The Grateful Dead consisted of: Jerry Garcia (vocals, guitar; 1965-1995), Bob Weir (guitar, vocals; 1965-1995), Phil Lesh (bass, vocals; 1965-1995), Bill Kreutzmann (drums, 1965-1995), Mickey Hart (drums; 1965-1970, 1974-1995), Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (keyboards, organ, harmonica, vocals; 1965-1972), Tom Constanten (piano; 1968-1970), Keith Godchaux (keyboards; 1971-1979), Donna Jean Godchaux (vocals; 1971-1979), Brent Mydland (keyboards, vocals; 1979-1990), Bruce Hornsby (keyboards; 1990-1992) and Vince Welnick (keyboards; 1990-1995). All of these members, with the exception of Hornsby (who was their induction presenter), were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Lyricist Robert Hunter - who wrote many of the band's songs - is often considered to be an unofficial member of the band and was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the rest of the band.

Some fans followed them from concert to concert for years. These "Deadheads" were renowned for their dedication to the band's music. Many followers referred to the band simply as The Dead.

The Grateful Dead, known then as the Warlocks, became the de facto resident band of Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters, with the early sound heavily influenced by Kesey's LSD-soaked Acid Tests. Their musical influences varied widely with input from the psychedelic music of the era, combined with blues, jazz, rock and roll, and bluegrass. These various influences were distilled into a diverse and psychedelic whole that made the Grateful Dead "the pioneering Godfathers of the jam band world."

One of the most notable things about the existence of the Grateful Dead is the extent to which they were together as a band. They were a complete band for thirty years only being stopped by the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995. Their recorded output, with the vast number of concerts available as downloads as well as CDs etc is unmatched by any other band.

The music of the Grateful Dead lives on through many tribute bands and solo projects of the rest of the band. The reconciliation of the Dead's music by its members most notably thrives today in Phil Lesh and Friends and Ratdog (Bob Weir solo) although the remaining members did still perform together for a while as The Other Ones and later on simply as The Dead. It was under the former moniker that the band, consisting of former Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzman and Mickey Hart as well as Warren Haynes (Govt Mule) and Jeff Chimenti (Ratdog), hit the road in the spring of 2009 for what might have been the last hurrah for the "core-four".