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Carrion_Crow

Stealth Head

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Submissions

15
Greatest Story Ever Told
Feb. 23, 1974
Winterland Arena

Electrifying and high-power jams, with some of the weirdest sounds Donna ever made. Great fun and a wild ride.
10
Beat it on Down The Line
March 18, 1967
Winterland Arena

Surf Punk! Never thought I'd hear California surfer thrash so clearly in the Dead, but here it is: Bobby as primordial punk rocker? Why not?
7
Morning Dew
March 18, 1967
Winterland Arena

Are you kidding me? This is just blazingly good. Jerry's on fire, vocals and axe. Too good for words.
5
Row Jimmy
Feb. 22, 1974
Winterland Arena

Solid and sweet, with some beautiful slide solos and nice vocals, Donna included.
8
Black Throated Wind
Feb. 22, 1974
Winterland Arena

A powerful triumph, just exploding with intense jamming and emotion. Real dynamite here.

Comments

Cosmic Charlie
Jan. 25, 1969
Avalon Ballroom

One of the best I know: They're having a blast. The growling grinding combination of Jerry and the keys (Pigpen? TC? both?) gives it an energetic tight swinging sound during the verses, and an unexpected almost punk-rock blown-amp sounding bridge to the "calling you" section. Cosmic Charlie is so legendary and mythic: People held banners at shows with the number of days past since it was last performed and annual set-lists would say Cosmic Charlie: 0 with a sad-face next to it. Hear it here in a uniquely tight and fun version.
Dark Star
Jan. 25, 1969
Avalon Ballroom

TC is too high in the mix, but so what? In most recordings of the era it's almost impossible to hear any indication of what he brought, so this is an interesting document if nothing else. It's also musically a whirligig of fun, even if a bit scattered in places. Deduct points for the mix if you must.
Turn On Your Love Light
Jan. 24, 1969
Avalon Ballroom

The stoned moron arhythmically yelling 'whoo whoooo' at the beginning and "Grateful Dead!!! Grateful Dead!!!" towards the end bring me right back to my tour days. ;-)
Dark Star
Jan. 24, 1969
Avalon Ballroom

Fans of the Live Dead-era should really know this one. Sonically it shares a lot with the more famous ones of the era, but its flow is just as perfect and the ideas and clear telepathy between Jerry and Bobby throughout is gorgeous. There may be a bit of a tuning or tape-speed wobble in places, but the C.Miller cleanup is pristine.
New Potato Caboose
Aug. 24, 1968
Shrine Auditorium

Jerry's solo can ignite paper at 1000 yards too. I mean Phil gets a lot of deserving love here, but I just gotta add that bit about the guitarist.