Customer Reviews

Postcards of the Hanging

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There is a danger in reviewing the Grateful Dead. As a guy with kids, a job, and a mortgage, I am certain to fumble details that are common knowledge among true deadheads. I apologize in advance.

"Postcards from the Hanging" makes me believe there is a different way to live. It combines the loose, behind-the-beat Dead interpretations of some of the best poetry of the twentieth century. The result is a longing to live cleaner, easier, more creatively, and closer to the heart. This is what art is supposed to do.

So maybe I am not as discriminating as some of the other reviewers (there probably are better verisions), but nervertheless I was moved.

"Postcards" for me combined two sentimental memories. I was taken back to when I was thirteen, taping "Blood on the Tracks" off of Stereo X in the basement on a Sunday night. I was taken back to when I was 21, working in the lumber yard and listening to all-Grateful-Dead Saturdays on Utah's start-up community radio station. How could I resist this combination of two heroes from simpler times?

I was unable to resist another combination--"Dylan and the Dead." Ouch. (Who wanted to include eleven minutes of "Joey"?) Stay away from "Dylan and the Dead." Confidently immerse your ears in "Postcards."

Look, for the Dead to be about psychedelic interpretation of folk music--which on some level they were, they had to do Dylan's work. Dylan was and is the godfather of all post-modern American folk music. The combination is a natural one. For the casual fan of the Dead, this is probably the most accessible package of their Dylan work.

And yes I do agree that Jerry is by far the better voice for Dylan's lyrics. When Bob and Jerry got together, what did they talk about?

The Grateful Dead is probably the most famous "cover band" of all time. And the artist they covered more than any other was Bob Dylan, and this is their best work covering his songs.

Whether you are a fan or not, or a fan of Bob Dylan or not, you should enjoy this cd very much. "Desolation Row" is the best track on the disc, though "Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again", "When I Paint My Masterpiece" and "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" are strong efforts. A previous reviewer recommends "Dylan and The Dead" vs. "Postcards.........", but trust me, this is a MUCH BETTER collection. Do yourself a favor and pick this up. If you are Dead fan it is a must have. If you are not, it is still a great disc to listen to and you will soon be a Dead-head afterwards.

This is a pretty good collection of tunes. The copy I have also has the bonus disc with Queen Jane and The Mighty Quinn. The All Along The Watchtower is the one now available on Truckin' Up To Buffalo. It Takes Alot To Laugh features members of the Allman Brothers Band.

I love the Dead, but I love them most for their jams and for Garcia/Hunter songs. I'm not a huge fan of their Dylan covers. There's a few gems in here, no doubt, but overall it's like listening to a post-91 show: there's some good moments, it's definitely interesting and better than a lot of other music, but why listen to this collection of Dead stuff when you could just put on a whole show that might include a song from this album? But the Dead is the Dead...and that's worth something.

This is not the best from either of the participants but certainly a must have för a deadhead!

It will earn a permanent place in your disc player. In the past few years I've given away dozens of copies of this disc to deadhead and non-deadhead friends alike. You won't be sorry.

I really enjoyed this album, for the most part. The one track I wasn't crazy about was "It Takes A Lot To Laugh" from the Garcia/Saunders Keystone era, but that has more to do with the fact that it's one of Dylan's songs that I really don't care for. The other songs are excellent choices. I loved Bobby's voice and the arrangement on Stuck Inside of Mobile (With the Memphis Blues Again), and Phil seemed like he was having fun with "Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues".

All I can say is, if you are a fan of Dylan and/or The Dead, you either already have this disc in your collection, or you really should have!

Happy Listening!

Howard

Top-notch versions of Rock n Roll's greatest band playing some of the finest tunes ever crafted by Rock n Roll's greatest songwriter. What more could anyone possibly want? Get this disc today, tomorrow you might be hit by a bus.

This is almost exclusively recordings from the later 1980's. Dylan covers--especially the ballads, tended to be slow and lacked exciting jams when the Dead played them. There are some gems like She Belongs to Me. But Jerry's voice could be painful in a bad way in his final years--and Bobby could get too energetic and reach past his ability vocally on these songs. Dylan vehicles were VERY basic songs instrumentally and dont provide much interest for the mature lover of instrumental music (eg jazz) and the Dead's legend jams. Personally I could have settled for the versions on my many other Dead releases...hence this will get little playing time. I have not yet heard it, but I wish I had bought the Jerry does Dylan CD instead!

the dead and dylan have a long musical history a poor soul un wisely says that the dead dont do dylans music justice the sheer stupidity of the stament makes me laugh dylan is one of the most influential writers of are time but come on he wrote almost all his songs with three chords because to him the words were everythining and because his musical skill allowed no more the dead on the other hand are an extremely diverse group of incrediable musicians so if you want to here dylans classics played and sung by highly skilled musicians this disc is 4 u if u cant stand the thought of someone other than dylan singing his tunes by dylan butno matter what u do dont get "dylan and the dead" its horrible. because dylan does not have the greatest voice with out a studio but he is a genuis and very close to the dead when jerry died he referred to jerry as more like a big brother rather than a freind...ive seen over 56 dead shows as well as 6 dylan shows and have seen each do each others songs numerous times these songs arent being played by the dead for the first time for some tribute album but for the thousandth time because the dead loved dylan and he loved the dead