Grateful Dead's Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay On Her Alabama Roots

About Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay

Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay got her start as a session singer when she was just a teenager in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and her voice appeared on iconic hits by Percy Sledge, Elvis Presley, Neil Diamond, and others. Eventually, she moved to California in pursuit of adventure, and that’s what she found when she met Jerry Garcia and joined the Grateful Dead.

What Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay Talks About On This Episode

• Hometown of Florence, Alabama
• Influence of music in her life
• Getting to know Elvis Presley
• Moving to California
• Returning to her hometown of Alabama
• Joining and playing with the Grateful Dead
• Her grandmother's famous biscuits
• Love for fried okra
• Spending time in Muscle Shoals

Quotes From Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay

"It's Southern music that has so influenced so much of the music that we hear all the time and have heard for decades and decades and decades. And so, I related to so much of it that nothing really took me by surprise. I'm going to put it like that. I was raised in the South and I knew the language and I knew the music." - Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay

About Biscuits & Jam

In the South, talking about food is personal. It's a way of sharing your history, your family, your culture, and yourself. Each week Sid Evans, editor in chief of Southern Living, sits down with celebrity musicians to hear stories of how they grew up, what inspired them, and how they've been shaped by Southern culture. Sid takes us back to some of their most cherished memories and traditions, the family meals they still think about, and their favorite places to eat on the road. Download and listen to this episode of Biscuits & Jam with Donna Jean Godchaux-Mackay on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or everywhere podcasts are available.

Editor’s Note: Please be mindful that this transcript does not go through our standard editorial process and may contain inaccuracies and grammatical errors