Not Grateful for the Dead

1. Apparently we CANNOT give it a rest Mr. Gallucci, and I find it amusing that it irks you so much that “The Dead” are STILL so popular and even RELEVANT that they have sold out their shows yet again. Not bad for a bunch of has-beens!! Jealous?? You sound like a pissed-off wanna-be musician who never made it and now has to write for a living!! That’s right Mr. Galucci, MILLIONS of people were wrong and YOU were right!! Hmmmmm….

2. Sorry Michael you really need to get a clue. I can’t get enough of the grateful dead! I’ll take it anyway they want to give it to me.

3. Okay Gallucci, them’s fighting words. This isn’t even about The Dead, it’s about songs that still transcend time and space after all these years. I’ll never forget the day Jerry died — I was actually having lunch with Aylward and some lady named Sofranec that day. Still pains me to think about the immensity of that loss. Now go put on your Replacements CDs and get down, dude.

   Your pal,

   Kuhar

4. Who is more relevant: a band that sells out stadiums to multiple generations of listeners or a blow-hard blogger from Cleveland? My money’s on the former, not the latter.

5. If the Rolling Stones and KISS can market a new set of trading cards, I suppose The Grateful Dead can too.

6. If you don’t know the name of the album with the skull on the cover.. there’s really not much you do know about The Dead.
   I have a few albums but hundreds of live shows… I’ll tell you what… “That music will never die”.

   Kiss sells everything, including coffins, so maybe you could pre-order yours

7. Oh I see, you Like Kelly Clarkson..

   So I guess you would prefer watching American Idol than listening to American Beauty

   Talk about lame

8. I think you did this to try and make yourself relevant, as before this you were just a no name reporter (long after this as well). I looked at the last few things you did, and this was the only recent article that had any commentary. Its pretty easy to tear something down you don’t understand, which you clearly don’t. Lacking relevance is when I see the former members of RATT play a club and 50 people show up. Leave the important bands to the big boys, and go back to Kelly Clarkson. And as for the Stones, did you see “Shine A Light”? I think they are still relevant too. What will you do when Led Zeppelin gets back together? I’m sure I wont find out.

9. He must be a pissed off musician… or he hasn’t seen The Dead… Maybe he’s pissed to live in Cleveland, or maybe he’s just not that intelligent, but man, don’t take it out on The Dead… btw, what are you pissed at?

10. In Michael’s defense, he was hardly a “no name reporter” prior to being with Scene, and Free Times before that. He had a long an illustrious association with Goldmine and other pubs. So he is well-versed in music history. But is he way off-base on this one? Damn straight.

11. wow, musical ignorance never ceases to amaze me. i consider myself to be very open-minded about music, but there are things that I dont personally prefer to listen to. i dont knock those styles though, because its the “whatever floats your boat” attitude. for you to think that you know what people in general want and like is humorous. if you dont like the dead, dont buy their socks, and dont listen to them – but there are so many people who love this music, that honestly would prefer to not have YOU taking up THEIR dancing room. you did get one thing right though, Jerry Garcia was a legend, and should always be remembered as such.

12. Let me guess…you’re a thirty-something, hipster douche bag with horn-rimmed glasses, a Members Only jacket and a hard on for lame, hipster “indie” music, aren’t you? Maybe you’re just an asshole.

13. lmao at the kelly clarkson call out…
    i take back what i said… lost cause.

14. Even if you’re not a fan of their music, you can’t say a word about their legacy and the millions and millions of diehard fans. It’s not always about the people playing a song as much as the song itself. Who can’t rock out to someone playing a bad accoustic version of sugar magnolia at the beach around a campfire?

    How many bands made such a profound impact on so many people that they felt compelled to follow the band across the country?
    How many bands out there can really say they transcend the generation gap and appeal to such a wide age range? I know highschool kids that love the dead, I’m 15 years out of HS and really upset I didn’t make it in time for tix, my dad is in his 60’s and still enjoys the band.

15. Well it’ quite obvious why you are not writng in a major market, you don’t have a clue what the Dead has meant the rock scene over the past thirty-something years. I challenge you to find a group that has sold half the tickets over that period of time. Let me guess you want over produced light shows and setlists that are cast in stone weeks before the tour even starts, if thats the case catch Britney Spears next time she rolls through town. Maybe thats stretching it, my guess is your more of either a Papa Roach fan or like one person already commented an arrogant indie loving douche bag who thinks he’s too cool for school. What makes the dead so great for countless fans and especially other musicians is that they have an endless catalog to choose from and they play what they want on any given night, in turn that makes every show a new experience. I know I’m spoiled because i live in the Philadelphia area and have one of the last truly great DJ’s in the business to remind everyone what the dead are all about on a weekly basis. Pierre Robert just flat out gets it, the dead is much, much more than just the incredible music, it is a community of people that just love the exploration that is a DEAD show. Unlike you all those people can’t be wrong. I will be at the Spectrum(where the Grateful Dead had 53 sellouts) on May 2nd with my dancin shoes on for the last stand before they tear the old girl down. Heres hoping they send her out in style! GOD BLESS THE GRATEFUL DEAD!!!!!!!!!!! P.S. follow me @jefwent

16. I was at the Spectrum in Philly, the night they raised the Grateful Dead Banner commemorating the 50th Dead show at the Spectrum, simply amazing times there…just one of many, many, places, and times, I remember while on the way to my next Dead Show… They gave me inspiration in doing things and going places I may never have imagined… Hell, I ended up living in Humboldt County, CA and with an open mind…not bad for a boy from South Georgia who once went to a Dead show in hopes of scoring some acid…. Again, “Thank God for the Grateful Dead…” and your comment was well stated @jefwent

17. I haven’t listened to anything new since college.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

    I think any music that was made after 1980 sucks.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

    I consider myself an open-minded music listener, as long as the music was made by Bob Dylan or the Grateful Dead.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

    I own more than 200 live shows of the Dead performing “Ripple.” And even though every single one of them sounds the same, I will insist that they all sound different.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

    I will support a band long after their driving force died, even though, deep in my heart, I know that they’re not that good anymore.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

    I spent my 20s following the Grateful Dead from city to city instead of getting a summer job. Now that I’m older, I spend my days leaving comments on a stupid blog, defending a band that’s 20 billion times richer than me.

    I am a Grateful Dead fan.

18. Wow..talk about a hater. He can rip on The Dead as much as he wants. There is no other act in musical history..not the Stones, Aerosmith or anyone else that can boast 4 generations of loyal fans. There is a reason for it and he is just not turned on enough to feel it or see it.
    “Ship of fools on a cruel sea, ship of fools sail away from me.
    It was later than I thought when I first believed you,
    Now I cannot share your laughter, ship of fools.”

19. Wait. How can the Stones not boost 4 generations of loyal fans?

20. make that “boast.” Sorry.

21. anyone who knows anything about the grateful dead will tell you straight up that it wasn’t about their albums, dude. it was about the *shows*. it was about the scene, and family.. the energy, the MUSIC, which far transcends what could be recorded on an album.

    it’s also not about the “trust fund kids”… most of which i seriously doubt would bother with the dead at this point anyway. alot of them probably have a similar mindset to you. i’d bet that the folks going to the shows this summer are old heads, the die hards, those who have lived and breathed the dead’s music for decades. the true deadheads… of which i am proud to say i am one, and have been for 20+ years.

    you have a right to your opinions, you even have a right to post them on the web. so go on with your bad self. do you feel better now?

22. Galluci, I had to register at this worthless site to respond to your ignorant article! You are truly PATHETIC! “YAY, Kelly Clarkson!!!” YAY!!!!! You turd!!!! A) Your clearly not a musician B) Your a failure as a “writer”, C) You write for a blog from Northeast Ohio!!!!! LOLOLOL!!! You failed to mention the millions of dollars they’ve raised over the years for blind children, enviornmental issues, veterans…etc. No, you wouldn’t know anything about SEVA or The Rex Foundation, because your a HACK of a writer! I DARE YOU to respond!!!! Northeast Ohio, hahahahah how depressing!

23. Hiya Lucy,

    To state the obvious, to each his own. Frankly, I have no qualms with your criticisms of the music, the fans, or the licensing…in principle, that is. I don’t share your opinions, but I respect different points of view. That said, I do think your tone — or rather invective — is aggressive and deliberately nasty. It is so obviously cliched for entertainment’s sake as opposed to actually using your prose (and I use that term generously) to substantiate your points with even the slightest semblance of depth. Since you are indeed a writer — even if you blog which we all know generally auto-tilts you into being a whiney dick — you can do better than take pot shots that have been levied so many times over the years that you’re not stating anything new — trustafarians, burritos, overdoses, Dark Star, blah blah blah. Tell me how your unoriginal reference points are “relevant,” Lucy? They aren’t and neither is your article. In fact, it is tired and stale. I could easily make a “just like your mother’s…” joke here, but that would be playing into your infantile hand (like calling you, Lucy. There, I admit it. I can be a dick, too). On behalf of Paul and Ringo’s recent reunion, a parting thought on relevancy because I just can’t let go of your stupidity. It is just plain ignorant to suggest that an artist’s music is not relevant — unless, of course, they are a poser band trying so hard to be “current” with their new sound that they actually fail on all counts and deserve to be ripped for not achieving their pointed goal. But I digress. Back to your opinion that The Dead’s music hasn’t been relevant for 20 years. By whose definition and on what terms? Because portions of the catalog date back 44 years? Well, I suppose that’s a good point, Lucy. In fact, you should suggest that to your hometown Cleveland Orchestra, arguably one of the world’s finest musical groups — the Lebron James of classical. With a repertoire comprised of Beethoven, Schumann, Mozart, Handel, etc., the Cleveland Orchestra — or the entire classical genre for that matter — couldn’t be less relevant according to your argument, no matter that it repeatedly performs both rare and tried-and-true compositions all over the world for adoring, learned audiences with big ears and a true passion for the material who consume the product with studious appreciation and high standards year after year. Totally irrelevant just like The Dead whose members, according to your inferences, should disavow themselves of their life’s work and fraternity because one link in the chain, albeit a big one, is no longer with us. All the reason to deprive themselves and their fans the music that each party loves to consume in each other’s presence. The fact is that The Dead are invigorated and playing right now as if their 401k’s depended on it which they don’t. And as always they are walking without a wire with zero risk-aversion as opposed to a canned show. But even if you’re talking about KC and the Sunshine Band playing at Six Flags, why not give it a rest? If people enjoy it — musicians and audiences alike — so what? Somehow, I don’t think there’s any convincing guys like you. It’s not your porkpie hat, can of PBR, and illegally downloaded Dead Weather album clouding your judgement (oops — there I go again), it’s just your ignorance and hateful intolerance. You should consider changing your tune, bud. Believe it if you need it, if you don’t just pass it on.

24. Hiya Lucy,

    To state the obvious, to each his own. Frankly, I have no qualms with your criticisms of the music, the fans, or the licensing…in principle, that is. I don’t share your opinions, but I respect different points of view. That said, I do think your tone — or rather invective — is aggressive and deliberately nasty. It is so obviously cliched for entertainment’s sake as opposed to actually using your prose (and I use that term generously) to substantiate your points with even the slightest semblance of depth. Since you are indeed a writer — even if you blog which we all know generally auto-tilts you into being a whiney dick — you can do better than take pot shots that have been levied so many times over the years that you’re not stating anything new — trustafarians, burritos, overdoses, Dark Star, blah blah blah. Tell me how your unoriginal reference points are “relevant,” Lucy? They aren’t and neither is your article. In fact, it is tired and stale. I could easily make a “just like your mother’s…” joke here, but that would be playing into your infantile hand (like calling you, Lucy. There, I admit it. I can be a dick, too). On behalf of Paul and Ringo’s recent reunion, a parting thought on relevancy because I just can’t let go of your stupidity. It is just plain ignorant to suggest that an artist’s music is not relevant — unless, of course, they are a poser band trying so hard to be “current” with their new sound that they actually fail on all counts and deserve to be ripped for not achieving their pointed goal. But I digress. Back to your opinion that The Dead’s music hasn’t been relevant for 20 years. By whose definition and on what terms? Because portions of the catalog date back 44 years? Well, I suppose that’s a good point, Lucy. In fact, you should suggest that to your hometown Cleveland Orchestra, arguably one of the world’s finest musical groups — the Lebron James of classical. With a repertoire comprised of Beethoven, Schumann, Mozart, Handel, etc., the Cleveland Orchestra — or the entire classical genre for that matter — couldn’t be less relevant according to your argument, no matter that it repeatedly performs both rare and tried-and-true compositions all over the world for adoring, learned audiences with big ears and a true passion for the material who consume the product with studious appreciation and high standards year after year. Totally irrelevant just like The Dead whose members, according to your inferences, should disavow themselves of their life’s work and fraternity because one link in the chain, albeit a big one, is no longer with us. All the reason to deprive themselves and their fans the music that each party loves to consume in each other’s presence. The fact is that The Dead are invigorated and playing right now as if their 401k’s depended on it which they don’t. And as always they are walking without a wire with zero risk-aversion as opposed to a canned show. But even if you’re talking about KC and the Sunshine Band playing at Six Flags, why not give it a rest? If people enjoy it — musicians and audiences alike — so what? Somehow, I don’t think there’s any convincing guys like you. It’s not your porkpie hat, can of PBR, and illegally downloaded Dead Weather album clouding your judgement (oops — there I go again), it’s just your ignorance and hateful intolerance. You should consider changing your tune, bud. Believe it if you need it, if you don’t just pass it on.

25. Why the vitriol for Mr. Galluci? That’s not what we do. He doesn’t like, or get, the Dead, so be it. I would have thought a music writer might have a more learned outlook on the Dead’s music and scene, but it’s his loss. Once upon a time I joked that the Dead was just some hippies tuning their instruments for a few hours on stage…then I went to a show and it all changed. The great thing about the tour is that the music is still in tact and worth hearing. It wasn’t young man’s music in the 60’s and it isn’t today. It is timeless music which is why it still has contemporary value, as opposed to say Mick Jagger talk-shouting lyrics and geri-strutting to songs a man half his age shouldn’t be performing, wearing clothes a man half his age shouldn’t be wearing. See also KISS, see The Who, etc. etc.

    So you can buy a Dead sock on Amazon. If someone would buy a sock with my logo on it, I’d sell it to. The music is the essential element, and the Dead’s always given it away for free.

    Truckin’ off the Buffalo tonight. Have a good show if you’re goin’!

26. I am not a Dead fan. Never have been, never will. I am a music lover though and can see from the previous comments that there is still love for The Dead from their fans. Sweet.

    With all the Dead merch they are just like all those other Hot Topic merched bands with keychains and travel mugs fronting their logo.

    The Dead is touring, so is Aerosmith…woo. If you like em, support em and see em live.

    Now quit bitching about the writer, apparently he got your attention from his hilarious little rant.

27. I can’t believe this Michael Gallucci guy used to be a reporter for Goldmine. He referred to “Steal Your Face” as “the album with the skull on it!” No record geek in his right mind would make such a blunder. I couldn’t care less about Jerry Garcia. I think he’s as overrated as Kurt Cobain (who was also deified postmortem.) I am however a record collecting nerd who used to subscribe to Goldmine for years. Unlike Alice Cooper, I don’t “love the dead” but I know the name of the album. Sheesh.

28. hey mikebrooklyn: he referred to it as “that live album from 1971 (the one with the skull on the cover)” — which technically doesn’t have a title (most of us fans call it “skull & roses”). you’re referring to an album that came out five years later. besides, judging from the tone of the rest of his article, i think he was being flippant (since he could’ve easily looked up the title). and at what point did he refer to himself as a “record geek”?

29. Pat in tn: Goldmine is a magazine for record geeks. Back in the day, it had a middle section that was packed with nothing but record auctions (pre-ebay.) They used oceans of ink in the 80’s bemoaning the advent of the CD. A previous poster said Gallucci was a reporter for Goldmine. I feel silly for pretending to know anything about Dead albums. *blush* I looked up “Steal Your Face” after my hasty post and you in fact are correct. I bow to your superior Dead trivia skills. I’m not that bummed to be honest. Who cares really? I bought tons of pristine Dead vinyl off an old hippie at a flea market about 15 years ago for next to nothing and if you want it you can have it.

30. Let’s see, you got singers that can’t sing in tune,Guitar players that can’t play a lick if their life dependent on it and last but not least “2” drummers that can’t keep time. Its a bad garage band at best. Thank god for drugs and alcohol…

31. hey gallucablowhard – please, give all of us a major break here and stop being such a dork. we all know you made this post did this just to increase web traffic and to create a buzz and controversy.

    your opinion completely is missing the mark and you didnt even give this any thought.

    i mean really? give us all a frickn break.

    everyone knows that any stupid ass face rock critic that “votes for Workingman’s Dead and American Beauty” is a complete idiot and has never seen the band live and is totally missing the point and the boat.

    why even bother typing the words – they arent even revelent

    i also love how you try to get a rise out of the phish fans here too…um, phish only sold out an entire tour in a few minutes

    so please – give this crap a rest

    but, on the positive side of things – thank you so much for staying in your basement this summer – crying and masterbating to your CURE imports. this way we all dont have to worry about your dumbass trying to get a ticket and it give us more chance to go have a great time

32. All I have to contribute to this raging debate is this- Even if you are not a Grateful Dead fan, which I proudly am and have been my whole life, you must take into account the GIANT boost the band always has, and is now, giving our economy. Those very same trust fund babies you are bitching about grow up into well-funded adults who are still deadheads for life. It was sad, but not surprising to anyone who would actually bother to think about it, that all of the great stadiums toppled like bricks soon after the Grateful Dead stopped touring after Garcia’s death. R.F.K., Giant’s, Soldier’s, even Cal expo- gone, and even more than that. It’s no coincidence. Get your head out of your ass, pal.
    S. Bird

33. Great article. Bang on in every respect. Especially the concept of squandering a legacy. Oh, and the sock.

34. Gallucci, you hit the nail on the head! ROTFLMFAO!

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