The Deadpod

Oh the glorious month of May! I'm sure its one of everyone's favorite times of the year, and of course one of the great traditions in the first weekend of May is the Kentucky Derby.. this week's Deadpod features a show that paid tribute, as the band often did, to that grand event, by playing the late George Jones' "The Race Is On".. and a fine version it is .. I really felt I needed to play it thi...

This week's Deadpod features set 2 from 4/27/85 - the Frost Ampitheater at Stanford University.. This is a fine set, and as it opens with a Scarlet Begonias, we can imagine the delight when Jerry leads the band not into Fire on the Mountain but rather into a sweet version of Eyes of the World.. This duo is such a sweet combo that it alone would justify rating the show highly but the band turns on...

This week we get to move on to the second set from April 12th, 1982 at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale NY. I think you'll agree that this is one of the more interesting and well played sets of the Spring '82 tour.. it starts off with Man Smart, Woman Smarter - an usual choice given that they opened the show with Iko, Iko.. then Jerry moves into a Sugaree which is clearly one of the best of the ye...

Here's a show that has been on my request list for some time.. I'm not sure why I haven't gotten around to playing it aside from the fact that I did play most of the 2nd set back in '06.. at any rate its one of the best from the Spring of 1982.. this is from the Nassau Coliseum on 4/12/82. A fine first set is highlighted by an unusual "Iko, Iko' opener, a beautiful Peggy-O and a pretty crazy Mama...

As we prepare to turn the page on March, I thought it might be nice to pull out a really smoking show from way back in 1969.. this one comes to us from 3/28/69 at the Modest Jr. College Civic Center in Modesto California.. yes a unique venue..but quite a strong outing for the boys. This one starts out with a strong Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, but follows that up with a deep space Dark Star......

This first Deadpod of Spring we will be hearing the second set from the bands' performance on St. Patrick's Day, 1991 at the Cap Center in Landover MD. A fine pre-drums segment, highlighted for me by 'Crazy Fingers'... but what really brings the crowd to their feet is the east coast breakout of 'New Speedway Boogie' for the first time in over 20 years. This tune had been played on the west coast a...

Well it's St. Patrick's Day weekend! so i decided to bring everyone a dose of St. Patrick's Day Dead for this week's Deadpod... This show comes from the Spring of 1991, so there's both Bruce Hornsby and Vince Welnick in the mix.. This one starts with a nice Hell in a Bucket and a pretty good Sugaree.. Bruce is especially prominent during a squeeze box solo during Queen Jane.. the highlight of this...

This week I'm thought I would share this very interesting show from way back in 1969 .  This is quite a fine recording, and I thought I'd go ahead and bring you the entire show this week, although it makes for a bit longer Deadpod than usual. As you can see below the show features a number of tunes without Garcia and Pigpen; the story goes that each were too incapacitated in their own way, to cont...

This second set from 6/11/93 features the only Eyes of the World performed on  the summer tour that year, as the opener. Its quite nicely done, and followed by another well-played Playin' In the Band... the band and Jerry in particular do a very credible job on these.. out of space, the Wheel and Watchtower are a pleasure to hear as well, but the Black Peter is a personal favorite and I think Jerr...

I've had some requests for a 90s show and I thought this would be a nice change of pace this week. This was one of my favorite outdoor venues as a show here was, for all the hassles, usually a gas. This show, from Buckeye Lake in the summer of 93, was a blast. I think the band was having fun and playing well. The Jerry tunes here are fun to hear and I'm a real fan of the Tom Thumbs if this era as...

Nothing beats a fine second set like this one from fall of 73.. a great mix of songs.. starts off with some great classic, rocking numbers, then a truly fine Weather Report Suite - be sure and listen to the wonderful ensemble playing at the end.. I think you'll find the Dark Star that follows to be quite memorable.. it starts off quite softly .. but it certainly explores some unexpected spaces.. t...

I think this is a really nice second set from the great Fall of 1980 tour.. it contains some of my favorite songs and I think that Jerry and the band do them all justice. In particular the opening 'Feel Like A Stranger' however the following 'To Lay Me Down' is just too short and too sweet... The Let It Grow is back to full throtle Dead, and flows into a short but sweet Terrapin Station..  While t...

I've been wanting to play something from this time period for some time, and while I previously presented part of a show from a couple nights later, this recording captures quite well the bands' energy and talents during the tour from the late Fall of 1980. We'll listen to the first set this week, which features a really fine 'Little Red Rooster' as well as a superb version of 'Looks Like Rain'. T...

Happy Holidays! On this Winter Solstice I bring you this the 2012 Holiday edition of the Deadpod. As is our tradition this week's Deadpod features acoustic Grateful Dead for your enjoyment. I decided to make this year's Holiday Deadpod both very classic and a bit different...  First the classic - how about the very first acoustic set from the famous Fall of 1980 shows at the Warfield in San Franci...

This week another fabulous version of Playing In the Band from 1972... this one is a real monster - Phil and Jerry trade some really intense leads and while this is not the only reason to listen to this set (recently re-mastered by Charlie Miller) its probably the highlight.. I think its certainly worthy of a listen and hope you do as well!  Grateful Dead - November 18, 1972 Hofheinz Pavilion - Ho...

This week it's set 2 of 12/5/71 .. sure this one is not as crispy as many boards from this era, but this is such a fine, energetic performance that in my opinion it makes up for all the flaws in the recording.. Listen to the wonderful transitions from Dark Star into Me & My Uncle back into Dark Star and then into Sittin' On Top of the World... these are truly exquisite. This is a fine example...

This week's Deadpod features a great show that I've meant to play for some time - the Grateful Dead's performance on December 5th, 1971 at the Felt Forum, Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York. This comes to us from a pre-fm soundboard, but the sound is a bit iffy at times and sounds a bit 'condensed'.. nevertheless the performance is really alive and Jerry is zinging with energy. The set...

This week's Deadpod features a wonderful show from 1969 - this one from December 19th, 1969 at the Fillmore in San Francisco CA. This show starts off with a rare acoustic 'set' of sorts with just Jerry and Bob, due, we hear, to Phil being late to arrive. His tardiness gives a nice treat -  the first four songs are a great treat to hear, Once everyone is back in the fold, the band moves effortlessl...

This week we will finish the Dead's 9/29/89 concert at Shoreline Ampitheater. As you can see below this is a fine second set. As a Terrapin fan, I would've been pretty darn happy with everything up through drums, and content when Bob broke out the Miracle that I'd gotten a full measure of the price of admission.. however that's when they broke out 'Death Don't Have No Mercy...' this was the first...

This week's show was the result of a request made over on the Deadpod's facebook page for a great version of Brent doing 'We Can Run'.. While this may not be the very best version of that song its plenty good.. and it is a part of a pretty good show from a great Fall tour. Highlights for me on this first set include the off-tempo Franklin's Tower, and a great Bird Song and Promised Land.. Set 2 fo...

This week we get to listen to the second set from a nice performance from the fall of 1972 - 10/28/72 Cleveland Ohio.. The Dark Star is clearly the crown jewel of this performance and I encourage you to read the description of that piece given by Robert Goetz in the  Grateful Dead Tapers Compendium.  It is far from the only thing worthwhile in the set to be sure. While some of the sound is not pri...

I know that I may have featured too many shows this year from 1972 (is that possible?) but being that its the 40th anniversary of these shows I'm naturally led to take a look at them and often I'm drawn by their quality. 1972 was a wonderful year.. this week I decided to feature this show from the weekend before Halloween due principle to the fact that I really really want to play the Dark Star fr...

This is a fine second set from the Fall of 1976 - enjoy this one along with the fine Fall weather.. I especially recommend that you savor the wonderful Slipknot..  as well as the Franklin's Tower that follows.. this is really an under appreciated gem.  The Dancin'->Drums->Wheel->Ship is not only unusual but very nicely done,  especially the Ship of Fool.. this one makes a truly wierd but...

Fall of 1976 was an excellent period for the band and this week's show is a nod to the upcoming release of 'Dave's Picks' 4' as well as a great representation of this tour, as  we travel to Indianapolis for a show that took place on October 1st, 1976.  We will hear the first set this week, and while it does take a song or two for the band to really rev up, I think by the time Deal arrives we know...

This week's Deadpod allows us to enjoy the second set of the band's wonderful performance from Sept. 18th, 1987 at the Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. If you caught the first set last week you know the band was firing on all cylinders here and they come out with a smokin' hot Shakedown Street, followed by a nice Man Smart, Woman Smarter, then an excellent Terrapin Station.. not a...