by Robert Hunter (Author), John Mayer (Foreword by), Dennis McNally (Introduction by)

Discovered at last, the legendary lost manuscript of Grateful Dead co-founder and primary lyricist Robert Hunter, written in the early 1960sa wry, richly observed, and enlightening remembrance of the scene in Palo Alto that gave rise to an incredible partnership of Hunter and Jerry Garcia, and then to the Grateful Dead itselfwith a Foreword by John Mayer, an Introduction by Dennis McNally, and an Afterword by Brigid Meier.

Strange to think back on those days when it was perfectly natural that we all slept on the floor in one small room…. These were the days before practical considerations, matters of importance, began to eat our minds. We were all poets and philosophers then, until we began to wonder why we had so few concrete worries and went out to look for some.

So wrote Robert Hunter inThe Silver Snarling Trumpet, both a novelistic singular work of art and the missing piece of the Grateful Dead origin story. In these pages, readers are privy to the early days of Hunter, Garcia, and their cohorts, who sit at coffee shops passing around a single cup of bottomless coffee because they lacked the funds for more than one. Follow these truth-seeking souls into the stacks at Keplers Books, renting instruments at Swains House of Music, and through the countryside on mind-expanding road trips. Witness impromptu jams, inspired intellectual pranks, and a dialogue that is, by turns, amusing and brilliant and outrageous. Hunter shares his impressions of his first gig with Garcia for a college audience, along with descriptions of his most intense dreams and psychedelic explorations. All of it, enlivened by Hunters visionary spirit and profound ideas about creativity and collaboration.

The lost manuscript is augmented with a Foreword by John Mayer, an Introduction by Dennis McNally, and an Afterword by Brigid Meier, who was part of their scene in the San Francisco Bay Area that served as a bridge from the beatniks to the hippies. Also included is Hunters own 1982 assessment of his workabout how he shared it with close confidants but then decided to leave it unpublished. Five years after Hunters death, the text has been found, so readers and fans of Hunters indelible poetry and song can explore the origin of his genius and his craft.

Author Biography

Robert Hunter was an American lyricist, singer-songwriter, translator, and poet, best known for his work with The Grateful Dead. Born near San Luis Obispo, California, Hunter spent some time in his childhood in foster homes, as a result of his father’s abandoning his family, and took refuge in reading and writing. He attended the University of Connecticut for a year before returning to Palo Alto, where he became friends with Jerry Garcia. Garcia and Hunter began a collaboration that lasted through the remainder of Garcia’s life.

Number of Pages: 256Dimensions: 0.99 x 9.22 x 6.39 INPublication Date: October 08, 2024