Listen free for 30 days
-
Fare Thee Well
- The Final Chapter of the Grateful Dead's Long, Strange Trip
- Narrated by: John Glouchevitch
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Music
People who bought this also bought...
-
A Long Strange Trip
- The Inside History of the Grateful Dead
- By: Dennis McNally
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 29 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From 1965 to 1995, the Grateful Dead flourished as one of the most beloved, unusual, and accomplished musical entities to ever grace American culture. The creative synchronicity among Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan exploded out of the early 60s roots and folk scene, providing the soundtrack for the Dionysian revels of the counterculture. Dennis McNally, the band's historian and publicist for more than 20 years, takes listeners back through the Dead's history.
-
-
Great book
- By Bruce Bringerud on 28-10-20
-
Searching for the Sound
- My Life with the Grateful Dead
- By: Phil Lesh
- Narrated by: Phil Lesh
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Phil Lesh first met Jerry Garcia in 1959 in the clubs of Palo Alto, California. At Garcia's suggestion, Lesh learned to play the electric bass and joined him in a new group that blended R&B, country, and rock 'n' roll with an experimental fervor never before heard.
-
Mother American Night
- My Life in Crazy Times
- By: John Perry Barlow, Robert Greenfield
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mother American Night is the wild, funny, heartbreaking, and often unbelievable (yet completely true) story of an American icon. Born into a powerful Wyoming political family, John Perry Barlow wrote the lyrics for thirty Grateful Dead songs while also running his family’s cattle ranch. He hung out in Andy Warhol’s Factory, went on a date with the Dalai Lama’s sister, and accidentally shot Bob Weir in the face on the eve of his own wedding. Despite being a freely self-confessed acidhead, he served as Dick Cheney’s campaign manager during Cheney’s first run for Congress.
-
Jerry on Jerry
- The Unpublished Jerry Garcia Interviews
- By: Dennis McNally - editor, Trixie Garcia - foreword
- Narrated by: Jerry Garcia
- Length: 5 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
These never-before-published interviews with Jerry Garcia reveal his thoughts on religion, politics, his personal life, and his creative process. Jerry on Jerry provides new insight into the beloved frontman of the Grateful Dead in time for the 50th anniversary of the band.
-
Overpaid, Oversexed and Over There
- How a Few Skinny Brits with Bad Teeth Rocked America
- By: David Hepworth
- Narrated by: David Hepworth
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Beatles landing in New York in February 1964 was the opening shot in a cultural revolution nobody predicted. Suddenly the youth of the richest, most powerful nation on earth was trying to emulate the music, manners and the modes of a rainy island that had recently fallen on hard times.
-
-
Another Fantastic Book
- By H Lingard on 06-01-21
-
Wild Thing
- The Short, Spellbinding Life of Jimi Hendrix
- By: Philip Norman
- Narrated by: Ako Mitchell
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hendrix revolutionised classic rock, inventing a whole new vocabulary for the guitar. Onstage he pushed the boundaries of '60s permissiveness, fellating the strings of the guitar with his tongue, lying it flat and straddling it, even setting fire to it. Yet in private he was polite, shy and sweet-natured. Wild Thing explores these contradictions in a narrative that takes us from Hendrix's roots in Seattle to his louche and glamorous life in Mayfair, when London was the world's most 'swinging' capital, and then back to the US.
-
A Long Strange Trip
- The Inside History of the Grateful Dead
- By: Dennis McNally
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 29 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From 1965 to 1995, the Grateful Dead flourished as one of the most beloved, unusual, and accomplished musical entities to ever grace American culture. The creative synchronicity among Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan exploded out of the early 60s roots and folk scene, providing the soundtrack for the Dionysian revels of the counterculture. Dennis McNally, the band's historian and publicist for more than 20 years, takes listeners back through the Dead's history.
-
-
Great book
- By Bruce Bringerud on 28-10-20
-
Searching for the Sound
- My Life with the Grateful Dead
- By: Phil Lesh
- Narrated by: Phil Lesh
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Phil Lesh first met Jerry Garcia in 1959 in the clubs of Palo Alto, California. At Garcia's suggestion, Lesh learned to play the electric bass and joined him in a new group that blended R&B, country, and rock 'n' roll with an experimental fervor never before heard.
-
Mother American Night
- My Life in Crazy Times
- By: John Perry Barlow, Robert Greenfield
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mother American Night is the wild, funny, heartbreaking, and often unbelievable (yet completely true) story of an American icon. Born into a powerful Wyoming political family, John Perry Barlow wrote the lyrics for thirty Grateful Dead songs while also running his family’s cattle ranch. He hung out in Andy Warhol’s Factory, went on a date with the Dalai Lama’s sister, and accidentally shot Bob Weir in the face on the eve of his own wedding. Despite being a freely self-confessed acidhead, he served as Dick Cheney’s campaign manager during Cheney’s first run for Congress.
-
Jerry on Jerry
- The Unpublished Jerry Garcia Interviews
- By: Dennis McNally - editor, Trixie Garcia - foreword
- Narrated by: Jerry Garcia
- Length: 5 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
These never-before-published interviews with Jerry Garcia reveal his thoughts on religion, politics, his personal life, and his creative process. Jerry on Jerry provides new insight into the beloved frontman of the Grateful Dead in time for the 50th anniversary of the band.
-
Overpaid, Oversexed and Over There
- How a Few Skinny Brits with Bad Teeth Rocked America
- By: David Hepworth
- Narrated by: David Hepworth
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Beatles landing in New York in February 1964 was the opening shot in a cultural revolution nobody predicted. Suddenly the youth of the richest, most powerful nation on earth was trying to emulate the music, manners and the modes of a rainy island that had recently fallen on hard times.
-
-
Another Fantastic Book
- By H Lingard on 06-01-21
-
Wild Thing
- The Short, Spellbinding Life of Jimi Hendrix
- By: Philip Norman
- Narrated by: Ako Mitchell
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hendrix revolutionised classic rock, inventing a whole new vocabulary for the guitar. Onstage he pushed the boundaries of '60s permissiveness, fellating the strings of the guitar with his tongue, lying it flat and straddling it, even setting fire to it. Yet in private he was polite, shy and sweet-natured. Wild Thing explores these contradictions in a narrative that takes us from Hendrix's roots in Seattle to his louche and glamorous life in Mayfair, when London was the world's most 'swinging' capital, and then back to the US.
Summary
A tell-all biography of the epic in-fighting of the Grateful Dead in the years following band leader Jerry Garcia's death in 1995
The Grateful Dead rose to greatness under the inspired leadership of guitarist Jerry Garcia, but the band very nearly died along with him after his sudden death in 1995. So long defined by Garcia's artistic vision, the surviving "Core Four" were reduced to conflicting agendas, strained relationships, and catastrophic business decisions that would lead the iconic band into utter disarray for the next 20 years.
Acclaimed music journalist and New York Times best-selling author Joel Selvin was there for much of the turmoil following Garcia's death, and in this book, he offers a never-before-explored insider account of the ebbs and flows that occurred in the decades that followed. Culminating in the landmark tour bearing the same name, Fare Thee Well charts the arduous journey from Garcia's passing all the way up to the uneasy agreement between the Core Four that led to the series of shows celebrating the band's 50th anniversary - finally allowing for a proper, and joyous, sendoff of the group revered by so many.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
Critic reviews
"Most [Grateful Dead] books end with the 1995 death of Jerry Garcia. Fare Thee Well...takes the opposite approach...[it] examines every sad twist, turn, and betrayal involved in the Dead's various offshoot groups leading up to their 2015 Fare Thee Well reunion." (Rolling Stone)
"Well-written...[Selvin] has covered the Dead nearly since their inception and did extensive research and interviewing for this book." (Library Journal)
"[Fare Thee Well] engages readers intrigued by the Dead's mystique. For Deadheads, sure, but also rock fans who may wonder where the road led after Jerry died." (Kirkus)
More from the same
Author
What listeners say about Fare Thee Well
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Rick
- 21-06-18
A worthy, if imperfect, addition to the story
Jeez, I'm left wondering what the author really thinks of the Leshs. Jk! As a fan for the last three and half decades, the majority of my "time" with the Grateful Dead has been during the time frame covered by this book. Having read pretty much every biography, watched every documentary, and spent more time then I should reading rumor and hearsay on the Internet, I appreciate the author's attempt to fill in this part of the story. I'll first admit my bias, in the years since the passing of Jerry Garcia I've pretty much seen every project that the boys have put out there, and for me, Phil and Friends has consistently been the most interesting musically as well as community wise. Reading this book, that comes as no surprise. For a group of guys that are self-admittedly bad business people in a band and industry with a long history of bad business decisions, it seems that at the turn of the millennium, Phil and Jill really made the most effort to understand what the fans wanted and how to deliver that in a way that was rewarding (both artistically and financially) for themselves. Based on what I've read and observed over the years, this book seems to basically get the facts correct (and in several cases, they weren't nearly as nefarious as the Internet rumors might have one believe). Where I personally think the author may have gone a little too far is in attributing individual's motivations behind those facts for people who were not interviewed for the book. Was Phil really looking to "cripple" Dark Star Orchestra (and the "tribute" bands in general) when inviting John Kadlecik to join Furthur? That seems far-fetched. DSO has had many line-up changes over the years, and has done just fine in the years since JK left (in fact, they seem to be doing better than ever today). Not to mention, Furthur spawned Joe Russo's Almost Dead and the ongoing Internet battle over whether JRAD or DSO is the greatest Dead tribute band. Indeed, it seems the projects that all four men have created over the years (but Phil in particular in sheer numbers) have left a long trail of musicians with an even closer connection to the music and an even stronger will to keep it alive. Was Phil's reconsidering of the Doug Irwin guitar issue really so out of left field and such a bad idea? Yes, Irwin made his "millions" auctioning them off, but I've seen Wolf and Tiger played numerous times over the years and Wolf recently was used to raise over $3M for charity. Personally, that seems a much more fitting use of these guitars than just having them hanging in a museum. Perhaps we should trust the Dead Heads (even the really rich ones). These are just a couple examples where I believe the author missed the mark. A couple others, sure Phish has largely avoided playing Dead tunes, but Trey hardly was a newbee to the repertoire when asked to play in 2015 (the author seems to forget Phil and Phriends in 1999; Phil, Trey, and Medeski in 2006, and numerous other sit-ins). Of course, that in no way minimizes the effort Trey put in for those shows. WIth Dead and Co rolling strong, it's hard for me to understand why Weir would have done the Phil and Bobby Duo shows in 2018 if the author's interpretation tells the whole story. In his final dig at the Leshs, the author chooses to take Phil to task for his singing during the Fare Thee Well shows. I'm one of the many who chanted "Let Phil Sing" in the late 80s and early 90s, and as I fan I long ago came to terms with Phil's singing. I have no problem with Phil and Bobby wanting to sing some of their old friend's songs on stage (and let me say, while Weir truly is one of the great rock singers of all time, I don't find him singing Garcia's songs anymore "authentic" then Lesh singing them, in fact since the Weir/Garcia tradeoff was a staple of GD shows, I sometimes find Weir insisting on singing so many of the songs even more out of place). But, as Bobby's shirt said, "Let Trey Sing." I would point out that in many of Lesh's more established lineups, like The Q and the Jackie Greene lineup, Phil did, in fact, take much more of a back seat as a lead singer. The one thing that this (and no) book will ever change is that the Grateful Dead, and it's members, are true American treasures. I'm sorry it hasn't been easier, but what an amazing trip it's been and continues to be. Many thanks to Phil, Bobby, Billy, and Mickey (Pigpen, Keith, Brent, Vince, Bruce, & Donna), as well as the continually expanding group of musicians keeping this music alive, for the joy you have brought to the world. I didn't agree with everything in the book but enjoyed reading it, especially all the happy memories it brought back as I recalled living through these events.
11 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Raymond DaCosta
- 09-07-18
Bobby v Phil
Great read...it's a wonder they were able to pull it together for Fare the Well! Painted a dark picture of the Lesh family and glorified Bobby. I understand that Phil won't ever play with Dead & Co but it's just not the same dynamic. Phil's pounding bass forced Bobby to be on his game. Well done nevertheless and RIP Jerry!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- W. Robinette
- 06-07-18
Good chronicle of the post Jerry era
Good book and worth the read or in my case the listen. A few facts were wrong like who bought wolf and Tiger, when they started playing built to last in concert and repeatedly saying woman instead of women when mentioning brown eyed women.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 07-12-18
The music will always be what I am a fan of....
Depressing story of a band I love, for true dead heads I suggest skipping this read and listening to the music instead :)
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- DJPeebs
- 25-12-20
A Great Post-Jerry View From Deep Inside The Dead
I ended up listening to the audio version of this in less than two days. It was an absolute joy to be a fly on the wall for such epic moments, all of which lead up to the July 2015 Fare Thee Well shows in Chicago. The detail presented is dazzling, while the writing style provides compellingly vivid insight of how chaos and dysfunctionality ultimately resulted in the beauty that was created on 7/5/2015. Brilliant and emotional on many levels!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Joseph Yudin
- 06-07-20
A must read for any Deadhead!
A must read for any Deadhead! It brought me back. Filled in a lot of gaps and makes a lot of sense!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mike Haverty
- 25-02-20
The feel good book of my life.
Heck yeah! Fare thee well. So much pain and strife in the years following Jerry’s life. But those 4 guys overcame everything for 3 awesome nights at soldier field. What they lost they shall regain! My friend and I will see Dead and Company this summer. The story of the Dead is not over!!!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Christopher Jones
- 12-08-19
The book that every Deadhead needs to read
The title of this review says it all: if you are Deadhead and want to know what happened to the Dead once Jerry Garcia died then you need to read this book. It all there, warts and all and while the music was paramount in the Grateful Dead this book takes you way behind the scenes of the Dead organization post-Jerry and makes you realize that in the end it all comes down to what it takes to run a business once one of it's key members dies. It's not pretty as you can imagine and you will be fascinated.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 08-08-19
Not As Described
Not a bad book, but meh. It was a lot of detailed impressions of set lists for shows I've seen. If I wanted a music review, it would have made me happy...but I didn't.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mark Warren
- 01-05-19
Great book!
Fantastic book and excellent reading. I really enjoyed this look at the post Jerry GD. The Lesh’s seem really awful but I don’t blame the author for that. Highly recommend this book.