am Grisman grew up listening to his dad jam and record with the lead guitarist of the Grateful Dead, whom he knew as "Uncle Jerry". To many, Jerry Garcia was a psychedelic god who unraveled the mysteries of the universe with his guitar solos and passion for music. But to Sam, he was just one of his dad's closest friends who would often visit his childhood home. David Grisman's love for music and the albums he made with Garcia inspired Sam to create an acoustic band that is turning many heads in the jam band scene as one of the most authentic Grateful Dead adjacent groups around.
The Sam Grisman Project played an intimate show at Evanston's Space in September 2024 and it was instantly clear that this group of musicians were bringing something different to the table. SGP, which began in January 2023, features a rotating cast of musicians hand-picked by Sam but they all share a strong love for the ethos that emanated from the acoustic collaborations between David Grisman and Jerry Garcia. Instead of imitating a specific guitar tone or replicating a certain setlist, SGP is more focused on highlighting the improvisational roots of bluegrass music that would eventually inspire Garcia to learn the banjo, create a band like the Grateful Dead, and record several albums with David Grisman.
The relationship between David Grisman and Garcia almost seems like a mythological lore involving chance encounters and eventual prolific creations. According to a Jam Base article, Grisman and Garcia first met at a Pennsylvania bluegrass festival one year before the creation of the Warlocks, which would later be re-named Grateful Dead. They crossed paths again six years later at a softball game in San Francisco between the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. It was there that Garcia asked Grisman to play mandolin on "Ripple" and "Friend of the Devil" for their 1970 album, American Beauty. Grisman eventually joined Garcia on short-lived yet successful bluegrass projects like Old & In The Way and the American String band in the mid-1970s.
As the Grateful Dead skyrocketed in popularity, Grisman created the David Grisman Quintet and honed in on his personal style of bluegrass called "Dawg Music". What started out as a nickname given by Garcia grew into Grisman's moniker for his fusion of jazz and bluegrass that would eventually earn him a spot in the International Bluegrass Hall of Fame. Grisman & Garcia re-connected in the 1990s for several recording sessions that would result in albums like Grisman & Garcia and Not Only For Kids. The plethora of recorded jams have also gave birth to multiple albums after Garcia died which Grisman still produces to this day. These albums included stripped down, acoustic versions of Grateful Dead songs, originals from Grisman, cover songs and traditional American ballads. These collaborations and the acoustic setting they were recorded in are the main inspiration for the Sam Grisman Project.
SGP plays many songs from these projects in their sets but also uses them as a framework to showcase original tunes from the band members along with traditional classics. The lineup of the Evanston show included Sam Grisman on upright bass/vocals, Chris J. English on percussion/vocals, Logan Ledger on guitar/vocals, Victor Furtado on banjo, Matt Flinner on mandolin, special guest, Don Stiernberg on mandolin and Caro on vocals. The combination of all these acoustic instruments are almost like a time capsule that walks you through the origins of bluegrass and country music. Each song they played allowed for different band members to take the lead on vocals and come together in harmony for the chorus. They also made space in each song for epic solos by Grisman, Flinner, Stiernberg and Furtado. It was obvious that the audience was entranced by the performance due to the silence in the crowd that was only broken when a solo concluded or when a communal sing along began.
SGP's direct relationship with these recordings also offers cool opportunities to merge the past and present. For example, just before they began "The Thrill Is Gone" Sam let the crowd know that they would be using the same mandolin his dad used in the recording of the track on Grisman & Garcia. They've also had sit-ins with legends like Peter Rowan, David Grisman, Billy Strings, Alex Hargreaves, Eggy members, and more. The SGP Evanston stop featured a two-song sit-in from Don Stiernberg who learned mandolin from Jethro Burns and released an album that the Chicago Tribune dubbed the “Best Jazz Recordings of 2020”. Seeing the Sam Grisman Project is like taking a bluegrass 101 class that you can dance to. Check out the setlist from the Evanston show below and make sure to catch the Sam Grisman Project all across the U.S. on their many tour dates throughout the rest of the year.
Set 1:
Freight Train
(Elizabeth Cotten cover)
Dark Hollow
(Bill Browning and His Echo Valley Boys cover)
Cedar Hill
Lazy River Road
(Grateful Dead cover)
All the Wine in California
(Logan Ledger Original)
Blue Yodel #9
Play Video
Walking the Dawg
(David Grisman cover)
Home w/ Caro
We Share as One
(Chris J English Original)
Meridan
(Matt Flinner Original)
Set 2:
Rubin and Cherise
(Jerry Garcia Band cover)
Rosin On The Grourd
The Thrill Is Gone
(Roy Hawkins cover)
Leela
If You're Ever Gonna Love Me
My Sisters and Brothers
(Jerry Garcia Band cover)
The Cuckoo
He's Gone
(Grateful Dead cover)
