Though there has only been one Jewish member of the band the Grateful Dead (Mickey Hart), there has always been a sizable subculture within the Deadhead subculture that was Jewish. Sometimes know as “Jews for Jerry” (in reference to the band’s late guitarist Jerry Garcia) or “Blues for Challah” (a play on the band’s album “Blues for Allah”), these Jewish Deadheads often found many parallels between Judaism and the Grateful Dead, namely Tikkun Olam. Tikkun Olam is the Jewish concept of improving the world, a concept also often found among Deadheads at large. And, just as Jews have historically lived outside of the mainstream, so too have many Deadheads.
Phil Lesh, the Grateful Dead bassist who passed away this past Friday, was not Jewish. But knowing about the large following of Jewish Deadheads, he hosted a Chanukiah lighting in 2013, and went on to host several Passover Seders for the band’s Jewish fans. May his music and memory be for a blessing.
Photo from Times of Israel: Phil lights candles as Jeannette Ferber, a cantorial soloist at Berkeley's Renewal congregation Chochmat HaLev, sings a blessing.
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