[weirimpressed]

i was about to say, the 5/8/1977 NFA is 17 minutes long

and blob youre right, I was a little off when I made that comment

the mixo works perfect coming out of the G7, makes the sun shine a little better

[Django]

Hey Now, Asus2 is close enough for this project.

Glad you said that Pete!

[Pete B.]

Yeah, it's about the feeling, and the fact that there were alot of cool tunes in that Am zone, not so much the semantics of the "Key".
The opening "feel" of Wharf Rat is so "dark" (like, did someone I know just die?), compared to say, Sugar Mags, for example (which strikes me as... let's all dance naked!... weeeeeee!!!).

Anybody listen to that cool Jack-A-Roe on the Phil Zone cd's?
'Love the groove/feel of that one!
~pb

[Mick]

Okaaay, maybe I stated poorly, let me rephrase: None of the recorded versions of NFA that I have on my iPod such that I can play along with them have much of a jam to them. Some are very long versions timewise where they get the crowd chanting the words and what not, others are segued into St. Stephen or GDTRFB and then finished when they come out of that song etc. I didn't mean to make a definitive historical statement about how the Dead played the song over their 30+ year career as I am sure I lack the knowledge to do that on any song they played.

[Mick]

Oh, and Blob on the "cross the rio grandeo" portion of Miss half step: If you got me on the same page as everyone else now on terminology, I agree that that part uses an A mixolydian scale (at least thats how I have played along with it) which would be the notes from the key of D major.

[BlobWeird]

Oh, and Blob on the "cross the rio grandeo" portion of Miss half step: If you got me on the same page as everyone else now on terminology, I agree that that part uses an A mixolydian scale (at least thats how I have played along with it) which would be the notes from the key of D major.

If I have you on the same page as everyone else now on terminology? Huh? lol Anyways I have tons of NFA's especially from 77 where it has nothin to do with the crowd chanting or segues or anything but simply just realllllly long extended, sometimes spacey, jams. Love when he busts out his distortion/octave tone.

[warrenMFKNhaynes]

Don't forget:

Johnny B. Goode and
Not Fade Away

Aren't these song in A/Am also?

Oh, C.C Rider, Takes a Lot to Laugh, and Little Red Rooster are in A also.

i do rooster in G, and not fade away in E. interesting


The dead do watchtower in B

did they do "gotta serve somebody"?

[Pete B.]

imho... The Dead did what everybody should do when covering a song (if possible), play around with it to find out what key is best for your voice, and do it in that key. Sometimes the guitar lick only sounds right in one position, and then you may just have to do it that way and fit the vocals to the music (the best example may be Keith Richards 5 string open G tuning used for the intro lick to Honky Tonk Woman... never sounds quite right on a standard 6 string, although millions of players do it that way).

'That said... Watchtower will always be in Am in my world.
Johnny B. Goode / NFA / any CC Rooster[sic]-esque song... never gonna be assosiated with a minor key feel or jam (to me).
Now "The Thrill Is Gone", is clearly a minor key feel.

did they do "gotta serve somebody"?

http://www.amazon.com/Dylan-Dead/dp/B0000026RU

[BlobWeird]

imho... The Dead did what everybody should do when covering a song (if possible), play around with it to find out what key is best for your voice, and do it in that key. Sometimes the guitar lick only sounds right in one position, and then you may just have to do it that way and fit the vocals to the music (the best example may be Keith Richards 5 string open G tuning used for the intro lick to Honky Tonk Woman... never sounds quite right on a standard 6 string, although millions of players do it that way).

'That said... Watchtower will always be in Am in my world.
Johnny B. Goode / NFA / any CC Rooster[sic]-esque song... never gonna be assosiated with a minor key feel or jam (to me).
Now "The Thrill Is Gone", is clearly a minor key feel.

did they do "gotta serve somebody"?

http://www.amazon.com/Dylan-Dead/dp/B0000026RU

NFA and Johnny B. Goode I definitely wouldnt associate with A minor. But Little Red Rooster I think deserves the title.

[Mick]

Oh, and Blob on the "cross the rio grandeo" portion of Miss half step: If you got me on the same page as everyone else now on terminology, I agree that that part uses an A mixolydian scale (at least thats how I have played along with it) which would be the notes from the key of D major.

If I have you on the same page as everyone else now on terminology? Huh? lol

You and some other guys straightened me out on some terminology a month or two ago surrounding Ramble on Rose. At least, I think you were one of them. I could be wrong though, I admit to suffering from CRS.

[Pete B.]

NFA and Johnny B. Goode I definitely wouldnt associate with A minor. But Little Red Rooster I think deserves the title.

At this point I have to ask...
Are we talking about the same song?
I'm talking about the song Little Red Rooster that Bobby sang and played slide on, the one where alot of folks headed to the johns in order to make it back in time for the next Jerry tune.
Pete B.

[Tennessee Jedi]

I dont think Rooster is Am.
But than I associate Watchtower with C#m.
I guess those are the kind of tunes that people move around to fit their vocal range.

[BlobWeird]

Well maybe its not technically in Am. But with Bobby's moody singing and Garcia using blues/min pentatonics it would still work.

[Pete B.]

How many songs can you think of that use the Am walkdown that is also the intro to Mississippi Halfstep?...

So far I have:

Blue Skies Smilin' At Me - Irving Berlin
Summer Rain - Johnny Rivers
Summertime - George Gershwin

I know a local band called "Amelia" that has an original that uses that lick in a manner very similar to MHUT.

Any others?...