• 8,100 replies
    marye
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    Bolo24 says: An Idea, Perhaps? Since we're all going to have a fair amount of spare time on our hands for the foreseeable future, what about starting another thread where we all listen to the same show/release on a given day and then share impressions afterward? Folks can submit suggestions and one person (not me) picks what we'll all listen to - call it Deadnet Picks or something. Anyway, if this idea is deemed to have merit, I'd suggest one of the loyal regular posters take the lead and do the picking - y'all can decide who. Might be fun. If it does go forward, I nominate Dick's Picks 18 for the first listen. Been talked about here lately, and, had it been a single show rather than a compilation, we'd probably be talking about it in the same conversation as Cornell, Veneta, etc. Or perhaps even Gainesville?? Stay safe and healthy, friends - this planet needs as many Deadheads as possible.

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  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    DIB

    Cool.

    The DIB factory is just across the river from me.. Small world..

    Oh.. the Gauley's a classic. I guess you have a few rivers out West that compare.. but here in the East, there is nothing like it. The Beast of the East. A beautiful canyon.

  • bluecrow
    Joined:
    9/20/74

    listening now - WRS.

    they need to release complete shows of all '74. it's that simple.

  • bluecrow
    Joined:
    Jon Dragan

    I met Jon in the early aughts out here in the west on an 8-day river trip I was guiding. previous life time stuff, so to speak. unusual trip to say the least, almost every "client" was big time rafting/whitewater. me? just a boatman on the mighty San Juan. somewhat early in my career. But yes, I knew that river pretty well by then. There was at least one other company owner from WV on the trip, plus the owner of DIB, Spouses also. One, maybe 2, family friends. One for sure was a doctor. Moki Mac, another company owner, decades in the business and a legend out of Moab, was also there as the only other "crew" besides myself. Mac was in fact a friend of several of those folks. this trip was not MM trip but WRX. All boats personal, except the one I rowed, even MM. It was late October, hardly anyone on the river and we encountered no one in the lower canyon over 5 days. That is total gold. By chance watched one of the first helicopter "deliveries" of desert bighorn sheep in the low.er.

    That first night Jon did something remarkably weird, comic, simple, and memorable.

    so - etched in memory in terms of at least 2 key details. it was dinner. I'm standing behind a cook/prep. table. a bit higher than what you would expect - the classic homemade tables/emergency backboards of WRX. Jon has dinner before him. He's got a crazy funny grin. He is holding a miniature pepper mill. 1-1/2" high? it's suspended from a chain around his neck. it's a "charm". Only its functional. If I had to guess it held one, maybe two pepper corns. And he slowly turns the handle all the while smiling at me. honest to god, I am wondering what am I looking at. and at this juncture almost 20 years later I can only smile and laugh. I don't think i dreamt this.

    at the end of the trip I showed Jon a couple of pieces of cast silver I had done in a workshop. one was based on a bear pictograph my sweetheart and I had come across previous year - despite everything I think that site is still not on the radar. still proud of that piece, cast in cuttlefish, so ripples along the body. balance and aesthetic is spot on for me. Jon asked me if he could buy it for his wife. I wasn't ready for that - told him can't do it now but maybe down the line. Let's stay in touch. in the end a missed opportunity of connection.

    I still remember standing in the company office a year or so later and being told that he had passed away suddenly. He was 62. Legend.

    Truthfully the Gauley may well be on a hypothetical bucket list based simply on that.

    my apologies for a non-Dead post on this thread.

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    Ha

    That must be Joe Smith. I enjoy his modern day interviews and comments. I am not sure the boys were fond of him back in the day, but Jerry gave an amicable interview towards the end. In Anthem to Beauty, someone dug out the letter from him to the band that they "graded." I think they gave it an "F" for "F*** Y**"

    Whiz also gave a great account of recording that show in Anthem to Beauty. No one was in the truck when Morning Dew was played and the recording came out flawless. Those were the days....

    I'm sure you all knew all this, but just in case.. ah, the end of one of the truly great tours from any band at any time.

    Up late last night, well just because.. up early this morning because it's my curse. Got water heating and some freshly roasted to see me through what will surely be a great morning. Everyday should be a holiday weekend.

  • DeadVikes
    Joined:
    5/26/72

    Definitely agree with Jim, WTJ and others on this show.
    Let me take it a step further.
    Obviously part of it was released with the original E72 release and I bought a copy of the CD release in I believe 85. Still have it .
    Didn't get the box when it came out in 2011, seems crazy now, but that is the way it goes. Passed on the individual shows that sat on Dead. Net for years. Still can't believe that one. But my daughter was very young and money was tight.
    Anyway, I believe my first two individual shows I purchased on the secondary market was this show and 4/26.
    I was able to listen to the whole show tonight, basically uninterrupted.
    The goose bumps are still there. Definitely a top five show in my book. The Truckin, Other Ones, Dew, Other One, Sing Me Back Home still might be the best music I have ever heard.
    The sound quality still to this day amazes me how good it is.
    We have to be thankful for the Warmer Bros executive, I forget his name and the unbelievable effort of the Wiz, Bob Matthews, Betty Cantor and others for recording this tour. This one is for you all.
    Enjoy the weekend all!

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    Re: Dragan

    I've heard of him, his name used to pop up.. he's a bit before my time and a bit South (Gauley River WV, etc.). The Gauley's a classic run and a bit of a beast. It's gods country down there, stunningly beautiful, really awe inspiring. Even the drive there is breathtaking. I'm about 2 1/2 hours North but occasionally make my way South, made it last fall and hope to make it at least once this year.

  • Oroboros
    Joined:
    Yes Oroboruos, my brother from another mother

    I am lurking about.

    Bolo's recent loss sparked me to reply on the recent loss of my father. 92 yrs. old and he was ready to go. And he did.

    He's gone.....

    Heading out to see Joe Russo's Almost Dead in Vail (2 nights) and then at Red Rocks for a night. Celebrating my wife's successful cancer treatment 5 years ago and our 42nd wedding anniversary in August by heading up to altitude and enjoying some music.

    If you haven't availed yourself to JRAD yet, but enjoy the Dead's 68-69 breakneck pace, turn on a dime, deep jamming, combined with the Grateful Dead's entire song catalog, they are highly recommended by this writer.
    Check them out. I find them significantly more edifying than any other dead-centric offerings I have seen (yes I have seen Dead & Co multiple times) as they play with inventiveness and pace of that early Dead.

    Thanks for the shout out, hope to post more soon, retirement is rapidly approaching and will provide me with extra time to connect, reminisce, and spin tales of our favorite aural adventures.

    Take care

    Tim

  • bluecrow
    Joined:
    5/25/95 & 9/20/74

    in the same breath?

    holy mother of god.

    i'm in deep now

    so every show in that fall Europe '74 tour is pretty/really freaking good! I've rec'd an Usbourne matrix of the completely off the radar show from that tour in Munich from 9/14. listen for Tommy (IIRC) played over the system in a between sets on an audience splice. Yeah a history note.

    And now yet again I'm "in" Set II for 5/25 Seattle. I really dug this run but hadn't even thought about it recently until ProudFoot mentioned night 3 and, among other things, I realized it it lined up with the last 3 nights of Lyceum '72.

    Most of my deep listening nowadays is headphone and that's what I rec here. And don't forget the bonus GDHour source for Want To Tell > Estimated from the night before.

    Jim - given all your whitewater and kayak time, did you ever know Jon Dragan back in the day?

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    5/25/95 & 9/20/74

    Thanks Bluecrow. I'll check it out, just getting in from a big day spent mostly outdoors so maybe later tonight. I love this time of year, rain and all. Then again, I seem to find myself content with all seasons.. there's always something to do you just gotta poke around.

    Gonna cook and eat some salmon, relax a bit and get settled into what hopefully is going to be a great holiday weekend. Hope you all find something that grabs you..

    WTJ, it's been a while since I listened to 9/20/74. I recall liking it and thinking it was a better show than some of the reviews might lead us to believe. It has been a neglected 74 show for me. Perhaps I will fit this into my weekend. Besides, it's got a Cumberland! (and WRS and China Rider).. good setlist to be sure.

  • wilfredtjones
    Joined:
    5/26/72 He's Gone

    Jerry is botching the lyrics big time but I'm going to try and power through the whole animal today. Then, I might sample 5/25/95 Charlie Miller. Been wanting to see if Jim had any specific thoughts on 9/20/74. BITD, I had a very crisp DAT to Cassette of that show I liked it a great deal. I seem to remember there was a portion at the end cut from my tape, but maybe I'm confusing it with 10/28/77, which I also had a very clean DAT to Cassette of. :-) :-) :-) all 'tis the weekend :-)

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Bolo24 says: An Idea, Perhaps? Since we're all going to have a fair amount of spare time on our hands for the foreseeable future, what about starting another thread where we all listen to the same show/release on a given day and then share impressions afterward? Folks can submit suggestions and one person (not me) picks what we'll all listen to - call it Deadnet Picks or something. Anyway, if this idea is deemed to have merit, I'd suggest one of the loyal regular posters take the lead and do the picking - y'all can decide who. Might be fun. If it does go forward, I nominate Dick's Picks 18 for the first listen. Been talked about here lately, and, had it been a single show rather than a compilation, we'd probably be talking about it in the same conversation as Cornell, Veneta, etc. Or perhaps even Gainesville?? Stay safe and healthy, friends - this planet needs as many Deadheads as possible.
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In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Yes, Rider is slow and steady-I like it as they really seem to dig in and locate the meaning of the song. If it had cropped up too often in this format it may have worn out its welcome. But as this approach didn't last, it works really well for me when I hear it.
I like the way the acoustic set provides a sort of historical framework for the approach and songs on Working Mans Dead. The newer songs fit in well with the covers, taking them as a source, but moving on into their own identity.

The electric sets are stellar - very powerful r'n'b roots showing through. I prefer the Good Lovin's of this year compared to the ones in 71 and 72. In 1970 emphasis was more on the guitars and not so much on the rapping - but I accept that I am in the minority there.
Another thing I noticed was Bob's high profile in the mix. I found myself focussing on his playing during Lovelight-truly one of the most original rhythm guitarists, and for me, he really shines on these two shows.

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As I was 16 this concert was like going to a carnival with two bands. Even though the Fillmore had seats great moments in music would have people dancing. This concert was liberating for me in that I was way more lively then my first Dead show a few months earlier. This time i was up dancing when the music lended itself., that was a good portion of the early show. Joshua Light Show was other worldly. For the Dead they mainly used the overhead projector with the pulsating ameba effect. During the acoustic set and NRPS the light show used 16mm footage from upstate NY & VT of old farms and meadows , mountains, and had a travelogue footage driving on back dirt roads, horses grazing. Also an old locomotive coming around a curve headed straight for the viewer. And then the more psychedelic light show for electric set. All super tripped out but low tech by any modern standard. The music has a fresh sound to this day.

I attended this concert with three different friends, Mikey D, Dickie Z, and B. White. Fifty years ago, Eee-ho-lay ! Listening today is a mind bender of time , and space.

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This show has some of my favorite acoustic Dead.

* The Ballad of Casey Jones. I've always loved old-timey country and bluegrass, like Hank Williams and Jimmie Rodgers. For me, Garcia's vocal here stands head and shoulders with those two greats. I remember when I first heard it on an old low quality cassette. It was like discovering an ancient scratchy Jimmie Rodgers recording. Now, luckily we have it in great quality. Garcia said he had deeply conservative and traditional musical instincts that he tried to fight against. I think his traditional instincts won the day for much of this early acoustic stuff.

* Silver Threads and Golden Needles. This performance sounds to me almost like a duet between Garcia's guitar and Weir's vocal. Garcia follows Weir's vocal line so closely, it's like a "call and response". Brilliant Garcia picking on this tune.

Thanks for sharing your memories of this show Strider.

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In reply to by Gollum

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I had grand plans for this show, but everything conspired against me. Instead of plowing through it.. I am rain checking it until I can give it the attention it deserves.

By grand plans.. well. If you know me you know what I have in mind. All day, no phone, no email and more than a little extra to keep my attention. Today would have been a distracted listen at best.

I will be sure to write. I will say.. adding to Gollum's comments, I think it's either the best recorded or the best remastered 1970 acoustic dead to be released, and I for one am thankful for that.

I promise to fit this in, it is a show that deserves some careful attention.

When are we working towards valentines day, 11/8 and February / March 69 again? hehe.

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In reply to by JimInMD

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....I Hear A Voice Calling is so lilting. So smooth. So glorious. Some songs have been known to make my eyes moist, and this is on the list. The narrow way indeed. I love these shows.

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Yes, I may also need a rain check on this one. I couldn't give it the attention it deserves today. Nice point Daverock about the historical framework for the Workingman's Dead material. I hadn't thought about that before. Also agreed on Weir's guitar in Lovelight. He's really in a groove. Not to mention his vocals! Those primal scream howls near the end really work for me.

rain check- I didn't even get to the Dark Star today.

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In reply to by Gollum

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I forgot to say.. the fact that the Dead wrote a song called Casey Jones, and then revived a song called The Ballad of Casey Jones, which is apparently a traditional song, also seemed to underline their desire to reconnect with American roots music. Both played on 5/15.

I saved the Dark Star till late at night, when I felt I would be a bit more receptive to its charms. And then fell asleep about 5 minutes in. Oh well, I've not got much planned for today.

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In reply to by daverock

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....to quote Bobby at the start of Greatest Story Ever Told, "Whoooo!!".
Took the family out to eat last night for the first time in nine weeks. BBQ. It was glorious. I got my baby back, baby back, baby back ribs. Double "Whoooo!!

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You are correct Sir!

I've only got these three albums on vinyl, and I got them down from the attic a few hours ago. I haven't listened to any of them yet, but I am struck by the covers. You can really appreciate them in this larger format. The one for Rolling Thunder-as can be seen by your avator, VGuy - is beautiful.

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Garcia, Ace and Rolling Thunder are all three by far my favorite solo records by said artists.
Only listened to early show yesterday of 5/15/70 . Late show today. Maybe Garcia later. So I will Garcia later on the (72 alligator)

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In reply to by Strider 808808

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"Garcia" is a favorite album. LP Side 1 introducing 4 classic Hunter-Garcia songs. LP Side 2 is a brilliant, sublime suite of music and sonic weirdness. One of the songs at the core of my GD "universe" is The Wheel, and Jerry's pedal steel here is out-of-this world beautiful!

Not sure if everyone here knows it - there was an expanded version of the album released by Garcia Family/Rhino ca. 2005. 1 CD, OOP, pricey nowadays on the secondary market but to my mind very much worth tracking down. Very cool liner notes by Hunter, he was in the studio - he describes lyrics for The Wheel coming together as he listened to Jerry's pedal steel. A fascinating bonus track is the Late for Supper/Spidergawd/Eep Hour alternate take. Jerry begins by playing a series of crashing chords on the piano, letting them hang and fade to nothing. I love listening to each banging chord in its fullness. At the start of the track, Jerry's telling Billy K. what he's about to do re the chords, and then he says - "I'll do some weirdness - it'll be weirdness, weirdness, weirdness." Ha!

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First impressions. What a gem. I can't believe I'm just hearing it for the first time now. Thanks to Wiki for the album notes and credits.
* Two jams with Jerry, Mickey and Zakir Hussein! I love Zakir and have been lucky to see him live a few times. I knew he worked with the Dead and Mickey before but didn't realize they went all the way back to 71/72. Top shelf stuff.
*"Deep Wide and Frequent" - a major highlight. A guitar blizzard with Jerry, Cippolina, and two other cats I haven't heard of before. The guitars are all great here, but the only one I can recognize for sure is Jerry (maybe Cippolina)
*David Freiberg does some nice vocals. Freiberg seems to get lost in the shuffle of fine San Francisco musicians and it's nice to hear him here. "Fletcher Carnaby" is an oddity- a menacing song with Hunter lyrics.
*The arrangements of Playin' in the Band ("Main Ten") and Greatest Story ("Pump Song") are interesting and the expert horns are a nice touch. Garcia playing "Insect Fear"? Well I don't know what Garcia is playing exactly, but it's unmistakably Jerry.

[Vguy- yes, alas, "Walk in the Sunshine", the poor thing. at least the Dead identified it as a turkey early on]

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I know it's not released but it will be something different, and I could go for the Scarlet>Touch>Fire second set opener and was as Dark Star encore.... bob t

....that show will be a Daves at some point. Just biding our time. And yes. And it was released. 36 years ago.
Rolling Thunder is the shit. My neighbors are firing off fireworks in celebration!

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In reply to by Vguy72

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....Main Ten = PITB.
That's how things work. Eep Hour.
Dead Horns are under represented.

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Presented in three segments, an evening with the Grateful Dead featuring the New Riders Of The Purple Sage falls more into the category of a music experience than a concert. - Jeff from Variety May 27 1970

I spent the weekend having that music experience, Friday for the Early Show & Saturday for the late show. And it all lined up on the 50th anniversary.

It was an epic revisit of some beloved shows. Throughout this revisit, I couldn’t help thinking as I listened to the amazing quality & completeness of this material that I would’ve killed to have these tapes in high school. It was unattainable for me then. But I used to dream of it…
Well, we’ve got them now!

These two shows represent the first “an Evening with the Grateful Dead” at the Fillmore East and the last time they did Early and Late Shows there. By this point the NY heads had learned that the early shows were kept short & the true magic happened in the late shows.

There’s magic in both of these shows, but the “true” magic definitely happens in the late show.

I decided to do the full meal deal on these two and grabbed the NRPS sets as well, which are both nicely recorded by the patched in Fillmore East crew, I believe.

Early Show -
Acoustic 9 songs = 46 minutes
NRPS 8 songs = 30 minutes
Electric 7 songs = 1 hour
Over 2 hours of music

Late Show -
Acoustic 10 songs = 51 minutes
NRPS 13 songs = 1 hour 13 minutes
Electric 14 songs = 2 hours
Over 4 hours of music!

TOTAL BOTH SHOWS = Over 6 hours of music!

The Acoustic set for the Late Show is one of the best ever, as previously mentioned here on this thread. Pigpen teases Good Lovin’ in the early show a couple of times, and throughout both shows, they didn’t play it until like 5 hours later and boy when they did, it is Hot. The Dark Star > St. Stephen, incredible! Throughout it all you can feel the Fillmore East vibe, especially apparent during the closing Turn On Your Lovelight rave up after about 6 hours of melting minds.

What it must’ve been like in the Fillmore East that night! The Dead lit that place on FIRE. While listening, I sat there shaking my head so many times, amazing amazing stuff here folks, just amazing.

The only real flaw in the music we have here is the omission of the late show Candyman*, which suffers from a reel flip on the FE crew tapes & was left off the official Vault release. That makes me curious to compare the uncirculated Vault version of the Bob Matthews recording to the FE crew version and see if there’s some patch material. It is an amazing version of Candyman! Very similar to Calebration version from 8/30/70, but earlier and more intimate, somehow. Jerry’s voice is just amazing on both of these shows and in 1970 in general.

I’ve always had some issues with this release due to the tracking of the songs being cut up and spread out on various CDs. I’ve had them in the right order for years in my music player, but the in’s & out’s weren’t working for me, causing my completist OCD to flair every time I listened and therefore avoid repeated plays. I understand the reasoning behind these edits and am not complaining, just saying. But this weekend I found myself with the time and finally re-tracked the songs, especially the late show, added the NRPS and was able to fully immerse myself in the music in it’s original order at this high level of quality.

At the time of these shows, Workingman’s Dead was done and pressed and would be released shortly after this show (the exact date seems to be in question, but in my research it drops about 10 days later.) This show represents the new material as good as any shows from this time. You get every song that would be on Workingman’s Dead except High Time (played quite well the night before) and you get the three songs that they’d already written and were performing from American Beauty: FOTD, Attics & Candyman.

Cool point of interest.. Robert Hunter would be writing 3 more new tunes very soon after this, all in one day, when the band headed to England for the Hollywood Music Festival on 5/24/70: Ripple, To Lay Me Down, Brokedown Palace.

* The Late Show Acoustic set group of Black Peter, FOTD, Uncle John’s Band, Candyman is a must hear in it’s original order, even with the reel flip. It’s some of the finest representations of these songs at this point in the Dead’s recorded history. Also of note the missing banter after Candyman leading up to Pigpen’s performance is fun and worth a listen. Jerry announces that they’ll finish off the Wooden Section with a gospel tune with some NRPS, Pigpen says wait a minute don’t I get to play a song before you do that fuckin’ religious song? And Bob hops on the mic asking the crowd if they wanna hear Pigpen, and does his Dog Suckin-ist man in showbiz rap. Then you get to hear the rare set up & crowd situation of Fillmore East, somebody does a Tarzan Yell, and Pigpen says “Heard You’re Fired!” (Sonny Heard), another Tarzan Yell, “You’re fired twice” and then a female audience member does it too, it just makes you feel like you’re there. And then you get Pig’s two fine acoustic tunes from the release.

That brings me to wonder if David Lemieux has ever posted the 5/15/70 late show Candyman from the Vault anywhere? I’d sure love to see if we can patch this FE crew Candyman with the Vault version. It’s worth an ask as the version is sublime.

David Lemieux may we request a 5/15/70 Late Show Candyman please? Thank you very much!

Well if you made it this far… thank you very much!

I wonder how many people actually saw both shows from that night and lived to tell about it.. if you’re out there, I would love to hear your stories.

To wrap it up, when I first heard “rumors” of these legendary shows the Dead would do in 1970, with an Acoustic Set, the NRPS and The Electric Dead and they’d call them An Evening with the Grateful Dead, I would drift off and think how amazing it would be to hear that!

Well some 35 years later, it’s as amazing as I’d always dreamed it would be.

PS - Yesterday’s pick of Garcia, Bob Weir “Ace” & Mickey Hart “Rolling Thunder” was the perfect music to come down from this here wild trip through 5/15/70.

Thanks Bolo!

PPS - Strider88: Thanks for that great story!
Everyone Else Here: Thanks for picking shows to listen to everyday and for your wonderful input and insights.
BobT: 7/13/84 you say, I’ll listen to that.

Be Well

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I've been out for a bit - just needed to take a bit of a break from the computer, as that is now all that I do during the work-week. That being said, I grilled some brats and veggies on Friday, which was hot and sunny here in Bmore, and listened to all three discs of 5/15/70 - what a release. I was planning on skipping it, as I had listened to it quite recently, but I am glad that I thought better of it and dug in. I agree with all here - those acoustic tracks may be the best acoustic 70 released. Love it!

I didn't do the solo albums yesterday, as I was away from the house and I do listen to them on a regular basis - well, Garcia a lot, Weir a bunch, and Rolling Thunder here-and there... I will at least try to give Rolling Thunder a relisten soon.

Yesterday and today I've listened to Greek 8/13/83, and today I have gone through 8/14 and 8/15... loving it!

I think that today is 7/13/84? Perhaps I will put that on if I ever get out of this Greek Theater 83 groove. Talk about a box set that is crying to be let out!

Peace

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Ace: "Playing In The Band" is my pick for a studio recording that most closely resembles a quality live performance. Just splendid! Jerry's nothing less than a savant on this one.

Garcia: "The Wheel" is sublime, my favorite version across any spectrum. The way that frantic opening just dissolves into a vat of honey-dripping pedal steel goodness is soul-cleansing. And Eep Hour - wish it went on for another 20 minutes. So calming and transportive, then handing the baton off to that ethereal "To Lay Me Down." Just what I needed yesterday.

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The solo album triple header was a great idea. Thanks to all. I don't know why I've ignored those albums before, but now all 3 are going to be getting plenty of love from me.

Thanks for the excellent 5/15/70 write-up GOGD. Spreading the listening out over a few days is definitely the way to go with such an epic show. Anyways, several of us now have a rain-check for the show. To be continued!

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In reply to by Gollum

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....go by so fast. General consensus that The Garcia Wheel is certainly special. It's cool that what I think is cool is pretty much cool with y'all.

This was the one I was least familiar with, out of the three, so this was the one I played last night. And I remembered why its the least played. I don't like it very much. I didn't then, and I'm afraid I don't now. With one shining exception...who plays that blinding guitar solo on Deep Wide and Frequent? Looking at the guitarists who feature, I assume its Jerry, but I wouldn't have identified him if I had been played the track without knowing who was on it. Sounds like John McLaughlin to me.

I don't know if I'll get round to the other two-but I remember them as stone classics.

Studio Album Double stretched into a Triple

Ace - I agree with Bolo24 the band nailed that Playing In The Band, that’s about as close to their live sound as I’ve heard them jam on record. I can’t even think of any contenders off the top of my pointy head. Anybody?

And it’s recorded really well by Bob & Betty.

The band & Jerry in particular sound pretty comfortable at Wally Heider’s by this point.

The ole “What If?” Scenario comes to mind.
What if they’d recorded the other new songs there at this time…

It struck me that part of the reason they played at such a high level during the Europe ’72 tour could’ve been directly related to this extra Studio time that Weir booked.

It would seem that when the band got together and worked on stuff, it usually showed on tour.

This wouldn’t be the only factor, but just an additional factor to why they played so good on that tour / year. Just speculation, but damn ’72 is a good year!

and I like to think about the reasons why…

Garcia’s album is timeless.. I love his playing, his choice of what to play never ceases to please. His tasty organ fills especially stuck out to me upon this listen, check out Bird Song. The Wheel that’s some good jams.

Mickey’s Album was a fun listen.. filled with oddness and seems to represent Mickey quite well. I hadn’t really listened to that one other than the Main Ten & Pump Song, and was curious. It’s different, just like Mickey!

Alright, what’s on the haps today? I saw some mention of May ’83 & July ’84 Greek Theatre shows.

Taper’s Section made me want to listen to the first Acoustic set from 12/19/69

Picks, picks anybody got some Pick’s of the Day?

RE:GOLLUM - that’s a good rain check to have my friend!
Enjoy that when it’s the right time, I’m still recovering, it’s definitely a music experience to be savored.

RE:VGUY72 - What you’re saying here is pretty much cool with me ;)

RE:DENNIS - PM received, Thank you!

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I went to this show, it was alot of fun. Most all the shows I went to were fun. This show certainly could be a Dave's Picks, or part of Greek box set.

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In reply to by billy the kid

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You got any 7/13/84 stories?

Did you see all 3 nights of that Greek Run?

You saw a lot of shows!

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15 years
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Was fortunate to attend all of 'em.

Billy the Kid usually sat/stood right behind me with a beer in each hand and a supermodel on each arm.

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17 years 5 months
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Had a party when the album Garcia came out in early 72.. As I remember I played the record several times in a row. The clarity was a rush. Eep Hour is truly a
masterpiece. All tracks are excellent .
Ace was also a major release that year. We had the 8-track version of Ace as part of driving w friends from CT. to CA. in June 72. The portable 8-track player would make the chachunk sound when tracks changed. Ace’s “Playing”was defiantly the closest to a live recording of any studio album GD or solo records. Rolling Thunder was the most avant-garde album start to finish . I still have a very holy original Rolling Thunder t-shirt made by Mouse around mid 70s that I bought at the old long gone Postermat in North Beach , San Francisco. Ben Friedman who had the Postermat was a legend in his own league.
Will check out Greek 84, seems like I had a cassette copy.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by bolo24

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BOLO24: Nice! Billy The Kid just gained more status..
I'll limit myself to 2 questions, you can answer none, 1 or 2, or do whatever you want.. that's how we roll, I'll be happy with whatever you decide.

1. Did you have a favorite from those 3 nights?
2. Did you see the shooting star during Dark Star?

Also any great stories or anecdotes you wish to share are totally welcomed, jsyk ;)
(BTW Someday you must share the Human Be-In tale, but I digress)

Always loved these Greek shows and hearing about them from people who were there is fun.

STRIDER88 - Ben Friedman sounds like someone I should learn more about. At first I thought you were talking about Glen E. Friedman, another legendary figure. But I'll do some research now that my curiosity is peaked. Dig the flashback on the Studio Albums.

VGUY72: It sounds like BTK didn't stop.. but maybe he just stopped listing them. BOLO24 says BTK used to stand behind him with supermodels.. there's more to this story I believe.

Keep em coming you all, this is a nice distraction to doing anything productive.
Plus I'm on chat hold.. forever.

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I kept going to shows after 1983, it's just a pain in the ass to list them all . 7/13/84 was a great show, Garcia's voice sounds nice and strong , some of my favorite songs, Dire Wolf, Duprees, Stella Blue, the Dark Star was a real treat to end a fun show. The Greek was a cool place to see the Dead, my favorite Greek show was 9/11/81, the set list doesn't do the show justice, you kind of had to be there. The place was electric as was I. When Garcia sang" I guess it doesn't matter anyways" during Morning Dew, you could hear a pin drop in that place. That was such a powerful moment, and the absolute truth, that me trying to write about it doesn't do it justice. Yeah Bolo, that was me, two big cold cups of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, I'd graduated from the Fallstaff I was drinking outside of Winterland, waiting for the show.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by billy the kid

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RE: Billy The Kid

I say Well done!

Great pictures of Jerry and the band by Ed Perlstein from that September '81 run.
Super Dope Tie-Dye backdrop via Courtenay (assuming).
Jerry in particular looks stoked in all the pics, like he's enjoying the vibe.
But the whole band looks pumped - https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/grateful-dead-berkeley-1981

That was one of "the" venues we always talked about wanting to see a show at..

Based on the nod, the story and the pics, I think I'll try and give Mickey's B-Day show from 9/11/81, a spin real soon.

Definitely looks and sounds like it was one hell of a good time!

Thanks for sharing.

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15 years
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Did not attend the 67 and 68 Greek shows, just 1981 on

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17 years
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Shall we listen for today... Great quality Dick's Picks release with a very unique opening for Uncle John's Band?? Bob t

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13 years 5 months

In reply to by bob t

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One of my favorite t-shirts back in the day.. then one day I couldn't find it. Gone somehow..

I only made it there one year. Beautiful venue, perhaps my favorite. I was standing behind Bolo and Billy the Kid all three shows. I was hoping Billy would share one of his supermodels.. as for Bolo, he looked exactly like the picture in his Avatar.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

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First off, it shouldn't surprise me, that JIMINMD, BILLY THE KID & BOLO24 were all hanging out at the Greek in '84.
The supermodels.. I'm not so sure?
Mighta been, but you can't believe everything you read on the internet kids!

After talking about it, I wanted to hit up all 3 shows.
Night 1 & 3 are GREAT.
I'm thinking 7/15/84 is still my favorite, the Bird Song rivals the Dark Star and if Dark Star wasn't more than a song, and had they played it more than once in the 8 years between 1981 & 1989, it might be more talked about, but shit who cares, they're both great to listen too.

John Dwork's story in the Taping Compendium about finding out they were going to play Dark Star the night before and making his way to the show at the last possible minute, is just a great read and I highly recommend seeking it out. I didn't look for it online, but it should be out there somewhere. Great reviews of all 3 nights.

Slap that together with the 3 Great Quality SBDs & some of the pictures floating around on the web that are out there.. and presto-chango you got yourself a little unofficial box set, you can dig in and enjoy. It makes for a nice little trip back to the Greek '84. Recommended for any and all.

The 7/15/84 tape is one of those tapes = you know every note and nuance because they were your best sounding tapes that you played in every cassette deck you got in front of.

The Set 1 Opening Dancin' > Bird Song, Cumberland, Esau, Ramble On all great '84 versions. Set 2 is just one great jam! The WDWDIITR > China > Rider > PITB > UJB > Don't Need Love > Drums > Space > China Doll is so ingrained in my memory, it's like an old friend you've been partying with for years.

There's a cool interview I remember hearing with Phil where he talks about how excited he was to play Dark Star on 7/13/84 and how he wanted to go places after and Jerry shook him off and they wrapped it. Ah well... nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile.

And listen!

BobT: 5/19/77 you say? I'll listen to that..

Gonna still try and spin 9/11/81 too, looks like I got the Joani Walker recording, she made some sweet tapes!

Alright, be well

Not 84. 87 was the only time I made it to the Greeks. I would have gone in '88 and '89 too, but I could not find any supermodels to go with me, and after my last embarrassment there (my girlfriend at the time was a looker, but in the mere mortal way).. I just couldn't live up to the expectations.

I wish I hade it to the Frost. That's my one venue regret.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

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Dang, hate it when I get my dates wrong.
Okay, you were all there together at some time and there may have been models, and it was fun.
Good 'nuff for me.

Being a broke Mid-Western kid, I had some serious West Coast envy BITD.

The Greek was up there on my wish list.

Frost looks dope, Love them Frost '82 tapes!

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Stand alone, symmetrical, legendary . Was at Red Rocks my first time a month earlier. Two weeks before Red Rocks saw Robert Hunter my one time perform with the Dinosaurs at the Line Camp in Poaque , N.M.
1984. George Orwell would roll over in his crypt if he saw the world now.

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13 years 5 months

In reply to by The Good Ole G…

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The summer before I worked in a crappy warehouse.. the job was so bad I decided to save every penny and never do that again. With my savings, and a little more earned in a restaurant during the school year the next summer I Crisscrossed the country several times in my blue 1980 corolla hatchback. Gas was around a dollar a gallon that year (I think).. slept a lot in my bullfrog tent. I was accompanied by the lovely Terry K. Long brown hair, pretty smile, looked great in a tie dye.

Caught Veneta, Greeks, Red Rocks, Telluride, Alpine, a few more closer shows and a couple stadium shows with just enough money left to make it to New Years. I was given two strict rules, I had to be back for my sisters wedding in August and I had to get my hair cut before the wedding. Made it back with minutes to spare...

Good fun, miss those days.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by Strider 808808

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STRIDER88: Ha ha, George Orwell would totally flip out!!! That's funny, thanks for that.

Red Rocks 6/14/84 was the shizzle-lit! Nice and another legendary Venue to see this band play.

I remembered which Phil interview it was that he was talking about the 1984 Dark Star..
It was because of "The Face On Mars" Nasa photos.
Phil got the idea we have to play Dark Star as an Encore and show these photos.

BOLO & BTK you all remember the slide show playing?

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17 years 5 months

In reply to by JimInMD

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....very nice Althea and a smoking Deal. There's a Cumberland, so of course I'm loving that. Like the outro from Truckin' into Drumz. The Rhythm Devils are presently laying down some good beats.
Let's mix thing up? How about one of these days, we pick a show that is kinda bad. They are out there.

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8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

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Summer '87 baby!!

Those were some good times..

Nice story, that was a flash.

Sounded like you were doing it up in a bit more style then me and my teenage buddies.

I ended up with that crappy warehouse job after the following summer..

I guess my big question, did you get the Haircut?

Good times!

Yo! I've been meaning to listen to 8/24/85 to see if it's as bad as everyone says, but keep finding other things to do.

Maybe during a plague is the time... hmmm.

Can't decide if I should start with 9/11/81 or 5/19/77.. You're kicking it with 9/11 huh? Well, well, well.

I gotta get off the computer and do this..