Owsley was, in fact, the soundman for the
Dead for several years and designed their famous
Steal Your Face skullfuck logo.
Bear's Choice is so named because he recorded the concerts and selected the songs.
Owsley also supplied
Ken Kesey with
LSD for his
Acid Tests, which is where he met
the Dead. He was eventually
busted and served some time. He also started a sound company called
Alembic that produced
speakers and sound equipment for the Dead, including their famous
70s Wall of Sound rig.
He now lives in
Australia, where he does bronze casting and various other things.
http://www.thebear.org/ bear@thebear.org
PS Have you ever seen the lyrics to Kid Charlemagne?
Check them out. They say ( you know who they are) the lyrics are been inspired by the Bear!