The Grateful Dead were more than just a band; they were the musically guiding force behind a mass of people brought together by their love for the Dead, peace, drugs and love. The disruptive vortex of social and political movements of which one can describe the tumoltuous times of the 1960s and "70s combined with the every growing index finger of mainstream culture pushing and pointing at a generation to conform to a way of life defined in value by material objects and possessions was the atmosphere in which the Grateful Dead grew out of and was where they made their mark in history. The Grateful Dead did not play music for any single cause or movement. Most of their songs were not politically motivated and didn't serve as any direct political message. The Grateful Dead did not have a political agenda behind their actions. The thousands of Deadheads spanning across the globe followed their music because it went hand in hand with the, " hippie" way of life. Disconnected and disinterested from the political and social movements taking place in American history at the time, the hippies originated in San Fransico in the early sixties and, "Were the barometer of our sick society, they were dropouts who were turned off by wars, poverty, political phonnies, and the "game" they saw around them." The Deadheads were definitely a part of the hippie culture along with the members of the band, most notably Jerry Garcia, Bill Kreutzmann, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart, and Ron McKernan. .
The band formed in the late sixties in San Fransico and when they were introduced to author Ken Kesey they became his house band, providing musical entertainment for guests of Kesey's acid tests. The drug, LSD also known as acid, became a staple of the band's diet and guests of Kesey's parties known as the acid tests. During the acid tests, music would be played and people would party while tripping on acid.