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    marye
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    So twice in the last week I've gotten into conversations with folks who were pretty intense Deadheads back in the day, and their general drift was look, the band no longer exists, they haven't played for 12 years. It is so Over. Get on with your life. Which, of course, is a perfectly reasonable point of view. And yet, here we are. And "we" includes people who never saw the band in the first place but definitely consider themselves on the bus now. So what's up with this? Why are we here? Discuss...

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  • dadof2boys
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    JERRY lives on....
    dadof2boys
  • DireWolf_81
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    It Will Never Be Over
    I only seen the Grateful Dead 5 Times and That was over 12 years ago but the Dead still live strong in me.I say as long as peaple play there music it will always live,as long as we have there music it will live and as long as we love there music it will live.Its like a good book that we pass down to the next generation.The only thing that really bothers me is that "The Dead" are not touring,what happend they were doing so well in 2003 & 2004,it seemed like every thing was clicking and going so smooth.The band was playing almost as good as they were when the Grateful Dead were at there peek.No one will be able to replace Jerry and I dont want them to but the music should go on.The 4 guys who are alive should be together playing so the younger crowd can injoy them and get an idea of what it was like,It might not be as big as it once was but we might never know either if they dont try.I just want to see them together again cuz they do put on a good show and yes Rat-Dog & Phill & friends are good but its not anything like it is when its Phill Bobby Micky and Bill.We go see The Dead & there are three parts to the show which we dont get seeing Just Phill or Bobby.We get the first set then the first half of the second set the second half of the second set.If i rember right they said not to let the music die and in the majority of us its far from dead,Thats why I dont understand why there not together.Who knows how long they have to,they should be playing as much as they can together or at least tour in the summer together and do a mimi tour in the winter.Like in the winter do 3 in cali & then do a show in Chicago then P.A. then N.Y. and so on.My younger brother loves the Dead and he just got into them a year ago he is 17 years old and he never saw them live and I am afraid he may never get to.This is what I mean by passing it down to the younger genaration.I didnt care for the Grateful Dead intill my cuz dragged me along with her and I was a Head after that,The weird thing was that I got into the show cuz of Weir and Phill cuz Bobby was moving all around get down to the music and he went over by Phill and then Phill & Bobby just started to get down for a few minutes,I mean bobby was jamming and Phill was dropping the bass note down hard and I just got sucked in.Then I wanted to go to the next show so I hit up my bank grabed,grabed some cash and the next night they were all on unlike the night before were Jerry didnt seem with it and this night is the night that jerrys Guitar just set me on fire.Like I said The Dead are far from being over. Have A Grateful Day, DireWolf_81
  • drewstar11
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    It is over without Jerry....but from the ash of the Phoenix....
    The tear of the Phoenix has healing powers. When the magnificent bird becomes to tired and weak it bursts into flames and from the ashes a new creature is born. The Harry Potter point here is that there is no more Grateful Dead and has not been since Jerry Garcia passed away on the saddest August day. There is, and as long as those who enjoy the music and the philosophy of a collective mind believe it to be so and, more importantly, MAKE it so. There was nothing like a Grateful Dead Show. NOTHING. But there is no reason that from the off-shoots, the musical followers and fans that cannot build the next generation back better and stonger than before. The bickering and cursing that occurs among the fans is the dark side. The light is the music, the passion and the creativity that early Grateful Dead inspired. It is the dedication and hope that the middle and later years of the Grateful Dead delivered. The light is what keeps us writing, singing, painting and talking about the band, the times and the future. Wheter we choose to see the glass as half full, half empty or just a broken cup - as long as we make it so, it is ours to behold. Believe it if you need it, or leave it if you dare.Bless you for reading this.
  • Debz
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    the music carries on
    Whoever said that? haven't they heard of recorded music????? of course everything changes but the tunes and the spirit remain the same.............. of course our lives carry on & we cannot be stuck in the past - our past leads to our present........... There are some cool live bands out there now - phew! - otherwise it would be really crap for all of us & especially young people who are setting out on their music trails For me the dead can't be beaten in terms of good tunes, hours of music with fab guitar solos, some deep and meaningful lyrics along with some high times and laughs I will ALWAYS listen to the dead - why stop now? they lift my spirit & can get me thru stuff.......... All the music i've listened to & gigs I ve been to over the years (not just the dead) are part of me & I am glad for those experiences. It doesn't mean we can't still have more now.............just different
  • joshpbs
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    Young Dead Head
    I started listening to the dead last year around this time. I heard Sugar magnolia and it was one of the most beautiful sounds I ever heard. I dove head first into dead history and culture. I started listening to ratdog and phil and friends. I discovered many other bands like SCI and others. Even though the dead broke up and I will never get a chance to see them, I will still live my life and they will be a part of it.
  • uncle john deadhead
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    life
    my life will always have the dead in it. whether i'm listening to a show, or a song on the radio or humming a line from a song. they have been a huge part of my adult life and they will go my grave with me. i met someone recently who never saw a show in his life yet starts every morning with a couple of songs on his stereo and in his car. he told me that it helps kick start his day, puts him in a good mood and gets him thru the day. the music will live for as long as we want it to. sure, i miss seeing them and i'm not fond of bobby and rat dog shows but i cannot not have them being a part of me. they touched my core a long time ago in jersey city and i have never lost that feeling and hope i never do. my only wish is that bobby and phil could put aside their differences and put the family back together again and hit the road. jerry may not be there but the music would be.
  • dhanner
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    on with the show
    i have been a deadhead for over 25 years. i can never let go. i go see whats left of the Dead, Phil and friends, Ratdog. The reason being is its as close as I can get to what I have loved for so long. I caught the 04 Dead tour, loved it. The thing about Ratdog I have noticed since they formed is the music is getting slower and jazzier as time goes by.It doesnt do it for me.Im not going to no more RD shows this year.Maybe next year. I have heard that Phil wont share the stage with Bob again.Im not sure of the whole story ,but would like to see the Dead get back together again. Billy wont you come out and play!!!!!
  • Greg SC
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    Jerry tribute
    Yeah, I was kind of thinking of a similar thing. It would be neat to take some of the video on tape, have a computer generate a hologram image of Jerry, then have the Dead do a tour with Jerry actually on stage in the form of a hologram. Obviously the guitar tracks would have to be isolated from the many multi-track recordings in the vault. But it would be pretty wild. Even if he just came out for the second set, or something like that. The problem I guess is that for some reason the "Dead" are no longer touring. I caught them in Charlotte in August '04, and couldn't understand why they called it quits. They were great. Greg SC
  • Ursa Minor
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    RE: life after dead
    Howdy folks, I think the best thing out there is this website and David Gan's radio show of the Grateful Dead. There will never be another band like the Grateful Dead, but the psychedelic aspect will always be present in somebody's music. I recently went to see the police and walking in my footsteps was very psychedelic in my opinions, sure it wasn't drums/space but Sting and the sidemen knew what they're doing in taking the music somewhere. I really got dis-enfranchised with the scene by 1995. I got tired of all the folks who attended shows NOT for the music but for everything else, frat boys, activists, dealers both legal and illegal. I simply wanted to go to a concert, not really a festival. Sure, there were lots of good folks there , but it was getting out of hand, and if Garcia didn't pass there probably would have to be a hiatus at some point. I really wanted to hear a studio album, beucase there was going to be so much good music on that album. I really would like some audio engineers to try to isolate some of jerry's tracks from any multi-track live recording and try to make that last album with the rest of the band. Sure , everybody would call it a sell out, but I'll buy it; oops I forgot about vince, they'll have to do it with "long way to go home" . That was a great song becuase Garcia got to do the role that he hasn't done since the days of pig pen, accompanyment striaght forward...I think my fav is deer creek 93 for long way to go home. Garcia's guitar playing was really good on that tune. Ursa Minor I wish that for just one time, You could stand inside my shoes, and for just that one moment, I could be you - Bob Dylan, Positively 4th St.
  • AnotherBear
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    Comparison
    Mozart is also not actually around now either, and yet you rarely hear people suggest that those who like Mozart (Powdered-Wig Heads?) "get over it". The point is to try and be happy and help others do the same during the brief moment in the sun that we have. If something makes you happy and hurts no one else, it is in my opinion a good thing. If someone doesn't want to be part of that well I wish them luck on their chosen path.
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So twice in the last week I've gotten into conversations with folks who were pretty intense Deadheads back in the day, and their general drift was look, the band no longer exists, they haven't played for 12 years. It is so Over. Get on with your life. Which, of course, is a perfectly reasonable point of view. And yet, here we are. And "we" includes people who never saw the band in the first place but definitely consider themselves on the bus now. So what's up with this? Why are we here? Discuss...
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There's nothing wrong with being proud of, or preferring the music of your younger days. In fact, most of the music of the '60s-'70s-early '80's was better than most of the music of the last 20 years. But when I do hear something I like, like Arcade Fire's Neon Bible, or some other good stuff on Austin City Limits, it makes me especially enthusiastic and hopeful for the future. I wouldn't call being hooked-in to a lot of the popular music of the moment a critical asset!
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It's All Over Now? I beg to differ. If you have been to see Furthur then you know the boys in the band are still out there. In fact, they are again starting up a whole new interest from younger folks in their 20s and 30s who missed out on all the fun back "in the day." Mickey & Billy are out there somewhere on the road, with their various pick-up bands and projects also. But they seem a bit more transient as they forever shift between various line-ups. Of course, it is all over now as far as Letting The Good Times Roll and mass experiments in consciousness-raising. That is over now. Jerry passed and maybe it was time for the experiment to end. Which isn't to say that you can't do some exploring of inner space on your own. i find it fantastic to see the wide and diverse array that the deadheads have become. It is so over now and yet it is not. Clear, some have not gone Furthur enough and are still pushing their trips to the edge. Bravo Brothers & Sisters! We will survive. In fact we have survived and are thriving. So get over it, you who are "it's so over!"!
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as the lyricists said back in the day, new ones coming as the old ones go. Or, the future's here, we are it, we are on our own. I mean, just the other day my godson the college student was pointing his parents' Deadhead pals to his latest digitally remixed rendition of Speedway. The music has worked its way into all kinds of corners of life, and the four surviving guys seem to keep finding interesting stuff to do, and people keep finding it interesting enough to follow. Meanwhile, new people keep discovering the old stuff, too. It's good to be along for the ride, or portions thereof.
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...cause I consider myself a bigger DH now than what I was from 89-95. It's sad but back then I thought being a deadhead mean't wearing tie-dyes and patchoulie and being stoned out of my fucking skull all the time. Of course I was between 17 and 25 at the time so perhaps I can be forgiven. Now being a deadhead means just listening to good music and to keep trying to be a good/kind person. I don't have the time to go on tour with Furthur or whoever else. I don't wear tie-dyes or get stoned anymore. And life is grand.
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until something more formal comes along:http://www.jambands.com/news/2012/02/13/bob-weir-warren-haynes-chris-robinson-jackie-greene-and-more-will-help-phil-lesh-open-terrapin-crossroads/ Published: 2012/02/13 Bob Weir, Warren Haynes, Chris Robinson, Jackie Greene and More Will Help Phil Lesh Open Terrapin Crossroads Phil Lesh has confirmed the opening run of shows at his new venue and restaurant Terrapin Crossroads. Lesh will perform in a number of different configurations throughout March and April, including gigs with Bob Weir, Jackie Greene, Chris Robinson, Jimmy Herring, Jaz Sawyer, Jeff Chimenti, Larry Campbell, Teresa Williams and Warren Haynes......
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I missed the P& F webcast last night, but here's the setlist: Althea Scarlet Begonias -> Fire On The Mountain Saint Stephen > Layla Cryptical Envelopment -> Magic Bus -> The Other One > I Know You Rider E: Unbroken Chain GDTRFB
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the music is what keeps it from being over. example jim morrison died in 1971, but the bands popularity with younger fans(im 20 so im in that boat as well) never went away. i love the dead, and so do most of my friends. so it aint over and it will not be over. flower children are still everywhere. plus lets not forget we have bands like phish too.
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Interesting. Life after Dead. Never posted here. The Grateful Dead is Still Rocking and Jamming. It just has different letters in Its' name now. Oh and a number too. Nothings changed. Life after Dead well I will let you know when we get there, if I am here then. Tomorrow Never Knows. I love you, all. It's still true.
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its quaint that sometimes i hear whispered in the background you know she used to be a dh just because i dont run around in tie dyes and the hipster hippy attire or pack my bags at a drop of the hat to play vagabond for a couple months. its assumedthat the dead is part of my past only something i used to do,but that is further from the truth, seeing shows and going on tour was only part of the picture the music was and is the mainstay, and although ill not see jerry again it doesnt stop the music nor creativity that is and will be immortal bliss what ended was just the bizarre sideshow tours became near the end when shakedown street became more like a dirty boulevard., after 92 it actually started to be a scary world out there and touring lost its appeal. my only regret was that i didnt go to more shows in the last years but made up for it,since then by seeing alot more of bob phil and mickey and many other great preformers and smile everytime something new comes on the radio that i can put my finger on and say wow you can hear the dead influence in that song. btw my favorite is a jerry tune only heard preformed live once in all my tours that u robert hunter for making it possible.and jerry for belting it out that night, and know what i found the keys to the rain afterall.the dead wasnt a lifestyle for me it was a journey and lordy be it was a long strange trip.with many roads still left to go.
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Hermann Hesse wrote a book titled Journey to the East, the theme of which is that while we are active participants in something we feel it is vibrant and happening but once we drop out of the thing we feel it has stopped for everyone, no matter if it remains as active and progressive for all other participants. Seems to be universal, in my experience.
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The time go? I remember being in the parking lot of a show reading a letter from the band with the usual stuff about people without tickets. The warning at the end was "When this stops ain't nothing going to bring it back." But then Jerry went to the limit and that seemed to effect the boys in the band quite a bit. I can imagine that they fely like they were in their prime as musicians and it would be a shame to break it up. Of course the name Grateful Dead was retired, as it should have been but the rest of the members of the band continued unabated. There was a period of a couple years of mourning but by 97' the Furthur Festival was back on tour as well as Ratdog and Phil & Friends shows and various side projects by the drummers. They drifted somewhat apart and to me,the closest they ever got to being back together was the 2002 Other Ones lineup that had Phil & Bruce returning with Baracco on lead. Mickey really stepped up to organize the playing and it was awesome. In 2002 the parking lot scene was still very reminiscent of a Dead show with very quality tie-dyes and other official and unofficial merch. out there. There wasn't the burnt edge of hard drugs being readily available among heads following the tour that became very evident in 2003-2004 as The Dead reunited. Then a few more years of going their separate ways and then one more tour as The Dead in 2009. Now we have Furthur for over three years thanks to Phil's transplant (Happy belated birthday Phil). The point is the scene had quality musicians and momentum and the musicians remaining seem to be willing to carry this body of music to their own deaths. And we can all remain around for the ride for as long or little as we like. Let the naysayers neg. on this one if they want. Jerry is gone along with the Grateful Dead but the music goes on and on and on and from this vantage point I see one or another of the boys carrying on for at least 5 more years. Dedication to The Heart Of Gold Band. You have to be Grateful
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They are out, both on MOFI, who are hot right, I am listening to MOFI's SACD of The ABB's "Brothers and Sisters", sounds so exquisite. They have now released "Workingman's Dead" and "American Beauty". Why isn't there a HDCD of "Mars Hotel" anywhere? Well,groovin' to "Jelly,Jelly"
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I've been reading in several news articles about a fan club pre sale on feb 9-11 but there's no information confirming that on the dead50 site or the gdtstoo site. I'm a member of several GD fan clubs but am not receiving any emails or info on a presale from them. Does anyone have more info? Thanks brothers and sisters, see you in chi town. Di
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◾Dead pre sale begins Feb 12th @ 10 a.m. CST via Dead Online Ticketing. Pre-registration is encouraged, but not required. Before checking out, all users must create an account after tickets are added and before completing the transaction.
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It not JUST about the shows,it's a way of life.It's about Peace,Love,Harmony,Music,Family,and telling those youngsters how it was and can be again.I'm 61,seen everybody from Areosmith to Z Z Top.I have played( drums) for fun & professionally.Most of the people I hang out with are 30-40 years younger than I am.I'm the "Old Hippie" that tells stories of huge gatherings of people from all walks of life to come and hear music and dance in the isles.That there was no black,brown,yellow or white there was only US a peaceful group of like minded individuals. I tell them we don't need no stinkin' guns.Spread the love,share the music,get involved,stand up against social injustice,Make A Difference.Pass those stories of awesome gathering and great shows on to the younger generation and have them pass it along.Is Hendrix,Janis, The Dead & Led Zeppelin still relevant? .........HELL YES Peace The Dude
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well, based on the phenomenal interest in Fare Thee Well before,during AND after both runs, I'd say this question is a bit premature. But if you're over it, that works for you. (the generalized "you" of course)
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It's safe to say FTW put a different aspect on things...
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....don't hear her singing yet..... that's just Donna ;-)
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Howdy folks, Been a .com member for a long time, but never had much to say...until Fare The Well. Put out for ppv for the first time for the last concert. Best 50 bucks I ever spent. It was profound for me. The Dead have been the sound track of my life since '65 and my wife and me from '72-'12. She would have liked this concert. Wait until November for the cd/dvd release? I'll never make it! Have some good video and instrument, but yet to find a good vocal video. The second set YouTube share of the complete second set from Zoe Alyse is the only video set I've found and the crowd sounds damp the vocals...like if you were there; the vibe is like live. Got the whole soundboard audio, no vid. YouTube is new to an old codger like me. Only Dead vids drew me in and then, not until I got a Roku Streaming Stick to access YouTube on my TV. High recommendation for a really inexpensive entertainment add-on. Just know you don't stream from your device to the TV, you get to access stuff you have "in the Cloud", which is pretty cool getting my Pandora and YouTube playlists played over good speakers and get that body feel and not just audio in my head. You can get me at rickpucko@yahoo.com also.
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I think not..for some maybe, but not me.September will be my third straight Lockn Music Festival in VA! Great fun Great vibes Great shows! Phil, Billy with their current bands this year...Bobby the last two as well. Also had the opportunity to meet and converse with Sam Cuttler (former band mgr) last year. Who knows what lies ahead unless you go furthur... Check out the 4 day schedule..so many great reasons to stay on the bus! iGrateful
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I never saw Jerry. I have a fear of buses and basically anything that resembles an "us". A friend tells me last December "Listen to an Althea" I was moved. Then I came here and found a beautiful family. I was blessed to be able to attend all 5 FTW shows. I was changed forever. Am I on the bus? Am I a Dead Head? I don't know but I am honored to share this earth with such a beautiful group of human beings.
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I have come to embrace the fact that the 'Grateful Dead' is an entity that lives on in all those incredible songs. They have an enduring quality that continues to have meaning for people. They really were Built To Last! Listening to Stu Allen rip it up at the last Jerry Day it occurred to me that Jerry's unique form of mind expanding guitar work could be thought of as a sort of spiritual or wisdom tradition wherein in a lineage of great guitar players could keep the music alive far into the future. I think any so called Head who has decided 'it's over' probably never really went to shows for the music anyway. Not that there weren't a thousand other good reasons to go, I guess. I can understand people not wanting to look back and there's a hell of a lot of great music out there to sustain them. Hey, each to their own.