Jun 7: Grateful Dead for Acoustic Guitar with Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers

11am – 1pm

Dusty Strings 3406 Fremont Ave N

Maximum enrollment: 16

Registration & refund deadline: Wednesday, June 4, 2025

Bring the music of the Grateful Dead to life on your guitar! In this workshop you’ll learn not only how to play the chords and create powerful grooves behind your singing on songs like “Friend of the Devil,” “New Speedway Boogie,” “Althea,” and “Casey Jones,” but also how to add cool embellishments and lead breaks inspired by the Dead’s live and studio performances.

Jeffrey interviewed both Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir in depth about their guitar and songwriting styles, and draws on insights from those conversations to capture the soul of their timeless songs.

The specific songs covered will depend on the interests of the group. Registrants can vote for their favorites here.

Skills needed: Knowledge of basic chords and ability to accompany songs. The arrangements are oriented toward playing with a pick, but accessible for fingerstyle players as well.

What to Bring: guitar and capo

Teacher: Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers has combined his twin passions for words and music into a multifaceted career as a musician, author, and teacher. He is the founding editor of Acoustic Guitar magazine, a grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and author of Beyond Strumming, Learn Grateful Dead Classics for Acoustic Guitar, The Complete Singer-Songwriter, and many other books and videos for musicians. In addition to performing his original music, he leads Dead to the Core, a collective of songwriters and acoustic instrumentalists celebrating the Grateful Dead. jeffreypepperrodgers.com

“Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers sure can play the music—listen to his ‘Stella Blue’ and you’ll know what I mean. Better still, he can teach it.” — Dennis McNally, Grateful Dead publicist and author, A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead