Day of the Dead Various Artists

Saw the Grateful Dead several times in 1967 , before I even got stoned . T'was wonderful and original , I am glad hearing other artists performing their songs . I'd always wondered why so few had . On this subject I am very grateful ...

get Deadicated. It’s a much better up tempo to the classics with like Ripple by Janes Addiction or Trucking’ by Dwight Yoakham. Other artists include Indigo Girls, Los Lobos, Elvis Costello to name a few. Great tribute album. Of course you won’t find the album on iTunes but you might be able to research and find the songs on their own.

Let's start with the assumption that virtually every tribute album suffers from the same problem: musical schizophrenia. The more artists added to an effort like Day of the Dead, the more diverse the vision and diluted the ultimate product. Sadly, this sprawing 59 cut 3 disc set, spanning the entire Dead catalogue (and then some - I've never found anything called Garcia Counterpoint on any Dead release anywhere) is exactly what you would expect, based on historical approaches to this genre. There are highlights to be sure - The War on Drugs' take on Touch of Grey is sublimely wonderful - just as there are crushing disappointments. Unfortunately, those moments greatly overshadow the great tunes. Even more curious are the strange song selections made by some artists. Did we really need The Riley's Estimated Prophet, or Stargaze's What's Become of the Baby? I would recommend sifting through the songs one by one and downloading those that tickle your fancy, rather than spending $30 on 20 or so tunes you'll onlty want to hear once - well, maybe once.