First you have to study the skeleton of the song, where it’s going, and what it’s trying to say,” says Molly Wilson, one of the three sign language interpreters hired by the promoters in Chicago. “Everybody approaches the task differently. However, with its serpentine jams and lyrics of layered symbolism, the Dead’s music poses a particular challenge for interpreters. Other jam bands such as Phish (whose lead singer and guitarist Trey Anastasio was performing with the Dead) and Widespread Panic often perform with interpreters steeped in their music. The gospel group Sweet Honey in the Rock has had a sign language interpreter, Shirley Childress, in the group since 1981. Of course the Dead isn’t the only group with fans who can’t fully hear its music. As they found each other in a pre-Facebook era, they also sought out like-minded interpreters and connected with the Dead’s longtime sound man, Dan Healy, who helped carve out space for them at shows. Read More: Meet the Artists Behind the Limited Edition 'Fare Thee Well' Postersĭeafheads say their cohort emerged in the 1980s in Washington D.C., home to Gallaudet University, a school for the deaf. But when it comes to the Dead, there’s a more organic history that evolved independently of the ADA, passed in 1990. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, concert venues, like any business where people assemble, are obligated to accommodate visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing if they request assistance. At the same time we need clear sight lines and enough room to use sign language” with each other. Through an interpreter, he added, “You need to feel the actual bass and the rhythm, but part of it’s being part of the crowd and the vibe. “Putting together a good Deaf Zone is an art,” said Rosen, who is the chairperson of the National Council on Disability. The promoters worked with Soldier Field to make sure deaf ticket holders received access passes to the Deaf Zone, and to set up the area to the fans’ specifications. Photo: John Jurgensen/The Wall Street Journalĭorsey said the promoter and his staff jumped in, having already had experience with a community of deaf music fans at a venue Shapiro owns, the Capitol Theatre in Portchester, N.Y. Knowing, however, that there were lingering questions regarding June 16-18, 1987 (the Ventura County Fairgrounds shows)-questions for which you had no good answers-you quietly withdrew your name from consideration.The Grateful Dead's "Fare Thee Well" concert in Chicago included a "Deaf Zone," where fans could follow sign interpreters who translated the singing. A few years ago, your name was bandied about when a prestigious judgeship opened up. You recall the experience with fondness, though also with regret. But during that year between college and law school, you apprenticed at Garcia, Lesh & Weir, LLP. Today, you’re a senior partner at Debevoise & Plimpton, with more than a touch of gray about the temples. The song made the Billboard Top 10 in 1987, though you first heard it at a show in ‘86, shortly after Jerry returned from his diabetic coma. “Touch of Grey”: The Dead’s only mainstream hit. Yearbook quote: “What a long strange trip it’s been.” Yearbook quote: “I got no dime, but I got time to hear his story.” At this point, your buddies typically ducked out, ostensibly to pick up another sixer of Genesee. “Wharf Rat”: Back when you were in grad school at Cornell finishing up the coursework for your literature Ph.D., you had this great riff about how the structure of “Wharf Rat” mimicked that of Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”-an unreliable narrator relaying a tragic tale through a second, ostensibly reliable narrative voice. Yearbook quote: “Dum dee dum dee doodley doo.”
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