Z2 Comics, Grateful Dead to Publish ‘Grateful Dead Origins’ Graphic Novel

Independent graphic novel publisher Z2 Comics announced plans to publish Grateful Dead Origins by Christopher Miskiewicz and Noah Van Sciver, a graphic nonfiction account of the beginnings of the legendary rock band. The book will be published in early 2020.

Working in partnership with the Grateful Dead estate, Z2 Comics plans to publish a standard trade paperback edition of the title that will include a download code of Grateful Dead music from the early years of the band that will serve a musical companion to the graphic edition.

Z2 also plans to release a deluxe hardcover oversized numbered edition that will include a 12-inch LP of previously unreleased GD music as well as three prints autographed by the writer and artist. The deluxe edition can be preordered on the Z2 Comics website, along with the standard trade paperback edition.

Grateful Dead Origins is a nonfiction account in comics of the early days the Grateful Dead and its band members Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Pigpen, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, and Mickey Hart. Writer Miskiewicz’s story in combination with Van Sciver’s drawings detail the band’s transformation from a bar band called the Warlocks to one of the most iconic and influential bands in the history of rock.

Grateful Dead Origins is the latest addition to Z2 Comics’s line of music-driven graphic novels and graphic memoirs. Z2 Comics has published graphic novels and nonfiction in collaboration with such bands and musical performers as BabyMetal, Andy Black, Skillet, and Poppy.

Mark Pinkus, president of Rhino Entertainment, the Grateful Dead’s record label, noted that Jerry Garcia was “an avid comic book enthusiast so it is incredibly fitting to have the Grateful Dead’s origin story told in graphic novel form.”

Grateful Dead audiovisual archivist and legacy manager David Lemieux said, “we're thrilled to add to the Dead's narrative canon this beautiful portrayal of the Dead's origin story in the form of this wonderful new comic.”

Lemieux continued, “Chris and Noah have captured the Dead's sensibility in their words and images that bring to life on the page the earliest days of the Grateful Dead, from the band's founding in 1965 through to Woodstock. We couldn't be happier to be partnering with such talented artists who have delved so deeply into the Dead's history and origin.”