Nick Meriwether hardly fits the classic stereotype of a librarian. Sure, he has a master’s degree in library science from the University of South Carolina and spent five years as an oral historian at the South Caroliniana Library. But if her were to follow Superrman’s lead and slip into a phone booth to remove his suit and spectacles, he’d come out in tie-dyes and faded jeans, instead of cape and tights. Nick Meriwether is a Deadhead through and through. And not just your weekend Deadhead either. He is the editor of All Graceful Instruments: The Contexts of the Grateful Dead Phenomenon,” and “Dead Letters: Essays on the Grateful Dead Phenomenon,” just the kind of books a Deadhead would read while following the band in a psychedelic van.
Meriwether was just hired by UCSC to manage its new Grateful Dead archive. As he talks about the job, the librarian-side comes out: “I’m interested in their business records, minutes of board meetings …” He’ll have plenty of time to go through all of that. His first task will include organizing that material so that other researchers can benefit from it.
Meriwether described the countless Dead shows he saw as a young college student as “a life-changing scene.” Sure he may have thought that then, but did he think it would be so life-changing as to determine his career course? Thousands of fans are undoubtedly jealous. Read more at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
