headyversion

find the best versions of grateful dead songs

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grendel

Books and Music

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Submissions

13
Gloria
Oct. 16, 1981
Melkweg

Bobby's birthday at the world famous Melkeweg. Yummy brownies make this version extra special.
52
Playin' In The Band
Sept. 17, 1972
Baltimore Civic Center

DP #23 from Baltimore...yet another jazz exploration that winds and weaves and delights. More introspective than intense & quite worthy!
14
Scarlet Begonias
Aug. 4, 1976
Roosevelt Stadium

Fantastic 15+ minutes of standa-lone Scarlet featuring a very Phil-front bass section post-lyrics. Final jam section gets real jazzy, too.
2
Terrapin Station
Aug. 31, 1985
Manor Downs

From a hot steamy night in Texas an equally hot & steamy Terrapin, which melts into a great Estimated
6
Eyes Of The World
June 25, 1978
Autzen Stadium, U. of Oregon

Hidden gem! Jazzy mellow intro to fluid, energetic Garcia-led jamming. Cross-up on 'beaches & seasons" in 1st verse chorus- Phil yells "Get it right!"
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Comments

Pretty Peggy O
May 9, 1977
War Memorial

^^^^ Agree, but wit the caveat that this is still Avery fine version & would land squarely in my personal top 15-20 list, but would not crack the top 10. There’s beautiful flow, pacing, and singing here but the key mid jam solo never breaks from the pack of other epic versions & ultimately lands as “nice” but to my ears not quite worthy of the status it has currently on the board. My quick list of superior versions would be 5/19/77, 5/12/77, 12/27/77, 5/5/77, 9/3/77, 4/16/78, 4/12/78, 10/30/77, 12/30/77, & for some sleeper picks try 9/4/80 and 8/24/80
Playin' In The Band
April 21, 1978
Rupp Arena

It's time to up the Rupp. Crazy good spacey entry here ignored on the board for no good reason I can see, This is a hella underrated show--maybe because so many others this month overshadow it--but this is an epic PITB chock full of jazzy surprises & yeah, how many jams include a nod to the Bee Gee??? Easy +1
Werewolves of London
April 21, 1978
Rupp Arena

Really tentative, sluggish start, almost like they don't know whether to play the main theme fast or slow & it barely coalesces as Jerry enters the opening lyric. Plus Bob's obnoxious slide is way too loud. So why am I upping this one? Because as stated above, the howling & wailing & pure total monster FUN of this version is too great to ignore (just listen to Jerry & Donna in unison on "he'll rip your lungs out, Jim!") & you'll hear what I mean.
Eyes Of The World
June 24, 1973
Memorial Coliseum

Dreamy intro, loose & flowing & longer than most for the year...that loosey-goose feeling lopes along right up until Jerry;s first solo break & then he's off to the races & so is the rest of the gang. There's really no "bad" version from this year I can think of off the top of my head...the trick is to sift through all the diamonds to find some that are a little rough around the edges perhaps but shone with a special brightness in part because of those brilliant differences. This is one of 'em!
Scarlet Begonias -> Fire On The Mountain
Oct. 17, 1978
Winterland Arena

Find the matrix, crank it up, & wonder just how in the hellinabucket is this pairing so far down the list. The date & venue alone should vault this one at least into listening range & my only guess is the lack of a top notch SBD (if there is let me know) but the matrix available is a beaut & so is this version. Great rich '78 multi-layered jamming from everyone, ,lots of balance/contributions from all & a thick transition jam, hot hot fire.. Grossly underrated & we all oughta get some ups on this to rectify the issue.
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