1970-05-06 - Kresge Plaza

Venue: Kresge Plaza, M.I.T. - Cambridge, MA
Tape History: SBD
Release History: None

Set 1
*Dancin' In The Streets, China Cat Sunflower -> I Know You Rider, Next Time You See Me, *Morning Dew, *Good Lovin' -> *Drums -> *Good Lovin', Casey Jones, *St. Stephen -> *NFA

Comments:
02-02-2011: Sometimes the muse hits before it's "supposed to." The Grateful Dead, scheduled to perform on May 7, 1970 at M.I.T.'s Dupont Gym, went ahead with a free concert the day before on the steps of the student center, as part of a rally protesting the deaths of student demonstrators at Kent State on May 4, and played one of their strongest sets of the year. Yes, an impromptu performance still overshadows the official concert.

This is a crunchy sounding tape. I'm not sure how else to describe it. It isn't tape hiss, but an external kind of crunch out there. It may have something to do with the rain that was reportedly falling that day. It's not terribly bad, either; solid B. Word is that the band was freezing, but insisted on playing for the students even though the scheduled gig was the next night. Gotta love it!

The first few seconds of "Dancin'" are missing. Thankfully, that hardly marks a dent in this fantastic version. From the get go, Jerry and company take off and don't settle for anything. This particular version of "Dancin'" ranks with the Harpur College cut four days before (Dick's Picks 8), still one of the very best shows for Deadheads the world over. They push and stretch their playing throughout, with occasional "Dark Star" licks from Jerry and ferocious energy from the whole crew. Near the end of the opening tune, it sounds like an embryonic form of "Eyes" takes shape. A leisurely "Rider" emerges after a very brief "China Cat." In what will become a fan favorite and highlight of too many shows to name, the pairing of these two tunes here is unremarkable. A first rate "Morning Dew" occupies the center of this gig, and you can feel how the "Where have all the people gone?" lyric hung above the audience, with no resolution in sight. "Good Lovin'" - a regular buzzkill tune for me - may well be the peak performance of the show, false start and hilarious bad mic banter notwithstanding. It's analogous to the the "Dancin'" opener, stretching out, reaching, the band certifiably cooking under Jerry's flights. All the while Phil and Jerry are astoundingly in sync. There is an interesting and tense segment in "St. Stephen" when the band seems intent on going into "NFA" after "one man gathers what another man spills." Jerry brings them back with the classic "Stephen" lick and the band then flies into the last two verses. It's a great little sequence, the band making it up as they go along.

Love some of the banter here. At the end of "NFA," Bobby says, "Hey, we're going to split, and we'll be playing for you tomorrow night, but it's just too fucking cold. You know how it is."

Anybody missing a little kid named Frank?

Dancin' In The Streets

(Unknown photo credit.)

1970-09-19 - Fillmore East

Venue: Fillmore East - New York City, NY
Tape History: SBD
Release History: None









Set 1
Morning Dew [missing from tape], Me & My Uncle [missing from tape], G.M. Little Schoolgirl [missing from tape], Cold Rain & Snow [missing from tape], Easy Wind [missing from tape], Sugar Magnolia [missing from tape], *Dark Star -> *St. Stephen -> *NFA -> *Darkness Jam -> *China Cat Jam -> *NFA -> *Lovelight

Comments:
12-07-2010: There is a ton of intrigue involved with this show. Apparently, there are mislabeled tapes circulating under the previous day's date with music from this show. According to deadlists, there were three sets played on 09-19, and the one above is part of the second set and all of the third. I am not sure what is what so I'll only address what I have. I treasure this incomplete tape (search nugs stash...) more than some great full-length shows I keep in rotation. The main reason is this perfect "Dark Star." I'll take a risk and say it's a top three version for me. Maybe 09-21-72 and 11-11-73 are the other two. But this one is right up there, and some days, is the only one there. A+, five stars.

It begins slowly, sullenly, and then starts climbing towards the stratosphere, shedding layers of sound while traveling in zero gravity, vulnerable, then reforming at light-speed with Jerry staffing the ship of the Dead towards certain explosion. Jimi Hendrix died the night before, and it seems to me as though the band is playing their respects to him through the luminous feedback bursts throughout the set and the crazed, prickly guitar lines Jerry creates. After the quiet section, Bob's rhythm work establishes a firm ground for Jerry to take off from. Unexpectedly, the band dips into the "Feelin' Groovy" jam (or "UJB Jam," if you prefer) about 16 minutes into "Dark Star." Five minutes later, they're back to the main theme. Jerry's guitar is melting throughout this section, evaporating, ceasing to be a physical object and instead uniting with the spirits to create one consciousness. I can't overstate how special this "Dark Star" is. The tape is worth a Lightning Skull for this tune alone. Not surprisingly, the rest of the set is exceptional too. The three-way harmony in "St. Stephen"'s key riff is awesome to behold. The jam leading to "NFA" is so high energy, you wonder how they could keep it up. The "NFA" burns and the transitions into and out of the "Darkness Jam" and "China Cat Jam" and back to "NFA" are mind-blowing. Leave it to Pigpen to close the show with his signature R&B rave-up, "Lovelight." A must-hear, necessary component to any Dead collection. One of my favorite 1967-1970 tapes.

Dark Star