Morning Dew
Sept. 21, 1974
Palais Des Sports
This show gets maligned for its looseness and at times less-than-fully ensemble playing. But I have another take: it was the end of the tour, and besides the Winterland October run, quite possibly the last Grateful Dead show ever. They were tired, it seems clear, but they opened up the hatches and let everything out just to see what would happen. Result: this Dew is slower, more thoughtful, but no less intense. Blazing in places, then introspective, melancholy, and experimental. Give the show a generous listen. It's interesting because of its flaws, not only in spite of them.