Joyful chaos: A brilliant splatter. Bobby's voice never sounded so good to me as it did in '71.

Pigpen at his best with the band at its grit-in-the-gears crunchiest. They were on this night and this one is just full of butt.

Very passionate version, some distortion or tape speed issues (?) remind me of my cassette trading days and bring out the trippiness to the song.

If this hard grooving China jam and Feeling Groovy transition doesn't just get you moving, then nothing can. Just perfect.

First version ever is real nice... but listen to the soundcheck version for insight into the bands working dynamics. Cool to hear them working on it.

I don't normally comment twice on the same show, but this one's worth it. 1000s of hours of Dark Star and I continue to reach back to this beauty. More and more I've come to appreciate the beautiful warm mix - and the fact that Bobby's contribution isn't lost. Here he's understated and deft, continually prodding Jerry and Phil with his unique angular quality patterns and the syncopated statement/restatement that makes such an oft-overlooked contribution to the coherency of the musical landscape. So listen to this one again with your ear on Bobby - it's worth another go.

PLEASE DON'T DOMINATE THE RAP JACK... you know the rest.

Hey Glyn, first off, thanks. There's a lot of love and deep knowledge of the Dead on your posts. I'm with Modernhead and have no disrespect for other heads. It's just that the pace - not the content - of your posts is a bit overwhelming. I want to check out what you have to say, but can't really interact with you or the site if it's already ten pages deep on the site. I use this site to learn more about the Dead (on the bus since '84 and still going strong) and to share with others, but that's hard if it's only one hand clapping. Lots of love. I don't have notebooks, just a lot of cyber friends who used to trade cassettes and are happy to be in a community of freaks. Want to share a little more by maybe sharing a little less?

Hey Glyn, first off, thanks. There's a lot of love and deep knowledge of the Dead on your posts. I'm with Modernhead and have no disrespect for other heads. It's just that the pace - not the content - of your posts is a bit overwhelming. I want to check out what you have to say, but can't really interact with you or the site if it's already ten pages deep on the site. I use this site to learn more about the Dead (on the bus since '84 and still going strong) and to share with others, but that's hard if it's only one hand clapping. Lots of love. I don't have notebooks, just a lot of cyber friends who used to trade cassettes and are happy to be in a community of freaks. Want to share a little more by maybe sharing a little less?

Thanks Modernhead. I always think Truckin' is the victim of its own success. It's so emblematic of the Dead, may even be the one song non-heads associate with the band, that deep heads might tend to skip over it and go straight to the big jams. As musicians, though, I reckon it's a great indicator of how deep they were feeling it. There's a reason they kept it in rotation after all, and it sure as shit wasn't to sell tix to folks who'd heard it on the radio once or twice. It rocks, and it gave them a chance to find the groove that would work on this night or that, comfortable, but still challenging. Find a good Truckin' and you find a good show. That's how I see things. Peace.