Box of Rain pays tribute to the formative and most prolific period of the Grateful Dead, 1968-74, channeling the Haight-Ashbury sextet at the height of their songwriting and improvisational prowess. The hallmark of this era was Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, the original frontman and founding member of the Grateful Dead, whose inimitable vocals, stage presence, organ, percussion and harmonica was a gigantic part of the band’s initial appeal and a huge influence on their sound and that of the Bay Area scene as a whole.