enjoyed it thoroughly, but it's pretty blase compared to some other shows played that tour (Blossom, SPAC, Hershey, Merriweather 1). Still, every song is very well played, even if there isn't any real jamming to speak of. Particularly strong are Cassidy (though short), Saint, Terrapin, and Wharf Rat.

Just want to add: It was such a relief and a joy to hear Jerry sounding SO MUCH BETTER on vocals than when I heard him at the Spectrum that spring.

I liked this show a lot. It was very well played and enjoyable. I loved Lost Sailer at the show. It has the amazing quality of the soundboards in 1985. Jerry totally flubbed the beginning of brokedown, stopped, and started it again, which I had never seen before or since.

Good show.
In competition with the first Alpine show as weakest of the tour...

Good list, well played, Grateful :)
Both sets are enjoyable!

A contemplative Jerry Garcia is my thought:

Must've Been the Roses
Friend of the Devil
Big RR Blues
Crazy Fingers
Terrapin
Wharf Rat
Brokedown Palace


I rest my case.

Funny how long ago , the strange trip -good sound good night. They stopped doing the Lost Sailor •Saint of Circumstance combo soon after. Bob in a pink Alligator T-Shirt ( classic) . The encore - Jerry Garcia " Hello - sounded good didn't it . We all started playin .... Blah blah blah . "The Throwin Stones • Turn on Your Lovelight is great. The Terrapin Station is fabulous as is the whole first set. Woman are Smarter ( ManSmart Woman are Smarter) second set opener is a treat.Crazy Fingers!!!!! Set 1

Jack Straw-> It Must Have Been The Roses, Minglewood Blues, Friend Of The Devil, Cassidy, Big Railroad Blues, Promised Land

Set 2

Women Are Smarter-> Crazy Fingers-> Lost Sailor-> Saint Of Circumstance-> Terrapin Station-> Drums-> Wharf Rat-> Throwing Stones-> Turn On Your Love Light, E:Revolution-> E: Brokedown Palace

Wharf Rat

Sound is good but some crackling here and there..This reminds me of the summer of 87 when they played indoors at Roanoke..it kind of throws you for a loop when you want to be outdoors..but what da hey!! still a good show and worth a listen..I want to give it a 3.5, but since I can't I'll go up to a 4 star..so please..GIVE IT A WHIRL>Forever Grateful>Forever DEAD!!!!

.

i loved this show but being a hometown show and not visiting the parents i mgotta lot of crap i loved this whole year yeah sure Jer's voice got to be a bit harsh but he still had the guitar which he played very tight i loved this Jack Straw and the Wharf Rat was killer i just loved everything about 85 prolly cuz it was first year of touring but still u could buy like season tickets to a tour or run or whatever even walk up to the box office like in the fall at Hollywood great times i am so so glad i got to experience the total package great music great people and even greater scene

If you like shows from 1985, then you will like this show. If you don't like shows from 1985, then you won't like this show. Why? Because this show typifies 1985 - a lot of straightforward, hard-rockin' (for the Dead) songs, but nothing that really gets totally, jazzily out there.

I enjoyed the tail end of Jack Straw where the entire band stops playing and Jerry plays the intro into It Must Have Been the Roses - it was just a brief little moment of crisp, clear calm playing and then the band picks up the new tune. Very well done. It Must Have Been the Roses in general is a first set highlight, and Cassidy ends with the typical 1980's pizazz.

In the second set, the jam at the end of Terrapin, Drums, and then a smoking Wharf Rat were the highlights for me - the Wharf Rat is especially good.

One big complaint about this particular transfer is that Revolution and Brokedown Palace are tracked in the middle of the show, when they belong at the end. The show gets three stars for the playing, but the incorrect order is really annoying. And for you audiophiles out there, this recording has a lot of noise - not enough to bother me, but I can see where it would distract some listeners.

Carwing wrote a perfect review of this show. I saw that whole tour, and Ventura. Missed the Greeks, went in '86. This was a very solid well-executed show after the merriweather 7.1 blow-out. I agree with the wharf rat, nice crazy fingers too. '85 was great, I know too many heads plder than me that agree to give any of these non-'85 people any credibility. Most of them were probably not at the shows and go only by the recordings. Thats what you do for The Cure, not the Grateful Dead.

Went to the Merriweather shows and this one, very different, inside for first time on tour? Merriweather rocked both nights, this one was ethereal and spacey with Phils base lines bouncing around the dome. The crackling in the recording was the soundboard, which had a bunch of water dumped on it in Hershey when the canopy failed during a deluge. Only time I really liked MBTR. Wharf rat was also really good, there unfortunately aren't any recordings which capture the sound the way I remember it but it is worth a listen for the unique mood.

pretty good show but i believe that when screwing up brokedown which i think if memory serves me right happened again at the rocks this year he starts in the wrong key then aborts

I laughed and laughed when Jerry seemed like he was already singing Brokedown before he really started singing it. The "Hello. Sounded good didn't it?" had me on the ground rolling. Fun show! Definitely worth the listen..

One pane of glass in the window...

This show is damn good but the sound quality is a little suspect. There is some crackling throughout and the mix is not quite right. I need more Phil! It sounds a bit airy. That seems to be a prob in a lot of 80's SBD's. Any way don't let my review discourage you. This is a very good show and worth a DL.

I am glad I made the trip out to see this show. It was a bit out of the way for us NC folk, especially after seeing the previous shows in MD, PA, and NY. The city was better than I expected. I thought it would be a rust bucket, but it was nice almost like Gotham City. The people in the area were also very friendly. The show was great. I saw the comment about sounds in the mix but I do remember quite a few technical errors during the show. I thought the Dead were playing strong. The sound quality of this recording is pretty good. I really enjoyed the Wharf Rat and The brokedown brokedown was a riot. A real high point of the tour with all the red gel in the air.

This is a great sounding SBD, EXCEPT there seems to be a lot of digital noise, static, or some levels topping out throughout most of the tracks on the first CD. Othersise the sound is crystal clear, and the show is great.

Here's some cover-art for this show:
http://www.toddalbert.com/music/cover_art/

an amazing show- really has a great ethereal quality to the sound- especially crazy fingers thru the rest of the 2nd set. The sound is not quite as warm as my analog copy, but it sounds good nonetheless. Begin your 85 collection here if you have not already-4 stars on recording, 5 on performance