Sugaree and the Do-Dah Man: Grateful Dead Trivia Quiz

Answer: American Beauty

"American Beauty" was the second of the Dead's two 1970 albums. It and "Workingman's Dead" marked a turn from their early psychedelic style to a more country, or "Americana" sound. "Friend of the Devil" and "Sugar Magnolia" were two of the standout songs from the album.

The rose drawn on the album cover was of the American Beauty variety.

Answer: Touch of Grey

Written in 1982, "Touch of Grey" finally was included on an album, which was 1987's "In the Dark". The song was about getting older and making the best of it. It reached number one on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number 9 on its Hot 100 list.

It was also the band's first music video. As one of the band members (probably Jerry) said: "It took us 20 years to get a hit record, but we were never in a hurry".

Answer: Postcards of the Hanging

All but one of the songs on the album were recorded live, from 1973 to 1990. Ten of the songs are from concerts; "Man of Peace", was a rehearsal recording in which Dylan joined them; it was for their joint 1987 tour. The collection was put together in 2003. The title of the album is from the first line of Dylan's song "Desolation Row".

Answer: New Orleans

The Grateful Dead were playing in New Orleans at the end of January, 1970. On the 31st, after playing their concert, they went back to their hotel where the police were waiting for them. They were arrested for possession of several types of drugs and drug paraphernalia. The band claimed it was a setup and eventually the charges were dropped. The incident was the basis for a couple of the verses of their song "Truckin'":
"Busted, down on Bourbon Street / Set up, like a bowling pin..."

Answer: Truckin'

"Truckin'" has been described by Dead member Bob Weir as completely autobiographical, concerning the ups and downs of constantly touring. The do-dah man is mentioned twice in the song but other than deducing that he might have been a card player we don't know anything about him.

He may have had something to do with cartoonist Robert Crumb, who used the term "Keep on Truckin'" - or not. Or it might have something to do with the Stephen Foster song "Camptown Races" - or not. But it is a constant mystery!

Answer: song

The song is "Uncle John's Band" the first song on the "Workingman's Dead" album. It marked a change of direction for the band, using acoustic guitars and was sung in close harmony. The style of it gave the band more exposure to the general rock audience than their previous recordings.

The song has been added to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. And no, we never found out who Uncle John was.

Answer: I Know You Rider

Played so frequently together that the resulting song became known as "China-Rider" in the Deadhead lexicon, "China Cat Sunflower" was written by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter and was first recorded on the album "Aoxomoxoa" in 1969; "I Know You Rider" is a traditional blues song, the origins of which have been lost to time.

The Dead first performed the pairing on September 30, 1969 at New York's Cafe au Go Go and performed it over 500 times in concert.

Answer: eight

Delilah Jones had twins, "two times over and the rest were sins". Only the singer turned out bad. She died when a snowstorm in the Pacific Northwest caved in the roof of their home.

The song was first recorded on the triple-disc live album "Europe '72". The album was well-produced and liked by fans and music critics. It has sold over a million copies.

Answer: 1995

Jerry was born in San Francisco on August 1, 1942 and died in a drug rehabilitation center in Forest Knolls, California on August 9, 1995 of a heart attack. He had battled diabetes, obesity, smoking and drug abuse for many years. His parents named him after American composer Jerome Kern. Besides being a founder of the Grateful Dead he was a member of the Jerry Garcia Band, Old and in the Way and New Riders of the Purple Sage.

In the evening of the day he died so many people tried to get online to share their grief that it almost crashed the internet.

Answer: The Other Ones

The Grateful Dead, as a group, decided to disband after Jerry Garcia's death. While working on individual projects, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart and some other musicians who had occasionally played with the Dead formed the new band. Taking their name from "That's It for the Other One" song from the "Anthem of the Sun" album, they played for four years, adding and subtracting players.

In 2015, Weir, Lesh, Hart and Bill Kreutzmann reunited for a five concert tour named "Fare Thee Well: Celebrating 50 Years of the Grateful Dead".

They said it would be the last time they would all play together. All of the band members have remained active on the music scene.