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Stevee B
Trad climber
Oakland, CA
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Jun 29, 2015 - 01:08pm PT
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I noticed that consistently at fresh venues they played. At the Palace in Detroit in 92 it was free for all with the ushers night one. By night two they'd locked it down.
Excellent response to my lack of modesty Kalimon. It was a special night indeed and I'm having trouble containing it.
I have a joke for you:
"An old man enters a confessional and proudly exclaims, "Father, I have to tell you what happened to me last night. I'm 90 years old, and I made love to two 18-year-old women for eight hours!"
The stern priest replies, "That is a sin. I will have to give you a penance."
"Father, you can't give me a penance."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm Jewish."
The perplexed Father asks, "Then why are you telling me?"
"I'm telling everyone!""
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jun 29, 2015 - 08:09pm PT
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SteveeB thanks for your live reports!
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drljefe
climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 29, 2015 - 08:25pm PT
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I was there^^^^^^^
Check the Deal from that show.
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zBrown
Ice climber
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Jun 29, 2015 - 08:42pm PT
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^Sweet and Sleepy.
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cowpoke
climber
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Jun 30, 2015 - 05:22pm PT
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I was not fortunate enough to see them in their heyday, but I'm just gonna say it: 2nd SC show was musically better than all but the very best moments from the best shows I saw in the 80s. Yes I miss Jerry, and no I'm not a fan of Phish, but Trey absolutely freaking killed it entire 2nd night. As did entire band. Trey was justly and modestly derivative (eg, so we recognized the general mixo leads) but totally uniquely him too, and I f*#king loved it. No, it was not the same as with the Grateful Dead as only they could be with J, but that's as it should have been. CHICAGO!!!!!!
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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Jun 30, 2015 - 06:42pm PT
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Well gosh darn it, I've seen my last Grateful Dead show. 43 years of being amazed at shows!
We used to time our backpacking trips so that we'd get out and drive straight to a show. Ha, what a tirp that was.
Second show was excellent--what a sound! But, what a morose song selection--He's Gone, Black Peter, Death Don't Have No Mercy, and Wharf Rat, mercy mercy me.
To me it seemed like it took a bit for Trey to warm into it, but by the second set we were all rockin'!
Somebody said that we should rent a room and stream the last shows (for we who can't make Chicago). Grand idea...
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Jun 30, 2015 - 07:01pm PT
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I may have to watch this on the fourth.....
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zBrown
Ice climber
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Jun 30, 2015 - 07:07pm PT
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Maybe I'm too nostalgic, but Grateful Dead without Jerry Garcia is not the Grateful Dead. I don't care if Jimi Hendrix is playing the guitar.
Greatful Dead maybe. I would go if I had a ticket.
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Jun 30, 2015 - 07:27pm PT
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Good point. I heard something that I think was from the other night, sounded like all the other members, with a very talented, very competent singer/ guitar player. It made me sad, it just wasn't what I wanted....But, given that, I once saw the "Jerry Garcia band" in Vail at a free concert about a decade ago. I was skeptical, but it was free, and the streets were heated.
Those guys kicked ass! They didn't try to sound like Jerry, but we're clearly inspired by him. It was a welcome, delightful surprise. I'd go see them, in a heartbeat!
So times change, the wheel keeps turning. I'm ready to watch, hear this with an open mind and accept it for whatever it turns out to be.
I've been to overt hirty genuine dead shows, seen them with the Who, elvyn bishop, Branford, Bruce, etc,
Also legion of Mary, many JGB's, and various tributes, and other interpretations. Including Lyle Lovett playing Friend of the devil, in Reno, days after jerry passed, the next day, a bluegrass band playing OR, did their take on lyle's versin of Friend, with a big expository intro. They rocked it! the next night I saw B.B King play a version of stormy Monday modified just for Jerry.
I want to see this thing as it covers, " just a little more ground"!
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the Fet
climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
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Jun 30, 2015 - 07:53pm PT
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Great show! Classic dead show. Unlike any other band. I love me some Warren Haynes, and saw The Dead with him once, but he's too bluesy for the dead. Trey did a great job filling in. Bruce Hornsby did great vocals too.
So happy I got to relive the past a little and get one more time around. even if it wasn't as good as BITD.
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drljefe
climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 30, 2015 - 11:07pm PT
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This may be long and rambling, like a tired Row Jimmy jam :-), but I've been trying to gather all my thoughts about this sh!t and am ready to puke it out.
I've not been a fan of Post-Jerry Dead projects.
I saw The Dead, Furthur, Phil and Friends, all once each.
Just not my gig. They were fun and the music was OK. Phil and Friends was probably my favorite because (ok it was at the Warfield) they were not trying to be the Grateful Dead.
It was Grateful Dead music, interpreted and morphed, handed down, carried on.
Which is what music is, especially American music. It's a tradition that's handed down, that changes with the times and the players.
The others, The Dead and Further, seemed like novelty acts, trying to recreate the music and the experience and falling short for me. I actually enjoyed the few Dark Star Orchestra shows I saw more. It was Grateful Dead music actually played well, really well.
So when these Fare Thee Well shows were announced, I really had no desire, like I said, not my gig. I figured it was going to be just another novelty thing. Nothing will ever come close to the Grateful Dead, even at their worst, and I saw some stinkers in my 101 Grateful Dead shows.
Then came the sh!tshow ticketing fiascos for Chicago, the endless bickering about Trey and who should be filling the slot. I was turned off even further. Not even the announcement of the two added California shows got me pumped.
When some old East Coast Heads messaged me and said they had me covered carte blanche, "Just Get There!" I had an immediate change of heart and checked the dates ready to book a flight.
Bummer, I already had a family wedding planned in LA. Oh well, de pump.
Then I got the f*#king summer flu and had to cancel LA WTF!!!!!!
Enter the webcast. Couch tour time. Perfect.
So here's my take on the shows from the comfort of my couch, and my patio, and my bathroom, and my kitchen.
First of all, I'm a fan of Trey and think he was the right man for the job. He's a modern legend, a certified virtuoso capable of anything, and he did pick up where Jerr left off. He led the biggest freak show the world ever knew other than the Grateful Dead. He knows the scoop. Plus, I'd heard him play with various Dead incarnations and knew he could slide right in.
There are a bunch of players that could do the job and do it well.
No one has shown the reverence for a Garcia ballad, both in vocals and chops, like Warren.
No one can imitate Jerry like JK. Barry Sless, Neal Casal, Jimmy Herring, all very capable.
But in the end, the general public, even old Heads not up on the current scene would be like,
"Who?"
They needed a recognizable name as well as a shredder.
"Ummm, Jerry Garcia's dead, who's gonna play guitar???"
"OH....the guy from Phish. That makes sense."
Yeah Trey makes sense, whether you love him, hate him, or even know him at all.
So this is just one man's take, tastes vary. But I've listened to a sh!tload of Grateful Dead in my life, seen a lot of shows, am critical/skeptical, love Trey, miss Jerry and I'd like to think I have a good ear.
And because I was not at the show, dancing, living it up, letting the music and whole experience wash over me...
Just listening on headphones...and watching, scrutinizing, loving, singing...
my review counts dammit! :-)
Night 1
Rough opener- Truckin'. Slow, the mix was off.
Uncle John's- same.
I'm thinking, here we go again.
Then something happened.
They fixed the mix, they warmed up and
it became obvious that this was a throw down.
They weren't just busting out an old song that Garcia would never have played in later years, interspersed with other classics. They were busting out a whole set of them. Vintage early Dead. 1970 sh#t. Proper, but it felt like a short set.
I knew the second set was not going to be a Sampson> Women Are Smarter ordeal. They were going to keep this going.
And they did.
Unless you were seeing the Dead in '70, I wasn't, I was born in '70, you never heard a set like this played by the members of the Dead.
It was epic.
Some of my first tapes were one long braided jam of Cryptical>Dark Star>St. Stephen>The Eleven.
I love that sh!t and it was handled with aplomb.
The second set was 2 1/2 hours. Closing with a Dew and encoring with Casey Jones.
Of course there were fvck ups, but I loved every bit of it. Even Phil's wretched singing.
And he was the definite architect of this show. He's known for heavily rehearsed jams and vintage Dead, and barking orders into the monitors.
I immediately purchased the webcast for the next night.
Night 2
The first night was decidedly a Phil show.
I knew night two was going to be a Bobby show,
and in the afternoon I called a Stranger opener.
Nailed it. I still got's it!
The mix was right, any jitters gone and I knew right away that we were in for what many of us younger heads remember as a Grateful Dead concert.
The set was chock full of singalong classics.
Trey absolutely crushed Alabama Getaway, he ripped the signature solo on Loser, and during Hell in a Bucket he just shredded the whole fvcking thing. Trey was ripping.
The second set featured seamless jamming and transitions into Wharf Rat, then into Eyes, then into He's Gone. These segues were excellent, amazing. Not just special for this band, special period.
He's Gone had some super cringeworthy vocal flubs but everybody just laughed it off and Smiled, Smiled, Smiled.
A traditional Drums/space into Miracle. Perfect. Bobby in his element and handling the vocals well, like he'd been singing it for 40 years.
Death Don't Have No Mercy was a bust out I heard at Shoreline in 89, it hadn't been played since '70, so it was cool to hear it again, this time sung by Bobby.
Sugar Mag was the obvious closer but what would the encore be for these guys' last show in California?
Brokedown Palace, of course.
Certain Dead songs have a short, succinct , melodic solo. Brokedown is one of these. Iconic.
These are solos you don't take liberties with, you don't wander or run with. You play it exactly how it was meant to be played.
Trey did this beautifully, note for note his guitar gently wept out the solo, and I must admit, I wept as well.
If music can bring back memories, this solo, these lyrics just flooded the dam, filled the book, and colored the painting with a million sweet and sad times I've had since I was a teenager.
Love, love, loved it.
It made me feel like a Deadhead.
I AM a Deadhead!!!
Many will say that this was not the Grateful Dead. It can't be the Grateful Dead without Jerry.
After this show, I beg to differ.
What I heard was the Grateful Dead. Beautiful, ugly, sweet and sour.
More about Trey. (this about the time in Row Jimmy when I'd go get a pretzel or take a leak)
I don't think it should be understated what Trey managed at these shows.
I watched and listened to him very closely.
Imagine being master like him, with a signature tone and style, with many years playing your own music live, to throngs of adoring fans, not central scrutinizers.
I'm sure he was told "not to sound like Phish" and "don't imitate Jerry". They had him on a tight leash and the world would be watching.
What's a guy to do? :-)
Well he managed to adopt some of Garcia's unique style, mimicking it without imitating it. Holding on to his own tone and style and adopting Jerry's when called for. Not sounding like Phish. Not sounding like Jerry. That's a tall order.
And remember, he has to play with Weir- no small feat, as Weir is not a conventional rhythm player. He's full of surprises and spices and is rarely holding it down for the lead to do his thing. Trey has to play lead and rhythm and figure out what spices Bobby will throw into the stew at all times, on songs that are not his own and that are loved and familiar to hardcore fans for 50 years. And he did an amazing job. He not only did his homework but was much of the time responsible for keeping the train on the tracks.
There will still be those that don't like him, that will compare him to Jerry, or still think there was someone better fit for the job.
But from where I was sitting- Trey killed it.
If you actually read this bullsh!t, thanks. Feel free to heckle, debate,
or just smile and celebrate the music of the Grateful Dead!
You weren't there maaaaaaaaaaan.
edit:
I just read stevee b's account on the previous page, and cowpoke's above.
Cool to see the parallels from someone who was actually there.
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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That brought tears to my eyes...
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Rhodo-Router
Gym climber
sawatch choss
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Thanks jefe. That was just what I was looking for. Curiosity satisfied.
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drljefe
climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 1, 2015 - 07:06am PT
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Jaybrah- good tears I hope. I didn't want to stink the place up or anything.
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Stevee B
Trad climber
Oakland, CA
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Nailed it Jefe.
I'd take only one exception - and I don't mean to split hairs. From where I was looking at it, it was a lot of fun and had all the dressings of The Grateful Dead and actually really did come very close, and in many ways it *was* much better performed and energized than dozens of those terrible shows we both saw in the 80s and 90s (every damn show Spring 1992 - wtf?), but it just didn't have that...you know. Which like I said and I think you alluded to, that didn't make it bad or unenjoyable or whatever, just different.
After seeing one Further show a few years back, I thought it was interesting but it really just confirmed that after 125+ shows frolicking my life away, I really don't have to bother with this anymore. This show was much better than that, and I might be motivated to catch another one with the right people and circumstances, but in many ways it was relieving to know that Yes This Is Over, has been for years, and I'm at no risk of having to put everything on hold again and follow this circus.
There was much mourning but also a little of relief when Jerry died. For one, the whole anguish of watching him drag along the bottom of the ocean of drug addiction and embarrasing shows was finally over. For two, I could finally go to college and get a job and tackle life effectively. It was getting pretty tough arranging everything in my life around their schedule.
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zBrown
Ice climber
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Interesting article about Bill Walton. He's attended upwards of 850 Dead shows and was going to all five farethewells. I wonder if he'll bring his own chair.
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drljefe
climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 1, 2015 - 12:29pm PT
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Stevee b
I really like what you wrote.
While I had the "benefit" of listening from home, and having close ups of Trey's fingers and the band's faces, etc,
You were there.
The music and the experience WAS washing over you. You WERE reuniting with old friends....
And you attest to it missing "something".
Well, it was Jerry.
And it wasn't Jerry.
When he died so did a lot else.
The music would never be the same again, nor the scene, or the vibe, or that "something".
That "something".....
Probably most pronounced for me in those few seconds before the band started, that collective energy in the air.
Or when I'd start to see more and more hippie vehicles, letting us know we were close.
Even the dread of the Sunday night closer and the realization that a long drive home awaited.
F*#k man, I'm definitely overly sentimental and it probably did skew my review....
Thanks stevee b- I hadn't talked to any friends that were there yet about that "something" and whether it was there or not.
It was on my couch!
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the Fet
climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
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After seeing them in Santa Clara the thing that really came to mind is are they really going to be able to call it quits after these fantastic shows with this line up?
It really was the Grateful Dead again. Of course there was a big hole without Jerry but it still felt like old times and just 5 more shows won't be enough.
I wouldn't be surprised if they reunited this line up again at some point.
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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It was getting pretty tough arranging everything in my life around their schedule.
Hahahaha... As much as I love the Dead, I never did find the need to go on tour.
I see the band every chance I can, and never try to have expectations about it being one thing or the other. The first few shows after Garcia passed were especially tough though--it was like there was this spot on the stage where something was supposed to be, but it was just blank.
Empty.
The good shows were Great, the really bad ones were a waste, and there was everything in between. After seeing these guys for over 40 years, I'll still go back if they play again. But alas, I wonder if there will be more Bobby/Phil hook ups after this run. My personal take is that no, this is really it.
Phil said it in his donner rap, these are very special moments we have, and we're all glad to be able to be a part of these special events. And from what I see, Phil will forfeit his bass when we pry it from his cold dead fingers.
And I worry about that.
But damn did that band sound Full!
[PS. Jaybro, I did your post from yesterday.]
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