Growing Up Dead: The Hallucinated Confessions Of A Teenage Deadhead (2009) - Plot & Excerpts
As a Deadhead who saw only West Coast shows from 1987-1995, the perspective of an East-Coaster during the same time period is pretty cool. There's a lot of good stuff here... nice details, good descriptions. However, my favorite bit is when he's learning the details of Jerry Garcia's death entirely on the phone (because there was no ubiquitous internet back then, he says), which is funny, because I did get most of my information from the internet... but then, I was in California in 1995. Now that's trippy. Let me start off by saying that I am not a fan of the Grateful Dead. Its not that I don't like them, I just haven't really ever listened to them enough to give them a chance.So why read this book? I took a class in college called "Music History and Culture," and it was the most enthralling class of my life. Originally, I took the class as a way to obtain my history credit without having to re-listen to the same stuff I ignored in high school. What I got though, was transported back in time through the music of the 1920s to the 1990s. The way musicians influenced eachother and their affect on our society astonished me. Especially during the times when bands like the Grateful Dead and Pink Floyd were at their peak, because their music was more "real" to listeners. This class was why I picked up this book. Not just for the pretty rainbow design on the cover, but for a chance to step back into Fred Forney's classroom and learn a bit more about the beatnik era and the lifestyle that my professor himself had lived.Peter Connors did a wonderful job pulling me into the lifestyle of a Deadhead. He gives you a first class ticket to a ride on the Grateful Dead bus. By setting alot of his experiences in first person, it really made me feel a part of the experience. The only thing I didn't like about the book is that he tended to jump time alot and I got confused on dates and what was going on with their lives. Other than that, this book is fantastic and I recommend it to anyone interested in music or that time period at all. Its a great part of music history and ties in the U.S. events going on as well."You're either on the bus, or you're off the bus."
What do You think about Growing Up Dead: The Hallucinated Confessions Of A Teenage Deadhead (2009)?
Great fun. While I like the Grateful Dead I was fascinated to read someone who loved them. fun read.
—jennifer
A book that was suposed to focus on following the band. It kinda missed the mark.
—dosch
a good/funny look on the later years of touring with the grateful dead.
—HH1102
LOVE this book. It's a must read for all Deadheads.
—deatheater
A fun read - even though I only went to one show.
—sks
