solo g.dead tunes

[ira]

hey all you heads out there,
i've been playing around with some gd stuff for my solo sets.
casey jones- just for fun
cosmic charlie- really working well for solo mando due to the cadence of the song and the various bridges, as well as, the funky ramp up intro-loads of fun as a bluesy feeling number.
dark star- my friends thought i was nuts, but actually when played with a little umph- sounds great. just trying to work out the chords for the "you and i while we can" part, and a mix of pickin and chords for a solo (kinda like how sam bush does the mando jam in north country girl-notin terms of the music , but the chords and solo pickin intertwined).

anyone else doing some interesting dead tunes out there?
peace,
ira

[luckylarue]

I do "Brown-eyed Women", which lends itself well to an acoustic/bluegrassy style. I play it in dm/F which also sounds great on mando, imo. Garcia has definitely been a huge influence on my mando playing. Other GD tunes on mando?

[John Flynn]

I do a chord-over-melody version of Ripple, which I have a lot fun with.

[Chris Cantergiani]

Oh my gawd... "Darkstar" on a mandolin?!?!
Ira, you are my hero. That is tooooooo cool!
Songs of the Grateful Dead seem a bit intimidating, because I've only been playing for a few years.
The tunes are in my head and heart (after years of 'training' at shows, tapes and CDs) but I don't know enough about music to play them. I noodle around with "Franklin's Tower" and "FOTD" (we sometimes throw a Blackberry Blossom in the middle). I'd love to do "Dire Wolf", "Eyes Of The World" "Terrapin" and "Cassidy", among others.
Luckylarue - I love the idea of "B.E. Women"! I also always love to read what your are into NOW at the end of your posts. I've contemplated doing the same at the end of some of my posts, but don't want to appear to be stealing your idea! We have similar tastes, and it's just fun to read. Can't resist on this one tonight so:
--------
Now Listening: Charlie Poole - You Ain't Talkin' To Me Disc 2
Now Playing: 1924 Gibson Snakehead blacktop
Now Reading: 1776
Now Watching: The Office

[PCypert]

Can anyone pull off Cryptical>O1>Cryptical on mandolin and send me the tabs ? Who was the guy on the boards that was picking the GD on Jerry's mandolin without knowing it was him?

Paul

[luckylarue]

I once heard Chris Thile break into "China Cat Sunflower" inbetween songs during a Nickel Creek set at the Four Corners Folk Fest, maybe 4-5 yrs ago. I also took a workshop w/ Niles H. and we got on a GD kick and he was playing Jerry solos note for note.
UndercoverBro - For what it's worth, I stole the signature idea from guitarjeremy/meskalito. I like to find out what other people are playing/practicing. Cheers.

[ira]

i currently do "i know you rider" "little red rooster (though mainly on harp), fotd, ripple, catfish john (jgb style), but usually do those with others, and really looking to expand a coupla tunes for my opening set at the open mic i host.wanted to pick kinda out of the ordinary dead tunes. so far the cosmic charlie is omin out best, and until the chorus- dark star is coming along, should be fascinating.

[ira]

oh btw- in solo have done once or twice but not standards live for me- franklins and cold rain and snow ( i do it really fast like on the first studio album)

[Cetecea]

I've been trying to get the guys to break into beat on down the line in the middle of FOTD. Personally I was working on Rueben and Cherise. Great tune!

[mandocrucian]

"Dire Wolf"
"Big Boss Man"
"Sugaree"
"The Deal"

last week had a student who wanted to work on some Dead stuff, so we took a look at "Wharf Rat", and I've continued to mess with that one.

NH

[dan@kins]

I love to play GD on mandolin.

GARCIA LIVES!

Does anyone know of any Grateful Dead for mandolin resources. I'm not that good at picking things up by ear and can develop songs if I have access to tab.

Mr Niles? A market for your fine work perhaps?

Thanks!
dan@kins

[ira]

sugaree must be beautiful. i am still trying to work on sweet sounding 'b' chords but one of the things still lacking and sugaree calls for that really sweet sound. need a good non-4 fingered but all 4 courses 'b' chord that is close to the nut, but haven't found one yet.

[Tom C]

I like playing Phils into to the Other One on mando

I wish I knew how to play mando all those years I was into the dead. I always just listened, no idea of chords.

[GnomeGrown]

I just heard a show where Yonder did a "terrapin" tease........dissapointed it didn't go all the way, the intro was great....

I love playin Ripple, as cliche as it may be.......Birdsong is very nice too, and Uncle John's band is fun as well.......

I could probably just play Dead/Dead related tunes and be happy, in fact.....there is such a wealth of tremendous music.........

And I second that anyone who has any tabs kindly cough them up.....going by ear is rewarding, but I just NEED tp play DEAD more!

[Paul Kotapish]

Wake the Dead (my goofy Bay Area band that plays all-acoustic Celtic/Dead covers on mandolin, octave mandolin, fiddle, Irish pipes, Irish harp, percussion, acoustic bass, and guitar) has four or five hours of Dead material, including:

Friend of the Devil
The Wheel
China Cat Sunflower
Bertha
Sugaree
Bird Song
Black Muddy River
Touch of Grey
Row Jimmy
Scarlet Begonias
The Other One
Uncle John's Band
U.S. Blues
Liberty
Playing in the Band
Ripple
He's Gone
St. Stephen
Lady with a Fan
Mississippi Halfstep Uptown Toodaloo
Tennessee Jed
Stella Blue
Franklin's Tower
. . . and a bunch more I can't remember at the moment.

It's a lot of fun, and the songs tend to work well with traditional acoustic settings. Not surprising, really, given Jerry's deep background in stringband, bluegrass, and jugband music.

I've never been able to successfully transcribe the mando parts, partly because I'm pretty near illiterate with dots and lines and staff paper and partly because so much of what I play is improvised. Still, I'd say playing Dead material is pretty darn natural on the mandolin.

BTW, Wake the Dead is playing this Saturday at the big (and completely free) "Hardly, Strictly Bluegrass Festival" in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. We're kicking off the show on the "Star Stage" at 11:15 AM. Loads of great mandolin players all weekend, too.

Hardly, Strictly Bluegrass Festival Schedule

Wake the Dead website

[ira]

hey paul,
still need to get you guys out to the east coast. tons of venues for you, and i'll help create a street team with you to help with advance.

anyway, www.rukind.com has most dead/jgb/weir bands/oaitw, etc... songs with lyrics and chords. chords aren't always right, but in the vicinity. easy enough to pick out most of the baselines, and jams.

peace,
ira
ps- anyone have an answer to my 'b' chord cry for help (see above)

[luckylarue]

Ira, what about a B double-stop chord? Second fret - A string, fourth fret - D string.

[Tennessee Jed]

I love to play Dead tunes - FOTD, Ripple, Brown Eyed Women, Sugaree, Wharf Rat, Loser, Casey Jones, Dire Wolf, Bertha (my favorite), Box of Rain, Black Muddy River,
Peggy-O, Brokedown Palace, Cumberland Blues,Mississippi Half Step,Ramble on Rose, Alabama Getaway, He's Gone, Mexicali Blues,To Lay Me Down, and of course Tennessee Jed, plus a dozen or so songs that the Dead played but were covers.

[PCypert]

I want some Stella Blue tabs. Something nice and delicate.
Paul

[kvk]

sugaree must be beautiful. i am still trying to work on sweet sounding 'b' chords but one of the things still lacking and sugaree calls for that really sweet sound. need a good non-4 fingered but all 4 courses 'b' chord that is close to the nut, but haven't found one yet.

Hey Ira, I just take the 3-finger C chop and move it down a fret-- 4-1-2-x It works nice. I supposed you could bar the E course and do 4-1-2-2 if you needed four strings. Ya ain't gonna get an open string out of B-D#-F#.

-Ken

[ira]

thanks ken, i'll give it a shot- still waiting to see you at casey's (oct. 14th is the next open mic).

haven't tried it, and would want a guitarist so i could tremolo and crosspick non-stop for the beauty factor, but i bet "to lay me down" was built for mando

[kvk]

The wife and I will be taking our 4yo to DisneyWorld that week. Right now I'm lucky to get to a BG jam once a month but I'll try to make and come listen some night.

A real nice run off that B form is--

B C#m D E

Two beats each, just run the three finger chop up the neck two frets at a time and drop the index finger one fret on just the C#. When you get it down, add the lyrics "oh, the dreadful wind and rain", mighty purdy

Happy New Year,

Ken

[seththedude]

I used to play with a group that did a Blackberry Blossom/FOTD medley sandwich thing. Those two go really good together. Jack Straw, Scarlet/Fire are fun as well.

[ira]

dark star is really coming along. what a blast!

[PCypert]

Can you guys get some tabs for those of us who are lazy and have bad ears .
Paul