SF Giants To Honor Garcia

The Jerry Garcia Tribute Night at AT&T Park takes place Aug. 9, which is the last date of what Dead fans call “the days between” Garcia’s Aug. 1 birthday and his 1995 death eight days later.

Aug. 9 is also the night the Giants host the Chicago Cubs, a game we suspect Garcia would have loved to attend if he was still with us. Fans purchasing a special event ticket for the evening will get a seat in a Garcia-designated section of the ballpark and receive the bobblehead depicting his 1993 performance of the National Anthem at the Giants old stomping grounds, Candlestick Park.

During pre-game activities, everyone in the park will get a dose of The Dead, courtesy of some of the Bay Area’s most popular Garcia and Grateful Dead cover bands.

Then comes the home plate ceremony, featuring a video tribute to Garcia, the Dead’s Bob Weir performing the National Anthem and Garcia’s daughter Annabelle throwing out the ceremonial first pitch. Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart will help fans loosen up by leading more than 7,000 kazoo players tooting “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” during the seventh inning stretch.

And yes, that will be an attempt to set the Guinness World Record for world’s largest kazoo ensemble.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Dead’s charity arm, The Rex Foundation. There is also a limited number of tickets for a Jerry Garcia/Grateful Dead VIP Party running from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at AT&T Park’s new Triples Alley location and includes a Q&A with Garcia’s family members, friends and Rex Board members. Hart and Weir will also be there.

For more information about the SF Giants’ Jerry Garcia Tribute Night, presented by Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream in partnership with The Rex Foundation and “Jerry Day” at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, click here for the special events section of the Giants’ website.