In 1978, at age 16, Jay Blakesberg attended his first Grateful Dead concert, snapping photographs with his new 35-mm. SLR camera. A passion bloomed and he decided to leave his hometown of Elizabeth, New Jersey, to follow the band west, joining the Deadheads in their pilgrimage. His journey led him to San Francisco, where he began photographing the Bay Area music scene of the 1980s and 90s. Shooting exclusively on film, Blakesberg captured performances of the era’s major rock stars, from the Rolling Stones at the Oakland Coliseum to Beck at Golden Gate Park. A new exhibition features 200 of those electrifying photographs, taken between 1978 and 2008. —Paulina Prosnitz