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Poster: bluedevil Date: Aug 4, 2007 7:23pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

You should. There's a reason Phil has said he reminds him more of Jerry than any other artist he's met and that among those who have sung his praise are Neil Young and Elton John. He's been as wildly erratic as he has been prolific, but he just turned 32 and has got an outstanding band that, due to marketing reasons, they bill as Ryan Adams and the Cardinals as opposed to just The Cardinals (as Ryan wanted). Check out some of his recent shows posted on the archive. Phil Lesh speaks about Ryan Adams Via AnsweringBell.com: I love playing with Ryan because he’s fearless; because he doesn’t have to do anything the same way twice; because every idea he throws out in a jam is a little gem that cries out “polish me”; because he has about nine hundred voices that he can use like a Bene Gesserit; because of his huge heart and enormous talent. I like it that we deconstruct the songs so that verses are transposed, or the bridge comes in early, or the jam leads back to a verse instead of a chorus. I like it that we have to be on our tippy-tippy toes to make the acute left turns and abrupt changes that Ryan likes to spring on us. I like to spring those kind of changes too- what do you think I’m doing when I talk into my mike and you can’t hear me? I love playing with Ryan because he takes me back to when the Grateful Dead were young, fearless, crazy and didn’t give a shit about what other people thought we should do. If what you desire is the perfect rendition, there are many excellent bands that perform Grateful Dead songs- but I have never been about perfection and never will be. I do promise that I will always do my best to follow my weird. I hope you will join me, but I do understand if your path takes you elsewhere. I will also say with no hesitation that Jerry would have loved Ryan and his fearless interpretations of his songs. It’s funny, but I feel Jerry close to me whenever I am around Ryan. — Phil Lesh (January 2006)[in response to those kind Phil fans that were bashing Ryan on the message boards] Found this link to Phil speaking on that topic as well as soundboards at archive and the crap bobby gets re the same. Of course, Phil could never have more insight than anyone posting here... http://www.philzone.com/phil-msg-060105.html
This post was modified by bluedevil on 2007-08-05 01:43:46
This post was modified by bluedevil on 2007-08-05 02:23:02

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Poster: BryanE Date: Aug 5, 2007 2:42pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

To quote myself from elsewhere in the thread, "it doesn't help that sometimes I can be so FOCKIN' STOOPID!"

Case in point: I shoot my mouth off via the computer keyboard without even reading the link to Phil's comments that you posted. Now I feel even FOCKIN' STOOPIDER, but I'm also proud of ol' Phil for setting the record straight in no uncertain terms, and for not sitting on his hands in response to precisely the sort of sniveling bullshit that YOURS TRULY was bitching about earlier. Reading that was enormously satisfying. Thanks.

And I'm really sorry if you felt the barrage was aimed directly at you, because it wasn't.

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Poster: BryanE Date: Aug 5, 2007 9:07am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

Thanks. My curiosity has been piqued. Phil would not have recruited the guy to play in his band if he were half-assed. I will try to put in an effort to hear what the man does.

Now if you will excuse me, I'm going to go off an a ranting tangent.

"in response to those kind Phil fans that were bashing Ryan on the message boards"

"Kind" Phil fans? This seems to me like such a gutless PC thing to say. Like, "we wouldn't dare admit that the mean, ugly, insulting shit that gets posted by a bunch of spoiled, spoon-fed, snot-nosed, whining, pissing, moaning crybabies is unacceptable in any other segment of society." Of course it would be a mistake to issue a blanket reply of "Fuck you, too!" And Phil's response was articulate and appropriate. But what the hell does anyone expect to accomplish by labeling a squadron of haters as "kind"? Mamby-pamby ass-kissing toward this part of the audience does nothing but to enable them to continue to gripe and bitch and complain, free speech and all notwithstanding. People like this wouldn't be satisfied if they got hanged with a gold rope, but I'm of the mind that a little bit of a good old-fashioned Denis Leary-style "Shut the fuck up" toward the haters is in order.

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Poster: bluedevil Date: Aug 5, 2007 11:11am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

I should have placed kind in quotation marks to highlight the irony. As someone mentioned a few days ago, the irony, sarcasm, etc gets lost in the written posts. All I'm trying to do is to turn some folks on to Ryan, who I have had the good fortune to watch develop over the past dozen or so years.

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Poster: BryanE Date: Aug 5, 2007 2:26pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

Quotes or no, it doesn't help that sometimes I can be so FOCKIN' STOOPID!

But to anybody out there dead set on pitching a fit for the sake of pitching a fit because you're a snot-nosed, whining crybaby----I'm watching you!

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Poster: robthewordsmith Date: Aug 5, 2007 9:54am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

Hello Bryan - here's a Ryan Adams and the Cardinals show that I like to get you started. There are some good things here:

http://www.archive.org/details/ryanadams2005-06-03.flac16

If I may comment on your 'ranting tangent'. I think everything you said about 'snot-nosed whining cry babies' etc was there to be read into that simple 'kind'. Far from showing PC restraint it was more, as I read it, a masterpiece of restrained, withering sarcasm. Sometimes a contemptuous dismissal is just as effective as a full-blooded tirade. Then again, maybe I read too much into the simplest things!

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Poster: BryanE Date: Aug 5, 2007 10:06am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

I'll check it out.

Maybe you're right, and I hope you are. Unfortunately, dipshits like me don't respond all that well to calculated irony.

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Poster: robthewordsmith Date: Aug 5, 2007 10:23am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Ryan Adams

Hey, I've been known to offload both barrels of 'fuck you' myself in preference to the well-turned polite dismissal. It can work just as well sometimes.