The Grateful Dead: Dead Ahead
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Movie Reviews of The Grateful Dead: Dead Ahead
Movie Review: a must have
Summary: 4 Stars
This dvd represents the dead at their peak in my opinion. The sound and picture are excellent, and the set offers some alternative songs to the norm. Band members were at the top of their game and i found this performance moving. A very energetic and appreciative crowd adds to the overall experience. The only downer is a rather tacky appearance by Al Franken introducing the band. So do what i did, peel open that dvd, throw it in the home theater and crank it up...and be brought back to a time when "the music never stopped".Movie Review: I'm from NY, so it's still cool
Summary: 4 Stars
Because of the location, i'm still into this dvd. however, the editing, sound and video all get 3 stars in my book. I was also upset that Uncle J's Band is not an actual live performance in the set. I really love the acoustic stuff that is here though. Can't hear jerry's vocals well enough . . .Movie Review: D V D........Dead Ahead
Summary: 4 Stars
seen many dead shows , this one tops the list of classicMovie Review: Worth finding
Summary: 3 Stars
I picked this one up as a memoir from the only time I ever actually saw them with Jerry, which was a few days before this Radio City Music Hall gig. Growing up in New Orleans, I was too young to see them when they got busted and then immortalized it in "Truckin'". They swore to stay away from New Orleans after that, and I can't blame them. In the meantime, we had our own version of a jam band with frequent shows from the Allman Brothers Band, which kept us very satisfied. Back then, I was not even of fan of the Dead, so by the time they finally showed up again in New Orleans, my musical tastes were so far away (as in electric progressive rock with elaborate arrangements). So, you guessed it - I showed up for this show as a casual fan expecting trippy psychedelic music. Gosh, was I ever wrong!
Here is my vague memory from that night back on October 18, 1980. The band came on and only a few clapped. They played an acoustic set and then only a few clapped when they left. They came back and played an electric set, again with only a few cheering. Then they came back and did another acoustic set, then another electric set. Again, very little cheering, as if these fans were used to seeing this all the time. From my seat in the center balcony, it seemed like the whole show was four hours long. I thought maybe that I lost track of time and space, but they DID play that long. I went away thinking that the drum solo was the best part and I hated drum solos. The only lyric lines that stuck in my head for days were "roll away the dew" from Franklin's Tower and "California" (from Estimated Prophet, which is not included on this DVD). This memory was so boring, that it did not convert me to being a Dead Head for another 21 years at the ripe old age of 45 (better late than never).
So now that I have seen various versions of The Dead, Rat Dog, Phil Lesh & Friends, all without Jerry, I just had to see this DVD to see if it agreed with my memory. Well, not quite! The acoustic numbers Ripple, To Lay Me Down, and On The Road Again are all fantastic. I have always hated Bird Song, even to this day, so don't ask my opinion on that one. As for the electric set, these are not the best I have seen, nor the worst. The scenes of the entire band from the balcony is how I saw them, which was too far away to appreciate Jerry's chirping guitar sound. This DVD does indeed capture that part, thank goodness! Had I been seated on the floor, I may have been converted to a Dead Head much sooner. Speaking of floor seats, this DVD also shows REAL hippies instead of the hordes of trustafarians that invade the scene these days.
Since this one is also out of print, grab one as soon as you find one if you are a Dead Head. A worthy keepsake.
Movie Review: Sadly an missed oportunity
Summary: 2 Stars
Alot of folks have been waiting for this DVD release. Sorry to report that they blew it. The sound for this stems from the original recordings and it is just plain crappy. They gave it a 5.1 remix but it fails to really add any luster to the sound. Phil's bass has been tweaked up and sounds almost too loud. Overall the DVD audio is lacking in frequencies and fullness found on the companion audio relases. The sound on the RECKONING and DEAD SET cds blows this away. So the audio leaves alot to be desired. The picture quality is just the same as the VHS, it looks no better and is soft and long shots are a blurry mess. Of course, again, it's the best there is but seen in 2005 it's just a let down.
The song selction for the original release was always a bummer. Who the hell decided what to include and what got left out? Bad decision, cemented by the fact they left it alone for the DVD. The acoustic set is way to short and is out of order, which is a major crime as the acoustic sets from this tour were THE reason to check them out. The badly truncated versions of the first and second sets speak for themselves. True fans will wince at the cuts.
The 50 minutes of bonus material from 10-30 is welcome, but where the hell is the rest of it? All you get is the first half of set two, and one acoustic song. When the material is of this so so quality, why skimp on the quantity? Where are the other acoustic songs? I have more songs taken from an old USA TV NIGHT FLIGHT broadcast that still are MIA on the DVD ( ROSES, US BLUES, ect..). No excuse at all.
I was at a theater for the simulcast of the 10-31-80 show in Boston, and recently got a bootleg of the entire concert, and seeing the whole show again just rams home how badly this set is laid out and chopped up.
If you never saw the VHS and love the acoustic RECKONING, go ahead and drop your coins, it's worth it. If you have the tape version, you may be satisfied with just that. The DVD was a huge let down for me, and hands down the black sheep of the live GD DVD's released so far.