The Dead 04/14/09

[crgaston]

Allright, y'all... I was there for Greensboro and DC.  Greensboro was a little tentative, and the mix was a bit fluffy.  All the subs were flown so they weren't really hitting very hard.  Also Bobby's guitar was too loud.  Warren didn't really step out and take charge, but he did fit well into what the other guys were doing.  Chimanti (sp?) did really well.  I loved his Fender Rhodes, too.  What a great addition to the sound!
 
Another great thing was the scene in the lot. The weather could not have been more perfect.  It felt like 1990; crowded but very laid back and happy.  The average person was probably a bit older, but there were lots of kids there who would have been in grade school when Jerry died.  
 
Amazingly, our buddies got to the lot several hours before we did and were able to hold us a spot.  Even more amazingly, the event staff helped us get to it even though they were routing traffic to a different area by the time we got there.  After the show we were able to hang out for at least an hour.  I wasn't really watching a clock at that point.
 
The vocals are better than they've ever been, and that's due to Warren, I believe. He sounds like a mix between Brent and Pigpen, and can hit the harmonies really well.
 
DC was more aggressive.  Warren seemed to take charge more, and the jams were serious; not just aimless noodling most of the time.  We snuck around behind the stage to get as close as we could to a speaker array for this show, which gave us a great view of the drummers.  Definitely NOT lacking in energy!  The sound was better than Greensboro, but still suffered from the flown subs.
 
I personally think the setlists have been great so far.  
 
One thing I wasn't expecting was the tears.  I spent about a third of the first set just sobbing at various points.  This was the first time I'd seen them since '95, and that includes any of the members' solo projects.
 
I definitely didn't get the impression that tis is just about the money.  NONE of it seemed to be phoned in.  No, this isn't the best Grateful Dead ever, but it's the best Dead tour you'll be able to see this Spring. Maybe ever again...who knows?

[zappahead]

I don't think it was just a money grab persay, but the ticket prices were ridiculous. I also got seats in a different section than what I paid for and they were horrible. Even the mail order days they never did anything like that to me.  
 
My main problem really was the quality of the 2nd set. It does irritate me when I look at other set lists and compare it to this one. We got gipped. They mailed the set in totally until Sugar at the end and then they completely mailed in the encore. Im seeing sets from other shows and from what I hear they were played much better.
 
The other thing here is that with Warren there was a real chance to do something different. The 2 set, space/drum jam thing just does not work right without Jerry. Warren brings so much to the table but they are not playing enough to his strengths. I guess maybe I am in the minority of deadheads who wants something different. I don't want to revisit or recreate all the cool shows I saw before. I want to see Phil, Bob and Warren play together and bring it hard. Warren does sound like Brent and Pigpen, which makes for some really cool tunes.