Kean
College 2-28-80: The early show of Kean College begins with a blazing “Sugaree.”
This Jerry Garcia Band configuration was a quartet consisting of Garcia, Kahn,
Ozzie Ahlers (keyboards), and Johnny de Fonseca (drums). With a seating
capacity of 953 and dynamic acoustics, Kean College’s Wilkins Theatre was a
dynamic venue for experiencing the Jerry Garcia Band, who also played there in
’82 and ’83. Excellent versions of “Catfish John” and “That’s What Love Will
Make You Do” followed, making for a potent opening sequence. A melodic and
hypnotic “Simple Twist of Fate” gave the audience a chance to catch their
collective breath. Jerry’s singing and guitar playing were fabulous on this
night, and on most nights during February 1980. Adding to the allure of this
show, the triple CD release of 2-28-80, After
Midnight, is a dynamic live recording, one of the best in the Garcia
catalog.
“How
Sweet It Is” precedes the early show’s royal rhapsody, a set-ending After
Midnight > Eleanor Rigby > After Midnight. The first part of this
trifecta is solid, and “Rigby” is perfection personified. Garcia first played
“Rigby” on 1-20-80, although it was more of a suggestive tease than a
well-developed instrumental. There are seven versions of “Rigby,” and they were
all sandwiched between “After Midnight,” with the last performance coming on
3-7-80. The timing and execution of the melody line is exquisite at Kean
College. I’ve never heard any jazz group cover this better, and many have
tried. John Kahn was a jazz buff, and he must have been standing tall as the
Jerry Garcia Band channeled the sadness and compassion of “Rigby.”
“Rigby”
was a surgical strike. Garcia eases his way back into the “After Midnight”
reprise and sings the last verse softly, and then the urgency of the final jam
builds steadily. The gloves are off and civility is out of the question as
Garcia unloads. It’s a furious assault, as hard-hitting as JGB gets. The band
logically moves to end the triumphant jam, but Garcia will not be denied. He
rolls through the roadblock and opens a door to a new crescendo that smashes
the previous one. His creative vision is unbelievable. The 2-17-80 version of
this combo has more freewheeling jamming throughout, but this Kean version is
crisper, and the last solo is rock and roll royalty.
Garcia
opens the late show singing his mantra, “I’ll take a melody and see what I can
do about it. I’ll take a simple C, to G, and feel brand new about it.” Jerry
and friends take the jam through the time-tested JGB motif: Two verses > Garcia
explores > jam boils > keyboards > funky chord progression > guitar
fireworks > final verse. The ensuing “Tore Up” received the same treatment,
and you’d have to listen to many tapes to find hotter versions of either tune.
Usually early and late JGB shows will have different feels, like first and
second sets from a Dead show, but on 2-28-80 in Wilkins Theatre, there’s
unflappable congruency between the early and late shows. It’s as if the Garcia
Band never took a break, and the ambiance of the music never shifted.
Following
a thorough exploration of Jimmy Cliff’s “The Harder They Come,” Garcia called
Robert Hunter on stage for a couple of tunes. Halfway through this tour, Jerry
invited Hunter to come along and open for JGB with an acoustic set. At the
previous show in Providence on 2-26, Hunter joined JGB on stage for the first
time and played the same two songs he would play at Kean College, “Tiger Rose”
and “Promontory Rider.” The two-stepping do-si-do beat of “Tiger Rose” is
juiced by a lively Garcia solo, and “Promontory Rider” comes off like a Rolling
Stones song. Hunter, who’s not much of a vocalist, sounds Dylanesque, and these
two songs are a welcome contribution on a classic JGB album. Stellar versions
of “Mission in the Rain” and “Midnight Moonlight” close out Garcia’s Kean
College debut.
Marin
Veterans Memorial Auditorium 2-28-86: This is a standalone acoustic performance, not
part of a tour, but it comes on the heels of a Garcia/Kahn acoustic swing on
the East Coast in January. For an official release, this is not a top-notch
recording like the Kean College show, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying
this excellent performance. Listening to the standard “Deep Elem Blues” opener,
the meaty sound of Garcia’s guitar playing is noticeable. There’s a sharp twang
to his fluid leads, and there’s a chunkier rhythm filling out the sound than in
past tours. Jerry’s guitar picking had improved since his initial acoustic
tours with Kahn in ’82, although his voice sounded better back then.
This
Garcia/Kahn presentation is gripping. The songs dwell in Old Weird America
terrain—a mix of traditional folk tunes with Hunter/Garcia originals. “Friend
of the Devil,” “Run for the Roses,” and “Dire Wolf” coexist beautifully with
“Little Sadie,” “Spike Driver Blues,” “Jack A Roe,” and “Oh Babe, It Ain’t No
Lie.” In the middle of it all is Dylan’s “When I Paint My Masterpiece.” How did
Jerry let Bobby sing this with the Dead? Nobody sings “Masterpiece” with proper
reverence and emotion like Garcia. This was one of the last times Jerry sang it
live.
Garcia
played two six-song sets on 2-28-86. “Birdsong,” the tenth number on this
night, burns like few acoustic performances can. Garcia’s voice is off; he
can’t seem to align with the tender spirit of the tune. The acoustic jamming is
bumpy yet fulfilling. Garcia tries an assortment of different licks and
melodies as Kahn’s bass thumps support and challenge Garcia’s ideas—a tangled
tapestry of acoustic adventure. To the delight of everyone in the auditorium,
“Ripple” follows “Birdsong.” This isn’t a great version. Garcia sang this
better with the Dead backing him.
Lo
and behold, “Ripple” segues into “Goodnight Irene,” and Jerry’s crooning like a
bluebird. Jerry salivates over every phrase; he loves the language and
catchiness of this Leadbelly song that The Weavers converted into a number one
hit in 1950. Americans were humming and whistling “Goodnight Irene” as the song
remained in the top spot on the charts for thirteen weeks. I was flabbergasted when
I first heard the 2-28-86 “Goodnight Irene” on the Grateful Dead Channel on
Sirius Radio. Jerry’s snapping strings bounce off
swinging old-school bass. For three solos, the poignancy of the jam matches
Garcia’s gushing vocal delivery. This is the definitive “Goodnight Irene,” and
probably the longest. After hearing this on Sirius, I immediately acquired this
edition of the Pure Jerry series (volume
8).
Salt
Lake City 2-28-73: The Dead’s show from the Salt Palace is featured alongside the
show from 2-26-73 on Dick’s Picks Volume
28. The Salt Palace affair opens with a gorgeous “Cold Rain and Snow,” and
set one concludes with “Jack Straw.” There’s a snappy “They Love Each Other” in
the second slot. These ’73 renditions are more compelling than the tempered ’76
remake of “They Love Each Other.” It’s a pleasurable set, yet it was short by
’73 standards. The band saved their longer jam numbers for later.
Salt
Palace receives a blazing China Cat > Rider after intermission as Garcia
shifts into overdrive following the fanfare licks of “Cat.” Billy’s drumming is
unbelievable as a rock/jazz flow emerges. The band bolts through “Rider” with a
ton of attitude. With the addition of the “Feeling Groovy” jam later in the
year, Cat > Riders continued to confound and expand. After the Dead’s
improbable highs of ’72, their avenues of fresh artistic expression continued
to multiply. Following “Big River” and “Row Jimmy,” the Dead canonize 2-28-73
with a historic medley.
The
grand Salt Lake jam develops out of a spiraling “Truckin’” instrumental. Keith
leads the charge, galloping along with an aggressive rhythmic piano sequence.
Without overstating the jam, Jerry, Bobby, and Keith give way for a Phil solo
with sparse accompaniment from Billy. From there, the boys blast into “The
Other One.” The music surges and recedes as the band restates the theme several
times before Weir, almost reluctantly, steps up to sing “Spanish lady comes to
me she lays on me this rose.” Garcia dominates the remaining seven minutes.
There’s a blazing mind-left-body feel to this operation, and when the flame
dims, the band glides into “Eyes of the World.”
The
3-28-73 “Eyes” begins to click after the second verse. The majestic new
Garcia/Hunter creation is evolving into something special, and at seventeen
minutes, this is the longest and best-developed outro jam of the early renditions.
Later in the year and throughout ’74, the Dead turned the outro into a joyful
expedition executed precisely and giftwrapped with a danceable groove.
Out
of the ashes of “Eyes,” the band eases into “Morning Dew.” The drama
intensifies as the performance takes on the tone of a sacred service. Billy’s
drumming syncs with Jerry’s subtle changes of pace in the middle solo. The
ending jam starts off in a subdued whisper, and instead of methodical building,
Garcia jumps into the apex chord fanning early. There’s a strong finish to this
distinctive “Dew,” but it lacks the length and substance of an elite version.
“Sugar
Magnolia” completes the set with a raging rush. Garcia plays cat and mouse by
himself as he bends odd-sounding notes and chases them with sneaky,
quick-picking runs. The nuance of his playing against the band’s powerful
propulsion is masterful. This is the only time these songs were lined up
together: Truckin’ > The Other One > Eyes of the World > Morning Dew
> Sugar Magnolia. After the historic segment, the band walked away from
their instruments and returned for an encore, blessing the crowd with a rare
“We Bid You Goodnight” sing-along.
Fillmore
West 2-28-69:
Here we jump into the thick of the
band’s most hallowed stand of 1969, four nights in the Fillmore West. The
tracks from Live Dead were taken from
the first and final nights of this run, 2-27-69 and 3-2-69. These shows, and
the other two from 2-28 and 3-1, were released on Fillmore West 1969: The Complete Recordings as a limited-edition box
set in 2005. And from this box set there was a three-CD spinoff simply titled, Fillmore West 1969.
Grateful Dead archivist
Dick Latvala proclaimed, “The best and most exciting G.D. show ever is without
a doubt 2/28/69 Fillmore West!!!” “Morning Dew” gets off to a shaky start in
the opening slot, but Garcia and company jam madly down the homestretch. The
first set is a phenomenal Pigpen showcase featuring steaming versions of “Good
Morning Little Schoolgirl” and “King Bee.” The set ends with “Turn on Your
Lovelight.” Garcia’s a beast—more raging guitar per minute than any other
version. The Pig rap is tight, and the band storms across the finish line.
Set two of 2-28-69 is
scary—primal Grateful Dead. After Bill Graham’s intro “That’s It for the Other
One” shell shocks the Fillmore West, each jam is a wild ride as seven tripped-out
musicians give it their all—crazy-hot stuff out of the gate. I can’t imagine
folks in the Fillmore West dancing, as much as I see them shaking in their
shoes. The masterful suite dies down, and after a brief pause, “Dark Star”
emerges. It’s not one of the longer “Stars” of the year, but the intergalactic
journey satisfies.
St. Stephen > Eleven
> Death Don’t Have No Mercy > Alligator > Caution closes 2-28-69 in
obscene fashion. The “Eleven” jam whips round and round, and sixteen minutes of
lightning burrows into “Death Don’t Have No Mercy.” Garcia’s poignant singing
ramps up a scathing blues assault, and then Pigpen takes over again.
“Alligator” and
“Caution” end the set. The Dead would move on from this era with a stronger
arsenal of original songs, but sweet Jesus! The jams that these songs illicit
are outrageous, especially on this evening. This is easily the best jam out of
“Alligator,” and the band follows Phil’s hyper bass charge into a “Caution”
that detonates into feedback. The boys try to sing “We Bid You Goodnight,” but
Pig howls as if he was just electrocuted, and the sing-along ends abruptly.
February 28.
There’s more from 2-28 in Deadology: The 33 Essential Dates of Grateful Dead History.
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