Let’s revisit our old ‘Today in Grateful Dead History’ series today with a look back to 45 years ago to the day! March 18th, 1967 – San Francisco, CA — The Winterland Ballroom — a young, acid-fueled, primal Grateful Dead take the stage and offer two sets of blues, jug, rock, folk, and traditional music. This show highlights the band’s divergent tastes during these formative years but also their ability to mend all these different styles together into a unique and cohesive style all their own.
3/18/67 Poster
The Grateful Dead
March 18th, 1967
Winterland
San Francisco, CA
Set 1: Me & My Uncle, Next Time You See Me, He Was A Friend Of Mine, Smokestack Lightning, Morning Dew, It Hurts Me Too, Beat It On Down The Line, Dancin’ In The Streets
Set 2: The Golden Road (to Unlimited Devotion), Cream Puff War, The Same Thing, Cold Rain & Snow, Viola Lee Blues, Death Don’t Have No Mercy
Tonight, March 17th, was the official opening night for Phil Lesh’s new Terrapin Crossroads music venue in San Rafael, CA. The opening gig featured Chris Robinson, Jeff Chimenti, Jimmy Herring, Joe Russo, Phil’s two sons — Grahame and Brian — as well as special guests Bob Weir and Jackie Greene sitting in. This is the first of a 13 show run to bust open the new venue with a bang! Rumor has it that Phil will retire from the road in the next couple of years and settle down with frequent local gigs at the new venue, following the Levon Helm ‘Ramble’ model.
For the legions of Bay Area Phil phans, this venue is truly a blessing and tonight’s opening is a big moment in the west coast deadhead scene. Expect lots more show announcements for this year, and a full-on review of the venue when yours truly makes it up there one of these days! Here’s the setlist from the first official Terrapin Crossroads gig:
Phil Lesh and Friends
3/17/2012
Terrapin Crossroads Opening Night
San Rafael, CA
Set One
Terrapin Station (Studio version over the PA) ->
Inspiration (live band enters)->
Uncle John’s Band
Ship of Fools
Sail on Sailor (Beach Boys cover)
It Takes a Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
Whiskey in the Jar
Seven Drunken Nights (Irish Jig)
Wharf Rat
Viola Lee Blues
3/17/12
Set 2*
St. Stephen->
The Wheel
Thorn In My Pride
Scarlet Begonias->
Don’t Play With Fire->
Cryptical Envelopment->
The Other One->
Fire On The Mountain->
Playin’ In The Band
Terrapin Jam->
Playin’ Reprise->
I Know You Rider
Ah, Saturday afternoon. A glorious time to kick back and listen to the good ol’ Grateful Dead. Let’s rewind to 1978 and dig on this classic, tripped out show from fall tour in Springfield, MA. The boys are definitely ‘loose’ on this evening, rumored to have taken high doses of peyote or a similar psychedelic. Whatever they’re on, their playing is ON and inspired, albeit with some comical elements added in. Check out the out there Dancin’ In The Streets and the tribal, smoking Scarlet- > Fire set 2 opener. This show is full of fun and surprises and doesn’t read like your average 78′ show. The band brings back some of the more raw energy of their 60s sound mixed with their late 70s precision and catalog and fuses together a truly unique show here.
The Grateful Dead ~ 5/11/1978 ~ Springfield Civic Center ~ Springfield, MA
Set 1: Cold Rain & Snow, Beat It On Down The Line, Friend Of The Devil, Looks Like Rain, Loser, Mexicali Blues-> Mama Tried, Tennessee Jed, Minglewood Blues, Peggy-O, Lazy Lightning-> Supplication
Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-> Fire On The Mountain, Dancin’ In The Streets-> Drums-> Not Fade Away-> Stella Blue-> Around & Around
Maybe we here at WTN are late to the game on this one, but it seems there has been a recent surge of full-length set and show concert videos showing up all over YouTube. For live music phreaks, this is, uh… amazing! It’s like a live music concert DVD store with free instant streaming has landed in my living room. In case you’re not sure what I’m talking about, here’s some choice examples below, enjoy phanners and happy Friday!
Note: The embedded vids below take some time to load. Be patient, it will be worth it!
Phish live in 92 from Shoreline:
Grateful Dead NYE 78′ the closing of winterland:
2/21/2003 – Peak Oxy years stuff right here:
Bisco 12/29/2010 – the standout show from last year’s NYE run w/ Sammy on drums:
Believe it or not, it’s 2012. The Grateful Dead has been an American institution for almost 50 years, longer than many people live. And it’s not just Furthur out there touring, the Dead’s music continues to live on in more bands than one could ever imagine after so many years. Here’s a sampling of what 2011 meant in Grateful Dead land, and what’s in store for 2012:
1. FURTHUR
Photo: Mary Ouellette / SoundSpike
Bob Weir and Phil Lesh’s Furthur continue to tour from coast to coast, the incarnation closest to the original Grateful Dead experience. While there are haters and lovers of Furthur, all true deadheads can rejoice in seeing Bobby and Phil share the stage and make magic. To get a feel for where the band is at today, check out this show from Madison Square Garden from November 10th.
2012 Forecast: Furthur already has a spring tour booked, and will likely continue to tour at least through the end of 2012. With more Phil and Friends shows in the works and a possible Ratdog reunion tour, 2012 may be a lighter touring year than 2011.
2. 7 WALKERS
7 Walkers
If you haven’t heard the debut album or caught a show from Billy K. and Papa Mali’s ‘7 Walkers’, do yourself a favor and check them out. This stripped down ensemble invented a whole new genre of Grateful Dead known to fans as ‘Swampadelica’. Their album is soulful, bluesy, fun, and a must have for deadheads. You can buy it from the official 7 Walker’s site here.
2012 Forecast: Next up for 7 Walkers is a series of shows with Steve Kimock aboard next week’s Jam Cruise. After that, look for continued dedicated attention and touring from Billy K. as well as a possible follow-up studio album.
3. MICKEY HART BAND
Mickey has put together a brand spanking new band for 2012 with a whole slew of new original songs taboot. Check out the YouTube above to see the cast of characters that Mickey has assembled. The band just recently finished up a winter tour that was pretty smoking from what I’ve heard. Let’s hope Mickey keeps this band around for a while and releases some of the great new originals they’ve composed.
2012 Forecast: Mickey and his new band already are still in the midst of a few January shows and then will likely be releasing an album of original material with a supporting tour to follow later in the year.
4. PHIL LESH AND FRIENDS
Phil Lesh reunited ‘Phil and Friends’ this year at Warren Haynes’ annual Christmas Jam. Check out the vid above of a playful China Cat Sunflower from the reunion. The Xmas Jam group featured Jackie Greene, Warren Haynes, Jeff Chimenti, Joe Russo, and of course uncle Phil himself.
This was just a preview though, Phil and Friends will be playing 3 shows in Colorado in February of 2012 with an amazing lineup of John Scofield and Warren Haynes on Guitar, Jackie Greene on Keyboard/Guitar, John ‘The Lion King’ Molo on Drums, and Phil. These shows promise to be nothing short of epic. To get a feel for what the shows might be like, check out the vid below of a very similar band featuring Warren and Sco from Mountain Jam 2007. I was at this show and it is probably my favorite P&F show ever out of many, many shows I’ve seen.
2012 Forecast: Aside from the February shows, rumors have been swirling that Phil and Friends will crank out some more shows in 2012. Expect to see some one-off or mini-runs at Phil’s new Terrapin Crossroads venue.
5. DARK STAR ORCHESTRA
DSO
DSO continues to tour relentlessly, from New York to San Francisco to Jam in The Dam and beyond, bringing unmatched energy, passion, and love for the Grateful Dead canon to ‘Starheads’ everywhere. With Jeff Mattson firmly settled into the lead role in Dark Star, fans everywhere (including myself) can’t stop singing the praises of the new frontman and the raw 60s and 70s style psychedelic guitar work he brings to the band. If you’re still a skeptic on Dark Star and think they’re just a ‘cover band’, stop fooling yourself and catch them on their upcoming tours, you will not be sorry!
2012 Forecast: DSO is sure to keep up the relentless touring in 2012. So far the band is playing the NE and SE in the winter, Jam in the Dam in March, and the West Coast in April. Expect a NE and festival tour in the summer, West Coast in late fall, and a return to the NE for NYE 2012.
Bonus Dead: As if this wasn’t enough, RATDOG is reuniting on January 25th for a special webcast show from Bob Weir’s TRI Studios venue that he launched in 2011. The golden road really does go on forever, and there’s nothing to do but smile about it.
Pre-sale tickets just went on sale for what promises to be an exciting and intimate affair at the Fox Theater in Oakland featuring Bob Weir and Bruce Hornsby, alone and together. The evening will most likely feature solo sets from each artist, some duet performances, and special guests taboot. See you there!
Here’s a taste of Weir and Hornsby together at moe. Down 2011 performing Jack Straw:
To get tickets, head on over to the APE pre-sale now (pw is ‘layover’) and get your tickets while they last.
The newly revamped Rhythm Devils kicked off their 2010 tour this past weekend with a Friday show in Arcata, CA and a big Saturday showing at the NWSS at Horning’s Hideout in Oregon. The new lineup includes an all-star rhythm section of Billy, Mickey, Andy Hess (ex-Gov’t Mule) on bass, and Sikiru Adepoju on the talking drum. Rounding out the band is Keller Williams on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, along with Davy Knowles also on the ax. Check out Saturday night’s setlist and recordings below, along w/ a couple of videos that have surfaced from the first 3 shows. Lots more to come from the Rhythym Devils in 2010 including a BIG Gathervig of the Vibes headlinging spot on Saturday July 31st… Stay tuned!
Hart and Kreutzmann
The Rhythm Devils
7/17/10
Northwest String Summit
Horing’s Hideout
North Plains, OR
Setlist (1 set show):
Cumberland Blues>
Sitting on Top of the World
Friend of the Devil
Next Dimension
Bird Song
Casey Jones
Don’t Ease Me In
Ship of Fools
Jack-a-Roe
Comes Dawn
Not Fade Away
Ripple
Sorry for the delay Welcome To Now fans – the WTN tour bus is just pulling back into the station and we’ll be back tomorrow with Lots more music and fun and (of course) Phish coverage for you all. In the meantime, remember, whatever you do – Take Care Of Your Shoes, watch out for Wooks, and most importantly….
And while you wait, enjoy this vid one more time – cause we just can’t get enough of it!
Furthur continues to go a little bit Furthur than they’ve gone beore – this time by announcing even more dates to their summer/fall 2010 schedule. The newest dates are a West Coast run in September with BIG stops at the Santa Barbara County Bowl, Red Rocks, and Vegas. With the cool fall breeze blowin’ California Love all through the air, these shows are sure to be nothing short of magic. All the stops on this mini Western jaunt are as follows:
FURTHUR SEPTEMBER 2010 TOUR
9/16 Cuthbert Amphitheater, Eugene, OR
9/17 Cuthbert Amphitheater, Eugene, OR
9/18 Marymoor Amphitheater, Redmond, WA
9/20 Santa Barbara County Bowl, Santa Barbara, CA
9/21 The Hellenic Theater, Los Angeles, CA
9/22 The Joint, Las Vegas, NV
9/24 Red Rocks Amphitheater, Denver, CO
9/25 Red Rocks Amphitheater, Denver, CO
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