Ron “Pigpen” McKernan died 30 years ago today. The powerful frontman for the Grateful Dead, he succumbed after a lengthy illness related to liver problems.
I remember when I heard the news. Sheryl, John — a friend we’ve lost track of, and I were driving down Highway 4, out of Lindsborg Kansas, heading west, when the news came on the radio. We had never seen the dead, and at the time didn’t fully appreciate Pigpen’s role in the band given that our only exposure to dead music was the recently released Europe 72, w/2 Pig songs, and Workingman’s Dead. Still, we knew enough to realize that an era was ending, and what I didn’t know then about Pig I sure know now. It’s amazing just how much the dead were a backing band for his all out performances on stage, especially during some of those epic rapping (before its’ time), rambling tales he could tell during a whitehot Lovelight. goosebumps …
” … and leave it on”
In addition to the countless live performances that are freely traded among deadheads, Pig also appeared on a number of the commercially released albums. Here’s a list. Another site has some nice photos of Pig.