A place to talk about the music of the Grateful Dead
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By mkaufmanRe: Last night's show: the National Symphony Orchestra plays the music of Jerry Garcia Tue Sep 08, 2026 9:41 am -
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By Jon S.Last night's show: the National Symphony Orchestra plays the music of Jerry Garcia Sat Sep 05, 2026 8:39 am -
By Darkstar860Re: Searching for a JBL K-120 Fri Aug 14, 2026 7:41 pm
What about Tom??? Sheeesh...
"There, in huge black letters, was 'The Grateful Dead'. It just... cancelled my mind out."-Garcia
Are we including singing and playing? If that's the case, then Brent is #1 in my book. I liked his voice and attitude whilst singing. But, otherwise:
1. Keith
2. Brent
3. (tie) Bruce/Vince
4. Pigpen
5. Tommy C.
1. Keith
2. Brent
3. (tie) Bruce/Vince
4. Pigpen
5. Tommy C.
Play music, expand the mind, inspire...
"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey" - Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa
www.myspace.com/heavydime
"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey" - Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa
www.myspace.com/heavydime
it's a tie between Brent Mydland and Pigpen.
reason for Brent:
his gospel voice just throws so much more... oomph into the songs he sings. i epsecially love the We Can Run from Shoreline Amphitheatre on VFTV III i think...
his solo's from the Dark Star tour, i have a show that has him on fire the entire night... made me love some songs i never really had gotten into. not as far as singing, but his playing made me enjoy Queen Jane, Little Red Rooster, and Women Are Smarter.
reasons for Pig:
his rapping never fails to get me dancing and into the groove. he was a master at getting the audience involved in the show as much as the band was, and his constant improvisational lyrics kept the crowd on their feet.
his playing, though how i noticed he kind of skips around as far as playing a song then disappearing from those 10 minute jams. he has great fills, his harmonica playing was undisputed during the early Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, though this is the keyboard player post. oh well.
either way, it's impossible to make a decision. all keyboardists had their highs and lows, some just had higher highs and lower lows.
reason for Brent:
his gospel voice just throws so much more... oomph into the songs he sings. i epsecially love the We Can Run from Shoreline Amphitheatre on VFTV III i think...
his solo's from the Dark Star tour, i have a show that has him on fire the entire night... made me love some songs i never really had gotten into. not as far as singing, but his playing made me enjoy Queen Jane, Little Red Rooster, and Women Are Smarter.
reasons for Pig:
his rapping never fails to get me dancing and into the groove. he was a master at getting the audience involved in the show as much as the band was, and his constant improvisational lyrics kept the crowd on their feet.
his playing, though how i noticed he kind of skips around as far as playing a song then disappearing from those 10 minute jams. he has great fills, his harmonica playing was undisputed during the early Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, though this is the keyboard player post. oh well.
either way, it's impossible to make a decision. all keyboardists had their highs and lows, some just had higher highs and lower lows.
To my mind, it all has MUCH more to do with how much you like the whole band with each of the keyboardists, rather than the individual ability of that keyboardist.
With the intense heavy magic of 1969 that places T.C. somewhere near the top for me!!
With the intense heavy magic of 1969 that places T.C. somewhere near the top for me!!
"There, in huge black letters, was 'The Grateful Dead'. It just... cancelled my mind out."-Garcia
I loved Pigpen so much too. He had such a uniqueness about him. Keith was cool but with him came Donna.
groovemongrel wrote:I loved Pigpen so much too. He had such a uniqueness about him. Keith was cool but with him came Donna.Right, good point. Should we penalize Keith for dragging Donna with him (or was it the other way around?) Yeah, Keith gets minus-2 points for that witch. Sorry Keith. You're still my top dog in terms of players at the "jinxed seat", though!
Play music, expand the mind, inspire...
"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey" - Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa
www.myspace.com/heavydime
"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey" - Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa
www.myspace.com/heavydime
Why is Donna a witch? I mean, sure, she was off key quite a bit, her "playin" screams scare the bejeesus out of my cats, and she brought along "You ain't Woman Enough," but I always thought that when her harmonies with were on (like Looks Like Rain and some of the 1977 He's Gones) she added a vocal layer that the gd rarely had. If it is the singing, let's not forget Mr. Lesh's singing - not exactly inspired for someone with such musical talents. If it is her personal dramas, what good is a band with out affairs and fights! So why is Donna a witch?
As far as the keys go - Vince bored me to tears. His riffs were fixed and unchanging, vocals unispiring and songs - do I really need to say more than Samba in the Rain?
For what its worth, Brent was the keyboardist that I think of when I think Dead - His playing (think Mr. Fantasy and Red Rooster) and vocals were spot on. Keep in mind that although Brent did that weird piano sample and keyboard, Jerry insisted on playing When Push Comes to Shove and Friend of the Devil and funeral procession pace! If it is not Brent, I would just as soon listen to the boys circa 1970-71 in that transitional phase where there really was no keyboard presence.
As far as the keys go - Vince bored me to tears. His riffs were fixed and unchanging, vocals unispiring and songs - do I really need to say more than Samba in the Rain?
For what its worth, Brent was the keyboardist that I think of when I think Dead - His playing (think Mr. Fantasy and Red Rooster) and vocals were spot on. Keep in mind that although Brent did that weird piano sample and keyboard, Jerry insisted on playing When Push Comes to Shove and Friend of the Devil and funeral procession pace! If it is not Brent, I would just as soon listen to the boys circa 1970-71 in that transitional phase where there really was no keyboard presence.
Singing - Pig
Playing - Keith
Playing - Keith
"Don't ask me what I think of you, I might not give the answer that you want me to."
- Pete Green
- Pete Green
Jerry insisted on playing When Push Comes to Shove and Friend of the Devil and funeral procession pace!The slow FOTD began in the 76 or 77 Keith period. I wouldn't even be surprised if Keith was the instigator for that. Most people prefer the fast one, but imho with the tempo shift, the song moved beyond being just a quick little ditty into something heartbreakingly exquisite. Check out Jerry's solo on 12/31/78!! Check out Alpine 7/18/89!!!
"There, in huge black letters, was 'The Grateful Dead'. It just... cancelled my mind out."-Garcia
groovemongrel wrote:Let's not forget France. She will never be forgiven for that.There's nothing wrong with that song in my opinion. Listen to Jerry's acoustic riffs.
Pig was the soulman, I think of him as a front man and the only real proper front man the Dead ever had. On keys I think of those funky bar room licks back in the jive days of 66 and early 67.
Keith only played piano whereas Brent did all kinds of stuff. Vince was alright but the dead were a declining force in his era.
Keith was brilliant but became stale and only ever playing the piano became a minus on his card.
1. Keith
2. Bruce
3. Brent
4. Pig
5. TC
ya, i like France. i thought it was decent songwriting, the simple main Jerry riff is nice to hear. btw groovemongrel, didnt you say Brent was you fave key player in the other topic? you have him listed
#3 here? lol
2. Bruce
3. Brent
4. Pig
5. TC
ya, i like France. i thought it was decent songwriting, the simple main Jerry riff is nice to hear. btw groovemongrel, didnt you say Brent was you fave key player in the other topic? you have him listed
#3 here? lol