Deadology: October 19

Most Deadheads wouldn’t instantly think of October 19 as an essential date in the band’s illustrious history, but with six striking shows in a ten-year period, this date features many outstanding live performances. October 19, 1971, kicks off a new era for the band, and ten years later on this date, Jerry Garcia played in the homeland of his ancestors for his first and final time.

            Due to years of hard boozing that led to advanced liver disease, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, the group’s blues-singing, harp-blowing organist, couldn’t tour with the band in the fall of ’71. The Dead debuted their new piano player, Keith Godchaux, at the first show of the fall tour in Northrop Auditorium in Minneapolis on October 19. Keith and his wife, Donna Jean, were fans of the band. In a serendipitous move, Donna approached Jerry and asked him to give Keith a tryout and Jerry obliged. Although Keith was a jazz-influenced pianist with a limited rock and roll resume, Garcia liked what he heard. Keith was exactly what the band needed as the Dead’s improvisational abilities soared and peaked over the next several years. Keith’s rhythmic playing helped fill the harmonic midrange, freeing the rest of his mates to explore. There were few awkward moments during Keith’s debut in Minneapolis. The right musician had arrived at precisely the right time. Donna Jean joined the band as a vocalist on New Year’s Eve, 1971.

        

            Strictly analyzing the performances, 10-19-71 is just an adequate show. In the coming weeks on this tour, there were several extraordinary gigs. Keith’s presence revitalized the band’s sound and vision. The other significant development from this concert was the debut of six new original compositions unveiled in this order: “Tennessee Jed,” Jack Straw,” “Mexicali Blues,” “Comes a Time,” “One More Saturday Night,” and “Ramble on Rose.” From this extraordinary batch of tunes that would remain in the live repertoire through the years, Bob Weir’s composition, “One More Saturday Night,” was the standout performance. The music’s rambunctious and Garcia’s solo steams. The first “Jack Straw” was a success, but if one were in attendance that night, it would have seemed as if “One More Saturday Night” was the song with more potential. “Jack Straw” evolved into a revered anthem with an intense and flexible jam, while “One More Saturday Night” eventually settled into its role as a cookie-cutter weekend encore.

            The Garcia/Hunter tunes, “Ramble on Rose,” “Tennessee Jed,” and “Comes a Time,” were solid, up-tempo debuts. Four of these new tunes ended up on Europe ’72, and “Comes a Time” and “Mexicali Blues” landed on solo efforts by Garcia and Weir, respectively. Except for “One More Saturday Night” (written by Weir), these songs were born in the thick of Robert Hunter’s immortal three-year songwriting run—Dylanesque in nature. Inspiration would continue to flow from Hunter’s pen, but the abundance and quality of what he accomplished between 1969 and 1971 is stunning. And with Pig playing his last gig in the summer of ’72, the myriad of new material enabled the band to rage on after his passing. Pigpen could never be replaced, and the Dead never had to search because they were blazing down untrodden paths and there was no turning back. 

            On October 19, 1973, President Nixon rejected an Appeals Court decision to turn over his secret White House tapes for the Watergate investigation. While Tricky Dick was hoarding his tapes, the Grateful Dead were performing at the Arena Fairgrounds in Oklahoma City and creating tapes that would be immortalized as Dick’s Picks Volume 19. Extraordinary effort characterizes this tapes from 10-19-73, which is one of archivist Dick Latvala’s finest picks. The stars of the first set are the up-tempo new tune on the block, “They Love Each Other,” and an elastic exploration of “Playin’ in the Band” to end the set. “Playin’” boils as the band unloads a dump truck of ideas—sinewy metallic runs cascade like spider webs across the aural landscape.

            This Oklahoma City affair was the first show of an extraordinary two-month run for the Dead that commenced in the Midwest, advanced out West for a series of shows, and then finished up with an East Coast tour. Four days before the Oklahoma City gig, Wake of the Flood was released. It was an outstanding collection of songs, but in concert, the band had already mastered superior versions of the album’s best songs: “Eyes of the World,” “Mississippi Half-Step Toodeloo,” and “Weather Report Suite.” One could successfully argue that this period in late ’73 is up there with any elite era in Dead history.

            Set two of 10-19-73 sets sail with China Cat > Rider. Late ’73 through ’74 is the golden age for “China Cat.” In the thick, zesty sound of the jam, inspired individual virtuosity shines in the larger collective brilliance of the music. Garcia’s leads intensify and seemingly regenerate as the band pivots toward the “Feelin’ Groovy” motif. This segment strikes like electroshock therapy within a danceable, old-timey framework—another wonderous jam light-years away from what any other band was churning out at the time.

            Ripe renditions of “Mississippi Half-Step” and “Big River” filled the fourth and fifth slots of the set. These songs worked well together at a few shows in 1977, but at the following show on 10-21-73, they made history inside of this song loop: Playin’ in the Band > Mississippi Half Step > Big River > Playin’ in the Band. This was the first time the Dead segued out of “Playin’” into another song and later reprised “Playin.” This became a signature move of the band, and “Playin’” became a gateway to higher ground. In the OKC Fairgrounds, higher ground is achieved through a Dark Star > Morning Dew, “Sugar Magnolia” second set finale.

            Jerry’s gleaming guitar leads touch off the “Dark Star” voyage. After several compelling minutes, Phil takes over the initiative and the jam becomes scattered. Without a definitive restoration of the “Dark Star” melody, Jerry sings the opening verse. This is not one of the standout versions from an era that provided so many. When the jam seems to drift off course, Phil’s vertebrae-rattling bass wakes up all the aliens in the universe as a “Mind Left Body” jam emerges and the intensity flourishes.

            The segue into “Morning Dew” is understated. All eyes and ears are on Reverend Garcia as he croons the apocalyptical hymn. A swirling whirlwind of an ending jam features an endless flow of speed licks and chord fanning from Jerry as Weir balances the attack with quirky rhythm guitar as bass bombs land as exclamation points. After a few seconds of reflection, the Dead decide to end the set with “Sugar Magnolia.” There’s twangy tone to Jerry’s guitar as the band shakes and bakes a rollicking instrumental.

            The elated crowd demanded more, and their heroes returned for an encore that turned out to be more like a short set. Appearing in the encore slot for the first time was an uplifting “Eyes of the World.” As the outro jam rolls out, it seems like the band wants to wrap it up. Sprawling tunes like this in the encore slot are usually shortened. But Jerry vetoes any quick exit as he noodles along until a rich, full-bodied version segues into “Stella Blue.” What a lovely pairing of Hunter/Garcia tunes from Wake of the Flood. A “Johnny B. Goode” thrashing sent Oklahoma Deadheads home euphoric.

            October 19, 1974, was the next to last show of the band’s iconic Winterland run prior to their brief retirement from the road. Deadheads, and members of the band, were uncertain if the Grateful Dead would ever tour again. Outstanding footage from this Winterland stand is captured in the Grateful Dead movie. One of the film’s highlights is the 10-19-74 “Eyes of the World,” which features intimate footage of the band wailing as their devotees gyrate and whirl to the sonic muse. However, the movie version is missing six minutes of primetime jamming. There’s an excellent version of this “Eyes” in its entirety on the So Many Roads box set with a superb audience recording precisely spliced in to fill the missing gap from the soundboard tape. This eighteen-minute “Eyes” is pure bliss. The band treasures every second, and their palpable joy seems to indicate that maybe this retirement idea is a mistake—a band this hot can’t retire—it goes against the natural laws of physics and reason. This “Eyes,” with its sensational instrumental ending, is one the three greatest.

            Midway through set two, there’s a torrid “Sugar Magnolia.’ The Wall of Sound amplifies the dreamy Cajun bounce and gives this version a distinctive feel. Garcia’s guitar solo is sublime in an understated manner, but it’s not as smoking as the one from the Winterland a year earlier on 11-11-73, or the 12-31-72 “Mag” rampage in the Winterland. This leads to my “Seems like I’ve been here before” theory. Like a flashback, it’s possible Garcia, and the band, recalled past great versions of songs as they played them in the present, as if the spirit of the past jam was alive and residing in the arena. I always found it strange that Garcia played mind-boggling “Sugarees” in Hartford and New Haven, but almost never in Madison Square Garden. It could be an unconscious thing, or maybe it’s an awareness that sneaks up on the band as they’re in the moment—strange déjà vu.

            Gorgeous versions of “To Lay Me Down,” “Scarlet Begonias,” and “China Doll” join forces with “Eyes” to make the 10-19-74 opening set a classic. Truckin’ > Caution jam > Drums Truckin’ > Black Peter is the superb filler jam before the Sugar Magnolia loop is closed with “Sunshine Daydream.” On its own, these four shows in consecutive years confirm October 19 as one of the essential dates in Dead history. The band also performed on this date in ’80, ’81, ’89, ’90, and ’94. On October 19, 1994, the Grateful Dead performed in Madison Square Garden for the final time, and Jerry sent chills through the audience with a poignant vocal performance of their later day masterpiece, “So Many Roads.” Of these remaining October 19 performances, the ’80 and ’81 shows are the standouts.

            A year later in Barcelona, Spain, on 10-19-81, the band delivers a fiery performance with a loaded set list on the last stop of their second European tour of the year. It was an especially satisfying stop for Garcia, who had the opportunity to play in the land of his ancestors for the first time in the gorgeous coastal city of Barcelona. The Dead celebrated the tenth birthday of “Jack Straw” by opening the show with it, but audio difficulties marred this presentation. After segueing into “Franklin’s Tower,” an impressive set ensued. Garcia’s wild imagination and razor-sharp guitar tone imbued “Let it Grow” with majestic power to end the set. Stellar renditions of “Passenger” and “Althea” preceded “Let it Grow.”

There are better Scarlet > Fires than the one that opens set two in Barcelona’s Sports Stadium, but few are as addictive. Over the last five years, I’ve probably listened to this one more than any other. The opening chord progression and tempo of the “Scarlet” is sensuous. The swirling, lush sound of Brent Mydland’s keyboards ignites an uplifting groove. Brent was the best backing vocalist the band ever had, and two years into his tenure with the Dead, his organ playing became a key component of the sound. Jerry blows a lyric early on, but his vocal phrasing is sweet. This was a golden age for Garcia’s singing. In the years that followed, excessive smoking took its toll on his angelic voice.

The “Begonias” outro instrumental is substantial without overstaying its welcome. The last few minutes linger in elegant sophistication. Garcia guides the improv with soft leads in a lower register as the band eases the tempo and softens the volume. Garcia’s licks touch down like drizzling rain as Brent and the drummers attentively play off the Maestro’s direction. It’s a wonderfully subdued jazz moment.

WHOMP! The passive suspense explodes into the glorious groove of “Fire on the Mountain.” The beat pulses along naturally like a healthy heart, and it never could have flourished like this if it weren’t for the “Begonias” foreplay. The Barcelona “Fire” is lean and combustible. At the tail end of the second solo, Garcia unleashes a barrage of piercing notes with extreme velocity—the type of surge that’s impossible to miss, even if you’re listening passively. The tantalizing nuances of the music combined with the rich high-end audio mix of the soundboard infuse the Barcelona Scarlet > Fire with its alluring charm.

The serene opening of “Lost Sailor” sounds exotic on the heels of “Fire.” There’s no place Sailor > Saint would rather be. It reminds me of the studio magic of the classic album Who’s Next. After the rowdy finale of “Goin’ Mobile” comes the soothing, beautiful intro to “Behind Blue Eyes.” When the Dead were on their game, they could create perfect albums on the fly. That’s why I obsess over the pre-Drums segment of 10-19-81.

Perhaps the most impressive portion of the Barcelona performance occurs from the “Saint of Circumstance” jam until Drums. Garcia and Lesh bombard the Sports Palace with an extended “Saint” instrumental that rockets past any previous barrier. The intensity conjures up images of a bull stampede. Following the “Sure don’t know what I’m going for” sing along, Garcia ends the song with an incendiary flourish. Never underestimate the final notes of a smoking “Saint.” Without pause, Garcia noodles on for six minutes against some sparse accompaniment from his mates. I’ll dub this noodling tribute to Garcia’s ancestry, “Ode to Barcelona.”

After Drums, there’s a brief “Spanish Jam.” If there ever was an occasion to get long-winded on this fetching instrumental, this was the time. A hot “Other One” ensues the “Spanish” tease. “Stella Blue” is a poignant choice, although the outro jam is lackluster. This is odd because some of the best “Stella” jams are from this period. For “Stella” fanatics, I recommend the outros from 10-6-81 London and 12-9-81 Boulder.

The Dead shake up the Sports Palace one more time with a full-throttle “Sugar Magnolia” workout to close the set. On this glorious occasion of Garcia’s only gig in Spain, the band encores with “Don’t Ease Me In.” After the grandeur of this concert, the encore comes off like an adolescent prank. For many hardcore fans, “Don’t Ease Me In” was an undesirable selection as an encore. It was an uplifting number, but also the type of song the band could sail through with minimum effort. Song placement is essential. One of the most exciting versions of “Don’t Ease Me In” occurs as the second song of Keith and Donna’s last show on 2-17-79.

For more October 19 shows check out Deadology: The 33 Essential Dates of Grateful Dead History