Vince Welnick RIP

[tigerstrat]

Vince Welnick died today. A guy who stepped into some of the biggest shoes you could ever try to fill, and let his heart shine and rocked out with some of the craziest cats in the world. May the four winds blow you safely home, Vince.

[phpbb]

I got to see brent's last and Vince's first. you're so right TigerStrat...

[phreaker]

I was planning on seeing him at the Gaslight Tavern here in Lawrence. I was super pumped for it.

Out of them all, Vince was probably the least popular keyboardist. No one really could dig him at first. Shit, he's no Pigpen. A transition like his from the Tubes to the Grateful Dead is not an easy one. But he executed the job perfectly. I salute you brother.

I just found out not even a full minute ago. And I already miss you, Vince.

[caspersvapors]

most cursed position in music ever, poor Vince RIP

[wisedyes]

Very sorry to hear of Vince's passing. I had pretty much stopped going to see the Dead by the time he was the primary keyboardist, but at the 90's shows I did attend, he was never the problem. He always sounded like a true pro to me, and usually seemed more into it than the rest of them.

I had always heard he was a really nice, decent guy, and reading some of the posts on here cements it for me. My deepest condolences go out to his family and friends.

As for the sorry state of Grateful Dead-dom these days, well, really, if you paid attention even in the early 80's, when I started, you could see the wheels coming off. It had pretty much devolved into a cash cow first and foremost by then; the music was suffering, set lists were getting staler and staler every tour, the backstage tensions were obvious, etc. It's really a shame, but that is how most things end up, once the money starts rolling in. The good, true reasons for doing it in the first place end up being forgotten.

This is my first post on here ever; as I mentioned, I was essentially divorced from the Dead for a long time. Have been to a few Ratdog and Phil shows locally, went to a few on the two The Dead tours, but for the most part, not in the loop, as it were. However, I have often used the site for the excellent tabs and appreciate all the hard work that must have gon into it, so a big THANK YOU there.

If what you all are saying about the way the "surviving members" treated Vince is ebven partially true, then shame on them. They have truly turned their backs on what made them the Grateful Dead in the first place. Shame.