• 124 replies
    clayv
    Default Avatar
    Joined:

    A stirring conclusion to the Grateful Dead's three-decade career, music filled with adventure and possibility, big questions, big punchlines, and cosmic wisdom...

    Maybe you were lucky enough and caught a glimpse of what might have been. You swayed to the unfamiliar, floating along with an unknown melody, joining in for a chorus when you felt confident you had it down. Maybe you jotted a fat question mark in your meticulous setlist, certain you'd figure it out before the next show, anticipating a formal introduction in due time.

    As if their repertoire wasn't tall enough to reach the endless sky, the band began adding new tunes to their sets in 1992, working them into "quintessential Grateful Dead romps," with the intention of a new studio album. By the mid-90s, they set out recording with the wisdom of Willie Dixon's blues, Neil Young's fuzzed-out guitar, newcomer Vince Welnick's tried-and-true sketches, and Bobby reunited with Robert Hunter on a duo that had quickly become fan-favorites. Alas, it was not meant to be. Until now.

    We proudly present READY OR NOT, nine unreleased live versions of late-period Grateful Dead songs that debuted in 1992 and 1993, a reflection of what could have been the band's next official studio album.

    Due November 22nd, READY OR NOT will be available on CD, as a 180-gram 2-LP set, limited to 10,000 copies, and of course, digitally as a download and for streaming.

    Looking for that Dead.net exclusive? We've got you covered with an exclusive colored vinyl version of the -2LP set with one red LP and one blue LP, limited to just 2,000 copies. And we'll hit you with that hi-res digital audio too.

Comments

sort by
Recent
Reset
  • LedDed
    Joined:
    So what if the cartoon cover…

    So what if the cartoon cover art is pure cheese and evokes Evel Knievel?

    I'm going against what's trending and upon arrival I'll pop it in
    the car Kenwood and rock out.

    Admitted fan of Samba In The Rain.

    Hunter wrote the words to that one... if nothing else, it was a fresh
    take, some kind of demented path forward to new Dead at the time.

    It's not like it's a piece of shit, like Looks Like Rain or some Phil
    abomination. Donna Jean's atonal shrieking... don't get me
    started.

    Days Between and Corrina I also dig... Bobby sang a beautiful
    Days Between in Boulder this past summer.

    I know I'm a man alone on an island, but I rarely listen to Dead
    shows in continuity... I have the solo Garcia albums, actual
    Grateful Dead, Bob solo, Billy and Mickey's shit, Dead & Co.,
    Grayfolded, tribute albums, bootlegs etc. all in one giant
    iTunes folder and I play that on 'shuffle' endlessly.

    I also burn cd's like that and play them in the car. It could one
    day be a 1966 Viola Lee Blues followed by John Mayer running
    into Bickershaw leading into a nice segue of the Brown Eyed
    Women off Get Shown The Light... personally, that is the
    penultimate Jerry Garcia solo right there. He nails both runs
    on the dime. Garcia doesn't get his due as a guitar hero,
    probably because he was off so much.

    But when he was on, well...

    So, I figure I'll drop this little nugget into the mix and the
    right song will come up at the right time.

    Peace, all.

    \m/

  • Sketty
    Joined:
    Ready or Not

    Uh...I hope the other cuts are little livelier than Lazy River Road. Aside from that- as nice as it is to hear Jerry's voice- it just don' sound so good.

  • DoubleT
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    Good for them. Cool idea…

    Good for them. Cool idea. Wish they would have found some unfinished studio versions and finished them up if possible. Neat to document with some definitive versions. Not easy to go find clean verisons with complete lyrics and without big mistakes. Always loved the big ending on the Pittsburgh 1992 "So Many Roads" but weren't all the verses more or less butchered? Will have to revisit that one.

  • blofish
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    pass unfortunately

    Bought most everything offered but gonna pass on this one, not a big fan of most of those songs. Holding out for the super deluxe, full concert re-issue, anniversary in honor of Dick's passing, re-release of Dick's Picks #1. Either that or a concert-a-month-from-the-vault monthly subscription.

  • bob t
    Joined:
    Ready or No

    No no no................. Not even a consideration.... Didn't even look into it, is this a Rhino release or outside their realm and is a Dead release. Please enjoy if you are into it...

  • rbmunkin
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    Again, who wrote each song!

    Who wrote these songs?! Garcia/Hunter? Weir/Barlow? Who wrote each song?

  • ChristianLaw
    Joined:
    Money saved

    Major pass.

    And that cover art is single-handedly thee worst in all the years of Dead releases.

  • Happy Will
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    Lack of postage options for the vinyl might just have made ...

    the decision for me. Alas no postage options availble for the Vinyl to the UK :)

    weirdly I was hoping for the Avalon Jan '69 Vinyl box set the coincide with Live/Dead 50th anniversary.

  • PatagonianFox
    Joined:
    Not really what I had in mind.

    What can I say? This release is sort of an enigma. I’m not really sure who would find it appealing. This release features a bunch of the Grateful Dead’s worst songs recorded at the end of the band”s tenure. I’m not against 90’s releases. This just isn’t it.

    ———

  • Catch Colt
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    Well, it sounds good to me…

    Well, it sounds good to me. Great recording of the Lazy River Road sample track. It's the closest we're going to get to what could have been the next studio album. So, GD ordering sets out early but it takes its time . . . This should have been released twenty years ago - an extra week or two is nothing. :-)

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

6 years 7 months

A stirring conclusion to the Grateful Dead's three-decade career, music filled with adventure and possibility, big questions, big punchlines, and cosmic wisdom...

Maybe you were lucky enough and caught a glimpse of what might have been. You swayed to the unfamiliar, floating along with an unknown melody, joining in for a chorus when you felt confident you had it down. Maybe you jotted a fat question mark in your meticulous setlist, certain you'd figure it out before the next show, anticipating a formal introduction in due time.

As if their repertoire wasn't tall enough to reach the endless sky, the band began adding new tunes to their sets in 1992, working them into "quintessential Grateful Dead romps," with the intention of a new studio album. By the mid-90s, they set out recording with the wisdom of Willie Dixon's blues, Neil Young's fuzzed-out guitar, newcomer Vince Welnick's tried-and-true sketches, and Bobby reunited with Robert Hunter on a duo that had quickly become fan-favorites. Alas, it was not meant to be. Until now.

We proudly present READY OR NOT, nine unreleased live versions of late-period Grateful Dead songs that debuted in 1992 and 1993, a reflection of what could have been the band's next official studio album.

Due November 22nd, READY OR NOT will be available on CD, as a 180-gram 2-LP set, limited to 10,000 copies, and of course, digitally as a download and for streaming.

Looking for that Dead.net exclusive? We've got you covered with an exclusive colored vinyl version of the -2LP set with one red LP and one blue LP, limited to just 2,000 copies. And we'll hit you with that hi-res digital audio too.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

7 years 2 months
Permalink

I received the vinyl today, but no download. I contacted customer service (very friendly) and the woman informed me that I would receive an email with the hi-res download code in the next two or three days.

Thx for the info. I was coming to say the same, my vinyl arrived today but no download code.

Spinning side 3 now. Its a good release, and def not quite like anything else in the catalog.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

No download codes but will wait for the email. Thanks for the news there, John 64! I cant open the LP it is a gift, but the download is all mine!

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 1 month
Permalink

Cool to see some of these tunes get a live release (Lazy River, Eternity, Easy Answers).

Some of these tunes I enjoyed immediately when I heard them: So Many Roads, Lazy River Road, and Liberty fall into that category. And though the lyrics are nerfed, So Many Roads gave me chills here.

Some songs I could get into as they were played, but was never really excited to hear them at the start. Days Between, Corrina, and Way to Go Home fall into that category. I enjoy Days Between a LOT these days and now consider it classic/mastetpiece level Hunter/Garcia and this version is stellar. More chills.

The last group are songs I sometines really struggled with live. Samba I deemed to cheesey, Eternity too simplistic, and a friend of mine dubbed Easy Answers "cheesey dancers" and it just stuck in my head.

But the Answers here is pretty rocking (most rocking song on the release), and Samba & Eternity are just fine.

Not crazy about the artwork or the fact that the Roads has lyrical issues, but neither thing is a big deal in my view. I mean, I confess I really do not understand those who get their panties in a bunch when a release has songs with lyrical issues. I mean, they blow lyrics ALL THE TIME. Though for this type of release, I get the beef more.

Good liner notes save for the In the Dark/Built to Last screw up. And great production value. Solid B for me.

Really dug the scope/variety in eras for the 2019 releases.

YMMV.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

15 years 10 months
Permalink

This post is coming from a huge fan of Brents tenure with the band. That said, I'm not comparing the two, but rather defending the torch carried by Vince as well as Vince in his own style. I just purchased (Ready or Not) and listened to "Way To Go Home" from (Deer Creek Music Center, Noblesville, IN 6/28/92). It's ok. Then I'm on the website this morning listening to the same song from Orchard Park, NY 6/13/93 on a live video posted. Why was that version not selected for the disc?!! Way more in tune and a more orchestrated version with an additional year for the band to be in sync with it.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

My pet peeve. Starts its journey in Tennessee, then travels East to Ohio, then travels multiple states west to Illinois, then wherever the actual f#ck before traveling north to Michigan. Why can't it go straight from Tennessee > Indiana > Michigan or Tennessee > Ohio > Michigan? Stupid routing.

Back in the Dick's Picks days these would always arrive on or before the release date. Should've been here by now. Stupid.

user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

I'm enjoying the hell out this record. We all know that in the 90's when they went no amps on stage-fully digital-in ear monitors the mix could sound pretty crispy and un-blended. To me this is a continuation of Without a Net and Europe 72, as in the mix is pretty glossy and dressed up. It's really warm, and they created a new, unique virtual space with studio trickery. Liberty is up there in the classics for me. Didn't used to be, but over time it means more because the word liberty means more. Also, songs about aging and bygone eras like So Many Roads and Days Between really resonate. Lazy River Road has such a unique relaxed and loving mood, and Jerry's vocals are up in the mix on this one. Corrina is a super trippy futuristic dance tune that I was always happy to hear at a show. Samba in the Rain has an awesome solo section that modulates keys enough to keep it interesting for Jerry. Its a ii-V jam like the end of You Enjoy Myself, which is a jammer's Dorian/Mixolydian dream, and a standard chord change that no one but Vince would bring in. Way to Go Home could have been a hit for the Eagles or Glen Frey. Great bridge into the solo section. These are my shows, as when I went to see the Dead the Touchheads looked at me as the new guy!!! I feel that they were creating until the end, and if you listen carefully you can see what they are going for. They could never stay exactly the same. I've been wishing for years for a release like this. I haven't posted for awhile, but I was so excited by the amazing new mix on these tracks I couldn't keep it to myself. Plus my wife doesn't want to hear about it...

user picture

Member for

7 years 8 months
Permalink

I hate to mention that word, but I no longer buy from Dead.net if I can get it fulfilled by amazon. Not only are they cheaper, they're efficient and transparent, something Dead.net sorely lacks. I ordered a pair of shorts over a month ago, the transaction posted to my account back then and my order status is stuck on "processing." I've received zero response to my report of a faulty DaP 31 disc months ago... oh and this release arrived on the release date - from amazon.

I used to bag on people for bickering on here... I mean this as more helpfully suggestive than negative. Sooner or later, they'll sort my issues out. But it's gone rapidly downhill as evidenced by all the comments with each release.

Can't believe they're plugging Christmas gifts again. Good luck with that! Maybe order for Christmas 2020.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

Mines been sitting in Illinois for 3 days. That was after routing through multiple states. Supposedly arriving tomorrow. Should have been here a week ago.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

4 years 11 months
Permalink

I usually love most recent releases and subscribe to Dave’s Picks, but this release has to be nothing but a “money grab”. I think the only qualification to make this legit was to make sure two discs were needed. Every Garcia song has multiple lyrical flubs, you really think these were the best available versions? Easily surpassing selections IMO are Way To Go Home, Lazy River Road and Corrina Set 2 from the Rosemont 3/10/93. And they are nicely played in succession. Jerry plus minor lyrical flubs usually = good version. Shame on you.

user picture

Member for

7 years

In reply to by giantnerd

Permalink

Any vinyl purchasers get their promised digital downloads yet? Still waiting here. A little ridiculous this wasn't provided on release day.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

7 years 2 months
Permalink

After not receiving an email with the promised downloads that were supposed to accompany the hi-res files, I called customer service again - spoke to Nelson (also very pleasant) - and got a different story. Now they are saying that the hi-res downloads are not included. I said that if you look at the ad for the red/blue LP's, it clearly says that "we'll hit you with hi-res too" but he is saying that phrase refers to the hi-quality of the vinyl. Of course since red/blue is sold out, I can find the original ad for that. He said many people had misinterpreted. Sound like crap to me. I wouldn't have paid the extra if it didn't include the downloads and I read the product description carefully.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

7 years 2 months
Permalink

Ok - found in my in-box, here was the original advertisement"

We proudly present READY OR NOT, nine unreleased live versions of late-period Grateful Dead songs that debuted in 1992 and 1993, a reflection of what could have been the band's next official studio album.
Due November 22nd, READY OR NOT will be available on CD, as a 180-gram 2-LP set, limited to 10,000 copies, and of course, digitally as a download and for streaming.
Looking for that Dead.net exclusive? We've got you covered with an exclusive colored vinyl version of the 2-LP set with one red LP and one blue LP, limited to just 2,000 copies. And we'll hit you with that hi-res digital audio too.

That last line - "and we'll hit you with that hi-res digital audio "too" sure sounds like it is included. Thoughts?

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

8 years 4 months
Permalink

Regarding 30T Music Only boxsets: You're lucky they didn't take your money. They took orders for months but did not ship a single one. I ordered a few back in July and August, and on FIVE SEPARATE OCCASSIONS they sent me the wrong orders. Each time, I eight got a single show, or Lights 6 sweatshirts each time.. where one sweatshirt or one show was supposed to be a $750 boxset. They won't talk to the warehouse people to straighten this out, give regular updates to buyers, or do anything. We just sit around waiting for boxsets that will probably never arrive. Don't ever buy from deadnet again. They are just awful!!! It's happening to everyone too and they don't seem to care enough to fix anything month after month..

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

I also Bought the Red and White Album with the condition the a Hi_rez download was part of the package. Yesterday I saw my e-mail for the download from Warner but when I came home from work It was gone. No One delated it, it was like they took it back from my in box.
Never will I trust Warner Music and buy things, there the worst

user picture

Member for

16 years 1 month
Permalink

ordered this from amazon, cheaper than deadnet, all ok, then had to cancel one day before shipping, got the confirmation and was credited the amount to cc that same day, not whenever, or never. The disc did not ship, I did not have to send it back or argue with customer service about the transaction, now that's how rhino/warner/deadnet should run things. If amazon can do it, why can't these guys?

user picture

Member for

16 years 1 month
Permalink

just give them the codes and let them download the songs, do the right thing for once. Hit them up like you said you would.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

7 years 2 months
Permalink

Gotta stick up for the folks at dead.net. After speaking with Nelson he must have raised the issue because I received the following note and download code the next morning. Believe that WMG did the right thing and also my dealings with dead.net people were very pleasant. I am reading some of the negative stuff - but have to say that they did right by me and were good to deal with. Thanks

Hello,
Thank you for purchasing the Ready Or Not 2LP through dead.net. Although we did not originally intend to include the digital download with this 2LP, we understand that the description on the product detail page may have been misleading, so we are going to make good on that and provide you with that hi-res digital audio. We apologize for the misunderstanding and hope you enjoy this album as much as we do!
Please follow these instructions to redeem the hi-res 96/24 version of Ready Or Not.

user picture

Member for

8 years 3 months
Permalink

You're my hero dude. Thanks for chasing that down. The ad very clearly stated that we were supposed to get the digital download with the red & blue vinyl. " . . . hi res DIGITAL audio TOO". I knew I wasn't the only one who thought that. Maybe that's not what they meant but its clearly what they said.

I got the email, and got my downloads.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

Does anyone know why there are no Phil songs on Ready Or Not? No Wave To The Wind, Childhood's End or If The Shoe Fits. Not that they're essential, just wondering.

user picture

Member for

5 years
Permalink

I got this the day it was released and listened to it a lot right away, went away from it for a while and put it on again recently and I've got to say I'm glad I bought it. No it's not as good as most of what they did, but it's new to me. It reminds me of John Lennon's posthumous album Milk and Honey which I got right when it came out. A little more of a good thing. No regrets - it will be in the regular rotation.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

14 years
Permalink

Pretty disappointed in this release as a fan of 1990s dead. Who is on the team of monkeys that selected the versions of these songs? Lyrical flubs everywhere, mistakes, lackluster performances and just overall mediocre. While there were always lyrical mistakes, especially in later years, anyone could easily find better versions of every one of these songs in minutes. It almost seems like the folks at dead.net these days really hate the 1990s and just pick out crappy material to justify never releasing music from the later era.

product sku
603497851287BUN
Product Magento URL
https://store.dead.net/music/ready-or-not.html