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Jay Strell of Brooklyn, New York, questions our assertion, during our April 20 appearance on WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show, that Deadheads can't be Rock Snobs. We argued that A) jam bands aren't really Snobberific; and B) Snobs are more caffeinated of mien than blissed out. Jay says we have something to learn from him.

"The key to being a Snob about the Grateful Dead," he says, "is to embrace the music and not the fans. With the Dead, it's all about the early albums, which have clear lineage to 'American roots music.' In fact, pretty much everything Pigpen played on--all the early albums, up to about Live '72--could be the domain of Rock Snobs."

Might very well be the case, Jay! And this might explain why Rock Snob Hall of Fame member Elvis Costello, when he grew out his hair and beard during his Mighty Like a Rose phase, joined the similarly hirsute Jerry Garcia on the cover of Musician in 1991, and inside the magazine espoused his longtime admiration of the Dead.