I realize that the musicians of Furthur are truly world-class, but I'm curious about how long it typically takes them to practice/rehearse a new song before they classify it as stage-ready.






.

I bet it takes as long as it takes. at any rate from all the new ones I have heard I only really dislike one of them...

don't know which one it is.. I heard it at allgood 2010

probably a few days , depending on how much practice time they get in .
it took about a week to get Alice D. Millionaire after Bear died

In terms of learning a new tune on the fly, I think they can do it fairly quickly -- ala Alice D. I would also be curious to know what the process was for Train in Vain. Seems to me that might have been a quick turnaround.

It probably went something like this:

Tower Theater, afternoon sound check, March 23, 2011

(Bobby: Hey Phil, ya know what tune would be a mindblower?'
(Phil, leaning over to take the joint: Alice D. ?
(Bobby: Yeah, but beyond that.
(Phil: Spill it Bob
(Bobby: noodling... Train .....in..... Vain
(Jill eating an organic blueberry muffin: Sweeeeet!
(Sunshine: I love the Clash!
(JK: diggit
(JR: Can play it in my sleep
(JC: Lets' work on that tomorrow.
(Setjeff: Phil, quit bogarting.


But what I think the band has shown with Abbey Road is that it is willing to put in the rehearsal time. That, of course, has been evident from the beginning with the Mill Valley rehearsal shows. Which I think were all about getting comfortable communicating in front of fans and teasing them about great things to come.

Another example would be the Furthur Festival idea of recreating the albums. That showed me everyone, especially Lesh and Weir, were willing to make a big commitment. I'm not sure that structure would have been fun to nail down.

All of that raises the question of what they are cooking up in the laboratory right now.

John K. only has a few shows scheduled, which hopefully means his time is obligated to the band.

I don't expect an Abbey Road style breakout,but they've done most everything the GD did, so maybe some more interesting covers. Also more of that tight jamming like they've done with Slipknot, that can springboard anywhere.

Cool responses so far. Glad I'm not the only fan who wonders about this stuff, too.

I think Furthur played those Abbey Road songs, partly because they like them as fans, but also to tell fans "hey, these other great bands started around the same time we did...BUT WE'RE STILL PLAYING!!!"


I'd love to hear Furthur play some Led Zeppelin covers, but with their own touch on it.

Ramblin_Joe wrote:



That would seem rather childish and self centered, don't ya think?
And, Furthur started in 2009.

joe--i do not think they are making that statement at all about their longevity..in fact i think they know how lucky they are (especially phil) to still be playing...i believe they played that stuff as a nod to the beatles, a band these guys enjoyed...they know what type of other bands their own fans enjoy as well..and from watching each one of those songs unfold this last tour and speaking with many people about it, there was communal enjoyment between everyone band included...

i'm not really sure how long it takes but i do know in the relix article phil mentioned it was slower for him and bob today

i do wonder how much practice went into the side 2 of abbey rd on phils bday, it was great

alsoin response to wanting to hear zeppelin---check out the hampton show 4/1 they did 'fool in the rain'

There is something to be said for the older cover tunes they are doing. They are "old school," to be sure.

Beatles
Pink Floyd
The Band
The Clash
Rolling Stones

If they were to continue pulling from that catalog, I would like to hear "Half Moon" by Janis.

Nupsdog wrote:



No, I don't think that would seem rather childish and self-centered. So who's right?