In the beautiful rolling hills of Bath, New Hampshire this past weekend, a festival was held on Dodge Farm honoring the life and music of Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead. The 19th annual Jerry Jam had 31 bands perform over a 4-day weekend for 2,500 festival-goers.  Dan Webb, the man behind this magical event, spoke to L4LM and explained how it has grown over the years.

Jerry Jam started out 19 years ago as a backyard gathering of friends and family after the passing of Jerry Garcia.  There were more children than adults at this first celebration.  32 toddlers and 30 adults gathered around a big screen television to watch old Grateful Dead videos in remembrance of Jerry Garcia.    In the third year of the gathering, they hired a band. 

Last year, the booking agent of Melvin Seals was contacted and, to everyone’s surprise and delight, Seals agreed to perform.  This year, he played for two nights during the festival, once with The Garcia Project and again with the Jerry Garcia Band.

It was also Seals’ idea to get Moonalice to attend. He mentioned it to the band and suggested they come out this year. However, the schedule was full and were originally turned down.  The Jerry Garcia Band emailed the organizers and asked, “You passed on Moonalice?”  For the love of the vibes, Moonalice was then booked to perform.  

The Samples, a band from Colorado, was also a big draw with fans coming from afar to watch them on stage.  The Van Burens were a huge hit with attendees and many people described them as “wow!”, and “absolutely fantastic”. The original intent so many years ago was to keep the vibe of the music going without influence and, since that time, it has organically grown into the festival that it is today.

In addition to the music, the rolling hills of this beautiful venue provided a Disc Golf course for attendees to enjoy.  Activities for children were plentiful, with a creek nearby to run your feet in, a bouncy house, and a family camping section all in a perfectly safe environment.  Several children loved how it “felt like a farmland” with “not a lot of chaos”, and that the music “was the background to the fun” and, in the words of ten year old attendee, Chris Simard, where “you can enjoy all the Frito-Lay dip you want!”

A sense of community and intimacy with the music was felt by all.  Another perk to this event?  No cell service.  Unplugging from the world for a few days with friends and family in a beautiful environment does wonders to the soul.  From volunteers, to the organizers, to the attendees, it was clear that the positive energy put out in this serene environment will now become an annual event for many people, young and old, as it continues to grow.  

The mission of Jerry Jam is “to promote an experience of a truly pure, positive, higher level of consciousness… a consciousness where the music is the drug and the like-minded people are the driving force of energy to create the experience”.  This mission, without a doubt, was achieved.  Even a torrential downpour on Sunday didn’t dampen spirits, as fans continued to dance under the driving rain until the lightning came. For fans of music, this should be added to your must-see list next year.  Positive vibes and dancing shoes required. Until next year, continue to celebrate the life and music of Jerry Garcia.

For more information on the Jerry Jam, you can visit their official website.