All things Grateful Dead.

[BostonDavid]

How sick is this though around the 20 min mark?

And Ship of Fools is the perfect song for we where are!

[Marignygregg]

The tragic story of the Dead's last keyboard player, Vince Welnick. Sad.

Vince Welnick lived the dream, playing music with the Grateful Dead, but depression dogged him to his final days (sfgate.com)

[Lit]

The tragic story of the Dead's last keyboard player, Vince Welnick. Sad.

Vince Welnick lived the dream, playing music with the Grateful Dead, but depression dogged him to his final days (sfgate.com)

It's like the drummer in Spinal Tap; same story with every Grateful Dead keyboard player except Bruce Hornsby.

[jjazznj]

The tragic story of the Dead's last keyboard player, Vince Welnick. Sad.

Vince Welnick lived the dream, playing music with the Grateful Dead, but depression dogged him to his final days (sfgate.com)

I remember Vince in The Tubes back in the day. I was very surprised upon hearing he was playing with The Dead. I saw him and Bruce Hornsby together playing with them in the early 90s. First time seeing them since the 70s and surprised how good they were and that they did not take a long time to tune between songs. Haha. My Deadhead friend I was with said I got lucky and saw the bast show he had seen that year. Much different fan scene than back in the day though.

[chopitulas]

Sad story, all right. Musically, I never warmed to Vince in the Dead, particularly the cheesy Casio-like sounds he seemed to favor. I know a B-3 is a lot to haul around but he wasn't lumping the equipment. Why not use a real organ?

[Marignygregg]

Sad story, all right. Musically, I never warmed to Vince in the Dead, particularly the cheesy Casio-like sounds he seemed to favor. I know a B-3 is a lot to haul around but he wasn't lumping the equipment. Why not use a real organ?

Agreed. That fake sax sound he used during the Estimated Prophet jam made it unlistenable.

Weir did say in the article that they were more interested in finding someone to hit the high harmonies than a keyboard player who could up they're game and they only auditioned 4 or 5 people. Shame, as they were one of the biggest bands on the planet at that time and could have had their pick. Jeff Chimenti would have been great. Maybe hire a vocalist for the harmonies like they had with Keith and Donna.

[duende]

It's like the drummer in Spinal Tap; same story with every Grateful Dead keyboard player except Bruce Hornsby.

Tom Constanten made it out OK, but it may have been lucky for him that his playing wasn't a good fit. I was personally devastated by Brent's passing and it pretty much ended my enjoyment of the GD live shows. I have some regrets about missing the Hornsby phase, but growing up hearing & seeing the Tubes, I didn't have any appetite for the Vince era. Deadheads can be fickle effers, too.

[Lit]

Tom Constanten made it out OK, but it may have been lucky for him that his playing wasn't a good fit. I was personally devastated by Brent's passing and it pretty much ended my enjoyment of the GD live shows. I have some regrets about missing the Hornsby phase, but growing up hearing & seeing the Tubes, I didn't have any appetite for the Vince era. Deadheads can be fickle effers, too.

Good call on Constanten. I knew I was forgetting someone. I never saw him with them obviously, but I did see him solo at the Last Day Saloon when I lived in San Francisco. Iirc "Dark Star" was his signature contribution.

Agree that Brent was a big and sad loss, and if you have listened to the unabridged Long Strange Trip audio book it's even more of a heart breaker.

I share your lack of appetite for Vince, for precisely the reason chopitulas mentions above, i.e., the cheesy sound. I am a B3 addict so that may have something to do with it.

I did see my share of shows with him, but I far preferred Bruce and saw some very memorable shows with him. Jerry and he seemed to have a great rapport musically. I have a very fond memory of watching Jerry smile and play back and forth with him during a great three-night Denver run in December 1990, exactly 30 years ago this week. On the second night they closed the first set with Bruce's "Valley Road" and Jerry was giving it his all singing backup, a real treat.

[jjazznj]

Tom Constanten made it out OK, but it may have been lucky for him that his playing wasn't a good fit. I was personally devastated by Brent's passing and it pretty much ended my enjoyment of the GD live shows. I have some regrets about missing the Hornsby phase, but growing up hearing & seeing the Tubes, I didn't have any appetite for the Vince era. Deadheads can be fickle effers, too.

I actually never got over Keith & Donna leaving and was never really into them in the 80s after growing up with them and going to their shows in the mid-late 70s. By 'Go To Heaven' they totally lost me. The only time I saw them after '78 or so was with Hornsby in the early 90s and thought he fit in well and they were great but on certain songs they missed Donna's vocals. After that I never really had any desire to see them again. They just were not the same band that I grew up with.

[jjazznj]

Good call on Constanten. I knew I was forgetting someone. I never saw him with them obviously, but I did see him solo at the Last Day Saloon when I lived in San Francisco. Iirc "Dark Star" was his signature contribution.

Agree that Brent was a big and sad loss, and if you have listened to the unabridged Long Strange Trip audio book it's even more of a heart breaker.

I share your lack of appetite for Vince, for precisely the reason chopitulas mentions above, i.e., the cheesy sound. I am a B3 addict so that may have something to do with it.

I did see my share of shows with him, but I far preferred Bruce and saw some very memorable shows with him. Jerry and he seemed to have a great rapport musically. I have a very fond memory of watching Jerry smile and play back and forth with him during a great three-night Denver run in December 1990, exactly 30 years ago this week. On the second night they closed the first set with Bruce's "Valley Road" and Jerry was giving it his all singing backup, a real treat.

Wasn't Welnick with them at all of the shows that Hornsby did?

[Marignygregg]

Wasn't Welnick with them at all of the shows that Hornsby did?

Yes.

The Hornsby shows had some intense jamming and it was great to have the acoustic piano back, although the music did get a tad 'thick' at times with two keyboards. The wall of sound, but when it worked, it worked great. Eyes of the World and Foolish Heart come to mind. I did sometimes cringe when Bruce would hop on accordion, though.

[Meters Fan]

I was never a fan of VW's playing with the GD but of course his death was beyond tragic.

My friends son was an EMT on that call and tried to save his life on the way to the hospital. He was very shaken by the experience. Suicide is NOT painless.

[Lit]

Wasn't Welnick with them at all of the shows that Hornsby did?

Yes but Vince + Bruce was far preferable to just Vince. It wasn’t really fair to Vince. No one preferred him and he was rarely featured.

Those Denver 1990 shows still hold up. Great energy. Hornsby got “it.” Definitely helped that he was a Deadhead first.

[Lit]

I actually never got over Keith & Donna leaving and was never really into them in the 80s after growing up with them and going to their shows in the mid-late 70s. By 'Go To Heaven' they totally lost me. The only time I saw them after '78 or so was with Hornsby in the early 90s and thought he fit in well and they were great but on certain songs they missed Donna's vocals. After that I never really had any desire to see them again. They just were not the same band that I grew up with.

I find that a little bit of Donna goes a long way with me, and it got to the point where there was too much Donna for my ears.

[duende]

I find that a little bit of Donna goes a long way with me, and it got to the point where there was too much Donna for my ears.

Donna's singing on the live Dead shows has to be one of the strangest mysteries of the band's live history. That woman can/could really sing, and her talent didn't stay in Muscle Shoals when she moved west - it always made me wonder if it was some kind of inside hazing between the band & Healey to make it as hard as possible for Donna to hear herself over the band. But I'll agree that nearly every Playin' In The Band could've used a little less contralto profundo.