Joel Selvin Chronicle Staff Writer Say goodbye to the Grateful Dead. The band announced yesterday that in the wake of guitaristJerry Garcia's death, it will break up after playing together for 30 years. "After four months of heartfelt consideration, the remaining members of the band met yesterday and came to the conclusion that the 'long, strange trip' of the uniquely wonderful beast known as the Grateful Dead is over," band members said in a statement. "The band came to the realization that you can't replace the irreplaceable," said band manager Cameron Sears. "Some will continue in music. Some will not, for the time being atleast. It's a time of transition for them." "I think we've done it about as good as it can be done," said drummer Mickey Hart. "This thing was a conversation,a very intimate conversation between , us the band and the audience. It's something you can't really manufacture. It's not something you sign up for or sign out of. Think about it. We went though presidencies. Vietnam. Thirty years. It was never planned. It was spontaneous, with a giant helping of magic. It was a great ride." Other band members were unavailable for comment yesterday. People close to the band claim that the reluctance of the band's other drummer, Bill Kreutzmann, to take the stage again was an insurmountable stumbling block. Kreutzmann went into seclusion at his Mendocino home shortly after Garcia's funeral and the subse- quent cancellation of the Dead's fall tour. "Bill's gone through a long period of contemplation, and he has decided he wants to pursue some other things," Sears said. A five hour meeting at the band's San Rafael office Thursday was the first opportunity for the full group to consider its future. "Everybody sort of knew inside," Hart said. "Of course, it was hard. But everybody had a feeling. It just wasn't there. We put it to pasture, righteously, as it should be. We went out looking good." "It's a sad day," band spokesman Dennis McNally said. "But, you know, they've made their decision. All I can say . . . as a follow up, I must emphasize, is the individual remaining members of the band will continue to express themselves musically. And the Grateful Dead Productions, the business end, will support those efforts." Composed of various Palo Alto area folk and bluegrass groups, the band started performing in spring 1965 as the Warlocks, changing its name to the Grateful Dead that December. As the house band at Ken Kesey's fabled Acid Tests, the Dead served as the musical entertainment for the dawning of the psychedelic years. In one of the most illustrious careers in rock music history, the band performed at such historic 1960s rock events as the Monterey Pop Festival and Woodstock. The band was also at Altamont, the Rolling Stones' free concert where the Dead's appearance was canceled after fans and security- members of the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang-clashed, and one person was killed. The Dead joined the Allman Brothers and The Band for a show at Watkins Glen, N.Y. in 1970, before a crowd of more than 650,000 -the largest single audience recorded at a musical event. In 1978, the Dead traveled to Egypt to perform at the base of the Great Pyramids. Over the past 10 years, the band has consistently been among the top concert attractions in the music industry, grossing more than $50 million on annual tours. Throngs of itinerant "Deadheads" followed the band from town to town, often causing problems in host cities. Last summer, police and fans rioted outside an Indianapolis concert, only days before the band played its final show July 9 at Soldier Field in Chicago. The band managed to endure the death of two keyboard players in its 30 year history-Ron (Pigpen) McKernan and Brent Mydland-but with Garcia's death, the Dead faced a future without the person most associated with the group. Rumors flew concerning possible replacements for Garcia - from Neil Young to Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits-but the band could not even get together to consider the question until Thursday. Within weeks of Garcia's death, many Dead staff members received severance notices effective at the end of the year. Many of the employees have worked for the band for more than 20 years. "That's a very difficult process to go through," said manager Sears. "The band has long, enduring relationships with just about everyone who's worked with them." Hart admitted that the band just didn't have the desire to go on without Garcia. "It didn't have the magic that was at the core," he said. "That was one of the things that we depended on. I spent my whole adult life in this band, and it will be following me forever." Even Sears could not bring himself to bring the curtain down once and for all. "What we're saying today is that, based on the information we have, the Grateful Dead will not be performing together again," he said. "As to what the future holds, I cannot say. But as of today, that is the position."