headyversion

find the best versions of grateful dead songs

please login or register.

merryjerry

wacked

+6835


Submissions

4
China Cat Sunflower
Jan. 2, 1972
Winterland Arena

A curious Cat peekin' through some Good Lovin'. Not an epic CCS per se, but the transitions in 'n out are as smooth as a Michael Jordan layup. Unique.
2
Dark Star
April 26, 1970
York Farm

We can only wonder...
19
Doin' That Rag
March 1, 1969
Fillmore West

Not too much Tiny Tim and Jerry's solo blooms nicely.
9
Black Peter
Aug. 12, 1972
Sacramento Memorial Auditorium

A slightly brisk and jaunty version that is smack-dab in the middle of a TOO. More bluesy rock than ponderous and Faulknerian (?).
12
China Cat Sunflower
Feb. 14, 1968
Carousel Ballroom

Jerry's early tone is sweetly acerbic, and pleases like the burn from a swig of crisp Coke on a hot day. Seamless transition into 'The Eleven'.

Comments

Playin' In The Band
Dec. 19, 1973
Curtis Hixon Convention Hall

Yeah, man, I've come to respect this one a lot more. With each additional listen this thing keeps revealing little secrets
Hard to Handle
Aug. 6, 1971
Hollywood Palladium

There are still some municipalities that have blue laws which forbid this version from being played upwind of main street.
Eyes Of The World
Sept. 11, 1974
Alexandra Palace

Union Jack and the Giant—this thing is HUGE! A 5+ minute intro in ’74? And with some nice (brief) leads on the Fender Rhodes? C’mon! Jerry’s first lead is sweet—just when you (and the band) think he’ll start playing the chords to go back into the verse he gets some more great ideas and keeps going (and not just once either). And then during Phil’s solo (which is particularly melodic and similar to the studio version) it’s obvious that Jerry is having a ball. It seems to me that during the outro material (‘Stronger than Dirt, etc.) there was the feeling that anything could happen, and while it may not be the cleanest execution I’ve ever heard, it is interesting as hell with the boys almost playing gotcha with each other. It all comes to an end when Ned unleashes an alien insect attack. It then goes into a jam that itself has some good moments. Check out the ‘Cassidy’ chords just before it goes into ‘Wharf Rat’. Just out of curiosity, what is the longest ever pre-verse Eyes intro jam? (This could certainly be the longest pre-‘retirement’/touring hiatus). I suspect this Eyes isn’t higher because it hasn’t been heard as much. Also, this is the first version played in the olde world.
Playin' In The Band
Dec. 19, 1973
Curtis Hixon Convention Hall

If this thing were a basketball player, it would come off the bench and give valuable minutes scoring, rebounding,and protecting the ball, all the while giving the starters a necessary rest.
China Cat Sunflower -> I Know You Rider
Feb. 15, 1973
Dane County Coliseum

Okay, I see now that this show isn't in the vault. (http://agitators.com/gd/dick_1973.html) The source is a bit old but could still be accurate.