Grateful Dead

Reflections JGB tour was my first show. It was in the glorious Auditorium theater, a hall that is acoustically perfect. I saw the Dead there the next year. Then we got kicked out for putting out joints on the hardwood floors and other stupid shit that people did. I got to see Further there maybe 4-5 years ago (I don't remember the year, chromosome damage maybe?). Deja Vu. The sound is still as amazing in that hall. It's a sacred place for me. I love the Dead. The music, the people, the scene. I saw the band all over the country. From small halls like the Uptown to Alpine Valley to the Rosemont,the Greek, Worcestor, Providence, Foxboro Dylan/Dead, Borreal Ridge, Ranch Rocks at Pyramid Lake when Jerry was sick, RFK, Jerry on Broadway at the Ritz and the Stones, Edwardsville in the pouring rain (A killer looks like Rain), Frost, and even Soldier Field. I've seen Phil and Friends, Ratdog, Further,and loved it. Soldier Field. I was there in 95 and every other year they played there. Even when Sting was the backup, although I sat that out partying in the lot. James Cotton, who I used to see for $1 in clubs all the time and hung out with many times sat in. I guess I should've called him that week. Thanks to the band for coming back for last run. Ok, here I go. Sorry to be a downer with all of the positive energy, but this is how I feel from the heart. But Soldier Field? The acoustics suck. It's a football stadium. I went to all the shows there and never once enjoyed the sound. You can't even see the band. There is an outdoor stadium with great sound and sight lines 1/4 mile away that the boys have played. If they played 3-5 cities with 3 or more shows each, they could do that. The other brother who said that they should have done a run of shows on each coast was right. The Rosemont wasn't any better. Would that really be that hard since they are rehearsing anyway? Split it up over a few weeks or months if you have to. Having only 3 shows in one place makes it hard for many of the real fans to come if they don't have cash. And July 4th? The biggest summer weekend of the year when people will pay a fortune to stay here. I'm going to try to help people with that in my next post. And where is John K? He brought the Jerry energy back and made Jerry's tunes work. It was the best I'd felt since 95. When the Stones come back, they play club dates before the stadium shows and get their groove on. That is a hell of a thank you to the fans. 3 shows at a shitty sounding giant place is fucked up. If that is all the energy they have together now, ok. I'd rather see a webcast where the sound is good. You see my history above. I'm a fan, I live 20 minutes away, and I'm probably not going to bother going. This is a sad end to a great ride. It'll be a great party and the band will jam no doubt. You'll be lucky if you can hear it the way it should be, or at all. I'll hope to catch Phil at TX sometime. Maybe if I'm lucky, Bobby, Mickey, or Bill will drop in and jam.

I was surprised it was Chicago, too, but it makes sense if what they are looking for is a gathering of the whole tribe. It's the most accessible city in the country by road, air and rail so people from far and wide can get there. Chicago has a long tradition of throwing good parties. I saw shows there in 91 and again in 93 loved how the city and the lake were right there as part of the show. The whole sky turned deep red during second set. I'm also counting on all the millennial s scratching their heads and sayin' "a hashtag ten what?" so the rest of us can score tickets the old fashioned way :)

some of the most update jackasses on the planet! ..that is what I wanted to say...some people will never be satisfied and get off on complaining.. This was never meant to be a private party..all are welcome