Grateful Dead Song Camp

Build your repertoire and technique by playing classic Grateful Dead songs in this guitar workshop with Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers—founding editor of Acoustic Guitar magazine, leader of Dead to the Core, and author of a best-selling video series teaching acoustic arrangements of Dead songs.

Thanks to all who joined the spring 2024 Grateful Dead Song Camp! Join the email list to stay in the loop about future camps.

You can also find an extensive library of Grateful Dead lessons, charts, and tab on Patreon.

There’s no better—and more fun—way to improve as a guitarist than learning great songs. And there’s no better source to learn from than the Grateful Dead songbook, which spans the realms of rock, folk, blues, country, and more.

At Grateful Dead Song Camp, you’ll dig into one new song each week. Not only will you learn how to play the song, but we’ll explore different arranging options (chord voicings, picking styles, capo positions, alternate tunings) and talk about special features of the composition (chord progression, form, melody).

For each song, we’ll start with a simple, accessible arrangement and progress into ways to add depth and variety to the sound with embellishments, riffs, and solo breaks inspired by the Dead’s collective sound.

Lyric/chord charts and tab are provided for each song, and meeting videos are archived for later review or in case you aren’t able to attend the live session.

Lessons are designed for advanced beginners (familiar with basic open chords, able to accompany songs) and intermediates on up. Pick or fingerstyle players are welcome.

The camp meets for four weekly sessions on Zoom. See below for more about song selections and how online sessions work.

Questions? Email JPR.

About the teacher

Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers has combined his twin passions for words and music into a multifaceted career as a musician, author, and teacher. He is a grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, the founding editor of Acoustic Guitar magazine, and author of The Complete Singer-Songwriter, Beyond Strumming, and a Homespun video series teaching Grateful Dead songs for acoustic guitar. 

Rodgers grew up playing the music of the Grateful Dead and leads the acoustic collective Dead to the Core. He interviewed both Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir in depth about their guitar and songwriting styles, and draws on insights from those conversations to capture the soul of these timeless songs.