News
August 6, 2015WMHT-TV (PBS) and Exit 97.7 WEXT To Commemorate The 20th Anniversary of Jerry Garcia’s Death
No other band holds the mythical place in our collective conscious like the band Grateful Dead. And where would the band be without Jerry Garcia? This Sunday, August 9 will mark the 20th anniversary of Jerry Garcia’s passing. The Grateful Dead founder, guitarist, lyricist died in his sleep on August 9, 1995. Exit 97.7 FM (WEXT) and WMHT-TV (PBS) will commemorate this landmark anniversary with a day of programming devoted to the music of The Grateful Dead.
Join Exit 97.7 WEXT from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. as we celebrate the life of Jerry Garcia and the music of Grateful Dead. It will be nothing but Grateful Dead music – Uncle John’s Band, Touch of Grey, Dark Star and so many iconic Grateful Dead songs will be featured as we remember Jerry Garcia’s amazing spirit and contribution to rock music.
The celebration of Jerry Garcia’s life and music continues on WMHT-TV (PBS) at 9 p.m. with the broadcast of GRATEFUL DEAD – DEAD AHEAD. It was October of 1980 when the Grateful Dead played the world-famous Radio City Music Hall in a week long marathon of sell-out shows that were beloved by fans and captured on film. The best of those performances will be featured on WMHT-TV while we remember Jerry.
When he died on August 9th, a week after his 53rd birthday, the news of his death set off immense waves of emotional reaction. Politicians, newscasters, poets and artists eulogized the late guitarist throughout the day and night; fans of all ages gathered spontaneously in parks around the nation; and in the streets of San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury – the neighborhood where the Grateful Dead lived at the height of the hippie epoch – mourners assembled by the hundreds, singing songs, building makeshift altars, consoling one another and jamming the streets for blocks around. Across town at San Francisco City Hall, a tie-dyed flag was flown on the middle flagpole, and the surrounding flags were lowered to half-mast.
– Rolling Stone
Jerry Garcia, whose gentle voice and gleaming, chiming guitar lines embodied the psychedelic optimism of the Grateful Dead for three decades, died in his sleep. The Grateful Dead, and Mr. Garcia as their most recognizable member, had come to represent the survival of 1960’s idealism. As news of his death spread, fans wept in the streets of San Francisco and the Internet was flooded with eulogies and reminiscences. Within the music business, the Dead exemplified integrity in a sphere of hype and artifice; beyond, they symbolized a spirit of communal bliss, with free-wheeling, anything-can-happen music to bring together a community of tenacious fans, the Deadheads.
– New York Times
Both Exit 97.7 (WEXT) and WMHT-TV (PBS) have ongoing commitments to the music of The Grateful Dead. Exit 97.7 features roots and rock radio including “Dawn of the Dead,” a daily showcase of The Grateful Dead’s music. Exit 97.7 is also home to the weekly Grateful Dead Hour radio show. WMHT-TV (PBS) has been featuring The Grateful Dead on television for over three decades including live in-studio appearances by Bob Weir, Dead archivist David Lemieux and other guests.
As the world celebrates the 50th anniversary of the forming of The Grateful Dead, join Exit 97.7 (WEXT) and WMHT-TV (PBS) to remember Jerry Garcia and celebrate all of the music that he left to us.
Long live the memory of Jerry Garcia.
About WMHT
A trusted community resource for over half a century, WMHT Educational Telecommunications uses the power of non-commercial public television, radio, the web and other media to enrich the lives of more than a half million households throughout eastern New York state and portions of western Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Television broadcast channels include WMHT-DT (17.1), WMHT-Create (17.2) and WMHT-World (17.3). Radio stations operated by WMHT include WMHT-FM 89.1 & WRHV-FM 88.7 (classical public radio) and WEXT 97.7 (AAA public radio). WMHT also operates RISE, a radio reading service for the visually and print disabled. In addition, WMHT offers numerous community outreach and family learning initiatives that inspire, educate and entertain for a lifetime.
