This is only a preview. The auction will open on: 10/28/2026 1:00:00 PM
Offered Here: The Grateful Dead 1978-1989 Lot of 3 Contact Sheets, Negatives and Color Slides Live and Backstage With Transfer Rights
Item Details: From the archived collection of celebrated rock photographer Waring Abbott, this historically rich multi-format lot features a sweeping visual history of The Grateful Dead spanning 1978 to 1989. The comprehensive collection comprises three black-and-white contact sheets, 86 matching negative frames, and 22 vibrant color positive slides capturing the band both in high-energy live performances and raw, intimate backstage moments. Sold with full transfer rights, all items are in good condition. The contact sheets serve as authentic, production-era working documents exhibiting true rock-and-roll pedigree, including punched holes, tape, tape residue, grease pencil markings, and expected character from age and long-term archival storage.
Provenance / Authenticity: The items in this lot are sourced directly from the personal archives of renowned photojournalist Waring Abbott. Abbott’s iconic imagery has graced the pages of Time, Newsweek, People, Rolling Stone, and countless foreign publications, alongside legendary album covers and photo spreads for KISS, Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, and Bob Dylan and others.
Formed in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965, the Grateful Dead built one of the most devoted followings in American music through relentless touring, improvisational live performances and a policy of allowing fans to tape their concerts, which fostered a widespread culture of tape trading among Deadheads. The years from 1978 to 1989 spanned their September 1978 concerts at the Great Pyramids of Giza, the arrival of keyboardist Brent Mydland in 1979, and the unexpected mainstream success of the 1987 album "In the Dark," whose single "Touch of Grey" became the band's only Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. That late-1980s resurgence turned the group into one of the top-grossing touring acts in the United States while it kept the community-driven approach to live music it had been known for since its beginnings.
Condition: Good with the contact sheets having punched holes, tape, tape residue, grease pencil marks, and general wear from age and storage.
SKU: WBB1005