#173652  by flat5
 
Hi Gang...Some fresh blood here and I thought I would post an intro as the forum requests.
Well, I am originally from Memphis TN. and spent a large part of my life in TN. I now live in Port Charlotte FL. I am 56 and a consummate musician, In fact sometime I think that is the only thing I am good for anymore. I can't claim to be the hardest core dead fan. I always liked and listened to them through the years, but obviously I was missing a lot of good stuff. Age has tempered me a bit and I am starting to be big fan of NRPS and am digging hard into The Dead. I play 5 instruments. Guitar (of course ), piano/Hammond B3, pedal steel (not for the meek ), harmonica, and sing a bit. I am starting to get an itch for a banjo. Growing up in Memphis I did not have the bluegrass influence in my playing that was so prevalent when The Dead were getting going. My influence tends to be deep blues and hard core swing and bebop jazz. I am working on copping Jerry's single note solo techniques and that's what lead me to this page. I was looking for some info on the chord changes in 'Deal' and came across this page, although I was already aware of it. One great thing about great 60's and 70's rock is that there always seems to be something somewhere that you missed and if you look you can find it in terms of music. If you dig into The Dead it's the same. It seems their is always something you haven't heard. I guess I am getting a bit more laid back and it has lead me to some music with a different groove and right now The Dead seems to fill that spot for me and I am having a great time learning their tunes. Some I already knew, but it was good to get Ripple and Ship of Fools and such under my belt. Those are fun to play and the chord changes just flow. "Deal" has that infectious groove that just makes you want to tap your feet and maybe dance a bit. I have worked and done a lot, although I am not a smashing financial success. I have a BS in Communication with a minor in music performance. I am a licensed pilot, although it's too damned expensive to rent a plane anymore so that has not happened in a while. I am a licensed respiratory therapist and found I despised working in the medical field. It hinders who you are as a person and I like to have my fun and always will. I worked in the despicable corporate world a few times. One of them would have been alright until the company was bought out and they pulled the ole' 'take everything from the employee' routine which is par for the course in any corporate job. I have been getting by teaching music for a bit, but am idle at the moment. My parent's are in their 90's so I spend time helping them and making sure they don't screw something up. I have always been familiar with The Dead and the songs everyone has heard, or had heard at one time. With the :music" today I am sure there are a lot of people who have not heard The Dead's classic songs. It's a shame and a loss of creativity for humanity. Not to say there are not any good musicians. There are. Just not as many and the creativity is not there as far as what the general public hears or what people are writing today. I wonder what Jerry what say ? Or Zappa ? Any way, hello and it's good to be on the forum. Maybe i can find a Jerry Garcia Band show or two that I have been looking for. Everyone have a great day......flat5
strumminsix liked this
 #173653  by lbpesq
 
Well howdy Flat5 and welcome to the forum! If you enjoy songs where the "chord changes just flow", may I suggest you check out Brown-Eyed Women and Jack Straw. I always found the changes in these two tunes immensely fun to play.

Bill, tgo
 #173654  by flat5
 
Thank you my friend for the hello and the suggestion on songs. Those are two that I have seen transcription of, but have never heard them. I'll add them to the collection very soon. Playing the chords are no problem. Garcia's solos are another ball game entirely, as I'm sure you well know and will probably agree. Hello to you fellow Dead lover !
 #173658  by lbpesq
 
Glad I could steer you in a good direction, Flat5. Since you haven't heard "Brown-Eyed Women" or "Jack Straw" before, in my humble opinion you should drop everything and immediately buy a copy of "Europe '72". You're gonna like it!

Bill, tgo
 #173659  by flat5
 
Funny you should mention that one. I just tried to order Europe 72 Vol ii 2 days ago on cd and it was backordered. My guy is good and he will get it for me. If you buy your music on cd there are a lot of problems with backorders on Dead as well as a lot of other stuff and it all started before the national supply shortage. I am waiting for NRPS first album as well. It is also backordered. I lucked up on an old copy of "Powerglide". I think they are condensed into 2 albums on 1 cd now and I don't like it. I am trying to take your suggestion into account as we speak. Thanks for the input. Any tips on exceptional Dead stuff is welcome.
 #173662  by Phrygian
 
Hi and welcome flat5! I second the recommendation to learn Brown-Eyed Women and Jack Straw! I never tire of playing those two tunes. And there are many more on Europe 72 to learn and play. I also highly recommend China Cat Sunflower/Rider.
 #173664  by lbpesq
 
Make sure you get your hands on the original Europe ‘72. Volume 2 is nice, too, but I don’t believe it includes BEW or JS. Other albums you might want to check out, if you aren’t yet familiar with them, are “Live/Dead” for an excellent example of the band’s early experimental jamming, and the 1970 twins “Workingman’s Dead” and “American Beauty” for a collection of some of the best Hunter/Garcia songs and the best singing the band ever recorded (they were assisted by David Crosby and Graham Nash). Now that you are on the bus, enjoy the ride!

Bill, tgo
 #173667  by flat5
 
Thank you for the suggestions my friend. I have some good pieces already. Workingman's Dead, American Beauty, Mars Hotel (Like that one ) Blues for Allah ( like that one too ), In the Dark, as well as a few import cd's that I would have to to peek at to see where the shows were. I need to get more live stuff in my collection. Both of the Europe 72's are on my list next, but they are both backordered.
 #173669  by tdcrjeff
 
flat5 wrote: Thu Sep 15, 2022 1:12 pm as well as a few import cd's that I would have to to peek at to see where the shows were. I need to get more live stuff in my collection.
You can stream any unofficial thing to your hearts content:
https://relisten.net/grateful-dead
 #173670  by flat5
 
My marantz receiver with JBL and Pioneer speakers doesn't like streaming. Sacrifices to much sound quality. I know it depends on how much memory the files have and such. However, I have heard a lot streams of good old rock that are just a big audio mess . I have even heard some people say they hear missing instruments in some music. I don't know about that, but I'm old skool with my music my friend and just don't stream. I know it's convenient, but it just does not work for me. Thanks for chiming in.
lbpesq liked this
 #173692  by Cozmik Cowboy
 
tdcrjeff wrote: Thu Sep 15, 2022 3:02 pm
flat5 wrote: Thu Sep 15, 2022 1:12 pm as well as a few import cd's that I would have to to peek at to see where the shows were. I need to get more live stuff in my collection.
You can stream any unofficial thing to your hearts content:
https://relisten.net/grateful-dead
Also at http://www.deadlists.com/, which has notes on guest players, etc. for many shows. Used to be able to download most shows from there, too,but alas no more (IIRC, that was a bone of contention between Phil & Bobby; I'll let guess who wanted it which way).
 #173693  by Cozmik Cowboy
 
"Deal" was one of the first things I learned to play. Hadn't done it in a while, but broke it out yesterday; it is still a blast to play (even if not as smooth as it once was.......)

PM me if you'd like the chords as I play it (though it sounds like you play far above my level).
 #173700  by flat5
 
Thanks for the info. There is one particular JGB show I am looking for to burn or rip to a cd . I'll hit some members up for that soon and see if anyone has it. As for who is a better player.....meeeh...it's not about who is better. It's about having fun with what you know. I have seen players who could hardly play anything that knew a chord I did not. so you can learn from anyone if you keep an open mind. I learned the "Hendrix C7#9 " chord from a guy that that was the only chord he knew, but I had been searching for it as a kid and the second he played it I knew it was the chord I wanted and got him to show it to me. Many thanks for chiming in.
 #173893  by flat5
 
Wow !....You guys were not kidding about that "Europe 72" material. That is some of the best "live Dead" i have ever heard. The songs suggested by some other pickers are going to be a scream to dig into as well. What a great piece of music. There seems to be a consensus that the "Europe 72" material is some of the best of the Dead. I saw a short documentary with a Deadhead gurur taper that was so onto the Dead that they discovered him and made him their music archivist. He maintains a library separated into every Dead member's solo work and, etc. I'm sure some of you hard core Deadheads know who he is. He also spoke of the "Europe 72" stuff as some of their best. They really seemed to being firing on all 8 cylinders at that point in time....This is one I'll never tire of listening to.
Many thanks to everyone who chimed in.