tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195590583641426943.post3273245966812218469..comments2024-03-26T23:10:34.814-07:00Comments on Grateful Dead Sources: October 1970: Vintage DeadLight Into Asheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195590583641426943.post-69651327788357941472018-07-06T18:35:14.209-07:002018-07-06T18:35:14.209-07:00I added a third review from the Spectrum, the Univ...I added a third review from the Spectrum, the University at Buffalo campus newspaper. As often, the student review is much more in-depth than the reviews in the mainstream city papers. Altman was a heavy Dead freak, a fan from their first album who missed the youthful energy of the early Dead, and it sounds like he prefers '60s music to the new rock of 1970 as well, so it's natural he'd give a very positive review of Vintage Dead. <br />Unlike other reviewers, he doesn't hear this 1966 show as "old and dated" (except for Pigpen's Farfisa), but notes how much it has in common with recent Dead - the harmony singing, the band jamming, the Pigpen showpiece. He's seen the Dead live, but draws no other comparisons except to say that Weir still can't sing Dancing in the Street very well! For him, this record is "pure, unadulterated Dead," as well as showcasing their ability to play different genres of music.Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195590583641426943.post-41781700699606707182018-03-02T19:50:11.780-08:002018-03-02T19:50:11.780-08:00I added a short review from Miami, October 1970, s...I added a short review from Miami, October 1970, shortly after the album's release. (It's a little strange that Vintage Dead came out a month or two before American Beauty did - no wonder the Dead were bugged by it - and perhaps not coincidental that they immediately started thinking about doing a new live album.) <br />As a review it doesn't add a whole lot, recognizing that the music is "old and dated" but has an "honest sound" and gives a feel for 1966 Dead, way back four years ago when time was young... ("As far back as you can trace the electric explosion of music, the Dead are there," the review says, which is quite an exaggeration, but it emphasizes how distant 1966 already seemed.) <br />But it has a good brief description of the Dead which is a perfect outline of why people liked them: "their beautiful communal way of life," "their insistence on free concerts," and their live music ("Americana freaked out rock 'n' roll"). Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195590583641426943.post-25092418437676088912012-07-23T22:58:29.847-07:002012-07-23T22:58:29.847-07:00Later in '71 a second record from these '6...Later in '71 a second record from these '66 tapes, Historic Dead, was released. I'll be posting an October '71 article on the story behind these records. <br /><br />For now, a quote from Garcia when asked about these records by Jann Wenner in '71: <br />"There's no point in going back to the past, for one thing, and for another thing, those performances weren't meant to stand around forever. They were for that night. And if you were stoned and there that night, that was probably exactly what was happening, but it's not what's happening now. It's just a source of embarrassment." <br /><br />Setting aside Garcia's embarrassment (which he usually felt with older Dead performances), this is an interesting philosophy, apparently opposed to the release of any old live shows as pointless!<br /><br />The article above, lightweight & uninformed as it is, I think has a more accurate perspective of this album.Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.com