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Llyr posted:Recent Dead fan here. I've listened to their studio albums from Workingman's Dead to Blues For Allah and now I want to try their live stuff. I'm finding it daunting though. I know Europe '72 is recommended but I prefer the songs off Allah & Flood. Also, which Europe album do I get? The one that is a mix of the tour or one of the complete shows? Since I love the 73-75 materiel, any live show recommendations? I made an effort post about Europe '72 a while ago: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3564090&pagenumber=5&perpage=40#post427281283 The compilation albums are a good introduction, but if you want to get into complete shows (which you should), I'd recommend April 8th or May 26th.
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May 4, 2015 02:32
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I found Billy's book at the library today. On a quick flip-through, it seems pretty well written, and has a lot more detail than other Dead books I've read.
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May 16, 2015 04:10
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I'm really enjoying Deal so far. After the introduction, the co-author pretty much gets out of the way and lets Billy ramble about whatever, so reading the book is kind of like hanging out and listening to him tell stories. The phrase "a lot of acid" pops up literally dozens of times.
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May 18, 2015 02:05
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LordPants posted:Let me guess the words "we never really did" are not the ones immediately preceding? Anyone who hung around with Owsley got really, really, really high. Even if they didn't want to. Like at the Playboy After Dark taping, where he decided to dose the coffee machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsL3X6ARgVI Billy says that Hefner couldn't put two words together when he tried to talk to them after the show.
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May 25, 2015 06:06
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Billy has some interesting insights into the songwriting process in his book. In a nutshell: -Phil's songs were the most complex and difficult to figure out, but Billy feels like there's too much theory and not enough swing in many of them. -Bobby wrote some good songs, but a lot of clunkers too. Billy points to "Lost Sailor" as one of his least favorites. -Brent's songs were fun to play, but Billy doesn't think they were really Dead tunes. -Jerry's songs were always the best. He would have all the fundamental grooves worked out before he brought anything to rehearsal, and Billy would know what he needed to play right away. He says playing Jerry's songs was like being conducted by the music itself.
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May 29, 2015 02:39
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BigFactory posted:Black Throated Wind is my favorite Bobby song I think. It's gotta be Playing In The Band, but I like Black-Throated Wind too. There are some great versions of BTW and Looks Like Rain from 1972. Here's another song that Billy hates: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZDMexcPm-g
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May 29, 2015 21:05
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Anyone have a report from last night's show?
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Jul 4, 2015 23:05
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I just finished reading Peter Richardson's "No Simple Highway: A Cultural History Of The Grateful Dead." It brings together a lot of great information from a multitude of sources, and is generally well-written and enjoyable to read. I got through the whole thing in only a couple sittings. However, I still don't feel like I've read the definitive Grateful Dead book. Richardson focuses on the broader historical context of the Dead, and while this is interesting stuff, I'd like to read more about the inner workings of the band: the politics, the songwriting process, and above all, the music. Can anyone recommend a Dead book like that?
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Aug 4, 2015 02:10
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There seem to be some topics that no Dead member wants to address. Billy's book, "Deal," is probably the most unvarnished look at the band's inner workings, but even he won't talk about the power struggles between the band and crew. Phil's book is frustrating for similar reasons. I recall him breezing through the entirety of '72-'74 in like two paragraphs.
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Aug 4, 2015 03:47
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The Dead have been failing to live up to grandiose promises since 1965. It's what they do.
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Aug 28, 2015 22:15
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I've been slacking, but an October '72 post is coming very soon.
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Oct 15, 2015 22:33
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 1972: a very good year. Previously in this thread, I've examined the Dead's shows in April/May, June/July, August, and September. Now, let's have a look at October. Fall 1972 was when the Dead really started to mix up their big jams, experimenting with all kinds of different combinations and transitions. In October, they liked to start jams with Truckin' before branching off in all sorts of directions: 10/02: Truckin'-> jam-> drums-> jam-> Morning Dew 10/19: Truckin'-> drums-> The Other One-> He's Gone-> The Other One 10/26: Truckin'-> Dark Star-> Sugar Magnolia 10/27: Truckin'-> The Other One-> Mississippi Half-Step-> Morning Dew Those combos all look tasty, but as with any Dead month, there are a few excellent shows from October 1972 that stand above the rest, featuring the best sound, performance, and vibes. They are, in chronological order: October 2, 1972 - Springfield, MA This show has one of my favorite versions of Bird Song, really good renditions of Cumberland Blues and Uncle John's Band, and the aforementioned Truckin'-> Morning Dew jam. This sequence isn't the "best" improvisation from this period, but is very interesting in its own right, since it showcases the development of some ideas that would later find homes in the 1973-74 period. October 18, 1972 - St. Louis, MO This is definitely the best show from October. The sound comes together after about 5-6 songs, and the whole second set is an outstanding performance, culminating in the first Playing sandwich: Playing In The Band-> drums-> Dark Star-> Morning Dew-> Playing In The Band October 28, 1972 - Cleveland, OH Just a very well played show overall, with nice versions of classics like China->Rider and He's Gone, and a pretty good Dark Star-> Sugar Magnolia. There are also notable versions of Playing In The Band on October 17 and October 26. Sadly, the Truckin' from the 27th has a cut about 3 minutes in, and there's another extremely unfortunate cut in the Sugar Mag coming out of Dark Star on the 28th. Even more unfortunate is the lack of good soundboard sources for the 21st, 23rd, 24th and 30th, especially the 24th and 30th, which seem to have excellent performances, but only exist as poor audience recordings.
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Nov 18, 2015 06:29
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Septic Knothead posted:i just want to say i enjoy your effort posts. I have been on a download kick lately and will be listening to 10/2/72 tonight. Have you done a '74 overview? My favorite era is Europe '72 but I'll take any '72 '73' 74. This is not a high traffic thread, but I always watch for your posts. Thanks, I'm glad someone reads them. 72-74 is my favorite Dead era as well, and I hope to eventually listen to every show from this period. I'll definitely do a '74 post if I make it that far. Up next, I'll either do November '72, or jump back in time and cover January-March. I have a hankering for some Pigpen, so the latter option will probably win out. LordPants posted:Sorry  I'm not going to do 1976-79, so feel free to post about those years too. Juaguocio fucked around with this message at 04:37 on Nov 20, 2015 |
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Nov 20, 2015 03:06
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I recognize like 5 of those artists, but Bela Fleck doing "Help On The Way" sounds pretty cool. That reminds me- I was listening to Burning Spear's album Jah Kingdom, and while it's mostly bad early 90s reggae, there's an interesting cover of "Estimated Prophet": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOixoqg-1ZI
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Mar 18, 2016 04:19
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LordPants posted:https://archive.org/stream/TheGratefulDeadFBI/The%20Grateful%20Dead%2001 This is great stuff. I just watched an excellent Independent Lens documentary on the Black Panthers, so I'm intrigued to see their name in connection with the Dead. "It would appear that this is a rock group of some sort." I'll make a March 1972 post soon. We've been blessed with Charlie Miller SBD sources for all the missing dates of the Academy Of Music run, so there are a ton of great tunes to choose from.
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Mar 30, 2016 05:27
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LordPants posted:I have or had (don't know where it is) that Dicks Pick from that run and it was gorgeous. As nice as that Pick is, it doesn't even come close to capturing the best music from the Academy run. What music, you ask? Well, I guess it's time for a long overdue March 1972 post:  Before we get to that, though, I should mention the first show of 1972, January 2 at the Winterland. There was a raging New Year's Eve show two nights before, so this evening is somewhat lacking in energy, and the sound is not too great. There is, however, one sequence that's absolutely worth listening to, that being the Good Lovin'->China Cat->Good Lovin' 2nd set opener. I can't think of another show where they tried this particular combo, and the way they seem to spontaneously stumble into the transition is really neat. There were no more shows until March 5, again at Winterland. This show is pretty bad by 1972 standards. The set is short, the performance is lackluster, and the existing recordings are poor, even with a C. Miller cleanup. The one saving grace is a very nice version of "You Win Again," and also a pretty good "Casey Jones." Then we have the famous run of 7 shows at the Academy of Music (later the Palladium) in NYC. Intended to finance the upcoming Europe tour, these shows also provided the Dead a chance to practice the material they would be bringing across the pond. Fans of Europe '72 should enjoy the Academy shows a lot, since they both feature many of the same songs, like "Playing In The Band," "Cumberland Blues," and "Looks Like Rain," to name a few. The sound quality of the shows varies from good to excellent, and the performances are consistent enough that it's worth listening to every show if you have the inclination. March 21 has a decent Truckin'->O1 jam, but the highlights for me are the "Cumberland" and NFA->GDTRFB->Saturday Night finisher. March 22 features a pretty spectacular Sugar Mag->Caution->Uncle John's. The Caution jam gets far out. March 23 is one of the top Academy shows. The only Dark Star of the run makes its appearance here, and the whole show is very well performed. March 25 is a very weird show. This is the one featured in the above poster: a party, sponsored by the Hell's Angels, featuring the Dead and Bo Diddley. Bo plays a set with the Dead to start things off, and while they do a decent job of a few of his songs, it's pretty much a mess. I don't know if they didn't rehearse enough, or if some of the players had been having a bit too much fun beforehand, but whatever the reason, they're way off. It's worth listening to as a curiosity, but not really from a musical standpoint. As if that wasn't strange enough, the 2nd set opens with the only "How Sweet It Is" ever, and features some other interesting rarities, like a very nice "Smokestack Lightning." To top it all off, they rip a 22 minute Lovelight, with some great jams and Pig raps. March 26 is the best show of the run. Best sound, best performance top to bottom. The monster Truckin'->O1->Uncle->O1->Wharf Rat jam is fantastic stuff. March 27 is another extremely solid show. "Playing" and "Good Lovin" are great on both the 26th and 27th, and there's a lot of funny banter and crowd interaction. March 28 is the show featured on Dick's Picks 30, along with the Playing from the 27th and a few Bo Diddley tunes from the 25th. It's a good show, but the 23rd, 26th, and 27th are all better, so I dunno why it was chosen to be the one on the album. Overall, an excellent set of shows, well worth your time. Next up, November. Probably. Eventually.
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May 20, 2016 09:13
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LordPants posted:Jerry has the pedal steel with him, right? There is some burning slide work on some sappy bobby ballads iirc Yeah, it gets a workout on "Looks Like Rain," which is indeed a very silly song. It can, however, sound really cool when they nail it, as they do on the 26th.
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May 20, 2016 22:34
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4 RING SHRIMP posted:Saw a Let Trey Sing shirt the other day and haven't listened to anything but the Dead since. Someone just give me a few random dates they love. God I loving love summer I love me some summer Dead. Hollywood Bowl, June 17, 1972 PNE Coliseum, June 22, 1973 Freedom Hall, June 18, 1974 (officially released as Road Trips Vol 2. #3)
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Jun 28, 2016 06:29
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4 RING SHRIMP posted:Hell yeah \m/ gonna just listen to these today!! Commute already off to a good start jamming to 6/18/74 (road trips Bol 2 #3 6/18/74 is a monster show. I especially love the Eyes->China Doll. Eyes->Big River from 6/16 is another delicious combo.
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Jun 29, 2016 06:02
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This thread needs reviving, and with the release of Dave's Picks 21, there's no better time to revisit April 2, 1973. I love that Here Comes Sunshine-> Bobby McGee jam. I took a break from the Dead for a while, but I still plan on finishing my 1972 effortposts. November is coming soon.
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Feb 10, 2017 03:47
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I think it's time we had a talk about November 1972. This was an excellent month for the Dead. October was a bit of a down period after the peaks of August and September, but November saw the band reaching new heights on their journey across the Dust Bowl. Fans of "Playing In The Band" should pay particular attention to this month, since the Dead delivered some absolutely epic renditions during this period. Let's dive right in! 11/12 and 11/13 are, unfortunately, only available on incomplete and relatively poor quality sources. The performances at both these shows seem really good despite the sound issues, especially 11/13, which has a really nice Dark Star-> Morning Dew. Hopefully some better recordings emerge someday. 11/14 is where things really get good. The recording quality is much better than the two preceding shows, and the band is likewise very good. I really like the rendition of "Friend Of The Devil" from this show, and there's a really great jammed out sequence of He's Gone-> Truckin'-> Other One-> Sing Me Back Home, which is sadly marred by a cut in He's Gone. Still, definitely worth a listen. Then, we come to an incredible run of 4 shows, featuring some of the finest tunes the Dead did in all of 1972: November 15 @ Civic Center Music Hall, Oklahoma City, OK Earlier, I mentioned "Playing In The Band" as one of the highlights of this month, and 11/15 is the first of two amazing versions of the song. I highly recommend checking it out, as well as the "Wharf Rat" and NFA-> GDTRFB-> NFA, all of which were included as bonus material on Dave's Picks 11. November 17 @ Century II Convention Center, Wichita, KS Speaking of Dave's Picks 11, Dave made a great choice by selecting this show, because it's one of the finest of all 1972, and thus one of the best overall Grateful Dead shows. Excellent sound quality, and spot-on performances throughout, with hardly a dud track to be found. Even the songs that come across as filler at lesser shows crackle with energy on this recording. I heartily recommend that any Dead fan check out the central jam of Truckin'-> Other One-> Brokedown Palace- it's a beauty. November 18 @ Hofeheinz Pavilion, Houston, TX The first set of this show is nothing special, but the second is worthy enough that it was officially released as a single CD and 2LP as part of Record Store Day 2014. It features nice versions of "Greatest Story," "Jack Straw," "Deal," "Mississippi Half-Step," and oh yeah, one of the most mind-blowing renditions of "Playing In The Band" you will ever hear. I actually think this may be the single greatest Playing the Dead ever did, or at least the best standalone version. It'll fry your dang brain if you're in the right headspace. November 19 @ Hofheinz Pavilion That's right, the Dead returned for another rip-roaring night down in Texas. This show hasn't seen an official release yet, but it could easily have been packaged with the previous night, because it's a humdinger. Dolly Parton's "Tomorrow Is Forever" makes one of its very few appearances at this performance, and the best November Dark Star also rears its head. As a matter of fact, it's a Dark Star-> Weather Report-> Mississippi Half-Step. How could you go wrong with that combination? 11/22, 11/24, and 11/26 are all a step back from the peak run in both sound and performance quality, but are good listening nonetheless. "Playing" is still very good, though not quite as incandescent as 11/15 or 11/18, and there are some nice jams in the Truckin'-> Other One-> Stella Blue from 11/22, as well as the Dark Star-> Bobby McGee from 11/26. Overall, a throroughly fantastic month of music, including one of the best shows the Dead ever played. Onward to December! (you can read my previous 1972 posts here, here, here, here, and here.) Juaguocio fucked around with this message at 04:19 on Apr 8, 2017 |
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Mar 9, 2017 11:12
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An Apple A Gay posted:yeah they must be digging for clicks, i went through the list and there's nothing I didn't already know/couldn't find elsewhere At least Veneta is well-represented. Anyone seen any of the shows on the current Dead and Co. tour? The setlists are looking real nice.
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Jun 5, 2017 02:01
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So you witnessed this? Where did the 2nd DS verse end up, was it after Drums/Space?
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Jun 19, 2017 05:05
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Shark Sandwich posted:I'm a Dead neophyte and only really listened to Live/Dead and Europe '72 prior to watching Long Strange Trip and listening to the official release of Cornell '77 which I freakin' love. I know this is a super broad question but what are some other shows that are essential? Roark already mentioned Veneta, but if you're in the mood for more '72, 9/21 (Dick's Picks 36) and 11/17 (Dave's Picks 11) are both outstanding shows. Dang it, I still need to make a December '72 post. One of these days... or months.
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Aug 6, 2017 01:33
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Kvlt! posted:I really wish Dead and Co fix the bass mixing (or Oteil fixes his tone). I don't want or expect Oteil to be Phil but I'd love to actually HEAR what Oteil does at the shows. From what I've heard, it seems like Mayer's tone is going too deep and taking away some of Oteil's frequencies, especially when he uses the envelope filter. I feel like Phil's tone was at its best when he was using short scale basses in the early days, and Oteil's sound is pretty far away from that. He also uses his fingers, and Phil has always been a pick player.
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Jan 31, 2018 06:33
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drat, RIP. What's the greatest Barlow Dead song? I'd probably pick "Let It Grow."
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Feb 9, 2018 02:47
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I'm right back into the Dead again. I think I was inspired by seeing Bird Song-> New Speedway Boogie-> Bird Song on a recent Dead & Co. setlist. Nearly finished with December, and then I will have listened to every show from 1972. What a ride that's been.
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Mar 3, 2018 23:41
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algebra testes posted:Then you can start posting about 73! gently caress I love 73 and would love to read your thoughts. I'm excited to dive into 73. April 2 is the only full show I've heard from the first half of the year. You could try December 11, it's a really nice show. There are some bad soundboard cuts on the best tracks, but they're worth hearing anyway, especially Playing, Mississippi Half-Step, Dark Star-> Stella Blue, and Tomorrow Is Forever.
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Mar 5, 2018 10:50
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algebra testes posted:Thanks to this thread I started back on my bullshit, after doing 1982 now i'm going through 83. What are some of the best 82 shows? I don't recall you ever posting the highlights of your trip.
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Mar 6, 2018 08:03
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96 Port Hub posted:Now he's gone, now he's gone, Lord he's gone, he's gone Pouring one, but into a glass, 'cuz I don't think Pig would want me to waste perfectly good whiskey. Tivoli sounds like a good idea. Lots of nice Pig footage in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pt67BUeQ1-Q
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Mar 10, 2018 03:21
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Appropriately, I just found the Merle Sanders/Jerry Garcia "Live At Keystone" 2LP compilation at a record store the other day. I should really give that thing a spin.
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Jul 24, 2018 04:48
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That reminds me- I was going to do a December '72 post, but then I noticed Grateful Dead Guide did one that basically says all that needs to be said: http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2009/12/december-1972.html Anyhow, I listened to every Grateful Dead show from 1972. Outside of Veneta and Europe, the best ones are March 26 (officially released as Dave's Picks 14), September 21 (Dick's Picks 36), and November 17 (Dave's Picks 11). If you want a killer Dark Star, September 21 is your show. I feel like Veneta 8/27 and Spectrum 9/21 are the best overall shows of 1972, and I honestly don't know if I could pick a winner between them. The Dark Star-> El Paso/Morning Dew switcheroo is an essential Dead trick, so your best bet is to listen to both shows in depth.
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Nov 26, 2018 08:40
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global tetrahedron posted:I always read that they were going to go into Morning Dew from the Veneta DS, but I honesty don't hear it... where/what timestamp makes people think that? Check out the Dark Star from 8/21/72: https://archive.org/details/gd1972-08-21.139581.sbd.miller.sirmick.flac16 It sounds to me like Jerry is building towards Morning Dew towards the end of DS, but then Bobby suddenly starts El Paso. I think they must have liked that idea, because the Veneta transition sounds like less of a surprise, as if they were anticipating Bobby throwing out another curveball. Anyone getting on the bus for the summer Dead & Co. tour? I'm gonna do both dates at the Gorge.
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Dec 10, 2018 22:34
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Alright, it's confirmed, I'm road tripping down to the Gorge for June 7-8. Anyone else getting on the bus for the summer tour? Radio Spiricom posted:i listened to it fairly early on so i need to revisit but china rider and the other one>dark star>love light on it are definitely highlights Just in case you haven't seen the footage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E26naDAZjHY Watched it again just now, and I never noticed that Bobby breaks a string around the 9 minute mark. Juaguocio fucked around with this message at 05:05 on Dec 22, 2018 |
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Dec 22, 2018 04:56
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Were any of you at the Gorge? I did both nights. Missed 4 songs from June 7 first set because of the godawful security line, but the rest of the weekend was a grate time. Musical highlights for me were Terrapin and Playing->Uncle John's->Playing from June 8. I felt like the sound was pretty bad for most of June 7, but much better on the 8th.
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Jun 15, 2019 05:13
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Arms_Akimbo posted:D&C tempo has been an issue since the beginning, but they were firing fast Saturday night. That slipknot was one of the best I've ever heard Bobby addresses the tempo issue in this recent GQ interview: https://www.gq.com/story/bob-weir-grateful-dead-profile quote:If there's a complaint these days about Weir's music, it's that he favors playing the Dead repertoire too slowly for some fans' tastes. One Internet wag recently suggested listening to Dead & Company recordings at 1.5-times speed.
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Jul 1, 2019 19:56
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BallerBallerDillz posted:E: if you have a favorite Box Of Rain - I'd love to listen to it. November 17, 1972: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50zesEg95wg There's no way to pick just one favorite Hunter lyric, but I've always loved these lines from Attics Of My Life: I have spent my life Seeking all that's still unsung Bent my ear to hear the tune And closed my eyes to see When there were no strings to play You played to me
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Oct 27, 2019 02:41
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Laserface posted:never really listened to the Dead before but this video exposed me to them for the first time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6XyzhH93JU (which is a cool video in and of itself if you're into snow sports) If you like the 1972 sound, 3 of the best shows from that year were officially released as Sunshine Daydream, Dick's Picks 36, and Dave's Picks 11. http://headyversion.com/ is a great resource if you want to explore a particular song or era, and I really like http://deadessays.blogspot.com/ for in-depth analysis.
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Jun 1, 2020 08:51
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Well, I guess it's time to listen to every show from 1973. Kicking things off with February 9. edit: I wonder if it was intentional that they played 73 shows in 73. Juaguocio fucked around with this message at 09:04 on Jun 13, 2020 |
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Jun 13, 2020 08:43
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Septic Knothead posted:6/22/1973. Vancouver. One of my all time favorites. Listening to the new box set mix of that show is what got me back into 73 the other day. I'm familiar with a lot of shows from the Fall tours (11/11, 11/17, 12/06 are all favorites) but I haven't heard much from Spring and Summer outside of the Vancouver show and Watkins Glen. February 9 is a really interesting show. 7 songs debuted at that one.
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Jun 14, 2020 20:19
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