February Grateful Dead Show Listening Guides
- Mason's Children
- 7 days ago
- 68 min read
Welcome to this month's Grateful Dead Show Listening Guides!
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Over time, as I've written these listening guides, I marked up my copy of the book like this:
The underlined songs are the ones I'm calling out as highlights (songs names that are bolded) in the listening guide, and the songs highlighted in yellow are the ones that Howard Weiner has identified as Jam Anthem renditions. I also write notes in the space provided if I'm feeling inspired or if there are any updates such as newly released material. Ultimately you can use it however you want, but this was my original intent with the book.
By the way, if you're new here, this is my month-by-month archive of my listening guides that gives you the most interesting and significant facts from Grateful Dead History, along with reviews of the music. If you'd like to stay up to date on new reviews and other information, you can subscribe here:
February
For the month of February, the Grateful Dead's history is defined by pivotal shifts in personnel, technology, and repertoire. The month includes the band's resilience following the February 1, 1970 bust in New Orleans, where they performed a bail fund benefit immediately after the incident. Significant lineup changes occurred during this month, most notably Keith and Donna Godchaux performing their final show on February 17, 1979, and Mickey Hart beginning a three-and-a-half-year hiatus starting February 18, 1971. This 1971 Capitol Theatre run also featured the debut of five classic songs in a single evening and marked the first "Betty Board" recording by Betty Cantor-Jackson.
Technological advancements were also prominent in February. On February 27, 1969, the band recorded the first live concert using 16-track technology, capturing the version of Dark Star later released on Live/Dead. In 1973, they unveiled a Wall of Sound prototype at Stanford, and on February 25, 1990, Jerry Garcia debuted his MIDI-enabled Rosebud guitar, retiring his Tiger guitar. The month also features unique collaborations and venue history, including sharing the stage with The Velvet Underground in 1969, a sit-in by Peter Green in 1970, and appearances by Bob Dylan and Spencer Davis in 1989. The month covers a wide spectrum of the band's evolution, from the primal energy of 1968 at King's Beach Bowl to the stadium-filling era of the 1990s.
Interesting historical events in Grateful Dead History for January:
Neal Cassady died mysteriously in Mexico (2/4/1968)
Sam Cutler’s first official gig as tour manager (2/4/1970)
The Grateful Dead and The Velvet Underground shared the stage for the first time (2/7/1969)
Jerry Garcia allegedly took Valium before a show with poor results (2/7/1979)
John Parry Barlow passed away (2/7/2018)
The mysterious Ungano's Night Club show, which has no authentic recording (2/12/1970)
Carousel Ballroom opened as a venue (2/14/1968)
Mickey Hart began a 3.5-year hiatus from the band (2/18/1971)
Betty Cantor-Jackson made her first "Betty Board" recording (2/18/1971)
Keith and Donna played their final show (2/17/1979)
Jerry Garcia debuted his new MIDI-enabled guitar, Rosebud (2/25/1990)
The first live concert ever recorded on 16-track technology (2/27/1969)
First Song Performances
China Cat Sunflower-themed Jam (2/7/1969), Hey Jude (2/11/1969), Bertha (2/18/1971), Loser (2/18/1971), Greatest Story Ever Told (2/18/1971), Wharf Rat (2/18/1971), Playing In The Band (2/18/1971), Bird Song (2/19/1971), Deal (2/19/1971), Row Jimmy (2/9/1973), Loose Lucy (2/9/1973), Here Comes Sunshine (2/9/1973), They Love Each Other (2/9/1973), Eyes Of The World (2/9/1973), China Doll (2/9/1973), Wave That Flag (2/9/1973), U.S. Blues (2/22/1974), It Must Have Been The Roses (2/22/1974), Ship Of Fools (2/22/1974), Terrapin Station (2/26/1977), Estimated Prophet (2/26/1977), We Can Run (2/5/1989), Standing On The Moon (2/5/1989), Salt Lake City (2/21/1995)
Final Song Performances
Mason’s Children (2/28/1970), From The Heart Of Me (2/17/1979), How Long Blues (2/12/1989), Monkey And The Engineer (2/12/1989)
Only Song Performances
Beautiful Jam (2/18/1971), Salt Lake City (2/21/1995)
February Grateful Dead Show Listening Guide Index
Here’s an index list of all 50 shows reviewed in January. You can click the link to jump to that date or just keep scrolling down the page.
February 1st
2/1/1970 The Warehouse, New Orleans, LA
This impromptu afternoon show was held as a “bust fund benefit” show, since the band had to spend all their proceeds from the previous two nights on bail. The tape starts off with an announcement of upcoming shows, followed by the MC introducing the band as “the group that made this show possible, the Grateful Dead”, but Phil burst in with “The New Orleans Police Department!”, which elicits some applause from the crowd. They launch into a rowdy version of Beat It On Down The Line but the mix is horribly off, and Bobby’s strumming will attempt to blow out your speakers. Phil is barely present (is he still having amp issues?), the vocals are low, as are the drums. But the energy and passion are undeniable, and this show is by far the best performance of the three shows.
They are bound and determined to blow the roof off the place. Despite the mix issues, China Cat into I Know You Rider is scorching hot. A standout rendition of Black Peter is next, that builds into a nice outro and quickly segues into a rousing reading of Cumberland Blues. The mix seems to be pretty good at this point. Things really heat up for Good Lovin’ into Drums into Good Lovin. Pigpen is strong, and the jamming is energetic, but unfortunately the tape is cut and we don’t get to hear the second Pigpen verse. Other highlights are a very tight Dire Wolf, and after a quick Dark Star tease, they launch into Cryptical into Drums into Other One into Lovelight that is the big highlight of the show. The energy of the jamming is stratospheric. Peter Green from Fleetwood Mac joins as a guest guitarist on this epic 41+ minute version of Lovelight. It’s one of my all-time favorite versions.
2/1/1978 Uptown Theater, Chicago, IL
3rd of a 3-show run. The boys cap off the run with a fine show that might not have the intensity of the previous night, but still has plenty of great moments to enjoy. First set highlights are a powerful Jack Straw opener, the less-common (only played 13 times) country combo of Mama Tried > Me & My Uncle, Ramble On Rose, Cassidy, and a strong Sugaree with a nice muscular jam in the middle to end the set. The second set starts off with a strong rendition of Samson that would make Rev. Gary Davis smile. Things cool off for a pretty version of Must Have Been The Roses, followed by the big jam segment of the show: Estimated > He’s Gone > Drums > Jam > Other One > Wharf Rat > Sugar Magnolia.
February 2nd
2/2/1970 The Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO
Officially released on Dave’s Picks Volume 6. The show must go on, for the band must survive. A mere 3 days after being arrested and detained by the New Orleans police, the band is on the run and they’re playing like they’ve just been given a second chance. The raw energy and enthusiasm are undeniable here. This show only partially circulates, so to hear most of these songs you’ll need Dave’s Picks Volume 6. Opening with a rousing version of Casey Jones, followed by Mama Tried and Hard to Handle. Next, we get a powerful version of Cold Rain & Snow, followed by a plaintive take on Black Peter. Cumberland Blues is hot as usual for the time period. Then they launch into psychedelic mode with a crisp, exploratory Dark Star (including a nice early rendition of a “Feeling Groovy” jam) > Saint Stephen > Mason’s Children. After a vigorous Good Lovin’ with Pigpen in the spotlight, they segue into Uncle John’s Band. A final Pig-stravaganza unfolds with a brisk Lovelight > Not Fade Away > Lovelight sequence that closes out the show.
Music link: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1970/02/02
February 3rd
2/3/1978 Dane County Coliseum, Madison, WI
Partially, but almost entirely officially released on Dick's Picks Volume 18. Dane County Coliseum had developed a reputation as a place where some top-notch Grateful Dead concerts took place (see 2/15/73 and 10/25/73). This would be the first time the band returned to Madison since those shows, and this one picks up where those epic shows left off. All told, the band would play here 3 more times after this show, for a total of 6 performances.
The entire first set is really strong, with sparkling, energetic playing from start to finish. Highlights are a fierce Cold Rain & Snow opener (always a good sign that you’re in for a treat), along with standout performances of They Love Each Other, Peggy-O, Music Never Stopped.
The energy and enthusiasm carry all the way through the second set. Kicking off with a rousing Good Lovin that dials up the heat, followed by Ship Of Fools that cools off the tempo, but not the passion. Jerry’s singing is heartfelt and masterful on this one. Then comes the real highlight of the whole show – an hour and change of some of the best jamming of the year. Estimated exhibits intricate and skillful musicianship between Bob, Jerry and Keith that builds to a very nice peak, then slowly floats down to create a beautiful door through which Jerry crafts a gorgeous rendition of Eyes. This version absolutely smokes, and contains some wild, fast stumming (fanning technique) by Jerry that will knock your socks off. The jamming intensity settles down into a delicate transition into Playing that, at over 24 minutes in length, will take you on an extended inter-stellar trip through the universe after the first verse, then into Wheel, and back into Playing for another 9 minutes! They encore with a ripping version of Johnny B. Goode to rock out the finale.
2/3/1979 Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, IN
This show is a bit of a mystery, in that we’re not totally sure of the exact song order of the set list. Some set lists claim that Brown-Eyed Women was played before China Cat and appears on the circulating first set. From the Heart of Me was played between Fire on the Mountain and Estimated Prophet and circulated in this position on some cassettes in the pre-digital days. The set list in my book is based on evidence from SHNIDs 154522, 102876, 102851, 102455 and 19414 for the first set and SHNID 7116 and 154522 for second set. I've listened to all of the available recordings and only SHNID 7116 and 154522 (which might be a lower gen copy of 7116 source that also includes the first set?) have Brown Eyed Women before China Cat, but you can clearly hear quick levels fade and a pause, so maybe the taper just missed Looks Like Rain because it's not present at all. All the SBD recordings have Looks Like Rain between Brown Eyed Women and China Cat. Also, SHNID 7116 does not have From The Heart Of Me between Stagger Lee and The Music Never Stopped, however there is an audible tape pause after Stagger Lee. There's only one source for the second set (an AUD) and it doesn't have From The Heart Of Me after Fire On The Mountain, but there is a tape pause so it could just be missing. Anyways, the music captured on the tapes is very good despite the obvious issues they’re having with the sound system. I prefer SHNID 154522.
First set highlights include Brown Eyed Women, China Cat > I Know You Rider (97 show breakout, first version since 12/29/77, only the 2nd version since 10/20/74 and it never left the rotation again), as well as a particularly hot Music Never Stopped to end the set.
The second set opens with a ridiculously good Scarlet > Fire that features some truly epic guitar work by Jerry. He’s got some seriously furious energy on his guitar solo, and the outro jam and segue into Fire is pretty unique. Other highlights include strong flawless versions of Estimated > Eyes (this is a really fast tempo version and Jerry keeps the envelope filter effect on for the first minute which is different), Other One > Wharf Rat, and a rockin’ take on One More Saturday Night.
February 4th
Neal Cassady died mysteriously in Mexico (2/4/1968)
Sam Cutler’s first official gig as tour manager (2/4/1970)
2/4/1970 Family Dog at the Great Highway, San Francisco, CA
Partially officially released on Grateful Dead Download Series: Family Dog at the Great Highway and A Night At The Family Dog. You can watch some of the performance (China > Rider) here. The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and Santana played a show at the tiny Family Dog for PBS TV cameras along with a few lucky audience members, and turned out some really great music. You can read newspaper reviews here and an extensive analysis of how and why this event happened here. This would be Sam Cutler’s first official gig as the band’s manager. All of the music in this short set is superb, but highlights to me are Hard To Handle, China Cat > I Know You Rider, St. Stephen > NFA > St. Stephen > Midnight Hour.
2/4/1979 Dane County Coliseum, Madison, WI
Another really fine show at the Dane County Coliseum. While it’s maybe not up to the epic level of 2/3/78, there’s still a lot of great moments in here. First set highlights include Half Step > Franklin’s Tower, Peggy-O, Cassidy, Lazy Lightning > Supplication. The second set kicks off with a monster Shakedown Street with a nice extended jam in the middle. Other highlights include crisp, expressive renditions of Terrapin > Playing, and Iko > Black Peter > Around.
Music link: set 1: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1979/02/04?source=337935 set 2: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1979/02/04?source=1919452
February 5th
2/5/1970 Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA
1st of a 4-show run. There’s a Listen to the Music Play – On This Day In Grateful Dead History book update: A newly discovered audience recording of this show emerged in March, 2024 (SHNID 167036) that provided a better picture of the setlist. According to the information included in the FLAC file set, the music comes from a reel purchased on eBay and was recorded by a Filmore West employee. Given the new recording, please update your book to include a note and add China Cat > I Know You Rider, Me And My Uncle , Dark Star > The Main Ten > Dark Star > The Other One > Alligator. Also note that Cumberland does not segue into Uncle Johns Band, as indicated in the book. In my book I used a whiteout pen to remove the “>” and put a “,” in its place. The corrected set list can be seen on JerryBase here. I like SHNID 168280, which is a composite of the best audience and recordings to produce the most complete recording of this nice show.
The highlight of this show is Dark Star > The Main Ten > Dark Star > The Other One > Alligator > Drums > The Eleven > Caution > NFA > Cumberland. Dark Star is not the longest version out there, but is densely packed with all the things you love about the earlier versions of this song: beautifully expressive guitars, thundering melodic bass, entrancing rhythmic beats created with shakers, guiro, symbols, chimes, triangle and other hand percussion instruments. This one tells the story of that interstellar journey, but is kind of unique in that it contains an almost “Uncle John’s Band” jam before the Main Ten. Main Ten is, of course, a thematic jam that would evolve and be incorporated into the song Playing In The Band. The Eleven and Caution are both very powerful, energetic renditions and contain nice extended jamming. Caution contains an And We Bid You Goodnight jam and a very brief China Cat riff, which is fun and unique.
2/5/1978 Uni Dome, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
Officially released on Dick's Picks Volume 18. Almost every song is delivered with abundant energy, and fierce attack. First set highlights are Bertha > Good Lovin’, Brown Eyed Women, Tennessee Jed, Passenger, and Deal to close the set. The second set contains all the same energy without the edge that was present during the first set. The effect is that they take their time and focus more, instead of just ripping through each song like it’s an encore.
They kick off the second set with an epic Samson (Jam Anthem version), followed by an incredible rendition of Scarlet > Fire (Jam Anthem version) that has a lot of nice nuances between Keith and Jerry. The connecting jam into Fire is especially spellbinding. Other highlights include Truckin’ that blasts the audience with a big muscular jam and some Drums before sliding into a big, powerful Other One (Jam Anthem version) featuring primal playing and throwback lyrics by Bobby (“coming around in a circle”). This leads to a poignant Wharf Rat that cools off the tempo, but not the intense delivery. They close the set with a ripping version of Around & Around.
2/5/1989 Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center, Oakland, CA
1st of a 3-show run. Several reviewers who were at this show lament about being disappointed in this show because there is a lot of focus on "new" music and the rumors of getting banned from playing again at the Kaiser. With a capacity of 7,900, the Kaiser was one of the few smaller venues that the Dead had been playing regularly (46 times total, 40 times with Grateful Dead), but now the crowd had swollen to an unmanageable size, and the local residents and the city didn't want to deal with it any more. This was a time when the Dead had become hugely popular, in part catapulted by the radio and MTV music video hit "Touch of Grey", which subsequently resulted in thousands of younger (annoying and badly behaving) "Touch Heads" flooding the scene. Unfortunately, the rumors were true about being the last time, and this run of shows (2/5, 6 & 7/89) ended up being their final appearance at the Kaiser. Blair Jackson wrote an insightful blog post on this "Touch of Grey" part of the Dead's career which includes an interview with Jerry on the subject.
The First set opener of Touch > Stranger > Franklin's is energetic and well played. But the first performance of We Can Run sounds rushed to my ears. Brent seems to struggle to get the lyrics out while Bobby and Jerry play very sparsely through most of it. You can tell they're still working out the kinks. The crowd seems to be into it however. The first performance of Standing on the Moon in the second set sounds similarly "bare" and under-developed to me. Still, it would have been cool to see those two first-time-played performances.
The best part of the show to me is the second set. Kicking off with a rousing Cold Rain & Snow (a rare second set opener) that builds some nice energy and segues into a groovy Women Are Smarter. Other highlights include an exploratory Playing which gets some good spacey jamming going, an extended He’s Gone that occupies a rare post-Space position and a poignant Morning Dew to close the set.
February 6th
2/6/1979 Tulsa Fairgrounds Pavilion, Tulsa, OK
I was again getting ready to talk about how odd it was that there was no circulating recording for this show, when all of a sudden on Jan 30th, 2025 someone posted a Charlie Miller transfer of an audience recording (SHNID 169936) on Lossless Legs. And better yet, it is in fact the rumored audience recording by William LaFortune who was a prominent lawyer and Mayor of Tulsa for a period of time. The recording that was posted is said to be a 1st generation copy of William’s master, and was provided by his son John. So, now we finally have a recording of this highly sought-after show! There is no known recording in the Vault, presumably because it’s one of the lost tapes given to Brent Mydland to study when he joined the band in March of 1979. You have to go all the way back to 3/17/71 to find the next "confirmed" show with no circulating recording (over 400 shows)! And there is no later show without some type of circulating recording, so it’s always been a big outlier. You can read a detailed explanation of a theory of why that is on this Lost Live Dead blog article.
Now, on to the recording itself. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s amazing to finally have a recording and it helps validate the set list. That said, as my JerryBase colleague Tyler Roy-Hart stated, we now know what it sounded like if you hid under the seats in the auditorium that night. All joking aside, the tape is clear enough to hear that it was in fact a pretty good show, but the music sounds very distant compared to the audience voices around the microphones because said mics were taped to the legs of the chair to remain hidden. It’s too bad the mics weren’t raised in the air because I think the recoding would actually sound really good. Based on the noise level from the applause there doesn’t sound like there’s many people in the audience, which seems to confirm eye witness accounts. We also have a true and correct set list for the night. The only change to the book would be to replace Minglewood with Passenger in the first set. Some set lists also have Stagger Lee, but that song is not on the tape. After listening to the recording, first set highlights are Loser, Peggy-O, China Cat > I Know You Rider, Passenger, Deal. Second set highlights include a rousing triple rock combo of Miracle > Bertha > Good Lovin’, some nice extended jamming on Estimated > Eyes, and a particularly poignant Black Peter and a rousing Around & Around.
Music link: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1979/02/06
February 7th
The Grateful Dead and The Velvet Underground shared the stage for the first time (2/7/1969)
Jerry Garcia allegedly took Valium before a show with poor results (2/7/1979)
John Parry Barlow passed away (2/7/2018)
2/7/1969 Stanley Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
Early and Late shows. The Grateful Dead and The Velvet Underground share the stage for the first of only three times at this show. Both bands went by the name of The Warlocks around the same time, and it was when Jerry discovered them that he serendipitously opened a dictionary to the words GRATEFUL DEAD, thereby suggesting this to Phil as a new name for the band. It’s also well-known and documented that the bands didn’t care too much for each other.
There’s lots of disparaging remarks made by members of the Velvet Underground about the Grateful Dead, but as this interesting analysis of the two bands in the book The Right Kind Of Pain by Mark Grief points out, there are some undeniable similarities: “On the West Coast, Ken Kesey hired the Dead to provide music for his acid tests... The Palo Alto acid test, the first to involve a real stage, took place in December 1965… In New York, meanwhile, Warhol took up the Velvets as a vehicle for his Factory events and a featured role in the Exploding Plastic Inevitable, which had various incarnations between January 1966 and its first broad public invitation in April, each of which also involved some combination of Warhol’s dancing fools, slide-projector gels, light shows, silent films and chaos…
The most striking fact is that, like the Grateful Dead, the Velvet Underground started out as a platform for extremely long, wandering, repetitive, live improvisations, appropriate to multimedia events.” So, basically the 60s rock version of Tupac and Bigge East Coast/West Coast hip-hop rivalry, just not blown out of proportion to the level of killing each other. Anyways, I point all this out just to offer the most commonly accepted explanation as to why these two seemingly completely different bands would be billed together. You can read the newspaper reviews of the show here, and if you want to see another interesting comparison between the two bands, check this succinct 2-part mind-blowing comparison by Brian Marchese out.
Now, what about the music for this show? Well, it’s all great high-energy material. Since there were two other bands playing, they couldn’t stretch out as much as they would like, but they waste no time, and launch the Early Show into a nice Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Lovelight. It’s all very tight, smooth and energetic. The Late Show is a little longer, and represents an even higher level of intensity. Again, none of these songs are very lengthy, but there’s fierce versions of Cryptical > Other One > Cryptical > Death Don’t Have No Mercy, followed by some creative, free-spirited jamming on Alligator > Drums > China Cat Jam (first known performance) > Caution > Feedback > And We Bid You Good Night.
2/7/1979 SIU Arena, University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale, IL
This is one that you hear people talking about occasionally. This is the show where, according to Steve Parish's book Home Before Daylight, Jerry allegedly took Valiums before hitting the stage. I don't have his book so I don't have the details but if you have it you can read about it, and you can read reviews of the show online corroborating Steve's story. I have listened to the partial available recordings of this show, and I can confirm that it does start off with a solid Don't Ease (a rarity as a first set opener, and the first performance since 8/6/74 – 215 shows) but things quickly take a turn for the worse. I’m here to tell you that I’ve listened to this show a couple of times, and I’m good for probably forever, because there is just so much better music to spend my time listening to.
February 8th
2/8/1970 Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA
4th of a 4-show run. Here is one that you don't want to miss! This whole show is great, but everyone agrees - this Smokestack Lightning is the definitive version. The GOAT. I have always loved this version, probably due to the fact that it was featured on Bear's Choice, which was one of the first albums I bought when I was desperately trying to get all the live Dead recordings I could get my hands on. Not only is this a Pig-stravaganza, wailing on his harp and singing his heart out, but the whole band comes together to blow the roof off the place. The song starts much like many other versions, but it’s undeniable that Jerry, Bobby and Phil are channeling some serious blues emotions through their guitars. The song builds to unprecedented heights of intensity toward the end. Standing in the audience, it must have hit you like a freight train!
Anyways, there's other great stuff here as well, like a unique acoustic rendition of Sitting On Top Of the World, and the massive 24+ minute Dark Star that takes us on a captivating interstellar trip. I wish this whole show would be officially released from the Vault so we could hear this part of the show in pristine soundboard audio. In fact, I bet they could create a box set out of this whole run of Fillmore West shows 😊. After some nice jamming, including a Feeling Groovy jam, they transition into a powerful St. Stephen > NFA > St. Stephen > Lovelight segment, which is all prime high-energy ’70 Grateful Dead music.
February 9th
2/9/1973 Roscoe Maples Pavilion, Stanford, Palo Alto, CA
This epic show is one that is in constant rotation in my playlist. Honestly, I can’t believe it hasn’t been officially released yet because the majority of the songs on this recording are played with confidence and passion. The band has a new sound, and Dan Healey has developed a prototype for the Wall of Sound that the band is playing through for the first time. On top of that, there are no less than seven new songs being performed for the first time here. Now, the Grateful Dead sort of have a reputation for underwhelming “first time performances” of new material, but I’m here to tell you that is not the case for this show.
The long hour-and-a-half first set kicks off with a rowdy, upbeat Promised Land, followed by the first performance of Row Jimmy. The next few songs are all perfectly played, including a rousing first-time performance of Loose Lucy. Other highlights include standout performances of Here Comes Sunshine and a big, exploratory Playing to end this long set.
The entire second set is one marathon highlight, and kicks off with an iconic Wavy Gravy introduction of “the sunshine makers”. After a rap about the Vietnam war, the “sunshine makers” make good on their nickname and deliver one of the best renditions of China Cat > I Know You Rider you’ll ever hear. This is one of my all-time favorite versions. Other highlights include Jack Straw, They Love Each Other (first performance), Eyes (first performance) > China Doll (first performance). After all that, they play seven more songs (!) and an encore, including the first performance of Wave That Flag, the song that would eventually become U.S. Blues (once Jerry finalizes all the things that need to be done before Fall sets in).
February 10th
2/10/1979 Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall, Kansas City, KS
This is an excellent, high-energy heater of a show from beginning to end, and you’re going to love it. The band is just "on". First set highlights are a rare first set Don't Ease opener, They Love Each Other, Minglewood, Brown Eyed Women, Deal, and a fierce Jack Straw to close the set. Second set highlights are Scarlet > Fire, Estimated > Eyes > Drums > Space > Jam (14+ minutes!) > Other One > Wharf Rat > Sugar Magnolia. They double encore with One More Saturday Night and Miracle (the second of only 3 times ever performed as an encore).
Music link: 1st & 2nd set Aud: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1979/02/10?source=338098 2nd set SBD: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1979/02/10?source=337865
2/10/1989 Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA
If you're a Phil phan, this show is for you. Phil is on FIRE and there are Phil Bombs everywhere! The entire first set is excellent, but the highlights are a smoking Stranger > Franklin's opener, and a rousing Let It Grow closer. Second set highlights are Just a Little Light set 2 opener (the only time they ever did that), a very nice Truckin' outro jam, a peppy up-tempo Playing, Wheel > Gimme Some Lovin’, and that Baby Blue encore is... so perfect. Definitely worthy of a listen.
February 11th
2/11/1969 (Early and Late) Fillmore East, New York, NY
1st of a 2-show run. Officially released on Live at the Fillmore East 2-11-69 and unfortunately, this is the only place you can listen to this fine show. If you’re lucky enough to have this one, this is your reminder to pull it off the shelf and give it a spin. Early Show highlights are Schoolgirl, Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Cryptical > Doing That Rag, King Bee (Last known performance 6/6/67, 257 shows), Lovelight. They close by playing the first known version of Hey Jude. Pigpen certainly puts his heart into it. Musically they do a fine job, for the most part, and same for the vocals. There are a few flat spots but what really can you expect from the Grateful Dead doing a Beatles cover? Well, they only performed this song 3 times, and I wouldn’t exactly say they “nailed it” for any of them, but each rendition is a fun, unique experience. My personal favorite is the final version with Brent signing from 3/22/90 that has Dear Mr. Fantasy sandwiched in the middle.
The Late Show is a continuation of this splendid show. The whole thing is only an hour of music, but they don’t waste any notes and pack a lot of classic song selections into that short set. Highlights are the entire set: Dupree’s Diamond Blues, Mountains Of The Moon > Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Drums > Caution > Feedback > And We Bid You Goodnight. They encore with Cosmic Charlie which is appended to AWBYGN as a hidden track on the CD because the tape runs out a couple of minutes into the song. Too bad because it starts off great.
Music link: No circulating tapes available as of February 2026
2/11/1970 (Early and Late) Fillmore East, New York, NY
1st of a 3-show run. The Grateful Dead, The Allman Brothers and Love sell out the Fillmore East for 6 shows over 3 days. The band had a huge following by this point, and as David Davis points out in his groundbreaking book The Economic History of the Grateful Dead, 1970 would finally be a year that the band would leverage their popularity and make some good money touring. This is because Lenny Hart wasn’t around to steal from the band any more, but also due to Sam Cutler’s more efficient tour scheduling that minimized mileage between shows.
The Early Show only has a small circulating snippet so it kind of lives in the shadows of all the other shows in the run. But what we do have is nice. The tape cuts in most of the way through what appears to be a standout Other One that builds up and winds down into Cryptical and then lands gently into a brisk, countrified take on Dire Wolf. The vocal harmonies are very well done, and the song is musically well executed. After that, they waste no time and launch into a fine reading of Casey Jones.
The Late Show has some truly spectacular moments. We get a monster NFA. It's furious, hard driving version, and ranks up there as one of my favorites. This rendition of High Time is as good as they come. But my favorite segment is Dark Star that segues into a rousing, inspired Spanish Jam breakout (3/30/68, 309 shows!), fueled by guest appearances of the Allman Brothers and members of Fleetwood Mac. This is another Deadology II Jam Anthem version. But Pigpen was not to be outdone. The Lovelight is one chaotic Pig-stravaganza with a classic rap about getting busy with his woman. It does kind of drag out a little, however. After all that electric noise, they decide to cool things off with Uncle John’s Band encore featuring only a single acoustic guitar. Before they get started Phil logically pleads with the audience to be quiet and to not be wasteful. “If you’re going to throw dope up here, throw it so we can see where it goes”. It sure sounds like a fun time was had by all!
Music link: Early Show https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1970/02/11?source=335657
February 12th
The mysterious Ungano's Night Club show, which has no authentic recording (2/12/1970)
2/12/1970 Ungano's Night Club, New York, NY
February is a mysterious month for Grateful Dead music over the years, as we’ve seen with Neil Cassady’s mysterious death, uncertain setlists, and Jerry eating Valiums before a show and totally tanking it. But at least we now have a tape for the 2/6/79 show and can say for certain what songs were played there. But now we turn our attention to 2/12/70, which is one of the biggest mysteries of them all. I love reading about the various theories behind whether this show actually took place - and if so, why was it shrouded in mystery, and how did it take place? This one has a lot of evidentiary twists and turns, and is the ultimate case study in how difficult it can be to confirm details (or whether the show even happened for that matter) when it comes to early Dead shows. Unfortunately, it doesn't help that a popular recording which purports to be from this show continues to circulate to this day as 2/12/70. Let me be clear: THERE IS NO KNOWN AUTHENTIC RECORDING of the 2/12/70 Ungano's Nightclub show. The Jay Serafin tape (SHNID 5932 and 88908) has been proven to be an audio recording of the 2/13/70 Early show, and nobody debates that any more.
So why does Etree and Lossless Legs still list that recording as 2/12/70?? It's unfortunate because newer generations of Dead Heads stumble upon it, and don't have the background or take the time to read the "fine print" so it perpetuates the lie, so to speak. That said, what people do debate is whether or not the show took place. There's a ton of really intriguing stuff here that will give you a glimpse "inside the machine" when it comes to the control Bill Graham had, how (and why) secret gigs were booked at places like Ungano's in NYC, and how record companies took advantage of their signed acts when they were on the road touring. Please read Corry Arnold's Lost Live Dead blog article to get all the details. Be sure to read all the comments after the article, that's where the updates are.
Music link: No authentic recording of this show is known to exist.
2/12/1989 Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA
Overall, this is a well-played, high-energy show that features an unusual set list and guest appearances from Spencer Davis and Bob Dylan. The first set starts off normally enough with a nice Cold Rain And Snow, and that’s usually a sign of good things to come. The next few songs are all good but standard renditions, but then a real hot curve ball: Beat It On Down The Line > Promised Land. This was the 5th of only 5 times they played this song sequence. Other highlights include final performance of How Long Blues, which is a hot, dirty blues number featuring Spencer Davis on vocals and guitar (1228 show breakout, last played 11/7/70) along with a rousing Gimme Some Lovin’ (also featuring Spencer Davis on vocals and guitar).
The second set opens with Bob Dylan joining the band on stage for all the songs up to Drums > Space. His guitar is barely audible in the recording and if it wasn’t for this Christopher Hazard video, you probably wouldn’t even know he was on stage. Anyways, they launch into a spunky Iko, followed by another curve ball: the first Monkey And The Engineer since 4/13/82 (468 shows). This version features a slightly different arrangement, where Bobby waits a bar before the chorus “Big locomotive, right on time...”. This would also be the final performance of the song. They play four more excellent songs with Dylan including Alabama Getaway, Dire Wolf, Cassidy, and Memphis Blues (I find it a little disappointing that Dylan doesn’t sing on his own song). The rest of the show has great song selections and renditions are good but standard and also on the shorter side. There’s a nice double encore of NFA and Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door, but Dylan doesn’t even step out on stage. I guess he really wasn’t in the mood to sing any of his songs.
February 13th
2/13/1970 (Early and Late) Fillmore East, New York, NY
2nd of a 3-show run. Parts of these infamous concerts were officially released on Dick's Picks Volume 4 and Bear's Choice. These were some of my first tapes, and will always be some of my most favorite. Early Show highlights are a hot Beat It On Down The Line, Good Lovin’ > Drums > Good Lovin’ (Bear’s Choice version), a soft and poignant Black Peter, a punchy Hard To Handle (I love how Bobby and Jerry attack this song on their guitars with a very sharp, fierce attitude), a powerful St. Stephen > NFA and a perfect reading of Casey Jones with all the ingredients to make this song work: tempo, energy and finesse.
The band is in complete control of the music for the Late Show. It’s just one of those performances that gives you everything you love about early Dead shows – two hot, energetic electric sets full of extended jamming and a nice intimate acoustic set in the middle. What’s not to love? Highlights are China Cat > I Know You Rider, Smokestack Lightning, Little Sadie, Wake Up Little Susie > Black Peter, Uncle John’s Band, Katie Mae. The entire 3rd set is the big highlight of the entire show: Dark Star (Jam Anthem version) > Cryptical > Drums > Other One (Jam Anthem version) > Cryptical > Lovelight (Jam Anthem version).
February 14th
Carousel Ballroom opened as a venue (2/14/1968)
2/14/1968 Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, CA
Officially released on Road Trips Volume 2 Number 2. This concert was the first "official" opening of the Carousel Ballroom, which was a short-lived business venture that tried to offer an alternative to Bill Graham’s productions happening over at the Fillmore Auditorium. The epic events that took place at the Carousel Ballroom are the stuff of hippie legends despite the short 6-month time span that the venue was in operation. Unfortunately, too much fun was being had and the venue wasn’t managed properly as a business. When operations at the Carousel Ballroom folded, it was the perfect opportunity for Bill to snatch up the venue and move into a better location. He did just that, and renamed the venue to Fillmore West. You can see some historic photos and read more about the Carousel Ballroom here. But before all that happened some great events took place at the Carousel, including this one, which also happened to be the first live FM broadcast of a Grateful Dead show.
The first set is a fast and furious rundown of classic primal Grateful Dead selections with performances that are typical of the time period including Morning Dew and Schoolgirl. Dark Star is fast tempo and short. China Cat is fast tempo and chaotic. They just can’t find the beat on it however. They segue into a rousing but short Eleven, followed by a powerful Lovelight.
It’s all enjoyable but for me the real highlights are found in the second set. Jerry dedicates the set to the memory of Neil Cassady, who passed away mysteriously in Mexico 10 days earlier. I wrote about his death in this listening guide if you want more information. They launch into a perfect reading of Cryptical, and then for a change there’s no drum segment and they segue directly into a really short, compressed Other One and then it’s back into Cryptical that crackles with controlled energy. I especially like TC’s organ sound on this version. They rip through a nice New Potato Caboose that begins softly, working their way through the verses. It builds into a short but perfectly executed Born Cross-Eyed which segues into the hottest part of the show: an epic Spanish Jam that’s raw and powerful. It starts with a bit of feedback and builds over the course of several minutes into a marching beat. Bobby and Phil lay down the foundation and Jerry adds the spice on top. It builds and falls into a cacophony of sounds, and finally decays into a break with a lot of stage banter. The rest of the show is filled with deep muscular jamming: Alligator > Caution > Feedback, Midnight Hour
2/14/1969 Electric Factory, Philadelphia, PA
It’s amazing what a difference a year makes when it comes to late 60’s Grateful Dead performances. If you compare the set list of this performance to 2/14/68, there are a lot of similarities in song selection, yet the performances sound totally different. And this wasn’t a one-off change. This was an evolution in the band’s overall sound. They were developing and perfecting that deep psychedelic jamming. Of course, in less than a year the band’s sound would evolve again to include lots of vocal harmonies and the inclusion of folk/country songs.
Highlights of first set include Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Lovelight. Dark Star is almost 20 minutes in length here. Compare that to the typical version from ’68 and you’ll immediately see the development that they’ve put into this song. St. Stephen is powerful, and The Eleven and Lovelight are very hot renditions. Now that the band has loosened up, they open the second set with a wicked Morning Dew. They launch into a commanding performance of Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Cryptical, finally dissolving into a poignant Death Don’t Have No Mercy.
2/14/1970 (Early and Late) Fillmore East, New York, NY
3rd of a 3-show run. Partially officially released on Dick's Picks Volume 4. The band wraps up what will be known as one of their most infamous runs of shows on the East Coast. The band was developing a huge following at this pivotal time in their career, and the epic performance captured on these shows highlight why they were gaining so much popularity. Of course, having these high-quality recordings has helped preserve the magic of these shows.
The Early Show kicks off with a nice reading of Cold Rain And Snow. After that short warm up, they don’t waste any time and deliver the goods: Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Lovelight which makes for almost an hour and a half of epic jamming.
Switching gears for the Late Show, the band sets out for one long single set that’s split into an electric-acoustic-electric format. Highlights are Casey Jones, Hard To Handle, Dark Hollow, All Around This World, Wake Up Little Susie > Black Peter, Uncle John’s Band, Katie Mae. After the short acoustic segment, we’re treated to a rousing Dancin’ that bubbles over with energy. Other highlights include a gorgeous High Time, followed by the big jam segment: Alligator > Drums > Me & My Uncle > NFA > Mason’s Children > Caution (Jam Anthem version) > Feedback > And We Bid You Good Night.
February 15th
2/15/1973 Dane County Coliseum, Madison, WI
It’s well-known that the band pulled off some epic shows at this venue, and this is a prime example. The first set kicks off with an epic Loose Lucy opener, and Jerry is fired up! He passionately belts out the words while the band confidently shuffles along with him. This would unfortunately be the only time the band ever opened with this song. They follow up with a rousing Beat It On Down The Line. Other highlights include Box Of Rain, China Cat > I Know You Rider, Bertha, and a nicely jammed Playing.
The second set kicks off with a perfect reading of Here Comes Sunshine. Also worth noting, Donna debuts her performance of the Loretta Lynn song You Ain't Woman Enough later in the set. It’s not really my favorite song but it's well played. Donna sounds excited and proud to sing it and Jerry's full country riffing on his guitar with sweet melodies and bends on the strings. The real magic happens later in the second set with Dark Star > Eyes > China Doll. These are expansive versions of these songs, filled with epic jamming and soulful singing. The last part of the show is pure Rock and Roll. Promised Land, Sugaree, Sugar Magnolia, are followed up with a rare double encore Uncle John’s Band and One More Saturday Night to cap off this outstanding show.
February 16th
2/16/1982 Warfield Theater, San Francisco, CA
1st of a 2-show run. This whole show is excellent and showcases the band in sync and delivering tight versions of every song. They charge out of the gate with a hot first set duo opener of Shakedown Street > Greatest Story. They follow up with standout renditions of Friend Of The Devil (nice vocal harmonies) > Little Red Rooster. This whole set features classic “Dead Set” song selections served up with perfection. Other highlights include pretty Peggy-O, Big River, Might As Well.
The heat gets turned up a notch for the second set which kicks off with a rowdy China Cat > I Know You Rider, which flows right into a perfect reading of Playing > Terrapin. They open these songs up and stretch out the jams nicely on both. After an interesting Drums > Space they land on a hot Truckin’ which contains a nice Nobody’s Fault Jam. This feeds into a heartfelt Black Peter, which morphs into a very nice Playing Reprise. Hot versions of Around And Around > Good Lovin’ and an upbeat Don’t Ease encore close out this fine show.
February 17th
Keith and Donna played their final show (2/17/1979)
2/17/1979 Oakland Coliseum Arena, Oakland, CA
This was Keith and Donna's final show, but they sure did end with a really fine performance. Although, no thanks to Keith. He’s barely contributing and is one of the many reasons they’re leaving the band. There’s been a lot written about this phase of the band’s history, including Blair Jackson on his blog, so I won’t rehash it here. As for this show, everyone except Keith is energized and playing their hearts out. The other reason this show is so great is because they resurrected 4 songs that hadn’t been played in years.
Speaking of which, they open the first set with a killer version of Greatest Story Ever Told, which hadn’t been played since 10/19/74 (208 shows). It’s also a Jam Anthem version. Don’t Ease is up next, and it’s a hot one too. The rest of the set is mostly good energetic versions, but they close with a ripping rendition of Lazy Lightning > Supplication, also a Jam Anthem version.
The band is amped up for the second set, and kick off with a mighty swell Might As Well followed by a hot three piece Miracle > Bertha > Good Lovin’. Bobby emphatically belts out the words while Jerry lights up his guitar. From the Heart of Me is next to cool things off. It's a nice version and the final performance because, well, Donna's not around to sing it anymore after this show. Next up is a curve ball, as they launch into another breakout song – Big RxR Blues. It’s the first performance since 10/19/74 (208 shows) and there’s a bit of a tentative start to the song but it quickly catches on, and they drive it home nicely. The jamming/improvising segment of the show kicks off with Terrapin, which includes a nice exploratory passage that ultimately leads to a nice long reading of Playing. Towards the end, I can hear Phil riffing his Terrapin bass line really quick, but unfortunately a Terrapin Reprise doesn’t materialize (something they never did, but how cool would that have been?!) and instead they head into a Drums segment, then a spacey take on Wheel followed by a monster Shakedown Street > Space > Playing > Sugar Magnolia combo. Donna gets to scream her head off one last time for the One More Saturday Night encore.
February 18th
Mickey Hart began a 3.5-year hiatus from the band (2/18/1971)
Betty Cantor-Jackson made her first "Betty Board" recording (2/18/1971)
2/18/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
1st of an epic 6-show run. The entire show was officially released on American Beauty 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. This historic show marks the beginning and end of an era in live Grateful Dead concert sound and song selection, for two reasons. For one, we have five iconic songs being performed for the first time: Bertha, Loser, Greatest Story, Wharf Rat, and Playing In The Band. Spoiler alert: they play all five of these “new songs” in varying order every single night of the run. These are classic songs that would be a part of the repertoire for the remainder of the band’s career, and we’re extremely fortunate that Betty Cantor-Jackson decided to record what would become the first of many infamous and highly sought-after “Betty Board” recordings at this show. This would also be Mickey Hart’s last show before his 3 ½ year hiatus from the band, forcing a change in their live sound going forward. After this show, the band would be down to a single drummer, and Mickey Hart wouldn’t play again until 10/20/74. Many people have written about the controversy surrounding Lenny Hart (Mickey's father, who was managing the band at the time) who stole money from the band, so I won't write about it here.
They open the first set by launching into Bertha. The Dead are known to be a little sloppy when playing new songs for the first time, but this version is very tight, and it’s obvious they rehearsed it a lot. A tight version of Truckin’ is up next, followed by a very soulful reading of Hurts Me Too. Loser and Greatest Story are notable as being first time performances, but don’t sound as rehearsed as Bertha to my ears, but Greatest Story transitions directly into a red-hot rendition of Johnny B. Goode. The big highlight of the entire show is Dark Star > Wharf Rat > Beautiful Jam > Dark Star > Me And My Uncle. This is the only known occurrence of Beautiful Jam which is a unique improvisational jam that emerges as Wharf Rat winds down. Bobby hits on a sweet, mellow chord structure. Phil jumps on board, and music door is created which allows Jerry to passionately lay down some sublime soloing. David Gans interviewed Phil several years ago, and David played this segment of the show for him, and this was Phil’s reaction. Here’s a neat video of Phil talking about it soon after that interview.
The second set opens with an excellent version of Casey Jones, followed by the first performance of Playing, which sounds well-rehearsed but is just under-developed, and that’s to be expected. Mickey’s contributions to the song are obvious when you hear this version. Listen to this version, and then go listen to the version from the next night (2/19) as a comparison. I wonder if they would have developed this song faster if Mickey had stuck around? Other highlights are Sugar Magnolia (featuring a deep Wah-Wah pedal effect by Jerry through the entire song), and St. Stephen > NFA > GDTRFB > NFA > Uncle John’s Band.
February 19th
2/19/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
2nd of a 6-show run. Officially released on Three From The Vault. This was the first appearance of the Grateful Dead with a single drummer, after Mickey Hart left the band. I have tried to find more information on why he decided to split after only one show, and not stick around for the whole run but I guess the guilt of what his father did just weighed on him too much. Anyways, this is another epic show, and gives us two more song debuts (Bird Song and Deal).
The adrenalin is running at an all-time high on this one as they open the first set and launch into a stomping version of Truckin’, followed by the second attempt at Loser that sounds better than the previous night. Jerry stumbles on the lyrics during Cumberland Blues, and the band seems a little distracted, either by Mickey's absence or the pictures being flashed up on the screen behind them for the ESP Dream Telepath experiment that was taking place during all 6 of these concerts. Pigpen gets things back on track with a flawless version of Hurts Me Too. Bertha features some nice organ work between the verses. Weir breaks out a rare folksy Dark Hollow and Pigpen leads the band through an excellent Smokestack Lightning. China > Rider is tight but short and fast.
The second set kicks off with big fat rockin' versions of Greatest Story and Johnny B. Goode. Then there's the first performance of Bird Song, and they play it like they've been playing it for years. Effortlessly putting together a light, floating jam that would become a signature part of the song before re-entry into the final verse. Easy Wind provides an opportunity to show us exactly how good of a drummer Billy is. His drumming skills really shine on this song, which has a complex drum pattern. This first performance of Deal is a special rendition, and is performed with extra soul by Jerry that isn't always present in future versions. On the final segment of Cryptical > Drums > Other One Billy once again shows off his skills as a drummer as he produces an excellent drum solo on par with versions that include Mickey. They segue into Wharf Rat, which is good, but being only the 2nd time ever played falls into the “standard version” category. That’s ok, because this was the first of what would become a very popular Other One > Wharf Rat song combination for the remainder of the Dead’s career. Billy skips the drum solo in Good Lovin' to keep the band's momentum going and they end the show on a high note with a tight Casey Jones.
February 20th
2/20/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
3rd of a 6-show run. Overall, the band is playing very well, and while this show doesn’t quite have the peaking energy of the first two shows, there’s still a lot to like. Yes, there are some issues with being out of tune through the whole show, but they kick off the first set with a romping Casey Jones. Billy is the lone drummer, as previously talked about and he’s absolutely slaying it on the kit here. There are a couple of “short cuts” here and there, as a result of the adjustment to a single drummer, but they seem determined to exceed expectations overall. Other highlights are Me And My Uncle, Hard To Handle, Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Wharf Rat, Sugar Magnolia.
The second set starts off with a good but standard Truckin’, followed by another attempt at Loser. This one still sounds bare, probably because there’s no piano, which would be a big boost to songs like this once Keith comes on board. They play three more good-but-standard songs: Next Time You See Me, Greatest Story > Johnny B. Goode, followed by a rare electric Ripple but the highlight of this set is the big jam segment to close out the show: NFA > GDTRFB > NFA > Lovelight.
2/20/1985 Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center, Oakland, CA
3rd of a 3-show run. Cold Rain & Snow > Day Tripper opener is an unusual first set opening combination and it gets the party started. The remainder of the first set is good, but standard renditions until the set-ending Don’t Ease that absolutely cooks. The second set is the highlight of this show with a tight, well played version of Scarlet that features a nice jam that spans several minutes before the transition into Fire. Playing includes a nice long spacey passage before the transition into Drums, where we get a traditional celebratory Chinese New Year Dragon Dance for the second night in a row (the previous night being the first). Wheel rolls nicely out of Space and then a rather powerful version of Black Peter, followed by and outstanding Lovelight, during which Bobby does a nice rap breakdown where he riffs about making the "dark clouds roll away". He really gets the crowd going, and by the end of it his voice is completely roached. They finish with a strong rendition of U.S. Blues.
February 21st
2/21/1969 Dream Bowl, Vallejo, CA
1st of a 2-show run. This whole tape is epic. I remember getting this show and the next night, 2/22/69, on DAT back in the day, and was completely blown away on first listen. Kicking off with a powerful Schoolgirl, the tape fades in near the beginning. Pig howls, Jerry soars, and Phil thunders. Up next is a fine rendition of Doin’ That Rag that has a pretty obtuse ending with Phil psychotically screaming “Doing that raaaaaaag you Mother F---ers!” Not sure what that was all about, but make sure the kids have their ear muffs on 😅.
Jerry quickly segues into a beautiful, 20+ minute Dark Star that takes us on an interstellar journey away from that awkward moment. His delicate, floating melody is punctuated with a slight amount of gain applied to his amp to give it the perfect amount of raw edge, and occasional feedback to tickle your spine. The jam leading up to the first verse is generously stretched to over 7 minutes. The middle passage is sparse and dark. TC lays down some Medieval organ riffing, but I just wish he was a little louder in the mix. After the final verse, they don’t hang on to it very long and opt for a quick transition into a powerful and perfectly executed St. Stephen, including the William Tell bridge that was standard at the time. This leads into a 20+ minute The Eleven, complete with deep muscular jamming that stretches way out, and lands perfectly into a 25+ minute Lovelight. There’s a long Pig-tastic rap breakdown in the middle before building the energy back up for an intense ending. A powerful and poignant Morning Dew closes out this outstanding show.
2/21/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
4th of a 6-show run. Officially released on Workingman’s Dead 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. The first set is a little unsteady, but there are some great moments as the band struts all their “new songs” out for the fourth night in a row, and they already sound more developed than the previous few days. Highlights are Cold Rain And Snow, Me And Bobby McGee, Easy Wind, Bertha, Sugar Magnolia, Johnny B. Goode.
The second set kicks off with a fine China Cat > I Know You Rider that sounds a lot like a prime example from ’72. After running through a typical-for-the-time take on Bird Song, they launch into a fine Cumberland Blues, featuring some nice fretwork by Jerry. King Bee is up next, and Pigpen’s vocals and harmonica chops shine on this low-down blues tune. A short but ripping version of Beat It On Down The Line follows, and then a standalone take on Wharf Rat. Jerry’s crooning is spot on, but it’s too bad they couldn’t parlay this into a big jam. Instead, it just kind of fades out into almost a soft, gentle Space at first, but unable to find a direction they opt to just abandon it. A fine version of Truckin’ is up next. Again, it’s a version that shows promise but just doesn’t develop into a jam and it also fades out. Now it’s time to play the big hit – Casey Jones. It’s a standout version, as well as a crowd pleaser, as evidenced by the screaming from the audience. To close out the show, we finally get some good jamming with an excellent rendition of Good Lovin’ > Drums > Good Lovin’. It’s one of my favorite versions from this area. Just as it ends, Jerry launches into a nice reading of Uncle John’s Band.
2/21/1995 Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT
3rd of a 3-show run. This entire show was released on 30 Trips Around The Sun box set, and upon looking at the set list you can immediately see why it was targeted. But when you listen to this show, it becomes clear exactly why it was selected. Some people avoid listening to shows from 1995, and as someone who's listened to most of them, I can understand the hesitation. I saw a handful of '95 shows and I saw first-hand how badly Jerry had declined. There's a misconception that there aren't any great shows from this year, but this show definitely proves them wrong! It's a huge standout from the rest of the '95 shows, so I want to do an extended review of the whole show for you. Several people who attended this show recall just how magical it was, and how they all seemed to be transported back to a better time in Grateful Dead touring history.
For the first set the band came out strong with the first and only performance of Salt Lake City. Even though it had been a Bobby staple, the Dead had never played it before. There were lots of rumors that they might break this out for one of these Utah shows, and that's exactly what they did. There are a couple of rough spots, but the energy level was infectious and it carried the song over the top. The crowd goes crazy when Bobby sings “Feel that magic in the air!”. Inspired by the crowd, the closing jam is crazy intense. Friend of the Devil provides a nice double hit for the people of Utah, and the crowd again goes nuts when Jerry sings “spent the night in Utah". Wang Dang Doodle and Tennessee Jed are both well played and it's clear the band is totally in the groove on this night. On Broken Arrow it's Phil's turn to ride the wave of excitement and he produces probably one of the best versions. It's a true highlight. His bass playing and singing are spot on and heartfelt. The band is really in sync and playing off of each other. For Black Throated Wind Bobby switches to acoustic guitar and puts out one of the better versions of the song since it's reintroduction into the setlist rotation in 1990. It starts easy and laid back, like a version from 1972 but picks up a lot of momentum by the end of the song, and Bobby is passionately putting it all out there. So Many Roads starts out a little slow, but builds to a peak at the end and Jerry just belts it out as he's giving it everything he's got. It stirs a lot of emotions in retrospect knowing this would Jerry's final year, and for many of us (myself included) this song will forever be associated with that. Bobby ends the set strong with a perfect version of Music Never Stopped. It's Vince's birthday, and the crowd sings happy birthday to him during set break.
We kick off the second set with one of Jerry's all-time best versions of Foolish Heart, with the middle and closing jam hitting some very high peaks, and his vocals are sweet and soulful. Next is Samba in the Rain and it's Vince's turn to take the lead singer spotlight. This version is funky and well played. Jerry blasts out some MIDI horns on his guitar as Vince starts to sing. It's not a very "deep" song, but it does have a nice groove, and when the band is clicking like they are on this night, it will get you up and dancing. The band is deep in the groove for Truckin', and Bobby and Jerry are both firing off intense riffs. Vince gets the Hammond organ Leslie speakers spinning nicely which layers on that classic sound. They hit the crescendo perfectly, and the song blasts into Jerry's extended bluesy guitar solo as it fades out. But nobody was expecting what came next which is one of the reasons this show stands out. Just as everyone in the crowd is dancing and twirling to the end of Truckin', Jerry seamlessly switches modes and transitions into Make Love to You, a huge breakout song (750 shows). I don't think anyone knew what hit them when he started singing, and he creates this interesting effect as he effortlessly mirrors his vocal melody to the melody he's playing on his guitar. I think everyone was completely stunned, but the place went crazy at that moment! After that, it seemed like Make Love to You was headed for drums, but as it winds down, Jerry is completely entranced at this point and out of nowhere he slows the tempo slightly and starts picking the melody for That Would Be Something. People who were at this show reported seeing Jerry on stage with his eyes closed, singing and playing as if he's outside of his body and in a different realm. It was one of the most spontaneous and emotional surprises by Jerry in a really long time, and he had everyone's full attention. As the song comes to an end, Jerry quits playing, the lights shift off of him, and he walks off stage as they fade into Drums > Space. Out of the depths of an aquatic-themed space comes Visions of Johanna, another huge breakout song (638 shows). People who were at the show reported that at first they thought they were going to get a Wharf Rat. But they're immediately left speechless when Jerry sings "Ain't it just like the night", and they realize they're listening to Visions of Johanna. It's a typical Dylan song with a lot of lyrics, but Jerry knows the song well and with the help of the TelePrompTer he absolutely nails it. It's an incredibly emotional performance by Jerry, and the rest of the band is totally inspired, and they perfectly support him. Bobby is now ready to pick up the party mood, and he lays out a flawless Sugar Magnolia that's crackling with energy. He gets the crowd rocking as the song is more up-tempo than usual, but the band is up for the task. Jerry's leads are leaping from his guitar. People who were at the show recall Bobby coming right up to the edge of the stage and doing his Bob Star lunges. The boys finish strong with one of the most upbeat versions of Liberty you'll ever hear and the crowd goes away totally content and filled with joy over what they just witnessed. If you were there, you truly were lucky to witness this special show!
February 22nd
2/22/1969 Dream Bowl, Vallejo, CA
Officially released on 30 Trips Around the Sun. Like the previous show on 2/21, this is one long set. This show is a little more laid back than 2/21, but they don’t waste any time and pack a lot into these two excellent hours of music. Kicking off with a picture-perfect Dupree’s, with Jerry on acoustic guitar, this is one of my favorite versions of this song. As Dupree’s ends, Jerry immediately transitions into Mountains Of The Moon. My favorite part of this song is Jerry’s solo on the acoustic guitar that seamlessly morphs into the introduction of Dark Star. They did this song pairing only 8 times in early ’69, and I wonder if he was trying to develop a pairing of these songs at one point, given the obvious lyrical subject matter commonality? Side note: If you’d like to see a graphical representation of all the Dark Star performances, check out this incredible graph over at DeadEssays blog.
Jerry switches out the acoustic for his electric guitar and lays down a sweet, delicate solo for almost 7 minutes before the first verse of this 22+ minute rendition. The middle jam escalates into a more forceful sound, with increased gain (distortion) on Jerry’s amp. He lets off a few fast-flying riffs, sending sparks off of his guitar and into the air. The intensity builds a little more, then levels off as the total volume of all the instruments increases significantly before verse 2, after which there’s a quick segue into a fierce Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Cryptical. After a nice outro jam, they land gently onto an impassionedly-sung Death Don’t Have No Mercy. The intensity quickly jumps after the first verse of the song, and Jerry weaves a spooky, spellbinding solo. A picture-perfect rendition of Doin’ That Rag is next and they nail the vocal harmony at the end. A fast transition to St. Stephen follows, and they take the outro jam after the second verse to stratospheric heights before the William Tell bridge. They’re boiling over with energy before a segue into The Eleven, which is a raging 16+ minute all-out assault. But the band isn’t done, and they have massive reserves left for a 22-minute Lovelight that includes a long Pigpen rap and a massive grand finale buildup at the end, featuring Bobby’s signature high-pitched wailing to compliment Pigpen’s raspy screaming.
2/22/1974 Winterland Arena, San Francisco, CA
1st of a 3-show run. This is a massive 3 set show with select music released on Dave's Picks 2022 Bonus Disc. This was the first show of 1974 for the Dead, and they came to impress the crowd at Winterland. When you listen to this show, you get the sense that the band was excited to start playing again, and although the Wall of Sound wouldn't make its debut until a month later on March 23rd, these February hometown shows provided a way for the band to work out the kinks. There really aren't any rough spots to speak of on this performance, however.
The band confidently and enthusiastically rips through the entire first set. We get the first performance of U.S. Blues, and it's the first of only 6 times that the Dead would open the first set with it. We also get the fist performance of It Must Have Been The Roses. They end the first set with an interesting Playing that includes a nice Slipknot! tease, but it doesn't quite materialize into a full-on jam despite a couple of attempts by Jerry to get it going. It would be another year-and-a-half before they would play the first Slipknot!. The band can't quite seem to click onto any semblance of a proper jam, so they abandon any type of structure and end up going full dissonance. After a while they bring the main Playing theme back, however, and end the song on a good note.
The second set starts with a rather smoking Tennessee Jed and Me & My Uncle. Then we get the first performance of Ship of Fools, which is delivered with confidence. Additional highlights from the show include a tight China > Rider, Mississippi Half-Step, and my favorite segment in the 3rd set: Eyes > China Doll > Wharf Rat > Sugar Magnolia. Finally, the Uncle John's Band encore is a delightful end to this gratifying show.
February 23rd
2/23/1968 King's Beach Bowl, Lake Tahoe, CA
This whole show was released as Dick's Picks Volume 22 along with 2/24/68 and is the only place you can hear these excellent shows. Lake Tahoe became the backdrop of a burgeoning rock and roll scene in 1967 because it was the place where families went to vacation, and concert promoters soon realized that there were a lot of kids looking for something to do while their parents went to the Nevada side to gamble and have adult fun. There were a handful of small funky venues around the lake that would host some big names like Jimi Hendrix, Buffalo Springfield, Steppenwolf, The Grateful Dead, Butterfield Blues Band, and John Mayall, just to name a few. If you want to really understand the Lake Tahoe scene, check out these links to Corry Arnold's awesome series of articles here and here about the Grateful Dead shows, as well as the wider rock and roll scene. King's Beach Bowl was an old bowling alley on the north side of the lake that was converted to a teen nightclub.
This show kicks off with a powerful rendition of Viola Lee Blues that clocks in at almost 20 minutes. Dark Star is a real fast tempo version. It's well played but short (not even 7 minutes) and includes some really nice fretwork by Jerry. I’m not a huge fan of these early fast versions, but this one is actually pretty nice because of what Jerry's putting out on the guitar. I'm just imagining seeing them play this music in Lake Tahoe, in this old bowling alley, and how unique that must have been. The transition to China Cat is clean and powerful. As Dark Star is quickly fading, they immediately jump into the song which has more of a dance beat, and I can just imagine the kids boogying down when it hits. From there they transition seamlessly into The Eleven which is fun to hear. We're all familiar with the standard transition into I Know You Rider, but this transition into The Eleven works really well, and makes me wish they had made this a "thing", and carried this forward more. They thoroughly jam The Eleven out and it ends with a smooth, fast transition into Lovelight, which is one of the shorter versions (about 12 min) because there's no Pigpen rap, but a well-played version nonetheless for the time period. Born Cross-Eyed is rather short (2:32) and they quickly dissolve it into what appears to be feedback at first, but Phil sets up the initial short (7 minute) Spanish Jam phrases. It's slow to develop. Jerry picks up and does some slow, spacey Spanish riffs before the drummers start doing their thing, about 3 minutes into it, at which time it starts to pick up tempo and turns into a nice marching beat. It doesn't hold, and eventually the drummers quit and Jerry is kind of left hanging and he plays a few more solo riffs before hanging it up.
Music link: no circulating tapes as of February 2026
2/23/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
5th of a 6-show run. This whole show is probably the strongest performance of the whole run, and the guitars are almost always in tune for the whole thing for a change. The boys kick off the first set with the same song they closed the previous show with – Uncle John’s Band, and this one is picture perfect with flawless vocal harmonies and flowing guitar solos. As with all the other shows in the run, they sprinkle all 5 of the “new songs” somewhere in the show, and we get very nice early renditions of two of them next: Loser and Playing. It’s astounding how much more developed these songs sound compared to just five shows ago, when they were performed live for the very first time. Later in the set there’s a scorching China Cat > I Know You Rider, followed by a rousing version of Bertha. They end the set with superb renditions of Morning Dew, Sugar Magnolia, and Casey Jones.
Not a bad warmup for an equally impressive second set that includes a delicate Bird Song that’s already starting to sound much more sophisticated. The first of two powerful jam segments is up next. Truckin’ features strong, driving bass and perfect vocal harmonies. Jerry shreds during the last bit of the song before Billy takes over on a Drums solo that lays down a foundation for Phil to come rumbling in for the intro to The Other One. Did you notice they skipped playing Cryptical Envelopment before The Other One here? That’s because it’s a segue from Truckin’, and the old arrangement doesn’t work in that situation. In fact, except for one show in 1972 (9/23/72), Cryptical would get dropped from the rotation for 12 years (almost 800 shows) by the end of 1971. It would briefly come back in 1985 for five more shows, and then disappear forever. All that is just to say that the band is experimenting with different arrangements, and evolving their sound during this time period. But I digress. For this rendition of The Other One, Jerry sprinkles some spacey guitar riffs right as the songs starts, and they jam it out for a few minutes before the first verse. The middle jam segment sounds a bit like the middle jam segment of a ‘72 Playing. Jerry flips on the Wah-Wah peddle, and in a matter of a few minutes we’re wandering off into space as it dissolves into a quiet segment. Things get atonal for a minute, but Phil brings back the Other One bass melody and it builds up to a big crescendo, like a big powerful breaking wave, as the music rushes over your head into the second verse and an immediate transition into a gorgeous Wharf Rat, featuring passionate vocals and intense guitar work. This is only the 3rd time they’ve ever done this song combination, but more proof that they were changing up their sound. The Other One > Wharf Rat would of course become a very common song pairing, and would be played a total of 168 times until the end. After Wharf Rat we get the final “new song” – Greatest Story – and like the other “new songs” it’s already sounding much more developed. It transitions into a hot Good Lovin’, but lacks a Drums break, and is also devoid of a Pigpen rap. The final segment of the show is pure rock and roll, with a rousing combination of NFA > GDTRFB > NFA > Johnny B. Goode.
2/23/1974 Winterland Arena, San Francisco, CA
The entire show was released on Dave's Picks Volume 42. The show kicks off the first set with a pleasantly rockin' version of Around And Around which has Bob shouting excitedly for the second verse so it's clear the boys came to rock. The rest of the first set is filled with top-quality Grateful Dead. They close the set out with a punchy Promised Land > Bertha > Greatest Story that rolls immediately from song to song. I always liked it when they did those back-to-back-to-back strings of songs, and this segment is flawless. For the second set, things really get going for Weather Report Suite, and the jamming section after the second verse of Let it Grow is impressive. Bobby is throwing out a nice mix of jazz chords while Jerry's fingers blast out melodic phrasing and Phil's bassline perfectly complements everybody's contributions.
The jam comes down to earth and they transition into a beautiful Stella Blue. Another highlight is The Other One > Eyes Of The World segment, which combined is over 35 minutes. The Other One is flawless, and contains plenty of jamming as well as a nice spacey section before going back for the last verse. This performance of Eyes includes a Milking the Turkey jam towards the end. To cap it off they do a rare triple encore with Casey Jones and Johnny B. Goode > And We Bid You Goodnight.
February 24th
2/24/1968 King's Beach Bowl, Lake Tahoe, CA
3rd of a 3-show run. This whole show was released on Dick's Picks Volume 22 and since there are no circulating tapes, it’s the only place you can hear it. The show kicks off with nicely jammed renditions of Morning Dew (8 min) and Schoolgirl (14 min). The boys are clearly hyped up and playing well on this third and final night of this run. The next segment of music is one big primal Dead sequence that constitutes the rest of the show. Cryptical is especially tight and bright. They launch immediately into The Other One, which takes no time at all in getting us on the bus. Pigpen has the organ swirling, Jerry is bending notes, bobby has synchronized strumming and Phil is pumping nicely along with the drummers. There aren’t any real extended jams in there and it quickly heads back into Cryptical with a short jam that slows and mellows into New Potato Caboose. They run through the first verse of the song and then land on the freeform section. Phil takes off with some bass runs while Pigpen riffs on the organ. Jerry comes in with his melodic phrases and tries to take the song into a crescendo but it doesn't quite materialize, and they end the song.
The Alligator > China Cat > The Eleven > Caution > Feedback is, to me, the best part of the show. We get some especially powerful jamming in The Eleven, a nice Drums segment before heading back into Alligator which peaks then rolls straight into a real hot Caution (almost 12 min) which surges and explodes with amazingly frenzied strumming by Jerry around the 1:30 mark. It almost doesn't sound possible to play the guitar that fast, and it sounds like his guitar is going to catch on fire! There are several waves of peaks and valleys to the jamming until the end which turns chaotic and thumping, and goes straight into Feedback (almost 5 min). This is one of my all-time favorite versions of Caution to be honest.
Music link: only available on Dick's Picks Volume 22
2/24/1971 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
6th of a 6-show run. This show wraps up the final performance of what would be the band’s longest run ever on the east coast until the Radio City Music Hall shows of 1980 (8 shows). Except for Wharf Rat, you get all the “new songs” for the 6th time in a row, sprinkled throughout the 1st and 2nd set.
They open the first set with a nice punchy Casey Jones and I’m convinced that these late ’70 – early ’71 shows really were the pinnacle for that song. Again, I’m really impressed with Billy’s hard-driving drumming as he does some a double time on the bass drum towards the end of the song. Me And My Uncle is next and it’s not a long version, but is passionately played and sung. They rip through a hot Cumberland Blues next, followed by Next Time You See Me with Pigpen showing off his harp and vocal talents. Other highlights include a red-hot Bertha, a brisk Hard To Handle, and a rousing Good Lovin’ > Drums > Good Lovin’.
Coming back for the second set, the boys are super charged and deliver an outstanding performance. Kicking off with an energetic Sugar Magnolia, followed by a soulful King Bee. Later in the set Bobby delivers a hot Minglewood, then a really great Truckin’. Yes, the vocal harmonies are a little off in a couple of spots, but Billy’s drumming is so precise here. In fact, the whole band is really dialed in musically. Listen to the extra flare they add on the “set up like a bowling pin, knocked down, gets to wearing thin” line, around the 3 min 30 second mark into the track. I can’t recall them ever doing that little double down accent between the words “Knocked down” and “gets to wearing thin” before, but it’s little things like that, that I love to hear. They’re just having a blast! As Truckin’ winds down, they roll right into the final segment of the show, and it’s a massive jam-fest: NFA > GDTRFB > NFA > Lovelight, complete with lots of hootin’ and hollerin’, and an iconic Pigpen rap.
Music link: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1971/02/24?source=103042 is a beautiful, bright Betty Board recording. God love her!
2/24/1974 Winterland Arena, San Francisco, CA
3rd of a 3-show run. This whole show was released on Dave's Picks Volume 13. This was the last night of the three-night run of shows at the Winterland. I feel this is the best of the three nights. The performance for this whole show is peak Dead in 1974. Everyone is locked in, and they're playing with energy but giving each other space. You can tell they're really listening and reacting in fun and expressive ways.
First set highlights include U.S. Blues, China Cat > I Know You Rider, and they close the set out with a monster 18+ minute Playing. Every song of the second set is very well played, but the highlights for me are Cumberland Blues, Bertha, and the big jam segment of Dark Star > Morning Dew. The Dark Star here is almost 30 minutes, and it's a transcendental phenomenon. It takes them almost 19 minutes to get to the first verse! Jerry throws out a very short Spanish Jam riff, but the band doesn't lock on to it, and instead they freeform jam until it dissolves into a beautiful and powerful Morning Dew. Bobby gets the party mood going again with Sugar Magnolia, and everybody is dancing again. They then proceed to blow the roof off the place with the final segment of NFA > GDTRFB > NFA, after which they bring the crowd back down to earth and send them home with a passionate Baby Blue. What an experience that must have been!
February 25th
Jerry Garcia debuted his new MIDI-enabled guitar, Rosebud (2/25/1990)
2/25/1990 Oakland Coliseum Arena, Oakland, CA
1st of a 3-show run. This is the first show of the new year. It's also the debut of Jerry's new MIDI-enabled guitar Rosebud by luthier Doug Irwin. Tiger was officially retired as his Grateful Dead guitar after the 12/31/89 Dead show, although he continued to play Tiger with JGB for about a year. If you want to learn more about Rosebud you can read all about it here.
One thing that's noticeable during the first set is the large amount of tuning and fiddling with the new guitar between songs. But Jerry is able to settle in, and after a few standard versions of the opening songs the band busts out a hot Little Red Rooster. Bobby is notorious for going overboard with the slide, but he nails it perfectly on this version. Brent's “stud boy” adlib about the rooster is classic. Stagger Lee is another highlight. And then they break out The Last Time, which is a song that may have been played in 1965, but certainly hasn't been seen or heard in 25 years. They give it a nice classic rock and roll treatment and deliver it straight out to the crowd. Deal is a high energy version with a sweet jam on the solo section.
The second set opens with a really tight China Cat > I Know You Rider. The middle part of the set has nice song selections (Estimated > Eyes > Drums > Space > Wheel) with pretty standard delivery, but Brent revives the show with a smoking version of Gimme Some Lovin'. After that, Wharf Rat is an inflection point and the band is back on track, and they deliver a delightful version of the song. The Knockin' encore features some nice singing and guitar work by Jerry to close out the show.
February 26th
2/26/1973 Pershing Municipal Auditorium, Lincoln, NE
Mostly officially released on Dick's Pick's Volume 28. This whole show is prime ’73 Grateful Dead, full of beautiful, jazzy jams that wade into some serious deep space. The massive 17-song first set kicks off with their most-performed song, Promised Land, but this is a hot one! If you saw a show in 1973, chances are they opened with Promised Land or Bertha. Out of 73 performances in 1973, they opened 32 times with that Promised Land, and Bertha was the #2 choice for an opener, performed 14 times. There’s only 1 known circulating source for this show (SHNID 1208), which is missing Deal and Mexicali (as is Dick’s Picks 28), but other highlights include excellent renditions of Loser, Jack Straw, Don’t Ease, Box Of Rain, China Cat > I Know You Rider, Loose Lucy, Beat It On Down The Line, and a big, deep, wandering Playing to close this marathon set.
But this is 1973, and after a 2-hour first set, the boys are just getting warmed up! They come charging out of the gate and open the second set with a fast, funky They Love Each Other. This was only the 6th time ever performing this song, and these early versions have a slightly different arrangement. They’re speedier, and they have an extra refrain: “why don’t you believe what I say is true…” before the final verse which gets dropped later on when the song is rearranged and re-introduced in 1975/1976. Jerry’s fretwork on Big River is outstanding, and he’s channeling some serious Doc Watson style flatpicking. After a fine Tennessee Jed and a comical “Louis Louis” tease they plow through a fine reading of Greatest Story Ever Told, and then it’s launch time. This evening’s transportation to outer space is provided by a massive 25+ minute Dark Star that is in no hurry to get to the first verse. In fact, it takes a full 17 minutes to get there, and when we do, we get both verses back-to-back. Now that that’s out of the way, Jerry goes back to focusing on jamming. Did you remember to bring your Dark Star map with you? Before we know what hit us, we’re tumbling through open space again. It’s full of spooky, cavernous dissonance. The intensity builds, and a cacophony of sounds emerge. Phil settles into a groove, and we’re back to earth, floating into a beautiful rendition of Eyes Of The World. This one is the perfect tempo – not too fast, and not too slow, and Jerry weaves some fierce solos. The outro jamming is a over 11+ minutes and includes a few different themes. They wind down and gently float into Mississippi Half Step. After a nice but standard Me And My Uncle, they finish strong with a rousing three piece NFA > GDTRFB > NFA.
Music link: https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1973/02/26?source=336551 or Dick's Pick's Volume 28
2/26/1977 Swing Auditorium, San Bernardino, CA
This entire incredible show was released on Dave's Pick's Volume 29 and contains some big firsts. Kicking off the first show of the year, they open the first set with the first performance of Terrapin Station. This would be the only time they would ever open the first set with Terrapin, and the audience must have been listening intently with curiosity and excitement while hearing it for the first time like that. The band had been in the studio recording the Terrapin Station album, so the song was very well rehearsed, and while this may not be an epic version it’s certainly substantial and confidently played. After very nice renditions of Minglewood and They Love Each Other, we get another first: Estimated Prophet. It looks strange to us now to see this song just sitting there in the middle of the first set between They Love Each Other and Sugaree, but it just needed time to develop into the big second set jamming launching pad. Being brand new, this version is very competently played and Jerry’s solos soar. But at 7 minutes in length it just doesn’t go anywhere like we know it will in the coming months, but it is still very satisfying. A wonderful Sugaree is up next, and at 11 minutes is significantly more jammed out than Terrapin! Nice but standard renditions of Mama Tried and Deal are next, followed by a very nice Playing > Wheel > Playing sammich. Playing offers a nice 15-minute diversion into jam land. This one doesn’t get as spacey as the big fist set-ending versions from 1972-1974, but it does build into a nice intense jam which eventually gives way into The Wheel. This is not one of the light, floating versions of The Wheel that you typically hear. Jerry is going for a power play and seems to be extra aggressive on the opening chords. After a strong showing, the outro settles down into a quiet passage that lays the foundation for the journey back to Playing Reprise. Soon enough that old Main Ten theme from yesteryear appears, and they hit their stride into the Reprise.
On to the second set, which opens with a rousing Samson, then Tennessee Jed and a funky Music Never Stopped, after which we get another big highlight, a monster Help > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower. This is a Jam Anthem version so you know it's a hot one, especially the 7.5+ minute Slipknot!, but don’t discount the furious 13+ minute Franklin’s. What a treat! But we aren’t done yet, we still get a wonderful Eyes > Dancin’ > Around three-piece. There are many epic moments captured here, and if you haven't heard this one before it definitely ranks in the upper echelon of performances from start to finish. Nothing else to say!
February 27th
The first live concert ever recorded on 16-track technology (2/27/1969)
2/27/1969 Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA
1st of a 4-show run. Officially released on Fillmore West 1969: The Complete Recordings. These were the first live shows in rock history to ever be recorded on state-of-the-art Ampex 16 track multi-track machines. How a bunch of misfit hippies ever convinced the record label to loan them this incredibly expensive equipment is beyond me, but they made it happen and captured one of the most recognizable and beloved Dark Star performances ever. This is the one that ended up on the Live/Dead album. But there’s a lot of excellent music to enjoy before we get to that.
Opening the first set is a rowdy Schoolgirl, featuring Pig-tastic harmonica riffing and powerful guitar jamming. A cheerful and fun Doing That Rag is next, and ends with a pronounced “Rag-uh!”. A raging Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Cryptical follows to close out the set. It’s a total of about 20 minutes of music that moves through a few different themes where the intensity ebbs and flows.
The second set opens with a couple of acoustic-electric numbers. An excellent version of Dupree’s is first, followed by a picture-perfect Mountains Of The Moon. It’s another one of those versions that segues straight into that famous Dark Star. This beloved Star is about 22 minutes long and showcases Jerry's expressive fretwork that conjures all manner of psychedelic images in your mind. Just close your eyes, relax and go on an epic journey with the band. They make all manner of interesting sounds on this version, and there's a unique mixture resulting from Garcia's exuberant playing with Constanten's spooky organ riffs, Phil's plunging bass lines combined with various percussion instruments and Bobby's strumming that takes you deep into outer space. After a few minutes of subtle, gentle strums on the guitars, they segue into a powerful St. Stephen. After a William Tell bridge, they wind into a fierce Eleven. The intensity builds, and Jerry’s guitar is on fire as he’s shooting out lightning-fast riffs. The switch to Lovelight is rather sudden. This version isn’t as epic as the next night, but has all the things you’re looking for. They encore with Cosmic Charlie, but to my ears, there are too many vocal harmony misses (and possibly tuning issues) to enjoy this rendition.
February 28th
2/28/1969 Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA
2nd of a 4-show run. Officially released on Fillmore West 1969: The Complete Recordings. This whole show exhibits an intense amount of power, both in the vocals and the jamming. They open the first set with Morning Dew, which has a kind of raw edge to it. Schoolgirl is next, and is the first highlight of the set, as they settle into a nice groove. Doin’ That Rag is next, followed by an ominous-sounding King Bee and then a Jam Anthem version of Lovelight to end the set.
After another funny Bill Graham introduction for the second set (“The last of the Gay Desperadoes”) they launch into a screaming Cryptical > Drums > Other One > Cryptical. My favorite segment of the show follows, with beautiful Dark Star, full of subtle percussion and intricate guitar phrasing. The intensity doesn’t reach the crazy levels of other Stars from the time period, but maintains a consistent simmer throughout. After winding down, they quickly switch gears into a raging Jam Anthem version of St. Stephen. The intensity continues as they work into a Jam Anthem version of The Eleven and finally lands on a hypnotic rendition of Death Don’t Have No Mercy, full of soulful, plaintive signing. The final segment of the second set starts off with a subdued Alligator, but the intensity quickly builds after a frantic Drums segment that leads into a wicked Jam featuring sharp, angular Jerry solos and swooping bass lines. The energy and enthusiasm are undeniable, and it sets them up perfectly for a ferocious Caution which gets a full workout. It eventually dissolves into that cacophony of screeching known as Feedback, and it’s a long one at almost 6 minutes, during which there are attempts to revive a deep-space trance, similar to what you might find in Dark Star. They finally give it up and put forth that A Capella favorite, And We Bid You Good Night, but is cut short from what sounds like painful shocks from the amps, which prompts Jerry to famously sign off with “Good night from all the electric mice”.
2/28/1970 Family Dog at the Great Highway, San Francisco, CA
Here’s an incredible show, played out in an Electric-Acoustic-Electric format, and it’s one big Lovelight sammich! To my knowledge, this is the only time they ever opened and closed a show with the song. Kicking off the first electric set with a powerful Lovelight, they work the song for over 13 minutes, and as Pigpen is starting to get into his rap, the band decides to throw a curve ball. Jerry hits on the riff for Me And My Uncle, and boom! – just like that – Bobby jumps on board and starts signing it. The Dead were masters of understanding how to segue songs like that because musically, the songs are in the same key. But it obviously requires more than just that bit of knowledge. As evidenced by how well they pull this off, it also requires skill. They end that song, but stay on the country theme with a hot rendition of Cumberland Blues.
The crowd is totally worked up and screaming, and after just those three hot electric songs they abruptly change gears to acoustic guitars, at which time Jerry announces that it’s going to “take everyone back about 60 billion notches”. Bobby raps about how Jesse Fuller introduced him to this next song, Monkey And The Engineer. A very nice version of Little Sadie, then Black Peter follow.
They put the electric guitars back on for a rousing China Cat > I Know You Rider, then cooling the intensity back off again with High Time, followed by a strolling version of Dire Wolf. Then it’s time to kick up the jams again and we get a ripping version of Good Lovin’ > Drums > Good Lovin’. Keeping the energy up, they blast through Big Boss Man, and then launch into the big jam segment, initiated with Alligator > Drums, followed by a gentle and pensive opening to The Other One. Even though it starts out soft, after a few minutes the intensity builds and we get the first verse, followed by a short jam and then the second verse. At the end, Jerry is looking for a place to go and starts strumming the chords to what would be their final performance of Mason’s Children. This is well played, but on the shorter side and after about 5 minutes they find themselves in the outro jam and are again looking for a place to go. Jerry quickly puts out a Caution Jam riff, and Phil briefly jumps on board, but it doesn’t hold. Instead, they opt to turn a corner and steer straight back into that Lovelight that was never finished, and Pigpen picks up right where he left off.
2/28/1973 Salt Palace, Salt Lake City, UT
Mostly officially released on Dick's Picks Volume 28. While there are a couple of circulating sources for this one, the best quality is definitely going to be Dick’s Picks Volume 28. They confidently work through a nice first set with some highlights including Cold Rain And Snow, Beat It On Down The Line, They Love Each Other, Box Of Rain, He’s Gone, and Jack Straw. The second set kicks off with a super-charged China Cat > I Know You Rider followed by a furious rendition of Big River. A sweet and soulful Row Jimmy is up next, as they attempt to turn the boil down to a simmer. After a rousing Promised Land, they can’t contain the excitement anymore and follow up with the big jam segment. Charging out of the gate with a standout Truckin’ that showcases the band firing on all cylinders. The intensity reaches great heights during the outro passage, then cools off to take a breather. This gives Jerry an opportunity to spin off a quick Nobody’s Fault riff.
After several minutes Phil leads the charge into a ferocious Other One that features some nice free-spirited jamming around the central theme. Everyone is contributing, and they’re in total control as they return for the second verse. The outro jam dissolves into a real spacey passage with Jerry wildly strumming his guitar at an intense pace. This leads to a brief abstract, almost obtuse avant-garde jazz jam segment. Jerry applies some more straight-forward melodies to his soloing to bring it back and they finally wind it down, giving Jerry a space to start strumming the opening chords to Eyes. The tempo and flare are perfect on this version, and it’s expertly performed and sufficiently jammed out (including the appended Stronger Than Dirt theme that was common at the time), at just over 17 minutes. It eventually gives way to a beautiful, mournful reading of Morning Dew. They finish the show strong and in a joyous mood by breaking out everyone’s favorite party tune Sugar Magnolia, followed by tucking everyone in with an intimate A Capella And We Bid You Good Night.
Music link: Dick's Picks Volume 28 or https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1973/02/28?source=336601
BTW, If you're not yet familiar with Jam Anthem versions of songs you can read all about it in Deadology II by Howard Weiner. Check it out here along with all his other great books.
And that's all for now! Of course, if you want to follow along in your very own copy of my book On This Day In Grateful Dead History: A Daily Listening Journal I still have some copies available here. Once they're sold out, I won't be getting any more made. The costs of printing and shipping has almost doubled in the last few years since I had them printed, and I've decided it's just not worth it. So get one now while you can! https://www.gratefuldeadbook.com/tigdh
