Carrie Brownstein says Rhino asked NPR for story in exchange for Dead tune — with update

If you don't read Monitor Mix, the National Public Radio blog by Sleater-Kinney's Carrie Brownstein, you should start now. Today's item has a touch of scintillating news, if anything regarding the penultimate jam band the Grateful Dead, defunct but forever-rolling-away-the-dew in some mushroom patch or another, can be described as scintillating.

According to Brownstein, who posted a mix of songs today featuring the Small Faces and Television, the Grateful Dead refused to give her one of its tunes for posting "unless we promised to do a piece on them on All Things Considered. In addition, we would need to run a feature on The Dead on the site that they would write for us."

She continues to rant, good-naturedly: "Here's a sentence I've never written: Someone needs to take a bong hit and chill out. Just a simple 'no thanks' would have sufficed. Are The Dead really in need of publicity?"

Good question. We're used to such tricks from publicists who want to promote some starlet clinging to the bottom of the B-list in exchange for five minutes with Clooney, but this, from the Grateful Dead? Phil Lesh and friends have never shied away from making a buck, but hustling NPR for stories seems rather desperate. Isn't that preaching to the choir anyway?

Brownstein does not identify the song she wanted (update: she asked for "Friend of the Devil") but here's betting it wasn't one of the biggies. For "Uncle John's Band," what would the price be? A lunch with foreign correspondent Corey Flintoff? For "Sugar Magnolia," perhaps a morning hike with "All Things Considered" host Robert Siegel? For "Truckin'," it seems no less than a skiing trip to the Alps with Terry Gross and Ira Glass, holding hands with the remaining Dead members as they cut through powdery slopes, could be accepted.

Anyway, we tease the Dead, as Bill Maher would say. We have not heard the band's side of the story yet. A call to longtime publicist and official biographer Dennis McNally reveals that he "knows nothing about it." We've put in a few other calls, so stay tuned.

UPDATE: Browstein, in the last hour or so, posted this clarification on the blog. Although she doesn't identify the label, Rhino Records manages the band's intellectual property: "The Grateful Dead were not involved with the decision regarding the requested track. It was the band's label who would not give permission for the track to be used in its entirety. The label also suggested that it might be easier to get permission if we did a piece on the band on All Things Considered and on the NPR website."

-- Margaret Wappler

Photo: The Associated Press

Comments

[Rico S Luddovici]

Somebody doesn't know their Dead. They never played on anyone's terms but their own - where, when and how long.

And if they are the penultimate jam band (Latin: paene-ultima 'almost ultimate'), who is #1?

[Hornet]

Penultimate = Next to last.

I didn't get it either, except that "If there's a rock and roll heaven, you know they've got a helluva band.

[Eric of Reseda]

G-d bless the Dead. I'm sure they have good reason for the things they do. And it's not like these guys are money-grubbing buzz-kills (Although Jerry was once quoted as saying in response to a "sell-out" question, "Sell out?!? SELL OUT?!?!? Where do I sign?"). Few bands (or any organization for that matter) can even begin to compete with the philanthropic work of The Rex Foundation, the Grateful Dead's charity arm, having given away over $8.3 mil in grants alone since 1984, or roughly $350,000 a year. This does not include purely charitable donations. So, I look forward to finding out their side of the story.

[eric]

yeah i was wondering who was #1 as well!

[roc h]

NPR, and not the Dead, are the sellouts.

[todd]

penultimate often means second to last.

in this case the dead are the second to last jam band when compared to phish who would have been the last jam band.

[Ben]

Penultimate jam band? Dunno bout that. I like them, there pretty good, but their are plenty of successors.

(Here lies the english language, sadly abused to it's grateful death.)

[Ellen Fields]

The Dead can ask for the moon, for all I care. They can get it too. What a poor excuse for a story. An excuse to use Jerry's likeness to attract readers. It worked. I clicked. But I'm just disappointed in the LA Times. My opinion of the Grateful Dead hasn't changed one bit. They could never be repaid for all they have given to the world... and to me.

[CK]

Who needs NPR for a Dead tune? Those who do aren't going to get it anyway. NPR sucks.

[Paul Wax]

It's been a long strange trip, has it not? These guys were the soundtrack of my coming of age.

I find this story hard to believe - was the actual request conducted by any of the band members or was it by their "corporate" representatives? Just like we have some politicians speak for "us", they might have had the same representation - and if that's the case, then they should fire them and get ones that represent their basic philosophy - after all, for so many years, they did not mind having fans tape their concerts - they even had a "tapers section" carved out/reserved for those that wanted to do so. They also had performed for many benefits (SEVA, REX Foundation, etc.) and have raised a considerable amount of funds - and yes, they played for free.

Keep on Truckin'!

[Roger]

Maybe if she had worn scarlet begonias...

[Steve Consilvio]

As I recall, the Dead were fighting over Jerry's guitars before the body was even cold. The Dead is dead. What remains are the hanger-ons, the toadies, the machine, and evidently (according to another poster) the hypocrisy of faux philanthropy. Afterall, you have to take too much for yourself before you can give any of it away.

Even Jerry was human, but the blind adulation of musicians borders on the religiously absurd. The new scripture is a copyrighted melody. I hope the song was "Victim or the Crime?" which was the best song they ever performed. It was not written by Jerry, and obviously the band did not understand it.

That said, their "request" is somewhat typical for those who think their name is higher than everyone else's. Pride hasn't changed its face over thousands of years. Kneel! Kneel! And pay your tribute.

lol what a farce these mortals be.

[Gary - So Cal]

Having been a Grateful Dead "fan" for well over 25 years and can safely say that most people realize that the Grateful Dead ceased to survive after 10/14/95. There may be people who have legal control over song rights and such but there is no more Grateful Dead.

[kabby]

What a long strange trip it continues to be.

[Stephen]

This is a ridiculous story. Never heard of this Brownstein person, but I'm well aware that the GD are a MAJOR band in America. They earned the right to dictate where and when their music is used for advertising (the purpose of newspapers). Not that I believe a word the story says, but IF they asked for an article and this "writer" turned them down, she's an IDIOT.

[misterbenson]

The GD organization has been moving in this (greedy, closed, arrogant) direction since J Garcia died, if not before. I washed my hands of them when they tried to contest Garcia's will and screw Doug Irwin the luthier who made all of Garcia's guitars out of his rightful inheritance (Garcia left all his instruments to Irwin, who was then impoverished and disabled). The Dead Organization, led by Weir, tried to take them back, saying they were "communal property" and not Garcia's to dispose of. The music lives on (or not), but these are really awful, unpleasant people.
As for the Dead being the "penultimate" jam band: since the word means "second to last" - I only wish it were so.

[Gawga state]

This is not news. If it is true then I am 100% behind the band. NPR has really become a shill for their own agendas. Bought and paid for by corporations.

[Scott of Torrance]

Ha! Yeah, they asked Jerry one time during the disco years why they hadn't sold out. He laughed and said, "Well, nobody asked us." Still, this latest--if true--isn't all that surprising, given some of the recent battles over Jerry's estate.

[K2]

As to who is #1... it's a tie, everyone else.

[Conor]

Growing old is never pretty... Even if you are dreadfully great.

God bless Jerry's kids. God bless 'em all.

[weatherdownheresofine]

I agree with Rico...someone doesn't know their Grateful Dead and appears they are using their position as a means of retaliation simply because the Dead refused to play their game by their rules. I have two issues with the title of this piece. First, it leads one to believe the band approached Brownstein. Secondly, it implies this occurred back in the day BG (before Garcia) simply by referring to the current incarnation of the band by the Grateful Dead. The Grateful Dead ceased to exist in 1995, period. Lastly, if McNally knows nothing about it (yet he's the band's publicist) why did this piece not identify who they were in contact with over in San Rafael? No disrespect intended for McNally, but he has given deliberate disinformation in the past (Brent's death comes to mind immediately).

[Chris Altwegg]

The ultimate jam band? They've been playing forever and they never stop, just different folks step into the spotlight and do their turn. There's Jimi and Brian and Jerry shredding some chords, Janis, Mama Cass, and Jim take turns on vocals, Keith on his kit. Too many more to name. If you've been good in life, when you die, you get into the concert at the start of the doobie line and if you've been bad, you're at the end of the line where all you get is a dead roach and no one has a lighter. Be good, little dudes and dudettes! (And learn the meaning of penultimate.)

[Mitsu]

"Never heard of this Brownstein person" --- oh come on guys, give me a break. NPR are corporate sellouts? This is a BLOG POST we're talking about here, by Carrie Brownstein, guitarist/vocalist for Sleater-Kinney (and if you don't know what Sleater-Kinney is, you're really missing out). She was just trying to do something fun on her blog, which happens to be on the NPR site, i.e., post a mix, and the Dead turned her down. No big deal, but ragging on Carrie when it was the band (or what remains of it) that were being commercial seems might over the top to me.

Check it out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrie_Brownstein

[AK]

Penultimate? You and your editor(s) should be ashamed. There is no way for that word to work in any context regarding The Grateful Dead. And neither would "ultimate" for that matter.

[flistr8]

NPR's going to need a miracle to wiggle out of this one...

Saint Stephen ! ! ! !