The Deadpod

Here's a fine set of music for your Friday courtesy of the Grateful Dead back on February 22, 1974.We continue from last week with the second of three sets that the band favored us with to begin their quintessential 1974 tour. A fine recording here captures the nuances of Keith on Piano and of course the rest of the band's interplay which is especially notable on the wild 'Truckin' and the jams th...

  The Dead opened up 1974 with this week's show from Winterland on February 22, 1974. They picked up where they left off in 1973 with a long smoker of a show - we'll hear set 1 this week and set 2 next week. Notable moments include a 22 beat start to 'Beat It On Down The Line', some great Keith throughout, a lovely 'It Must Have Been The Roses', the elusive 'Loose Lucy' and to top everything off,...

This week we do a little carryover from Fat Tuesday with this Mardi Gras set from February 7, 1989 at the Kaiser in Oakland California.  The set starts with the sounds of the Mardi Gras parade, backed of course by Mickey and Billy on drums. The band starts with a rather unique introduction to Iko, Iko, but its certainly a good choice for the date. The 'Victim' that follows starts as a total train...

Seeing as how Fat Tuesday is coming right up... I decided to feature a Dead show that took place on Fat Tuesday back in 1989.. This one from Oakland on 2/7/1989.  This is a fairly newly released UltraMatrix recording, and I think it sounds great. The first set which we present this week, features two very new (at the time) numbers - the first performance of 'Just a Little Light' and the second, of...

Hey Now! It was such a cold and snowy day I almost didn't get this one ready but never fear.. we have a great set this week featuring some wonderful Pigpen and early, high-energy Grateful Dead.  As promised we have the remainder of the show from January 24, 1971 at the Seattle Center in Seattle Washington.  It starts with Bobby saying they were 'running short on time' and then they proceed to play...

I guess I just can't get enough of that good stuff.. .. :) but at any rate this week I've decided to bring you a rather rare treat. Back in 1971, the band finished a short, 3 show swing in the Northwest with this blistering performance in a small venue in Seattle on a Sunday night. This took place on January 24, 1971. This one is sparkin' from beginning to end, but I've split it up so we will hear...

 It's a new year but I've decided to go *way* back for some primal Dead on this week's Deadpod.  This comes to us from January 17th, 1968 at the Carousel Ballroom in San Francisco. What a treasure of early/classic tunes we have here! Now I'll admit, the sound is sometimes muddy and the vocals are at times less than clear.. however give the age and provinance of this recording I thought it very wor...

This week we wind up our 'holiday' series of Deadpods with the fabulous third set from the band's New Year's Eve performance in Oakland on December 31st, 1982. This third set features guest  appearances with Etta James and the Tower of Power horns. The band clearly has a blast here, and despite it being the third set play with a great deal of passion and energy.. Phil opens with that familiar bass...

 Hello Friends!  Hope this week's Deadpod provides a bit of a respite from the storms swirling around our heads... this week we get to hear the second set from the band's New Year Eve performance on December 31, 1982.  NYE is of course the one time of the year when everyone knew what was going to open the second set - and while you'll hear some decidedly 'un-grateful dead' like sound effects at th...

 Happy New Year!  From a request from a longtime frirend of the Deadpod - I've decided to celebrate the end of 2020 with this fun and raucous show from NYE 1982. I'll present this one over the next couple weeks and hope can feel and enjoy the fun that the band and everyone in attendance had on this special night 39 years ago.  The first set which we'll hear this week is a bit short, but still well...

 Merry Christmas!  I hope that this edition of the Deadpod finds you safe and warm with those you love. I hope the music brings a smile and a memory of happier times and places.. It is my reward to think that it makes someone a little happier..    this week the second set form the Fabulous Fox in St. Louis Missouri on December 12, 1971.  This one starts with a fabulous Pigpen 'Good Lovin', followe...

 For your Christmas week enjoyment.. a stunner from very late Fall, 1971..  Pig and Keith were both in fine form on this night at the Fabulous Fox.. This first set is a fine, uptempo collection highlighted, I think with the two Pig tunes, 'Mr. Charlie' and 'Next Time You See Me', as well as a great 'Loser' and 'Jack Straw'. Jerry kind of misses some of the lyrics on 'Tennesee Jed' but makes up for...

This week we go back 30 years to the band's second set at McNichols Arena in Denver Colorado on December 13, 1990.  I'm always a fan of a Help>Slip>Frank opener and here it heralds a fine show. A latter day 'Saint of Circumstance' is followed by a nice 'Eyes of the World' which opens up nicely towards the end as it goes into Drums and Space. The highlight of the set is the fine 'Other One' that co...

 We roll into December with a show from late fall 1990 - this one from McNichols Arena in Denver Colorado on December 13th, 1990.  This is a fine, energetic show, and starts off with a very uptempo Jack Straw into Sugaree. 'Wang Dang Doodle' follows to get everyone dancin', then Jer slows it down a touch with 'Friend of the Devil'.  Uncle>Big River contain some tasty Garcia tones, and I think the...

Happy Thanksgiving!  As is our tradition, I present an acoustic Dead show for your pleasure this Thanksgiving morning. While it is becoming difficult to find an acoustic set (in good quality) that  I haven't presented before, this is a wonderful recording and while the songs will be familiar to you they are still a joy to listen to, I think.    Grateful Dead Warfield Theatre San Francisco, CA 10/1...

Two factors influnced this week's Deadpod; first a request for more 1969 Dead from a friend of the 'pod, and secondly my desire to find a one-set tape that wouldn't run over into next week's Thanksgiving podcast. The result, I think, is this outstanding recording from October 25, 1969 at Winterland.  Sure, its only four songs... but what songs these are.. I know I played a 'Dark Star' last week bu...

 Here is an appropriate Dead show for Friday the 13th! This is the second set from the band's performance at the Hofheinz Pavilion at the University of Houston on November 19th, 1972. A fine second set and while the tape has a few imperfections (the quality of the Sugar Mag>GDTRFB is degraded sadly)  I think overall it is certainly worth your time..  Why do I say its appropriate for a Friday the 1...

 Long considered a classic show, I decided to start off our November here on the Deadpod with this gem from 1972.. from November 19th in Houston Texas. While this tape does have some faults I think overall it is well worth a listen.. The band was originally scheduled to play this show with the Allman Brothers, but the tragic death of bassist Barry Oakley the prior week left them to fill the evenin...

We close out October.. and welcome Halloween :) with a great second set from October 21st, 1971 in Chicago. While this may be Keith Godchaux's second night of his tenure with the band, he sure doesn't sound tentative here - especially on his first 'Dark Star'! This one is made even more unusual when the band goes into 'Sittin' On Top of the World' then back into the Star.. (the first Sittin' since...

This week's Deadpod features a show from the Fall tour of 1971.. this one was the 2nd night for Keith Godchaux in the keyboard seat.. and features a whole bunch of songs that were still finding their way in the repertoire.. in fact five songs in this first set are being played for the 2nd time.. the first time being the night before for Tennessee Jed, Jack Straw (with some out of tune guitars :),...

This week we conclude our presentation of the band's performance from October 11, 1980 at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco.  What great days when the band would perform three sets at a show! This is not a throw-away set by any means.. After a rather standard China>Rider things get very interesting 'Let It Grow' leading into Drums and Space, followed by a guest appearance by the late John Cipo...

 Great set this week - the 2nd set from the band's performance at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco on 10/11/80.  Great quality tape - and right off they sound hot .. a wonderful 'Stranger' punctuated with some smoking guitar. Even the Mama Tried>Mexicali has some real smokin' licks. Personally I find the post-Donna 'Passenger' to be one of the best of this period.. really well done. There's n...

Here we are in October already?!! What an odd and unhappy year.. well I thought I'd try to brighten things a bit by paying homage to the acoustic sets the band played 40 years ago during the month of October 1980.. This week's Deadpod features one of those, a fine recording of the acoustic set from October 11, 1980 at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco CA.  While there's not a great deal of sur...

 This week the Deadpod presents the second set from the band's performance back on September 23, 1972 at Waterbury CT. Another quite long, very interesting set awaits as the band starts out rockin' with a trifecta of Promised Land>Bertha>Greatest Story to get the place going. After a nice 'Brown-Eyed Women' they break out Chuck Berry's 'Around and Around' for the first time in 105 shows (4/18/71)....

This week we set the way-back machine to 1972, and travel to Waterbury CT, for a show the band played on September 23, 1972. The first set, which we will hear this week, while fairly standard for the period is still quite long compared to later day Dead sets.  The start off with a still-new 'Big River' and I think this is a fine opener, shame they didn't leave it here more often.. There are a pass...