Grateful Dead

The usual screams and wails coming out of the UCLA psych ward on the way across campus...And yet another night at the Pauley with friends and lovers (..and a couple of their friends who had a whippet named Tennesee Jed). The K&D years had been treasured; I certainly wished them no ill will. A new guy was onboard and this was our first chance to hear him in LA (if ya don't count recent Bobby gigs where Brent was under the radar). From the opening moments, it was clear that the band were playing tastefully, masterfully, with concentration, and Brent's high harmonies seemed a nod to Donna's. Nothing was missing, something was gained, namely a Hammond B3 organ sound. The first set, lit with blue and green lights, with a few tunes in the key of E, reminded me of a denser, overdubbed Europe 72 set. Some new tunes came in a row. Althea was spooky. Sailor/Saint wasn't yet a powerhouse, but I definitely recalled the "sho don't know what i'm goin' for" part; distinctly American yet nothing I could pin down. Oddly, I really didn't like the second set at all..it seemed at the time that all that "taste" had been spent in the first set. But it didn't even matter. I was completely sold on this new incarnation of the band (and looking forward to getting taped Brent versions of all the tunes).

Donna was fun "eye candy" when she swayed on stage, but it seemed that unless she was cupping her hand over her ear that she was singing off key. She walked out on stage after truckin and Bobby and Jerry twisted back into that "Mind Left Body" three times when Donna approached her mike. She left the stage and it looked like the boys were grinning about it when they finally broke into Stella. Keith's keyboard kicked that night, especially on Shakedown.

I lived at the Delta Tau Delta house and saw the show with some fifteen frat bros. Came back to my room and set my turntable to loop on the first track of Mars Hotel till morning while we sucked down three 15 pound tanks of N2O, tweaked on some 10 or 15 hits of fresh double-dipped blotter, two sheets for the whole group! By sunrise, I was convinced that U.S. Blues was all about those tanks, but nicked-named them Stella. I began to remember partial set lists beginning with that show. We were "roofing it" for sunrise on top of the house, with my Dobbie "Maxwell" Such great memories!!!! Delta Tau Delta - DTD - Doorway to Decadence!!!!