16 Facts About Merl Saunders

Merl Saunders was an American multi-genre musician who played piano and keyboards, favoring the Hammond B-3 console organ.

Merl Saunders served in the US Air Force from 1953 to 1957.

Merl Saunders worked as musical director of the Billy Williams Revue and served in a similar capacity in Oscar Brown Jr.

Merl Saunders gained notice in the 1970s when he began collaborating with Jerry Garcia, with whom he had begun playing in 1971 at a small Fillmore Street nightclub called The Matrix.

Merl Saunders took the lead in reintroducing Jerry Garcia to his guitar, after Garcia suffered a diabetic coma in the summer of 1986.

Merl Saunders continued to perform with the Rainforest Band for the next ten years.

Merl Saunders recorded with the Dinosaurs, a "supergroup" of first-generation Bay Area rock musicians.

Merl Saunders worked with the Grateful Dead on the theme music for the 1985 TV show The Twilight Zone.

Merl Saunders worked on the TV series Nash Bridges, and worked on several soundtracks for movies, including Fritz the Cat and Steelyard Blues.

Merl Saunders was production co-ordinator for the Grammy Awards for two years, and for the Grammy's Greatest Moments TV special.

Merl Saunders supplied the music for the computer animation video Headcandy: Sidney's Psychedelic Adventure.

Merl Saunders worked with several charitable organizations such as the Seva Foundation, the Rex Foundation, the Rainforest Action Network, and the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic, and headlined the Haight Street Music Fair for 24 consecutive years.

Merl Saunders has been granted a Doctorate of Music by Unity College, in Unity, Maine.

Merl Saunders was survived by his two sons, Tony Saunders and Merl Saunders Jr.

In December 2008, TMZ reported the estate of Merl Saunders had filed a lawsuit against the estate of Jerry Garcia, disputing royalties for a 2004 live album.

Merl Saunders' estate claimed they were not aware of the album's release and that they had equal rights to the royalties.