Grateful Dead

dead.net the official site

Dropped a fat wad of cash on the two pets this mo'nin'. Maintenance....the critters are angels, though, so wtf.

And I get to pay a phuqwad of a deductible to fix body damage to my sexy babe magnet 2005 Prius.

You had your chance, GDM. Now I can't fork over a penny to you. Hmph.

Thats the quacking duck from 5 17 77

Nyuk nyuk

The longest 5 day 4th of July sale ever!!! Let’s do this!!! Peace and Love!

Got a new CD player recently. Had to. Apparently, the laser mechanisms in those things wear out after a certain period of time, and seems like nobody makes replacement parts anymore. I tried to get my old Rega fixed, but the guy couldn't do anything for me, so I just went and bought me a new Marantz CD6007. On the downside, I’m out a fairly large lump of cash. On the plus side: this is the best sounding CD player I’ve ever owned, my discs don’t skip anymore. And it can play FLAC files (if you put ‘em on a USB thumb drive). So I thought I should try that out by downloading the FLAC version of S&R.

I hadn’t bought the 50th anniversary thing yet, because I’ve already got S&R on perfectly cromulent ‘70s vinyl, and on the previously issued CD (which, btw, has a couple bonus tracks that are not on the new reissue). So I thought, why not try the FLAC? I’ve been surprised to find out that FLAC downloads often cost more than the physical product, in this case $5 more. True, you don’t have to pay shipping, but that still seems weird. But I went for it anyway, and I gotta tell you: sounds really good! This is one of those albums I played so many times in my wayward youth that I know every freekin drum fill by heart, but this version is like going from black and white to technicolor. Not sure how much is the remastering and how much is the FLAC, but man, it sounds great.

Random thoughts on various posts:

King Crimson might be my favorite if they just played instrumentals. Don’t usually like their lyrics or vocals, but every incarnation of that band could play its collective ass off. I actually really, really like their live stuff from recent years, and I love the three drummer lineup. It’s so wonderfully over the top in a “this goes to 11” kind of way. “Oh, your band has two drummers? Well, we have THREE!”

I listen to a lot of jazz, including a lot of contemporary stuff. Of course I love Miles and Monk and Trane and the classic guys, but I’m actually more interested in music the pushes the envelope right NOW. Donny McCaslin is a favorite: he’s done a lot with fusing indie rock, EDM, and jazz. You might check out Beyond Now and Casting for Gravity, if you’re curious. You probably know about Kamasi Washington, but if not definitely check out The Epic. I’ve been listening a lot lately to John McLaughlin, both the old Mahavishnu stuff but also the more recent Five Peace Band that he did with Chick Correa—amazing stuff! Vijay Iyer, Chris Potter, I could go on, but this post is already too long. Bye!

Mr Ones, you are definitely the #1 FrissHead! I’m glad you liked the DVD, I thought it was well done (JimInMD - you’ll love it!). Bill Frisell plays with so many different kinds of musicians, like a Shape Shifter! I ordered a copy of him backing up the ramblings of Alan Ginsberg earlier (Gary - take note), and there is one where he provides music for William Burroughs reading his prose, but I’m not big on Burroughs junkie writing, so I’ll pass on that one. As FrissHeads, we wear worn polo shirts with comfortable slacks!! Music absolutely is the best!!

Oro - Where art thou?

....1-800-Blame-me.

You (and ANY of you) can certainly give your wives my phone number! ;) Now, how to keep Mrs. Brewer in the dark . . . ?

p.s. I finally purchased "Home Before Daylight," by Steve Parish. Finished it last night. It was a fun and thoughtful read. I think all of the books by the band and those around them form a circle, and in the middle of that circle is the "truth" about the band and their times, but one has to do some triangulation to get to that truth.

That was Proudfoot wondering if a box would materialize this year. I'm sure it will. Though I do wonder about the (seemingly delayed) timing of an announcement and whether that means there's a production hitch.

I'm still chanting (alone, at home, and virtually here) for fall '72. Not because that's my absolute top choice (I'm a Grease-head, after all) but because it seems that the past 4-5 boxes point in that direction.

As for DP 39, on another forum someone posted that the third release over the past three years has been a Brent show. So we'll see what's up with that in the next two weeks. Personally, I expect DP 40 to come from tapes in the 1969-1971 era.

Who knows? I've never been wrong before.....

Well, now you have gone and done it. I just spent a cool $40+ for the Data Lords cd. I'm quite sure I will enjoy it, but could I give my wife your phone number so that you can explain to her why this was a necessary Purchase?? I would very much appreciate it.

Yes, yes, yes!! I pre-ordered that dvd/blu ray months before it came out, and waited, waited, waited, just like waiting for the next Dave's Pick. But jumpin' jehosefat, was it worth it!! It also helped me track down a double cd of duets/Improvs with the great(and late) Jim Hall. Drummer Joey Baron tells a great little remembrance of those sessions, and made me really NEED to find those recordings. Completest? Why, no your honor. Obsessive?? Who Me?? Have a problem?? Why no honey, what are you talking about??

Music is the Best!!