John McCain: Jerry Garcia Endorses Obama: "I don't think that Slaughterhouse-Five was successful movie material. "

The Grateful Dead has endorsed Senator Barack Obama. From today's Chicago Sun Times, a newspaper as Dead as Jerry Garcia!


‘‘We’re not making plans, but I think we stand at the ready to be of service,’’ Hart says. ‘‘We’re all deeply into this, into Barack Obama and the thought of taking this country back in some shape or form, what’s left of it — it’s probably one thing we can all agree on! So, you bet, I would spend a night with my brothers for that any time, any place.’’

Hart says that he and the other Dead alumni have exchanged ‘‘a few friendly e-mails’’ about doing something more for the campaign, but no firm details have been set. ‘‘That’s all there really needs to be until the moment really comes,’’ he notes.

Weir says the Dead men like Obama ‘‘for different reasons.’’ Mostly, he explains, ‘‘I think it may be the last chance in our lifetimes to get money out of politics, to show special interests the door. It’s also a chance to get younger people involved in politics for the first time in many years; once they’re involved, I think they’ll stay and that’s important because it’s their future being decided now.’’

Weir, who initially supported John Edwards’ presidential bid, adds that he liked what he’s read about Obama’s position on the environment, which is his primary interest. Weir is putting together an ‘‘environmental project’’ that he hopes to announce ‘‘in the next few weeks. I have to get on the phone and see if I can bring some folks on board, and if I can do that then it’ll be time for a roll-out.’’

Hart, meanwhile, is in the midst of a busy summer debuting his new Mickey Hart Band, which includes longtime associate Steve Kimock on guitar, former Meters bassist George Porter, Jr., drummer Walfredo Reyes, Jr., talking drum virtuoso Sikiru, singer Jen Durkin and String Cheese Incident keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth.

‘‘It’s a sizzling band,’’ Hart gushes, ‘‘very powerful. It’s not like a regular rock’n’roll band; it does rock, but it’s very fierce in its rhythmic dexterity.’’

The group has been on the road since early June and plays the inaugural Rothbury Festival on Thursday in Rothbury, Mich., then the Lake View Music Fest on Saturday in Chicago and Sunday at theMilwaukee Summerfest.

Its repertoire includes several new songs written by Hart and Kimock with lyricist Robert Hunter, which Hart says he’s been accumulating in recent years.

‘‘I would say there’s about 16 of them,’’ he says. ‘‘I’ve been saving them up over the years. We’ve been writing — I just didn’t have the band to play ’em. This band was actually constructed specifically to play these songs.’’

Hart — who recently released the ‘‘Rhythm Devils Concert Experience’’ DVD and ‘‘The Mickey Hart Collection,’’ a boxed set of his solo work — hopes to get his new band in the studio some time this year to record the new material.

Founding guitarist and icon the Late Jerry Garcia added these thoughts, 'So we are pretty convinced we don't want to play huge stadiums unless we can play them well.'

Which seems to all but bar the drug happy band from playing for Obama, as the Illinois One Term U.S. Senator plays only to Leni Riefenstahl-like Houses. Undismayed the ever poignant Garcia added:'America is still mostly xenophobic and racist. That's the nature of America, I think.' Which melds nicely with Obama's consistent efforts.

Garcia also noted that' And as far as I'm concerned, it's like I say, drugs are not the problem. Other stuff is the problem. But hey, when you live in Watts, you need a little smack to get by, you know what I mean? You need something soft and comfortable in your life, 'cause you're not going to get it from what's around you. And society isn't going to give it to you.For me, the lame part of the Sixties was the political part, the social part. The real part was the spiritual part. I have all the patience in the world about Sirens. For me it's not a Grateful Dead project, it's a Me project. I mean, just because you're a musician doesn't mean all your ideas are about music. So every once in a while I get an idea about plumbing, I get an idea about city government, and they come the way they come.'

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