The Grateful Dead

I find myself liking Grateful Dead songs these days. I never really disliked them, but I don't know, for some reason it just occurred to me that they were a good band. I couldn't quite understand why some folks made such a big fuss about them. I've also gotten a few Canned Heat songs recenlty, so maybe a pattern's forming with me and these San Francisco bands.

I guess if you think about it, bands like The 'Dead, Canned Heat, Creedence, etc. were all pretty much the same: blues/country-based rock bands from San Francisco. The Dead kinda have a life and aura all their own now, but I bet back in the 60s they didn't seem all that different from a band like Creedence. I bet Fogerty and Garcia could have jammed for awhile on some old bluegrass or folk tunes. As I've written before, I think it's a shame that bands today don't have the wide range of influences that bands of the past did. Would the Dead have sounded anything like they did without the jazz influence, the country/gospel harmonizing, etc.? Not a chance.