The Grateful Dead Started as The Warlocks

Before they became one of the most iconic bands in rock history, Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan performed under a completely different name: The Warlocks. The group formed in late 1964 when the trio from Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions decided to "plug in" and go electric.

The Warlocks made their debut at Magoo's Pizza Parlor in Menlo Park, California on May 5, 1965. They spent the next several months playing bars and building a following in the San Francisco Bay Area psychedelic scene.

The Name Had to Go

By December 1965, the band discovered a problem: another group called The Warlocks had already released a record. They needed a new name, fast.

What happened next became rock and roll legend. According to various accounts, Jerry Garcia grabbed a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary, randomly opened to a page, and pointed his finger. Where it landed changed music history.

A "Truly Weird Moment"

The phrase Garcia's finger landed on? "Grateful Dead." He later described the experience as "a truly weird moment," but the name stuck—despite objections from promoter Bill Graham.

The term comes from an old folktale motif about the soul of a deceased person showing gratitude to someone who charitably arranged their burial. It's a strange, somewhat dark phrase that perfectly captured the band's unconventional spirit.

The newly christened Grateful Dead went on to define an era. They pioneered the jam band genre, created the "Deadhead" phenomenon, and became known for their improvisational live performances that could stretch songs into 20-minute journeys. What started as The Warlocks at a pizza parlor became a cultural institution that outlived Garcia himself, continuing to inspire musicians and fans decades later.

So yes, the Grateful Dead were once The Warlocks—but only for about seven months. That random dictionary moment in 1965 gave us a name, and a legacy, that would endure for generations.