Grateful Dead

FENNARIO – SONGS BY JERRY GARCIA & ROBERT HUNTER (out August 19 on Iris Records), an album  that pays tribute to the Grateful Dead's principal songwriters.  Joseph previously released a critically acclaimed American music album and also has written album tracks for friend and fan Bonnie Raitt.

With more than just crowd pleasers at Seattle's WaMu Theater, Gov't Mule and Ratdog co-headlined a fine show!  Arguably an unlikely tour duo, Bob Weir and Warren Haynes delighted Seattle with this second stop on their Summer tour.

Here are just a couple highlights I took home from the industrial, cavernous, nouveau concert hall:

The Grateful Dead was at their absolute "post-coma" peak from the summer of 1989 through the summer of 1990. They had never been more popular, playing at consistently sold out venues and even selling out some huge arenas. Jerry Garcia was by all reports clean and sober, and his playing and singing hadn't been as good since the late 70's. The whole band, as always, fed off Garcia's newfound energy and their playing reached levels not seen for over a decade.

Grateful Web's Aaron Dietrich was in attendance at Friday night's Ratdog/Gov't Mule show in Eugene, Oregon.

For classical composer Lee Johnson, tackling the work of the Grateful Dead was like discovering the musical foundations of a new foreign country. Johnson is known for his concert pieces, choral works, short operas and musicals, planetarium soundtracks, and solo/ensemble pieces that cross into jazz and big band music.

Today's review is a show readily available for download at the Live Music Archive, 7/29/88, at the Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey California. This was the first of a three show run at Laguna Seca, and in my opinion the best of the three. I chose this show mainly because of the extremely high quality of the recording currently available at the LMA. It sounds to me to be a mislabelled soundboard or soundboard/audience matrix recording, but I suppose it's possible that its just a phenomenal audience recording.

Staggering gas prices curtailing your travel plans? Avoid the pinch and let Road Trips transport you far and wide while safely parked with your favorite listening device. Our latest 2-disc installment takes us to the magical Summer of '71 with stops in New Haven, Chicago and, for a limited time, sunny Southern California. All in brilliant HDCD and all for the same low $19.98.

Phil Lesh & Friends played the Greek Theater in Los Angeles last night and Grateful Web was on hand to snap some photos.

Archived news