Merl Saunders (February 14, 1934 – October 24, 2008) was an American multi-genre musician who played piano and keyboards, favoring the

Hammond B-3 The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs ...

console organ.

Biography

Born in

San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...

, United States, Saunders attended Polytechnic High School in San Francisco. In his first band in high school was singer

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1953 to 1957. He worked as musical director of the Billy Williams Revue and served in a similar capacity in

Oscar Brown Jr. Oscar Brown Jr. (October 10, 1926May 29, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, civil rights activist, and actor. Aside from his career, Brown ran unsuccessfully for office in both the Illinois state legislature and the U. ...

's off-Broadway show, ''Big Time Buck White''. He gained notice in the 1970s when he began collaborating with

Jerry Garcia Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American musician best known for being the principal songwriter, lead guitarist, and a vocalist with the rock band Grateful Dead, which he co-founded and which came to prominence ...

, with whom he had begun playing in 1971 at a small

Fillmore Street Fillmore Street is a street in San Francisco, California which starts in the Lower Haight neighborhood and travels northward through the Fillmore District and Pacific Heights and ends in the Marina District. It serves as the main thoroughfare an ...

nightclub called

The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...

. He sat in with the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

, and co-founded the Saunders/Garcia Band which produced three albums, and which became the

Legion of Mary The Legion of Mary ( la, Legio Mariae, postnominal abbreviation L.O.M.) is an international association of members of the Catholic Church who serve it on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, as a Marian movement by the layman and civi ...

, with the addition of Martin Fierro (sax) in 1974. It disbanded the following year, but he and Garcia continued to collaborate in the band

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

during 1979, collaborating with

Ed Neumeister Ed Neumeister (born 1952) is a composer and jazz trombonist. He was born in Topeka, Kansas. An early 2000s collaboration with Jay Clayton and Fritz Pauer was released as the album ''3 for the Road''. Around 2012, Neumeister took teaching posts a ...

(trombone),

Gaylord Birch Gaylord G. Birch (March 10, 1946 – April 14, 1996) was a drummer for the bands Santana, Graham Central Station, Cold Blood, Pointer Sisters & Herbie Hancock. History Birch was the drummer for the Pointer Sisters during 1974 and perfor ...

(drums) and

John Kahn John Kahn (June 13, 1947 – May 30, 1996) was an American electric and acoustic bassist. From 1970 to 1995, Kahn was Jerry Garcia's principal musical collaborator outside of the Grateful Dead. Biography John Kahn was born in Memphis, Tennessee ...

(bass). He led his own band as Merl Saunders and Friends, playing live dates with Garcia, as well as

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

David Grisman David Grisman (born March 23, 1945) is an American mandolinist. His music combines bluegrass, folk, and jazz in a genre he calls "Dawg music". He founded the record label Acoustic Disc, which issues his recordings and those of other acoustic mu ...

, Michael Hinton,

Tom Fogerty Thomas Richard Fogerty (November 9, 1941 – September 6, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. Biography ...

Vassar Clements Vassar Carlton Clements (April 25, 1928 – August 16, 2005) was an American jazz, swing, and bluegrass fiddler. Clements has been dubbed the Father of Hillbilly Jazz, an improvisational style that blends and borrows from swing, hot jazz, and ...

Kenneth Nash Dr Kenneth C. Nash (born 1964) is an American psychiatrist and professor who is certified in child and adolescent psychiatry and psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He practices at the University of Pittsburgh Physicians, ...

and

Sheila E. Sheila Cecilia Escovedo (born December 12, 1957) better known under the stage name Sheila E., is an American percussionist and singer. She began her career in the mid-1970s as a percussionist and singer for The George Duke Band. After leaving t ...

He also collaborated with Grateful Dead percussionist

Mickey Hart Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 until February 19 ...

in the band High Noon. Saunders took the lead in reintroducing Jerry Garcia to his guitar, after Garcia suffered a diabetic coma in the summer of 1986. In 1990, he released the world music and

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars conside ...

classic album ''Blues From the Rainforest'', a collaboration with Garcia and

Muruga Booker Steven Bookvich known as Muruga Booker (born December 27, 1942) is an American drummer, composer, inventor, artist, recording artist, and an autonomous Eastern Orthodox priest. Biography Booker was born in Detroit, Michigan, on December 27, ...

. This led to the release of a video which chronicled Saunders' journey to the

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

, and the subsequent albums ''Fiesta Amazonica'', ''It's in the Air'', and ''Save the Planet so We'll Have Someplace to Boogie''. One of the songs from ''Blues From the Rainforest'' was used as part of the soundtrack for the TV series ''

Baywatch ''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bonann, ...

''. Saunders continued to perform with the Rainforest Band for the next ten years. Saunders worked with musicians

Paul Pena Paul Jerrod Pena (January 26, 1950 – October 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist of Cape Verdean descent. His music from the first half of his career touched on Delta blues, jazz, morna, flamenco, folk and rock and r ...

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporated ...

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon ...

Widespread Panic Widespread Panic is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. The current lineup includes guitarist/singer John Bell, bassist Dave Schools, drummer Duane Trucks, percussionist Domingo "Sunny" Ortiz, keyboardist John "JoJo" Hermann, and guit ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

, and B. B. King. He also recorded with the Dinosaurs, a " supergroup" of first-generation Bay Area rock musicians. He had his own

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

, Sumertone Records (named for his children Susan, Merl Jr., and Tony), and had also recorded on

Fantasy Records Fantasy Records is an American independent record label company founded by brothers Max and Sol Stanley Weiss in 1949. The early years of the company were dedicated to issuing recordings by jazz pianist Dave Brubeck, who was also one of its inves ...

Galaxy Records Galaxy Records was a record label founded in 1964 by Max and Sol Weiss in Berkeley, California. It was a division of Fantasy Records. History Galaxy Records was officially launched in 1964 in Berkeley, California. In 1967 Galaxy and Fantasy we ...

and Relix Records as well as the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia labels. He worked with the

on the theme music for the 1985 TV show ''

The New Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an anthology television series which was constructed from September 27, 1985 to April 15, 1989. It is the first of three revivals of Rod Serling's acclaimed 1959–64 television series, and like the original it featur ...

''. As musical director he completed 2 1/2 season of the show . He also worked on the TV series '' Nash Bridges'', and worked on several soundtracks for movies, including ''

Fritz the Cat ''Fritz the Cat'' is a comic strip created by Robert Crumb. Set in a "supercity" of anthropomorphic animals, it focused on Fritz, a feline con artist who frequently went on wild adventures that sometimes involved sexual escapades. Crumb began d ...

'' and ''

Steelyard Blues ''Steelyard Blues'' is a 1973 American comedy crime film directed by Alan Myerson and starring Donald Sutherland, Jane Fonda and Peter Boyle. Plot A group of misfits tries to find a happier life against the norms of society. Donald Sutherland pla ...

''. He was production co-ordinator for the

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for two years, and for the ''Grammy's Greatest Moments'' TV special. He also supplied the music for the computer animation video ''Headcandy: Sidney's Psychedelic Adventure''. He worked with several charitable organizations such as the

Seva Foundation Seva Foundation is an international non-profit health organization based in Berkeley, California, known for preventing and treating blindness and other visual impairments. It was co-founded in 1978 by Dr. Larry Brilliant, Ram Dass, Wavy Gravy, Nic ...

, the Rex Foundation, the

Rainforest Action Network Rainforest Action Network (RAN) is an environmental organization based in San Francisco, California, United States. The organization was founded by Randy "Hurricane" Hayes and Mike Roselle in 1985, and first gained national prominence with a gr ...

, and the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic, and headlined the Haight Street Music Fair for 24 consecutive years. He has been granted a Doctorate of Music by Unity College, in

Unity, Maine Unity is a town in Waldo County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,292 at the 2020 census. The town is the service center for the northern portion of Waldo County. Outside of Waldo county, it is best known as the home of the Maine Org ...

. In 2002, Saunders suffered from a stroke that paralyzed one side of his body and curtailed his musical career, and he died in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, on the morning of October 24, 2008, after fighting infections as a result of complications related to the stroke. He was survived by his two sons, Tony Saunders (bassist) and Merl Saunders Jr. (a former senior executive director of

National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous f ...

), and his daughter Susan Mora. In December 2008,

TMZ TMZ is a tabloid news website owned by Fox Corporation. It made its debut on November 8, 2005, originally as a collaboration between AOL and Telepictures, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. On September 13, 202 ...

reported the estate of Merl Saunders had filed a lawsuit against the estate of Jerry Garcia, disputing royalties for a 2004 live album. Saunders' estate claimed they were not aware of the album's release and that they had equal rights to the royalties. The case was later settled amicably.

Tributes

* On Saturday, February 14, 2009, a tribute to Merl Saunders' life and musical career was held at the

Great American Music Hall The Great American Music Hall is a concert hall in San Francisco, California. It is located on O'Farrell Street in the Tenderloin neighborhood on the same block as the Mitchell Brothers O'Farrell Theatre. It is known for its decorative balconies ...

. It featured actor/director

Max Gail Maxwell Trowbridge Gail Jr. (born April 5, 1943) is an American actor who has starred on stage, and in television and film roles. He is best known for his role as Detective Stan "Wojo" Wojciehowicz on the sitcom ''Barney Miller'' (1975–1982), ...

and

Wavy Gravy Hugh Nanton Romney Jr. (born May 15, 1936), known as Wavy Gravy, is an American entertainer and peace activism, activist best known for his role at Woodstock, as well as for his hippie persona and counterculture of the 1960s, countercultural be ...

as M.C.s, and many past musical collaborators including Grateful Dead guitarist

Bob Weir Robert Hall Weir ( ; né Parber, born October 16, 1947) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the group disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead ...

, Tony Saunders,

, Michael Hinton,

Melvin Seals Melvin Seals (born 1953 in San Francisco, California) is an American musician, best known as a longtime member of the Jerry Garcia Band. Early life and career Melvin Seals began playing piano at age eight and began his musical adventure playin ...

, Michael Warren, Larry Vann, Tonedog, Misa Malone, and

Bill Vitt Bill Vitt (May 6, 1943 - July 16, 2019, aged 76) was an American drummer and keyboardist. He worked extensively as a live performer and as a session musician. In the 1970s he played with Brewer & Shipley, Jerry Garcia, Merl Saunders, and the So ...

among others. * A re-launch of the Rainforest Band as a tribute to Merl Saunders took place at the 29th Starwood Festival on July 25, 2009, the site of their last performance, featuring his son Tony Saunders, Michael Hinton, Misa Malone and other members of the Rainforest Band and other Saunders’ projects. Also appearing were

Sikiru Adepoju Sikiru Adepoju (born 10 November 1950) is a Nigerian percussionist and recording artist, primarily in the genres of traditional African music and world music. He plays a variety of instruments and styles. Background A master of the talking d ...

talking drum The talking drum is an hourglass-shaped drum from West Africa, whose pitch can be regulated to mimic the tone and prosody of human speech. It has two drumheads connected by leather tension cords, which allow the player to change the pitc ...

and Douglas "Val" Serrant on

steel drum The steelpan (also known as a pan, steel drum, and sometimes, collectively with other musicians, as a steelband or steel orchestra) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. Descripti ...

and

djembe A djembe or jembe ( ; from Maninka language, Malinke ''jembe'' , N'Ko script, N'Ko: ) is a rope-tuned skin-covered goblet drum played with bare hands, originally from West Africa. According to the Bambara people in Mali, the name of the djembe ...

Discography

Main studio, live and compilation releases

* 1968 - ''Soul Grooving'' - Merl Saunders Trio and Big Band * 1972 - ''Heavy Turbulence'' - with

and

* 1973 - ''Fire Up'' - with Tom Fogerty and Jerry Garcia * 1973 - ''

Live at Keystone ''Live at Keystone'' is an album by Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, and Bill Vitt. It was recorded live at the Keystone in Berkeley, California on July 10 and 11, 1973, and released later that year as a two-disc vinyl LP. It was re-rel ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia,

& Bill Vitt * 1974 - ''Merl Saunders'' * 1976 - ''You Can Leave Your Hat On'' - with Aunt Monk * 1979 - ''Do I Move You'' * 1982 - ''San Francisco After Dark'' * 1987 - ''Meridien Dreams'' * 1988 - '' Keystone Encores'' - with Jerry Garcia, John Kahn & Bill Vitt * 1990 - ''Blues From The Rainforest: A Musical Suite'' - Featuring

, Eddie Moore, Shakti, Joanie Lane aka: Jamie, Special Guest: Jerry Garcia * 1991 - ''Save The Planet So We'll Have Someplace To Boogie'' - Merl Saunders & the Rainforest Band * 1992 - ''

Fire Up Plus ''Fire Up Plus'' is an album by Merl Saunders and Friends. It contains most of the songs from two LPs from the early 1970s — ''Heavy Turbulence'', and ''Fire Up''. It was released on CD by Fantasy Records on July 9, 1992. ''Fire Up Plus'' ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Tom Fogerty and Ron Tutt * 1993 - ''It's In The Air'' - Merl Saunders & the Rainforest Band * 1995 - ''Still Having Fun'' * 1997 - ''Keepers'' - Merl Saunders and Friends * 1998 - ''Fiesta Amazonica'' - Merl Saunders & the Rainforest Band * 1998 - ''The Twilight Zone (Vol. 1)'': Original Soundtrack from the TV series - Grateful Dead & Merl Saunders * 1998 - ''Merl Saunders Live With His Funky Friends'' * 2000 - ''Struggling Man'' - Merl Saunders & His Funky Friends * 2004 - ''Still Groovin Merls final tracks recorded. Special Guest Mavis Staples, Bonnie Raitt, David Grisman and Huey Lewis. Produced by Tony Saunders * 2004 - '' Pure Jerry: Keystone Berkeley, September 1, 1974'' - with Jerry Garcia * 2005 - '' Legion of Mary: The Jerry Garcia Collection, Vol. 1'' -

with Jerry Garcia * 2006 - ''Live On Tour'' - Merl Saunders & Melvin Seals * 2006 - '' Well-Matched: The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia'' * 2012 - '' Keystone Companions: The Complete 1973 Fantasy Recordings'' * 2013 - ''

Garcia Live Volume Three ''Garcia Live Volume Three'' is a three-CD album by Legion of Mary, a band led by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. It was recorded live on December 14 and 15, 1974, at the Paramount Theatre in Portland, Oregon and the EMU Ballroom in Eugene, Or ...

'' - Legion of Mary with Jerry Garcia * 2016 - ''

Garcia Live Volume Six ''Garcia Live Volume Six'' is a three-CD live album by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. It was recorded on July 5, 1973 at the Lion's Share in San Anselmo, California. It was released on June 24, 2016. From February 1971 to July 1975, Jerry Gar ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia * 2017 - ''

Garcia Live Volume Nine ''Garcia Live Volume Nine'' is a two-CD live album by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. It was recorded on August 11, 1974 at the Keystone in Berkeley, California. It was released on July 28, 2017. The musical lineup for this concert was Garcia ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia * 2019 - ''

Garcia Live Volume 12 ''Garcia Live Volume 12'' is a three-CD live album by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. It was recorded on January 23, 1973 at the Boarding House (nightclub), the Boarding House in San Francisco. It was released on December 20, 2019. At this conce ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia * 2020 - ''

Garcia Live Volume 15 ''Garcia Live Volume 15'' is a two-CD live album by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. It was recorded on May 21, 1971 at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco. It contains the complete concert from that date except for the encore, which was "Deal". ...

'' - with Jerry Garcia * 2022 - '' Garcia Live Volume 18'' - with Jerry Garcia

Solo, group leader or co-leader - singles

* 1968 - ''I Pity The Fool / Tighten Up'' (Galaxy 747) * 1969 - ''Soul Grooving / Up Up and Away'' (Galaxy 755) * 1970 - ''Iron Horse / Little Bit of Righteousness'' (Galaxy 776) - with Heavy Turbulence * 197? - ''Julia / Five More'' (Fantasy 620) * 197? - ''Save Mother Earth, Parts 1 & 2'' (Fantasy 668) * 1981 - ''San Francisco After Dark / Come To Me'' (Summertone 214)

Various artist compilations that include previously unreleased Merl Saunders music

* 1970 - ''Belafonte By Request'' - Harry Belafonte * 1972 - ''Black Girl'' (Soundtrack) - Various Artists * 1972 - ''Fritz The Cat'' (Soundtrack) - Various Artists * 1973 - ''Heavy Traffic'' (Soundtrack) - Various Artists * 1997 - ''Fire On The Mountain: Reggae Celebrates The Grateful Dead Volume 2'' - Various Artists * 1999 - ''The Third Annual Gathering on the Mountain'' - Various Artists * 2000 - ''Gathering On The Mountain: Live Part 2'' - Various Artists * 2000 - ''Gathering On The Mountain: Live Part 3'' - Various Artists * 2000 - ''Sharin' In The Groove'' - Various Artists * 2001 - ''Into The Music: Jam Band Vol. 1'' - Various Artists

Various artist compilations that include previously released Merl Saunders tracks

* 1992 - ''All Night Long They Play The Blues'' - Various Artists * 1995 - ''Bad, Bad Whiskey'' (The Galaxy Masters) - Various Artists * 1995 - ''Jazz Collective'' - Various Artists * 1995 - ''Sense Of Direction'' - Various Artists * 1996 - ''Televisions Greatest Hits Vol. 6: Remote Control'' - Various Artists * 1996 - ''Fritz The Cat/Heavy Traffic'' (Soundtrack) - Various Artists

Playing contributions to other major albums with others

* 1971 - '' Grateful Dead (Skull & Roses)'' - Grateful Dead * 1971 - ''Danny Cox'' - Danny Cox * 1972 - ''

'' - Tom Fogerty * 1972 - ''Steelyard Blues'' (Soundtrack) - Various Artists * 1972 - '' Give It Up'' - Bonnie Raitt * 1972 - ''

Europe '72 ''Europe '72'' is a live triple album by the Grateful Dead, released in November 1972. It covers the band's tour of Western Europe in April and May that year, and showcases live favourites, extended improvisations and several new songs including ...

'' - Grateful Dead * 1972 - ''

Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...

'' - Tom Fogerty * 1973 - '' Oooh So Good 'n Blues'' - Taj Mahal * 1973 - ''

Betty Davis Betty Davis (born Betty Gray Mabry; July 26, 1944 – February 9, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and model. She was known for her controversial sexually-oriented lyrics and performance style, and was the second wife of trumpeter Mile ...

'' -

* 1973 - ''Moses'' - Jerry Hahn * 1973 - ''Brenda Patterson'' -

Brenda Patterson Brenda Patterson is an American blues singer, based in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Patterson, at the time of her early albums, was married to the songwriter Domingo "Sam" Samudio, and was a backing singer for Ry Cooder and Bob Dylan. He ...

* 1974 - '' Garcia (Compliments of Garcia)'' * 1974 - '' Mo' Roots'' - Taj Mahal * 1975 - ''Is Having A Wonderful Time'' -

Geoff Muldaur Geoff Muldaur (born August 12, 1943) is an American active singer, guitarist and composer, who was a founding member of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band and a member of Paul Butterfield's Better Days. Career Having established a reputation with the Kwe ...

* 1975 - ''Cesar 830'' - Cesar Ascarrunz * 1976 - ''

David Soul David Soul (born David Richard Solberg; August 28, 1943) is an American-British actor and singer. He is known for his role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch" Hutchinson in the television series ''Starsky & Hutch'' from 1975 to 1979; Joshua Bolt on ' ...

'' -

* 1978 - '' Cats Under the Stars'' - Jerry Garcia Band * 1982 - '' Run for the Roses'' - Jerry Garcia * 1984 - ''Amagamalin Street'' - Robert Hunter * 1988 - ''Dinosaurs'' -

Dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

* 1988 - ''Nightfood'' - Brian Melvin * 1994 - ''Free Flight'' - Palomino Duck * 1996 - ''Life Is Like That'' - Jerry Miller * 1997 - ''DAVA'' - DAVA And The Peace Army * 1998 - ''Ticket To Fly'' - Mike Lawson (Recorded in '94, Released on Sumertone Records, Lawson was the only other artist on Merl's label) * 2000 - ''King Of The Highway'' -

Norton Buffalo Phillip Jackson (September 28, 1951 – October 30, 2009), best known as Norton Buffalo, was an American singer-songwriter, country and blues harmonica player, record producer, bandleader and recording artist who was a versatile proponent of ...

and The Knockouts * 2000 - '' New Train'' -

* 2000 - ''Hoy Yen Ass'n'' -

Tommy Guerrero Tommy Guerrero (born September 9, 1966) is an Indigenous American musician, composer, and professional skateboarder. Early life Guerrero was born in San Francisco, California. He is of Ohlone-native, Chilean, and Filipino descent from his fa ...

and Gadget * 2001 - ''

The Golden Road (1965-1973) ''The Golden Road'' may refer to: * '' The Golden Road (1965–1973)'', a CD box set by the Grateful Dead named after a song, "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)" * The Golden Road Music and Art Festival, an annual Grateful Dead festival in L ...

'' - Grateful Dead * 2001 - ''Gifts From The Dead'' - Various Artists * 2002 - ''Remedy'' -

Jim Weider James Jeffrey Weider (born December 21, 1951) is an American guitarist, best known for his work with the Band. He joined the reformed version of the Band in 1985 to replace original guitarist Robbie Robertson. Biography A native of Woodstock, N ...

Band * 2002 - ''Rare'' - Five Point Plan

Playing contributions to singles with others

* 1972 - ''Lady Of Fatima / Cast The First Stone'' - Tom Fogerty (Fantasy F680) * 1972 - ''Faces Places People / Forty Years'' - Tom Fogerty (Fantasy F691) * 1972 - ''Drive Again (Theme from Steelyard Blues) / My Bag (The Oysters)'' - Gravenites/Bloomfield and others * 1989 - ''Underground (EP)'' - Mike Lawson (Psychotronic Records)

Playing contributions to compilations

* 1975 - ''Sampler For Deadheads (#1 of 3)'' - Jerry Garcia / Robert Hunter * 1975 - ''Sampler For Deadheads (#2 of 3)'' - Old And In The Way / Keith And Donna * 1977 - ''What A Long Strange Trip It's Been'' - Grateful Dead * 1978 - ''Grateful Dead Sampler'' - Various Artists * 1978 - ''Arista AOR Sampler'' - Various Artists * 1985 - ''The Relix Sampler'' - Various Artists * 1998 - ''Tom Fogerty/Excalibur'' - Tom Fogerty * 1999 - ''The Very Best Of Tom Fogerty'' - Tom Fogerty * 2000 - ''Furthur Most'' - Various Artists * 2000 - ''The Best Of David Soul'' - David Soul * 2000 - ''Anti Love: The Best Of Betty Davis'' - Betty Davis

Non-performing references on albums

* 1975 - ''Keith and Donna Godchaux'' - Keith and Donna Godchaux * 1976 - ''For Dead Heads'' - Various Artists * 1998 - ''Blue Light Rain'' -

Jazz Is Dead Jazz Is Dead may refer to * Jazz Is Dead (band): a Grateful Dead instrumental cover band * Jazz Is Dead (record label): a Los Angeles record label and recording series {{Disambiguation ...

Filmography

Movies/DVDs

* ''Fritz the Cat'' (1972) * ''Black Girl'' (1972) * ''Heavy Traffic'' (1973) * ''Steelyard Blues'' (1973) * ''Headcandy: Sidney's Psychedelic Adventure'' (1997) Headcandy Productions * ''A Tribute to Jerry Garcia: Deadheads Festival Japan 1997'' (Japanese Laser Disc, Video Super Rock series VPLR-70650) (1997) * ''Blues from the Rainforest: A Musical Suite'' (1999) Mobile Fidelity * ''The Grateful Dead: The End of the Road - The Final Tour '95'' (2000) Monterey Video * ''Diggers'' (2006)

Television

* ''34th Annual Grammy Awards'' (TV Special) - Production Coordinator * ''35th Annual Grammy Awards'' (TV Special) - Production Coordinator * ''Grammy's Greatest Moments'' (TV Special) - Production Coordinator * ''Vietnam: A Television History'' (TV Series) - Music Performer (11 episodes, 1997) * ''The American Experience - Music Performer (6 episodes, 1997–2005) * ''

'' 1985 (TV Series)- Music Performer & Musical Director (composer: new title theme) (72 episodes, 1985–1989) * ''Nash Bridges'' (TV series) * ''Tales From The Crypt'' (TV series) * ''Baywatch'' (TV series) * ''Simon and Simon'' (TV series)

Interview

Digital Interviews: Merl Saunders

References

Other sources

Clark, John Jr. "Former Grateful Dead Keyboardist Merl Saunders Dies", ''Rolling Stone'', October 24, 2008
* Selvin, Joel
"Star Keyboardist Merl Saunders Dies", ''San Francisco Chronicle'', October 25, 2008Obituary by The Associated Press, published in the ''Chicago Tribune
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, Merl 1934 births 2008 deaths People from San Mateo, California 20th-century American keyboardists Infectious disease deaths in California Legion of Mary (band) members Reconstruction (band) members Rainforest Band members 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people The Dinosaurs members