Grateful Dead Archivist Launches Audio Series for New Listeners

Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux released a fresh audio series on Feb. 20. He'll also create a five-track playlist to help newcomers discover the band's live recordings. The series, A Beginner's Guide, will bring in other members of the fanbase who'll share their top-five picks in later episodes.

The playlist helps solve a big problem. Fans who want to share the band's music face a tough choice. The Grateful Dead made more than 450 songs, which makes picking a starting point tricky.

"Start 'em young, start 'em old. Don't know where to start 'em? We've got a brand new episodic series featuring some of your favorite Dead Heads and key members of the community who will help guide the way," Lemieux wrote, according to Relix. "Each will offer five live takes that they would recommend for new fans and the reasons why."

Lemieux's first pick is "Morning Dew" from Barton Hall at Cornell University on May 8, 1977. He called it "live Dead perfection" with a performance that goes from near silence to almost blowing the roof off the venue.

His second choice is "Dark Star" from the Fillmore West on Feb. 27, 1969. "For many Dead Heads, this is where the live Grateful Dead journey began, with what is widely considered one of the greatest live performances the Dead ever played," he wrote.

"Viola Lee Blues" from Harpur College on May 2, 1970, takes the third spot. Lemieux pointed out that the performance became a cornerstone of many early tape collections.

Track four is "Eyes Of The World" from Nassau Coliseum on Mar. 29, 1990. Guest Branford Marsalis joined the group that night, and the show displayed their jazz skills.

Lemieux's final pick is "Bird Song" from Warfield Theatre on Oct. 14, 1980. The acoustic recording came from the fall 1980 album, and it showed what the group could do without electric instruments.

Other fans and members will take over in future installments. Each episode will have its own five-track playlist.