Man, I gotta tell you about this wild time I had back in 1970. It was January 31st, to be exact. Me and the boys, we’re part of this band, you might’ve heard of us, The Grateful Dead. We rolled into New Orleans, all excited to open up this new venue called The Warehouse. Sounded like a cool spot, right?
So, we played a gig that evening. The crowd was amazing, the energy was electric, you know, the usual good vibes. We wrapped up the show, feeling good, and headed back to our hotel, just ready to chill out after a solid performance.
- Jerry Garcia
- Bill Kreutzmann
- Me
- the rest of the crew
But then, bam! Out of nowhere, the place got raided. Turns out, a bunch of federal narcotics agents and some local New Orleans cops decided to crash our little after-party. Next thing we know, me, Jerry, Bill, and a bunch of other folks associated with the band got hauled off to jail. Talk about a buzzkill, right? We were all booked on drug charges. Can you believe it?
A Night to Remember
Well, let me tell you, spending a night in a New Orleans jail cell was not how I imagined the night going. It was a real eye-opener, to say the least. I heard the news that our bassist, Phil Lesh, passed away recently. That brought back a flood of memories, including this crazy night. Phil was there, too, caught up in the whole mess. It just makes you think, you know? Life’s a wild ride.
But hey, we got through it. And you know what? That whole experience, as insane as it was, it actually inspired one of our biggest songs, “Truckin’”. If you listen to the lyrics, you can kinda hear the story in there. “Busted, down on Bourbon Street,” that’s a direct reference to that night.
It’s funny how things work out. Something that seemed like a total disaster at the time turned into a piece of our history, a story we’d tell for years to come, and even a part of our music. Life’s unpredictable like that, ain’t it? You never know what’s gonna happen, but you gotta just roll with the punches, I guess.
Anyway, that’s my story about the time the Grateful Dead got busted in New Orleans. A wild night, a crazy memory, and a reminder that even in the chaos, something interesting can come out of it.
