The music is beautiful, masterfully performed with Dead-hommage vocal style, great traditional Celtic instrumentation. The Dead songs fit this genre very well. I think any fan of the Dead will appreciate these renditions of their music. Largely acoustic and blended seamlessly with traditional Scots and Irish melodies, this is a record that could capture a broad audience, converting folkies into Deadheads and 'heads into folkies. There's a sense of longing in every CD track.
Every segue works, and every track is beautiful.
This, then, is the living legacy of the Grateful Dead, great new performances of great songs. Dead songs live, and the lives of listeners everywhere are better for it. In this case, it comes in the form of a delightful CD, Wake the Dead. The comfortable adaptations make it sound as if these songs were written to be performed in this manner, proving once again that the music of the Grateful Dead is capable of crossing all social and cultural boundaries, including a vast array of musical genres. A stellar cast of musicians.