Block Stone Creative and VCCESS.com today announced that Big Steve Parish (Sirius/XM Radio Personality and longtime Grateful Dead roadie/Jerry Garcia Band Manager) will mint four rare Jerry Garcia/Grateful Dead Band memorabilia as part of an exclusive NFT (non-fungible token) as Open Editions. Along with the Open Edition NFTs, the drop will also include 1 of 1 NFTs of each item, with the potential to unlock the physical memorabilia for the auction winners. The drop is scheduled for Friday, July 23rd at 12:00PM PST and will be live for 72-96 hours only. The four Open Edition NFT pieces will be available in unlimited quantities giving access to this massive fan base, as Steve wants them all to have an opportunity to own a piece of digital history. The four Open Edition NFT pieces will be available in unlimited quantities so nobody need be left out.
Big Steve handpicked the items from his extensive Grateful Dead/Jerry Garcia archives. Collectors worldwide can acquire, trade, and resell NFTs through the platform using a debit card, credit card or the crypto currency Ethereum. Clubhouse room with Big Steve will go live on Friday, July 23rd at 11am PST/2pm EST.
For the 1 of 1 auctions with the physical memorabilia attached, there will also be additional unlockable items available. Among these are roundtrip airfare, hotel accommodations and dinner/extended conversation with Big Steve himself in the San Francisco Bay Area. Also, the opportunity to be a guest of Steve’s during his weekly Sirius/XM radio show on the Grateful Dead Channel.
The NFT’s will include Big Steve’s on-camera stories of the origins and significance of each piece to him and the Jerry Garcia/Grateful Dead universe. Collecting all 4 will unlock a special 5th NFT, otherwise unavailable for this drop. This 5th and limited edition unlockable NFT is a rare pendant that was created exclusively for a very select fewIn a statement from Steve Parish, “In the brave new world of NFT’s, I take a jump. I take a leap. I try to figure out what it all means. And I bring the sacred items of my life and the glorious story of my relationship with Jerry Garcia, the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead to this brave new medium. It is something that is a bold experiment. And I feel it is something that needs to happen to provide access to people that may want to have a piece of this history. So I take the leap along with all of us.” of the Grateful Dead family. It, too, will come with an on-camera story describing the genesis of its unique design (different from the iconic Grateful Dead skull and lightning bolt design) and the importance of its existence during the turbulent times touring with the Grateful Dead.
Four physical items available include:
Jerry Garcia’s favorite guitar pedal. Used both in-studio and for live performances. This is the last known functioning pedal of this type used by Jerry. Take note of grease pencil markings made by Jerry’s own hands.
Jerry Garcia’s amp. Used by Jerry exclusively for warm-up backstage before his live Jerry Garcia Band shows. The cigarette burns on the wood paneling serve as evidence of Jerry’s pre-show smoking ritual.
Artwork of a Ticket Wheel from The Jerry Garcia Band’s 1991 Tour. This wheel consists of the actual original tickets for each venue, along with all the Backstage Passes-each featuring original artwork for each venue of the Tour. Only a select few were gifted this Wheel by legendary promoter Bill Graham.
An original one-of-a-kind sketch of the Ice Cream Kid character by the legendary artist, Mouse. This was an early iteration based on a conversation with Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter and Big Steve. It eventually evolved into the image used on the cover of the Grateful Dead Europe ’72 live album.
The 5th item is a limited edition NFT of a special pendant, rewarded as an unlockable to those who collect all 4 of the other NFTs. This gold pendant was created for Big Steve and members of the Grateful Dead tour to serve as collateral for bail. The group was a frequent target of law enforcement, so it was imperative that they not be detained in a previous city. It also has a unique design, different from the traditional Grateful Dead skull and lightning bolt.