ABCs of the Grateful Dead Howie Abrams and Michael "Kaves" McLeer

ABCs of the Grateful Dead cover

View of Spine ABCs of the Grateful Dead

E is for Europe 72. ABCs of Grateful Dead

S is for Space. ABCs of Grateful Dead

Back Cover of ABCs of Grateful Dead

"D is for Dead Heads, The fans who follow the band on tour. Singing, dancing, cheering and laughing, then calling out for more."

ABCs of the Grateful Dead takes a whimsical, kid-friendly approach to the band’s sprawling mythology, distilling decades of cultural history into a brightly illustrated alphabetical tour of the Grateful Dead’s world.

Following the patterns of their previous, children’s book collaborations on hip hop culture and Metallica, Abrams and McLeer let each letter of the alphabet anchor a central idea. A is for American Beauty or T is for Terrapin -- paired with McLeer’s bold, graffiti-inflected artwork. The combination creates a visual rhythm that mirrors the band’s looseness: colorful, informal and full of movement. Abrams keeps text simple enough for young readers while winking toward adults who know the stories behind the symbols. That shared language is the charm: parents, grandparents, aunts, me (and my uncles) handing the lore to the next generation.

Though Abrams and McLeer received the nod of approval from the managing powers at Rhino/Warner, they were barred from using lyrics, song titles and specific iconography due to intellectual property concerns. Instead of a hurdle, the limitation opens space for reinterpretation. With Steal Your Face / Dancing Bears having totered toward being overly familiar, their fresh, graffiti-forward approach recalls the home-made shirts, hand-drawn stickers and parking lot artwork that once expanded the band’s visual universe.

“W is for Wall of Sound, The Dead's massive speaker rig. Ensuring Dead Heads could hear the band, From the first note, 'til the end of the gig.”

The book’s success isn’t about depth; it’s about invitation. ABCs of the Grateful Dead celebrates the enduring shorthand: skeletons, roses, turtles and the idea that music can be a lifelong companion. For seasoned Heads, it offers nostalgia in a new form; for newcomers, children and the young at heart, it opens the door to curiosity without pretense.

The ABCs of the Grateful Dead succeeds because it understands what it wants to be; a bright and good-humored bridge between generations.

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JAM > GOIN' DOWN THE ROAD FEELIN' BAD 4/29/71 Fillmore East, NYC

For the Letter K, the author and illustrator shine a light on Kindness. In an age thick with finger-pointing and spite, kindness is something we could all keep a little closer at hand.

“K is for Kindness, Being friendly and helpful every day. Treating others with respect and affection, That’s the Grateful Dead way.”

That line takes me back to a microbus that rolled up beside us at a Niagara Falls overlook a few hours before we headed to the Rich Stadium parking lot in Buffalo for the 7/4/89 show. We were trading notes about the tour’s strong start in Foxboro when I mentioned – half complaining, half kicking myself - for leaving my 4/29/71 cassettes back at the house. With numerous shows and more a thousand plus miles on the horizon over the next two weeks, I was aching to hear my favorite “Goin’ Down the Road.” The driver reached into his bus and handed me his copy. Just like that. No fuss. No hesitation. It was a small gesture, but one that has stayed with me inching toward 40 years.