Day of the Dead - Grateful Dead Tribute

10LP set. out 9.9.16. Crazy colored vinyl. 145$. On sale 6/9.

 

Well that didn't take long....

LP box set information just released. 10 LPs and $145

More information here...The official website for independent record label 4AD. »

 

Just heard the Courtney Barnett yesterday. Had heard the War on Drugs a few times before. Like how the indie artists were allowed to work their own style into the performances.

 

Not sure I'll lay down the cash for this but, woah, it's awesome looking.

 

Finishing my own thought, it turns out that "Nightfall Of Diamonds" is effectively the same band as Cass McCombs'. The heavy lifting seems to be being done by the Dessners, who are all over this boxed set (Aaron plays on five of the first six tracks). I've got to hand it to these guys - it's a huge commitment that they've made to this project, and not putting The National on the cover seems like an artistic and commercial misstep. Even Bryce Dessner's little tribute to Steve Reich ("Garcia Counterpoint") is good.

Hmmm ... I actually have some Yo La Tengo but it never bit at the time I bought it ... easy enough to dig out for curiosity value. I suspect that there are a few of the artists on this set that I'll be interested to follow up (never having bought anything by The National.)

I like the fact that they've included several of the non-GD songs on this set as well. "Morning Dew", "Peggy-O", "Jack-a-Roe", "Me & My Uncle" etc. really ground the album and give it a base-line for some of the more eccentric readings. On a shorter "tribute" this is just the sort of material that wouldn't have made the cut.

 

Um ... you do know that there's a version of "What's Become Of The Baby" on this set? Yes? (By the way, it's pretty amazing if you aren't put off by the idea of what seems to be a Dutch chamber ensemble.)

 

So it is! Sorry, I was thrown off by the kerning .

 

Ira Kaplan is Yo La Tengo's singer- guitarist. They are heavily influenced by Lou Reed/VU, as you picked up on, but he also is a fan of the Dead, and their song "Drug Test" included a line about "listening to Wake of the Flood" while high, natch. I haven't heard it yet, but Wharf Rat does seem like a slightly odd choice for him.

 

Great album. Seconded.

 

It's got Jenny Lewis. I have to have it.

 

Looks very cool. But this is the type of collection I'd do CD for $29. I know the vinyl would be cool but I also know I would hardly play it. If I buy, its the CD set.

 

I haven't been too impressed by any of the tracks so far, but this one was a keeper:



Maybe because it's one that was never bettered by Jerry in a live setting? (Acoustic versions are nice, of course, but...)

 

The biggest miss for me so far is the version of "Truckin'". I can see what they were going for in emphasizing the 'drug party' side of the song, but it's an iconic song and I think they spoil it.

The version of 'To Lay Me Down' is very sweet (not the emotional pitch of the GD versions but good nonetheless) and I love what Bill Callahan does with 'Easy Wind'.

 

This morning I was listening to one track with pretty much unmistakable vocals and even my wife unexpectedly chimed in with 'who's this? Don't tell me! Antony and the Johnsons'. But, confusingly, that wasn't the billed artist.

All power to her, but I can remember when you only had to worry about a band breaking up and losing track of people ... not the established singer actually changing gender!

 

Haven't heard the whole set yet, streamed it from spotify while making dinner. Mastering sounds loud as someone pointed out

So far I like the songs best that's pretty close to the original. Jerry wrote great melodies. So did Phil with box of rain.
There's plenty of guitars but could use some more lead+rhythm interplay

 

Either this is extremely popular with the masses, or else they shipped out very few copies to shops. Everyone I checked in with today was sold out by mid-day.

 

I noticed that too

 

Yeah I had been seeing a bunch of Twitter buzz about the new album from Anohni and was wondering who that was, it wasn't until I read the Pitchfork review that I put it all together.

 

Hmm, seems like Bonnie Prince Billy was inspired by Hunter rather than Jerry for his vocals...



There is that same fragility there.

 

Digging Help on the Way by Bela Fleck, Jim James' Candyman, both of Phosphorescent's songs and Uncle John's Band.

 

Hopefully they won't press the vinyl at United.

 

4AD and the National involved ? multidisc set ? This will be United all the way ...

 

Just listening now to "Standing On The Moon" by Phosphorescent and I agree, it's very good, but what's hitting me is how many songs here I've just never noticed before: that "crimson white and indigo" line really popped because I didn't realise that they got the album title from a song. My listening to the later catalogue has obviously been cursory to say the least.

Even more embarrassing: the Bonnie Prince Billy version of "If I Had The World To Give" is also really nice, I don't know the song and it's on Shakedown Street, which is an album with which I would have thought I had at least a nodding acquaintance.

 

The last National album is stellar (was it really 2013!). Any fan of this comp owes it to themselves (and the band) to get "Trouble Will Find Me". You will not be disappointed. I wasn't a fan of the National before that album, but that all changed.....

 

Oh, I don't need much egging on ...

I was looking at the Bonnie Prince Billy catalogue (and the thread about it here) as well, but it's all a lot of discography to pick from.