The Grateful Thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by JRM, Apr 11, 2014.

  1. bzfgt

    bzfgt The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

    Exactly. Regardless of legalities, Betty should be getting paid. The fact that they say "Betty Board" means she added value to the tapes, both by the high quality of her work on them, and the reputation that work came to have which they are using to sell product. And morally, they owe her for the fact that they let her get hosed and lose it all in the 80s. Now suddenly it's valuable to them, so they acquire it and she's out of luck? That's wrong.
     
  2. Stone Turntable

    Stone Turntable Independent Head

    Location:
    New Mexico USA
    Phil was so heroically and consistently great in the band’s prime (and beyond) and he so perfectly walked the fine line between being part of the support/rhythm section and the free-form improvisational showboating possibilities of his role and style, that the concept of pinpointing ultra-Phil shows almost becomes a matter of pinpointing when the recording or mix went a little bit wrong.

    I’m sure that sharper Dead Heads than me can offer some dates or tracks that “showcase Phil in top form.” For me some of the quiet floating Dark Star passages where it’s only Jerry and Phil drifting through the cosmos are extremely beautiful. Otherwise from my point of view, just throw a dart and you’ll hit a show where Phil is playing clean, tight, cliché-free bass.
     
  3. Dennis0675

    Dennis0675 Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Ohio
    Perhaps it’s because I have a video of this show and being able to see what Phil is doing seems to make it hit a little harder but he is on fire for this show. This is from the time he didn’t have a mic stand set up, he was dancing around and cheesing out as hard as I’ve ever seen. Just dropping bombs and and making faces about it. https://www.gratefuldeadoftheday.com/11-03-1984

    t
    he nights before have a better looking set list but I know this one well. And I agree, Phil is remarkably consistent with his performances. How good or bad he is in a given night generally has more to do with where you are standing in the room.
     
  4. Guy Smiley

    Guy Smiley America’s Favorite Game Show Host

    Location:
    Sesame Street
    Her recordings, she paid out of pocket for the tapes, her ears and skills helped make them sound so good, they use her name in marketing this stuff (BETTY BOARDS!), and then... In spite of the band/organization apparently shutting her out after she and Brent split up, and in spite of her financial hardships that caused her to lose these tapes in the first place, there’s no renumeration to her for her efforts?

    I think that sucks. Maybe Rhino/GD has no legal obligation. But it still sucks, and I have to say it makes me think less of the organization, Rhino (Who seem to have enough troubles these days) Dave L., and the surviving band members. YMMV may vary of course.
     
  5. I like the spring 1970 shows, like Stonybrook, Binghamton, Cincinnatti, Winterland.

    1970 is probably the year when Phil was most up in the mix without it gettng dense and muddy at the expense of articulation, like the earlier years.

    The 1971 bass sound that's found on Skull & Roses ain't too shabby, either. I'm imprinted with that recording, I guess. It's a benchmark for me, hearing that LP on someone's home-built 2.5 cubic foot floorstanding speakers with 12" JBL woofers.

    Late 1971 with Keith, the band got an airier sound, more countryish. Phil dials back the megalomania accordingly.

    Counterintuitively enough, in the 1980s and 1990s Phil's bass sound isn't nearly as prominent to teh same degree, despite him playing a 6-string bass with more of a low end- unless you have speakers with the ability to play those low notes, and you open it up. If you have that, his playing can pin you to the wall.

    Anyway, the key to hearing what Phil is doing in any of those years is to have speakers that can reproduce the bass range to 45Hz at full power, at minimum. You may be able to cheat with 1 cubic foot sealed cabinet speakers and a loudness button...
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020
  6. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    I'm not sure of the actual law myself. But when you buy a ticket to a show, it either explicitly states that recording the music isn't allowed, or (in the case of taper tickets) that they're not permitted to be sold.

    But Betty presumably wasn't any such formal restriction. She was just capturing sound waves in the air, like a photographer captures photons. So by analogy, it seems like she should own the rights to the recording, the way a photographer owns the rights to his images, but I realize that it doesn't always (or usually) work that way in reality.
     
  7. Frosst

    Frosst Vinyl-obsessive kiddo

    Location:
    Sweden
    Just finishing up 10/18/72. Oh my god, I’m blown away by this show. So damn good. It might actually be a top 10 show, and it’s no coincidence that it is from '72 since that’s truly my fave year in GD's career. Highlights includes a mind-melting Dark Star (with a very impressive bass solo by Phil during the 22-24 min mark), a great Morning Dew and an explosive Deal. I also like the Bertha opener and Don’t Ease Me In is also a highlight from the first set. One of the best Casey Jones ends the show.
     
    Billy_Sunday, Gollum, laf848 and 13 others like this.
  8. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    That's a great show that I just discovered recently. It seems to be the first example of a "Playin" sandwich, too.
     
  9. bzfgt

    bzfgt The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

    This is kind of uneventful, but since I think we've linked to all the others:

     
  10. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    IWT!
     
    ianuaditis and bzfgt like this.
  11. bzfgt

    bzfgt The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

    Thank you for doing your part for the farmers:

     
    Ezzie likes this.
  12. heathen

    heathen Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado
    Without quibbling about the premise here, I can assure you I've got 45 Hz and below covered just fine.
     
    Stone Turntable and warewolf95 like this.
  13. warewolf95

    warewolf95 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Greenville, SC
    Do you guys think my Walmart earbuds will suffice? :p
     
  14. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    The video title is misleading. The event was not Farm Aid. It was another stop on the first Dylan/Dead tour (the one with Tom Petty backing Dylan).

    Farm Aid was happening in Texas, but the reason we have pro-shot video of this show is that the Dead did a video simulcast at Farm Aid.

    The second set started out with:

    Cold Rain>
    Fire on the Mountain
    Samson
    Wheel>
    I Need a Miracle>
    Uncle John's Band>
    Drums

    Based on some comments before "The Wheel", I think that's when the actual simulcast started, which would also explain why the band played six songs before "Drums".

    PS: Jerry was controlling the rain with his guitar during "Fire".
     
  15. bzfgt

    bzfgt The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

    It's the thought that counts
     
    warewolf95 and uzn007 like this.
  16. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    Sorry to say that I didn't think about either, at the time.
     
    bzfgt and warewolf95 like this.
  17. budwhite

    budwhite Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.

    Location:
    Götaland, Sverige
    Classic autumn 1972 Dead. The transition from Morning Dew into Playing reprise is so fast and flawless that my jaw dropped on my first listen. The big jam is definitely on my top five of the year.

    Playin' In the Band >
    Drums >
    Dark Star >
    Morning Dew >
    Playin' In the Band
     
  18. budwhite

    budwhite Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.

    Location:
    Götaland, Sverige
    It's easier to name shows when Phil was not on, if we're talking the pre 80s cassette recording years...
     
  19. fishcane

    fishcane Dirt Farmer

    Location:
    Finger Lakes,NY
    I was at this show also. My first rich stadium show. I’ll be bringing it full circle this summer when I return there for the first time since 93 for the Stones
     
    Crispy Rob and uzn007 like this.
  20. dsdu

    dsdu less serious minor pest

    Location:
    Santa Cruz, CA
  21. US Blues

    US Blues Undermining Consensus Reality

    4 August 1976
     
    Crispy Rob, budwhite and heathen like this.
  22. it's whether your eardrums will suffice.
     
  23. well, good. Fire up that copy of Skull and Roses and find out how well isolated your turntable is.

    fwiw, the CD should produce much the same effect. I've been reasonably satisfied with the quality of Grateful Dead CDs. But maybe that's just the mercy of my ears giving out (just a little bit.) All of those years of wind scream, especially in the left ear. Mellows out the 1.5-6khz part of the spectrum.
     
    laf848, US Blues and warewolf95 like this.
  24. BlueTrane

    BlueTrane Forum Resident

    Me also, my second Dead show. I had no idea it was tied into Farm Aid until Tom Petty announced it mid-set.
     
    US Blues and fishcane like this.
  25. budwhite

    budwhite Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.

    Location:
    Götaland, Sverige
    That's a nice and maybe a somewhat unexpected pick coming from you. But it's a really good one!(maybe gort Jerry and davmar would agree).
    Phil is definitely up in the mix and to me, the beginning of August was when the band began kickin ass again. As much as love 73/74, it's not their most rocking and fun years... The show two days before is also worth checking out.


    I like the space between the notes on the June tour. The band played theatres and they listened to each other. A bit slow though, but man those shows sounds so good! A good start from the hiatus, but it also has that slow vibe from '74 and getting Mickey back doesn't do the band any favors in that department

    July
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020

Share This Page

molar-endocrine