re: The Grateful Dead - What are some good books on this iconic group?

Playing In The Band by David Gans and Peter Simons was the first one I read. For a long time, until after Jerry's death and everyone started writing books, that was the best we had. For a general history of the band, it still holds up.

I've read Phil's book and Billy's book and Rock Scully's book and Dennis McNally's book as well as another one -- Conversations With The Dead -- by David Gans (host of the long-running Grateful Dead Hour on NPR and instrumental in getting Phil back to performing after Jerry's death). Also Dark Star by Jerry Greenfield, a Jerry Garcia biography. They fill in a lot of holes and don't always agree which is to be expected. But overall, Playing In The Band gave me a firm foundation for understanding the band since I was in college back in the late 80's. (My first show was Pittsburgh '87. Changed my life.)

I don't know if any of that helps. But one thing you should DEFINITELY do is read Bill Graham's autobiography: Bill Graham Presents. That's a must read. That's better than all of the above. It will give you insights to the Dead and the burgeoning San Francisco rock scene in the 60's, from a different perspective, but it goes so much farther than that. I can't recommend it highly enough.