[FLDavid]

Originally Posted by Yoder

. . . To fully understand the Dead, one has to also understand the culture that they were a part of. They cannot be pulled out and scrutinized as an individual entity. To fully understand them, you need to look at Jack Keruoac, Neil Cassidy, Ken Kesey, etc. Their music was not great, but it was good, and it was a reflection of what was going on at the time. . .

Originally Posted by Bluepoet

. . . Ken Kesey, Merry Pranksters, Tom Wolfe's book, "Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test"...it's all part of the culture of a Grand Dream some of us had. . .

I think Yoder and Bluepoet make a good point. I think music in general is (and always has been) a reflection of the life and times

I'm another who never really "got" 'em
And I am not taking *anything* away from any individual musician in the group ~ there is no doubt that they were all good players

I think the thing that turned me off (or against them, really) was a quote by Jerry Garcia after Watkins Glen (1973), where they performed on the same bill as The Allman Brothers Band and The Band

In one of the music magazines of the era, maybe Creem, he said something to the effect of "We're happy for the Allman Brothers' success; after all, we taught 'em everything they know"