In mid-August, I chatted with journalist Jim Newton at Booksmith in SF about his newly released Here Beside the Rising Tide: Jerry Garcia, The Grateful Dead, and an American Awakening, which is out now.

We touched on:

• Why Jerry would’ve been the ultimate interview guest

• The Dead’s wild growth in the ’80s — was Reagan the backdrop?

• Garcia’s allergy to politics and endorsements

• Jerry Brown asking for help… and getting turned down

• What kept Deadheads coming back, year after year