Mickey Hart Biography

Legendary American drummer Mickey Hart was born in 1943 in Brooklyn. Although today best known as one of the two key drummers for the Grateful Dead, long before his rise to prominence Hart grew up on Long Island, where as a young man he began studying percussion at school. Mickey was also largely influenced by his father, who owned an operated a musical instrument outlet in California, and who encouraged his son to pursue music as a career.

Mickey Hart joined the Grateful Dead in 1967 and performed with the band through 1970, after which time he left temporarily. After returning in 1974, Hart remained with the band through until they officially dissolved in the mid 1990’s. Throughout his career, Hart has not only performed alongside the Dead, but has also worked as a solo artist, in collaboration with other musicians, and as an author of multiple books. His solo project Planet Drum, released in 1991, was a number one “world music” hit and earned Hart his first Grammy Award for Best World Music Album. In 2008, Hart launched the Mickey Hart Band tour, featuring additional band members Walfredo Reyes, Jr., Sikiru Adepoju, Kyle Hollingsworth, and George Porter. The band has undergone a number of different incarnations with a revolving lineup, but continues to perform today.

Today, Mickey Hart continues to be one of America’s most influential percussionists and an essential force in his work with archivists at preservation centers such as the Library of Congress and Smithsonian Institution. Hart was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the members of the Grateful Dead in 1974. In 2015, Mickey Hart began touring with Dead & Company, the band consisting of former Dead members Bill Kreutzmann and Bob Weir, and including musicians Jeff Chimenti, Oteil Burbridge, and John Mayer.