Grateful Dead

didn't brent seem especially intense at this show? weird.

Brent's final performance !!"I got to go now, but my friends can stick around" !!

The thing I remember most about these shows was that the overall energy seemed really weird and not good. I had caught a run of some really amazing, fun shows the first part of that year- Dominguez hills, Shoreline, Eugene, Deer Creek. Then coming into Tinley it felt like hitting a wall of this really big, unpleasant vibe. Foreshadowing? Who knows.

I got off the tour just before these shows. Rich stadium was my last show that year. I remember Brent being phenomenal, a true buried gem. Over the stretch of shows I was at that year (Foxboro, Three Rivers, Rich) we had agreed that Brent was probably the future of the band. He could sing the best, and we all assumed that Jerry would die any minute due to his diabetes, drugs, and weight issues. I had heard rumors soon as I got back from other Heads that Brent was in really bad shape and had a "serious drinking problem" and was going through a super bad divorce. Friends told me that Brent was going to be fired after this tour. I honestly can't say if any of that talk was true, but Brent was dead within days of dude telling me all that. In the end, I think of music as the saving grace of all humanity - Henry Miller www.iamcorrect.com

Did the whole summer tour with Patty and John Taperscum. Got a ride back to Cali with Chip and Karen. As we were driving down the road a day or two later, Chip and I both saw who we thought was Brent, hitch-hiking along the highway with a couple of his bags in tow. I remember looking at Chip and both of our jaws dropping. After finding out that he had died the day before, we were sure we saw his spirit on the highway!!

...........continued from previous shows post.......... So being unable to convince my buddy to go to the third night and even though we had tickets, he would'nt skip out on his first day of job training. But he did promise that he'd buy tickets the same night as Brents last show for Jean-Luc Ponty at Meadowbrook Music Theater in Rochester MI. So we headed to the first Dead campground parking lot we found after the previous night show and hesitantly sold our tickets to the last time Brent ever played with the Dead. After that we got on the road to Southfield Michigan where my buddy was staying in a suite for the beginning of 3 months job training which was about a 6 hour drive. So the day of Brents last show had finally reached early evening and my buddy was finished with his training session for the day, we headed up to Meadowbrook for an absolutely fantastic Jean-Luc Ponty concert but I coud'nt help wondering what I was missing at "The Other Show" we sold our tickets for as a phenominal jazz rock fusion show was unfolding. After that concert was over my buddy drove me back to West Michigan and immediately drove back to Detroit for training the same night. A couple days later while on my driving job, breaking news broke over the radio about Brents passing and my heart just dropped. I had a new stack of spring tour tapes from earlier in the year and immediately put 4/2/90 set 1 on and when Easy To Love You came on, I just lost it. I did my deliveries and everyone knew I was a complete basket case who I encountered. When I finally got home I immediately called my buddy back in Southfield and we both realized we sold our tickets to Brents last show. It took a long time to get over that. Lo and behold a month later, we passed on an opportunity to see Stevie Ray Vaughan to see The Allman Brothers for our first time. That night SRV died. A week later my buddy was diagnosed with cancer. Summer 90 has some real bittersweet memories for me. A couple months later when it was announced that The Dead were still going to tour, we bought tickets for the Compton Terrace shows which also happened to be right after my buddies first round of chemotherapy and not knowing if we would ever go to any concerts together again. (this part of the story continues on 12/5-6/90) Ultimately my friend beat his cancer and is miraculously around today and more vibrant than ever. We've since been to more concerts than we could possibly count and we count our blessings each and everyday. Such as life.

I bought my tickets for the first 2 Wembley shows and me and my mates were eager to see Brent after hearing the tapes of the Spring tour. When we found out Brent had died we were expecting the Europe tour to be cancelled, miraclously it happened and i went to my first complete tour Bob W - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Spanish Jam

I had a ticket up front and on the left side facing the band. I was looking threw Phil to Jerry and Brent. Brent was awesome and played like it was going to be his last. Unfortunately it was...................................... I had a great time at Tinley. All three shows were a blast. Grateful to be there.

The energy at this show was a very weird vibe. I remember feeling it as soon as I pulled into town to find a parking place. Not the usual vibe of feeling like you were "home" and you were about to see your long lost friends! Good music, but something wasn't right, it was off karmically.... and I thought it was something I took with me....you all have confirmed for me that IT WASN'T ME!!!

GDfan4everDid this whole tour. The shows were great, but I remember looking at Brent and thinking to myself, "wow his eyes are buggin out of his head...he looks wild...what is wrong...what is goin on?" I thought he looked totally f**ked up. It scared me. Then I started thinking was it just me? When I asked my boyfriend at the time, he just said the show was smokin' and thought maybe I was the one who was f**ked up, but that wasn't so.....may Brent live in peace now.

Yes. I recall the vibes at that show were odd also. I remember my anger and sadness at the parking lot scene. The vendors who never intended to go into the show but shadowed the fans like vultures. There was a nitrous dealer who parked next to my ride, and all of the nitrous junkies were hanging out harshing my vibe. The venue was completely inefficient at letting folks in and many of my brothers and sisters could not get in until after the first set. The shows smoked though. I will never foget what my friend Paul said to me during the last "Good Times (Never Trust a Woman)". He said "I would not be sad if they never played that song again." Spooky.

Anyone know where I can find this show? Is it for sale on the dead website? Some taper out there who has an mp3? As part of the lonely generation of kids who never got to see the dead, I desperately crave to hear the final performance of the dead's best keyboardist. Maybe someone knows the answer? mwellschlager@yahoo.com

you passed up that last show for SRV? Bummer! Was incredible! I ALMOST did, but was thanking my lucky stars the next day that I got my butt in gear and went. Can tell you 'bout it in a pm if you want-was hot, hot, hot! Or look in the "best shows by other bands, where I wrote about it some months ago already. Is a funny coincidence that you missed these two shows (Brent's last, and SRV) and I caught them. The friend I was with at both and I had started to wonder whether we should not stop going to shows before more guys died. Know we are not that cosmically important, but we could not help but discuss it at least some.

Spectacular... Never understood Brent's dissatisfaction with life. What an incredible talent. He was my Dead keyboardist for most of my time. p.s. Dennis Macnelly (sp?) described this venue as the worst the Dead ever played. Imagine that. All those shows in all those places. It had a metal roof and 'luxury boxes' , also metal, that came down from the roof.....The acoustics were worse than garbage. The aural equivalent of whipping a handful of superballs in a dumpster. ~I was concealed Now I am stirring And I will lay my love around you...~

yes indeed his eyes were buggin' out of his head, what a super trgedy to lose such a great player. of course- to morphine-cocaine

The whole show was killer. Cassidy > Truckin' > Smoketack. 2nd set remember that setting me off. Long drive back to ATL.

Another dead junkie, too bad that what i remember most.

These were by far the weakest shows of this summer tour of which I had seen them all. Sure they had their moments but I was burnt, the place sucked , the vibe sucked and I thought the band was ready to go home.I don't recall if they ever played here again but I definitely would not have gone again. Regardless of who was playing there. Sound/scene you name it. Awful venue. Brent did seem a little whacked at this show and was clearly letting off some steam. Nonetheless, I was shocked a few days when I heard he had passed away. I figured he had issues but hard drug use was not one of them. The timing was awful as the band had been on a roll for over a year and the future looked bright outside of Garcia's issues. I really thought the band should have cooled it after this for a bit and let everything settle. But they didn't. The scene could have used it. Brent was a vital part of the Dead for 11 years and he will always be well thought of by everyone who saw him play. The man was talented no doubt.

Somehow I was up front not real close but I saw the same thing that many others saw.Brent's eyes just looked crazed.That was a weird summer .I also saw the first of two shows with stevie ray vaughn and eric clapton.Stevie died the second night at alpine valley where I had seen so many great dead shows.Also my grandmother died a few weeks after Brent .She was the heart of my small family,she was a very sweet soul.And I just found out that Jeff Healey died of cancer.He played Sunshine of Your Love with Eric Clapton at the alpine show with Stevie Ray .Jeff tore the place up .It was amazing ,Eric could'nt beleive it.Anyway heavy reminders we are all mortal but something in us is immortal.Peace

I was at Tinley Park for all three shows. The venue was awful. We were used to a beautiful place like Alpine but the boys were banned at that point. I could elaborate on the rumer mill that this might have been Brent's last show even if he had lived. But it reallt doesn't matter. They were not in good spirits on this night. And with the recent Dark Star outings I think they were planning on breaking it out. They hadn't played it in Chicago yet. But with the band members not in tune it wasn't meant to happen. Then 2 days later we heard the news.I loved Brent's energy. He definitely had the chops. It's just too bad that the dragon ruled!

For me, these shows were a bit of a homecoming. I grew up right in the neighborhood, but back then that area was all corn fields. When in high school, we parked along Ridgeland Ave, partying, drag racing and just plain hanging out right where the Jurzicks (spelling probably massacred), neighbors of my cousin, later built the World Music Theater. It was great to be there for the shows, and we got to visit family and friends between shows. Even saw a bunch of people at the shows who a few years before had been reciting the refrain, "The 60s are over, get with the times" when they encountered me, but had had an obvious change of heart. They were special shows for a lot of reasons, which made it all the more sad when we learned that they were Brent's last. All the years combine and melt into a dream... Brian

My friend and I Were having a good time bouncing from seat to seat some guard saw me smokin and I threw my bat and the people near it took it.Huh? Bad sign.Saw brent near the sound board at break (final hookup with Healy) he probably killed jerry and john kahn he is a bad person addict or not . Artie De.

My friend and I Were having a good time bouncing from seat to seat some guard saw me smokin and I threw my bat and the people near it took it.Huh? Bad sign.Saw brent near the sound board at break (final hookup with Healy) he probably killed jerry and john kahn he is a bad person addict or not . Artie De.

All the great musicians end up Heroin junkies sooner or later: Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Brent Mydland, Ray Charles, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, the list goes on and on. I noticed serious bug-eyes on Brent for about 6-8 months prior to his death....could have been his divorce driving him to the junk. Enough said about that. Brent burned brightly and was a huge part of the Dead developing into the greatest touring band in history. His bluesey vocals and soulful Hammond B-3 licks added a dimension to the band like none of the other keyboard players. No disrespect to Pig, Kieth, and Vince, but Brent's B-3 and Leslie ruled, listen to Gimme Some Lovin' for an example. RIP.

what great shows all three maybe accousticly unsound but still had a cool time,after a long tour it was nice to be home.promised tour buddies all will be well when we git to chicago ( money,lodging, smokables) set list did not disapoint.fun part for me was the 23 was my golden birthday the moon eclipsed during Terrapin, remember ? my name is Brent, lotsa great coincodences and memories miss Brent lots but the music NEVER stops right ?

I gotta go, but my friends can stick around. RIP Mr Mydland, you don't know how easy it was to love you.

Brent was in great voice and played like a monster this whole tour..By this show it seemed as if the whole band were all a little road worn,, as was the case for most end of the run shows. but. Brent was a gem... a great musician, and a superb talent that seemed to be growing more and more, whatever demons he had to deal with, life is never fair..he is missed by all, perhaps appreciated more now..another what if.. and so it goes.. RIP brother...

with regard to Brent. I've never seen him where his eyes were't popping out of his head while playing. Where's the guy that posted on the Archive that Brent actually died after the show and they put him in ice and into a road case and shipped him home? They were not going to fire Brent. He was running the band onstage, practically. Like Garcia said on June 10 of that year, in reference to Phil not leaving the band, "Yeah - the rest of us are quitting." Brent was what was going RIGHT for the Dead at that point, offstage problems notwithstanding. I never heard Brent do a bad show. Maybe a few in '86 come to mind . . . but the guy was super consistent, super creative, gave them some balls that they desperately needed and never had again.

ocdeadbrian,,,,,well he was the best ,,,miss u brent

I had a very good time at these shows, mostly hung out at the top of the hill with my baby daughter where the sound was not too loud. One thing about babies is that many women want to check out the cute kid and talk to the guy carrying her, I enjoyed all the attention. I remember that video of the one-eyed owl flying during a jam, most cool. I loved Brent and was all broke up when I heard of his death. My daughter has grown into a beautiful young lady and is now a senior in college, she has a great fondness for the music I like, have to wonder if that early influence played a part (she was just over a year old).

gd1990-07-23.sbd.walker-scotton.miller.95898.sbeok.flac16_vbr thanks to videos in the flashback thread http://www.dead.net/forum/instant-flashback-songs#comment-105150 an hour and half ago I just assume that was garcia's vocals could have knocked me over with a feather maybe my new favorite - love the 'man smart - woman smarter' really a great show thanks.

I was at this show in 1990 and I was really tired from a whole summer of traveling touring. I spent the entire show laying on my back listening and looking up at the night sky. I remember very clearly seeing a moving object in the sky, which looked very much like a comet. I asked people next to me if they could see it and they said yes and asked what is was. I assumed it was a visible comet. I knew there are hundreds of them so I wasn't super surprised. It was only this year that I began searching comet websites and information to see if there is any documentation of this event. I remember it so well because it was last show of tour (ultimately Brent's last show) and I was sober. I was just listening to the band and watching this object in the sky for a long time. It was small but it had a "tail" of some sort and moved differently from a meteor or satellite. Does anyone else remember seeing this or remember anyone talking about it? I went to a rainbow gathering soon after that show in Ithaca New York. I was trying to explain to some friends about the comet when someone interrupted and said "Brent died last night." I was shocked and couldn't believe it. I thought it was some mind game a bunch of heavy rainbow cats were pulling. My brother and I left and went to our car and turned on the radio and immediately heard "little girl lost". We knew it was true. I remember crying and thinking I had to get home. Something ended for me. I saw only two Dead more shows after that and I never felt the same. I remember my years of touring, mystery, and traveling with love and wonder. Maybe the best time of my life. 88-90 were some incredible shows with the band in top form and the world was changing a bit it seemed. It was suddenly cool to be a hippy and people started caring about the environment. The Iron curtain came down peacefully. Weird world wide events happened simultaneously over a few months in 89'. It was magical. I went to a lot of Phish shows in 90-92 but they were not nearly as transcendental or wise. Nice guys, I hung out with them a couple of times. Anyway, sorry to go on. the point really is I wanted to know if anyone saw that comet?? Thanks so much. Peace to everyone, Hugh

Youtube has the whole show http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI51n6d0R8k

Crazy run, not a great venue. Better than the Horizon? Yellow airplanes were the way to fly but got hit with 2 extras via water jug & an orange slice from friendly strangers. All was good til the gate got rushed and security clamped down.Made it in, found my crew & freaked the night away. Right back on board the next night sans any hassle. Ah Brent, sweet Brent. What a force he brought to the band.

I was 3rd row in front of Brent. It was an awesome night. RIP

Last time hearing the great Brent Mydland, Shine on keep on shining, shine on keep on shining, shine on keep on shining,>>>>>> Good, good morning, so good to see you You weren't just a dream of mine Real as a raven, real as thunder Real as the sun shining But still so very hard to find I can't imagine what's behind those sleepy eyes. Till the next time we say goodbye, I'll be thinking of you.