John James Audubon: A Biography - Alice Ford - Hardcover - Rev. ed Book

"Captain Trips- A biography of Jerry Garcia" by Sandy Troy gives a full, complete lifeline of Jerry Garcia. Troy has this ability, that captivates her reader. It almost sucks you into a vortex, spitting you out right in the midst of the 70's. In comparison to "Garcia: An American Life" by Blair Jackson, "Captain Trips" leaves it dead in the water. Garcia: An American Life is a good outline of Jerry's existence, but "Captain Trips" gives you a overload on every Garcia. Throughout this book, you will be taken to a variety of stages in Jerry's life. Some areas will nearly bring a tear to your eye, others will make you laugh and want to dance. While reading this book, I had to take a break and listen to a classic Dead riff, such as "Sugar Magnolia" or "Touch of Grey", only to relieve the overload.
Jerry Garcia is name that goes hand-in-hand with rock n' roll. He was there when Dylan went electric, or when a generation danced naked at Woodstock. Although Garcia's life was mainly lived on the road. Drug use was always mentioned in each segment of the book. Jerry started at age 13 smoking Marijuana, when Ken Kesey started experimenting with Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD), Garcia was sucked into the drug use lifestyle. Because of Jerry's obsession for Marijuana, LSD, and other harmful drugs, he was appropriately nicknamed "Captain Trips." Troy definitely carries out the use of drugs throughout the book. I understand that drugs were the foundation for the 70's and 80's, but I noticed that she continuously brought it up. Towards the end of the book it almost got annoying to hear about the same LSD tests repetitively. There's no two ways around it, I really like this book. It really took into perspective the craze of the Grateful Dead. The book buried itself into Jerry's life. Captain Trips gave full detail, almost too much detail. Troy really emphasized parts of the book that I feel didn't have to be highlighted.
Four stars is a fair rating for this book. Sandy Troy knew what she was talking about, especially when she used exact quotes of Jerry. But she definitely talked about Jerry's early ages way more than needed. The book is about 300 pages, but It wasn't until the last 175 pages that she talked about the Grateful Dead being a major impact to Rock n' Roll. I want to hear the Grateful Dead being a heavy-impact band. In the beginning, all she talked about was their road to success. The focus just wasn't there.
However, If you have any interest in classic rock, if you wish to learn about this historical time period, or even if you just like music, you have to read "Captain Trips: A biography of Jerry Garcia." This book explains thoroughly how Jerry Garcia was a talented and gifted musician. If it wasn't for him, our society wouldn't the same!