hey all. due to a lot of setbacks with my drafts disappearing, i’ll be condensing the Honolulu shows into one post, and maybe more from now on. it’s been a rough day so this is my therapy for the evening(if the Archive comes back up)- hope you enjoy!
the first night in Honolulu seems to be missing, classic case of 1970- or did it happen? lost live dead only lists 23/24, so it’s a possibility that dead.net’s 1/22 listing is incorrect.
regardless, let’s jump in.
Jan. 23
https://archive.org/details/gd70-01-23.sbd.fixed.connor.18153.sbeok.shnf
China Cat starts the night off in the right way. the bridge to IKYR begins with a burst of feedback that fits surprisingly well, with Weir’s solo sizzling in many ways that make me feel things. i still feel like Garcia’s rhythm comping is no match for Weir, but c’est la vie. still no true Garcia bridge solo.
one reason i love ’70 is Phil’s tone. something about it just rumbles in all the right ways for me. this show is no exception. also, the high harmony
second IKYR solo is the one that always gets me. drummers going nutso is always a thing i love as well, even if it sounds trashy
>>Black Peter- a segue that works
i’m not normally a fan of BP but this solo actually grooves pretty well and my head is bobbing
i was reading today on the story that Hunter wrote this song at the same time as the “Apple Juice” show on a crystal’s worth of L, any commenters want to corroborate this? would be a cool story if true. the song is definitely lyrically interesting, i find it tiresome in the same way that i find 19 minute NFA workouts tiresome- sweaty, grinding affairs on a general chord theme- but as a meditation on the idea of being prepared for death,
physically decomposing and falling apart, and yet looking ahead to either a new plane of existence or maybe a cold, dark embrace, it works pretty well.
anyway, maybe it’s the amount of time since i sat down with a ’70 show, but this BP seems more energetic than most. digging it.
Yellow Dog Story is uneventful, but Pigpen heckles Bob throughout which is always a thing i’m up for hearing
“that’s what ya get for telling lousy jokes!”
Hard 2 Handel: Electric Handleoo
immediate Pig flub on the lyrics, but nobody ever cared about that. Pig could make rhythmic mouth sounds and it’d be good. Pig could recite the Constitution to the beat of Caution and we’d still love it. actually, i’d really like to hear that.
Garcia is getting more familiar with playing, you know, normal rock music, but it ain’t no ’71.
Dire Wolf has a Searchin’ tease by Pig in the beginning lead-up- “gonna find her”, which i think is neato
Good Lovin’
i’ve been nursing a massive jar of water through this show, and oh boy is it catching up to me.
not a fan of Good Lovin’ drums usually unless they’re kept to a minute or so, which is almost never the case. i’m a Phil Phrenetic, love when that man comes instantly thundering in- something that should have happened more often. when the band comes in, it’s pretty low key, even letting Constanten play out for a few seconds before building on a chord vamp. more loose noodling around. par for the course slide into home plate at the end.
CRYPTICAL/TOO BABY
i’m sure i’ve mentioned this before, but if not, i’ll say it anyway. i really do appreciate the Dead pulling the Other One out of Truckin’ or Space or something, but for my money, i’ll always put on a Cryptical-bookended version. it’s like the beginning and end of Playin’ for me, i hate hearing one without the reprise- as such, i feel empty when the Other One doesn’t slip back into that Cryptical buildup. repeating the Other One vamp in a
major key at the end just ties it all together so well.
Phil rev-up is perfect and thunders in like a hurricane.
total maelstrom is the perfect word for the perfect Other One intro imo. this may or may not be perfect in someone else’s eyes, but for me, if it sounds like chaos, i’m 100% for it. Garcia ignores the rest of the band’s stop and go theme, instead pulling tight into a cluster of cowbell-driven notes that seem like they’d sink into the verse if the band was actually finished with their attack. Garcia won’t let Mickey bring in the verse, spiraling around
and around. finally the first verse and subsequent jam. loose and gentle after the initial burst of energy, it quickly picks back up with the band hot on Garcia’s heels. he is completely taking control, even outclassing Phil which was hard to do back in ’69-’70, for sure. absolutely ferocious and biting one second, and gentle like summer
rain another. the dynamics in this piece are entirely in sync and well appreciated.
when the day had ended… back porch rocking chair Cryptical. this is one of the most relaxed, bordering on country reprises i’ve heard. it reminds me of Looney Tunes scenes where the sun is rising over the valleys and the roosters get up, stretch, and gargle before crowing. the ending almost builds up, but a Garcia run brings it to a quiet close… or as it were, a great segue to DARK STAR.
Dark Star maintains that same cold-beer gentleness that we picked up in Cryptical. it’s a perfect transition in my ear.
quiet volume swells on the main theme are fragile and beautiful. this is already a pretty good DS and i’m 3 minutes in. post-verse is a great view of the highway from a hotel window. it’s the feeling when it’s silent and you can see cars go by like ants underneath you. chimes and gong swells punctuated by soft guitar clangs. the lights of the city are like light reflecting off snow- warm, inviting, and yet still distant. a layer of surrealism to the reality around you. the characteristic of a dream where nothing is wrong and yet you are aware- this is all a dream. slowly, things begin to take a seedy turn. your walls turn grey and you notice your reflection in the window for the first time. taking a step back, your brain goes wild with thoughts of people lurking outside your house. unease in your comfortable environment. it’s just your imagination, though, and it passes with a gentle fingerpicked theme from Garcia reminding you that this is still music you’re listening to,
after all. the main theme is slightly perverted in a half step lick by Weir, the surreal feeling following you through a warped version of the main theme. finally, it develops into a mostly major jam punctuated by Weir’s jazz chords, and interestingly, featuring Mickey on the chimes/glockenspiel. Phil takes the reins for a march back to the central song idea. it remains calm, not once having broken the spell set up by the Cryptical ending.
finally, a sped-up A major jam brings us up and out of the dream, into the real world of many suns and moons, a light beyond our own small understanding. we’ve woken up
man, i just got so spaced out on that, i gotta rein it in more.
anyway, it was a good Dark Star
saint STEPHEN
with a ROSE
always a welcome song. i understand why heads yelled show after show for it. this version has a slightly different drum break between “One Man Gathers”, but the weirdest part for me is the transition straight into Lovelight.
hearing it without the Eleven just feels strange after hearing so many
Lovelight
how are you really supposed to review a Lovelight? you just had to be there, MAAAAN.
jokes aside, the drummers are pretty into it, and Garcia and Lesh are locked in for sure. not a whole ton of interesting lead work between the verses, however. certainly not complaining though, would rather hear Garcia playing it than most other guitarists.
Garcia repeats a cool little arpeggiated lick a few times which is always nice.
Tape cut in second verse, end show.
Definitely not a show to sneeze at- the typical ’70 fare is just that, but the double punch of the Cryptical sequence and the Dark Star sequence intertwined is pretty incredible as a whole. maybe it’s no 2/13, but then again, not much is. recommended.
the next night is a bit less out-there. won’t be long.
Jan. 24
https://archive.org/details/gd70-01-24.sbd.kaplan.7890.sbeok.shnf
Cumberland to start off. feels a bit slower, but maybe it’s just me. solos are pretty hot. at this point, my jar of water has been replaced by almond milk. solid Cumberland.
CR&S is business as usual. tasty, but i’m not writing any excited letters to Mum. ending is relatively pipin’ though
MAMU (“west texas cowboys” to those of us truly in the know), a song of intrigue, mystery, gunplay, and shirtless cowboys. did Weir’s character actually kill his uncle? we’ll never know. 11/10.
King Bee is a nice one to hear, appreciated. interestingly, this was supposedly Tom’s last show, officially. kinda makes good sense, though. these Workingman’s Dead-heavy setlists really just don’t suit his noodly playing.
anyway
King Bee
always good to hear some harmonica. a very greasy song, almost more Pigpen in spirit than a good deal of his later standards. i mean, sure, Lovelight and Good Lovin’ are great tunes, but King Bee and Schoolgirl are just… nasty, you know? they’re almost as dirty as Pig looked. blues Garcia isn’t always something i can listen to for long, though, and i’d be ready to move on if Pig wasn’t singing.
MASON’S
a favourite of mine. intro has some punch to it, which is nice. the band still collectively doesn’t know the words. you can’t win them all, i suppose, and it does explain why they dropped it so fast. the first solo holds together remarkably well, Garcia having figured out what chords he’s actually playing around. Phil yells “hey!” into the jam, which is actually really adorable. i love it when they do that, like in a couple early St. Stephens.
the jam is definitely pretty Lesh heavy, which is a nice thing, and Garcia isn’t white-hot but definitely searing. the energy is high enough for me, enough to put this version relatively far up the Mason’s totem pole. it’s not a very high totem pole, but, y’know, here we are. the ending of the jam with Garcia smacking a few chords is well done and brings it to a nice close.
Black Peter (again)
you guys already got Thoughts On Black Peter, don’t need another. my almond milk is all gone, i want to get more but i also want to be done with Workingman’s Dead: the Show
solo’s kinda nice. build to “friends they come around” is solid, and the vocals are good here as well. nice one.
Good Luvven
Garcia keeps the drummers in line with a few stabs on the guitar, with Phil quickly coming in to avoid a drawn-out drums segment (thank the lord)
some interesting discord where the band plays the intro and Garcia keeps on riffing on top of it. the jam after this is nice, but again, nothing incredibly special. Lesh plays the verse chords which is sort of odd. awkward tape cut right before the final verse, but you aren’t missing a lot.
Dancin’ is the last song on the docket. i can’t decide if i like this earlier version or the disco’d up style more, but they both have merit. this one has some pretty nice Garcia runs to start off, and his tone is just beautiful.
some strong chord work, leading back into a solo. he latches onto some semblance of a funky riff, and Mickey follows up with cowbell licks perfectly mixing with rapid fire Garcia scale runs. repeating the same line, the band gets in formation again and starts that slow burn towards the end. Phil takes control with some high notes paving the way for a Dark Star-esque peak from Garcia. pretty rockin’. anyway there’s the last verse and they hold out the last note like a real band would. Garcia says “see y’all later” and i guess that’s it for the show?? no real standouts there, no rave-up ending. a solid set that i’m sure was fun in the moment, but aside from Mason’s, has little replay value. that first show however, should be heard.
anyway, thus ends the Constanten era, effectively- next time we’ll get around to New Orleans, the bust, and the fundraiser show. i think. it’s been real. don’t do anything i wouldn’t do, stay safe, and love your neighbor. night all.
