Harry G. Angus was born on April 3, 1955 in Newark, NJ, and raised on the Jersey Shore in what at that time was a small rural community known as Laurelton. At age 17, on July 18, 1972, his older sister, Cindi, and her boyfriend Carl, took him to his first live Jerry Garcia experience at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, New Jersey. From that point forward, Harry became passionate about the music of Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead. In the years following, there were many more live events he would attend, all over the northeast and beyond.

Harry was also interested in history and particularly fascinated with vintage architecture. The diverse locations where many of the concerts took place furthered Harry’s interests. These two distinct passions have always run parallel to one another and continue today to be a big part of Harry’s life.

In 1976, Harry moved west to “go start a new” life in California. So many roads were traveled, and so many concerts attended. Harry’s participation flourished with each live show, and the fascination grew around the variety of notable venues in which they took place. From the Keystone Clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Red Rock Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado, to the Alladin Theater in Las Vegas, to the Santa Fe Downs in New Mexico, Harry’s passions and curiosity thrived and mushroomed.

Many years after Jerry Garcia’s sorrowful, heartbreaking death on August 9, 1995, Harry became a radio programmer for KMUD Redwood Community Radio in Humboldt County, California. It was a Jerry Garcia and Grateful Dead-themed radio show where Harry played recordings of live shows from his tape collection on the air. Listeners would call in and compliment Harry on his playlists and cry out for more. It was during this time that Harry created an online blog documenting the many locations where Jerry performed. The blog was to become the Jerry’s Brokendown Palaces blog, which quickly reached 1.75 million hits. Based on the shared passion fans expressed on the blog site, Harry was eventually inspired to combine his passions and create what has become—The Encyclopedia of Jerry Garcia Music Venues.

For Harry, it has been an extraordinary adventure, or what some might call— “a long strange trip” researching Jerry Garcia’s performances and the massive variety of indoor and outdoor venues Jerry entertained and delighted thousands of people throughout his career.

It has taken Harry over 15 years to compile and get all of this information “just exactly perfect” to fit into the two-volume set of hardcover books and present it to the fans of Jerry Garcia, and architecture enthusiasts everywhere. All the years are combined and documented here for the enjoyment of like-minded people who appreciate the music of one of the most iconic artists of the 20th century and the historic environments where he so beautifully performed.

Harry currently resides in southwest Florida with his partner, Robin and his daughter, Kelly.