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    FennarioXRDS
    9 years 11 months ago
    Songs and Failure
    The two things that separate the Dead from other bands, IMHO, are the songs of Hunter/Garcia and thewillingness of the band to go together wherever their collective or individual inspiration led, even if it meant they sometimes got lost along the way. It was that willingness to fail on stage that freed them to achieve the transcendent moments.
  • One Man
    9 years 11 months ago
    Nail
    Y'all are hitting the nail on the head with the jamband discussion. You're saying what I've been thinking -- that most of them are too quick to go for the easy groove without enough unpredictable exploration in the rhythm section. No one does it like the GOGD and that's a big part of it. The superior songs themselves are another vital ingredient. There are exceptions of course and your mileage will certainly vary. I'll take raggedy old space case Keith Godchaux over that Furthur virtuoso any day. Interestingly, there is a parallel discussion on classical music going on back at the Dave's #11 board (if you can find it). It also favors expression over technical "perfection".
  • mustin321
    9 years 11 months ago
    Bands (Jam or Not)...it all starts with a song.
    There are tons of bands/artists that stretch out songs and improvise on stage but they are never labeled as a Jam Band or heard on the Jam Band station or whatever... Why not? Who knows/who really cares? I think the main problem is that the bands that generally fall under the "Jam Band" Umbrella aren't the best at songwriting and place most of talents in the jam part...well, it shouldn't be a surprise that if you jam out a boring song, its still going to be boring. I say this but there are some "jam bands" I like but some really are just utterly boring, to me at least. Since I'm posting this post on Dead.net, I obviously think that Garcia/Hunter & Weir/Barlow are some of the best songwriters that ever lived. There were definitely songs that were built with heavy improvising being the main purpose but, for the most part, they were trying to write nice songs and the jams came later (I know some of this was already pointed out in previous post, but its correct). Playing In The Band, Dark Star, & Thats It For The Other One all started out as nice little songs, am I right? I don't really care if a band is considered a jam band or not or jams or not...if they write a good song, I'll listen to them and go to their shows.
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17 years 9 months
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<? // pull in news from "50th Anniversary" feature type taxonomy $news = views_embed_view('story_lists', 'block_50news'); echo $news; ?>

Grateful Dead Original Members Add Two Dates To Final Concerts

April 10, 2015

The original members of Grateful Dead have announced two additional shows at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California on June 27th and 28th, as part of their “Fare Thee Well: Celebrating 50 Years of Grateful Dead” run. Along with the three shows at Chicago's Soldier Field on July 3rd, 4th, and 5th, the run will mark the original members' last-ever performances toget

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9 years 10 months
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Geo #800, great vibes my friend!!! Thanx for that big reply. And keep them coming. Gotta keep this thread going.I`ll b depressed when it wears thin. How many replies will there be by July? Anyone wanna take a guess?
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13 years 10 months
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Figured :) They only played it once. I have the complete 4/26/71 (and Ladies and Gentlemen), but I don't have 4/27. Checking it out on the Archive now - that's obviously it!
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11 years 11 months
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And here comes the mailman up the backstretch…. Good luck tomorrow to everyone still waiting!
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9 years 10 months
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high anxiety again today,waiting on the mail, last time i was this anxious for a show was Stockholm 1990 i couldn't wait for the Europe tour to begin, Stockholm wasn't a good show but the wait was memorable, i just hope i get my tickets. So what will b the first set first night opener????? if Jerry were alive i'd say Cold Rain and Snow but i think it will b a Bobby song Jack Straw is my guess
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17 years 5 months
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So, I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a case of shingles! She asked if there was anything in my life causing me stress. The only think I can think of is the daily trip to the mailbox. If I get my miracle, it will all be worth it!
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9 years 10 months
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very nice set thanks, hope to hear Viola Lee Blues in Chicago
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9 years 10 months
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no mail is very good mail , just got mail from box nothing but bills, i have never been so happy to get bills
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9 years 10 months
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Hey Thanks for posting that article on the GDTS operation. Man, seeing all those envelopes almost gets me more nervous that lots of pink slips are still gonna fly through the air this week. I guess we'll see. Be nice to see some success e-mails come out soon, but that will probably happen in one giant mass email. That will be interesting when that hits. Definitely gonna generate quite the buzz. May the four winds blow you safely home to an empty mail box...
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16 years 2 months
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HeyNow, Just wanted to wish everyone a happy Fat Tuesday!! I noticed on this years Dead calendar they forgot to put it on the calendar yet they have Presidents' Day, Ash Wednesday and Chinese New Year! I'm summing a misprint but kinda funny!! I'm finding it rather funny about fellow heads stressing about getting tickets! Been there done that and I'm happy I invested so much time and energy when it was the Grateful Dead!! I have decided this is going to be too big of a scene to deal with and have a Funtime! I will be relaxing on a sweet lake in WI enjoying family, food and some excellent Grateful Dead playing in the band!! I will be relaxed and tanned and having fun on the Fourth! I wish you all a great time in Chicago! I will eventually get a copy of the DVD they are sure to make from this event!! Yours truly, DoDa Man
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9 years 10 months
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While you wait to hear something from the GDTS folks, or see nothing from the USPS folks, here's something to mentally chew on... Many of us have had guides, gurus, soothsayers, preachers and other entities to help lead us through the maze of life. Some may say the Grateful Dead were all of these. Perhaps you have counted on the Muses for inspiration or motivation; or counted on the Grateful Dead for the like. Wikipedia says, "The Muses are the personification of knowledge and the arts, especially literature, dance and music, (and) are the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne." How about that! It all comes full circle to the Greeks. If you read, dance, or play, you might be tapping in to these very same muses. My reflection for the day: Muse is the root word in amusement, hence the title of this little missive. Take out muse, and you are left with amen and t. So that leaves us with the following: Enjoy life, tap in to your personal muse, smile, dance and sing. Amen. And remember, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, drink deep or taste not the Pierian Spring." (thanks, Alex. Pope) That means get your tails to Chicago folks. Okay, our Greek lesson is over for the day. Peace and little dancing bears for all...\o/
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9 years 9 months
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hey there Teanders999...while I will shed no tears if Box of Rain is the final song(actually I WILL SHED TEARS NO MATTER WHAT THE SONG IS)........IMHO.....I think it will be Ripple. You know.....so Jerry can take us home ;-)
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9 years 10 months
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since we sent in our envelopes, & only 11 until Ticketmaster sale date...ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! The suspense is torture! No pink slip in the mail today though, No Gnu's is good Gnu's, right? Good luck to everyone still in the mailorder, and to those preparing for Ticketmaster...Im thinking the site might crash that morning.
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11 years 11 months
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Came today. Postmarked 2/11 to CT. Oh, well…on to ticket master. I'm going regardless, I guess, but it would've been nice.
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15 years 11 months
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My MO's came back today too. Like many of you, I already have airline and hotel reservations. I only ordered one ticket for each show and it's interesting that there don't seem to be any orders being partially filled, just all or nothing. Oh well..., I was hoping to avoid the Ticketmaster feeding frenzy but I'll give it a shot and I don't really care what seat I get as long as I get through the gate. A few decades ago I might have shown up anyway, looking for a non-greedy fan with an extra ticket to sell, but in spite of some successes I found that to be unpleasant and demeaning. So, if I strike out on Ticketmaster I don't think I'll go to Chicago without tickets in hand.Good luck to the rest of you who are still waiting!!
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17 years 6 months
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My fairly educated guess is the demand is a third Deadheads, a third Phish heads, and a third scalpers. Unfortunately, I think adding Trey was a big mistake. I am very excited to see him play with the boys, but that drove every Phish head to want tickets. Many, or most, aren't Deadheads and aren't going to see the Dead. How come no Warren? If I could screen, it would be something like 'name ten dead songs or 5 dead albums'. That would weed out casual fans or scalpers. Once the hardcore heads are serviced with tix, then I would open up to all. We haven't got the rejection letter yet, so no news is good news. I guess we'll all know sooner or later. I also have a theory that the initial rejections went to people to didn't follow the seriously complicated instructions. They would do that not to exclude anyone, but just to keep logistics as smooth as possible. my last best guess - half the tickets will go to pre-sale, and half will go to public onsale on the 28th. I know many people are frustrated, but keep in mind they are doing all they can to help as man as they can. This was WAY WAY WAY underestimated. The ticket office was 6 people working out of a bedroom when on-sale started. It is now 60 people. This according to the Wall St Journal. Good luck to us all! Kevin Denver, CO
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15 years 11 months
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Soooooo disappointed didn't score 1 ticket for 1 show!!!... Wtf now what ?!#%¥•£€
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9 years 10 months
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Got my letter in the mail Tuesday. Oh well. Now I'm making lemonade. Come on ticketmaster!
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16 years
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so is there gonna be any tickets left at all feb 28? just gonna be sold out at once like all events, well it`s not a Grateful Dead concert for sure, but sure is as great as it can be 2015 and on......... still hoping...
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9 years 10 months
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Rejected almost 2weeks ago. Apart from not being on recycled paper, the ordering protocol was perfect. While recycled paper is not part of the instructions, it does say "please use". It was not first come, first served. My proximity would have my envelope their long before others. I speculate the folders to be filled have been pulled and the rejections are just being processed now. I believe it's like New Years back in the day when it was just a lottery. Maybe when it's all dione, the gdtstoo ladies will enlighten us with the secret of their selection process. Still have some hope, a friend ordered an extra & hasn't been rejected yet!
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13 years 10 months
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Reject the fact Trey is playing for the master. Just my opinion.
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13 years 10 months
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Your absolutly right about Phil should chill. Some people here didn't even see the Grateful Dead. Maybe they started in the 90s. Sorry about that kids. I grew up at and in the perfect time.
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9 years 10 months
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I guess my thoughts about this whole situation has changed since it was originally announced. At first I really thought that I should be allowed some sort of special treatment because I had gone to so many shows over the years. I had paid my dues.The more I read these comments I really started to get angry. I started thinking that "Real" fans were getting the shaft because of the way this was handled. We should be getting our shot to say good bye! It made me think back to the first time I went to a show. I didn't know a thing about the music. I simply wanted to be a part of the event and be with my friends. Little did I know that this would end up changing my life and the way I look at and listen to music, and it got me thinking that maybe it's a good thing to give that same chance to one of these non-worthy fans. Give them the same chance I had so many years ago. Give them the chance to feel the mood and the music and to smell the veggie burritos in the parking lot. Give these non worthy (joking) fans a chance to potentially change the way they listen to music. I think Jerry and the boys just might like that I haven't gotten my Pink Notice yet and God willing, I won't, but if I do, I will have different thoughts about it than a lot of people
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15 years 11 months
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No "bad" mail again, so another good day. Nice thoughts Bozwald. I have been approaching this ticket situation like this-- if mail order comes up empty, there is always Ticketmaster sale. If I don't make that, then I wasn't meant to attend. Nice extended weekend with the family instead. So far, my other friends who tried mail order (two of them) and I have not gotten the rejection. Keep hoping. It makes me think of other times I lined up for tickets from 1988-92 for Clapton and Grateful Dead. I lived in Madison, Wisconsin and La Crosse, Wisconsin and tried for tickets to many shows, mostly at Alpine Valley. So, in 1988 for Clapton, 1989 for GD and 1990 for Clapton again, I went to the TM at the mall on the west side. All three times I was second in line behind a friend that I had known since childhood (though he is a couple years older, still buds). All three times, we thought fantastic, we should get pavilion. All three times they were sold out immediately and we got lawn. We took them and were happy to be going to the shows. In 1992 for Clapton, lined up in La Crosse and was first in line-- 9th row for Milwaukee and 26th row for Minneapolis. Best tickets I ever scored for a big show. Concert tickets have always been a tough get. I guess I am saying, we just have to roll with it. Not everyone will be going to the shows. If you got the mail order rejection, there is still Ticketmaster option. Get on a fast computer and work it hard. That is my plan if the dreaded letter arrives.
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9 years 10 months
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still no reject or tickets, hate to let my hopes get too high i can always b rejected tomorrow but at some point tickets have to start arriving
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9 years 10 months
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Well I was holding out for hope but just got the pink slip.Good luck to everybody else who is waiting nervously. I am just going to keep on truckin and rocking in the free world stay grateful
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9 years 10 months
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My buddy just came up with the idea of putting the shows on giant screens in Grant park - LIVE. That sounds like a great way to alleviate some of the issues with volume and so many people not getting tickets. Could be a pretty good security solution too (and one hell of a good time, potentially!) And I must say it's very inspiring to see how so many people on here have reacted so positively and optimistically when they get pink slips. There is definitely something to be said about that.
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15 years 6 months
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Not a chance of doing it there as Taste of Chicago will be going on that weekend. Maybe Hutchison Field, or Millennium Park, but no way is going to be by the band shell in Grant Park. Honestly, they should set up a screen on the bottom of the sled hill, that way people could see no matter where they were on the hill. My guess is the hill could hold a thousand, possibly more, and with the parking lot right there, side views would be visible from VW Bus roof tops. Good luck to all who haven't gotten rejected yet, and also to those who are going to try TicketMaster.
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9 years 10 months
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So much for that idea. But other parks or venues would be nice, like you suggested. Or that Northerly Island Venue. But being 4th of July weekend, it will probably be booked.
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9 years 10 months
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Would be a nice way to do something with thousands of ticketless fans....
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9 years 10 months
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According to the CID, which is the company in charge of the VIP ticket packages, all pink slips and ticket winner notifications (via e-mail) are to be delivered to fans by Thursday February 26th. Apparently GDTS communicated this information to CID.
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9 years 9 months
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Like many others I am going to assume I will be recieving a pink slip soon. That way I can be extra excited if I get tickets and I will limit the dissapointment if i dont. But eitherway, my concern now becomes.....will I have enough time to convert my returned MO's into cold hard cash so that I can afford the ticketmaster option. Otherwise, I will have a ton of money floating out there just trying to secure a damn ticket. Oh the stress involved with being a "head" :-)
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9 years 10 months
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The two days with no mail created a tidal wave of,rejections. And it hit the east coast hard yesterday. Everyone in my bunch got them. (5 of us).Not to mention all the posts on here. Everyone in my group did everything exactly right. And all were mailed by 9:00 am on the 20th. 3 were decorated and 2 weren't. The 6th guy in the group was running late and didn't get his mailed until 10:00 am on the 21st. He has yet to receive a rejection. That would b f¿¢ked up if he gets tixs. I am so depressed. Gonna try the ticketmaster nightmare on the 28th. Worried about how that's gonna turn out. Good luck to everyone still in it. Can't wait to hear all the good news next week from everyone.One more thing before I go. I'd like to hear some thoughts on how many of these mail orders are gonna get sent out of the country????
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9 years 9 months
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People are now getting tickets,and Reject letters for the past week, but the scalper site had tickets for 2 weeks now..makes you want to say hmm.. Vivd seats does not even have their tickets up for sale anymore..so the whole time these ticket scalpers have been lying to see what kind of value these shows are going for
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9 years 10 months
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Yep, scalpers have a hold on this money order process and even the diligent work of GDTSTOO will not stop them all. If I have 100k to burn and multiple addresses, (which any reputable scalper company has) than even if they are 10% successful, they will double or triple their investment. I suspect that some folks who get shut out of the ticketmaster sales will buy tickets at inflated prices. Not saying I support it but hey, if you're a deadhead with extra cash to burn, you're going to spend the money. Of course these scalpers do not have tickets in hand but they are counting on a specific success rate. I bet the biggest sales will be the right after the 2/28 public sales. I also have a feeling that the folks who wait will have a better chance of getting face value tickets if they wait until June, when many ticket holders figure out they can't make the trip to Chicago. No doubt these shows will be sold out but I bet there will be reasonable ticket prices to be had as good folks who can't make the costly trip will dump tickets. For some reason, I'm still in the running but if I get that reject letter, I'll see whats available on ticketmaster. If that doesn't work, I'm going to sit tight and keep my ears open to available tickets that WILL become available. We all have dreams in February but not all those who get tickets will be able to make the trip. Keep the faith and keep your finger pointed in the air. "I need a miracle" has worked many a times! Good luck to all :)
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9 years 10 months
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not saying its not true but i don't see how they can mail out all the rejects and email the winners by the 26th, there have got to be many partial qualifiers, only got 2 nights sent in for 3 etc, how can they do both? Without eating postage, 1000 letters is $420 i realize its pocket change but add that to 54 extra employees it all adds up,also would blow to have one night 4 tix and $800 tied up on MO tix, trying for ticketmaster lots don't have the extra $800
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9 years 10 months
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I don't think they are filling partial orders. I think it's all or nothing.
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9 years 10 months
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Including today (of potential pink slip mail). But who knows. More might trickle in after that. Hard to say. But if you get beyond next Thursday, chances are probably almost guaranteed that you scored.
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9 years 10 months
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maybe they don't have partial orders but they were planning on it otherwise no need for separate money orders, no bad mail again today