Ron "Pigpen" McKernan was the primary figure and driving force at the core of the Grateful Dead's origin story. He was an old soul, a digger of deep moods, a devotee of biker chic, and a tireless student of the blues. His devotion to classic Americana kept the band grounded even when they found themselves lost in experimental improvisation. But as the Dead evolved and became more famous, Pigpen became more of an outlier. While the rest of the band dropped acid, he drank Thunderbird. While they looked to the future for a new strain of American music, he looked back to the past. And by the time he died in 1973 at the age of 27, the band that Pigpen had started all those years ago no longer had room for him.
Sources:
A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, by Dennis McNally
Searching for the Sound, by Phil Lesh
This Is All a Dream We Dreamed: An Oral History of the Grateful Dead, by Blair Jackson and David Gans
The Grateful Dead FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the Greatest Jam Band in History, by Tony Sclafani
San Francisco Blues, by Jack Kerouac
5 Logistical Woodstock Nightmares We Can Learn From (Prevue Meetings)
The Grateful Dead at Woodstock 1969 (Bethel Woods)
Debunking Woodstock: What really happened? (Today)
The Grateful Dead (Woodstock Wiki)
The Dead At Woodstock (Dead Essays)
Grateful Dead at Woodstock (YouTube)
Owsley Stanley Interview (KPFA)
Grateful Dead Guide: Pigpen Solo (Dead Essays)
White people, blues music and the problem of cultural appropriation (Medium)
'Pigpen' McKernan Dead at 27 (Rolling Stone)
Jerry's Brokendown Palaces: Dana Morgan's Music Store
Bob Weir on meeting Jerry Garcia (Vimeo)
The Grateful Dead: Making the Scene in Palo Alto (Palo Alto History)
Live at Top of the Tangent
Fact-checking the Life and Death of Bluesman Robert Johnson (Mother Jones)
The Sad Story Of Robert Johnson (Radio Facts)
Robert Johnson: Murder or Bad Whiskey? (Criminal Element)
David “Honeyboy” Edwards on Robert Johnson and Mississippi Delta Blues (Chicago Magazine)
Robert Johnson: Unlock the guitar mysteries of the Delta blues great (Guitar World)
The Not-So-Mysterious Missing Grave of Blues Legend Robert Johnson (Atlas Obscura)
Greatest Stories Ever Told - "Easy Wind" (Dead.net)
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Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse and many more musical icons all died at the age of 27. Scandalous, tortured, dramatic, and incredibly talented, these artists torched a wild path to their early graves and shifted and shaped our culture along the way. 27 Club tells their stories. 27 Club is hosted and created by Jake Brennan, host and creator of the award-winning music and true crime podcast DISGRACELAND. 27 Club is not a journalistic podcast. It is an entertainment podcast inspired by true events. For more shows like 27 Club, check out www.doubleelvis.com.
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Presenting Disgraceland: Icons (Trailer)
Introducing: Amplify Color
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan” Episode 10: Good, Old, Grateful, and Dead
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan” Episode 9: Conquering Europe, Wasting Away, and Making a Last Stand
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan Episode 8: Turning off the Love Light, Long-Awaited Redemption, and a Deadly Diagnosis
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan” Episode 7: Busted Down on Bourbon Street, Workingman’s Dead, and Riding that Train
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan (Episode 6): Coming Down from One Long Strange Trip, Awakening to a New Nightmare, and Shooting up a Led Zep Photo Shoot
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan Episode 5: Biting the Hand that Feeds You, Fired from the Band, and Drinking the Dosed Coffee
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan Episode 4: Rushed in the Studio, A Midnight Hour Secret, and Busted Down on Ashbury Street
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan Episode 3: Soundtracking the Scene, Caught in the Lovelight, and Unknowingly Dosed
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan Episode 2: A Life-Changing Car Crash, Mind Experiments, and Hanging onto the Blues
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan Episode 0: 27 Club Season 5 Official Trailer
Amy Winehouse Episode 10: What Really Happened to Amy Winehouse?
Amy Winehouse Episode 9: A Long Day’s Journey into an Eternal Nightmare
Amy Winehouse Episode 8: A Cocaine Overdose in the Bathtub, a Body in the Mirror, and Hacked by the Press
Amy Winehouse Episode 7: The Only Rule Is That There Are No Rules
Amy Winehouse Episode 6: Nursing Rodents, Mortifying the Fairy Godmother, and Hitting the Harder Stuff
Amy Winehouse Episode 5: First Impressions with Mark Ronson, Hitting the Paparazzi Where It Hurts, and an Out of Control Hurricane
Amy Winehouse Episode 4: Booed from the Stage, a Brawl with a Burlesque Dancer, and an Effigy in a Pool of Blood
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