billing: GD; Pentangle; Sir Douglas Quintet
show date
Venue
dead comment
a monster show
the first of the 4 shows i had on cd, the encore of Hey Jude is a great big surprise
Bob
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Spanish Jam
set list for this show
03/01/69 (Sat) Fillmore West
San Francisco, CA
Set 1:
Cryptical Envelopment >
The Other One >
Cryptical Envelopment >
New Potato Caboose >
Doin' That Rag >
Cosmic Charlie
Set 2:
Dupree's Diamond Blues >
Mountains Of The Moon
Dark Star
St. Stephen >
The Eleven >
Lovelight
E: Hey Jude
CD
OK now this makes sense. I bought a CD called 'For deadheads only'. The cover has a skull wearing sunglasses with a joint in its mouth against a dark blue background. On the CD it says it was from March 1, of '68 in San Francisco. According to this site, the Dead DID play on that date, but not in SF. I also became suspicious because I don't think the Beatles had released 'Hey Jude' by March of '68. Anyway, the CD contains the second set per Keithellett's post.
Listening to this show on
Listening to this show on Sirius in Chicago, at Goose Island Brewery, sitting on a couch, enjoying a strong hoppy ale, earphones and laptop, friday night, no worries
The Best Of The Four In My Opinion
This concert feels a little cozier than the others. "That's It For The Other One" is phenomenal, maybe the best of 1969. That song is a mountainous jam, you know. How could you not feel dizzy the way they get real fast at the end there and slowly dissipitate into "New Potato Caboose". This is my fave Dead song and although I like the one from 8-24-68 (Two From The Vault) better, I got to admit it's a pretty neat version. Phil's bass is a little sloppy but his unique approach to the bass is an inventive for the awkward. Yes, Bobby does get pretty clumsy during the jam, but let's face it, folks. This was only Bobby's song vocally. Other than that, it belongs entirely to Phil and Bobby Petersen. I like the sustained notes that Garcia plays during his solo.Also entertaining is the way "Doin' That Rag" starts gently at the end of the grand finish of "Potato". And even more jaw dropping is the snazzy barbershop close leading directly into a hair raising "Cosmic Charlie" intro. They never allow room for any applause from the audience. I guess they were either pressed for time or they just didn't want to stop playing.
When I say this show is cozier than the other three I'm really talking about the 2nd set. The two acoustic numbers are a nice touch. "Dupree's Diamond Blues" has finally found it's spot and this is probably the prettiest version of "Mountains Of The Moon" ever performed. There's a slight stumble during the transistion into "Dark Star" but no matter. I like this version a little more than the one from 2-27-69 (Live/Dead) because it takes both a mellow and heavy metal approach. Each minute seems to be a different world. "St. Stephen" is great. No version will ever compare to the one from 2-27 but it's certainly an energized performance. "The Eleven" is very nice and quite short at only five minutes. Jerry's solo along with the drums at the end is quite nice and it goes steadily into a beautiful "Turn On Your Lovelight". This version is interesting in that they hold back on the vocals until maybe 3 minutes in. Garcia needs a chance to explore some more. Pig Pen starts to sing but before you know it, he's already finishing his rap and the song is over. What was that thing people said? "Time flies when you're having fun"? I like the banter quite a bit. There's one part where Bobby says "Phil is just about halfway across the Golden Gate Bridge by now". I wonder what that means. Jerry says the exact same thing on the 4-21-69 performance at the Ark in Boston. Only he says "Phil's about halfway across town by now." Maybe they were just high.
A nice performance of "Hey Jude" to finish things out. Very spirited if, out of tune. He he. But Pig Pen gives it his all. Listening to this song at night, I kind of feel like I'm there, you know.
The all time epic show
in my opinion. Just for the Cryptical>Other 1>Cryptical and the Dark Star alone. Just unbelievable dynamics. No holds barred. Rip roaring to super easy. True Grateful Dead.
These designs were also used
These designs were also used on smaller cards which were mailed to people to advertise forthcoming bands and were given away to those attending. Thanks a lot.Regards,
Carefree Real Estate AZ
A life changer
I went to this show and it was an absolute mindblower. Pentangle was also on the bill and I never will forget them playing their lovely acoustic music sitting on stools. I had always hoped Owsley taped them and that it would surface someday but with the multitracks running, maybe the other acts that night weren't taped.
The second set was a total mind melt. I remember at one point it felt like a spaceship taking off as I looked up into the gold lame ceiling at the Carousel.
It was just another weekend at the Fillmore West for me and my friends...who knew the run would go down in history!