Steve Weitzman interviewed Jerry Garcia in 1976. The interview was published in Relix in 1989 to celebrate the magazine’s own 15th anniversary. The cover story discusses a number of topics, including Garcia’s relationship with Robert Hunter, his work on the Grateful Dead Movie and the guitarist’s decision to stray away from the press. He also discusses his relationship with the Grateful Dead as a whole.

“I’ve been in the Grateful Dead for ten or twelve years and I’ve also been out of it, in the sense of going out in the world and travelling and doing things just under my own hook,” Garcia says. “And really, I’m not that taken with my own ideas. I don’t really have that much to say and I’m more interested in being involved in something that’s larger than me. And I really can’t talk to anybody else either (laughs). So sometime in the last year, I decided, yeah, that’s it, that’s definitely the farthest out thing I’ve ever been involved in, and it’s the thing that makes me feel best. And it seems to have the most ability to sort of neutrally put something good into the mainstream. It’s also fascinating in the sense of the progression. The year to year changes are fascinating.”

Our sister site Relix.com is offering the complete interview to mark the 15th anniversary of Garcia’s passing and the continued interest in the remaining band member’s other projects. Please click here to read the complete interview.