And knowing their impact is timeless, it only made sense to create a collection for all ages. “The visual and musical symbols that represent the Grateful Dead stand apart from every other band, and that’s what we’re hoping to achieve with these new patterns and colorways in classic Sanuk styles. “We're pumped to release a second collection as a tribute to one of the most celebrated rock bands of all time,” said Seth Pulford, Director of Marketing at Sanuk. The famously spirited Grateful Dead dancing bear icons are the stars of the show, rocking their high-stepping march prominently on all styles. An option for kids also makes its way to the stage with the Lil’ Walker style joining the lineup. This next round of the collaboration was designed for all ages and features new patterns in the popular Yoga Sling 2, Furreal Classic flip flop, Donna and Vagabond Sidewalk Surfer styles, building off the inaugural collection which made its debut in April 2019. Turn on, tune in and chill out with the latest collection of comfy, psychedelic kicks launching February 4 exclusively on and will be hitting retail stores beginning April 1. From there, Deadheads began creating their own merchandise featuring the dancing bears including bootleg stickers and shirts to name a few, and the symbol was forevermore associated with the Dead.Sanuk, a division of Deckers Brands, today announced the next iteration of its collaboration with iconic rock band, Grateful Dead, powered by Warner Music Artist Services. Because the bears were featured on the album art as well as within the social sphere of communal drug use at the band’s live performances, they quickly became a symbol deeply entwined with the culture of listening to the Grateful Dead. What does this have to do with the dancing bears you ask?Īctually a lot! Following the release of the Dead’s album, the bears motif began appearing on Stanley’s LSD blotter art, which also just so happened to be widely circulated at most Grateful Dead concerts at the time. In addition to being the band’s sound engineer, Owsley Stanley was also one of the world’s first private LSD manufacturers. Dancing Bear sælger også: Video, stickers, plakater og meget mere. The Bears originally appeared on the back cover of the Grateful Dead’s Bear’s Choice album launching the design into the public eye, but this album circulation only accounted for a portion of the rapid fame attributed to the bears. Dancing Bear er den eneste postordre-butik i Europa der sælger alt i Grateful Dead musik, video og merchandise. The actual principal design for the style of bear we now commonly associate with the Grateful Dead was born from a 36-point lead type slug featuring a generic bear print that Thomas found and used as his primary artistic inspiration. There is also speculation that the moniker “Dancing Bear” was attributed to Stanley in reference to his peculiar choice of dance moves at concerts while high on acid.
Immersive for fans and collectors, the toy features iconic imagery that pays homage to the legendary band, celebrating their legacy in an interactive, tangible form. The choice to create a symbol using bears as the focal point stems from Owsley Stanley’s nickname “Bear” given to him by childhood friends as a result of his excessive chest hair. Dive into the world of The Grateful Dead with SHASHIBO’s Grateful Dead Dancing Bears edition.
In addition to these ubiquitous graphics, Thomas also designed the art for the The Dead’s Steal Your Face and Live Dead as well as the logo for Alembic, an American manufacturer of high-end electric guitars, basses and preamps started by Owsley Stanley, the Grateful Dead’s sound engineer. Thomas actually has a long history tied with The Dead having co-designed the band’s iconic “Lightning Bolt” logo with Owsley Stanley in 1969 as a means of keeping track of the band’s equipment while on tour. The dancing bear design was originally created by artist and renaissance man Bob Thomas for use on the back of the Grateful Dead’s 1973 album The History of the Grateful Dead, Volume 1 (Bear’s Choice). A Design Born from Artistic Collaboration