Some of you may have read my post #189754 . If so, you know I am a lifelong fan of the Grateful Dead- a "dead head." This band is not for everyone. An old friend used to say that you were either born with the Grateful Dead gene, or you weren't. The point of this post isn't to discuss their music, but rather to explore the similarity between their ethos in particular, the hippie politics of the 1960s more generally, and the FOSS software movement which was entwined with the cypherpunks. I think there can be a connection made to longstanding US cultural traditions like the myth of the old west, rugged individualism, and our perverse love of outlaws like Billy the Kid, Bonnie and Clyde, John Dillinger, and Willie Sutton.

There has always been a strain of uniquely native anarchy in the United States- a distrust of authority. The hippies of the 60s were of this tradition, as were their predecessors, the beats. They were on the left politically, but you wouldn't mistake them for the statist, rules-loving progressives of today. Everyone wore a button saying "Question Authority". Abbie Hoffman's best seller was "Steal This Book". The Grateful Dead came of age in the1960s. In the 1970s, they attempted to play the music industry game, but they never pulled it off. Rules and discipline were not for this band or their fans. Most of their studio albums were uninspired and didn’t sell well. Live shows were their forte, where they improvised and let songs grow. Fans began taping Dead shows in the 60s, but in the mid 70s it became much more prevalent. Most bands would not allow recording devices to be brought into concerts. Rather than dealing with searching and policing everyone, the Dead took the unusual path of allowing and encouraging tapers. This went against all common sense notions of the music business, but it was probably the smartest decision the band ever made, creatively and financially. In fact, there was a book written about their business techniques. Tape trading exploded. Recordings of the best shows were in high demand. Keep in mind that this could only work for the Grateful Dead. Unlike most bands, there was no predetermined set list. Fans had no idea what song they would hear on any given night. The band would try out new material, change song arrangements, and explore whatever they felt like exploring. As a result, the shows were not uniformly great. If you attended a show, there was a chance you would catch an off night. Or you might have to listen to some mediocre stretches until suddenly everything would come together to achieve those magic moments that only happen spontaneously. They were rehearsing, creating and performing at the same time, with an audience.

When Jerry Garcia was asked why the band allowed taping, he said: “Hey, when I’m done with it, it’s theirs.” They put each version of the song out there into the world, where the community decided which was best. I thought of the Grateful Dead when learning about FOSS. I have always been attracted to the idea of FOSS, though I am not a software developer. When I read Aaron Van Wirdum’s The Genesis Book I learned about the beginnings of the FOSS movement. The anarchic, sharing with the world sensibility reminded me of the Grateful Dead and their ilk. The product wasn’t marketed in a slick, tightly controlled way. Perhaps it was no coincidence that John Perry Barlow was one of the Dead’s lyricists. Stackers may recognize his name as the author of A Declaration Of The Independence Of Cyberspace. It is truly inspirational. If you haven’t read it, do it now. Here are some quotes:

I talked more about Barlow in depth in the post I wrote last year which is linked above, but here is a pertinent quote:

Maybe I’m stretching in making these comparisons, but I see a connection here. I don’t think it’s an accident that all of this happened in the United States. At a time when so much about this country makes me hopeless, I like to think about things like this. Not the deep state, but the lone cowboy.