Hopped in the car in my way home and this show was on the Grateful Dead channel. Sadly it was only a selection from the second set, likey from the today in history segment, but I didn't hear Dave's preamble and if he mentioned anything about the source tape. I really enjoy the piece of terrain I heard though...
78-01-31 Chicago Really hot Mississippi half step to open the show. You hardly hear that raw and rocking sound in '77. Jerry is great. Backed up by a fine fine Betty board by way of CM. Very good recommendations so far by the US Blues guy
Since I take regular road trips for my work, I am familiar with the phenomenon of road melt. And when I head south on I-25, winding up in El Paso is, in fact, a distinct possibility. I did go to El Paso once, and the food there is great! To finish the thought, in Waldenburg, CO, there is a little place on Main St. called "Rosa's Cantina." Honest. Of course during one trip, while stopped at the red light and sitting in view of that bistro, the next song that came up on the CD was El Paso. I marveled at how Bobby knew to play it in the 1st set one night in Berkeley in 1972, so I could have that synchronous moment many years later.
All that bleeding posts about the set formerly known as "the port crusher" filled me with the urge of listening to the band. Since I've received the 4-CD set today, I'm giving it a listen (but still on Spotify, because I'm at work).
No porch crusher for me. Catching up on some Deadpod. 2/27/90 Oakland I haven't listened to Spring '90 in a while. I like this sound. Even the midi flute solo during Stranger. I'm at the end of Victim now. Still don't like the song, but the echoing drums/bass breakdown before the end was interesting. Half-Step, Masterpiece and Bird Song to come.
Currently making my way through the second set of 9/28/72. What a killer show! Overall, I still think it has the edge on 9/27, although that show has its share of great moments as well (Dark Star>Cumberland Blues being the most obvious and spectacular of them), and the unfortunate gaps in 9/28's soundboard make the fact that it hasn't been released understandable. For example, the China>Rider from this show blows the one from the previous night clear out of the water, but the second half of Rider is patched by a very sub-par AUD. Also, the Truckin' which opens the show is missing from the SBD, and Jerry's vocals are missing from the mix on the Loser that follows. Still, it's worth putting up with these imperfections for what I consider to be one of the best shows from this era. The Playing which closes the first set is top-tier stuff, and the Other One in the second set is a force to contend with - one of the best in my opinion. Since I'm talking about this tour, and technical imperfections, I am wondering if anyone who has been listening to the streams of the 30 Trips shows has checked out the Palace Theater show from 9/24 yet? When I listened to the SBD from the Archive over the summer, I remember it being of less-than-stellar quality, with gaps in the SBD recording comparable to this 9/28 show. I would be interested to know how the new official version sounds in comparison. I would it expect it to be a considerable upgrade, and if so, this show would be one of the first on my list to get if the shows from the box are ever released as digital downloads.
I attended 9/27. upon hearing about the track list for the upcoming Europe 72 collection we decided we wanted to hear morning dew. before we had the chance to call for it, it was the opening song. we knew we had a good night ahead. and yes, the dark star > Cumberland blew us away.
May not count for much with this crowd, but "The Dead" (Spring '09) played it quite a few times. I like the Chicago 05/04 and Wilkes Barre was pretty good too.
Thinking about diving into the Dead rabbit hole. Thinking about starting with Working Man's Dead. Trying to find a mint LP copy, turning out to be not so simple. Would buy the MFSL 45rpm reissue but I own a Pro-Ject Debut TT. Not that easy to listen to 45's...
Searching for a mint LP for the Dead to get started isn't quite diving into the rabbit hole - more like standing on the edge of the pool dangling a toe to check if it is too cold. Their studio albums (especially American Beauty and Workingman's Dead) are certainly worth hearing, but I don't think they give you a feel for what the Dead were about. Check out some of the highly regarded live albums - Ladies and Gentlemen, Europe 72 are very approachable. If you want to really take the plunge, Live Dead. Personally, I would skim a few random pages of this thread and follow some links to archive.org or even to youtube. The new 30 Trips compilation might be a great way to get started, see how the sound evolved and pick an era to get further into.
It kind of cracks me up, at least. My favorite thing about it was reading an interview with I think Weir in the Golden Road where he said "If you missed the band meeting about the video, you might wind up sitting on a piano bench next to a duck or wearing a top hat." I guess Phil and Brent skipped that one. Also, I think Billy's book said that Weir got the duck drunk on champagne. Anyway, not really much there except maybe a bit of local San Rafael color with New George's, the drive along Fourth Street, and a bunch of the women from the GD office. And it is ridiculously literal, except for the duck, who they should have saved for the Liberty video that never happened. Re: Liberty, it's been a looong while, but IIRC, the earlier Robert Hunter solo album version is notable for the "walk like a duck" background vocal echoes after that lyric. And that wraps up today's news related to ducks and the GD, unless rne or Ducks Deluxe want to chime in.
I got road melt once on the way back to the east coast from the Greek '89 run and wound up in Peoria, IL and my car promptly broke down. I had to sleep in it in a bowling alley parking lot and get a tow the next morning. No offense if any of you are from or currently reside in Peoria, but man oh man, you haven't hit the lowest of the lows until you've slept in a bowling alley parking lot in Peoria, IL.
Really appreciate the feedback. Yes, I'm definitely dangling a toe, haha. I've just recently dug myslef out of the Neil Young rabbit hole after a year of collecting/ obsessing over his catalog.
