headyversion

find the best versions of grateful dead songs

please login or register.

Carrion_Crow

Stealth Head

+49667


Submissions

8
He Was A Friend of Mine
June 14, 1969
Monterey Performing Arts Center

So blissful you might just find yourself floating out of time. A beautiful mellow island in a sea of blazing psychedelia. China Cat tease at the end.
3
Dark Star
Oct. 30, 1968
The Matrix

Rarity w/o Pig or Bobby, but TWO glorious Dark Star jams on this "goof" of a night. Strictly speaking not the Dead, but it's here and its glorious.
2
Turn On Your Love Light
Oct. 30, 1968
The Matrix

A rarity: No Pig or Bobby & no vocals. Still, beautifully inventive soloing shows why they kept it in rotation for so long. This "goof" is worth it.
6
Hard to Handle
April 5, 1969
Avalon Ballroom

Hot sex.
23
Death Don't Have No Mercy
Nov. 2, 1969
Family Dog at the Great Highway

So much feeling coming off an interstellar DS>StS>11 and then they just put this show to bed with brilliance and feeling.
show more submissions

Comments

Dancin' in the Streets
Oct. 3, 1976
Cobo Arena

A sweet spot for Dancin' in Sept. and Oct. '76, as they were clearly thinking it through and recreating it for the new era. This one is right there amongst them, and there's a very cool transitional and groovy jam before going into NFA. A great number here. For a cool description of this short era of Dancin' check out Matt Mulvihill's wise words at http://gratefuldeadprojects.com/Dancing_In_The_Street.html
Playin' In The Band
Oct. 3, 1976
Cobo Arena

Kicks off a 70+ minute mega jam for the ages. Would love to know more about where the good boards are.... Fast and dark is right, but what follows is just pure, beautiful '76 Dead. If you don't know it, then prepare yourself for some love: PiTB>Drums>The Wheel>Good Lovin'>Comes a Time>Dancin' In The Streets>NFA>Dancin' In The Streets.
Turn On Your Love Light
Jan. 23, 1970
Honolulu Civic Auditorium

Another cruel cut here, as the Era Evangelist sez. Pity, too, as this Lovelight is full of great experimental jamming and fine grooves. Somewhere in the outer spheres the complete jam is still there. Oh well, the part that's here is just funkin' unbelievable. Mahalo !
Dark Star
Jan. 23, 1970
Honolulu Civic Auditorium

Certainly relaxed: It's Hawaii after all, and the boys sound blissed out even when ripping it up. The whole show sounds super intimate, like they were playing in front of a few hundred people at most. Any historians out there know more about how two HI shows show up in the middle of January? But relaxed or not, they sound very tight together and they work the Dark Star melodico-rhythmic theme for all it it's worth. A very nice version from a somewhat under-the-radar show.
China Cat Sunflower -> I Know You Rider
Jan. 23, 1970
Honolulu Civic Auditorium

Me thinks you may be off by a ten-spot, but no worries: This CC>Rider is sweet smooth surfing. Listening to December '69 and January '70 in sequence you can hear them smoothing out their sound and working on the harmonies that would characterize this great era and this version showcases it. The Hawaii shows strike me as pivotal in this transformation from the hard acid sound into the Country Dead sound that kicks off the decade.
show more comments
headyversion loves the dead but is in no way affiliated with The Grateful Dead or affiliated enterprises. find out more >:) >:)