Grateful Dead – “Touch Of Grey” Live

We Will Get By, We Will Survive!

“Touch of Grey” was performed as an encore at the Capital Centre on September 15, 1982. Its music video received heavy airplay on MTV and added to the popularity of the song, it further earned them new fans. Its refrain was just as famous as the rest of the lyrics. And it was said that the track “combines non sequitur lyrics with a pop tempo.”

• Peaked at number 9 in the Billboard Hot 100
• Made it to number 1 in the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart

“Touch of Grey” had a bouncy, irresistible quality that made it appealing to non-Dead Heads. Just about everybody could relate to “I/We will survive” on some level, even if they couldn’t quite fathom all that strangeness in the verses about clocks running late, the cow giving kerosene and the shoe being on the hand it fits.

There were those who believed that the song is about the band getting older and eventually aging gracefully. It was such a huge hit — both the music and the video and even those who didn’t listen to Grateful Dead before began playing their classic tracks. It was indeed a turning point for Jerry Garcia and the boys!

That was such a great time for Dead fans!