The Grateful Dead may have stopped touring years ago, but the legendary band just notched a world record to prove that its music refuses to fade away. The band now holds Guinness honors for the most Top 40 albums charted on the US Billboard 200—66 in all—thanks to the release of its latest CD set, Dave's Picks Vol. 56, which debuted at No. 25 on the chart. The Dead tied Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley for the record of 59 in November 2023, then broke it the following February, continuing to set a new mark with each subsequent Dave's Picks release.
The band's enduring popularity has been fueled by an ongoing stream of archival releases, including the new four-disc set featuring performances from London's Rainbow Theatre in 1981. The 25,000 numbered copies of the limited edition set have sold out, as has a 60th-anniversary 60-disc (!) set with 450 live tracks, most previously unreleased, and a $600 price tag. Digital versions and other collections remain available for die-hard fans. The Guinness award comes amid a series of accolades for the Dead, including being named 2024 Kennedy Center Honorees and the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year.
In an Instagram post, the Dead's archivist, David Lemieux, is quoted as attributing this Guinness honor to "the dedication, passion, and loyalty of Dead Heads everywhere." Continuing the Dead devotion, the San Francisco Chronicle reports that on Thursday, the California city of San Jose debuted a brass plaque marking the spot where the band first officially performed using the Grateful Dead moniker.
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