Jerry Garcia’s California Roots
Born and raised in San Francisco, Jerry Garcia was as much a product of California as any artist ever was. His relationship with the Golden State was deeply entwined with his life and career, shaping his artistic sensibilities in both music and visual mediums.
Growing up amidst the vibrant arts scene of San Francisco, Garcia was exposed to a wide array of music, from the soulful rhythm of blues to the experimental melodies of West Coast jazz and early psychedelic rock. This eclectic mix of influences seeped into his own imagination, helping to shape the distinctive sound of the Grateful Dead—a sound that would come to define an entire era of American music.
Garcia’s house at 710 Ashbury Street marked the heart of the enlightenment and expression that pulsed through the city. It also fueled Jerry’s profound exploration into painting and visual arts, marked by the same spirit of experimentation that characterized California’s counterculture movement of the day.
Throughout his career, Garcia and the Grateful Dead played countless gigs across California. They were a quintessential part of the San Francisco sound, a psychedelic movement that emerged in the mid-1960s. The band frequently performed at iconic venues such as the Fillmore West and the Avalon Ballroom, venues that were the beating heart of San Francisco’s thriving music scene. Their legendary “Farewell Concert” held at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco in 1974 is still remembered as one of the defining moments of their career.
Garcia also played at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, a landmark event in California that is often considered the beginning of the so-called “Summer of Love.” This social phenomenon converged at San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury neighborhood—Garcia’s stomping ground—and spread a culture of hippie music, hallucinogenic drugs, and anti-war sentiment along California’s west coast and beyond. Above all, the Summer of Love was about “exploration,” said Bob Weir, fellow guitarist for the Grateful Dead, about “finding new ways of expression, being aware of one’s existence.”
Garcia’s impact on the California music scene is hard to overstate, even as he became a global star. Along with the other members of the Grateful Dead, he played a pivotal role in defining the sound and ethos of the countercultural movement. Garcia’s innovative blend of rock, folk, bluegrass, and experimental music, coupled with his commitment to communal values and artistic freedom, left an indelible mark on the California music scene and beyond.
Blackwing Volume 710 is our tribute to Jerry Garcia and his fusion of visual and musical expression. A slice of his painting “Curves & Lines” is printed on each pencil, which features our soft graphite that is ideal for both drawing and songwriting.