Brent Mydland

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Brent Mydland (born October 21, 1952 near Munich , Germany , † July 26, 1990 in Lafayette , California ) was an American keyboardist and singer. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from 1979 until his death in 1990 .

biography

Brent Mydland was born on an American military base near Munich. His father was stationed there as a chaplain in the US Army . As Mydland was one year old, the family moved to the Bay Area of San Francisco . Mydland, who grew up in Concord , began playing in bands during high school. In the 1970s he was a member of Batdorf & Rodney and later Silver. Silver released an LP in 1976 on Arista Records . (In 2000 the album was released on CD by the French label Magic Records).

In 1978 Mydland played briefly in Bob Weir's band . When the Grateful Dead were looking for a replacement for Keith & Donna Godchaux , Brent Mydland was chosen. On April 22, 1979, Mydland played his first concert with the Dead. In contrast to his predecessor Godchaux, who mostly limited himself to playing the piano on stage , Mydland played the Hammond B3 organ like Pigpen once again and synthesizer , thus ensuring fresh timbres in the 15-year-old band. He also expanded the range of voices in the band to include a high harmony voice.

As the third lead singer alongside Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir , Mydland also contributed his own songs to the repertoire of the Grateful Dead, some of which he wrote with John Barlow, Bob Weir's authoring partner. Mydland wrote four songs for the album Built To Last - more than his colleagues Garcia and Weir. Under the covers , the Mydland were sang Dear Mister Fantasy , Hey Jew , Hey Pockey Way and Gimme Some Lovin ' .

Around 1982 Mydland was working on a solo album, but it was never released.

Mydland died on July 26, 1990, just days after the Grateful Dead's summer tour ended, of an overdose of a cocaine - morphine mixture . He left behind his wife Lisa and daughters Jessica and Jennifer. In the Grateful Dead Mydland was replaced by Vince Welnick and - temporarily - Bruce Hornsby .

Since the late 90s, the Grateful Dead have released more live albums from their time with Mydland. Particularly noteworthy here are Dozin 'At The Knick , Nightfall Of Diamonds and Truckin' Up To Buffalo (all live '89 / '90) as well as Go To Nassau (live '80).

Discography

with Silver:

  • Silver (Arista 1976 / as CD: Magic Records, 2000)

with Grateful Dead:

as well as further publications of concert recordings.

Songs

Brent Mydland composed the following songs for the Grateful Dead:

  • Easy To Love You (Mydland / Barlow), released on Go To Heaven
  • Far From Me (Mydland), released on Go To Heaven
  • Hell In A Bucket (Weir / Mydland / Barlow), published on “In The Dark”
  • Tons Of Steel (Mydland), released on “In The Dark”
  • Just A Little Light (Mydland / Barlow), released on “Built To Last”
  • Blow Away (Mydland / Barlow), released on “Built To Last”
  • We Can Run (Mydland / Barlow), published on “Built To Last”
  • I Will Take You Home (Mydland / Barlow), released on Built To Last
  • Never Trust A Woman (Mydland), live version on “Dozin 'At The Knick”
  • Don't Need Love (Mydland), unreleased / only played live
  • Gentlemen, Start Your Engines (Mydland / Barlow), unreleased / only played live
  • Maybe You Know (Mydland), unreleased / only played live
  • Only A Fool (Mydland), unreleased / only played live
  • Revolutionary Hamstrung Blues (Mydland / Lesh / Petersen), unreleased / only played live

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Mydland, Brent
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American keyboardist and singer
DATE OF BIRTH October 21, 1952
PLACE OF BIRTH Munich
DATE OF DEATH July 26, 1990
Place of death Lafayette , California, USA