San Jose is set to commemorate a pivotal moment in music history as it unveils a plaque marking the location of the first official concert by the Grateful Dead on December 4, 1965. This event will take place at City Hall, recognizing the band’s connection to the city that is often overlooked in favor of its more famous counterpart, San Francisco.
Although the Grateful Dead is synonymous with the San Francisco music scene of the 1960s, their inaugural performance under that name occurred approximately 65 miles south of Haight-Ashbury in San Jose. The planned plaque dedication is a long-awaited acknowledgment of San Jose’s role in the band’s history and the broader context of Bay Area music.
“This is about more than commemorating a concert — it’s about recognizing San Jose’s pivotal role in music history,” said Dan Orloff, founder and “chief rock officer” of San Jose Rocks, the nonprofit organization leading the plaque initiative. The ceremony, which will feature speakers and entertainment, is open to the public and begins at 16:45.
The plaque will be placed outside on the south-facing wall of the City Council Chambers building, near the site of the original concert held at a Victorian house located at 38 S. Fifth Street. This event has been a decade in the making, spearheaded by Orloff and Mark Purdy, a retired sports columnist with the Bay Area News Group.
Purdy emphasizes the importance of recognizing the musical contributions from cities beyond San Francisco. “It’s amazing to me how much of San Francisco music didn’t start in San Francisco,” he noted. He points out that bands such as Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doobie Brothers, and Sly and the Family Stone also have roots in areas surrounding San Francisco.
The Grateful Dead originated from a group known as Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions, which formed in the Palo Alto and Menlo Park areas. The band initially performed under the name The Warlocks but changed it shortly before their first show due to the existence of another band with the same name.
That debut performance at the San Jose home was not only the band’s introduction to the public but also a significant event in the counterculture movement known as the “Acid Test.” Organized by author Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters, these gatherings celebrated the use of the psychedelic drug LSD. The first public Acid Test took place just a week prior, and the Grateful Dead’s concert was designed to attract attendees from the nearby Rolling Stones concert happening at the San Jose Civic.
Purdy highlights the unique timing of these events, stating, “Think about that — you had the Grateful Dead’s first show on the same night when the Rolling Stones were playing five blocks away.” Flyers promoting the Acid Test were distributed, inviting attendees to participate in the psychedelic experience.
While the original house where the concert took place was thought to have been destroyed, it was actually relocated to 390 N. 4th Street to facilitate the construction of the new City Hall. During the plaque dedication, a surviving copy of the original Acid Test flyer will also be displayed, symbolizing a return to the site of the band’s historic performance.
“San Jose owns a very significant piece of the Grateful Dead’s story,” Purdy remarked, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the band’s first concert. The upcoming plaque serves not only as a testament to the Grateful Dead’s legacy but also as an enduring reminder of San Jose’s contributions to the rich tapestry of music history in the Bay Area.
