Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter died Monday night, Rolling Stone first reported. He was 78.
The family of Hunter provided a statement to the New York Times, The Wrap and Rolling Stone.
"He died peacefully at home in his bed, surrounded by love," the statement read. "His wife Maureen was by his side holding his hand. For his fans that have loved and supported him all these years, take comfort in knowing that his words are all around us, and in that way he is never truly gone."
"Uncle John's Band," "China Cat Sunflower," "Scarlet Begonias," "Box of Rain" and "Dark Star" are among the songs for which Hunter provided lyrics.
Grateful Dead founder Jerry Garcia invited Hunter to play with his jug band in 1961, but Hunter preferred to write, according to Rolling Stone's tribute bio. He took part in LSD studies at Stanford and sent Garcia lyrics from the Southwest before moving to San Francisco, where Hunter became the official Grateful Dead lyricist.
In an interview published as an Amazon Kindle ebook in 2015, Hunter said he usually wrote the lyrics first. In unusual cases like "Foolish Heart" and "Uncle John's Band," he wrote lyrics after he heard the melody.
Hunter also wrote songs with Bob Dylan from 1980 to 2009. He reunited with Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart to write new music and collaborated with Elvis Costello, Bruce Hornsby, and Jim Lauderdale.
#1: Hank Rearden To: All (#0)
But good stuff flowed out of it; Scarlet Begonias is one of my faves.
RIP, Bob. You can get off the bus now and relax.
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-24 16:37:04 Reply Private Reply
#2: Hank Rearden To: All (#0)
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-24 17:23:38 Reply Private Reply
#3: Stoner To: Hank Rearden (#0)
RIP !!!
Stoner posted on 2019-09-24 18:57:10 Reply Private Reply
#4: sneakypete To: Hank Rearden (#0)
Yet one more tragic early death due to drugs!
WHEN WILL IT STOP??????
I sure wish all these guys would quit falling over dead. They are starting to make me thing I am getting old.
Good to know that Keef is still hanging in there,though.
sneakypete posted on 2019-09-24 19:25:26 Reply Private Reply
#5: sneakypete To: Stoner (#3)
Seems to me it was one of those things where you had to sit down and listen to a couple of their albums without getting distracted before you can appreciate what they were doing.
Or at least that is the way it worked for me.
sneakypete posted on 2019-09-24 19:27:40 Reply Private Reply
#6: Hank Rearden To: sneakypete (#5)
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-25 00:10:20 Reply Private Reply
#7: sneakypete To: Hank Rearden (#6)
Nobody can doubt your dedication.
BTW,MY favorite Grateful Dead album was titled "Panama Red" and was by The New Riders of the Purple Sage."
Rednecks used to get a little scared when the "live better electrically crowd" showed up and a band started playing "Up Against the Wall Red Neck Mothers",although I think my favorite song on Panama Red was "Lonesome LA Cowboy" Sure was some pretty pedal steel guitar with that little ballad.
BTW,don't know if it was true or not,but I read that Bob Weirs father was a Republican Party official,and Bob himself took over the role after he retired from the music world.
sneakypete posted on 2019-09-25 01:21:39 Reply Private Reply
#8: Deckard To: Hank Rearden (#1)
Can't say I was a huge fan of the Dead, but I have played in bands where we covered "Ripple", "Friend of The Devil" and "Bertha" (Although that was more like the Los Lobos version.)
I was the guy who kept it running. He beat the hell out of that machine; I was constantly realigning the floppy-drive heads.
Interesting, were you with them on their tours?
Deckard posted on 2019-09-25 05:25:42 Reply Private Reply
#9: Hank Rearden To: Deckard (#8)
Oh, no. Hunter used to bring it into my shop when it got a little squirrely. I don't think he toured much with the band, but I'm not sure. That's probably covered in one of the many histories written to date.
But living in their Bay Area home base for 25 years, I had the opportunity to attend a lot of shows.
"Ripple" is another favorite of mine; Jerry performed it quite often with his side bands. "Deadicated" is a wonderful collection of Dead covers, if you're of a mind to explore such.
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-25 11:10:30 Reply Private Reply
#10: Hank Rearden To: sneakypete (#7)
Ever get a chance to check out the "Old and In The Way" album? Worth a listen if you're into these styles.
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-25 11:12:17 Reply Private Reply
#11: Deckard To: Hank Rearden (#10)
Wow! I remember owning that album back when I was really into bluegrass and acoustic stuff.
Great lineup of bluegrass pickers on that album.
Deckard posted on 2019-09-25 11:20:28 Reply Private Reply
#12: Hank Rearden To: Deckard (#11)
Grisman lives in my town now.
Hank Rearden posted on 2019-09-25 11:33:25 Reply Private Reply
#13: sneakypete To: Hank Rearden (#10)
Probably,but the early to late 70's were a confusing time for some reason,so I can say for sure.
I do thank you for the tip,but almost all the ones I find are by Vassar Clements. I am downloading the one with Gerry Garcia because I am assuming that is the one you were talking about. Don't have computer speakers anymore,so I am going to have to download it to a thumbdrive so I can play it in my truck.
sneakypete posted on 2019-09-27 13:48:45 Reply Private Reply