6/20/74 - Atlanta, GA **

A pretty excellent first set. Jerry is ripping it up tonight. A rocking US Blues and BIODTL opener with an excellent BE Women close behind them. Jack Straw and Scarlet Begonias are both on FIRE though and truly rule. Excellent first set overall. 

Surprise, surprise we get a rare To Lay Me Down that is EXCELLENT. Country balladry at it's absolute finest! Set one ends with a nothing-special China>Rider and Around. 

Set two is where the real fun is tonight. We get a CLASSIC sequence of Truckin>Eyes>SLIPKNOT>China>Doll. The Truckin is EXPLOSIVE!!! 

Truckin descends into the bowels of Space hell. It's one of the best Space's ever - it sounds like Miles Davis!!! Somehow, a phoenix rises from the destruction in the form of one of the best Eyes you have ever heard! AWESOME!. Not only that, but it eventually leads into a jam with Jerry ripping the Slipknot riff! 

SEROUSLY THOUGH, THIS 21-MINUTE EYES IS FREAKING AMAZING!!! HOLY SHIT THIS IS THE GREATEST EYES EVER PLAYED. 

This goes into a gorgeously medieval China Doll. The show then closes with a roaring OMSN. Overall, set one has some big highlights, but holy shit that Eyes in set two! :D :D :D

1974-06-18 Louisville, KY

 

6/18/74 – Louisville, KY

Aside from a perfect BT Wind (almost ruined by mix issues) everything up until Eyes is totally skippable. Just regular, fine versions. I mean, Ramble and BIODTL are excellent, but what's one excellent BIODTL compared to another, ya know? 

The 20 minute Eyes>China Doll is the first genuien highlight. This Eyes COOKS! It's not quite the epic Eyes>Slipknot>China Doll that comes next show in Atlanta, but it's definitely a worthy warm-up act. Set 1 ends with a raucous Around. 

Set 2 begins with a lazy sounding Loose Lucy but El Paso hears the guys going full-tilt. A rocking El Paso! But then SLAM out of nowhere comes an amazing, mind-melting 54-minute WRS>TOO>It's a Sin>Stella Blue. 

Holy crap listen to this Let IT Grow jamming �FREAKING AWESOME!!!!! Check out the jamming that begins around 10 minutes in. WOW. 

Another great jam develops around 21 minutes. It's very chill and almost Spanish-ey, but without the minor key mood. Eventually this jam continues evolving and seamlessly transitions into a 15 minute The Other One. 

Now THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKIN' ABOUT! 6 minutes in and we are fully immersed into deep space. Around 10:45 the swirling vortex of darkness begins to suck us into the deepest reaches of the universe. Immense and intense. 

Around 13 minutes we return to Earth and a cool bluesy jam begins. I don't know if this jam has a proper name but it's very Truckin-like and has some killer Phil Zoning going on. It unfortunately ends just as soon as it begins and before you can blink we are into It's a Sin. I guess the guys are feeling antsy tonight because as with the Truckin-jam, 

It's a Sin ends just as quickly and slams us into a gorgeously perfect Stella Blue. Ahhhh yes. Perfection! This epic 54-minute marathon is followed up by an out-of-place-yet-excellent Big River. After T Jed, a rocking Sugar Mag and a wonderful Morning Dew take us out of this epic second set.

1974-06-16 Des Moines, IA - Road Trips Vol. 2, #3

 

6/16/74 - Des Moines, IA - RT Vol.2 No.3 *******************************************

One of the big ones. This show is one of the greats. Look at that unbelievable second set. Nevermind the fact that this show is 4 hours long (!!!!). 

We get a really nice Bertha to open up, unfortunately, there are mix problems all the way through until China Cat Sunflower. At least the instruments are audible and lovely. Set 1 proceeds as usual – fine but nothing special unless noted. Black Throated Wind has excellent throat-ripping vocals from Bobby and Jerry does some adventurous background soloing. 

Sugaree is very powerful sounding tonight. Not at all quiet or laid-back. Unfortunately it's one of the most WTF versions ever – it cuts off at 4 minutes without any kind of jam!!!!! Finally, the next eventual highlight is the awesome Jack Straw. It's relaxed and meaningful, with enough punch but also that slightly funky-bluesy overtone going on. 

Jack Straw seems to signal a change as the boys switch from warm-up mode to “It's On” mode for the following China>Rider. Loads of excellence. Thsi China>Rider is the first truly exceptional performance of the show. Check out the Mind Left Body transition jamming. Wow. Jerry is on all cylinders. Also, Billy's drumming is worth listening to this for. He's really solo-drumming his heart out. 

Up next is the hottest Around and Around I have ever heard. Keith is going nuts, Bobby is screaming his nuts off, Jerry is ripping it up, Billy is smashing his kit to oblivion.... :D A hot US Blues opens set 2 and a highly enjoyable and rare The Race Is On follows it up. Listen to that fantastically perfect solo from Jerry!!! 

Up next is the first main course of the evening – a 20 minute Eyes of perfection. And check out that perfect segue into the totally out-of-place Big River! Follow that up with a 30 minute PITB and you might just have one of the tastiest sandwiches ever heard!!!!! 

This Eyes. I can't say enough about it. There are a couple slightly rough spots, but overall it's gotta be one of the top 5 or so of the year, imo. Up there with Alexandria Palace and the Winterland versions. It's just rocking and relaxing and smashing and soaring all at the same time. MY feet are going crazy trying to tap along (one of my favorite parts of Dead listening :D ). The Atlanta Eyes (I think the best of the year) is still to come, but this will tide us over until then. 

The PITB that follows Big River is just INTENSE right off the flippin' bat at around 4:45 in, we are already hurtling full tilt towards Deep Space at mach 9. Feedback and randomness ensues. Check out Jerry doing his wah soloing again. It quickly rights itself and the dark jam gains a slightly “light” flavor. We've pulled back on the reigns to save some more for later instead of blowing it all up front. 

Around 8 minutes in, the hurtling is completely ceased and the drum rolls, random picking and axe shredding begins. It almost sounds like Billy is trying to steer the ship towards The Other One. This continues until around 11 minutes the jamming coalesces into a slightly more coherent jam. We get some almost Mind Left Body-style jaming. That light and airy and relaxed kind of upbeat playing. 

Around 15 minutes the calmness comes to an abrupt end. We have reached critical mass!!!! DEEP SPACE INCOMING HOLY HELL WE HAVE CRASH LANDED INTO THE OUTER REACHES OF THE UNIVERSE!!!!!! Oh my god. This jamming is just about making me have a panic attack!!! Extreme Jerry wah craziness. 

Then, around 19:45, THE KILLER BEES ATTACK! Did Ned join them onstage? We go full Seastones here for a few minutes. It sounds like I have tinnitus!!! Finally around 27 minutes in we return to the song with Donna's wailing signaling the return. 

I'm gonna say it – that was the best PITB I have ever heard. Period. Holy crap. After the mind-melting excursion that was set 2, set 3 begins on a more concise note with a great T Jed (hear me say that again!) and a rocking MAMU. Jerry is still in prime playing mode laying down perfect leads like it's in his blood. 

The MOST INTESNE AND ROCKING DEAL EVER follows before a GSET contiues us rocking. 

This GSET is downright fantastic. Thing Wembley '72. It just SMOKES! That Eyes and PITB must have really inspired the guys to be at their best as the playing just keeps getting more and more perfect. This might just be the best Ship Of Fools anyone has ever laid ear on. It's surpremely gorgeous and heart-aching. 

Of course, the final entree of this epic show is the 21-minute Truckin that hears Jerry breaking out his slide for some EPIC soloing. The jamming is super jazzy and gets into definite Frank Zappa territory. One of the COOLEST jams I've ever heard. So frickin' sweet! I can't describe all this epicness on paper, but safe to say it's all as great as the Eyes and the PITB. 

Closing out with Wharf, GDTRFB and a semi-rare Casey Jones, I feel ready to jump in the hole and cover my self with dirt because, well, it just doesn't get any better than this! :)

1974-06-08 Oakland, CA

 

6/8/74 – Oakland, CA (LOADS OF PHIL IN THE MIX)

A rocking Promised Land to open tonight's proceedings. “Typically-excellent-'74-versions” of BE Women and Bobby McGee follow paving the way for a FANTASTIC Scarlet. It's very, very uptempo and Jerry's vocals are perhaps a bit rusty, but check that over-way-too-soon outro solo. Wow. Talk about perfection. 

After a lovely Roses and fine Uncle, we get a great T Jed. And you know that's saying a lot considering I usually want to skip this song as soon as it comes on. But THIS is how it SHOULD be played! Bouncy and lively, not dragging and sleepy. Very enjoyable version! 

Up next is a ROARING GSET that finds Donna practically screaming the lyrics, lol. Pretty enjoyable. I guess the boys feel like rocking tonight because then comes a smashing 15 minute China>Rider, Around and Around, Big River and US Blues all in a row! If you include GSET, that's a solid 40 minutes of uptempo rocking. Wow. 

Special mention to the WONDERFUL MLB jam in China>Rider. What great playing from Jerry. HOLY CRAP LISTEN TO BOBBY HOWL ON AROUND. SOUNDS LIKE HE'S POSESSED BY SATAN! 

Ship Of Fools is just stunning tonight. 

Up next is a smashing 40-minute PITB>Wharf>PITB. The initial 23 minutes of PITB is terrific, if a little disorganized and chaotic. For the first ten minutes it's your “typical '74 PITB jazzy jam” but then it evolves into Jerry doing his wah soloing over some VERY chaotic and random drumming from Billy. 

Simply put – it sounds like there is no song and everyone is playing something different, lol. But then HOLY CRAP FEEDBACK HELL AT 15 MINUTES. We get sucked into a black hole. It sounds like Ned Lagin is perhaps joining in? Or are we really just going full-band Seastones!!!!! 

Eventually around 18 minutes things get ever so slightly less chaotic and Keith starts doing some very cool piano riffing with Billy following his lead. Excellent background jamming for Jerry's continued wah and feedback. 

Eventually around 22 minutes the darkness lifts and everyone's playing takes on a very upbeat and positive vibe. It sounds like we are getting ready for a UJB. But Jerry switches gears and drags us down to the dock with a great Wharf Rat. 

This then segues perfectly out into a great PITB reprise. A fantastic sandwich any way you slice it! :) Thankfully, the desert is a wonderful 17-minute Eyes that is simply gorgeous and perfect in the way most 1974 versions are. Nothing “OMG GREATEST EVER”, but its a terrific Eyes nonetheless. 

At the end of Eyes, it sounds like they are gonna do a China Doll like usual, but instead the boys leap into a rocking Sugar Mag. This highly-enjoyable-yet-nothing-special show ends with Casey and OMSN.

1974-05-25 Santa Barbara, CA

 

5/25/74 – Santa Barbara, CA **

The show get's going a lot sooner than the previous nights. After good-but-nothing-special opening renditions of US Blues and Mexicali Blues. But then Deal starts showing us what mood the guys are in tonight and that is fully realised by the incredible Jack Straw that follows. 

It has instantly vaulted itself into my Top 10 already. Wow! Scarlet is uptempo like in Seattle, but instead of being rushed-sounding, tonight it is energetically enthusiastic. Donna provides some Yoko wailing that doesn't suck, also! Also, I must say that the overall “vibe” tonight is much better than recent shows and that palpable enthusiasm is definitely noticeable. 

The next highlight after Scarlet is the excellent 8 minute Sugaree. It's just perfect in every way. China>Rider is DELICIOUS tonight, maybe besting the 5/17 version from Vancouver. It smokes and crackles and roars and rampages in the best ways. Everyone is going full-steam ahead towards a brick wall at 90 miles per hour. Jerry's soloing is just out of this world perfect. 

Around and Around tonight IS HOTTER THAN THE SURFACE OF THE FRICKIN SUN HOLY CRAP. 

Ship Of Fools is outright superb tonight. This version is PHENOMENAL. Great Keith playing. 

Next up, Truckin>Let It Grow. Yup, the only version in 1974 not prefaced by the rest of the Weather Report Suite. So, Truckin goes nuts and the guys eventually melt down into full on Seastones for a bit. Then, they seamlessly transfigure themselves into playing Let It Grow out of nowhere in one of the best segues I have ever heard. 

In LIG, Check out Jerry's solo around 2:40 into it. Frickin' awesome! This killer LIG then goes into one of the most awesome and powerful Wharf Rats I've ever heard. Holy crap. THAT INTRO!!! This Wharf is very uptempo and powerful to the point it almost sounds like a different song. Must-hear for sure. THIS WHARF IS OUTSTANDING. 

The main show then ends with a SMASHING OMSN that rocks your socks off before a rare encore of Casey Jones. Slightly odd in the lack of big jam numbers, but the playing is so great on this show and the vibe so up that you can't help but love it! Another great show!

1974-05-21 Portland, OR

 

5/21/74 – Portland, OR ***** (47-minute PITB of the Gods)

The first set of songs are fine but noone will hurt you for skipping straight to the extremely up-tempo Scarlet Begonias. Keith is high in the mix tonight addling lots of great playing! I hesitate to say it's excellent, it seems rushed. But it defintiely has it's moments. 

Let me put it like this, it's '74 it's Scarlet. Shut up. 

Row Jimmy is surprisingly excellent tonight. We then get the third and final Money Money. Shame it got canned as it's downright rockin' and Keith is shredding up the ivories! Ship Of Fools sounds heavenly tonight with some very intersting church organ sounds from Keith. A great WRS then is slammed to a halt with China Doll. Come on, guys. Thankfully, we get, I think, the lognest PITB ever played!  

47-MINUTE PITB HOLY MOTHER OF HELL.  

Wow. Now before we get a hold of ourselves, the previous WRS>China Doll was OUTSTANDING, but this PITB just takes it and smashes it to pieces. Holy jeezus. It starts with an excellent version of the song portion. We then get Billy doing his up-tempo thing while Jerry does his “Space Wah” soloing. Everything is pretty coherent and “together” though for now. It then coalesces into a more frenzied Miles Davis-style of jamming. 

Around 14-minutes, we get the mother of all meltdowns. Jerry EXPLODES with his shredding and it's the aural equivalent of shock therapy (in the best way). Things then calm down a bit. Billy is still going ape-shit, but the rest of the guys are laying back and choosing their notes. 

From about 18 minutes onwards, some of the greatest GD jamming you will ever hear is played. By 28 minutes it's still going strong and it's so tasty and delectably infectious that you want it to never end! 

Around the 34-minute mark this comes to an end and a quiet, more spacey passage begins. Come 36-minutes and Billy and Keith give us some latin flavoring to the proceedings. Rim shots, etc. Eventually the epic behemoth comes to an inconclusive concludion and segues directly into US Blues. 

After the awkwardly placed US Blues (as great as it is), we get the Stella Blue of Stella Blues. QUEEN STELLA REIGNS SUPREME! This one is just so beautiful it's beyond words. Really. 

After a rocking Around and Around, we get a typically-gorgeous Eyes. Eyes is concise, at only 14 minutes, but its 14 minutes of primo-suprimo playing. Phil's bass solo is EXCELLENT and the Jerry solo immediately following is as perfect as can be. Wow, this might be the most note-perfect Eyes I've ever heard. 

After an epic Wharf, this crazy show comes to a rocking close with Sugar Mag and JBG.

1974-05-19 Portland, OR

5/19/74 – Portland, OR***** (from Bobby McGee onwards) GREATEST TRUCKIN JAM EVER

A MUCH better looking setlist tonight. BRB, Scarlet, BT Wind... Yes, BT-Wind is excellent tonight but the guys don't really seem to turn off the breaks until the WONDERFUL Bobby McGee. 

Everything before, while fine, is basically a warm up to this awesome rendition. Wonderful noodling from Jerry on it. It's like the guys said “hey, we need to wake up!” and they flipped the “ON” switch. The vibe and energy is totally transformed in an instant. I can't describe. They go from sleeping to running just like that. 

Sugaree is downright excellent. 8 minutes of killer. Jack Straw sounds really good, but unfortunately the vocals weren't recorded, so if you want a great “instrumental” version, this is the one for you! :) Roses and El Paso follow and sound good too but the vocals are still absent, unfortunately. Thankfully this is remedied by the start of a great Loose Lucy. These '74 versions are so enjoyable to hear. :) 

Up next is the 2^nd of only THREE performances of Money Money. Donna sounds great on it! Guess she could hear herself tonight, lol. Great stuff! 

Up next is THE GREATEST CHINA>RIDER EVER. Ok, that's exaggerating, but it's a DAMN EXCELLENT AND AWESOME VERSION! The jam between China and Rider is just phenomenal. Perfection at it's most, well, perfect. This China Cat is INSANE. 

Up next is the one-two punch of a ROARING Promised Land and a perfect Bertha. Actually make it a threesome – GSET is smashing like the first night of Euro '72 at Wembley! Things just keep getting better and Weather Report Suite is downright fantastic. It's 18-minutes long and Let It Grow just goes on and on and on and on! After Wharf Rat, we get the most delicate, fragile, gorgeous Peggy O these ears have ever seen. Holy moly again.

TRUCKIN IS FRICKIN AWESOME. LISTEN TO THE JAM THAT BEGINS AT 9 MINUTES IN. GREATEST FRICKIN TRUCKIN EVER JERRY GOES ALL STATIC WAH ON US JSUT LISTEN TO THIS JAMMING HOLY MOTHER OF EFF.  

Faints.

The Truckin>MLB>GDTRFB is all-time-greatest-must-hear material. This cavalcade of holiness comes to a conclusion with the hottest OMSN this side of the sun and an unenventful US Blues to take us home.

 

1974-05-17 Vancouver, CAN

 

5/17/74 – Vancouver, CAN

A mangled Promised Land opens the show. Jack Straw, rocking-yet-chill, is the first real highlight tonight. It's awesome-yet-relaxed and just oh so perfect for a gray Fall day. :) 

The energy is kind of on the low side tonight. The guys sound perhaps a little tired, or maybe they were just smokin' some herb? :) 

BIODTL is very good tonight. The next highlight is a raging and funky Loose Lucy that sounds very different from later renditions. Awesome version. Loose Lucy seems to have picked up their spirits a bit and the following Big River tries its damnedest to be ripping. And it succeeds. :) 

From there skip straight to the BLAZING 23 minute PITB that is just all kinds of kickass!!! The jam takes over quickly enough with Jerry doing his “ambient wah” space soloing and Billy just shredding away on the kit. 

The next highlight is the debut of the rarely-performed Money Money. Worth hearing. The China>Rider that follows is just fantastic. The MLB jam is sublime and great to hear. Awesome. 

This then goes straight into a smoking GSET. FINALLY, we get to the real meat of the show. A 35-minute Truckin>Nobody's Fault>Eyes>China Doll. Worth the wait. The Truckin>NFBM in particualr is excellent and awesome. Eyes is wonderful and has a KILLER bass solo. Great stuff! 

A rocking Sugar Mag takes us out after that beautiful China Doll. Overall, a B+ gig. A+ for effort as its apparent the guys are definitely trying, it's just that things never fully “gel” like they do on other nights. Some great highlights though for sure!

1974-05-14 Missoula, MT - Dave's Picks Vol. 9

 

5/14/74 – Missoula, MT – Dave's Picks Vol. 9 ***********

PERFECT vibe tonight. PERFECT setlist. You can tell from the get-go it's gonna be one of those shows. Scarlet Begonias is PERFECT tonight – Billy's drumming really sets it up fantastic. 

Speaking of fantastic, how about this perfect Jack Straw?! BT Wind is just gorgeous as usual. Deal is great but then HOLY CRAP Big River is even hotter than the night before!!! Like jeez, how do they do it?! 

PITB is un-frickin-believable tonight. It's like an extension of the Truckin' from Reno. They quickly ditch the song and go full on Miles Davis mode, free jamming it away into the furthest reaches of outer space. YES. 

After an El Paso breather, we get 43-MIUTES OF WRS>DARK STAR!!!!!! HOLY MOTHER OF AWESOMENESS YOU HAVE GOT TO HEAR THIS!!!!!!!! THIS IS THE AURAL EQUIVALENT OF ROCKETING THROUGH OUTER SPACE! 

 An insane 21-minute NFA-GDTRFB leads us to a rockin OSN to close this unbelievable show.

1974-05-12 Reno, NV

5/12/74 – Reno, NV ** (An on and off show, but the highlights are enough to warrant it)

The summer of a thousand killer jams starts out with this gig. The vibe is EXTREME CHILL tonight. Wow, great stuff but but definitely coffee-shop chill-fest renditions. Jack Straw is great but this is extra cool to hear it simmer under instead of blowing it's stack. Extremely relaxed like a perfect massage. 

Jack Straw is really where things pick up though – you can probably safely skip the previous tracks without any regret. BE Women is excellent. MOST ROARING BITODTL EVER!!!! Donna AND Bobby are screaming!!! WTF?! :D 

China>Rider is excellent and the real toe-tapping ensues. Jerry's vocals are excellent and he plays some really great and different leads that are worth hearing. This China>Rider is just frickin' awesome. Must-hear! 

US Blues is one of the most rocking renditions EVER. Total headbanging, lol. GSET is really cool and funky tonight with lots of great keys and piano. Very mid-70s Stonesy. Roses and Bobby McGee are of course great and so is Deal. 

Around and Around simply rocks but the real kicker is the perfect Half-Step. This is just one of those versions that is so great you want to listen to it again and again. :)  

CHECK OUT THE LAST HOUR OF THIS SHOW THAT BEGINS WITH THE INSANELY AWESOME TRUCKIN>NOBODYS FAULT>TOO>MIND LEFT BODY. 34 MINUTES OF AWESOME. THIS JAM IS OF THE GODS.  

For 13 minutes the boys are ragin full on through TOO before comign to a halt and going DEEP SPACE on us. Close your eyes and picture Carl Sagan. :D But it's not just randomness. There is a lot of beautiful playing going on and it's more “cohesive” than most noise jams. Incredible. 

Eventually Billy reenters the fold and the boys are cruising along down the interstellar highway at psychedlic-but-relaxing pace. Like they are reading eachother's minds, the guys all switch on a dime to a wonderful Mind Left Body jam with Jerry on slide. Wow. 

And then frickin' inexplicably it comes to a screeching halt with a completely mood-killing Row Jimmy. It's a fine version, but they were building SO much steam and then they immediately doused the fire. Like, wtf, man?! 

The glory is over, but that 34 minutes of Jesus will remain forevermore. After Row Jimmy, we return to the fire with one of the hottest, most PERFECT Big River's you have ever heard. JERRY IS IN FULL ON GUITAR HERO MODE RIPPING IT UP! :D :D :D Things get brought back down with Ship Of Fools before a totally rockin Sugar Mag sends us on our way. 

Great show!

1974-03-23 San Francisco, CA - Dick's Picks Vol. 24

 

3/23/74 - San Fransisco, CA - DP#24

The debut performances of Scarlet Begonias and Cassidy are both tonight. Also, it's the very first Wall Of Sound show. First set starts energetically but then moves into a more relaxed and laid-back groove. Deal is excellent but surprisingly laid back. The debut Cassidy is very "tropical" sounding. China>Rider is sick! 3rd and final PITB>UJB>MD>UJB>PITB. Overall, this show is kickass 1974 goodness. :)

1974-02-24 San Francisco, CA - Dave's Picks Vol. 13

 

2/24/74 – San Fransisco, CA – Dave's Picks Vol. 13 (up and down, but the highlights are mega)

After a Bill Graham intro, US Blues is a totally rousing opener. Candyman is the next highlight worth mentioning. Excellent rendition! After Jack Straw, we get a really nice and interesting China>Rider. 

Chian Cat is much slower and mellower than usual and it's definitely interesting. The jam before Rider is just AWESOME. Overall, this China>Rider is SEVENTEEN MINUTES OF SICK! 

The next point of interest is an eighteen-minute PITB! Great stuff! PITB is frickin awesome and goes way ouy into jam-space like the previous night's TOO. Killer. A rousing Cumberland opens set two rockingly. Roses and Big River are nice, but next up is a ROCKING Bertha. This is a “perfect” version. Awesome. 

After a wicked WRS, set two closes with a rocking Promised Land. Set three three begins with the mother of all Dark Stars. It takes about 10 minutes to coalesce from pure space, but once the rhythms get going, it's a great exercise in free jazz jamming. Also, if you can believe it, THE MAIN THEME DOESNT COME IN UNTIL 18 MINUTES IN!!!!! At 24 min Jerry breaks out the wah pedal while the rest of the guys go full on Spanish Jam up in this bitch! Overall, the Dark Star has great moments, but in the end it feels less than the sum of its parts. 

It segues seamlessly into a chill 13-minute Morning Dew. DEW IS FRICKIN SUBLIME AND PERFECT. Things get rocking again with a great Sugar Mag! Overall, great moments, but the show is too up and down for my personal taste. :)

1974-02-23 San Francisco, CA

 

2/23/74 – San Fransisco, CA *******

With the opening songs of set one, it's already apparent that the sluggishness of the previous night's warming up has now faded and been replaced by a calm and relaxed coolness of the best sort. A/A is a great and rare opener. Dire Wolf is rare and very welcome, as is the also-underplayed Bobby McGee. Great opening trio!!!

Sugaree is very nice but it is not yet the monster from the years to come. Overall, the rest of set one continues in a good-but-nothing-special manner. However, the conclusion of set one kicks off with a bang with the unexpected opening Promied Land>Bertha>GSET trio! Rock! 

Set two opens calmly with an 18 minute WRS. Not calm for long, though! It eventually “devolves” into a free jam that is just wicked. Billy is all over the place, Jerry is serving noodles, Weird is accenting stunningly....This is the stuff we sift through the doldrums for! :D 

But then out of nowhere, you don't see it coming, but they slam on the brakes and give us a wonderful Stella Blue. Ahhh yes.... The boys then kick it into 4^th gear with a shit-kicking Big River. MAMU just RIPS tonight! Jerry is just going for it! But then we realise all this was simply a warm up for the REAL meat of the show. 

63-MINUTE HE'SGONE>TRUCKIN>TOO>EYES>OMSN. God damn, son!!! :D 

He's Gone is just stunning. It's like 3/21/90 with a massive acapella crowd-singalong portion at the end. Truckin is RAGING. TOO is 21 minutes of amazing. God damn!!!! HOLY SHIT THIS TOO!!!!! MOVE OVER MIAMI 1989!!! The boys go FULL on ELP-style Seastones space jamming free-jazz on this. Holy mother of feedback! 

Eventually we come back into Earth's orbit and Jerry starts playing Slipknot again around 14:30. Eventually the maelstrom comes to an end and we are rewarded with a typically-relaxing and gorgeous '74 Eyes. Best year for the song, no doubt. :) And this version is no exception. It rules! Great stuff!!! After OMSN, Casey and Johnny, they Bid You Goodnight and this unbelivable second set comes to a close.

1974-02-22 San Francisco, CA

 

2/22/74 – San Fransisco, CA

The first show of this legendary year is, appropriately enough, held at Winterland. The show starts sluggishly until BE-Women, which is really enjoyable. I hesitate to say great, but it's good. Mexicali is downright smashing! Wow! From Mexicali onwards, the energy is much better. 

Eventually we get an awesome 21-minute PITB. TEN MINUTES IN JERRY PLAYS A FULL-ON SLIPKNOT RENDITION!!!!! :D :D :D Other than that, compared to something like the Godly Boston '74 Jam Of All Jams, this PITB is purely tame. It's enjoyable and all, but it never really goes anywhere and just kinda feels like a way to kill 20 minutes with little in the way of reward.

 I should probably end the review here – what I said about PITB basically sums up the rest of the show: Pleasant but unrewarding, if that makes sense. Truly a warm-up gig in the biggest sense of the term. B+ :)

1973-12-18/19 Tampa, FL - Dick's Picks Vol. 1

 

12/18/73 - Tampa -

Great show overall. Excellent China>Rider. Almost as good as the follinwg night.

12/19/73 - Tampa - DP #1 **

Very chill. Great for a relaxed time.PERFECT "Here Comes Sunshine". Epic "PITB". Wonderfully relaxed "Mississippi Half-Step...". Chill "He's Gone".EPIC and super jazzy and chill Tuckin>Nobody's Fault>The Other One>Stella Blue jam. AMAZING SHOW.

1973-12-10 Charlotte, NC - Download Series Vol. 8

 

12/10/73 - Charlotte, NC - Download Series Vol. 8

Exceptionally chill in standard Fall '73 fashion. Perfect for a fall afternoon. Unfortunately, the show isn't just chill, it's downright bland and boring until Truckin' comes along and grooves us into the chill holy land. :) Basically, skip everything until Truckin'. Keep the awesomeness post-Truckin'. :) Eyes is lovely and gorgeous! BASS SOLO! This Eyes KICKS ASS. China>Rider rules. Sugar Mag has some superb soloing.

1973-11-30 through 12-02 Boston, MA - Dick's Picks Vol. 14

 

11/30/73 - Boston, MA - DP# 14

First set - only get Morning Dew and PITB. The rest of the first set is by the numbers and forgettable, if well played. An odd second set with a very first-set feel to it. Gets EPIc.But only from Here Comes Sunshine onward. This is an AWESOME Here Comes Sunshine. WRS>Let It Grow>Dark Star>Eyes. How can you beat that?!?! To close this awesome second set, is an EXPLOSIVE Sugar Mag. Bobby sounds like a screaming lunatic! :)

12/1/73 - Boston, MA

This is the definition of LAID BACK CHILLNESS. Slower tempos and a lovely feel. Rivals 12/19/73 for chill factor. Beautiful China>Rider. LOTS of Piano tonight!!!and an ultimate air of relaxed calm. Fantastic WRS>Let It Grow. Five Words - "GET BACK IN YOUR SEATS!!!". Lol. Playing>UJB>Playing. That is all.

12/2/73 - Boston, MA - DP#14

WRS>Let It Grow. Hot damn! Wharf Rat is epic and galactic. All of set 2 is pretty much prime 1973 perfection. LISTEN NOW.

1973-11-04 San Diego, CA - 30 Trips

 

11/14/73 - San Diego, CA - 30 Trips

The first two sets are excellent. It goes from cold to hot and back like a schizophroenic maniac! Excellent BRB, JS, BT Wind, Sugaree, Cumberland, BE Women and HCS. GDTRFB>AA smokes. 

After that excellent 2-hour first set, we get set 2, a fucking extravaganza. Truckin>TOO>Big River>TOO>Eyes>TOO>Wharf!!! WHOAH! Truckin is killer. It is surprisingly chill and bluesy. Very late-night-jazz-club. It then sliiiddddeeesss into TOO without you ever noticing the song changed! 

After this awesome 31-minute workout, we get a nice Big River before returning to TOO. This 2nd bout of TOO is probably the best of the three. Then it sliiidddeeesss again, but into a lovely Eyes! :D The show ends with a very nice Wharf. 

Overall, not a show I'll be returning to soon, but the second set DEFINITELY is worthy of repeated listens. :)

1973-10-19 Oklahoma City, OK - Dick's Picks Vol. 19

 

10/19/73 - Oklahoma City, OK - DP#19 **

Three hours of '73 perfection. PITB. China>Rider. Dark Star. Dew. Eyes. Come on now, hear this show and blast it! :) Eyes is a top 3 version.

1973-02-28 Salt Lake City, UT - Dick's Picks Vol. 28

 

2/28/73 - Salt Lake City, UT - DP#28 **

They Love Each Other is fucking great. Same goes for Mexicali. The energy level is HIGH tonight! :) Box Of Rain is awesome. Truckin>TOO>Eyes is beyond out of this world. Possibly the chillest Eyes ever. SERIOUSLY GREATEST FUCKING EYES I HAVE EVER HEARD.

1973-02-26 Lincoln, NE - Dick's Picks Vol. 28

 

2/26/73 - Lincoln, NE - DP#28

Set one alternates between chill perfection and rip-roaring energy. Kickass, basically. Seriously, 1973 perfection, it is.BOX OF RAIN AND LOOSE LUCY!!!! Dark Star is a tad underwhelming, but Eyes is phenomenal andm ore than makes up for it.

1972-09-26 through 9/28 Jersey City, NJ - Dick's Picks Vol. 11

 

09/26/72 - Jersey City, New Jersey

An amazingly laid-back and relaxed time throughout. Highlights include the amazing He's Gone, Cold Rain, EPIC PITB, Bird Song, Cumberland Blues, Around and Around, Greatest Story. In particular, He's Gone is and ALL TIME version and PITB is an epic "late night" jazz fest that's smooth and silky but never boring or sloppy. 35-minute Truckin'>TOO jazzapalooza.

09/27/72 - Jersey City, New Jersey - DP# 11

Very strong throughout. Not as mind blowing as it's given credit for, but certainly as great as any excellent 1972 show. Awesome PITB, Morning Dew, Deal, Bird Song, Dark Star.

09/28/72 - Jersey City, New Jersey **

WOW. That is all one can say. After technical issues ruining Truckin' and Loser, the rest of this show is beyond killer. THE VERSION of Greatest Story Ever Told. Brown Eyed Women. The end of set 1.Bertha. This show fucking kills. Way betterthan the excellent, yet overrated, previous night. LISTEN TO THIS SHOW.

1972-09-21 Philadelphia, PA - Dick's Picks Vol. 36

 

9/21/72 - Philadelphia, PA - DP#36

The one, the only, the legendary! Bird Song is multi-faceted and lovely. Cumberland smokes. Dark Star is epic. It's 38 minutes of extreme jazzy chillness. Chillest Dark Star ever?

1972-09-17 Baltimore, MD - Dick's Picks Vol. 23

 

9/17/72 - Baltimore, MD - DP#23 **

The one, the only, the legendary DP#22! The longest TOO (30 minutes!!!) This show is 1972 perfection. Everything is energetic and a highlight. PITB is very jazzy and kickass. China>Rider is the definition of epic. Same goes for Truckin

- maybe the best version ever played.

1972-09-03 Boulder, CO - Dick's Picks Vol. 36

 

9/3/72 - Boulder, CO - Dick's Picks #36

Get the He's Gone>TOO and the PITB. All 3 are FUCKING INCREDIBLE. Unfortunately, the majority of the rest of the show is plagued with bad sound problems. :(

1972-07-21/22 Seattle, WA - Download Series Vol. 10

 

7/21/72 - Seattle, WA - Download Series Vol. 10 *****

An opening Sugaree! DONNA'S FIRST GIG!!!!! Set one is absolutely fantastic! Everything is PERFECT! You will not hear better renditions anywhere!!! THIS SHOW IS EXPLOSIVE AND FUCKING ROCKS!!!!

7/22/72 - Seattle, WA - Download Series Vol. 10

A very casual-yet-excellent gig. First set is what you'd expect, in the best way. :) Killer psychedelic PITB. SECOND GIG WITH DONNA!

1972-05-23 through 1972-05-26 London, UK

 

5/23/72 - Lyceum Theater, London, UK

Starts slow and doesn't pick up until a roaring Next Time You See Me. This show is another marathoner (3&1/2 hours) and has a lot of setlist rarities! :) Typical top-notch Jack Straw. A Killer and chill as fuck China Cat follows. Most beautfiul segue jam into IKYR ever.This China>Rider has to be heard to be believed. Epic 40-minute Dark Star>Dew. Goin Down The Road is surprisingly laid back yet bautiful and jubilant with all kinds of tasty Jerry playing. Another EXCELLENT yet not quite 10/10 show.

5/24/72 - Lyceum Theater, London, UK **

As epic and perfect as any other E72 show. :) Very special mention goes to the ABSOLUTELY FUCKING INSANE 30-MINUTE THE OTHER ONE. This is 6/28/74 jam material. Holy shit this is The Other One of Other Ones.

5/25/72 - Lyceum Theater, London, UK **

Again, as perfect as every other E72 show. Special mention to Good Lovin' which might be the most out-there version ever played. I thought it was Dark Star after a while! Jerry even played organ on it. Last ever "Sittin On Top of the World".

5/26/72 - Lyceum Theater, London, UK **

Once again, as perfect as any other E72 show, though the Truckin is BEYOND OUR PLANE OF EXISTANCE!!!!!

1972-05-16 Luxembourg

 

5/16/72 - Luxembourg, GER **

The legendary Radio Luxembourg show. Enough said! More Euro '72 perfection! :) In more detail though, after a soundcheck of Big River and Sugar Mag, the show begins proper with a perfect Bertha. Then we get one of the HOTTEST Mr. Charlie's out there. Jerry's strat solo is just killer! A shorter (7 minutes) Sugaree follows. Nice and chill and just stunningly lovely. Next Bobby gives us a hard hitting and explosive BT Wind. 

After an awesome Chinatown Shuffle, we get a good-but-nothing-special China>Rider. After a fine and fun BIODTL, Pigpen bares his soul with an epic It Hurts Me Too. Jerry's slide playing is just ripping and spot on! An excellent and bouncy T Jed is next. What a good song this was in '72! 

Now we finally move into the real meat of the show. PITB is 11 minutes of psychedelic PERFECTION! One of the most concise and perfect versions out there, surely! Set one ends with a RIPPING Promised Land. :) Set two smashes out of the gate with a 33-minute Truckin>TOO!!!! They fit SO perfectly together and everyone is so in sync you can't tell where one ends and the other starts! 

Ten minutes into TOO and HOLY SHIT WE ARE IN OUTER SPACE :D :D :D :D Jerry is fucking RIPPING HIS STRAT TO SHREDS! Things calm back down and we get a wonderful, mid-tempo, Dark Star-esque series of passages. This has to be one of the absolute greatest TOO ever played! Unfortunately, just when you think it's gonna continue for another 20 minutes, it ends abruptly! 

Damn you radio broadcasts! :( 

Oh well, at least the 33 minutes we got was beyond amazing. :D We then get a cool bucket of water splashed over our head with a wonderful Sing Me Back Home that features some of the best singing I've heard out of Donna. She sounds like a black lady from south Georgia singing in a gospel choir!!!! 

Sugar Mag then starts quietly before exploding towards the end and segueing into a roaring NFA>GDTRFN>OMSN closer. Fucking KILLER show!

1972-05-07 Wigan, UK

 

5/7/72 - Bickershaw Festival, Wigan, UK **

Back to E72 for this mammoth FOUR HOUR show.Once again, it's Europe '72, not much to say. And I mean that in the BEST of ways. :) Greatest Good Lovin>Pigpen Sermon EVER!!!! Most beautiful Jack Straw as well. 30-minute TOO that is chill for ten minutes before desolving into 10 minutes of feedback and then another ten minutes of epic climaction. :) Best Lovelight ever. This show may not be 5/22/77 material, but is DAMN excellent nonetheless. :)

1972-04-29 Hamburg, GER

 

4/29/72 - Hamburg

A rare and also killer PITB opener. Another all-around awesome show. Dark Star is phenomenal again and is surprisingly very upbeat. The jam sounds more like soutehing out of Eyes! :)

1972-04-26 Frankfurt, GER

 

4/26/72 - Frankfurt, GER *******

The most rocking Bertha ever blasts out of the gate like a cannon. Fucking greatest Mr. Charlie ever. A PHENOMENAL Good Lovin with a bitchin Pigpen rap. 51-MINUTE TRUCKIN>TOO. THIS TOO IS AS AMAZING AS THE DARK STAR FROM DUSSELDORF. TOO is very "aquatic" sounding. GREATEST GDTRFB>OMSN EVER PLAYED OMG.

1972-04-24 Dusseldorf, GER - Rockin' The Rhein

 

4/24/72 - Dusseldorf, GER - Rockin' The Rhein *******

Fantastic show top to bottom. It's E72, what do you expect?! BTW, 44-MINUTE DARK STAR!!! HOLY MOTHER OF SATAN THIS DARK STAR IS LITERALLY A CHAOTIC MAELSTROM OF HURRICANE-LIKE CHOAS AND MAJESTY OH MY GOD. THIS IS THE GREATEST DARK STAR EVER. PERIOD. MOVE OVER 6/28/74 JAM, YOU HAVE JUST BEEN SMITED DOWN FROM ON HIGH.

1972-04-21 Bremen, GER

 

4/21/72 - Beat Club, Bremen, GER

A special shorter gig for a tv recording. Fantastic E72 gold standard show as always. :)

1972-04-11 Newcastle, UK

 

4/11/72 - Newcastle, UK

The energy is more subdued tonight rather than explosive like the previous two shows.Overall, an EXCELLENT if somewhat laid back outing. This show is 12/19/73 kind of chill :)

1972-04-08 London, UK

 

4/8/72 - Wembley, London, UK **

See review for previous night. :)

1972-04-07 London, UK

 

4/7/72 - Wembley, London, UK **

5/22/77 on fucking steroids. No point in describing this amazing show as you clearly get the point from just the opening sentence. This is archetypal GD perfection of the HIGHEST order! The Truckin' is HOLY SHIT epic. So much energy. TOO is a free form avantgarde jam explosion.

1972-03-21 New York City, NY

 

3/21/72 - Academy Of Music, NYC

Exceptionally wicked Greatest Story. Holy shit, JERRY IS ON PEDAL STEEL FOR LOOKS LIKE RAIN! Good Lovin smokes. Truckin>TOO>Wharf Rat is pretty hot as always. Sugar Magnolia kicks ass.A rare Two Souls. Overall, a good show. Worth hearing the highlights. The show is long and DRAGS a bit.

1971-11-15 Austin, TX - Road Trips Vol. 3, #2

 

11/15/71 - Austin, TX - RT Vol. 3, #2 **

A good Truckin starts the show before a ROCKING and PERFECT Bertha takes us into the stratosphere!!! Jerry's solo is AWESOME! PITB and Deal are both hot and Jack Straw is a slow-building steamroller. Lots of piano tonight! Loser and BIODTL rock too. 

There's a GREAT and slightly odd sequence of Dark Star>El Paso>Dark Star. Yes, you read that right. And the weirdest part is that IT WORKS! Set two starts just fine but doesn't kick into high gear until a surprisingly ROCKING Bobby McGee and a FIERY Cumberland!!! 

We get a rare You Win Again before a stupendous Not Fade Away. Serously, if I have to hear this song, it better be this version! It's about 15 minutes long with a ROCKING jam that just burns and burns and burns!!! This jam then segues BEAUTIFULLY into a gorgeous GDTRFB. WOW! It then rightfully explodes with Jerry's SEARING guitar just slicing through everything like a hot knife through butter! 

Things cool down with the whole "We Bid You Goodnight" coda, but then they steamroll back into Not Fade Away. AWESOME. Overall, a great show and a phenomenal jam in set 2. :)

1971-10-31 Columbus, OH - Dick's Picks Vol. 2

 

10/31/71 - Columbus, OH. DP #2

Unexciting first set. Extremely energetic second set. Killer rocking Dark Star, Not Fade Away and Johnny B Goode

1971-10-26 Rochester, NY - Download Series Vol. 3

 

10/26/71 - Rochester, NY - Download Series, Vol. 3

An overall excellent gig. Keith is HIGH in the mix. Jed is, for once, uptempo. There is an air of chill throughout, but it does not hamper the energy displayed. Great gig.

1971-08-24 Chicago, IL - Dick's Picks Vol. 35

8/24/71 - Chicago, IL - DP#35 (The Houseboat Tapes) **

A lovely opening UJB. Excellent PITB and a fiery Loser. A shitkicking Cumberland. A VERY RARE Empty Pages. WOAH at this primitive PRown Eyed Women!!! It is VERY different! St. Stephen>Not Fade Away>GDTRFB is beyond blistering!!! This may only be a highlights reel, but DAMN what a highlights reel it is - 10/10. HOLY SHIT GOOD LOVIN' OH MY GOD.

 

1971-08-07 San Diego, CA - Dick's Picks Vol. 35

 

8/7/71 - San Diego, CA - DP#35 (The Houseboat Tapes)

Sugaree is very sweet. A good Bertha with a silky smooth guitar solo. Hard To Handle is absolutely shit-kicking. MAybe the best I've heard. Kreutzmann is KILLING tonight. The SLOWEST Truckin' ever - it drags, man. The chillest Not Fade Away - very odd. OVerall, a good show, but not up to the heights of the previous gig.

1971-08-06 Hollywood, CA - Dick's Picks Vol. 35

 

8/6/71 - Hollywood, CA - DP#35 (The Houseboat Tapes) **

An absolutely stunningly perfect Bertha and PITB start the night.The "legendary" Hard To Handle. St. Stephen rules. Truckin>TOO>MAMU>TOO is just smashing. WEATHER REPORT SUITE JAMMING DURING TOO. Deal and Sugar Mag are great. The closing 40-minute Dew>Lovelight is a face melter. This show kicks ass. :) Best Sugar Mag EVER?

1971-02-18 through 1971-02-24 Port Chester, NY

 

2/18/71 - Port Chester, NY

VERY FIRST BERTHA, GREATEST STORY, LOSER, PITB and WHARF.The first night of the famous 6 night run. Rollicking opening Bertha. Good first set. Bertha is rollicking and ragged. GSET sounds yet to gel fully. DS>Wharf>DS and Hard to Handle are the set highlights. PITB is odd and stutters out without a jam. Very odd. Bobby McGee is simply gorgeous. Sugar Mag KICKS ASS! Fantastic closing UJB. Overall, the show has it's highs and lows, but there is substantial amount of highlights. Pretty good. :)

 

2/19/71 - Port Chester, NY - Three From the Vault

Kickass Truckin' opener. VERY FIRST DEAL AND BIRD SONG. First show without Mickey until 1975. Bertha is good but rushed. China>Rider is excellent. This debut Bird Song IS FUCKING STUPENDOUS AND WONDERFUL. Easy Wind fucking kicks ass. WHOAH! This TOO is amazingly powerful! It's like a steam train!

2/20/71 - Port Chester, NYAn ok show. It has it's numerous highlights, but it is mostly the sound of a band in rehearsal on stage. There is almost no energy aside from a blistering Johnny B Goode and a grooving Hard to Handle. Oh, and the rare-as-shit Ripple!

2/21/71 - Port Chester, NY

A CR/S opener is always a good omen. Best Easy Wind ever. China Rider IS PERFECT. Not much to say other than that this is an excellent show with perfect renditions and a lot of energy. Great stuff! BIRD SHOW IS STUNNING!

2/23/71 - Port Chester, NY

Great show start to finish. Everything is played PERFECT. The last hour or so of the show is where the real goods are at though. The Truckin'>TOO>Wharf>GSET>Good Lovin' sounds right out of 1972! Awesome stuff. :)

2/24/71 - Port Chester, NY

This show is easily the weakest of the run. It sounds like a rehearsal more than a show. Missed cues, lower energy, etc. Get the highlughts: Bertha, Hard to Handlewood, Minglewood,

1970-05-02 Binghamton, NY - Dick's Picks Vol. 8

 

05/02/70 - Harpur's College - DP #8 **

Do I really need to say anything about this all-time legendary gig? Acoustic set? Check. St. Stephen sandwich? Check. Get this gig. Listen to it front to back.The second set is EXPLOSIVELY ROCKING. Seriously, heaviest rocking Dead I've ever heard.

1970-02-11 through 1970-02-14 New York City, NY - Dicks' Picks Vol. 4

 

02/11/70 - Fillmore East -

Excellent and compact second set.

 

02/13/70 - Fillmore East -

LONG LONG LONG show. Three set. EPIC 90 minute Dark Star>The Other One>Lovelight.

02/14/70 - Fillmore East - Late Show DP#4

Excellent acoustic set. Killer Alligator>Not Fade Away>Mason's Children>Caution jam.

 

1970-01-18 Portland, OR - Download Series Vol. 2

 

1/18/70 - Portland, OR - Download Series, Vol. 2

MASON'S CHILDREN!!! Black Peter is 11 minutes of beauty. DITS is a 14-minute party fest. China Cat just might be the smoothest ever played!

1969-11-08 San Francisco, CA - Dick's Picks Vol. 16

 

11/8/69 - Fillmore West - DP#16

VERY bluesy and laid back first set. Not a high energy set. Good, but super chill. Second set is the longest and most epic instrumental jam I've ever heard. Two hours of pure bliss. This show is more than a keepre.

1969-11-07 San Francisco, CA - Dick's Picks Vol. 16

 

11/7/69 - Fillmore West - DP#16

Second is is what's worth getting. EPIC Dark Star of Dark Stars. UJB instrumental jam. TOO. 17-minute Lovelight. GET THIS SET.

1969-04-27 Minneapolis, MN - Dick's Picks Vol. 26

 

4/27/69 - Minneapolis, MN - DP#26 ('69 PERFECTION VOL. 2) **

The show is one CONTINUOUS 100-minute jam of epic proportions. Hear this show or die.

1969-04-26 Chicago, IL - Dick's Picks Vol. 26

 

4/26/69 - Chicago, IL - DP#26 ('69 PERFECTION!) **

Setting aside the final two Lyceum '72 shows for a later date, we move on to DP#26. Two rather hiss-laden 1969 shows. Lots of really rare material. This the 5/22/77 of 1969 shows, holy shit. 33-minute Lovelight!!! A TON OF RARE SONGS.

1969-04-17 St. Louis, MO - Download Series Vol. 12

 

4/17/69 - St. Louis, MO - DL Series Vol. 12

Woah! Raunchy slide on Hard to Handle!

1969-02-27 through 1969-03-01 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore West 1969 Box Set

 

2/27/69 - Fillmore West - FW '69, The Complete Recordings

2/28/69

3/01/69

3/02/69

Guys, this box set is legendary for a reason. These shows are the epitomy of perfection in every way, shape and form. Even the audio doesn't do justice to how amazing they are! 500/fucking 10.

1969-02-11 New York City, NY - "February 11, 1969, Fillmore East"

02/11/69 - February 11, 1969, Fillmore East

PRIME 69 Dead. EVERY THING IS A HIGHLIGHT. EPIC 17 minute Lovelight. Two sets opening for Janis Joplin.

 

1968-03-17 San Francisco, CO - Download Series Vol. 6

 

3/17/68 - Carousel Ballroom, San Fransisco, CA (DL Ser. 6)

An exciting opening Lovelight.A rare New Potato Caboose. A KILLER 30-minute The Eleven>Caution. Good show.

1968-03-16 San Francisco, CA

The most oddly concise Dark Star ever. It's performed as an actual song for once with no major jam, but it is done perfectly. A kickass China Cat follows right into a 14-minute Eleven jam!Excellent uptempo Morning Dew. TOO>Alligator>Caution

kicks fucking ass. A great little show. :) Seriously, tho, the TOO>Alligator>Caution KICKS SO MUCH FUCKING ASS HOLY SHIT MY GOD.

 

1968-02-23/24 Lake Tahoe, NV - Dick's Picks Vol. 22

2/23-24/68 - Lake Tahoe, CA - DP#22 **

Epic 20-minute Viola Lee shredfest!!! Fucking MONSTER Little Schoolgirl. The most PERFECT China Cat Sunflower ever. Seriously, this is as good as '68 gets!

 

warewolf95 and the Grateful Dead - An intro/some context to the reviews

 Howdy again! As with my OP info post for this blog, I thought I'd do another before starting to upload my Dead reviews!

So, I discovered the Dead in the fall of 2013. They changed my musical world as much as Zappa and the Beatles have. Without the Dead I wouldn't be into Phish! So depending on your view, that is either very good or very bad :)

At the time I discovered the Dead, there was so much live material that I figured the best way to listen would be to go show-by-show in official release order - this way I would get a large sampling of all of the various years, some 1990, some 1982, some 1977, etc. It made choosing what to listen to easier and made me enthusiastic for more (ooh, a 1982 show up next - haven't heard an '82 show before! etc etc)

However, the OCD Live Collector Enthusiast in me couldn't just stop there - I figured if I was gonna bother with all that, I might as well go all the way and listen to all the shows making up the run represented by the official release.

So for instance, I didn't just play Ladies and Gentlemen, I played that whole Fillmore 1971 run in its place. Make sense? 

 Worked awesomely and got me in deep!!!

As of 11/20/21, I have listened to every show from 1974, 1990 and 1991, a large majority of 1977 and 1976 and most of 1982. 

 1990, 1977, 1971, 1991, 1976 and 1974 and my favorite years If I had to choose!!! :)

When I began listening, I also figured I should take notes as there was so much music that I knew I could never remember everything. You will see the "evolution" of my notes from over-enthusiastic, 1 paragraph, profanity-laden sycophancy to multi-page, College-Writing-Level essays from hell with way more enthusiastic description and onomatopoeia than you can shake a stick at!!!!

 Basically, the longer the review, the more recent it is. I am posting in show order though, so keep that in mind :D

 

Peace and love, warewolf 95 :)

Summer Tour 2019 - In Conclusion/Final Thoughts/Highlights Lists

I strongly enjoyed Summer 2019 and am so glad I listened to it! I honestly think I enjoyed it more than 2018, though of course 2018 is terrific as well (that beastly fall tour, especially!!!). I really thought the new songs all pretty much fit in better than expected and I didn't hear much in the way of growing pains after the initial summer gigs.

I think in time we might come to view this tour as underrated. Not every show was amazeballs, but the ones that were incredible were REALLY incredible!!!!

Also, there is the whole concept of "micro jams" that permeated this tour. In lieu of 2021 and the "let's play everything for 40 minutes" concept they are currently enamored with, it was odd getting a million GREAT jams that lasted no more than 4 or 5 minutes.

But they made the most of the jams usually and the ripcording was kept to a minimum, so I'll take it!

The early summer gigs were universally excellent for the most part. As the tour wound on into July it seemed on/off from night to night and things got much more inconsistent at times. Yes, I know it looks like I'm listing every show here as a highlight, but check again cuz I'm not

Here's my list of "the best of the best" for FULL SHOWS. Of course every gig has highlights, but these are the ones that really felt like complete, awesome listening experiences. The stars don't mean anything beyond "that was incredible blah blah blah" :





6/11/19 St. Louis** (Spectacular first set - nearly FLAWLESS. Shorter jams in 2nd set but the quality is high. Wonderful tour opener from start to finish! .NET ratings are WRONG!!!!)

6/12/19 St. Louis** (Set 1 is up and down but set 2 is nearly perfect. THAT FLOW!!!)
Moma Dance (3 minute intro! Extra spunky. FREAKING GREAT MOMA!)


6/14/19 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo** (FANTASTIC!!!! 2/3 of the show is highlight worthy and its a wonderful little sleeper mini gig)

6/16/19 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo********* (Several MAJOR deep jams, hot playing throughout, and a large Mike's Twisty Groove sandwich make for a uniquely interesting 2nd set!)

SPECIAL MENTION-
6/18/19 Toronto, CAN - Skip set 1, but PLEASE make sure to check out set 2. YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!!!!!! POSSIBLY THE GREATEST WINGSUIT EVER!!!!

6/19/19 Cuyahoga Falls, OH ******* (Incredible BOAF, most songs are extra hot. Defintely a must-hear show!)

6/22/19 Columbia **************** (One of the most incredible first sets of all time! SYSF is one of the best ever. Second set flows like butter. CLASSIC SHOW!)

6/23/19 Columbia ** (3/4 of this show was sick and it flowed great)

6/25/19 Bangor ** (Set 1 was great but the MIKES GROOVE IS X FACTOR MAGIC, SET 2 is X FACTOR MAGIC. ONE OF THE BEST 2nd SETS SO FAR.)

SPECIAL MENTION-
6/26/19 Bangor* (Inconsisten, but the highlights are MASSIVE. The highlights are as big as anything else this year.)

6/28/19 Camden** (Monster first set with MAJOR highlights. Set 2 is very "heard this before" but everything is still SO great!!!)

SPECIAL MENTION-
6/29/19 Camden (SET 1 SUCKS BUT SET 2 IS X FACTOR MAGIC!)

6/30/19 Camden************************************************************************************************************************************ (RARITY EXTRAVAGANZA. X FACTOR MAGIC. 3hrs 14 min. SHOW OF THE TOUR. BY A WIDE MARGIN. PHENOMENAL 10/10 SHOW. SPECTACULAR OUTING. HOLY MF'ing CRAP)

7/5/19 Boston************** (EXCEPTIONAL SHOW WITH EXCEPTIONAL SET PLACEMENT AND FLOW AND JAMS AND EVERYTHING. A+ ACROSS THE BOARD!!!)

7/9/19 Uncasville***************** (SECOND SET OF THE YEAR!)

7/10/19 Uncasville** (Flawless first set, very interesting 2nd set. Terrific flow and set placement)

7/12/19 East Troy, WI** (Set 1, everything is great, but there were clear highlights still. Set 2 is a steam roller! SHORT BUT SWEET IS THE TERM FOR TONIGHT! INCREDIBLE JAMMING IN SHORT SERVINGS. A+)

7/14/19 East Troy *********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************- A+ IN EVERY SENSE OF THE FRIGGING WORD. NOTHING BUT RARITIES, A 38 MINUTE RUBY WAVES, ENERGY OUT THE WAZOO, AND A MARRIAGE PROPOSAL!! WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT?!?!?! MUST HEAR SHOW OF ALL TIME!! ABSOLUTELY INSANE AND INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!!

 

 

2019-07-14 East Troy, WI - "The Big One"

7/14/19 Alpine #3 - "The Big One"

Preface - you guys know I'm gonna go bonkers on this and probably label it the greatest show ever played or something, so just bear with me and get your "Idiot Review" goggles on, ok?

Set 1

The Landlady - Starting totally unexpectedly with the first Landlady since 2016 and only the 5th one ever in 3.0 Trey has a hard time on this one, fumbling through it, but his soloing is on key and we get major Rarity Points for this, so I'll allow it. Funny banter afterwards about the failed dance routine.
 

 Olivia's Pool - Another shock bustout, this one for the first time since NOVEMBER 1997!!!!!! Jeez!!! And it ROCKS too so why the heck did they wait so long to bust this out!! Keep this in rotation guys - ITS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! Leo shreds it up on the keys and then Trey Takes over to melt our faces. God I love this band. You NEVER know what you are gonna get!!!! This is seriously terrific - yea its a simple song, hardy har har, but it sounds like theyve been playing it all summer. NAILED!!

The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday Suite - First performance of the trio since 2015. FOURTH ever performance in 3.0! Jeez, just rackin' up them Rarity Points big time!! Very cool and funky. Great effects from Cactus on this one. Pretty tight versions considering the rarity. Sounded great!!!

Meatstick - Is Meatstick. Is great fun. Great hearing it early in a set instead of as a late-show "pumper upper". Kinda deflates the specialty of it in a good way.

Vultures - Great version. Gets slightly dark and demented in the jam/solo portion. Trey going all Zappa with his soloing on this one!! Big meltdown on this sucker before they yank up to the sky! Extremely wacky! Must-hear Vultures! Dissonant and screwed up in the best way!!!!!! INCREDIBLE!!!!

Spock's Brain - Just as with Olivia's Pool, WHO THE EFF SAW THIS ONE COMING?! NOBODY! THATS WHO!!! First one since the Mexico run of 2019, but other than that, its only the 10th version ever played. Another A+ for rarity.

Pebbles and Marbles - One of my all time favorites that is also a mega rarity. I love Walls Of The Cave but wish they would swap it with P/M sometimes. Great version overall.

Glide - Oh no get your blinders on, will this be good or bad Yea they butcher it. But rarity points again save the day. I can't put this on the list. Just not good enough. Great to hear though!!!

About to Run - Damn Trey, GET IT BOY!!! Good golly.... 

Strange Design - First since 2016, I believe?? Love this song and still can't believe it didn't make it onto Billy Breathes. Wonderfully beautiful version that was perfect coming out of that ripping About to Run. A+ set placement, yo.

>Timber - Unexpected segue that worked great. Absolutely terrific version. X Factor energy in this one. It's just that good.

I Didn't Know - Nailed those vocals. Vacuum solo. Perfect set closer.

Good Times Bad Times - Classic ripper to close the set!

Ok, this was an awesome set. It's not the set you would want at every show and felt a little long in the tooth at times - trying to sequence that many rarities is bound to be a challenge! But when the songs played are that rare and the playing is generally that good, it all works out. Very strong set, but perhaps more "memorable" than "listenable" at times??

Great stuff! Set 2 to come tonight 

 

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Set 2 -

Oh boy here we go.


Mercury - Not the tightest version of the song I've heard. The jam is ok but nothing special. A fine rendition but overall probably only about as good as the one I got later in Charleston. BUT, that segue into Ruby Waves...

Ruby Waves - Just going ahead and posting my original thoughts from 2 days after it happenned. Here we go:

7/14/19

Ruby Waves

Ok, pretty quickly we got dark and nasty until about 8 minutes. Then we went a lot lighter, more of a classic rock vibe for a bit.

Around 12 minutes we hit an awesome, bluesy, "1968 rock" kind of vibe that kicks all kinds of tail.

Around 15 minutes this subsides and some 2000-esque ambience begins to creep in. The boys are in total control of their dynamics and fade things down quite a bit.
Lots of organ sounds and "bliss".
Eventually it slowly gains steam again and the jam reaches a point where it screams Light (imo, anyways).

Then at 20 minutes exactly - OUT OF FRIGGIN NOWHERE - we are into funky reggae land.
The changeover happenned in like 5 seconds flat. What. There was almost no transition. It's like they flipped a lightswitch or something.
Kinda jarring but pretty dang sick that they just changed on a dime like that. And Trey is making love to his volume pedal, so there's that

Quickly though, around 21:30, some dark and nasty Carini-type riffing comes into play. It's Octave-Fuzz pedal time!!!
Yea, now it sounds like a Carini jam.
By 23:00 we have reached the dark side of the moon. The crowd roars their massive - and totally justified - approval.

THIS JAMMING IS THE T!T$!!!!

By 24 minutes the Carini riffing mutates into a more mellow and spacey sound while still remaining very funky and dark. This is Moon-Rock.

24:44 - The Feedback Squalls Of Hell!

We are in dark-ambience mode now. Trey is letting it absolutely FREAKING RIP!
Fishman and Gordo are keeping that dang funky beat going like it's Fall '97 or something. This is magical. Pure magic.

Then at 27:00 on the dot, the jamming screeches to another transition point.
The beat stops and we enter full on into 2000 Ambience Turbo Deluxe mode. Trey and Page leaking noise - both archaic and and beautiful - into our ears like the sounds of a thousand dying angels crying.

Or something like that. Woah.

This is HEAVY.

But then just as we've ascended beyond the astral plane of the 96th dimension, we are grounded by a new jazzy groove.
The boys are just urinating magic at this point but it's like they can't decide what style they want to jam in - we are getting The Grand Smorgasbord

So by this point we are 32 minutes in and Ruby Waves is far gone. It's in the trash by now. We are in charted, yet rarely traveled territory.

By this point (roughly 34 minutes in) the guys have kept the latest groove going and are just letting Trey (and later Page) rip it all kinds of up. Someone needs to call the cops on Trey because this is felony-level instrument abuse right here.

Good lord.

And basically, they just keep ripping it up all the way to the finish line.

I'm too inexperienced to say if this was the greatest jam of all time, but I'm sure it was easily in the top 5 or 10 of 3.0 and probably in the top 30 of all of Phish.
By 2019 I'd call that an accomplishment. 

 We now resume your regularly scheduled program....

Twist - That's it, the show's over, right? Truly wonderful Twist though!!! Short and sweet - any other show would kill for one this well played. Smooth in the extreme, Trey just pours golden nectar in our auditory canals for 6 minutes. Thoughtful heat, excellent phrasing and playing...Takanaka would be proud!!

>Swept Away/Steep - Oh my sweet goodness, I'm not crying, are you crying? Holy hell talk about tugging at the heartstrings. Absolutely gorgeous and beautiful and perfect in every way. Jeezus Krist.....

>Death Don't Hurt Very Long - From the quiet beauty of the SA/Steep to the absolute fury and hellstorm that is this HEAVY DDHVL!!!! Funky wah pedal and clavinet abuse!!!! Guitar murder!! INSANELY AWESOME!!!! THIS IS A FREAKING MELTDOWN OF EPIC PROPORTIONS!!!!!!!

 

>ICCULUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - The ultimate rarity, maybe rarer than Harpua? Gosh dang, son!!! READ THE BOOK! 

 

 Buffalo Bill - Is Buffalo Bill, but mega rarity points and it was performed excellently. Icculus reprise, lol. Just read the book, ok??

You Enjoy Myself/Catapult/Marriage proposal banter - This is very fun. YEM itself is rusty from Trey, but the energy is there and the fun the guys are having is palpable. They seamlessly bust into a flawless Catapult, and then Trey tells how he met a couple in the lobby who said they would get married if they did Contact. Very cool.

>Contact - Oh yes Leo, fill me with the sonic glory that is your piano playing. BEAUTIFUL STUFF!!!

>YEM Conclusion - The sandwich finishes pretty awesomely with the guys jumping right back into the funk groove of YEM and then finishing with the vocal jam. A+!!

>More - Is More. Nothing special, but obligatory.

>Tweeprise - Spectacular. Capping off not just one of the greatest shows Phish ever played but a terrific summer tour as well. Listen to Cactus dropping bombs that Phil would be proud of!! Incredible peak and raging. Just what the doctor ordered and the absolute perfect choice for closer.

 

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Ok guys, I'm really sorry for all that.

In conclusion, Alpine #3 was, well, incredible and the 4.6 rating on .NET isn't high enough!!! What can be said that hasn't already been said? This show is the definition of MUST-HEAR.

It felt very special and not like any other "Joe Regular Summer Show". Felt like a special Festival gig or something.

Spectacular.
 

2019-07-13 East Troy, WI

7/13/19 Alpine #2

Great setlist tonight.

AC/DC Bag - Feel like it's been a while since the last one. Very welcome opener Nice and hot but nothing special. Just a good opener!

>NICU - Fun but nothing special

Shade - Very nice but nothing special

Funky B - Hot as always. Great solo from Page. Great vocal wailing from Cactus! Absolute guitar murder from Trey.

Blaze On - The song portion is excellent. Simple song, yes, but this one seemed to have extra oomph to it. Really great reading of the song itself. Very cool "watery" Type II excursion. Great stuff!!

Ya Mar - Great playing from Trey.

Frost - Rare and beautiful. Just achingly gorgeous and tender.

The Sloth - Brings some rocking energy back to this slightly light-weight leaning set. Good version overall.

F Your Face - Totally unexpected and also unexpectedly awesome!! Trey really rips it up big time just melting faces. And Cactus' vocals are on point. This is close to flawless. Fantastic!!!

My Friend My Friend - Red hot and scorching as expected, but nothing special.

The Final Hurrah - Strong version with loads of vocals from everyone. Dance party, yo!

Character Zero - Is CZ


All in all, set 1 was fine. Everything was baseline excellent, but the highs still felt lower than usual. Felt like an excessively "average" set, just in that we've heard so much better. Great song selection and energy throughout!

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Set 2

Halley's Comet - Fun start, but as with AC/DC Bag, nothing special. Always a favorite of mine to hear

>A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing - This song seems like it would be a monster, but to this day I don't think I've ever heard a version that actually proceeds to do anything special (can you guys point me in the direction of one?). Again, a song I always love to hear on the setlist! This one tries pretty hard and goes for the deep sea vibes real quick. Trey takes the spotlight at first before Page eventually entering the fray with his watery synths. Trey busts out some extended sustains and we head for ambience. It sounds pretty good on paper and any other night this would take off and be incredible, but tonight it sounds disjointed. Not bad at all, just undercooked. What's here is very good and highlights-list worthy, it's just totally does not reach maximum potential. Good but disappointing in the end!

>Runaway Jim - The guys can tell the previous jam is fizzling out and quickly launch smoothly into Jim to rekindle the energy. Almost immediately (well, 5 min in) the jam dives straight into Type II Space Funk. Things get pretty dark and weird. Fishman keeps the Jim beat going, but Page and Trey are playing with delays and effects and all kinds of weird sounds. This is totally outer space. Very cool and very much worth your time. Trey returns to regular sounds but Page keeps those dark synths going. Fishman is still killin' that Jim beat and this whole thing is leaning to major key bliss now. Only a minute to go, but this sucker was pretty great. Awesome micro-jam indeed!!!

>Undermind - Jim melts away turning into a funky groove, but Trey grabs it by the reigns, ups the tempo and leads us perfectly into Undermind. Now that was a true segue. Page absolutely tears it up on the keys. Trey lays back and just lets Leo go to friggin' town. Fantastic. Trey then picks up the torch and just unloads on us. Excellent and bluesy and funky. This is just a Type I Party Beast of the highest order. A+

>Ghost - Another great segue into a perfect song choice! This Ghost takes its time deciding on a direction, but they end up keeping it chill and mellow for a bit. Things end up in a pretty mysterious-yet-blissful kind of ambient space. Trey sounds unsure of what to play, but the jam sounds great regardless. Directionless, perhaps, but the actual playing is still great. Towards the end it all congeals into a magical miasma of blissful, peaky, 1.0-type beauty. They hit upon the goods and rode it out. AWESOME. You gotta hear it - I can't describe it.

>Golden Age - As Ghost is fading out, Page starts some rhythmic patterns on the keys which prompts Trey to start the GA theme. Not a perfect segue, but a cool transition, let's say . Keeping the microjams going, the guys bust out the funk again and let it rip for a solid 5 or so minutes of Type II goodness. Dance party awesomeness. At one point Fishman stops the beat and just plays with the cymbals. The rest of the band stops and then they all kind of fade back into the jam slowly. Pretty cool. Sounded like they were lost for a split second, but they quickly caught on and launched back in with a darker tone. As with Ghost though, they realise its coming to an end and immediately segue into Back On the Train. Could not have seen that coming!!!

>Back On the Train - Trey totally butchers the lyrics and the guys save his tail, lol. Pretty funny moment Trey recovers with some tasteful and quiet (TOO QUIET!!!) soloing. He drops in a delay here and there at times but decides to just lay it out there kosher. Page picks up on the piano and Trey tries to play with some sustain and ambient textures. The jam eventually builds a BIG head of steam and the guys just absolutely tear the Type I roof off the friggin' place. Awesome -but normal - BOTT.

Harry Hood - The crowd is into it but the band sounds tired and the tempo is sluggish. But again I'm not really a Hood fan so take that for what you will. Nice piano from Page and the whole thing is very nice, but I tend to tune out during Hood so I'll let you guys decide how good it was

Say It to Me SANTOS - Save me from Hood! Yes! Let's GO!! Closes the show in ripping fashion


All in all, set 2 was pretty dang sweet!! The guys had trouble at times deciding where to go - things felt uneven quite a bit. But they always steered the ship quickly back on course with never so much as a hint of any trainwreck. Each song had excellent jamming, even if it all was in the 5-7 minute range. Not my favorite show but not the worst either. If 100 percent is peak Phish, it felt like they were at 90% or something. They weren't tired sounding, but there was an indescribable lack of "x factor" going on. Just a very well played show with a very nice setlist in a very nice order with lots of very nice jamming. Nothing more nothing less. Hard to explain!!

I'd give this show a 3.8 or so. Strong A for effort!