5 Mickey Hart Magic Moments

It’s Mickey Hart’s birthday, which means that many of our regular readers already have it circled on their calendar, as any proper Grateful Dead fan should. In celebration of one of our favorite percussionst, we’ve compiled a list of five magic Mickey Hart moments from the Dead’s back catalog, some from the studio and some from the band’s live shows. We’re sure you’ll have your own favorite Mickey moments, so feel free to share them in the comments…and while doing so, give these tracks a listen!

1. “Caution (Do Not Stop on the Tracks),” ANTHEM OF THE SUN: The first Grateful Dead album to feature Hart in the lineup of the band, this track results in Hart getting name-checked in the Head Heritage review of ANTHEM OF THE SUN, which describes the song as being “held taut by [Bill] Kreutzmann’s reliable snare rolls and Mickey Hart’s linear cymbal play.”

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2. “King Solomon’s Marbles,” BLUES FOR ALLAH: Hart took a hiatus from the Dead after recording AMERICAN BEAUTY, but Jerry Garcia and Phil Lesh invited him to the sessions for BLUES FOR ALLAH, and the decision proved a fortuitous one. Not only did he contribute to the writing of this song and participating in the recording of other tracks, but by the time the band began their tour for the album, Hart was officially a member of the band again.

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3. “Morning Dew,” CORNELL 5/8/77: Admittedly, we’re partial to this track because it comes from an album that we only just released a few months ago, but in an interview with Entertainment Weekly at the time of its release, Hart made specific mention of this song. “We played ‘Morning Dew’ that night,” said Hart. “I remember we kept going on and on and on. One thing started building over the other and the other.”

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4. “Space,” RED ROCKS AMPHITHEATER, MORRISON, CO (7/8/78): This track has always been an acquired taste – as Steve Spohn wrote on SongMango.com, “‘Space’ is where you separate the Deadheads from the other humans – and even other Deadheads” – but it’s also a track where Mickey Hart shines.

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5. “Attics of My Life,” FARE THEE WELL (LIVE 7/5/2015): As the final song of the final performance of the Dead, the song is effectively magic by its mere existence, but it’s Mickey who gets the last word before the band leaves the stage. “The feeling we have here — remember it, take it home and do some good with it,” said Hart. “I'll leave you with this, please, be kind.”

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