 1: Morgan's music store. Did he have to like learn theory? Now? 333 00:20:36,040 --> 00:20:39,600 Speaker 1: Was Jerry even doing that? Pig Pen played it safe. 334 00:20:39,840 --> 00:20:42,919 Speaker 1: He played what he knew as simple as possible. He 335 00:20:42,960 --> 00:20:44,919 Speaker 1: didn't want to stick out like a sore thumb, so 336 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:48,159 Speaker 1: he played lines that can easily be tucked away. I 337 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:50,439 Speaker 1: thought that it was always easy to do so. The 338 00:20:50,520 --> 00:20:54,359 Speaker 1: music was continuing to head in unpredictable directions, like some 339 00:20:54,440 --> 00:20:58,359 Speaker 1: complicated math equation on a blackboard. Pigpen liked his math 340 00:20:58,440 --> 00:21:01,440 Speaker 1: like he liked his music. Simp Ball The Grateful Dead 341 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:05,040 Speaker 1: had abandoned simplicity long ago. Pig Pen couldn't wait to 342 00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:07,600 Speaker 1: get into making the next record. Maybe it would be 343 00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:09,680 Speaker 1: something more his speed, Maybe he could find a way 344 00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:13,480 Speaker 1: to ship. He was out of time again. Jerry stopped 345 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:17,720 Speaker 1: the jam. His eyes shot daggers into Pigpen. Jesus pig 346 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:21,080 Speaker 1: did he even practice this? Pigpen bit his lip while 347 00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:23,960 Speaker 1: Jerry berated him about spending his nights watching TV and 348 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:27,440 Speaker 1: drinking bourbon and not practicing. Pigpen didn't have a mean 349 00:21:27,480 --> 00:21:30,720 Speaker 1: bone in his body. He just stood there and took it. Hell, 350 00:21:30,800 --> 00:21:34,080 Speaker 1: it's not like Jerry was wrong, That's just who he was. 351 00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:38,040 Speaker 1: The Grateful Dead picked up the song again, and they 352 00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:42,000 Speaker 1: have been rehearsing for five, six seven hours. Pigpen couldn't 353 00:21:42,040 --> 00:21:45,160 Speaker 1: even tell anymore. The rehearsals had long ago turned into 354 00:21:45,240 --> 00:21:48,800 Speaker 1: daily marathons, and now the music was becoming so complex 355 00:21:48,880 --> 00:21:52,720 Speaker 1: that pig was consistently losing his footing. Jerry and Phil's 356 00:21:52,720 --> 00:21:56,040 Speaker 1: new musical aspirations had the band cruising around in deep space, 357 00:21:56,600 --> 00:22:00,080 Speaker 1: weaving in and out of cosmic musical motifs. Pigpen was 358 00:22:00,160 --> 00:22:03,680 Speaker 1: firmly planted on Earth, watching helplessly as his band, now 359 00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:07,720 Speaker 1: with two drummers, counterbalance two time signatures that had arguably 360 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:09,720 Speaker 1: never existed anywhere else in the world of rock and 361 00:22:09,880 --> 00:22:14,120 Speaker 1: roll before, at least as far as Pigpen new. Pig 362 00:22:14,160 --> 00:22:17,800 Speaker 1: Pen's eyes glazed over this other side of the Grateful 363 00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:21,160 Speaker 1: Dead's coin. It was hetty rigid. It had too many frills. 364 00:22:21,480 --> 00:22:24,880 Speaker 1: He was completely lost, and it wasn't alone. The jam 365 00:22:24,960 --> 00:22:27,840 Speaker 1: broke down again. This time Bob Weir was out of 366 00:22:27,880 --> 00:22:30,280 Speaker 1: time and was the recipient of a patent. Did Jerry 367 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:34,480 Speaker 1: Garcia death stare. Bobby's earnest energy and aggressive style wasn't 368 00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:38,680 Speaker 1: clicking with the new direction either. Rehearsals came to a 369 00:22:38,800 --> 00:22:42,280 Speaker 1: merciful end. Pig Pin headed to the nearest bar to 370 00:22:42,359 --> 00:22:45,879 Speaker 1: drink away his frustrations. As Rock Scully was heading out 371 00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,560 Speaker 1: the door. A few minutes later, Jerry called him back 372 00:22:48,920 --> 00:22:51,600 Speaker 1: and they needed to talk. Jerry knew there was no 373 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:55,000 Speaker 1: easy way to approach the subject, so he came straight 374 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:58,560 Speaker 1: out with it. Listen, man, I get an assignment for you. 375 00:22:59,240 --> 00:23:02,640 Speaker 1: Rock was all years. I can't play with them anymore. 376 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:06,440 Speaker 1: Them as in pig Pen and Bobby, And it wasn't 377 00:23:06,480 --> 00:23:09,080 Speaker 1: just Jerry. The rest of the band wanted them out. 378 00:23:09,840 --> 00:23:12,840 Speaker 1: Pig Pen and Bobby were holding the Dead back musically 379 00:23:12,920 --> 00:23:17,280 Speaker 1: and creatively. It was becoming a drag. Rock understood, right, 380 00:23:17,800 --> 00:23:19,840 Speaker 1: It's not the Pigpen and Bobby couldn't play, rather than 381 00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:21,560 Speaker 1: they couldn't play with the rest of the Grateful Dead 382 00:23:21,600 --> 00:23:25,480 Speaker 1: were playing. A short meeting was arranged Rock told the 383 00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:28,800 Speaker 1: other four members of the Dead to make their intentions know. Jerry, 384 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:32,080 Speaker 1: Phil Bill, and Mickey all pirouetted around the subject in 385 00:23:32,119 --> 00:23:35,040 Speaker 1: typical grateful Dead fashion. They had trouble giving anything a 386 00:23:35,040 --> 00:23:38,400 Speaker 1: final decision or punctuation. The only thing clear to them 387 00:23:38,480 --> 00:23:41,040 Speaker 1: was that the current structure of the group wasn't working, 388 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:44,600 Speaker 1: So rather than break up the band, Jerry, Phil Bill, 389 00:23:44,640 --> 00:23:47,439 Speaker 1: and Mickey formed a separate entity and began playing shows 390 00:23:47,520 --> 00:23:51,080 Speaker 1: under the moniker Mickey and the Heartbeats. That's heart spelled 391 00:23:51,400 --> 00:23:55,639 Speaker 1: h a RT for Mickey Hart. Pigpen understood, but that 392 00:23:55,680 --> 00:23:58,480 Speaker 1: didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell. He never told 393 00:23:58,560 --> 00:24:01,040 Speaker 1: Jerry and the others how much it, and after a 394 00:24:01,080 --> 00:24:03,600 Speaker 1: few nights of heavy drinking, he got back in the saddle. 395 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:07,800 Speaker 1: He began lessons, specifically named it how to play him 396 00:24:07,800 --> 00:24:11,159 Speaker 1: and organ. He practiced day and night, getting the reps, 397 00:24:11,359 --> 00:24:14,400 Speaker 1: drilling himself back into shape, ensuring that he'd be formidable 398 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:16,000 Speaker 1: enough to at least keep up with what was going 399 00:24:16,040 --> 00:24:19,439 Speaker 1: on in the Dead. As he continued to practice, the 400 00:24:19,480 --> 00:24:22,080 Speaker 1: rest of the Dead, minus Pig and Bobby, continued to 401 00:24:22,119 --> 00:24:25,560 Speaker 1: perform as Mickey and the Heartbeats. Pig feared that This 402 00:24:25,640 --> 00:24:27,879 Speaker 1: was the moment he'd been dreading for a long time, 403 00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:31,280 Speaker 1: the moment when his own band finally slipped through his fingers, 404 00:24:31,720 --> 00:24:33,879 Speaker 1: and all the him and lessons in the world weren't 405 00:24:33,880 --> 00:24:37,240 Speaker 1: going to fix that problem. He needed time, time to 406 00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,480 Speaker 1: re examine this place and the grateful dead, re examined 407 00:24:40,480 --> 00:24:43,159 Speaker 1: his place in the whole scene, and he took plenty 408 00:24:43,200 --> 00:24:46,120 Speaker 1: of that time with his lady, V, who dried his tears. 409 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:52,600 Speaker 1: One night, however, the couple's roles were reversed. It was 410 00:24:52,680 --> 00:24:55,800 Speaker 1: V who needed pig Pen's help. She returned home that 411 00:24:55,920 --> 00:24:59,119 Speaker 1: night with a headache, a full blown migraine. Really she 412 00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:02,840 Speaker 1: could barely cease Drake. Only it wasn't a migraine. V 413 00:25:03,359 --> 00:25:07,359 Speaker 1: was in the middle of having a stroke. She wound 414 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:11,920 Speaker 1: up in the hospital for emergency surgery. Pig Pen sat 415 00:25:11,960 --> 00:25:15,160 Speaker 1: by her bed, acting as her nurse, her physical therapist, 416 00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:18,840 Speaker 1: and her main support system. One evening, Bobby and Jerry 417 00:25:18,880 --> 00:25:21,320 Speaker 1: came by the hospital and gave V a quiet concert 418 00:25:21,359 --> 00:25:24,840 Speaker 1: with acoustic guitars. The three members of the fractured group 419 00:25:24,880 --> 00:25:27,159 Speaker 1: went back half a decade by this point, not just 420 00:25:27,280 --> 00:25:31,280 Speaker 1: as bandmates, but as brothers, and that brother had superseded 421 00:25:31,320 --> 00:25:35,119 Speaker 1: any musical rift. V Lying in a hospital bed may 422 00:25:35,200 --> 00:25:37,240 Speaker 1: or may not have been a catalyst, but it was 423 00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:39,240 Speaker 1: the moment in which they all took a more lucid 424 00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:41,760 Speaker 1: look at what was happening with the band. Though they 425 00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:44,720 Speaker 1: didn't always outwardly show it, they all cared for each other. 426 00:25:45,600 --> 00:25:49,320 Speaker 1: The band slowly and intentionally forgot about the details surrounding 427 00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:52,800 Speaker 1: pig and Bobby getting fired. They both seamlessly worked their 428 00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:55,399 Speaker 1: way back into live sets with the band, who for 429 00:25:55,440 --> 00:25:58,440 Speaker 1: a time staggered their shows with other appearances as the 430 00:25:58,520 --> 00:26:02,520 Speaker 1: heartbeats before the Grateful Head was back full time. There 431 00:26:02,560 --> 00:26:06,000 Speaker 1: was no joyous reunion, no comeback show. Pig Pen and 432 00:26:06,080 --> 00:26:09,800 Speaker 1: Bobby just reassimilated into the band, and although both have 433 00:26:09,920 --> 00:26:13,560 Speaker 1: been practicing ferociously to get their chops up, pig sounds 434 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:17,200 Speaker 1: still felt like filler at times. The unspoken truth that 435 00:26:17,280 --> 00:26:20,040 Speaker 1: the Grateful Dead understood was this, if they were going 436 00:26:20,080 --> 00:26:22,040 Speaker 1: to get where they wanted to go on their next album, 437 00:26:22,320 --> 00:26:25,600 Speaker 1: their next evolution, they would need a more accomplished player 438 00:26:25,600 --> 00:26:54,600 Speaker 1: than Pigpen to help them get there. Pig Pens sipped 439 00:26:54,640 --> 00:26:57,520 Speaker 1: his beer and peered around the room. It was filled 440 00:26:57,560 --> 00:27:00,119 Speaker 1: to the brim with blonde models, and middle aged en 441 00:27:00,200 --> 00:27:04,080 Speaker 1: in business suits. Most of these people had already drank 442 00:27:04,119 --> 00:27:07,600 Speaker 1: the coffee, the coffee that was dosed with acid before 443 00:27:07,640 --> 00:27:10,639 Speaker 1: the show, and pretty soon most of these high class 444 00:27:10,680 --> 00:27:13,400 Speaker 1: seeds to types who had morph into saucer. I'd freaks. 445 00:27:14,080 --> 00:27:16,679 Speaker 1: I thought the pig pen wasn't used to that. What 446 00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:20,360 Speaker 1: he wasn't used to was the setting. The room wasn't 447 00:27:20,400 --> 00:27:23,320 Speaker 1: just a room. It was a set in a Hollywood studio, 448 00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:26,760 Speaker 1: and just twenty ft away, Jerry Garcia was yucking it 449 00:27:26,840 --> 00:27:30,040 Speaker 1: up with Hugh Hefner in full heaf mode with a pipe, 450 00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:33,640 Speaker 1: smoky jacket and bow tie, just moments before the Grateful 451 00:27:33,680 --> 00:27:37,640 Speaker 1: Dead were to perform on Heffner's syndicated show Playboy after Dark. 452 00:27:39,640 --> 00:27:43,800 Speaker 1: That was strange a conversation between Jerry Garcia and Hugh Heffner, 453 00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:48,000 Speaker 1: but it wasn't the strangest thing happening that evening. Jerry, 454 00:27:48,119 --> 00:27:51,000 Speaker 1: followed by a camera, approached the stage where the rest 455 00:27:51,000 --> 00:27:52,879 Speaker 1: of the Grateful Dead were waiting and took a seat. 456 00:27:53,480 --> 00:27:56,280 Speaker 1: They began to play Mountains of the Moon, a folks on. 457 00:27:57,000 --> 00:27:58,720 Speaker 1: This was one of the new directions in which the 458 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,280 Speaker 1: Dead were heading. Jerry and Bob weaved acoustic guitars together 459 00:28:02,280 --> 00:28:05,040 Speaker 1: while Jerry sang a gentle lyric and I will get electric. 460 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:07,520 Speaker 1: Organ filled up the rest of the space and the tune. 461 00:28:07,960 --> 00:28:11,399 Speaker 1: Only this organ wasn't being played by pig Pen. Pig 462 00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:13,680 Speaker 1: Pen was watching from the far end of the stage, 463 00:28:14,040 --> 00:28:17,280 Speaker 1: far from the focus of the cameras, far from the music, 464 00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:21,960 Speaker 1: seated behind the selection of congo drums. Yes, He and 465 00:28:22,040 --> 00:28:24,040 Speaker 1: bought weird and made their way back into the band. 466 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:26,440 Speaker 1: Yes he and Bob had reconcile with the rest of 467 00:28:26,480 --> 00:28:29,199 Speaker 1: the group of Bob was sitting center stage, playing with 468 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:32,159 Speaker 1: the clear spokesman of the band, and pig Pen. Pig 469 00:28:32,280 --> 00:28:36,520 Speaker 1: was nowhere near the action. Pigpen wouldn't touch an organ 470 00:28:36,560 --> 00:28:38,960 Speaker 1: at all that night, and he would play much less 471 00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:43,040 Speaker 1: that entire year. Tom Constant, Phil Lesh's friend who had 472 00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:45,320 Speaker 1: sat in during the recording of The Anthem of the Sun, 473 00:28:46,000 --> 00:28:48,120 Speaker 1: was now the chief keys player for the Grateful Band, 474 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:50,760 Speaker 1: supplanting pig Pen in a month or so that he 475 00:28:50,800 --> 00:28:54,280 Speaker 1: had been absent from the group. Pigpen couldn't deny it. 476 00:28:54,360 --> 00:28:57,600 Speaker 1: Tom's talent. He had something Pigpen didn't have him. Pig 477 00:28:57,680 --> 00:29:00,360 Speaker 1: knew it. He was self aware enough to a minute 478 00:29:00,800 --> 00:29:04,920 Speaker 1: Pigpen would not be taking his job back from Tom, 479 00:29:05,040 --> 00:29:07,760 Speaker 1: So Pigpen banged away at his congas as the Dead 480 00:29:07,800 --> 00:29:11,719 Speaker 1: broke into a lively rendition of St. Stephen. He watched 481 00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:14,760 Speaker 1: from the sidelines, unaware of his playing was even having 482 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:16,920 Speaker 1: a positive effect on the sound of the band at all. 483 00:29:17,560 --> 00:29:21,080 Speaker 1: That band, his band, was trucking ahead without any meaningful 484 00:29:21,120 --> 00:29:24,200 Speaker 1: contribution from Pigpen, as if they didn't need him at all. 485 00:29:24,880 --> 00:29:27,520 Speaker 1: At one point, the camera hands over to pigs standing 486 00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:30,720 Speaker 1: behind the congo is not even playing his expression like 487 00:29:30,800 --> 00:29:33,120 Speaker 1: he's coming to understand how the words that Bobby and 488 00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 1: Jerry have just delivered our perfect summation of what's going on. 489 00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:43,520 Speaker 1: One man gathers one another man's spills. And as the 490 00:29:43,600 --> 00:29:47,480 Speaker 1: dead played on, the scene around them became increasingly chaotic. 491 00:29:47,520 --> 00:29:50,800 Speaker 1: As the genteel playboy guests began to trip their brains out, 492 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:54,040 Speaker 1: the grateful dead kept their blinders on and hammered out 493 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:58,400 Speaker 1: a successful show. There were nothing if not professionals. They 494 00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:02,000 Speaker 1: grow accustomed to the chaos surrounding them, just like Pigpen 495 00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:06,120 Speaker 1: would grow accustomed to his new role. That night would 496 00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:09,280 Speaker 1: be a sign of things to come. It was clear 497 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:11,720 Speaker 1: that Tom was the missing piece that Jerry and Phil 498 00:30:11,760 --> 00:30:14,680 Speaker 1: were looking for and Pigpen wasn't about to fight it. 499 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:17,480 Speaker 1: He did what he always did, didn't make a big 500 00:30:17,520 --> 00:30:20,000 Speaker 1: deal out of it, didn't confront anyone, and that wasn't 501 00:30:20,040 --> 00:30:23,800 Speaker 1: Pigpen style. Pig style was a big, hard and warm demeanor. 502 00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:28,160 Speaker 1: He became fast friends with Tom constantin pig Turned Tom 503 00:30:28,200 --> 00:30:31,400 Speaker 1: onto music he had never heard before, boogie players like 504 00:30:31,440 --> 00:30:34,360 Speaker 1: Albert Emmons and Pete Johnson, and pig walked Tom through 505 00:30:34,360 --> 00:30:37,400 Speaker 1: the inevitable dozings he experienced while on tour with one 506 00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:41,560 Speaker 1: of the most dosed bands in rock history. They shared 507 00:30:41,640 --> 00:30:45,920 Speaker 1: keyboard duties on stage, but Pigpens reduced role as an instrumental. 508 00:30:45,960 --> 00:30:48,960 Speaker 1: This freedom of to focus more on vocals during live sets. 509 00:30:49,880 --> 00:30:53,520 Speaker 1: Live on stage was where Pigpen shined. He could howl 510 00:30:53,600 --> 00:30:56,480 Speaker 1: out and inspired good morning, Little Schoolgirl, turn on your 511 00:30:56,480 --> 00:30:59,160 Speaker 1: love Light, and of course Alligator Getting lost in the 512 00:30:59,200 --> 00:31:02,920 Speaker 1: performance and as The Dead prepared to wrap up their 513 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:06,960 Speaker 1: final studio album, the dopamine hies of a live experience 514 00:31:07,000 --> 00:31:10,000 Speaker 1: almost allowed Pigpen to imagine a world where he only 515 00:31:10,040 --> 00:31:13,640 Speaker 1: sang lead vocals, almost allowed him to forget he'd have 516 00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:16,320 Speaker 1: to work harder to stay relevant within the confines of 517 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:19,600 Speaker 1: the group almost allowed him to forget about the shrinking 518 00:31:19,680 --> 00:31:22,880 Speaker 1: presence in the band. It almost felt like the next 519 00:31:22,920 --> 00:31:29,120 Speaker 1: step in the evolution of the Grateful Dead. Almost um 520 00:31:29,240 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: Jake Brennan and This is the Club. Club is hosted 521 00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:50,000 Speaker 1: and produced by me Jake Brennan for Double Elvis in 522 00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:53,920 Speaker 1: partnership with I Heart Radio. Zeth Lundie is the lead 523 00:31:53,960 --> 00:31:58,000 Speaker 1: writer and co producer. This episode was mixed by Joel Edinburgh. 524 00:31:58,280 --> 00:32:01,360 Speaker 1: Additional music and score Allen minutes by Ryan Spraaker and 525 00:32:01,400 --> 00:32:05,360 Speaker 1: Henry Luneta. This episode was written by Ted Boma, story 526 00:32:05,440 --> 00:32:09,120 Speaker 1: and copy ending by Pata Healy. Sources for this episode 527 00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:11,959 Speaker 1: are available at Double Elvis dot com on the twenty 528 00:32:11,960 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 1: seven Club series page, talk to me on Social act 529 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:17,320 Speaker 1: disgrace Land pod, and hang out with me live on 530 00:32:17,440 --> 00:32:20,600 Speaker 1: a Twitch channel of disgrace Land Talks. For more news 531 00:32:20,640 --> 00:32:24,600 Speaker 1: on your favorite podcast, follow at Double Elvis on Instagram, 532 00:32:24,680 --> 00:32:30,720 Speaker 1: Rock rolla, what Up Your Is