• 8,100 replies
    marye
    Joined:
    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.

Comments

sort by
Recent
Reset
  • The Good Ole G…
    Joined:
    Memory Tricks

    I'm not always able to remember names, dates, details.

    Sometimes I'll look at a set list and think damn that looks cool and then I'll put it on and be like.. I know this show! I love this show, this show is awesome, why haven't I been listening to this show everyday and how could I forget that I love this show?!?!?!

    Now, you might say.. well you should see the doctor. But I'm not really talking about that.

    What I'm talking about is how the music jars the memory.. and it's not even memory, it's almost like FEELING.
    The music jars the FEELING you had when you heard it before and you remember that FEELING, cuz it's a wonderful FEELING.

    Are you FEELING me?

    Yesterday I had that when I was listening to St. Stephen > NFA > St. Stephen.
    I know that piece of music. All it's intricacies. It's sweet licks. I've listened to it over and over countless times forgotten. And when I hear it again I remember the FEELING and am taken right back.

    Trippy stuff!
    The Mind is a terrible thing to waste.

    Anyhow.. all that to say. Fuckin' LOVE 10/9/76 and am so glad to remember that I do.

    That Set 2 is blazed into my brain.
    The FEELING I got is I KNOW this tape! (of course it's not a tape.. but you get what I'm talking about).

    I believe I had this as a youngster, but I couldn't find any info about when this show started circulating. Not sure if it was broadcast on FM in the area? Looks like it played on GDHour in 1995, but I FEEL like I had it before then. Memory is so weird, but my memory is that this was one of my go to tapes in the day. Some shows, I know I had early on, 10/9/82 for example, but some FEEL like I had them early on, this being one, and it was formative. Or I could just be tripping.

    What a GREAT show and that 2nd Set is epic!

    As for today's wonderful trip, I cheated a little yesterday, I was under the impression initially that we were trying to listen to both yesterday, but then OB cleared that up, but I really wanted to hear PITB on my bike ride and it was sunny and epic and shit man.. there's no rules. So hot damn, I'm glad I did that, it was the perfect music and it took me to perfect places and now as I'm hearing it again this Morning, I love the Goddamn Grateful Dead!

    Happy Friday everyone this is some good shit!

  • Thats_Otis
    Joined:
    Day On the Green, pt. II

    I am with VGuy on this (as I have found I am on most things...) Dick's 33 is HIGH on my list, and is my favorite 76 release. I personally prefer 10/9, but 10/10 has some truly great moments - I really love the TOO>Stella Blue on this.

    I also agree wholeheartedly with Casey J and the others here - Oroborous, your stories are great, keep em' coming.

    I hope all is well out there, and happy Friday, Deadland! I'm off to Oakland again!

    Your Regular GD Cheerleader :)

    Peace

  • The Good Ole G…
    Joined:
    Daze On The Green

    Great Lost Live Dead blog post on these shows (link below) with some interesting perspective on the scene at these shows.
    It's hard to imagine fans not digging what the Dead were laying down.
    I wonder if The Who performances are recorded and around anywhere?

    BOLO24 - they mention the following - "The stage was in center field, and so of course the outfield bleachers were restricted to those people backstage who wanted to see the performances. The story goes that Garcia was out there late in the afternoon, dancing to The Who without his shirt on. No photographic evidence survives, to my knowledge."

    So you can let Corry know you've got the picture ;)

    And if you need any help getting those organized just let me know!

    Lost Live Dead Grateful Dead & The Who - http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2015/08/october-9-10-1976-oakland-coli…

    Have Fun on The Green!
    More to Come

  • CaseyJanes
    Joined:
    Oro Stories

    Dude, are you kidding me? You and your evil twin (where’s The Other One been?) have some of the best stories around these parts. Would be a shame to keep those to yourself. I think most would agree that it’s better than reading copied set lists and plagiarized liner notes?

    Anyways, Mrs Casey and I had a similar experience in the bathroom at her friends lake house in the Ozarks circa summer 2004, except the victim was towel rods, and thankfully not the sink 😂. We still joke about that....had our 15th anniversary yesterday, so I must have done something right !!! 😉

    I admire your quick thinking with the hotel manager. I do feel bad for the kid though...I mean without a sink to wash your hands...I’ll bet his hair stood straight up all day...There’s Something About Mary Comes To Mind!!!

    Happy Friday Dead People!

    KCJ

  • Vguy72
    Joined:
    The Slipknot! Outta Samson....

    ....they are sonically surfing. Fuck yeah!!

  • Vguy72
    Joined:
    10.9.76 Second Set....

    St. Stephen ->
    NFA ->
    St. Stephen ->
    Help On The Way ->
    Slipknot! ->
    Drumz->
    Samson & Delilah->
    Slipknot! ->
    Franklin's Tower ->
    One More Saturday Night
    -
    US Blues

    Notice the ->'s. The Music Never Stops indeed!!
    I crave this set. Nom, nom, nom.
    Garcia hits a couple sour notes at the start, but then the ship rights itself and onward we go!!!

  • DeadVikes
    Joined:
    10/9/76

    Yes, always a winner for me. And I agree Oroborous, you can hear the band moving quite a bit different than they were in June 76. Love the Scarlets from this era. New Minglewood rocks. The whole second set rocks. Man, what a run it was. Looking forward to 10/10/76 tomorrow.........
    And again Bolo you were there! Really cool, you got to see some unbelievable shows...Yes, these guys were masters of delivering a different experience every time they went out there. Genius, absolutely! Would love to see some of those pics. Might be time for another Bolo pick soon?

    Hang in there Oroborous, we love you man and don't take it personally. I would say over 90% of my comments are met with crickets, but that is okay.

    Good to see you Bob t. Nothing to say, yes that 6/18/74 show is really good. Jim gave us that pick a while back and that RT2.3 is solid. Can't believe at one point I didn't pursue it because it was not complete shows. What an idiot!

    Be well folks! Finally hot here in MN. Always reminds of summer dead shows.

  • The Good Ole G…
    Joined:
    Walnut Creek

    Damn, you saw all the fun stuff!

    Funny, I was just reading about Pete Townsend and that he was living there at the time.

    I guess his daughter wrote about it in her autobiography and mentioned being an "American Suburb Child" with the likes of Justin Kreutzmann.

    Sounds like Pete mighta been hanging with Jerry & the boys off work :)

    BTW this show is epic, but you already knew that...

    More to come, my contacts are making it hard to see or at least something is.

    Peace Out :)

    EDIT: PS - really want to see that picture (and all the pictures)!

    Good afternoon(s)

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    Just Catching Up

    Haven't read all the posts, I have literally spent every waking hour the last two days refinishing my 116 year old original gothic style (I think) front door. Big, heavy, way too much detail and relief work in the wood and probably neglected for at least 20 to 25 years. It's the only thing that I haven't redone in the front of the house.

    We are not entertaining indoors for all the river rats this year, so the front porch has a welcomed haven and keeps the river rat traffic from entering the home.. But the door has been bothering me for a year or two. This social distancing stuff sucks, but it's better than the alternative. Outdoors and safely apart.. so I bit the bullet and fixed the one thing that was bothering me. ..and man, it was a beast. Two full days just to get it sanded, the wood treated and a stained. Whew, I did f'up the stain, the hard part is over.

    So anyway.. catching up on posts. The day on the green.. wow. To have been there! Second.. Oroboros, you should worry not.. you are one of the most entertaining, kindest people that writes shit here. This whole thread has been a good vibe haven.

    Now.. I after leaning over a fixed space using electric sanders, Dremel's, hand sanding until my fingers are raw, dropping and spilling shit, I could go on... Werewolves of Friendsville. So I am filling up a very strong drink and
    reading the last two days of posts here.

    Back to your regularly scheduled Help/Slipknot!/Franklins.

    How whoooo.. Werewolf's of London.

  • bolo24
    Joined:
    Days on the Green 1976

    Went to both Dead/Who shows, took tons of pictures as I was pretty close to the stage and even managed to sneak "sorta" backstage for a spell. Somewhere in my bottomless pit of boxed-up possessions, I have a picture of Garcia dancing with his shirt off during The Who's set - my hand to God.

    The Who played great, but both shows were identical, almost note for note it seemed. I think they had an extended encore the second day, but the rest was the same, IIRC. GD knocked it out of the park, of course. And the stage looked awesome, thanks to Bill Graham and company.

    I read somewhere soon after the shows that an amazed Townshend quizzed Garcia about how in the world could they play 2 completely different shows on consecutive days, and said The Who had been playing the same show for months, even years, maybe.

    Anyway, there were definitely separate camps of Who/Dead fans with little crossover that I could notice. But the weather was perfect and everyone had a blast.

    Interesting side note: I was living in Berkeley at the time, and the summer before (1975), Pete Townshend and family resided in Walnut Creek, a town about 15 minutes from Berkeley. Can't remember why they were there, though.

user picture

Member for

17 years 6 months
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.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

13 years 5 months

In reply to by Gollum

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months

In reply to by JimInMD

Permalink

....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.

user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months

In reply to by Gollum

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months

In reply to by daverock

Permalink

....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!!

user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

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)

user picture

Member for

9 years 2 months

In reply to by Strider 808808

Permalink

"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!

user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

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]

user picture

Member for

17 years
Permalink

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!

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months

In reply to by Vguy72

Permalink

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

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by Vguy72

Permalink

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

user picture

Member for

13 years 6 months
Permalink

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

user picture

Member for

15 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

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!

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months

In reply to by Gollum

Permalink

....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!

user picture

Member for

5 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by billy the kid

Permalink

You got any 7/13/84 stories?

Did you see all 3 nights of that Greek Run?

You saw a lot of shows!

user picture

Member for

15 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by bolo24

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

5 years
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by billy the kid

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

15 years
Permalink

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

user picture

Member for

17 years
Permalink

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

user picture

Member for

13 years 5 months

In reply to by bob t

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

Permalink

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!

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

13 years 5 months

In reply to by The Good Ole G…

Permalink

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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by Strider 808808

Permalink

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?

user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months

In reply to by JimInMD

Permalink

....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.

user picture

Member for

8 years 11 months

In reply to by JimInMD

Permalink

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..