Fare Thee Well / 50 Years of Grateful Dead

[OB Dave]

Since this forum seems to have more than its fair share of Deadheads, closet Deadheads, and guys who play in Dead cover bands, I'm surprised that last weekend and this weekend's farewell shows have not come up in discussion.

 

I attended the two Santa Clara shows last weekend, and I'll probably catch up with this weekend's shows when they show up on youtube or bittorrent. Obligatory keyboard content: I though Bruce Hornsby and Jeff Chimenti were often buried in the mix. Inside the stadium, they were often not even audible. I thought Trey did great though, really changed his guitar style to suit the Dead's music.

[spazzkey]

Obligatory keyboard content: I though Bruce Hornsby and Jeff Chimenti were often buried in the mix. Inside the stadium, they were often not even audible.

 

no respect...

[Mark Schmieder]

Although I was eligible for free tickets due to my company's involvement in the event (although I don't think we actually ran sound, based on some critique I heard from a co-worker who is a sound guy who DIDN'T do the sound but who does work with those guys now and then), I had to pass due to having a weekend full of all-day gigs myself.

 

The feedback I heard overall was that they didn't quite catch fire on the level of the halcyon days of yore, and that the sound and mix balance was at times non-ideal (although where you are located can certainly make a difference, even outdoors, and wind doesn't help), but that it was better than the shows billed as The Dead and so no one resented the use of the full band name.

 

Certainly it was a lifelong dream for Trey Anastasia to play with those guys. I'm a huge Bruce Hornsby fan so would have liked to have seen him, but some reviewers complained they didn't let him sing much (understandable as it was about Trey standing in for Jerry as opposed to the backing band supporting Hornsby's impressive solo career back catalogue).

 

My company is showing live concert footage -- of their outside-the-bay-area concerts -- at our specially built theatre today and Sunday, but given that it's a holiday weekend, I'm not eager to do the long haul to my workplace on a non-work day.

 

I was always a bigger Jerry Garcia fan (especially his work with Dave Grisman) and Bruce Hornsby fan than a Grateful Dead follower anyway.

 

Always respected them, and they come to the office now and then so I've met most of them and can vouch for them being genuinely nice people. I also appreciate how they helped revive acoustic-influenced music and Americana and thus planted the seeds for a lot of what came later. And I do like their songs; just not much into live jams is all. But I mostly go to classical concerts, so there you go.

[Bridog6996]

I was watching the webcasts over the weekend, and they had better chemistry than I expected, honestly. There were some shaky moments, no doubt, but they seemed to really hit stride during the second set of both nights. Set 2 of Friday's show was particularly good, I thought.

 

Definitely need more Bruce and Jeff though. And Phil could probably stand to sing less. I love his playing, but a singer he's not Bruce is the best vocalist on that stage, they should put him to work more.

[Michael W]

Perhaps I am in a minority here, but this is one band I've just never cared for at all. And I went to quite a few Dead shows back in the day, as I had to work them due to my job... I just never liked their music.

[Phil Aiken]

I like the Dead, and think they wrote some of the great folk rock songs of their day. But It was always more about Jerry than the band for me. I cannot stand Phish. Literally my least favorite band in the world. Seriously. And yet.....

 

I think Trey is doing a sensational job. Just the right amount of himself and Garcia, and just the right amount of understatement and stepping out.

 

I would also like to hear more Bruce, though.

[Brettymike]

I've never been grateful for their music either.

Brett

[JohnH]

I just started getting into them in May. Always liked the hits but I never got them till now. I've liked everything I've heard lately. Saw some clips from last weekend and have heard some live satellite this weekend and they sound too good to stop. I hated the Black Crowes too, until I signed on for a one off tribute a few months ago and learned over 20 songs.

[Bridog6996]

I like the Dead, and think they wrote some of the great folk rock songs of their day. But It was always more about Jerry than the band for me. I cannot stand Phish. Literally my least favorite band in the world. Seriously.

 

That's not the first time I've heard that, and I've never quite understood it. Stylistically, they're different bands, of course, but they also have so much in common from a musical standpoint that I find it hard to believe people can have such polar opinions. Not really like Phish, sure, but hate them? I don't get it. I'm not asking you to defend your stance, though, I just find it interesting.

 

I think those who were worried about Trey didn't realize he's a huge Dead fan. Phish even did some Dead covers in their early days. He's got the material down. Everyone else on stage is using a lyric sheet or iPad for lyrics, except Trey. Dude has probably been ready for this opportunity his whole life, and you can tell from the constant ear-to-ear grin he's been wearing at the shows. It's been great to watch so far.

 

Seriously, though, someone tell Phil to stop singing.

[Phil Aiken]

Please don't take this as defensive, just my opinion. I don't find the bands to be that similar in several ways. Most of all though:

The material. I have never heard a Phish song that I like, that I think is well written, or in any way soulful or moving to me. There are compositionally interesting things, but I think they and I just don't understand what a song is in the same way. This is not Olympic diving. You do not get extra points for difficulty. Plus....worst lyrics ever.

The Dead, and Hunter/Garcia in particular, turned out more than a handful of gems.

 

Also..... total respect for all that enjoy Phish's music. I do not. And yes, I've been dragged to a few shows, and yes I've heard plenty of stuff.

 

 

 

[JohnH]

Trey is just nailing it. Don't get Phish either , but Trey is a perfect fit and on You Tube there's tons of great comments .

[Bridog6996]

Well Phish has that big Zappa influence musically and lyrically going on too, so that's something you either like or you don't. Their songs are quite different, for sure, but what I hear Phish have in common with the Dead is in the jamming/improvising. Not just in the fact that they jam, but in how they do it.

 

I didn't take offense, far from it. I've just heard Dead fans profess their hate for Phish pretty often, and it always seemed odd to me.

[bill5]

Huge Hornsby fan but I think he is an odd fit at best there.

 

And really the GD without Garcia? cmon....

 

PS I'm sorry but IMO "Phish" stinks. Diff strokes I guess.

[cphollis]

I hated the Black Crowes too, until I signed on for a one off tribute a few months ago and learned over 20 songs.

 

It's funny how many bands I've been "meh" on until I had to go learn their music for a gig, and then I had an entirely new appreciation for what they were doing.

[Phil Aiken]

I hated the Black Crowes too, until I signed on for a one off tribute a few months ago and learned over 20 songs.

 

It's funny how many bands I've been "meh" on until I had to go learn their music for a gig, and then I had an entirely new appreciation for what they were doing.

 

I've had that same experience! Springsteen most notably. Always loved him/them on paper, but never connected until I learned a set, and then watched a live show from 1975 on DVD and was blown away.

[OB Dave]

I was wondering if this was going to be a polarizing topic. There's a Jerry Garcia quote about the Dead being like licorice. Not everybody likes licorice, but the people who like licorice really like licorice. I think my other favorite quote he had about the Dead is that they were like the town whore that stuck around long enough to stop getting hassled and then eventually become a local institution.

 

The Dead are certainly an acquired taste, and Phish even more so, and there's a fair amount of animosity in segments of the Dead scene towards Phish. It's not everyone's cup of tea, I get that. As someone with feet in both camps, it's just pleasing to me to see how well this collaboration has worked out.

 

Hope everyone had a great 4th!

[EscapeRocks]

Like a lot of bands, there's Dead stuff I like, and stuff I don't like.

 

I can say that way back in the day, the Dead show I did attend was the smelliest concert I've ever been to

[Outkaster]

Interestingly a bunch of guys I played with loved the dead. Since I joined their band a learned maybe 5-10 songs myself. I just never really connected with the Dead because they were not hard core enough for me. I wasn't a fan of their covers either. I do respect the band though I just never got into the jam band thing.

[area51recording]

I played in a band for years that did Dead covers, amongst other things, but never listened to them much at all. Last night the band got hired to play a show in a bar that was streaming the Dead's concert. We played a couple of sets after the stream ended. I got there early enough to catch the last 90 minutes of their show, it was the most Dead I've listened to, well.....ever. And I gotta say....it bored the HELL out of me. Endless songs (seemed like everything has 37 verses) as well as a bunch of pointless solos that never went anywhere. The key were featured quite a bit in the video, but except for a brief chord here and there i don't think I ever heard a lick.....guess I'm one of those guys that don't like licorice......

[DanL]

I've been in a "Deadhead" band for 30+ years, but I'm not really a GD fan. I saw them once, back around 1982-83. I like some of the songs but I'm not a "did you see Red Rocks '86?" kind of person. Like a51, I find it kind of boring to listen to.

 

Tons of fun to play though, if you have a group of competent players around you who know how to listen. Almost like jazz in a rock band setting.

[mate stubb]

They lost me early on. Most of those early Frisco bands could not even tune their instruments, and I couldn't get past that.

 

I love Hornsby, but putting him in the Dead is like putting a Ferrari in a race with a bunch of G-Wizs and Yugos.

[Al Coda]

They lost me early on. Most of those early Frisco bands could not even tune their instruments, and I couldn't get past that.

 

+1

 

I love Hornsby, but putting him in the Dead is like putting a Ferrari in a race with a bunch of G-Wizs and Yugos.

 

 

A.C.

[area51recording]

They lost me early on. Most of those early Frisco bands could not even tune their instruments, and I couldn't get past that.

 

I love Hornsby, but putting him in the Dead is like putting a Ferrari in a race with a bunch of G-Wizs and Yugos.

 

.....ESPECIALLY if you're not going to turn him up enough to even HEAR him.....

[jimkost2002]

Agreed with mate stubb and al!

I never underrstood them as a kid or at any point...

Jerry was cool and I understand why guys like Branford and Ornette wanted to play with him..

I sort of get the extra-musical impact but after my initial exposure I only bothered to listen when Hornsby was in the band----or when Ornette or Branford sat in....

[mate stubb]

They lost me early on. Most of those early Frisco bands could not even tune their instruments, and I couldn't get past that.

 

By "most early Frisco bands" I am specifically talking about the ones that we heard about in the midwest, and could get records from to listen to:

 

Grateful Dead

Quicksilver Messenger Service

Moby Grape

Big Brother and the Holding Company (not Janis' fault!)

Jefferson Airplane (although Crown of Creation was great.)

[Tonysounds]

You can't discuss them or even evaluate them outside of their scene. It was always about the total experience (man), which meant the TOTAL experience; music was only a part of it.

 

That it developed into this traveling circus for trust fund babies and other types (those without trust funds) is almost as important as the Dead itself.

 

Of all the jambands, they're my least favorite still. But I have found some REALLY interesting music in their catalog.

 

And I have to say this: Say what you want about The Dead, but you have to give them credit for being so incredibly generous. What other band in history ENCOURAGED you to record them in all their naked glory, from day one, as a witness. That means that they were willing to let themselves be mocked for a bad nite (or a string of them) but were unafraid to display their development (or lack of it -if you are so inclined) and put it all out there.

 

Think about that.

 

That's an incredibly generous and un-self-centered gift. Most of us want to protect what we put out there, and we refine it, and polish it, and in the end, we are very focused on how we want to be perceived.

 

They eschewed all that.

 

Pretty amazing.

[Mark Schmieder]

This might be more technical than anyone is interested in reading, but here's a pro audio newsletter article on the Fare Thee Well tour.

 

http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/the_grateful_dead_bids_fare_thee_well_at_levis_stadium_with_meyer_sound_leo/

 

Please don't take this as self-promotion; I thought some people might be interested in this technical article.

 

As I can attest from having attended some concerts at the Warfield in SF (Meyer Sound plus MIDAS mixer), the person behind the controls is VERY important regardless of the quality of the gear, and I wasn't at the Grateful Dead shows so can't speak directly to the complaints that were made about the sound balance (sometimes that's an artistic decision based on perceptions of what elements most people want to hear).

 

In the end, it's about the music. I had a wonderful time at the Devo/Blondie concert, in spite of it having the worst sound of any show I've been to in my entire life. You could feel the energy and passion from the musicians on stage, and their performance cut through in spite of not being able to hear the bass or the keyboards.

 

I suspect for most people, the Grateful Dead shows were enjoyed on the basis of the music and performance more than the sound engineer's decision-making. After all, our ears adjust quickly to out-of-balance mixes and compensate. Not ideal, of course, but it's just putting things into perspective. :-)

[Daddyg3042]

Huge Hornsby fan but I think he is an odd fit at best there.

I love Hornsby, but putting him in the Dead is like putting a Ferrari in a race with a bunch of G-Wizs and Yugos.

 

Uh...you do realize that Hornsby played more than 100 shows with the Grateful Dead from 1988 until Jerry Garcia's death in 1995?

 

I'm a fan, not a zealot, but I play with some folks that are. We've done two shows, as a tribute to Fare thee Well, over the last couple months, two sets each, all Dead. Great crowds. Truly enjoyed both, even sang lead on a few of the songs. It's pretty fun music, not real difficult, but most songs have some little tricky thing about them that makes or breaks them. Plus they have a huge catalog, so if you don't like some, there's always more to listen to.

 

I'm a huge Hornsby fan. Going to see him in a few weeks in Portland, but never connected with him in the Dead. Much prefer Brent. Keith...not so much.

[stevie b]

I enjoy the Dead and have been to many concerts over the years. Some songs are certainly favored over others and some configurations of the band as well.

They have had their fair share of good and not so good performances over the last "50 Years", but as Tony eluded to, they were not afraid to keep on Truckin' when the chips were down.

 

I''ve covered quite a few of their songs over the years and find it much more fun and diverse than many popular 1,4,5 Rock and Roll songs.

 

Regarding the Fare The Well shows. Good song choices. Trey did a great job.

Bruce did very well as expected, but did wish he was out front a little more in the mix.

Jeff played some nice organ leads and fills.

Phil is an outstanding bass player, but he should not be singing lead. It Hurt's Me Too,😟

[area51recording]

I get that, and really what I heard on the feed was actually very well balanced, other than the almost complete lack of keys in the mix. Hornsby's solo on Althea was barely audible, and though there LOTS of shots of the Hammond guy you couldn't hear a thing he was doing. It's something that sound guys around here on my level have been guilty of forever. Bass, check. Geetars, check. Drums, check. A lot of times the vocals get buried too, but last night they were mixed just great (which was bittersweet, because I didn't find anyone onstage to be a compelling vocalist. Keys.....eeeehhhh, who needs 'em....they're not Rock and Roll enough for me to worry about.....I mean, you've got Bruce frikken' Hornsby on stage, and you can't find room in the mix for him??