I’ve probably had less interest in 78 than any other Keith-and-Donna year, and as a result have listened to very little of it. I’ve become a fan of over-the-top Jerry, though — that Might as Well from maybe late October 77 springs to mind, criminally not on an official release, can’t recall the exact date — and there’s certainly some of that in some of the April 78 recommendations that’ve been shared here. Perhaps I’ll do with 78 what I just did with 76 and spend a couple weeks getting better acquainted. But first, some pre-hiatus Dead TBD. @warewolf95 that Cow Palace NYE 76 show really is something else. Unusual song placements abound. Nice to encounter Morning Dew again, and the Uncle John’s Band>Bid You Goodnight encore is superb.
1978: 22 January thru 5 February is a great launch point. A potent string of Winter shows that will leave you questioning the mental state of the naysayers (nattering nabobs of negativism). In particular keep an ear out for this sequence featuring 3 consecutive Jerry tunes from 30 January in Chicago: Estimated Prophet > Eyes Of The World > Space > Stella Blue > Franklin's Tower > Around And Around
Indeed! I have and love them all, but there’s something about this one that’s just a step above for me. Maybe it’s just the quality of the tunes and performance.
Got DiP vol 3 on CD today for my Father’s Day present. A couple of years ago I wouldn’t have entertained the idea of listening to 77 era Dead but I don’t think it’s gets any better than this, does it?
I actually went to the Stones with my mom in 2005 when I first move to SF. She liked it, but didn't care for the giant computer-animated woman humping a bridge. There was an article in Musician magazine featuring both EC and Jerry, and I think in the article there's a picture of the crowd at that show, and you can pick out young Declan. It was around the time of Mighty Like A Rose and his cover of "Ship of Fools" on Deadicated. Or maybe a couple years before. It was when Elvis had a beard and a black hat and looked like a rabbi.
I saw Elvis, and his wife Diana Krall, perform with Furthur at Radio City in 2011. Elvis did a Ship Of Fools > It Must Have Been The Roses > Ship Of Fools that was utterly delightful. For me the highlight of the show was the first encore, Fever, which began with Diana Krall and Phil trading jazzy riffs back and forth between grand piano and bass. Holy smokes!
Another great show only officially released in part. So frustrating. That Road Trips, and those August shows sliced and diced on to a Dick’s Picks, are all shows worthy of hearing their full glory. Maybe there are reel flip or other issues as to why they weren’t released in full? I don’t know what’s in the vault — especially now that the Bettys are back — vs. what circulates, but I’d love for all of those two get full Norman, full releases. Last year’s PNW box was great, but 1974 is still severely underserved.
Some '74 shows have mix issues early on as Kidd was getting his space together. That said, all of 1974 should be officially released.
Good point about Kidd and the mixes. Lots (Nearly all?) of ‘74 shows I’ve heard have the early mix issues that seems to straighten out after a few songs. I feel like most Heads will be understanding of that, however, and that’s who’s buying both the box sets and Dave’s releases. Also a good point: It ALL needs to be released. Dick’s 7, 12, 24, and 31, and the WoS Road Trips. All have great music, none of them complete. Someday, soon, those need be rectified. DP 24 is especially baffling. First Wall of Sound, damned fine show, and I think there’s maybe 10 missing songs?? Never understood that. I made my own custom mix of that, came out seamless, but I shouldn’t have had to.
A mere 9 miles away from my house & I was completely bloody oblivious of it! Mind you, I was still a month short of my second birthday at the time...
I think we’ve had this discussion here before; the Jan/Feb 1978 shows just don’t feel or sound like the rest of the year. As a generalization (with some exceptions, as with all generalizations), Jan/Feb is very good, the rest of the year not so much, to put it kindly.
Apparently that has been overstated. Nick Lowe himself poo-pooed that. Being the gentleman that he is, Nick all but suggested that young Dec was basically, merely, a boy fan.
The Mrs. can play a mean piano. And her general musical acumen, as historian, is very solid, it seems. She won me over. (I can only imagine what a huge relief that is to her...)
April is frequently fantastic; the last two shows of the month already were officially released, but they really should compile a box set from it. May is very good, July already has a good box, and a release of a famous Red Rocks show pulled from it. Winterland in October is a nice run, which turned up in the Road Trips series. And you can find good shows in the late Fall, plus the popular Closing of Winterland NYE show. Feels like a solid year for the good ol' gratefuls.
The Pizza Tapes is spooky good sounding. Puts the fellas right there in your living room overlooking Stimson Beach, the smell of eucalyptus and Humboldt's finest in the air...
It's all opinion, obviously, but mine has been pretty stable in this regard for 30+ years. April, May, June, July, Sept, Nov have maybe a handful of really good shows between all of them; Jan/Feb have more than that in just 36 days. And as I mentioned, both the sound of the band and the playing style change very noticeably after Feb.
The technical term is "Wiganer", but I'm actually from St Helens, though that's close enough for most people on here (albeit a world of difference to those that know )
What do you think drove those changes? Or maybe someone knows or has written about it? I’m reading Billy’s book, Deal, right now but I’m not to those years yet. He might shed some light. In the meantime, I can speculate. My guess is the simple answer might be the right one: harder drugs and liquor in greater quantities than in 76-77, probably combined with the Groundhog Day nature of constant touring with the same songs. They had a whole fresh batch of new material to fuel and inspire 76 and 77, along with exciting new arrangements of old favorites to keep them interested. They worked those songs to the bone through 77, taking them to inspired heights. Seems like there was a touch more auto-pilot going on in 78, and therefore maybe a little less focus? I like 78. They played with a lot of fire at times and occasionally turned in a gem. But they played with a lot of fire in late 77 too. But anyway 78 is definitely a different animal than 77.
