Dark Star Orchestra 2016-06-01 - The Wilbur Theatre - Boston, MA

     Next in the line of concerts I had last week was Dark Star Orchestra at the Wilbur Theatre.  For those of you who don't know, DSO is the premier Dead cover band; at this point they've done more shows than the Dead actually played!  Their whole trip is to recreate the setlist of an actual Dead show, and to keep the song arrangements and equipment as era-accurate as possible.  While some Dead purists may scoff at this as mere recreation and unoriginal, I challenge any of them to play a 30-miunte "Dark Star" without having an original thought of their own.  The truth is, everyone in the band is an excellent musician who loves the Dead and their music, and what could possibly be wrong with that??

     My parents and I met up around the corner from the theatre at a place called Jacob Wirth's, that's probably historic or something.  All I really know is that they have a good beer selection, and we go there any time we see a show in the Theatre District, including Furthur and previous DSO shows.  After dinner we got in line to get in, and waited with some people who had been to DSO's Jubilee, which is a mini-festival they have in Ohio every year.  This year's lineup also featured Hot Tuna, and we just so happened to see Jorma Kaukonen the night after DSO!  Small world....

     Anyway, we waited in line until they let us in, and we got right up to the stage again!  We were right between two of the three Robs, Rob Eaton and Rob Barraco on the right side of the stage.  The Wilbur is a nice old theatre, but some things about it are really strange: It has a club in the basement that plays music that is the furthest from the Dead you can get; there is no smoking area, and they only let people out front to smoke during intermission for what feels like five minutes; the floor is sectioned off into fenced-in sections for some reason.  We ignored all of that and got busy examining the stage set-up.  There were two drum sets, and only a gong for auxiliary percussion (that we could see).  There was also only an organ set up for Barraco, as opposed to a multi-keyboard situation.  The final clue was that there was no mic set up for Lisa to sing, so we figured that this must be a 60's or 1970 show; and we were right!  The lights went down, the band came on, and even though we didn't realize it yet, we were transported back to 1969-12-30, which just so happened to also be a Boston show!

First Set

• Good Lovin' > Drums > Good Lovin'
• Barraco didn't do much of the Pig Pen rapping/raving, but that just meant the rest of the band could jam - hard.
• Cool surprise to get a drums break in the very first song, and it's only the first of this set!
• Mama Tried
• I woke up this morning with this song in my head, so that's fun!
• New Speedway Boogie
• This and the next two songs were excellent.  Not only was the band totally clicking at this point, but they also nailed the early arrangements.
• The harmonies on this weren't great, which is totally era-accurate!
• Casey Jones
• Better harmonies, pretty straight-forward performance.
• Black Peter
• A huge highlight of the show!
• The solo just stayed around one chord, like it would in this period, and went on and on for a feverish eternity.
• Me & My Uncle
• Again, straightforward but very good.
• Midnight Hour
• We thought for sure this would be the encore, but we were very wrong.
• Barraco had some good Pig Pen-esque rapping on this one.  In the past he sometimes has an actual transcript of what Pig really said, but I think this one was all free-form.
• Cumberland Blues
• Like the rest of the Workingman's Dead material, this one actually felt like it was a new song they were still perfecting.
• That's It for The Other One >
• I lost it again folks.  I'm sorry, but I just can't hear the first notes of "Cryptical" without totally losing it.
• You know what, actually??  I'm not sorry!
• Second drum break of the night, this one so long that the rest of the band left the stage!  It was at this point we started thinking maybe this was going to be one giant set, not two separate ones.
• Skip nailed the Phil intro to "The Other One" like we knew he would, and the song just unfurled from there.  A classic late-'69 version that stayed mostly with the theme, but was starting to stretch out into what used to be exclusively "Dark Star" territory.
• The "Cryptical Reprise" was a little short, but it was really cool to see someone actually doing Jerry's ascending licks from that outro jam.  Yes, it's a little cheesy to see someone copy a lead almost exactly, but it seemed pretty genuine in the moment.
• Cosmic Charlie
• A great set closer.
• I hadn't realized how different Phil's version of this song has been lately from the original arrangement.

     At the setbreak I looked up the songs we had heard so far, and found the show!  I hid the second set with my hand though so we wouldn't have anything spoiled.

Second Set

• Uncle John's Band
• Like the others, this "early-version" of the song was spot-on.  The jam in the middle of the lyrics was longer and felt a little meatier than it would in later years, but the more psychedelic jam in 7/4 was much shorter and simpler.
• Mason's Children
• They had brought out music stands for the vocalists during the setbreak, and I correctly accused the band of playing this when they came back on stage.  None of them admitted to it, but I knew I was right.
• Unfortunately a slight low point for the night.  The jams were great and hit some high points, but those lyrics and harmonies seem to screw everyone up but Phil...
• China Cat Sunflower >
• I Know You Rider
• Everyone knows that the '73-'74 arrangement is the best this pairing got, but it was cool to see a simpler version.
• The "China Cat" solo especially had more of the sixties, raw-psychedelic feel to it than the more refined, space cruiser versions from the 70's.
• Dark Star >
• "DARK STAR!"
• And what a great one too!  We had seen them do a "Europe '72 'Dark Star'" at the Wilbur before, so we knew that they understood the forces at work.  And I mean, come on: "Dark Star" is in their fucking name!
• They found themselves at the vocals after drifting around a few corners in the nebula, nailed those, and then went into some HEAVY FEEDBACK.  Skip looked like he was humping his amp, but he didn't care, he was making noise!
• They resurfaced into the "Feelin' Groovy Jam," and finished up the lyrics.  We all thought we knew what was coming next, but...
• Alligator >
• Surprise!
• Very different from the Furthur version I saw on 11/11/11, but much more traditional...or whatever that means for this song.
• Everyone loves "Alligator," and there are a lot of good reasons for that.  Not least of all the fact that you get you yell "ALLIGATORRRRRR!!!!"
• Drums >
• More drums!!  See, you can still have three compelling drum solos in one show without lugging twenty tons of exotic drums and electronic doo-da's.
• The Eleven >
• Another surprise!
• Incredible stuff, but no one yelled anything about Samuel...well I mean, I did, but no one on stage did!  Bobby would be so confused...
• The transition back into "Alligator" got pretty wild, thought they'd go right into "Caution" from here, maybe even "Lovelight."
• Alligator >
• ALLIGATORRRRRR!!!
• They threw in the "We Bid you Goodnight Jam," which of course is the thing to do.
• Feedback >
• Wish they had gone all the way into "Caution," but I can't complain!
• I think the feedback in "Dark Star" was heavier, but this was more deliberate and longer.
• We Bid You Good Night
• Who doesn't love this as a show closer??

Encore

• Easy Wind
• These two were elective encores.  They liken them to filler on a tape.
• Lisa came out for this one on harp, but didn't seem her usual self.  Very quiet and just a short solo.
• Brokedown Palace
• Probably my favorite traditional encore song, and this was a lovely version.

     So that was a night in Boston in '69!  I've now seen an elective set, a Europe '72 show, and one each from '69, '78, '79, '82!  Hard to rank them in concert quality ('78 was the worst, hot night at the end of a tour), but as far as the amount of fun had, all of them are tied.  DSO shows are always a great, lighthearted time.  There's none of the pressure that comes with seeing members of the Core Four, and all of the community and enjoyment - all for cheaper than an actual Dead show!

     Hope you enjoyed the post, let me know what you think and follow the blog on Twitter and Facebook @21stCenturyDead!  I should have a review of the Jorma concert up tomorrow....but maybe I won't.  Pretty short and acoustic, but we'll see!

The John Kadlecik Band 2016-05-26 - Brighton Music Hall - Brighton, MA

     While I've been gone I saw three great concerts that all deserve their own in-depth reviews.  That being said, I'm going to condense them all into three smaller posts over the next couple days, because that seems like the easier thing to do.  Hopefully as the summer progresses I won't let all these shows build up like this (spoiler alert: the two Fenway shows will definitely be condensed).

The John Kadlecik Band   2016-05-26  - Brighton Music Hall - Brighton, MA
All pictures here

     This was the Thursday before Memorial Day, so my parents and I got tickets to the show and took Friday off so we could drive up to Maine.  It was in the 80's, which is semi-typical for the Spring we've been having so far, and a beautiful day.  Took the Green Line out to Brighton and met up at a place called Deep Ellum (believe it or not) before the show.  On the way there we passed by the Hall and heard a bit of the sound check, but it was mostly just John screwing around with his array of pedals and testing the mics.  After a good dinner we walked back and were almost the first ones in line, and made some friends outside.  There was one taper outside who said he was following John on tour, but I forget his name (sorry, man).  The tape has not yet surfaced, though, so I'm not that sorry...anyway, everyone was psyched for some good music.

     John of course played with Furthur and is a frequent Friend of Phil's, but I had never seen him outside of a purely Dead context.  The JKB, from what I understand, is mostly his home-town band that he does for fun, but this was a slightly different line-up for touring, featuring Todd Stoops on keyboards (his sneaker-game is stronger than yours will ever be), Nathan Graham on drums (is some of his beard missing), and Klyph Black on bass (Geddy Lee has a twin).  We had never heard of any of them before, but were excited to see some new musicians!  We actually saw John in this same venue last summer in Golden Gate Wingmen (and will see them again later this summer), so we knew the set-up inside pretty well.  We got right up to the front of the stage where they had five Giant bass speakers lined up.  I convinced my parents we should stand right in front of them, to their slight trepidation.




     John had a gold/yellow guitar set up on stage, but I could see he had his typical eagle-headed guitar set up behind the amps.  I thought for sure he'd use that one at some point, but he stuck with the golden one the whole time, which was fine.  It has a sharper tone, and doesn't sound quite as big as the Eagle.  He also, as I mentioned, has an impressive array of switches, pedals, and knobs on the floor, not to mention all the jacks and knobs on the guitar itself!



     Here's the setlist, courtesy of the physical setlist the crew member handed me (thanks again), with some notes.  John sang all the songs except for a couple that Klyph sang.

First Set

• Brown-Eyed Women
• John fucking kills this song every time he plays it!
• They did the solo section at least five times, probably more.  Todd got two or three goes, and John owned the rest.
• Nobody Told Me
• Another of John's fortes is doing Lennon songs.  Maybe it's a John-thing.
• They Love Each Other
• One of the best songs of the night.  Just when I was starting to think that John was going to dominate every solo, Todd steps up (literally, he was standing for a lot of the night) and blew everyone away.
• I would love to see Todd and Chimenti duel on this song, but I think my head would split open.
• Tin Roof Shack 
• Kind of a "Me & My Uncle" vibe; simpler, but still enjoyable.
• Apparently a Peter Rowan song.
• Box of Rain (KB)
• This was unexpected, and very welcome.  A good version, but nothing makes you appreciate how tricky of a song it really is like seeing someone other than Phil play it.
• Bird Song
• Like I said, I don't have a recording of the show, but I would guess this was maybe 15 minutes or so.
• It had some places where they seemed a little stuck, and John whiffed a few notes in the beginning, but it was incredibly expansive and reached a lot of high points.
• Seen Love
• This song had a nice blend of reggae and shifting-soundscape-psychedelia.  Mellow while also dance-able.
• Ripple
• Always a treat, and John does a cool arrangement of it that's more syncopated and has a revolving solo section.
• He sang it in French for a while after the Paris attacks last year, but this was in English.

Second Set

• After Midnight >
• Also one of John's favorites, and he likes taking it far out into space.
• Really good interplay between John and Todd here.
• Your Mileage May Vary >
• An original by John, totally instrumental.  Sounds kind of prog-rocky, but in a jammy way.  The whole band nailed the song as far as I can tell, even with some tricky time-shifts and ascending riffs that wrap around each other.  A great highlight of the night, and I would love it if he brought this to a Phil show!
• Crazy Fingers >
• I feel kind of weird about this song sometimes.  It's a good song, but it seems tricky to play very well sometimes.  These guys did a pretty good job.
• It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
• This, however, was incredible!  The jam into it really took off too.
• Any Road >
• Not only does John like playing Lennon songs, he likes some of George's too!
• Another one where he does the solo section a couple of times, and then just launches into heavy jam territory.  In fact, the jam gets so heavy sometimes that it even goes into...
• The Other One (KB) >
• HOLY SHIT!
• Never saw this coming, but you all know how happy I am whenever I get this song.
• Not only that, but Klyph turned his bass up to 11 and did the Phil intro, and I can't believe the bass speakers in front of us didn't shatter my knees into a million pieces.
• Stuck with the theme for a bit, did the first lyrics, and then went into total break-down-space for a while before coming back to the second lyrics.
• American Spring >
• John's wrote this one with Robert Hunter, so that automatically makes it cool.
• That being said, I'd rather hear some other Hunter songs, but this one is still good.
• Pretty political in that it's a-political, and John's been doing it a lot as kind of a protest song...or something.
• Throwing Stones >
• Yet another surprising Bobby song.  I realized later that when Bobby sat in with the JKB a bit ago they did this and "The Other One," and wondered if they always did them, or if they learned them with bobby and then just had that much fun and kept them in the rotation.
• This and a lot of the other Dead songs sounded a lot more stripped-down, due to the different band and having fewer instruments. This, was the only one of them that I think suffered from that a little; I kept listening for Bobby, but he never showed up.
• John did sing the new Bobby line "You can buy the whole fucking government today," instead of the classic "Selling guns instead of food today."
• Touch of Grey
• Only one of these I've seen anyone do live, and done with a very different vibe.  Slowed down, and reggae-ified.  Interesting, if not necessarily as successful as possible.

Encore:

• When I Paint My Masterpiece
• Done in The Band's style as opposed to the Dead's version.
• Such a fantastic song, and done very well here.  Everyone was thinking of Bobby though.

     Like I said, after the band left the stage and the crew came out, one of them handed me the setlist, which is pretty cool.  It was really such an impressive show.  John was of course the star of the night, but the rest of the band did more than just pull their own weight.  Nathan was locked right in with Klyph at all times, and Todd would typically be playing on multiple keyboards at once to great effect.

     This will probably be all I'll post today, but will hopefully have reviews of DSO and Jorma Kaukonen up tomorrow-ish!  Follow me on Facebook and Twitter @21stCenturyDead for updates!

Dead & Company Setlists 2

     Alright guys, another short one today.  Just a heads-up, I'm going ona  small vacation, so there may be a post this Sunday, but there also may not be.  Tune in to find out!

     Anyway, here's potential setlists I made for the shows I'm seeing this tour.  There are some songs on here that they haven't played yet, and some that they probably won't play, but a man can hope, right??  Let me know what you think and feel free to critique or share your own below!


Hartford Show

Set One
Jack Straw (BW & JM)
Althea (JM)
Me & My Uncle > (BW)
Cumberland Blues (BW & JM)
They Love Each Other (JM)
Rubin & Cherise > (JM)
The Wheel > (ALL)
Promised Land (BW)

Set Two
Alabama Getaway (BW)
Ship of Fools (JM)
Truckin' > (BW)
Spanish Jam >
Viola Lee Blues > (ALL)
Drums/Space >
The Eleven > (BW)
Help on the Way (BW & JM) >
Slipknot! >
Wharf Rat > (BW)
Franklin's Tower (JM)

Encore:
The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) (ALL)

Fenway Night One

Set One
Cold Rain & Snow (JM)
New Minglewood Blues (BW)
Friend of the Devil (JM)
Loser (BW)
Beat It On Down the Line (BW)
China Cat Sunflower > (BW &JM)
Wharf Rat (JM) >
I Know You Rider (ALL

Set Two
Eyes of the World > (JM)
Morning Dew > (BW)
Playing in the Band > (BW)
Bird Song > (JM)
Cryptical Envelopment > (JM)
Jam >
Drums/Space >
The Other One > (BW)
Cryptical Envelopment > (JM)
Days Between (BW) >
Not Fade Away (ALL)
Encore
Touch of Grey (BW & JM)

Fenway Night Two

Set One
Misissippi Half-Step (BW & JM)
Cassidy (BW)
Tennessee Jed (BW & JM)
Looks Like Rain (BW)
Brown-Eyed Women (JM)
New Speedway Boogie > (BW & JM)
Deal > (JM)
New Speedway Boogie > (BW & JM)
Midnight Hour (BW)

Set Two
Shakedown Street > (BW)
Estimated Prophet > (BW)
Dark Star > (ALL)
St. Stephen > (ALL)
Drums/Space >
Lady with a Fan > (JM)
Terrapin Station > (BW)
The Wheel > (ALL)
At a Siding > (BW)
Terrapin Flyer >
Stella Blue > (JM)
Playing in the Band Reprise (BW)

Encore: One More Saturday Night (BW)

July 1978 Box Set Review

    This week the Dead released a box set that I was not too excited for when it was announced, but it has now floored me with its incredible quality!  As most of you probably know, ‘78 was a year with a lot of ups and downs for the band both musically and personally, and I always approach shows from this year with some hesitation.  The band had developed what I think of as a Big Machine-like sound, in that all the members of the band were parts of this giant engine, and when they were all doing their individual parts in synch, the music had this incredible momentum that the band had been building up to through ‘76 and ‘77.  When the members of the band were not in synch, however, that machine could come to a crashing halt; when you have two rampant drummers, a drunk bassist, and a coked-up rhythm guitar, some not so coherent tempos are going to emerge.  This box set, thankfully, has no such rhythmic disasters, and is really a great snapshot of the Dead at their best in this era.

    These tapes were some of the recently recovered Betty Boards, soundboards recorded by Betty Cantor Jackson when she was still with the band.  Those tapes have famously been scattered to the four winds ever since they went on auction from her storage locker.  Betty was one of the best things to happen in the world of Dead recordings, and she has quite the reputation for the quality of her recordings.  On top of the already great recordings, Jeffrey Norman has once again mastered the mix to perfection, and every note and growl is heard as clearly as the day it was in ‘78 (I assume).

    As a quick aside, the rumor that I’ve heard is that the owners of these soundboards are the ones who have the Cornell ‘77 show that the Dead have always claimed they don’t have in their vault.  So some are thinking that once Dave Lemieux negotiates their return, we’ll have another May ‘77 box set with New Haven 05/05, Boston 05/07, Cornell 05/08, and Buffalo 05/09, with Cornell also being available as an individual show, like they did with Red Rocks 07/08/78 on this one.

    Anyway, here are my notes and thoughts on the box set, by show.  The box is unfortunately sold out, but you can still buy the digital release here, view the tracklist, and listen to some sample tracks.   They released 5 shows, three of which had previously not circulated as soundboards.  The two Red Rocks shows are famous for being the band’s first shows at that historic venue, and for being excellent shows in their own rights.  I, like everyone else, always held the second Red Rocks show on a pedestal, and with this crystal clear recording, it’s even easier to see why!

7/1/78 Arrowhead Stadium: Kansas City, MO

• A weird show, in that there is only one extended set, but the weirdness of the arrangement possibly even fuels the band’s own weirdness!
• The band is a little loose and wobbly at first, but there is an undeniable energy to their playing.
• The first disc is like a condensed version of a first set, and the second disc is the same for a second set.
• This was played at Willie Nelson’s 4th of July shindig, and the Dead were third on the bill.  They must have blown a lot of these cowboys’ minds.
• The second discs is one of those discs I know I’m going to play a lot by itself.  All the songs could be a little longer, but they absolutely kill them all.
• I don’t think “Estimated” has ever come post drums in a show, let alone out of “Space”!
• Absolutely stellar “Wharf Rat,” I could actually just listen to this over and over.
• I rarely rant about how good Jerry is, because it’s so obvious, but holy shit!  JERRY!!

7/3/78 St. Paul Civic Center Arena: St. Paul, MN

• Possibly the best “Loser”?  I mean who’s really to say, but they really get this one right.
• The Machine is really chugging along tonight!
• We get to witness some of the early days of Bobby’s slide guitar obsession...you all know what that means.
• I think he started in Spring of ‘78, and you have to wonder if Jerry ever sat him down and asked what he thought he was doing.
• His fills and smaller rhythms with it could actually be pretty great, but you’re all just going to stand there and watch him solo with that thing??  I can only imagine how Warren Zevon felt...
• Part of what makes the Big Machine work is that everyone in the band knows the songs so well at this point that more of them can play around the melody at once, and they all trust the others to do the right thing and meet up again in the right place.  This is what makes the Grateful Dead so good, and I hope it’s something we’ll be seeing more of as Dead & Company finds its feet.
• Both of the “Scarlet > Fire”s in the set are shorter than one would hope, but they’re both fantastic in different ways.  This one is longer and closer to what you would expect than the Red Rocks one, which we’ll get to.
• Really good “Dancing in the Street,” and it gets pretty spacy instead of being straight disco like it was in the previous two years.  Also interesting to compare to the Red Rocks version, which is shorter but even spacier.

7/5/78 Omaha Civic Auditorium: Omaha, NE

• Some sound issues on “Sugaree” and “BIODTL,” but you can tell that they actually happened live because the band reacts to them.  Or I’ve tricked myself into hearing that, what do you think?  Otherwise, incredible versions of both songs.
• Great versions of “They love Each Other,” “Dire Wolf,” and “Lazy Lightning > Supplication.”
• “Deal” to open the second set, pretty unusual.
• I still think the “Estimated > Eyes” from DaP 15 is better, but this one is a classic.
• So many good “Wharf Rat”s on this box set, so hard to say which is the best.  It’s either this one or the Kansas City one.
• “Truckin’ > Iko Iko > Around and Around” is another unusual feature of this show.  This is a much better “Iko Iko” than most, and it’s not typically a favorite of mine, but I really dig this one.

7/7/78 Red Rocks Amphitheatre: Morrison, CO

• Their first show at this venue, which maybe explains why some of these songs seem a little more tentative than other versions.  They also blow the big shows, so maybe they were just nervous about that?
• Even if some of these songs aren’t as good as their counterparts on this box, it’s still a fantastic show.
• “The Music Never Stopped” was the best it ever was in 1978.
• I always forget that in ‘78 they stopped singing the final “flight of the seabirds” verse in “Cassidy,” and I wonder why they did that?
• As short as some of the other songs are, this “Cold Rain and Snow” is a monster!  Keep your snappy 2 minute versions to yourself.
• Keith really takes charge in the “Scarlet” jam and takes the music in places it usually doesn’t go from “Scarlet.”
• “Fire on the Mountain” is way too short, but it’s got such a different vibe to it here.  It was always very groovy and funky, but this version is a little smoother and less bouncy.
• Same for “Dancing in the Street,” it’s a lot shorter but very different.  Instead of rocking out into drums, it kind of drifts away into space.
• A smoking version of “Not Fade Away,” the way it should be.  The Big Machine seriously gets cooking here.

7/8/78 Red Rocks Amphitheatre: Morrison, CO

• A famous show, and rightly so, everything here is top-notch.
• Very Big “Minglewood” and “Ramble on Rose.”
• The obvious set-piece is “Estimated Prophet > The Other One > Eyes of the World,” and for good reason.  This is such an awesome combination of songs, and they’re all played flawlessly.  They could all be a little longer, but there’s so much packed into each one that you really can’t complain.
• I really want to know why Bobby says “I’m moving to Australia” at the beginning of “Estimated.”  If anyone has any idea, let me know, please.
• What people talk about less, but is still amazing and I’d say more unique, is the “Space > Wharf Rat > Franklin’s Tower > Sugar Magnolia” transition out of “Drums”!  Again, “Wharf Rat” is pretty short, but powerful.  “Franklin’s Tower” is just such a weird song to go into, and it seems even weirder to go into “Sugar Magnolia”!  Having said that and looked up setlists, I do see that they did these three in the same order at least once before, on 1977-03-19, so there’s that…
• Triple encore!
• Another short-but-great version of a song, this time in “Terrapin.”
• Much better “Werewolves of London” than the first one on the box, Bobby’s slide is a little more under control.

    This box set is definitely a great addition to the Dead’s recording legacy.  It’s exactly what we want in official releases: excellent quality in both recording quality and the quality of playing, and shows that are not widely available.  Any release that points out snapshots of brilliance in unexpected places is a release worth listening to, and this one did absolutely that!  Let me know what you guys think, and tune in for more next time!  As always, you can follow the blog on Twitter and Facebook, and let me know what you want to read about in the future.

Free Show at the Fillmore...in 2016!

     I'm sure you have all heard by now, but Dead & Company announced yesterday that they are playing a FREE SHOW at the Fillmore in San Fransisco this coming Monday, the 23rd of May!  In case you were wondering, like I was, it is that Fillmore, the Fillmore West, formerly the Carousel!  You can view pictures of the venue here, to get an idea of what it looks like nowadays.

     Now I, being in Boston, had only a fleeting moment of panic, looking at airline prices and hotels, but ultimately realized this was for you West Coasters.  You lucky dogs!  I would LOVE to see this band in such a small venue, let alone one with such history.  I do wonder if they'll be able to fit all of Mickey's drums and toys, but if they could fit all of Santana in there, I bet Mickey can make it work.

     I'm still crossing my fingers that it will be live streamed like their last free show, but that was through American Express' "Unstaged" series, so I'm not incredibly hopeful.  There will definitely be tapes of it, and I can't wait to hear those!  I'm wondering if they'll do something like they did for the first Fare Thee Well concert in Santa Clara, and play only older songs.  I think that kind of thing is really more Phil's trip than the rest of them, but I bet even Billy wants to play "Cryptical Envelopment" in the Fillmore one more time!

     So here's a potential setlist for this free show, let me know what you guys think they'll play!  And if you're going, brag about it, man!  Just a heads-up, I'll  have a review of the recently released July 1978 Box Set up on Sunday, so feel free to let me know your thoughts on that!

Set One
Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl (JM)
Doin' That Rag (BW & JM)
Beat it On Down the Line (BW)
Cryptical Envelopment > (JM)
(Short) Drums >
The Other One > (BW)
Cryptical Envelopment > (JM)
Cosmic Charlie (BW & JM)
Turn on Your Lovelight (BW)

Set Two
Dark Star > (ALL)
St. Stephen > (ALL)
The Eleven > (ALL)
Alligator > (BW)
Drums >
Space >
Caution (Do Not Stop on Tracks) > (BW &JM)
Death Don't Have No Mercy (BW)
In the Midnight Hour (BW)

Encore:
It's All Over Now, Baby Blue (BW)
We Bid You Goodnight (ALL)

Got No Signs, No Dividing Lines

    One thing I’ve brought up in some of my recent posts is the difference between a tracklist and a setlist.  A setlist is obviously just the written record of what was played, and a tracklist is how the individual songs are listed on a CD or digital release.  There is sometimes debate over how a setlist should be presented (not that I have any opinions on that…), but typically everyone is in agreement about which songs were played in what order, especially after a recording is provided.  What I have found all too often, however, is that the tracklists on official releases and recordings on the archive do not match up with what was actually recorded.

    Sometimes it’s little omissions, like not listing the “William Tell Bridge” between “St. Stephen” and “The Eleven,” which I can live with.  Same with if they want to call it “That’s It For The Other One,” “Cryptical Envelopment > The Other One;” or “Cryptical Envelopment > Drums > The Other One.”  What drives me crazy on a tracklist is not necessarily differences in setlist-philosophy, but the drawing of the line between two songs in what I consider to be the objectively wrong place.  Now when I say objectively, I realize that maybe this is all just my own opinion, but I want to try to at least show my reasoning for why I feel the way I do.

    Before we get into all that, I just want to point out a somewhat related problem that shouldn’t happen anymore: mislabeling songs at all.  I can see how in 1970, if you got a bootleg recording of a show and didn’t know the name of a new song the Dead were playing, you would reasonably call it “Don’t Murder Me,” or “Cowboy Song.”  But on the 1995 release of Hundred Year Hall, from Europe ‘72, they label it as “Truckin’ > Cryptical Envelopment > Comes a Time.”  “Cryptical Envelopment”?!  It’s “The Other One,” and had been for almost 30 years at that point!  It doesn’t show that way on the Wikipedia page, but if you look at the actual CD or somewhere like Spotify, you’ll see what I mean.  I haven’t seen anything else like this on official releases, but it still blows my mind every time I see it; inexcusable.

    Quick note: if you expected a ton of research and concrete examples, you will be disappointed.  I tried to find some examples of bad tracklisting, but I ended up just getting annoyed.  So I trust you all to know what I mean, and look back at examples of this in your own Dead experience.

    Anyway, onto the main topic.  I think the most egregious of these errors is between “St. Stephen” and “The Eleven.”  The fact that there is actually a third song wedged in between the two does nothing to simplify the matter.  It seems to me that people always push the labeling too far back into “The Eleven,” making “St. Stephen” seem longer than it actually is on the tracklist.  I think you should either list “William Tell,” or “St. Stephen” should be cut off at the end of “William Tell.”  Either way, “The Eleven” starts immediately after “William Tell” finishes.  Some people believe “The Eleven” should start when the band actually shifts into 11/4 time, which does make a certain level of sense.  To me, however, the jam leading up to the switch from 12 to 11 is an integral part of the song.  Not only that, but it’s impossible to get from “William Tell” to the switch from 12 to 11 beats without the jam between them, and that jam’s theme is so entwined with that of the rest of “The Eleven” that they really are the same song.

    Another classic pairing that seems to always have the cut between tracks in different places is “China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider.”  What makes this different from the previous example is that these two songs were paired together for about twenty years, so there’s twenty years’ worth of evolution to take into account.  The stance I take is that “China Cat Sunflower” inherently includes a jam out of it, and “I Know You Rider” does not inherently begin with a jam.  So anything that comes between the two songs at their most basic levels should therefore be included in “China Cat.”  That includes the “Feelin’ Groovy Jam” that popped up in ‘73 and ‘74 (not “Mind Left Body,” I go by this invaluable guide), and, more debatably, the riff that used to signal the end of Bobby’s solo and then turned into the classic hook they would use in the 80’s.

    I think those two examples are the only ones that are routinely mislabeled, but I want to briefly get into some pairings that have more definitive lines between them, in order to examine the basic philosophy of splitting songs up at all.  I suppose this is actually a new problem, because when people had tapes and records back in the day, the only line to draw was between one side or the other.  There was only a setlist, not a tracklist.  And really, a tracklist is a total fabrication with no bearing on reality other than as a way to talk about music in an analytical way.  The music all just happens without the consideration of where one song ends and the next one begins, so sometimes the transitions between songs happens differently for different players.  If Jerry and Keith are still playing “Scarlet Begonias,” and Phil has already started “Fire on the Mountain,” there is no one argument for where to draw the line that I find to be persuasive.

     That having been said, my general rule of thumb for “Scarlet > Fire” is that when Phil starts with his “Fire” bass line, they’re playing “Fire.”  Usually the way it works is that one of them will switch into “Fire” (usually it’s Phil), and then the rest of the band will fall in with him within a bar or two.  I’d say when two or more of the band have switched into the next song, the line between the tracks should probably be drawn.  So when they’re going into “He’s Gone” from “Truckin’,” and Jerry starts the riff, I think it should still be called “Truckin’” until he convinces at least one other guy on stage that “He’s Gone” is the right choice.  Same with when Jerry starts into “Eyes” out of “Estimated;” at the time, Phil and Keith could still have steered the song into “Terrapin,” so I don’t think the track should be cut until they finally give in and join him on “Eyes.”

    Well that’s how I feel about it, but what do you all think?  What are some other examples of botched cuts or mislabeled tracks?  I bet some of you have versions of “Dark Star” that aren’t listed as a track until after they’ve already finished the first verse, because I know I do…  As always, let me know what you want to read about in the coming weeks in the comments, or on my Twitter or Facebook.  I will definitely have a review posted of the July ‘78 box set once it arrives, or more realistically a few days after it arrives, so that should be out maybe Thursday, but most likely next Sunday!

Movie Meet Up 2016 (1989-07-02 Sullivan Stadium)

     Here's another Thursday review, this time it's of 2016's Meet Up At The Movies!  I've been going to these for the last three years, and each year it's a real good time.  My parents and I went down the the theater in Dedham, MA, stopping at the Yardhouse restaurant (we'll be stopping at another before the Fenway Dead & Comapny shows too) for great beers and food before the show.  I only spotted two other Dead Heads in the restaurant, but a lot of us were coming from work and couldn't be as decked-out in apparel as usual.

     I managed to stay relatively ignorant of the setlist, despite the best efforts of Dead.net and Fathom Events.  I, like Blair Jackson, like to stay more-or-less in the dark about the setlist of a show when I can avoid it.  Obiovusly when it comes to downloading shows I have to look at the setlist to judge whether or not it's worth the effort to download it.  But when it comes to shows that I know I'll see or listen to either way, I think it's best to go in with an open mind.  I know it's not the same as actually being at the show, but it helps to try to recreate that experience of being at the whim of the band.

     One thing that set this year's Meet Up apart from the others is that a lot of the people in the theater (there were a cuple dozen of us in total) had actually been at this show from Foxboro, and it meant a lot to them to see it again.  The guy next to me was beaming the whole night!  The show was preceeded and followed by clips of Dead & Company (the same clip), but I'll write more about that at the bottom.  The sound was good all night, but there was some rumbling coming through the walls from the theater next to us, which was occasionally distracting.  Also, in "Friend of the Devil," Brent's piano crapped out, but I'm not sure if that's the recording, the theater, or if that actually happened.  So here's the setlist, with what will soon become my signature review style; it's too much work to make entire new sentences and paragraphs for each song when there's not always enough to say, and I'm lazy.

• Playin' In The Band >
• Cool as an opener, glad I didn't have it spoiled!
• I knew at the time it wasn't a very long version, but the tape reveals that it was only about 5 minutes, which is way too short.
• Still a great version, the whole band is really together.
• They reprised it at the next show, which has been released as Truckin' Up to Buffalo.
• Did they realize they were playing Buffalo next when they decided to do "Truckin'" this night?  Either they did and it's very clever, or they didn't and they totally blew a chance to make the crowd in Buffalo very happy.
• Crazy Fingers >
• Always a little rough, especially any version from after '76, but this is one of the best versions I've heard.
• Wang Dang Doodle
• WAY better than it ever was with Vince (sorry, Vince), and Jerry is emoting like a beast!
• Everyone always cheers when Bobby forgets the words, but I think it's really just because he makes an even goofier face than normal when he does.
• We Can Run
• I keep thinking I'll have a breakthrough moment with this song, but I still can't get on board with it.  Love Brent, but this is not his best song.
• Tennessee Jed
• What a great version!
• Jerry started emoting again, but I started to think some of his grimaces are just because of the heat; they all look like it's really hot there.
• First time people started singing in the theater.
• What movie rules apply at these, and what concert rules apply?  Someone should take charge and set forth movie theater conert rules, and it's not going to be me.
• Queen Jane Approximately
• Not my favorite Dylan-Dead song, but this might be the best version of it I've heard.
• To Lay Me Down
• Unfortunately the weakest part of the show.  I cheered when Jerry started it, but the band just could not agree one the tempo they were playing.
• The look that Jerry gave the drummers when he started his solo would kill a lesser being.  The drummers seem to think Jerry's to blame, not them.
• Cassidy
• Again, the tape shows this as being much shorter than I thought it was at the time.
• Definitely a highlight of the first set, very tight and far out.
• Don't Ease Me In
• Short but sweet, more incredibly tight playing.  Hard to believe these same guys just blew one of Jerry's best songs!

 NO INTERMISSION, GO TO THE BATHROOM AT YOUR OWN RISK

• Friend Of The Devil
• To open the second set??  Are you sure, Jerry?
• Really good, they take two solo sections.
• This may be because Brent's first solo got neutered when his piano shat the bed.
• Truckin' >
• Two American Beauty songs in a row, but they probably didn't know that.
• They're all having too much fun on that stage!
• The "ball of lightning jam" (that thing they started doing after the last verse where the jam builds higher and higher and then explodes back onto the theme.  You know what I mean) is really good and I think Jerry tricks the drummers into getting on a different downbeat, but it all works!
• Jerry was pranking people all night.
• He's Gone >
• I knew this and "Truckin'" were coming, so I was glad they were back-to-back so I wouldn't keep expecting the next one.
• Incredible, maybe the best part of the show!
• The outro and jam show the Dead at their best.  They're all playing together and listening to each other, making eye contact, and looking like they enjoy what they're doing.
• The Bobby/Brent dynamic during the outro could be called the first recorded bromance.
• Eyes Of The World >
• Jerry's pranking people again!
• He lets the drummers think they're doing "Drums," and even tricks Bobby into leaving the stage as well...and then slams into "Eyes"!
• Starts a little rough because of Jerry's shenanigans, but turns into the best 80's "Eyes" I can currently think of.
• Drums/Space >
• Exactly what you would expect.
• Extended shot of Mickey's finger hovering above the Beam makes people laugh.
• Very Midi-heavy "Space," but very well played.
• The Wheel >
• My third guess for what would come out of "Space," behind "I Need a Miracle" and "The Other One."
• They nail it on this one, no confusion and everyone knows their parts.
• Dear Mr. Fantasy/Hey Jude Reprise >
• Definitely the best version of this pairing I've heard.
• I could actually listen to this one again, and I would if there was a soundboard recording out there.
• Sugar Magnolia
• Surprised there wasn't a post-"Drums" ballad, but not a huge problem for me.
• Very good, but Jerry pranks Bob by blowing the "Sunshine Daydream" beginning, which is funny, but messy.  It all works out in the end to close the hsow on a great note!

ROLL CREDITS, TRY NO TO HAVE THE ENCORE SPOILED

• Encore:
• The Mighty Quinn
• Actually my least favorite Dylan-Dead song, but I guess this was a good version of it.

     That was the main event, and a lot of people got up to go, but then the Dead & Comapny logo filled the screen, and we were treated to an incredible "Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower"!  Interesting that they didnt include the "Help on the Way," maybe they blew it?  Maybe they only had a certain time-span?  John and Bobby traded lyrics, and spread them out a lot more, like Bobby's been doing with "The Other One" and "Estimated Prophet."  The hilarious thing is that even when Bobby has slowed the song down as much as possible, and spread the lyrics out as far as he can, he still blows the last verse!!  So much for his strategy of slowing songs down so he can get the words...

     The MOST IMPORTANT THING we should take from this, however, is not Bobby's troubles with lyrics.  It's the fact that Dead & Company have more video and soundboard recordings, and are willing to release them to the public!!  This is hopefully the beginning of some kind of agreement that will end in people being able to pay for soundboards of their shows!  Some of you may be saying, "But wait, 21st Century Dead, they already played a free show that was shown on youtube that included 'Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower,' didn't they just show that version?"  No, they didn't!  It was from this show, which anyone who saw and heard the feature last night will agree on.  They'll also tell you that the band is wearing totally different clothing than in the free concert.

     So that's my spiel, hope you learned something!  Or at least enjoyed the read.  Tune in this Sunday to hear me rant about track listings and how they're never right and I'm always right, or something like that.  Maybe I'm wrong and you're right, but you'll only know if you tune in!  As always, follow the blog on Twitter and Facebook, and let me know what you want to read about next!