Tag Archives: Grateful Dead

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Sunday night at MSG was a night filled with observations. My seats were outstanding(Thanks Bob!) in Section 107. I was in the same section on the opposite side for Halloween. My first observation was that it must be a little strange backstage. In both sections I was seated for these 2 shows, I was surrounded by people with laminates. It appears as though the J. Crew and Brooks Brothers Mafia is running things for Dead & Company. I’ve never seen a more unlikely bunch of folks wearing the Sacred Plastic Necklaces in Grateful Dead Land. The row in front of me looked like the cast from MTV’s Jersey Shore. I was wondering if they had spray tanning booths backstage… You know, just to freshen up a little. I’m fairly confident they didn’t score their lammies from Kreutzmann but ya never know.

The next observation was wondering if Weir has to have his britches hemmed or if they come that way. You get the impression that his biggest fashion influences are Huck Finn and Buckwheat. I guess it’s better than the Hooters waitress shorts of the 80s. Weir likes his shorts too short, his pants too short… If he likes writers that are too short maybe I can help him with the Biography. I understand as men get older our waists mystically disappear. Maybe his pants are actually the perfect length but nowadays he has to pull the waist up to just below his nipples to keep em on. A lot of older folks do that. I wish I would’ve gotten one of Bear’s Belt buckles back in the day when they were considerably less expensive. Back then I didn’t really get the whole belt buckle thing because I never wore a belt. What do you do with a buckle if you don’t do a belt? Now the second I go to tie my shoe laces my pants immediately descend slightly putting on a display of Levi cleavage if I’m not careful. Where the hell did my waist go? Now I realize that back then, Bear and the crew were pretty close to the age I’m at now and I completely understand the need for a belt. I think I drifted a little there, back to Weir. Bob can do whatever he wants now because he’s a famous legend. He might have never made it if he started his career in capris and sandals. The last man that was able to break through and make the big time all while wearing sandals was Jesus. There hasn’t been a man since that’s been able to do it. Seeing him wearing the Garcia shirt brought me all kinds of happiness. I can’t explain how I smiled inside every time the screens showed the close ups. I would have absolutely LOVED to see Garcia’s reaction if he did that when Jerry was alive! That would’ve made for some hilarious moments.

Dead Heads have long been familiar with the “Never miss a Sunday Show” mantra and the tradition has carried on with Dead & Company. I’m not gonna break the whole thing down song by song but everybody knows you’re getting Samson on Sunday and that was a raging way to get the party started. If you can’t jam out to Samson, then you just can’t jam out at all. That tune just gives everybody a chance to shine. It’s obvious how happy all of US are to hear Jeff Chimenti’s new prominent position in the mix. Jeff being turned up has completely changed the entire dynamic of the band. His Hammond was inflating the Garden with massive amounts of Joy Energy all night long. For me, Jeff makes an ENORMOUS difference in the combined vibration of this group. He is a driving force in the directions and colors of the experience. The next notable number for me was Sugaree. From the first notes, you knew that if there was a song that was right in John’s wheelhouse, this was the one. It really lends itself to his natural inclinations as a guitarist and I was certain it would get the complete treatment. About half way through it, John started nailing the shit out of that solo like it was “A” List celebrity poontang. The Garden erupted and the remnants of last night’s hangover were knocked off of the entire crowd in an instant. It was one of those jams that seems to make its way in a circular motion around the arena then hits you from behind like a tidal wave of furious sound. Absolutely blew the place away! That was truly a high water moment for me, along with Bob’s pants! The next moment of note from my experience was Uncle John’s. For the second time in as many nights, the band broke out into this reggae groove seemingly out of nowhere. They did that the night before during Cassidy as well. It fell perfectly back into Uncle J’s and on both occasions was a great addition the the tunes in which it occurred.

Uncle John’s was followed by the awkward moment of the night when only half the band thought the first set was over. The house lights went on and Bob, Mickey and Jeff left the stage. John used the moment to just change guitars, Oteil didn’t budge and Bill was still on his kit. I instantly thought that an incredible new power trio was gonna play intermission music. You know something special is taking place when you’re that consumed and spaced out in the moment. Maybe John was just thinking he’d get started on the second set on his own. Why stop now when you’re absolutely KILLIN IT!? Jeff and Mickey came to drag him away and we all had a great moment together as a community. One of the most endearing you can do in front of fans like US is be completely and totally human. We’ll love ya extra for it. There’s been more ovations for words that were forgotten than those that were remembered!

Being that this is the time in the piece when we get to intermission, Here’s what Trey was doing this weekend…

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If only we could all be Rock Stars… That’s all I’m gonna say about that… Photo by the one and only Jay Blakesberg…

This brings me to the second set. Any time you catch the first few notes of Scarlet, the entire evening is considered a total win! The jam was great but if I’m being honest, it was like a gorgeous woman missing one of her eye teeth. She’s still gorgeous but at certain times you can tell something’s missing. I can’t figure out what it is in this case. Scarlet jams were always so full and so wide and so deep. It used to almost be overwhelming how much sound your mind had to process simultaneously. There were some holes in a couple of songs were music used to be. Perhaps it’s Oteil’s approach to playing or Mickey’s more muted current sound or just a different sound from a different group of players altogether. It definitely sounded like there were a few gaps in the music where none existed previously. It didn’t take away from the raging Scarlet-> Fire at all, it’s just an observation. As Fire developed from Scarlet, I could see Jeff trying to get John to play the PsychedeliFunk Wah-wah chord jam at the beginning. You know the one. the one that Bruce accidentally cut Trey off on in Chicago. Jeff was looking directly at John’s as if to say, “Drop those funky chords with the wah-wah bro!” as he played the chords himself on the organ. John was pretty absorbed inwardly at the moment and didn’t notice or catch on. I think it’s little things like that over time that will materialize and make this group sound better and better.

One thing I’m happy about is having somebody up there dancing a little while they play. John is no Bruno Mars but it’s good to see him and Oteil boogying up there. It’s interesting that The Dead have always had the most dancingest(total made up word) fans in music and it was rare for them to even budge. Bob was always good for some hot doggin’ but they never did much moving. Jerry would bend his knees a few inches and we’d all cheer like an entire dance team just did splits simultaneously. I hope one day during the tour John goes apeshit crazy and does the full blown rock star routine. Runs all over the stage and starts throwing guitar picks at the crowd, the whole 9 yards! You can tell he’s trying like hell to pump the brakes on his own instincts as a performer. Get down Oteil and John! I Love it!

Shakedown was in the running for “Most Kickass Song of the Night” as well. Jams were explosive and funky and psychedelic. It’s hard not be happy when you get segments like Scarlet->Fire Shakedown Dark Star! While I’m at it, if there’s a Garcia song that Bob really sounds outstanding on, it’s Dark Star. Undoubtedly my favorite Weir take on a Garcia tune. The liberties Bob takes with his spin on it ALL Payoff and payoff BIG! John’s jams, while not as confusing or melted down as we’ve been accustomed, brought new steam to an old number and I thought the changes were of tremendous benefit. I appreciated the Dark Star as much as anything both vocally and musically. GDTRFB to close the show absolutely kicked ass! Add a Ripple encore and I’d have to say it was a couple of days in NYC that once again exceeded any and all prior expectations.

It was a fantastic weekend for Dead & Company as well as all of US! If you’ve been on the fence about going to see them, get the hell off of the fence and get to a show. There will definitely be a bunch of superb shows on this tour. This is the strongest blend of Dead music I’ve heard in a long time. If you can’t have a blast at these shows, the problem definitely isn’t the music, the problem is more likely in the mirror. If you can separate yourself from comparing it to the strongest years the band had with Garcia and instead enjoy your favorite songs with 3 of your favorite musicians and a few others that ROCK, it will be hard not to love this band. It’s difficult to base an opinion on a taper’s audience stream that you listened to. Looking at an image of the Grand Canyon and looking at the Grand Canyon are 2 very different experiences. I suggest you get there. I’m checking out until after MSG next week unless something crazy happens between now and then. If you have any good seats for the MSG show on the 7th, I need 2. Love You Long Time! See ya next week!

Dead To The Core,

Dean Sottile (pronounced So Tilly)
@gd50th on Twitter

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Faster than a few cups of tea through grandma’s urinary tract! More powerful than herbal viagra at a whorehouse! Able to leap a crack in the sidewalk in a single bound! It’s a bird! It’s a plane…. It’s HalloWeir! Promotional pictures posted last week showed Weir has been training at Krispy Kreme for the upcoming tour and has acquired a stylist to manage his hair after being accused of combing it regularly with an egg beater since Garcia’s passing. While considering costumes for Halloween, Weir attempted to put on a pair of his old shorts. Unfortunately, it looked like somebody shrink wrapped a bag of half eaten plums in denim. The Superman costume was the next thing he tried on but wearing a spandex suit in your 70s is like taking a highlighter pen and marking every lipoma on your body. He decided to scrap the idea altogether when he acknowledged that he’s Bob Weir and that’s more than enough…

With Halloween officially here, hippies in and around New York City, both obvious and undercover, are filled with the excitement and anticipation of a 12 year old boy getting ready to feel a nipple for his first time since breastfeeding. It seems like when shows are on the horizon, the smile from others wearing pieces representative of our tribe, however subtle, bring about a smile and a nod that’s just a little bit bigger than it would be otherwise. Whether it’s a small Stealie on a pin or full psychedelic attire, nothing brings some warmth into a city that’s known for its coldness like the small moments of tribal recognition on the streets of Manhattan.

Being around Madison Square Garden this week has been similar to holding the hand of a woman in labor. The knowns as well as the unknowns create a sense of unrivaled expectations tied to the impending journey we’re all in the process of participating in. Like being with a woman in labor, you know something completely heavy is going down. You know the feelings of joy, nervousness coupled with unmatched waves of Love and support. New life is on the way and there’s no turning back. The spectrum of emotions that course through the souls of those connected to life’s greatest musical transformation society is nearly as exhilarating. Yes my friends, These are The Days of our lives!

It seems like I came off of the oxytocin laden experiences we all had in Santa Clara and Chicago just in time to get loaded up on that stuff all over again. After essentially taking the entire year off from life and any hope of adulting, the past few months have given me just enough time to reestablish my life, in order to crash it into the proverbial tree of complete irresponsibility all over again. I’d like to take this time to thank the members of the Grateful Dead, not named Garcia(I still refuse to say Core 4), for reminding me what it’s like to absolutely not give a shit about anything other than dancing to live music in dark arenas. As I personally experience this process of rebirth, I look to the new baby that will emerge from the stage a few short hours from now. We’re all intimately acquainted with the parents that are responsible for this baby. We’ve followed them around collectively for varying lengths of time over the past 50 years. The baby is the music that is born through the collaboration of the parents whom are now also the elders in our community, along with Oteil, Jeff “Can Somebody Turn Me The Fuck Up” Chimenti and John “Simba” Mayer. What will become of this baby? Will Simba push too hard and shit the bed? Will John attempt to make things happen instead of letting the musical phenomena occur naturally? Will he realize that he’s a vessel through which the experience can be amplified if he’s able to surrender along with the guys around him that have been surrendering to that same Mystical and Musical Force for 50 years?

The Force is that magical organizing intelligence that has been orchestrating the phenomenal soundtrack of our lives, in ways that are difficult to explain, since the beginning. The invisible yet entirely substantial substance that has driven the Mother ship of Magical Moments throughout time and space and from coast to coast, restructuring our ideologies and internal compasses so that they always point to Terrapin. Terrapin is our cultural Due North point in life. The Absolute zero on the compass that guides us to the realization and manifestation of all that we’re called to do and see and experience in this life when we’re fully surrendered to it. While it’s challenging in the flesh to travel that course with zero deviation, we learned through the years that the answer was always found in separating one’s self from the demands of the flesh and moving in communion with something that was found far above the level of a grounded and earthly experience. For many of us, the process required a few alterations in our chemistry before we could walk through the quagmire of limitations installed by a society that relies on all that is known by way of education as opposed to receiving our required enlightenment from the source that far exceeds the limits of the educated mind. As we followed the compass that always points to Terrapin, we were given the tools that were impossible to acquire through endless layers of scholastic programming and woke up to the fact that WE had direct access to the infinite intelligence of creation and the keys to the kingdom were accessible to all of US. At least that’s what happened for me… While in my humanity I have deviated from the path at times, I have never forgotten the things I’ve learned along the way and my internal compass always points to Terrapin. I’ve stayed the course as have most of you, regardless of the external circumstances that would attempt to guide me elsewhere. I would imagine John Mayer has been experiencing a crash course in all of that as of late. Even with a fresh new wardrobe of expensive Grateful Dead attire, he will continue to be stripped of his external shell and ego as the unstoppable combination of Compass Correcting Force removes all interference to the expression of the Organizing Intelligence creating the baby that we’re preparing to experience over the next couple of months. If Albany is any indication of what we can expect, we’re in for a tremendous couple of nights in The Big apple. What a weekend it is in The World’s Greatest City! Dead and Company at MSG, Phil and Friends up the road, The World Series in Long Island and one of the world’s greatest Marathons tomorrow. Ain’t no place I’d rather be!

The only question that remains is, will Taper Rob stream Dead and Company and Phil Shows at the same time? I wouldn’t put it past him.
Countdown to Lift Off my friends… See ya at The Garden!

Dead To The Core,

Dean Sottile (pronounced So Tilly)