jw harding

Alan Paul's recent article in the Wall Street Journal described how Duane was the leader and created a template to follow after his passing. There were ups and downs along the way, but they stayed true to his vision til the end. The Rolling Stones are much more of a tribute band than the Allmans were at the end. The shows I saw this past spring at the Beacon were among the greatest rock concerts I've ever attended. If you can't appreciate that, you're entitled to your opinion. I'm not trying to say that you're a complete failure and suck at life, just that I don't think you would be very much

I also found Phil's book dissapointing. It was like a quick breeze through the history of the band without much depth. Maybe a half a page on Pigpen's death, and similar treatment of other seemingly important topics. Some nice moments, but not much I hadn't heard before. Not sure if Phil had a co-author or did it on his own. The guy writing with Billy is a head and pretty good writer, so it has some potential.

Yeah, that 6/26 China Rider is probably my favorite Dead moment of all time. Sublime intro.

Ranking of every show from 74: http://www.ishitmusic.com/?p=1176 People are pretty high on this year in general. My main issue is that the length of the shows tend to be exhausting, so it would be no surprise if the band was tired too. But I don't hear that much in the music.

It is the Shoreline show. That's the only one they played St. Stephen at.

For Bob Weir's b-day: Wilco and Bob doing St Stepen. Nice singing by Jeff. Great explosive drums, as they should be. Nice ringing guitar effects during the bridge (or is that keyboard?). They put some thought into this one. https://soundcloud.com/5fingerdis/wilco-and-bob-weir-st-stephen

Nice! Great show. The sequence of Truckin through the end of the set is spectacular. Wasn't aware of the Johnny B Goode, never seen that on setlists before.

Fucking go. Great seat. You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you don't go.

From ABB Facebook page: Here's the link to the Wanee Festival site for 2015:http://www.waneefestival.com/ And to be clear, the ABB is not performing at Wanee 2015 - but the festival is happening. Save the dates, April 16, 17 and 18 2015!

Very true regarding Garcia's appearance and demeanor. West LA suited him well.

A nice early West LA:

I like all the songs. Maybe they are aided by the direct intensity of the performances/arrangements. Just Neil and heavy guitar throughout. Walk with Me, Love and War, and Hitchhiker all seem like classics. Peaceful Valley Blvd is a masterpiece: http://youtu.be/FUgUZex2n7M http://youtu.be/wU5B53b9ntQ

Le Noise is one of my favorite NY albums. Probably in the minority there. Psychedelic Pill was ok. Still mindblowing in concert, whatever the format, along with good films. Some nice parts of his book. Probably not much else to speak of in the last 15 yrs.

Mics certainly were the problem.

Have you ever seen the Grateful Dead Movie? Tinny as shit. I prefer Garcia vocals in the 90's to that.

What did you think of the vocals during the Wall of Sound era? Despite it being possibly their musical peak, my least favorite vocals due to the tinny sound.

Hornsby really engaged and energized Jerry. Plenty of great shows from that era. Probably the last peak of the band. I'm partial to the second set of 6/22/91. Great second set. Veneta 72 is probably more of an acquired taste. Important to consider the context for that show too: everyone tripping their faces off, naked, in extreme heat. Helps to be in an altered state as well to appreciate it, particularly the Dark Star, which is completely bonkers. Agree with your thoughts on Brent too. Not sure if this show is included in the 74 retrospective I mentioned before, but this Playin>Sca

Yes, go with 74. Here's a nice 6 part retrospective that will give you a good sample of the highlights of the year: http://www.jambase.com/Articles/122662/Stormy-Mondays-Grateful-Dead-1974-Retrospective-Part-6

War on War opened the set

Maybe he's coming out of the closet. Marries Crosby and they sail off into the sunset...

Once again, Robbie Robertson, giant douchebag.

The direction of live music and festivals seems to be going more towards DJ's. It will be interesting to see what happens when all the remaining members of the Dead are off the road. Big void to fill. Wonder what the average age of performers are at this festival? How many under 30 years old? Hope another wave of great bands comes along and the scene thrives, but certainly could go the way of the blues as well.

Looks like a fun festival and lineup. But what is the future of the festival in 5-10 years when the majority of these bands will be dead or done playing? Sad there aren't newer and younger bands to include, but I guess that's the reality of the Americana-jam-rock genre. Headliners for each night include members in their 50's, 60's, and 70's. Plus Willie Nelson has to be at least 300 years old by now. Even Umphrees have been around for over 15 years. Enjoy it while you can.

Since they came back, every time I see them I think it's the best Phish show I've seen since 1998. Last one for me was Tahoe Tweezer. They seem to be building and peaking nicely now, even recalling the band at their creative and energetic peak of 94. While not consistently at that level, it is amazing they're doing this after over 30 years together. The Dead are by far my favorite and, and Phish is often unfairly compared to them, but you have to give them credit for doing this so late in their career, while the Dead were dead and so was Jerry after 30 years. Haven't been a fan of Trey's son

You can buy a lot of Mexican Coke with $100,000. Classic Tweedy move right there.