Jerry Garcia was born Jerome John Garcia on August 1,1942 in San Francisco. His mother, Ruth, was a nurse and his father, Jose, was a swing musician. Jerry Garcia had a horrible childhood. When he was 4 years old the top 2 joints of his middle finger were chopped off. His brother, Tiff, was chopping wood and his hand got in the way. The next year he saw his own father drown while on a camping trip. When Jerry was 15 his mom bought him his first guitar. He was 17 when he enlisted in the army to avoid going to jail for stealing a car. He was later discharged because of violations.

In `61 Jerry Garcia formed his first band with Robert Hunter named Garcia, Hunter and Albin. He met him at the Commedia Theater in Palo Alto. Between `61 and `64 I had been in 16 different bands. Finally in late `65 the Warlocks were formed...