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Christi and Roger Read's ticket stub from the Grateful Dead's 1995 show in Birmingham, Ala. (Contributed photo)

Story by Luisa Sanchez

In the 30 years that they have been a couple, Christi and Roger Read have been to more than 85 Grateful Dead shows together.



The duo owns a scrapbook collection of Grateful Dead ticket stubs, set lists, doodles and shirts, including a numbered print by late band member Jerry Garcia that they keep in their Crestline home.





Christi and Roger Read's photo of the Grateful Dead. (Contributed photo)

The married couple has seen the band perform across the United States in cities such as San Francisco and Chicago. They are hoping to return to Chicago this July to witness what is believed to be the last time the four remaining original members will play together, when the band reunites at Soldier Field for a series of shows called "Fare Thee Well: Celebrating 50 Years of Grateful Dead."

Both Christi, 53, and Roger, 51, were born and raised in Birmingham. One of the Reads' most memorable experiences following the Grateful Dead was when the couple missed five flights trying to get home from California after the San Francisco shows of 1993.

A backstage pass from Christi and Roger Read's collection. (Contributed photo)

"The stories we have from Grateful Dead concerts still make us laugh," Christi said. "One time we ordered our tickets with very specific instructions to get front row reserved seating at the Freedom Hall in Kentucky and felt honored to be spit on by guitarist Bob Weir as he was singing."

According to the Reads, no two concerts were ever alike and each of them had something different about it, which was what made them attractive for fans.

"We usually got at least 30 to 50 different songs in a three night run and everyone in the audience was always dancing through the entire concerts," Roger said. "The hallways were always filled with people just turning in circles wildly and they had us dancing like puppets on a string."

Regarding the Grateful Dead's concerts in Birmingham in April 1995 at the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center, the Reads agreed that hometown shows are always outstanding and distinctive from others.

"Birmingham was the last time we saw Jerry Garcia alive, so that makes it extra special," Christi said. "At home, I feel more like they are playing for me."

Read more Grateful Dead Lost stories here.