Grateful Dead x Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Sneakers

The Blot has been a huge Grateful Dead fan since Jr. High, so I was pretty excited when I heard Converse, as part of their 100th Anniversary Connectivity ad campaign, was releasing a new line of Grateful Dead Chuck Taylors. Music is a huge theme of Converse’s 100th Anniversary, and the company is wisely playing up the popularity of its Chuck Taylor All Stars within the culture of rock & roll.



The Grateful Dead Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers come in three styles, Steal Your Face, Skull and Roses, and Ice Cream Boy (by Stanley Mouse for the cover of the Grateful Dead album Europe ’72). The Grateful Dead All Stars are available now at Converse.com for $49.99 (the white Steal Your Face Chucks are $69.99).


Along with the Grateful Dead All Stars and the previously released The Ramones Chuck Taylors, Converse is also releasing a line of Kurt Cobain and The Doors inspired sneakers. So be on the look out for those shoes in the near future.

Converse’s New Connectivity Advertising Campaign

Converse announced this week that it “will commemorate its centennial year as one of the world’s most coveted, iconic brands with the global launch of a new advertising campaign entitled Connectivity.” (link) The first image from this new Connectivity campaign also hit the web this week and I must say it’s a great start to this new marketing campaign. The idea behind Converse’s Connectivity ad campaign is to celebrate “100 years of disrupting the status quo and features legendary icons from the worlds of music, art, sports and fashion.” (link) The Blot does love the Chuck Taylor All Star look and this first Connectivity picture makes me love it even more. It’s just unfortunate how hard it is for me to find the classic canvas sneakers in my size.


Wow, two sneaker posts in one week. But, I couldn't resist because I think the Connectivity campaign sounds a like pretty sweet idea. I’m actually excited to see what Converse and its parent company Nike have in store for us this year as they celebrate Converse’s 100th anniversary. Those Nike marketing guys never cease to amaze me with their creativity and vision.

According to the Business Wire article the global advertising campaign will feature:

the ultimate 20th Century rebel, James Dean; gonzo journalist, Hunter S. Thompson; and Sex Pistols bassist and original punk idol, Sid Vicious. These cultural heroes from the past are shown ‘connecting’ with today’s influencers including female rocker, Joan Jett; eclectic urban music star, M.I.A; Green Day’s infamous Grammy award winning front man, Billie Joe Armstrong; Grammy award winning hip hop star and actor, Common; basketball player and Converse athlete Dwyane Wade; and lead singer of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, Karen O. Additional regional icons include Ian Curtis (UK), Jefferson Hack (UK), Carlos Diez Diez (Spain), Jane Birkin (France), Nina Hagen (Germany), Kim, Jung Man (Korea), Cui Jian (China), Darren Cordeux (Australia), Jose Fernando Emilio (Mexico) and Sandro (Argentina). (link)

For a closer look at the above picture here it is again split into thirds and zoomed in: