Off the top of my head, I can think of four GoGD moments that elicit this response from me: 3/27/72 - Playin' starting at 6:18; 9/7/73 - Eyes starting at 10:49 (time stamp from the DaP, not the Wake of the Flood bonus track); 6/16/74 - China-Rider transition starting at 7:40; 2/26/77 - Playin' starting at 8:21 I suppose that I should lob the 4/8/72 DS in there somewhere, but you've got that covered. If the GD only ever played these four tracks and were never heard from again, I think they'd still be my favorite band. That's how far above and beyond the standard of excellence these moments are.
I find it difficult to pinpoint such specific moments personally as they usually hit me spontaneously, but it’s always the Dead.
JGB Electric on the Eel 1991. Friend and I are looking for Uncle Albert, find a 'head with a vial. We tell him we'll take 2 drops each. He says, "one is enough." We retort, "we know what we're doing. 2 please." I was sprawled on the ground for most of the Dr. John opening set. By the time Jerry started I could actually stand up again, but it was hard to tell what I was looking at through all the prisms and sh't. After the show, a short stroll to our campsite by the river. Stared up at the stars for hours. Good times!
Apparently my mom and dad attended that one. I was 4 at the time and they rarely went anywhere without me. It is possible that they took me with them. My dad might remember, but He's Gone. My mom, well, she thinks it's likely. But there were some neighbors that often babysat, so, who knows. I like to think 4-year-old me heard Pig and the boys that night...
I wonder how many good '73 tapes he had at that point in 1980 (or maybe he was just lit when he wrote those comments), but I've had the impression that '73 became his favorite year, later.
We are lucky to have what we have. Soundboard recordings of Fall 1970 are as rare as hen’s teeth. I believe that the partial recording of that show is due to Fillmore East crew tapping into the soundboard with a covert tape machine?
Yes, the guys from the stage crew who had a reel-to-reel under the stage tapped into the main PA feed. Fabulous!
That four-date, mini swing through the south-east is killer … and the best show hasn’t even seen an official release. Crazy!
The return of China>Rider after a post-hiatus one off on 12/29/77 and also one of the best ever Scarlet>Fires
Hey guys! I was looking for information about how this pressing sounds. I bought the one a few years back that was done in Europe, but the sound is not very good. I DO very much like the original mix, which the one I bought was from also. Michael 45 just showed this on his channel and since it is AAA all analog I am VERY interested to find out how you all think it compares to other releases on vinyl and how good the sound quality is (in other words, is it worth the $45 one time purchase ) Thank you! Jaime.
Not to be THAT guy, but Paul Kantner and Taj Mahal opened in ‘91 (Dr. John opened in ‘89), so it definitely must have been hard to tell what you were looking at. (I was there for both of those shows - such an idyllic setting for the JGB!)
Yesterday I listened to 1972/05/13 Lille, France (Europe '72) for the first time. Still slowly trekking through the E'72 tour. Only a few more to go until I've heard them all. Pretty nice Truckin>TOO combo, as usual, though this one just kinda happened, don't recall much about it. Always need to give more listens.
I've been going through a bunch of '68-'70 releases recently, and have realized that for as much as I enjoy this era, there are aspects I tire of, and I also yearned for the Keith era, if only for the more expansive sound, and yes, the greater variety of material. One thing I've realized I dislike about the pre-'71 era is Jerry's vocals, which is ironic as I love his vocals from '71 onwards. Something about his vocal inflections before then irk me sometimes. His playing also got a lot better, and more interesting, around '69/'70 and by '71 had the classic sound going, and his phrasing was also more creative, less chops-oriented. From my limited knowledge of recordings, Jerry improved dramatically both as a vocalist/singer, and as a guitarist from mid-1969 to early 1971.
I love Jerry’s vocals and playing in 69/70. They were lysurgically dipped and sounded absolutely perfect for the material. 1970 was a transition year. Jerry’s playing definitely continued to expand after then… but 1971 is an entirely different beast than what came before. The twang trumped the fire. 1972 is a significant improvement on 71… IMHO…