British guitarist analyses the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia in 1976!
Вставка
- Опубліковано 10 лют 2019
- Tonight I'm taking a look at the mighty clean chops of Jerry Garcia with the Grateful Dead back in 1976!
Original video - • Video
For more, check out my other sites!
/ wingsofpegasus
www.wingsofpegasusband.com/
/ wingsofpegasus
Twitter - @wingsofpegasus
Insta - @wingsofpegasusofficial - Розваги
Jerry Garcia: rock guitarist who phrases like a bluegrass player, and approaches soloing like a jazz player. He was one of a kind, indeed
Exactly
👍
One of the best summaries of Jerry’s style that I’ve seen
Yup, country and bluegrass influences ring through so much of Jerry's playing, and yes, he and the band very much took a jazz approach to their free form style. I love how the band played off each other so much and everything was just off the cuff, so to speak.
Jerry's first instrument was the banjo.
Jerry is the only artist that can lift me with a single note
So, while he was alive and they were touring, I was a card-carrying punk, orthodox wing of that church ... nothing but scorn for the Dead. Worked in music a couple decades, fast forward to being "older and wiser" (meaning: old) and hanging out with a fellow old hardcore punk rocker.
He asked what I'd been listening to; I admitted I'd spent the entire three previous months listening to nothing but the Dead. He smiled and said "the terrible secret is that the music was very, very good."
Sooner or later, any and every person who loves music, who lives for music, will come to appreciate the Dead.
“They’re not the best at what they do, they’re the only ones that do what they do.”
👍
Jerry i think said " were kinda like licorice, those who like licorice really like licorice and those who dont hate it " lol
Bill Graham nice!
God dam right!
popular statement 30 years ago. now, however, now everyones doing it. and doing it well.
The Grateful Dead were a Dance Band.
As soon as the first note was struck, everyone in the concert hall, arena, stadium ...... started dancing at the same instant.
Dead shows were quite an experience.
Jerry was unique.
Still do at dead and company shows but it's not quiet the same..
@@daveyboy8907 definitely not the same a jerry but you can't say John doesn't do a incredible job as that lead guitarist. dead and co's performances are always a fire on the mountain.
@@tylermccurry2666 Lots of wihispers when mayer was announced... hes done great.. bobby just needs to wake up
No DOUBT this was my 1st opener- I was 12 tripping and everyone was laying around- then Jerry came out, waved to us.. struck the first notes of Help on the way- everyone at once jumped up and danced- I left my body- then the lyrics came straight into my mind “If you get confused just listen to the music play!” And I did, danced 3 days straight and my life was never the same💀⚡️🌹
@@scottmcdonald3215 Bobby? lol
MAYER👎 sounded like WONXERLAND👎
Trey sounds like PHISH
😞 Dont blame Jerry.for that shit.
the choice was clear who shoulda played the Jerry parts. He cant sing though. Any real Head knows who Im talking about.
Sign in below if you know who can can turn night to.day when it comes to playing Garcia. 💀🕵️♀️
It's impossible to watch the Dead without a smile on your face.
As an aside, the double album Skullfuck, as Phil Lesh named it, is as good as live music gets. Some call it the Red Headed Skeleton but it was simply labeled Grateful Dead.
@@umpdaddy1 Totally agree. That riff on Goin' Down the Road is astonishing every time I listen to it. I used to torment the whole wing of my dorm with it on full volume. It's a Zen koan and epic novel all compressed into one long cohesive string of notes. Maybe I'll comprehend it at the moment I pass into Enlightenment.
Arf. My missus would disagree.
I agree, with a few exceptions, one of which is the So Many Roads from 7/9/1995 -- which wound up being their last show. Jerry's playing and singing on some of those slower songs/ballads was so very evocative.
Makes my ears bleed.
Bob Dylan upon Jerry's passing - "There’s no way to measure his greatness or magnitude as a person or as a player. I don’t think eulogizing will do him justice. He was that great - much more than a superb musician with an uncanny ear and dexterity. He is the very spirit personified of whatever is muddy river country at its core and screams up into the spheres. He really had no equal.
To me he wasn’t only a musician and friend, he was more like a big brother who taught and showed me more than he’ll ever know. There are a lot of spaces and advances between the Carter family, Buddy Holly and, say, Ornette Coleman, a lot of universes, but he filled them all without being a member of any school. His playing was moody, awesome, sophisticated, hypnotic and subtle. There’s no way to convey the loss. It just digs down really deep."
Dylan delivered the most poignant eulogy I have ever heard right there.
Yep. I remember Dylan's deeply soulful and very personal eulogy for Jerry. There were hundreds published in Rolling Stone and on websites. But Dylan's really stood out. His eulogy covered much of the breadth of what Jerry's music was about. And yet it still didn't cover the vastness of Jerry.
The Dead and also Jerry solo had a way of doing Dylan’s songs that were magical ... my favorite Visions of Joanna is the Greatful Dead’s version of it.
I have a musicologist brother who is an expert on Bach. I told him that Jerry Garcia was the Johann Sebastion Bach of the 20th century. He replied that he couldn't count how many people had told him that. Jerry's musical influence is really incalculable. The way he blended just about every style of music that existed and then created some completely new styles of music, just amazing. I was lucky enough to see the GD 17 times which barely qualifies me as a Dead Head. He was to me the ultimate in improvisation on guitar. He said in many interviews that he was raised spending time in a bar listening to sea chanties and he never knew anything else besides make it up as you go. Not that his songs didn't have structure, but he could take them wherever he wanted. I miss Jerry a lot. And of course the GD were more than just him, they were all amazing each in their own way.
now I’m choking up
"In another time's forgotten space, when your eyes looked from your mother's face"....BEST OPENING LYRIC EVER!!
Jerry, that big Teddy Bear brings nothing but good vibes ❤️
Jerry truly was a student of music and it does show through his range and sheer breadth of knowledge. He’s the equivalent of a FIFA character with almost all stats maxed out. 99 overall. Miss him so much, but so happy to see he still lives on through his music
The notes flow out of his guitar like water down a mountain stream!
It sounds like classical acoustic guitar technique.
The thing I like best about Fil is he can find something to appreciate in all music and not look down his nose at something just because it isn't his preferred style.
Thanks Andy!
@@wingsofpegasus both comments great ... come on Gerry is the absolute best ...THE GRATEFUL DEAD .. heard and seen many times ,including home ..oh that's the winterland
The GD are THE most underrated band of all time. Their contribution to the music business seems to always not get enough attention. They were the first to really hit self marketing hard. Their use of the customization of sound and sound architecture was a gigantic step forward for the music business and the entire business of recording and stage shows changed because of it. They were about the music, not about a political or personal agenda. Like them or not, the history of music since the 70's owes a great deal to the Grateful Dead. There will never be another group like them.
Love is real not fade away
Very true. They were always very curious about audio technology, and the Wall of Sound PA system they developed indirectly gave birth the the line array systems used today, by way of a guy named Rat…who did sound for Black Flag! He was intrigued by the Wall of Sound and tried something similar with Black Flag (on a much, much smaller scale). He continued to develop the idea and now does live sound for major touring acts. Just goes to show ya what can happen when the punks meet the freaks!
@@hunterthompson2206 They also funded the John Meyer research that ended up being John's and Helen's Meyer Sound that has been on the top of live sound systems for decades. The Wall of Sound was great but really hard to tour with. They had trucked systems, one going ahead to the next 3 day gig to set up over a couple days. Before that, a concert was typically that of the 60s, a couple A7s two way, that only needed 60 watts per side. I designed a system in 1970 for Jethro Tull's tour supporting Aqualung that was pretty groundbreaking, everything from console to electronic crossovers to power amps to fiberglass molded folded horns for bass, direct horns for mids and SEAS tweeters in a curved array for the high end. The console was the first one using transformerless balanced line inputs, and first with switchable meter ballistics between PPM used in Europe and Vu in the US and parametric eq on every channel. That was the first and only time I toured with a band and discovered it is really hard work and constant strain with a homemade system that had only weeks of sorting out after scratch building. The biggest problem was the 24 60 watt solid state power amps, which were borrowed in basic design from David Hafler's Dyna 120s. Back then, good PNP power transistors were hard to come by. So one would blow up every show so I would work all night repairing the power amps that blew. But it sounded really good, hi-fi. That tour influenced a lot of live sound philosophy that came later. It was a really efficient system because no one wanted 30hz power. Every active lower in sound power meant an order or magnitude higher cost., weight, and power requirements. For the SPL we were getting back then with high pass filters at 45hz, today you would need about a million 100,000 watts when 24 60watt was enough back when sub-bass was not part of the music. The drive to higher SPL and 32 Hz notes ruined the economics of touring sound and also turned off millions from live shows. 136db field SPL also killed audiences so live shows really became less profitable. The Dead systems always had a lot of DR but never pushed so it was always clean and musical. A lot of live sound engineers are ruining the audience experience with excess compression, SPL and nauseating subsonics. Maybe they are all deaf so can't hear what they are subjecting the audience to.
@@stanspb763 Wow. That's some serious tech you had a hand in. Tull must have sounded great through that system. Too bad the fidelity standard has gone downhill since then in favor of just loud and super compressed. Thanks for sharing that info!
They are one of the greatest indeed.
Jerry's solo playing is really special in how he can treat each chord as a separate event and really craft a synchronized melody.
Bob Wier deserves a mention... he and Jerry had played together since Bob was like 15. Jerry was lead but without Bobby it wouldnt have been the same.
Agreed. Weir provided a great canvas to allow Jerry to paint over.
@@sdefonta Imagine just getting started in a band, just getting started as a player, and who you end up having to play behind is ... Garcia. A trial by fire.
There's tracks of both Bobby and Jerry isolated. And it seems to me that there's times when Jerry likes what Bobby's doing he lays back and lets Bobby's rythym take the lead.
@@billbeliakoff5589 Absolutely did happen but in the end he did not have Jerry's drive for the music. By the 80s turning on girls was more interesting ;) Still his playing can be very interesting when you can hear it clearly and he was a groundbreaking rhythm player.
Definitely. A few Deadheads I know disparage (or at least dismiss) Bobby. I find that in many videos and even on the screens at two Dead and Co 2023 shows, they don't feature many moments of Bobby during the instrumental segments where every member is making seemingly small but critical contributions. Bobby's rhythm like the left hand of a jazz pianist - awesome and unheralded.
watching you smile makes me smile, this never get old, im 52 and love turning people on to the dead, not everybody gets it but the ones that do really really do
All of the description offered around 3 minute mark is just so on the nose - it’s such a joy to see anyone “get it”, because that is exactly what happened to anyone who saw Jerry play live and thought “where is the next show?” Nice job!
Watch all your vids but as a deadhead I get really excited to see you analyze a dead performance. Jerry could make me cry with his beautiful playing. He changed my life no doubt. Deadhead 4 life! 🌹💀🌹💀
Thanks!
Well put. Gives me goosebumps
Jerry was a musician's musician. He could play any style of music. He could tear you up and put you back together live. Check out Legion of Mary, JGB, Reconstruction.
Go for 5/20/84 Jerry Garcia Band if you want to hear Jerry go OFF.
Jerry's melodies were a thing of beauty. He knew how to connect in such a profound way.
I love the Dead! RIP Jerry Garcia, peace and love to you my brother. We sure do miss you! Thanks Fil, you know how to pick them. The Grateful Dead were so good at improvising and jamming and as you said, "really mind blowing." Don't forget to "Roll away...the Dew," Fil!
I LOVE THIS VIDEO SERIES. Truly, this belongs on what's left of TV. Your show, and it is a great show, is watchable!!!
Thanks!
To correct one of your subscribes Fil. The Travis Bean that Jerry is playing in this clip is a TB1000A. This was the top of the line guitar made by Travis Bean, their Artist model. I own the same model that I got at the Travis Bean shop in Sun Valley, CA in 1977. I still own it and it's an amazing guitar. Jerry's is painted white here but mine is in natural Koa wood with a clear finish. Love your channel Fil.
Sounds like a doooope guitar man. Good on you for keeping it
Spot on! What I love, what comes out of this music? You just cant help smiling as the music washes through you.
There are two bands that changed our culture, the Beatles and the Grateful Dead. If you are old enough, you know what I'm talking about.
tony francesco ... well my friend, in order to complete the “holy trinity” you might want to add the Mothers of Invention (but I, personally! Would swap out the Beatles for The Stones. Just my preference for blues vs pop)
@@timoj24 I was blessed enough too see Zappa twice, once with the original mothers of invention in 1968 at the Boston tea party, true story, Zappa stood at the inner hall and shook hands with every person that went into the show. Then I saw Zappa with Flo and Eddie and full orchestra sometimes in the 70's, so yes, I would definitely add the mothers. I have heard influences of them in phish.
timoj24 though the stones clearly mimicked the Beatles in ways through the years
@@timoj24 Saw Zappa in Hamburg 1979. He played for about one hour. Very disappointing.
The Dead always played for 3 hours at least.
I agree but one small proviso, I`d put The Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd and The Clash near the top of those two examples.
I attended around 80 Dead shows...50 of which were transcendent...30 of which varied from pretty good to pretty chaotic. The way they would build and energize and coalesce until, if it were going to happen, the song blossomed like the best symphonic music...just blowing you away...was very wonderful. Bob Weir is absolutely amazing. Great analysis. Thanx.
I am glad someone finally mentioned Bob Weir. He is is my favorite rhythm guitar player, and makes me want to pick mine up and play along.
Bob knew his chord inversions and that's why Jerry loved playing with Bob. Bob progressed through the second and third chord inversions and Jerry journeyed with the chord changes, playing notes from the underlying chord keys, he didn't get stuck in the song key, and that's why his playing sounded multidimensional.
They were more like an orchestra than a jam band and Jerry was the conductor.
they were just legendary. top of the heap musicians. not only did they generate a vast treasure trove of their own numbers, they could pay homage to any cover song they wanted while instantly making it their own.
Their Dyan covers always amazed me. I enjoyed hearing a tune like When I Paint My Masterpiece more than some of the same songs from that era of their shows.
@@tmirkin - yes, i love their rendition of that one. they were so good with the zimmy stuff.
I came to hear this band via their version of Rain, Wind and Snow (Bluegrass classic). It has a magical rhythm that reminds me of Black American girl bands of the early 60's, sort of like bop bop shoo bop shoo bop bop etc.. It underlies the tragedy beautifully. The whole interpretation is melancholy. Brilliant ensemble playing, very tight and precise. So different to other versions, whether Bluegrass or folk, such as Pentangle.
@@gabriellaklein8898 - never really copped the early 60's girl band feel from that number but i can feel you on your assimilation. that's what i love about music.
@@skullduggery3377Thank you for replying, however, there is an obvious generation gap here as I do not really understand your language, e.g. copped and assimilation. Huh?
Such great memories of their return to touring and the awesome run of shows ‘76-‘78. I saw them in Chicago, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri. So many shows, and their music still moves me. Thanks for your insight to the music I enjoy.✌️❤️🎶
Jerry had so many famous guitars w great names except one. It was so perfect that no man could name it. Here he plays that thin crisp sound on the one and only Travis Bean.
Went to a Dead concert back in 87 "In the Dark" tour.......don't remember a damn thing................I never had a better time in my life.
I hear you, one show I went to, before the show started & crew setting up on stage, this guy in a cowboy hat & holding a bottle of black Jack Daniel's in one hand sits down in front of us. His girlfriend was with him & she was toasted. She turns around & asked, which one's jerry? I almost gagged on the joint I had. What a long strange trip it's been. Cheers to you
😂👍
'78 Winterland, all I remembered for a long time was Mississippi Half Step, the room whirling around Lesh's bass which became the black hole at the center of the galaxy, and the only way I was going to resist its all-powerful gravity was to keep on dancing, which I did.
Somewhere in the middle of that I felt a seductive nudge -- I turned and saw a grinning female skeleton eyeing me hungrily.
Turned right back around and kept on dancing. She politely left me alone.
Some funny things also happened on the way home, I do remember those. For two weeks afterwards, all it took was one can of Green Death (Rainier Ale), and I could feel the 1,000-mile-an-hour rotation of the Earth underneath me.
A few years ago, discovered there was an amazing ocean of Dead concerts online now, and dug into it and found the one I'd attended. Listened again, and remembered why I'd forgotten it all. Franklin's Tower had blasted my brains out.
@@jeffreyhotchkiss9451 thanks Jeff for sharing. I can't prove it & sane people wouldn't either. There's stuff that happens on our good earth that isn't from our good earth. I hear you. & it wasnt albert Hoffman's concoction either. I think that's why RIPPLE SOME much, ,,,,,, that was not made by the hands of man, well, we'll let it go at that. Do not go gentle into that good night sir. Peace to u & Fil, we all need it in these troubled times. I can't help but notice that when Fil is analyzing some of these players, that he is smiling, and he tends to let the track go a bit longer. It seems he's just enjoying it like the rest of us. For what it's worth, I never saw any violence at Dead shows. Other shows, well, I quit going long ago . I doddered on. IF Fil hasn't analyzed Mark Knoffler, well, he's worthy.
I saw the Dead twice here in the UK, once at the Rainbow in I think '79 and again at Wembley in '91. They were a jam band essentially so not every tune worked out that well on any given night but at some point every night it would all come together and they would go places no other band has ever matched live. Not even close. I recall in the '91 gig they had Bruce Hornsby sitting in on piano. It was Halloween and they did a special light show for a symphonic synth drenched drums set followed by a short space jam then launched straight into Truckin'. Hornsby had come up with a new piano part for the chorus - the bit that goes "Sometimes the lights are shining on me, other times I can barely see, lately it occurs to me, what a long strange trip it's been". I think that Jerry thought this part was pretty cool 'cos it got pushed in the mix. I can say that it was. The audience levitated five feet off the ground, the roof came off and stares came out. I've seen some pretty damn good performances over the years from a musicianship perspective: Richard Thompson, Peter Gabriel, U2 back in '83 on the Unforgettable Fire tour, Tom Petty backing Bob Dylan at Wembley in '87 I think, and Niel Young backed by Booker T and the MG's at Finsbury Park come to mind. But good as they were, none of them can hold a candle to the Dead at full throttle in my book. Music to get lost in and heal your heart and soul.
You caught the Fall 1990 tour. Glad you enjoyed it! Great to hear folks over the pond getting turned on. One of my few concert regrets is never having caught U2 in their prime.
One of my favorite shows!!! Love your smiling reaction!
Thx for the video! Seeing the Dead Live about 100 times ( 1978-94) you got a Rock n Roll Blue Grass Jazz Band w/funk and gospel - and DANCED Your Ass Off.
When you caught them on a "good" nite they were simply the best.
The Grateful Dead were still called The Warlocks, and Jerry used to give guitar lessons at this guitar store in Menlo Park. I would go in there after school and wonder at all the guitars- new, used, electric, acoustic, Martins, Gibsons, Fenders, Rickenbackers. I recognized him from the Warlocks poster on the shop's door, but he wasn't famous, and I didn't know his name, or anything. He was sitting by the counter, talking to the owner and waiting for his student to come in for his lesson. I was a beginner on guitar myself, but I wasn't taking any lessons- just trying to pick up stuff from the few chords I already knew. Jerry took a Mosrite guitar off of the wall, and started playing it unplugged. I noticed he was fast... He played the little guitar lick from "Mystic Eyes", by Them . I was impressed. He looked at me like "what are you starin' at, kid?", and said something to the owner about how he thought the guitar's neck was too thin and fast for his taste. He then casually strummed the D-A-E- chords for "Gloria", and he hung the guitar back up on the wall. I watched his fingers, and noticed that those were chords that I knew! I spent much of the rest of the afternoon back in my room playing the song on my new nylon-string guitar. It was the first rock and roll song I ever learned.
Cool!
Great story from the Menlo days. Cool
Amazing story/memory
This made my day. Such a great story, jerry teaching you your first rock song casually Jerrybumps lol you could of been “the kid” lol
awesome
I love this guy - so generous, thoughtful, and open-minded with his analyses; and always with an infectious smile of appreciation. And it's always nice to see the Dead get some appreciation as opposed to - the often deserved - derision.
Thanks!
Really enjoy the laid back 76 shows
Your smile is all of our smiles.
There's more motific development in Jerry' soloing than a lot of other players in that style. Bob Weir's contribution on rhythm guitar isn't always singled out, but that was a huge part of their sound. Bob used some really unique chord structures and voicing. Very sophisticated.
That's why I REALLY like the '70-73 sound. What keyboards there were were way down in the mix most of the time. and only Billy on drums meant you could actually HEAR Garcia's guitar and Weir's guitar play off each other, and, of course Lesh's bass part. When I first start listening to GD, half the cool little licks I liked, that I initially thought were Jerry, I later figured out were Weir's fills. Listen to a good GDTRFB or Rider from that era.
Thank you. 76 was a transition year for the boys. This was their " comeback" year and tour and they played with a new energy having taken much of 75 off.
I was there at Winterland for this performance.
You said pretty much everything that may be said about Jerry and the guys. Once I learned that he is also a master banjo picker, I said aha! I see now where the fretboard mastery comes from. Give this band a chance, because they are way more than the misconceptions about them.
I will always have a special place in my heart for the GD. After all, my son was conceived after the 92 Buffalo show. lol
The Travis Bean guitars had such a crystal clear sound and Jerry just knew how to emote.
Great Video again. Speaking of Jerrys guitars reminded me of an interview where Jerry was asked
"What do you think your legacy will be?" To which he replied
"I dont think thats up to me..."
Always loved that reply.
Great breakdown and information.
My absolute favorite Jerry guitar of all time. Travis Bean. Very thin sound. Beautiful.
Remember, Franklins came after a rather lengthy and complicated Help/Slip....Franklins was kind of the easy three chords fun jam to let lose a bit after pulling off Help/Slip :)
True. Slipknot! Is an amazing transition
Great point. Masterfully executing the preceding pieces put this wonderful easy groove tune in a whole different, and perfect, light.
Really, the Dead always seemed to be executing from some huge master plan, which they would admit was not overthought, but rather they were willing and able to smile and stumble along with. "more or less in line."
Ridiculously wonderful.
Shamanism meets rock music.
An entire way of life.
Unfortunately, as times changed, and corporations tightened the noose on us, managing daily life became rough on many who had tasted freedom.
The Dead worked hard and had great discipline as individuals and as a group. They could make it seem effortless, which was misleading to many who hadn't yet developed their own mental and emotional discipline to a sufficient degree.
Help On The Way/Slipknot/Franklin's was my first real intro to the Dead. I was about 12 yrs. old and asked a friend to borrow a cassette that had a King Crimson album on one side…and "Blues for Allah" on the other side. I'd heard Truckin' and Uncle John's Band on the radio, so I thought the Dead were a folk rock band. So I flip the cassette at the end of Lark's Tongue in Aspic and…WHOA! What's this jazz rock coming out of my boom box?! It was Help On The Way. Then Slipknot showed me prog rock of an entirely different stripe, seguing into good ol' Franklin's Tower. Been hooked ever since :-)
^This
@@hunterthompson2206 dang. Crimson and 70s dead thats some heavy stuff for a 12 year old. Lol. Thats a helluva place to start.
"If you get confused just listen to the music play" profound advice from the greatest 9 fingered guitarist who ever lived. Not only the greatest but most unique sound and style of the lot, 9 fingered or otherwise. A banjo player playing jazz clarinet notes on an electric 6 string guitar. The Travis Bean in Jerry's hands almost sounds like a clarinet in it's tone.. A lot of that has to do with the machined aluminum neck of the guitar. It gave Jerry's notes such a clean clear tone, sometimes with a bell like quality. Thank you Fil for keeping real and about the music and the heart and soul, and mad skill to produce it . peace !
No problem!
Django Reinhardt had 8 fingers (only 2 good ones on left hand) and is arguably the greatest and most influential guitar player of all time. Tony iommi (black sabbath) was no slouch either, inventing a style of his own that would change the world of music after losing the tips of two of his right fingers in a sheet metal factory.. In the end Jerry is also my favorite mutilated or normal handed guitar player also
he sure had a thing for the horns
Travis Bean basses sucked.
How can you not SMILE when Franklin's Tower begins to play?
Im no guitarist, but i can tell Jerry's playin by just hearing a note or 2! I love Jerry Garcia like many love Elvis- & i should know, im from memphis tennessee :)
Great video as always!
Jerry was a top guitar player, good song. Love this video & great analysis as always!😎✌
"was" ?
waddaya' mean "was" ?
@@blake59 are you trolling? Why would you even watch this vid? Who do you consider a good guitar player
@@blake59 lol ok..I think I respected you more as a troll..To each their own 🎸
@@blake59 apples and oranges bro. I love nirvana and maiden. I also enjoy zappa and the dead. Jerry Garcia was a virtuoso on guitar so was zappa. The dudes in maiden shred.
@@blake59 their styles are apples and oranges. I do like maiden. And nirvanas nevermind was the first tape I ever bought. Garcia was a good guitar player period. Even if you don't like the grateful dead you should still be able to admit this. Kurt was no where near his technical ability sorry.
Jerry was a gift I had the pleasure to enjoy. I love funk, punk, folk, glam, rock, R & B and the blues... I saw the best.. I'm here to say that no one can knock Jerry at his best, and we should all honor Jerry for his 30 years X 100 + shows perseverance in support of the improvisational ethic... and who else makes 15,000 people pause from partying to quietly sob along with "Black Peter"? He was profound. His solos referenced songs to come, from before, and even from prior shows and built an emotional arc for their performances that is as close to a religious experience as Springsteen or Nick Cave or James Brown or any other performer I've ever seen...
1976 one of the best years to listen to. I was only 12 then so not at those shows but when performing GD tunes, this year is one of my favorite reference points!
so great. very educational. I miss Jerry so much. thank you
I never followed the Dead, but was lucky enough to see about 10 shows. Jerry was always amazing. You have to keep in mind that they were a jam band and never played a song the same way live.
Cool!
I’m addicted to Fils analyses it’s just a must hear and see. Help I can’t stop listening!
More love should be given to Bobby Weir, perhaps the best rhythm guitar player in rock history.
I think one thing that's special about the Dead is the light touch Jerry played with. He hardly ever played hard. It was more like how some jazz guitarists play. I think that brings out a peaceful, meditative quality even when they're rocking out.
I heard an interview with him from the early 80s where he was talking about the music books he was studying at the time. Remember he had been playing professionally for 20 years then, 100+ shows a year. Yet he still felt the need to practice and grow in his musical understanding, and still enjoyed it! That is a true student of music.
I luv you, Brother! Good to see you smile! Thanks for the vids...
Thanks for this one Fil. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, and saw the Dead about seventy five times over the years, by no means a record. More so than anyone else I've ever heard, Jerry could take you on a journey when he played. What always amazed me is that he lost the middle finger of his right hand at the second knuckle as a kid, in an accident chopping wood with his brother.
It was the Dead that opened the door to Bluegrass, Country, Blues, Jazz, and even Classical music to me. When I listen to those types of music I hear musical ideas, and writers, that I recognize from Jerry's playing. The guys in the band came from a variety of musical backgrounds. Jerry was a bluegrass guy, Phil was classically trained at Berkley college of music, Micky Hart's parents were both champion military fife and drum corps drummers, and he studied drumming styles around the world. It was an amazing mix. If you ever saw them live you know, and if you missed out; I'm sorry for you, but you'll never really understand what it was.
If you can find any of Jerry's acoustic stuff with David Grisman, you will find a whole other side of his playing.
Tahoe Mike lots of grisman garcia shows on youtube.. russian lullaby is a favorite..
Don't forget about the pizza tapes
that is beyond ridiculous to say that if you've never seen the dead with jerry that you can't recognize the tidal wave of talent these musicians had alone and together. There are thousands of hours of recordings, the only thing you missing about the live shows is the scene and louder volume. The dead in my opinion are the best band that ever graced this green earth and Im only 23 jerry passed less than a year before I was born.
@@tylermccurry2666, I am glad that someone saw to your education and turned you on to the Dead. What you can't really know is that what you casually call the scene was a community, a family, and it was unlike anything going today. A Dead show wasn't a concert, it was a family reunion with a hell of a house band. That is the part you had to be there for.
Well said Tahoe, and reminds me of Dylan's statement the day after Jerry's death. In case anyone hasn't seen this:
"There's no way to measure his greatness or magnitude as a person or as a player. I don't think eulogizing will do him justice. He was that great - much more than a superb musician with an uncanny ear and dexterity. He is the very spirit personified of whatever is muddy river country at its core and screams up into the spheres. He really had no equal.
To me he wasn't only a musician and friend, he was more like a big brother who taught and showed me more than he'll ever know. There are a lot of spaces and advances between the Carter family, Buddy Holly and, say, Ornette Coleman, a lot of universes, but he filled them all without being a member of any school. His playing was moody, awesome, sophisticated, hypnotic and subtle. There's no way to convey the loss. It just digs down really deep."
I saw them live a number of times in the mid to late seventies. Keith and Donna get a bad rap from Dead fans, but the band had a phenomenal run of really inventive and varied studio albums during the period they were with the band, and I saw shows that were great enough to bring me goosebumps today, just thinking back. They had no opening act. They would play for 3 hrs, with that massive sound system filling the room, with virtually no distortion. You could hear everything happening in the music, which was usually a whole lot. They also encouraged their fans to record their shows, when everybody else banned the practice. Bob Weir was a dynamo, a superb musician/ singer himself, and he's still at it today. Jerry, though, was one of a kind. When he passed away it felt like losing an old friend. Sorry for the misty eyed ramblings.
No problem ☺
Well said, all except for one part: they didn’t encourage their fans to record them. When they first learned it was happening they didn’t love it, and they tried to stop it. They didn’t try that hard though, and pretty soon they allowed it.
Keith is my favorite GD keyboard player. And while Donna definitely had a lot of off nights - and too many recordings where she is way too high in the mix - certain songs from that era are only complete with her harmonies. She sings on the seminal versions of some of their greatest songs.
She did those incredible back-up vocals on Elvis Presley's "Suspicious Minds." Bob Weir was conceived in my hometown of Tucson, AZ. His biological father was stationed in the Air Force here, while, his biological mother, was a student at the University of Arizona. He, does have a relationship with his biological father.
Oh yeah...No doubt. My Parents are in their early 80s. Born before WW2 started. And, of course Bio-Dad was stationed here in Tucson at Davis-Monthan Air Force base, His Bio-Mom, who he never met, was attending the University of Arizona, when he was conceived. Bill Walton, ex-pro basketball player...now commentator...Big time Deadhead. His son Luke went to school here, played both college and pro-ball. Bill loves this area. I'm wondering, if he knew that about Bob Weir...Abortion was illegal back then...So?
always a pleasure fil. jerry was also a skilled banjo, pedal steel and acoustic player. his roots are jug and bluegrass...he opened my ears to LOT'S of styles i might not have learned to love.
Nice video. FYI there's a company called Phred Instruments in California that makes "copies" of Jerry's guitars. They also do copies of Trey Anastasio's (Phish) guitars for all those jam band cats. As a Brit, I was lucky enough to see the Dead in the early 1990s at the Oakland Colosseum. Best show I've ever been to.
Beautiful, Phil; I revisit your chat on Jerry frequently with great respect. So uplifting! Lovely to hear the sweet accompaniment by Donna Jean Godchaux who was a member of the band for several years.
"Get them all on the same page. Pulling in the same direction. For the good of the composition." Nicely said Fil! That's the Dead in my eyes. They made the audience a part of that direction. Maybe that's why we still listen, and make it such a big part of our lives. Even after all these years.
Greatest Band of all time
You nailed the Dead's style...
Great analysis
one the the best concerts ever...everyone just cool and groovin' on the tunes! thanks Fil! ☮️
My whole family are Dead Heads. I enjoy them best driving down the road. The longer the trip the better.
I measure the length of road trips by the number of Dead shows I need to listen to get there.
The longer the "Trip". Lol
Yeah Fil! You did one of The Grateful Dead & Franklins Tower at that. As always you got it. Thanks They really were so so great!
TY for the info on Jerry's guitars, I always wondered about why they sounded different from most guitars.
Memories! Great groove. Shakedown Street indeed. I’m super lucky to have seen Jerry live, up close too. What an old school video find, with Keith and Donna, Muscle Shoals alumni. Dead shows in the day went on towards four hours of music. Truly special time.*sigh* Fil💥✨🔥❤️
Cool!
Only a young Donna Jean had connections with Muscle shoals, her and Keith didn't meet till she came out West.
Groovy Fil! ✌🏼💝 I'm not a huge fan, but there are a couple songs I love, and this is one of them. You're taking me back. I haven't heard The Dead in a long time.
Watching this makes me happy...and a lil sad 😥 Miss your face.
Nothing Like a Grateful Dead Show (~):-}
Late 80's and early 90's shows were hot too. I was fortunate to catch about 30 shows back then. Hamilton , Canada show was even part of my honeymoon.
Melodic Legend
re: the female vocals, Donna Jean Godchaux has form. She was a back up singer at Muscle Shoals and her voice appears on some very influential songs-- for example, "When a man loves a woman" by Percy Sledge.
And Suspicious Minds (I think) by Elvis too
HI FIL HAD TO GO BACK THRU THE VIDEOS. YOU. TEACH US SO MUCH.IT IS LIKE YOUWERE WITH US BACK THEN. WISH YOU WERE. GLAD YOU ARE WITH US NOW. WHAT A GUY. THANKS. SO COOL. STAY SAFE OUT THERE .PEACE AND LOVE
love it when you go into Jerry ! Thanks!
Loved Garcia and they had the best number 2 guitarist in the business
you are SOOOO right!!!!!!!!
I always thought that the Allman Brothers had the best second guitarists...
So loose, yet so tight!
Oh, and thanks for covering Jerry and the ‘Dead.
wjeffreyrankin my ex was like that
First Bucket now Dead 76? Fil,.. you are the freaking man! Great, great commentaries .
Thanks for the video and analyses! Jerry Garcia is one of my all time favorites (as for thousands and thousands of other people). This song also is one of my favorite Grateful Dead songs - though there are a lot more of their stuff in that category. : ). One thing especially is that as for his solos, one never really quite know where he is going. He seldom repeats phrases - even really great ones, apart from sometimes at the end in when a song or a solo going into a crescendo. It just flows on in twists and turns. As I understand he improvised all solos ( Sort of the idea and attraction of Grateful Dead) and drawing from his vast knowledge and repertoire. For me listening to his solos is like going on a journey where you don't really know where you going to end up. And I love the ride!
Fantastic. When Keith and Donna joined the band we all thought how cool a chick singer! Jerry had his voice and time. Listen to how slow dead and company play the tunes now and it's obvious those songs miss him. Thank you.
One of my main influences on guitar . Miss ya Jerry ! PEACE
Great harmony with Donna on this
Hi Phil we were at the last 3 Dead and Company shows in San Francisco check out Franklins Tower July 16 with John Mayer ❤ felt like we were back in the 70’s 😊
Thanks Phil keep doing Jerry and the dead videos great job.
😂🤘
I wore a lot of shoes out dancing at their gigs.
You are the best! No need to repeat what others have said. But your knowledge of the guitars was awesome! Wasn't expecting that! Rock on! Blessed bee.
The great band to hear 🎸👏👏👏
Thanks For your comments. Great American Music Hall '75 is THE Franklin's Tower...
Check out the Pembroke Pines-performance in 1977 though. That is the best version of Franklins Tower in the history of the GD.
My fave - ua-cam.com/video/lekTeNRHrQI/v-deo.html
Excellent presentation. I grew up with DeadHeads in the '70s that dug it more than me but was still a fan. Had a pretty great weekend in '75. Saw Montrose with Bob James at Winterland Sat night then The Dead and Airplane (starship?) the next day at Golden Gate Park. Quite nice. Gear and playing wise, Jerry always sounded like Jerry, be it a Strat, Wolf or aluminum necked Travis Bean.
Take away, his live solo to Going Down the Road Feeling Bad. 4 bends that i love.
June of 76. My favorite dead tour. This was right after a 1 1/2 year break for the band.
so much nuance you pulled out with your analysis, really cool stuff thank you
Thanks FIL! Been waiting for this. Roll away the dew.
Great video! He was awesome......as a drummer.....you can't forget the percussion as a foundation for the whole thing. My two cents.....if you don't notice the drums.....they are perfect!
If you can figure out what Phil is playing you are a genius.
I was lucky enough to of gotten to see the grateful dead over 350 times. They were incredible. I miss Jerry
Cool!
You seem like a really well put together British guy and I am a crazy American Bush hippie but we both word for word have the exact same feelings about this music. isn't that awesome?
One love bro
Good call @Fil It is Jerry’s TB500. I’d like to see you do a 90’s Eyes of the World. One with Branford Marsalis or Bruce Hornsby. Great musical interplay.
3/29/90 Nassau Coliseum. Branford on 1st Set for Birdsong, then wowed us all again for the entire 2nd Set. That EOTW is one of the most iconic versions IMO
Frost River agreed but the footage available on here is garbage. There’s a couple pro shot versions available. 12/31/90 and Giants Stadium 91 are great.
Thanks!
Yes! I will second that! I was just thinking the same. Those Bruce Hornsby recordings really show Jerry at his best. And playing with Branford - that's an achievement! I love the story Branford tells about his Dead experience. What cool cats they were, how much they loved the music, the Dead fans that would come to his shows, etc. I was also just revisiting the albums Jerry did with Dave Grisman. Brilliant! There is a live clip of Jerry & Dawg working out The Thrill is Gone. I had to laugh - at one point Jerry is telling Dawg how to play his lines... 😂😂😂
TideEyed_Steve Actually this particular guitar is Jerry’s TB1000 Travis Bean. He also used a more modified TB 500.
Here's the Dead beginning to hit their peak. The 76/77 era was IMO, the best.
Such grooves, vocals, and a swing vibe all at the same time.
The Travis Bean guitar was wholly unique and I just love Jerry's spidery sound.
77 was indeed great. It’s hard to beat that Europe 72 tour though.
I want a Travis Bean! Pleeeeeze, Santa? I've been a good boy!
Aluminum guitars are making a comeback. The Electrical Guitar company makes them and has made several custom pieces for people such as Ken Andrews of Failure, and Buzz Osborne of The Melvins.
I have been listening to the Grateful Dead forever and I appreciate how you have completely captured and elucidated the musical genius of Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead
Great analysis Fil..I think with Jerry you get this happy feeling which tells me about him..and his world view...just my opinion.