This week on Sea Change Radio, we celebrate the summer solstice to revel in our planet and talk music as we dig into the archives to revisit our discussions with two legendary rock musicians who also care deeply about environmental causes. First, we listen to our 2011 conversation with Bill Kreutzmann, the drummer for the Grateful Dead, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and an organic farmer in Kauai who’s currently touring with Dead & Company. Then, our 2013 interview with sideman extraordinaire Chuck Leavell who, in addition to playing piano for the Rolling Stones, the Allman Brothers Band and Eric Clapton is quite passionate about preserving forests.

Narrator 00:01 This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise.

Bill Kreutzmann 00:21 If I can help this beautiful world of ours, this blue green gem floating in space - flying in space, really - any way I can to help it be a better place, then that's what I want to do.

Narrator 00:58 This week on Sea Change Radio, we celebrate the summer solstice to revel in our planet and talk music as we dig into the archives to revisit our discussions with two legendary rock musicians who also care deeply about environmental causes. First, we listen to our 2011 conversation with Bill Kreutzmann, the drummer for the Grateful Dead, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and an organic farmer in Kauai who’s currently touring with Dead & Company. Then, our 2013 interview with sideman extraordinaire Chuck Leavell who, in addition to playing piano for the Rolling Stones, the Allman Brothers Band and Eric Clapton is quite passionate about preserving forests.

Alex Wise (AW) 02:24 My guest today on Sea Change Radio is the former drummer of the Grateful Dead, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He lives in Kauai. Bill Kreutzmann. Bill, welcome to Sea Change Radio.

Bill Kreutzmann (BK) 2:36 It's nice to be on the show.

AW 02:38 Great to have you here. When we last spoke you mentioned that you had made a promise to your longtime musical collaborator and friend, Jerry Garcia, to move to Hawaii.  Tell us how you fell in love with the Hawaiian Islands together.

BK 2:50 Well, Jerry and I always had an interest in diving. And we started getting certified when we were making a record in Marin County. There was a dive shop across from where we were recording and we went over there and started taking lessons - pool lessons like the first part of your training. And then we knew people over here. And this is actually Jack's Dive Locker. I'd like to give a plug. They're great folks. On the Big Island in Kona and him and I would go there diving all the time and one day we were standing in the back of this dive boat and just made him talking. And we we shook hands and said, OK, when the Grateful Dead ends we're both going to move over here, and that's how that all started. It was just from a love of the ocean, it was the same reason I'm so into the ocean today is it started, then started from diving and seeing what it was like.

AW 3:43 Obviously a large part of the Hawaiian economy, all the islands is tourism and vacation homes, but that has an environmental impact as well, doesn't it, Bill?

BK 3:52 It really does, and the first thing that comes to mind is that when people come over and they and they build a house, they buy a house. But it's already built. They're here for two weeks. So they don't really plug in. To help the neighborhood, they don't really plug in to what the island needs. They come here for their two weeks or whatever the length of time is, and they have a great time and I'm glad they get to do that,