Wednesday November 15 04:00 AM EST
Dueling New Year's Eve Shows
Leave Deadheads Spinning
dailynews.yahoo.com
By Richard B. Simon reports
New Year's Eve gigs have been a long-standing Grateful
Dead tradition, but this year Deadheads face a tough
choice.
While ex-Dead bassist Phil Lesh performs at the Henry J. Kaiser Convention
Center in Oakland, California, his former Grateful Dead bandmates, who bill
themselves as the Other Ones, will be playing across town at the Network
Associates Coliseum.
Representatives for Lesh and the Other Ones declined to comment on the
conflicting gigs, but the Other Ones posted a message at www.dead.net on
Friday.
"For 30 years or more, we all knew that a New Year's Eve without the Dead was
unthinkable. Acting under the information that Phil and Friends were planning an
East Coast show — information which we worked hard to be absolutely certain
was correct — the Other Ones planned a New Year's Eve gala at Oakland
Coliseum. Well, things change."
Lesh toured with the Other Ones — whose lineup includes drummers Bill
Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart, guitarist Bob Weir and keyboardist Bruce
Hornsby — on 1998's Furthur Festival. The 1999 tour was canceled while Lesh
recovered from liver transplant surgery, and eventually Lesh opted out of the
group, citing philosophical differences.
A rift continued to develop between Lesh and his former bandmates, partly over
a plan to use venture capital to digitize the Grateful Dead's vast storehouse of
live recordings. The Other Ones toured this summer with bassist Alphonso
Johnson stepping into Lesh's role.
Fans have been debating the merits of the two groups on the Internet, with nearly
the ardor of Republicans and Democrats discussing the presidential election.
"By dividing the audience and turning Deadhead against Deadhead, it can't help
but become a partisan matter," Grateful Dead Hour radio host David Gans said.
"It's a damn shame is what it is. ... They're dividing the audience. They're
competing for the affection and the ticket money of |
