Music in the Sub-Sequential Era of the Grateful Dead

By -
July 3rd, 10:15 a.m., blinds shut, lights off, yet solitude remains but a distant memory. Last nights endeavors weighing heavy on my lethargically warped brain. Through the splitting headache of yesterday’s mistakes remains a mysterious level of gratitude and sanctity. The Grateful Dead’s run may be coming to an end at the crest of the weekend, but thanks to their longwinded diligence remains a divine manifestation of music and subsequent outpouring of new bands. Artists have flooded into Chicago from all over the country to take part in this extraordinary weekend. Furthermore, it’s remarkably clear that much of today’s music has been derived and developed thanks to the musical contribution of the Grateful Dead. 

Like it or not one of the biggest touring bands in the country, Phish unfolded and blossomed during the last days of the Grateful Dead in the early 90’s and then ballooned their following with the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995. That was a revolutionary point in time for the jam-band music scene, as everything changed all was simultaneously recreated. Phish toured extensively for another decade until beginning their hiatus in 2004, which lasted 5 solid years until reforming in 2009. Much of their success and sustainability is owed to the Dead. 

Weekend festivities kicked off at the Chicago Theatre with Keller William’s Grateful Grass (with Infamous Stringdusters) and Greensky Bluegrass. Keller and the Dusters began the show with a non-stop train of bluegrass infused Dead tunes. Here’s the Dead soaked setlist:

Jack Straw 
Brown Eyed Women 
Candyman  
Cold Rain & Snow 
Feel Like A Stranger 
Big River 
Cumberland (They Love Each Other tease) 
Mr Charlie (Bird Song teases) 
On The Road Again 
He’s Gone
Samson & Delilah 
Scarlet Begonias

Scarlet Begonias was a bittersweet end to the set as Keller’s time on stage had come to an end. It felt as if things would only decline from there, but Greensky Bluegrass took the stage and delivered a ripping array of tunes. As the band played faster the people danced harder and you could feel the warmth and gratitude as the soaring cheers encompassed the majestic Chicago Theatre. Anticipation for a weekend of joy and exuberance lofted and transmitted through the air with wild authenticity. The future of music in the post Grateful Dead era may seem dim and petty but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This is a weekend to say goodbye to the Grateful Dead and hello to the future. Lots more to come as all the hoopla is merely beginning. Here’s Greensky’s setlist:

Julius
Demons
Kerosene
Wings For Wheels
Leap Year
The Four
Hit Parade Of Love
Jaywalking 
Windshield 
I’d Probably Kill You
Don’t Lie >
Eyes of The World >
Don’t Lie

Encore (with everyone)
Black Muddy River
That’s What Love Will Make You Do >
Franklin’s Tower 


See you down the road…


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dead & Company: The 2017 Planning For Retirement Tour (And Show Statistics)

By -
Image
        Yes, it’s undoubtedly a money grab. Posters with dead bears, strung out on meth for $70  http://i.imgur.com/lbuOZEi.jpg , childish varsity style jackets for $300, even the hippies on shakedown street are gouging for a veggie burrito, minus the veggies of course, because the power hungry policemen shut them down.  Yes, there is tension in the band, Bobby yelling at Bill and Mickey time after time, in hopes they’ll keep the fucking time. It makes you wonder though, at some point you’d think Bob would realize his efforts are a lost cause. In Bob’s eyes they haven’t been able to keep the beat in over fifty years. Night two at Shoreline, during Fire on the Mountain, Bob’s belting out the line “takes all you got just to stay on the beat” while turning around and glaring, like Bill had sex with his daughter.  Yes, the boys are using the tour to settle down and pay for their imminent retirement, meanwhile paying for John Mayer’s next five generations of kin.  All that aside, n
Read more

The Definition of Love: Dead & Company's 2017 Tour

By -
Image
Everyone remembers their first. It seems like only yesterday, because I remember it so well. My connection to the Grateful Dead came of the non-traditional manner. I was surely aware of them during my high-school days, but for whatever reason I spent most of my time deep in drug abuse, searching for anything that might circumvent the hole in my heart. I fell deep into bands like Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, but I tasted barely a hint of the Grateful Dead.  A few years after high school and the subsequent debacle that followed, I found myself sitting outside during a damp and dreary winter day in Newport Beach, California. I was sitting anxiously on the abrasive cement fence, wondering why I was still alive? I was back in rehab again. Just a month before that I was betting frivolously at a roulette table, in God only knows what casino, somewhere amongst the wretched Las Vegas strip. I woke up one morning and realized I had to get out of there. I had a definite drinking pro
Read more

Dead and Company Boulder 6/9 Review

By -
Image
Sometimes its hard to know how you feel about things. I came rocking into the mile high city, having been fortunate enough to see the band’s first six shows, skipping Utah and catapulting on in to Boulder. Walking around lot this afternoon I had a nice chat with a stranger from Austin, Texas. We got to talking about what shows have been the best and his overall sentiment regarding Dead and Company. He stammered on about how he heard the Hollywood Bowl shows have been the best thus far and I responded by stating how subjective the whole experience truly is. This subjective experience is really what makes the whole thing wildly beautiful. I walked away from tonight’s show angry with the company I keep and rather befuddled by the lackadaisical show the band put out. Beyond all that drama, I realized how much I love this band, because I am truly unable to hear criticism about the band, like I’m actually a fucking member. We begin shaping our experience of the show merely by the way
Read more