Way back on September 9, video game maker Harmonix and cable network MTV announced a partnership with Rhino Records to bring 18 of the band’s most popular songs to Rock Band. Last March, things started out well for Deadhead gamers when six of the band’s songs became available for use in Rock Band. Most Deadheads loved the opportunity to play China Cat Sunflower, Truckin’, Casey Jones, Sugar Magnolia, Franklin’s Tower and I Need A Miracle as opposed to rockin’ Mississippi Queen for the 1,000 time.
We’re nearly a year past the release of the first batch of songs and the Deadheads were becoming restless, until today. The next batch of six Grateful Dead songs will be available next week for both Rock Band and Rock Band 2. Here’s your chance to play or sing along with Hell In A Bucket, Don’t Ease Me In, Cold Rain and Snow, Doin’ That Rag, Uncle John’s Band and Fire On The Mountain.
Can you nail Bobby’s howls in Hell In A Bucket or lead the crowd in taking a step back before Don’t Ease Me In? Find out by downloading the pack – full of masters – next Tuesday and Thursday. Personally, I’m waiting for the Grateful Dead Pack 47, so I can show off my inner Donna on Sunrise, summon the spirits of Vince Welnick for a high scoring Samba In The Rain and act bored like Jerry during Brent’s Gentlemen Start Your Engines.
The classic Dead tracks run $1.99 a pop or $9.99 for the set. These tracks will be available on Xbox 360 in the Xbox Live Marketplace on January 27, and they will be up on the Playstation 3 in the Playstation Store on Thursday January 29 while Wii users will have to wait for more details.
Do any of our readers play Rock Band? Did you buy the first pack of Dead songs for your video game system? Please leave us a comment below telling us what you thought about it and whether you’ll buy the next one.
5 Responses
I have the first batch and it’s pretty damn good. You’re playing with the studio stuff, which is weird, but getting to drum on Franklin’s was amazing!
I’ll buy the next one next week. Thanks for the heads up, boys.
I got Rock Band specifically for the Dead stuff. They gotta come out with a live three-song set or something like that. The studio stuff just has a different sound to it. A liv Scarlet-Touch-Fire from ’84 maybe!!!
Do you have to wear the short-shorts to sing the Bobby parts?
GREAT NEWS!!!!
I haven’t picked up Rock Band just yet, but I’m addicted to Guitar Hero. This just made the decision to buy Rock Band very easy!
The Grateful Dead are ok, but they’re missing their greatest song ever, Touch of Grey!!! That’s a great song and I just don’t see how they keep on skipping it!