Skip to main content
Arts & Entertainment

Photos: Grateful Dead Spinoff Band’s Final Show in San Francisco

Written by Liz LindqwisterPublished Jul. 17, 2023 • 11:00am
Violet from Vermont is visiting San Francisco for the summer and is looking for a "miracle" to Dead & Company’s last performance at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard

Over 40,000 Deadheads descended upon San Francisco this weekend to catch the last-ever shows by Grateful Dead spinoff band Dead & Company. Featuring original Dead member Bob Weir and early member Mickey Hart, alongside pop music icon John Mayer, Dead & Company sold out all three Bay Area shows.

Fans lined up outside Oracle Park for hours to snag official merchandise on Friday, while other Deadheads bartered with cash and trinkets for food, drinks, nitrous oxide and tchotchkes on the iconic Shakedown Street just across the Third Street Bridge from the stadium. 

READ MORE: Bartering With Business Hippies at the Last-Ever Grateful Dead Shakedown Street

Sky from Arcata became a fan via his Uncle Adam a few years ago and was looking for a "miracle"—a ticket—for the final Dead & Company show. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard

“Shakedown Street” is the name of a 1978 Grateful Dead song, album and a descriptor for the chaotic vending areas where Deadheads and concertgoers mingle and sell anything and everything outside the concert venue. Vendors set up their wares early Friday morning. By Sunday, the alley was jam-packed with visitors looking for tie-dye clothing and handmade wares.

Many Deadheads were also looking for a miracle: With fingers pointed skyward and hand-painted signs, dozens of fans wandered around the ballpark and Shakedown Street in search of last-minute tickets.

The Grateful Dead played its first gig as the Warlocks at Magoo’s Pizza Parlor in Menlo Park in 1965. In its pivotal years, the band lived out of a house in the Haight. It became a symbol of U.S. counterculture, with die-hard fans following the Dead around the country. The Dead & Company is one of the spinoff bands formed after the death of frontman and San Francisco legend Jerry Garcia.

There was a sense of finality at the shows, as Deadheads, young and old, gathered to celebrate the end of the tour.

Whether this will be Dead & Company's final tour remains to be seen. Deadheads are unconvinced they won't see the band, perhaps with a different lineup, touring again soon.

A fan points their finger to the sky at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Fans mingle around Shakedown Street before Dead & Company’s final performance at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Kirsten from Tustin, California, passes out roses before Dead & Company’s last show at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Fans mingle around Shakedown Street with nitrous oxide-filled balloons before Dead & Company’s last performance in San Francisco. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Cindy and Jim from Sacramento have been to countless Grateful Dead shows since their first in 1968. They arrived early before Dead & Company’s last performance at Oracle Park in San Francisco. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Dead & Company perform its last concert at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Mickey Hart, the drummer for Dead & Company, was an early member of the Grateful Dead. Hart performs at the final Dead & Company show at Oracle Park. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Dead & Company’s John Mayer performs during "The Final Tour" at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Dead & Company lead singer Bob Weir is the only original member of the Grateful Dead performing at the spinoff band's final show. Drummer Mickey Hart was one of the Grateful Dead's early members, joining in 1967. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
A fan appears to try and signal a friend lost in a sea of people before Dead & Company’s last performance at Oracle Park in San Francisco. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Dead & Company merchandise is for sale before its last performance at Oracle Park in San Francisco. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Fans gather at Dead & Company’s last concert during the "The Final Tour" at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard
Dead & Company perform its last concert at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday. | Source: Christopher Victorio for The Standard

Liz Lindqwister can be reached at liz@sfstandard.com


Game of Thrones Author, Other Writers Sue ChatGPT Parent Company

Game of Thrones Author, Other Writers Sue ChatGPT Parent Company


Deepfakes, Chatbots and AI: San Francisco Museum Asks the Hairy Questions

Deepfakes, Chatbots and AI: San Francisco Museum Asks the Hairy Questions


Photos: See Inside This $18M Modern Manse in San Francisco’s Posh Presidio Terrace

Photos: See Inside This $18M Modern Manse in San Francisco’s Posh Presidio Terrace


Cult Filmmaker John Waters Receives Hollywood Walk of Fame Star

Cult Filmmaker John Waters Receives Hollywood Walk of Fame Star


Crowds gathered Sunday in Golden Gate Park's Robin Williams Meadow for the 42nd annual Comedy Day in the Park festival.

San Francisco, Mayor London Breed Got Roasted at Comedy Day in Golden Gate Park