The Grateful Dread: A Mix of The Grateful Dead with True Island Roots.
Bianca Moorman
Deadheads and Rastafarians rejoice–the Grateful Dread has married reggae with Jerry Garcia’s iconic acid-laced psychedelic jam band. The Dread will be playing at Lola’s every Tuesday this summer, featuring Mike Benjamin on vocals and guitar, Tom Major on drums, Jon Zeeman on guitar and Wes Nagy on keyboards, Judd Fuller on vocals and a bevy of rotating bass players.
The Dread’s story begins about the time when the band members decided that they wanted to play the same tunes that Jerry Garcia’s legendary group played. But instead of playing the typical rock sound heard from the Grateful Dead, they decided to give it a twist by playing it with a reggae style.
The Dread is a Vineyard-born band, keeping up mostly in Oak Bluffs. They have been playing on the island for the past 16 years and have seen almost as many iterations of their lineup as the Dead themselves. Some of their favorite (and ours too) Dead songs include Sugaree, Going Down the Road Feelin Bad, and I Know You Rider.
Their music will take you to an easier state of mind. It’s best after a day at the beach when you use the whole day to daydream and forget about the world around you. The rhythms are so upbeat that their live shows will amp up your mood. And in a way that would make Jerry proud, young people show up to the Dread’s shows in equal numbers to those Deadheads who have been rocking out for decades–generations all dancing and jamming together at once. From the crowds, to jiggy guitars and the dazzling keyboards, a Dread experience is a truly dreamy feeling.
So if you’re looking for something to do on a Tuesday night after a long and hard day at work, then come to Grateful Tuesday’s at Lola’s from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
