Grateful Dead live, Dick's Picks etc - S&D

A friend sent me four discs of the complete 4-disc boot of Jersey City 8/6/74 with great annotation and I have to say '74, just on the evidence of this show, might be an underpraised year. They come outta the gate really hard on this show and there's a Seastones interlude that's really pretty out - whole show is tremendous although the opening Bertha/Mexicali Blues/Don't Ease Me In/Beat It Down the Line/Jack Straw is just so good. Shoot, even "Eyes of the World" is pretty good, and I don't like that song much at all.

Hey, there's a reason people followed this band around... it wasn't just the songs themselves, there was this strange, trance-like groupmind thing that occured at shows (and actually still does).

which shows do you mean on the "actually still does" bit - which acts? b/c I will go to these shows. unless it's Ratdog, I don't care for the Ratdog I've heard.

well I couldn't vouch for the quality of the music necessarily, but I guess I was still experiencing the "magic" at the Phil and Friends shows and even Other Ones shows... and I assume with Further the whole phenomenon is still happening... that was always the point of it all, that acid-test group-ritual thing

which is what I mean by magic btw... not as metaphor for it being a particularly high-quality show musically, but rather that the band and audience would literally create this kind of ritual space by vibing off each other, sending energy back and forth. in a way, the band was always beyond "coolness" or conventional conceptions of taste because the focus within the scene was always more on the energy, it's a self-contained world

and Rockin the Rhein is a compilation from the other shows in Germany withe a couple of Pigpen features from England. I don't think any of the tracks on these three duplicate with now what is on the two volumes of Europe 72. Add it up, there is quite a bit already out there from that tour.

RtR is a complete single German show, Düsseldorf 4/24/72, plus two songs from London, 5/24/72. Definitely compares favorably with Europe '72, despite a dodgy moment or two (forgetting to play the bridge of "He's Gone," for instance).

Pro tip: The 2-disc Europe '72: Volume II is $9.99 at Best Buy right now.

Listening to 3/24/90 this morning (part of which became Dozin' At The Knick.) I visited a Deadhead friend out east and told him I wasn't much of a fan of the band, but to pick out something to change my mind. The unbroken Playin'> Uncle John> Terrapin> Mind Left Body was his choice, and I gotta say, the fusion/prog elements of that era were a big surprise to me.

I actually like Dozin' At The Knick, thats a weird era, but it hits some sweet spots for me.

Just listening to "Drums" on that now, which is really spacy.

It is, one of my favorite "Drums".

Pro tip: The 2-disc Europe '72: Volume II is $9.99 at Best Buy right now.

― jon /via/ chi 2.0, Tuesday, October 4, 2011 10:17 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

What is on this?

Disc One:
1. Bertha – Tivolis Koncertsal,Copenhagen (4/14/72)
2. Me and My Uncle – Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley (4/7/72)
3. Chinatown Shuffle – Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen (4/14/72)
4. Sugaree – Olympia Theatre, Paris (5/3/72)
5. Beat It On Down the Line – Theatre Hall, Luxembourg (5/16/72)
6. Loser – Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen (4/14/72)
7. Next Time You See Me – Olympia Theatre, Paris (5/4/72)
8. Black-Throated Wind – Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen (4/14/72)
9. Dire Wolf – Jahrhundert Halle, Frankfurt (4/26/72)
10. Greatest Story Ever Told – Olympia Theatre, Paris (5/3/72)
11. Deal – Olympia Theatre, Paris (5/4/72)
12. Good Lovin’ – Jahrhundert Halle, Frankfurt (4/26/72)
13. Playing In the Band – StrandLyceum, London (5/24/72)

Disc Two:
1. Dark Star > – Bickershaw Festival, Wigan (5/7/72)
2. Drums > – Bickershaw Festival, Wigan (5/7/72)
3. The Other One > – BickershawFestival, Wigan (5/7/72)
4. Sing Me Back Home – Strand Lyceum, London (5/26/72)
5. Not Fade Away > – Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley (4/7/72)
6. Goin’ Down the Road Feeling Bad > – Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley (4/7/72)
7. Not Fade Away – Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley (4/7/72)

Thanks.

sounded rad on spotify yesterday...$9.99 eh? even though i hate the place, with the dead and the floyd at such reasonable rates, i am going to have to schedule a trip to best buy.

Floyd no longer at $9.99; just checked the other day, the remasters are $11.99 now.

>:O

They must have juuuuust changed the price with today's new releases because they were still $9.99 last night. The price tags say $11.99 though.

Wow...I'm a doofus, because I resignedly picked up More, Obscured By Clouds, and Meddle thinking they were $11.99 each, but the total rang up to the $9.99 price. Sorry, disregard above.

:D

I've felt the hippie group mind at a few overnight bluegrass type festivals a little over a decade ago. One of those weekends was probably the best weekend of my life

Listening to these Europe '72 shows I'm pleasantly surprised at how together the vocals are (supposedly they were thought to be too rough for release, hence the overdubs on Europe '72)...then I hit the first "Jack Straw" (Newcastle, 4/11/72). Dudes, pick a fucking harmony note and stay with it.

Is that because you can now hear Donna Godchaux in the mix? Cuz you cant hear her at all on Europe '72, at least not that I can tell. She's kind of a harmony-killer.

Nope, she only appears on "Playin' In The Band" and maybe one other song.

Ugh, Donna-bashing. Sigh. I'll never tire of the irony of Deadheads who've been listening to Bobby and Jerry croak along for years complaining that Donna Jean, who once sang backup for Elvis, "can't sing."

Im not bashing her. I actually like the period she was in the band the best. But she can be a little screechy.

I don't mind her so much, except for that "whoooaaAAOOAAA YEAaAaAHHhh Ah HAY YAAAYAAaAaAaaa" thing she always did coming out of the long jam in Playin'

Ye gods, the dead. Years ago a workmate pushed a tape on me, his best of. I was open minded. Closed my mind ever since.

The "Truckin'" on Dick's Picks Vol. 1 (Tampa, 73) sounds like Loaded-era Velvets, but with better guitar players.

I've found '73 to be hit-or-miss. I love the Denver Road Trips set, but couldn't make it through all of the Winterland box. Maybe they were at their laziest when playing to SF audiences or something.

Maybe they were at their laziest when playing to SF audiences or something.

cannot concur. I got a partial Winterland '70 set this week that's among the best Dead I've ever heard - St. Stephen swinging for the fences, Dark Star in full bloom

have to agree w this^

Jerry w the elusive Owsley/Bear, in case you ever wondered what the dude looked like:

http://planetwaves.net/pagetwo/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/600+web-bear.jpg

cannot concur. I got a partial Winterland '70 set this week that's among the best Dead I've ever heard - St. Stephen swinging for the fences, Dark Star in full bloom

The '69 Fillmore West stuff (including, but not limited to, Live/Dead) is indeed ace. But the '73 Winterland box is too draggy, and Dick's Picks #16 from SF is a sloppy bore, with the exception of "Feedback," which may be the best one.

I've only heard the whole thing twice, but I think the Winterland 73 would be a better listen edited down to the best of the 2nd set extended jams.

This disc is pretty good...
Disc 5

"Weather Report Suite" (Weir, Andersen, Barlow) – 18:26

November 10, 1973 — Second set:

"Playing In The Band" > (Weir, Hart, Hunter) – 11:59
"Uncle John's Band" > (Garcia, Hunter) – 9:39
"Morning Dew" > (Bonnie Dobson) – 12:24
"Uncle John’s Band" > (Garcia, Hunter) – 1:50
"Playing In The Band" (Weir, Hart, Hunter) – 7:38

This part is pretty good too...

Disc 9

"Dark Star" > (Garcia, Lesh, Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Keith Godchaux, Hunter) – 35:41
"Eyes Of The World" > (Garcia, Hunter) – 13:36

so this came up in conversation yesterday--

is the original DICK still PICKIN or has the mantle passed to a younger dick?

A guy named Dave is the currently designated picker:
http://store.dead.net/live-shows/daves-picks-2012-subscription

seems like they should change the name to dave's faves

listening to roosevelt stadium 1973, radical version of "bird song"! http://archive.org/details/gd1973-08-01.sbd.sirmick.patch-12222.92478.sbeok.flac16

Oh yes! Archive.org's massive Dead section is good for that. Also went to dead.net for the first time in ages; nowadays they stream from The Grateful Dead Radio Hour and the Taper's Section. That pic of Owsley reminds me to ask: how do Bear's Choices compare to Dick's Picks, quality-wise and stylistically? Did he prefer the early days?

The Dead had a pretty unique relationship with their production people, especially Owlsey aka Bear, who really was about as close to a member of the band as you can get. Real early on, Owlsey pretty much bankrolled them and was the sound man. Because he was the early sound man, he started them recording every show (possible) and pulled off some pretty amazing live 2-track recordings considering the sound equipment of the time. Bear eventually got busted and went to prison for a couple of years in the early 70s and he still worked with them but in some different capabilities after he got out and until he left working with them for good (I think in the early 80s).

Bear's Choice was a Dead album from the early 70s that was taken from some recordings Bear did in 1970 and features Pigpen who had just died. The rest of the concerts were released as Dick's Picks Vol. 4.

If it is a late 60s live recording of the Dead, there is a good chance Owlsey recorded it.

Heh, today felt like a summer day in NYC, have been wading through summery Dick's Picks tracks on Spotify all day, starting off w/ the already-mentioned Chinacat -> MLBody -> I Know You Rider from DP 12.

Owlsey aka Bear

... aka Kid Charlemagne!

yeah, i'm super happy that i can explore the dick's picks thing via spotify/mog.

Owlsey aka Bear

... aka Kid Charlemagne!

Wait. Really??

I always figured Kid C. was about a coke dealer, but I would believe it if it was about Owlsey as that dude was a character with a capital C.

'Two From the Vault' is v.good...it's mastered or mixed really well for headphones.
― 57 7th (calstars), Wednesday, September 29, 2004 4:26 PM

^^ dark star and the eleven are good on this

It was my gateway to the Dead. The Other One and New Potato Caboose also notable imo.

yeah the ending of the other one is sweet

i've been going through archive.org for the last month or so, listening to one show from each year. totally fun! i think i'm just going to do this every summer. up to 1979 now. sort of scared but also excited for the 80s.

isn't I think '87 supposed to be a great year?

well, i've heard dylan and the dead...

I remember an Alpine Valley show I taped from a Dead radio hour on the Memphis station WEVL (lol HEAD JAMS) that starts with super speedy (stimulant fueled?) takes on Touch of Grey and Jackstraw. May have been from '87. The host's commentary that preceded the music were pretty classic ("...I remember it fondly, it was my first show...)