GDQL

What is GDQL?

GDQL (Grateful Dead Query Language) is a query language for searching Grateful Dead setlists, shows, songs, and segues across the band’s entire 30-year touring history. Ask questions like “every show where Scarlet went into Fire,” “the last time they played St. Stephen,” or “random show from the Brent era” — get answers in milliseconds.

It ships as a single binary with the full show database baked in: 2,014 concerts, 536 songs, and 37,180 performances from 1965 to 1995. Run it from the terminal, embed it in your app, or try it in the browser.

Three things to try

SHOWS FROM 77-79 WHERE "Scarlet Begonias" > "Fire on the Mountain";

COUNT "Dark Star" FROM BRENT_ERA;

RANDOM SHOW FROM EUROPE72;

Where to go next

• Getting Started — install the CLI in under a minute
• Cookbook — recipes for every question a Deadhead might ask
• Language reference — every keyword, clause, and operator
• Sandbox — run queries in your browser, no install required

At a glance

• Keywords are case-insensitive (SHOWS = shows)
• Song names use double quotes ("Dark Star")
• Comments start with --
• Statements end with ; (optional, required between multiple)
• Fuzzy matching forgives spelling and punctuation (Truckin finds Truckin')