Jerry’s solo is off the walls crazy. A train going top speed and I promise that train won’t slow down! Great energy here overall.

As Jerry shouts, “You know he had to die.” BANG! A massive gunshot right on rhythm. Great reprise with great drum work from Billy and Mickey.

Jerry takes off and soars. Gets really heavy, and out there FAST. Experimental passages and new themes explored. This is what the Dead do best.

Billy and Mickey flowing in and out of the main TOO rhythms. They’re both putting each other to the test as they really get deep in this one.

“At this risk of being repetitious we’re going to do another song in the key of G.”-Bob Weir. This version is quite sweet. Patchy audio, great version

darkstar67 your insight is always spot on. 72 specifically had many Sugar Magnolias which have that “mindless groovy” effect that you described. Especially during this era, these Sugar Mags would come out of the most brain scrambling, lysergic filled jams you’ll ever hear. These were the OG mind left body jams. A pallet cleanser after the darkness they traverse through in philosophical and spiritual explorations. This a great mindless groove if you ask me! “Heads all empty and I don’t care!”

Hard to get much better than this. Keith plays music so eternal and beautiful, expressing his own ode to joy through each key on the piano. The transcendence emanating from this performance is truly something to behold, Jerry’s somber detachment from the things in his life, leading towards a triumphant climax that declares Jerry’s view on the world and life he lives. Nothing matters anyways, there are 2 ways to look at a statement such as that, and this night, Jerry saw the light within such a statement.

Also the good stuff starts after the last Truckin verse for those who are interested. Cheers!

This jam remains in my top favorites of all time. To me the Grateful Dead, reached a place in which night after night they try to go to, this night they succeeded in completing immersing themselves in this invisible plane of existence. In here they spiral into serene landscapes, cosmic absurdities, abstract geometry, becoming a flowing river that turns into a waterfall that flows down the bottom of eternity. Not the longest, not the most conventional, but do we listen to the Dead for their conventionality? I don’t. What builds is a tranquil yet urgent piece of music which is full of pure natural energy, evoking images of places you only see in your dreams. Just comprehensible enough to make out where you are, but ultimately uncanny. Some of the pockets of music that are jammed are utterly unique, and flow like water but turn in every which direction. The jam right before the introduction of the main Dark Star theme is a melancholic display of musical intuition being brought to the forefront, and how emotion gets portrayed through the notes and rhythms of each and every member. Once we get beyond the lyrics, we see this star being eclipsed, and the stillness and the energy being channeled by the band. A Dark Star has emerged. They channel its frequencies and release them through their instruments, resulting in incomprehensible shapes and form, sound and noise. Impossibly regal in its astral architecture. The chaos of our universe envelopes the band and what comes out of Jerry’s guitar conveys the utter spontaneity and absurdity of existence. This is some great acid music. Just a swirling mass of untamed, ancient energy.

This band is so effortlessly entering in and out of space time it’s utterly inexplicable. I usually find that one of the tunes in this trio is usually stronger than the other, or at the very least 2/3 are stronger, but this is a rare exception where all 3 hold their own in this stunning performance. They’re all so melodically on point this performance, not one note wasted, and the spaces they explore all tie together so perfectly. The Slipknot is spacey, delicate, adventurous, cosmic, and inventive. I love the interplay between every single member, no one outshines each other and they all create this wonderful moment of music that comes straight from the center of our universe. Jerry and Keith’s playfulness is on full display as Phil creates some beautiful harmonic texture that contrasts beautifully with the music being played. Bill and Mickey find their musical equilibrium during this Slipknot, and as we get to Franklins Tower, Jerry’s soulful and elegant lead work gets put on full display as Bobby plays the most infectious rhythm you’ll ever hear. This Franklins Tower is particularly strong, the joy that comes pouring out of this performance is infectious. What a version.