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find the best versions of grateful dead songs

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Carrion_Crow

Stealth Head

+48136


Submissions

2
Let It Grow
June 4, 1976
Paramount Theatre

Fires off like a rocket. Souped up and accelerated. Is this the first LiG without the WRS to introduce it? It's a speed demon top notch version.
1
Playin' In The Band
June 4, 1976
Paramount Theatre

This is a weird one. At times it seems like they forgot it was PiTB and went back to the HSF jam. Fun, but waaaaaaaaay loose.
1
Lazy Lightnin' -> Supplication
June 4, 1976
Paramount Theatre

Short, sweet, brand new, and flawless.
1
Friend of the Devil
June 4, 1976
Paramount Theatre

Brilliant early "slow version". I always prefered the desperado fast-paced ones, but this turns into a brilliant exploration and improv vehicle.
3
Uncle John's Band
Dec. 31, 1972
Winterland Arena

Uptempo, powerful, strong vocals. This is top shelf UJB. With David Crosby for that extra oomph, and with a tigh outro, it's strangely not here yet.
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Comments

They Love Each Other
Dec. 31, 1976
Cow Palace

This signals exactly where they've been and where they're going. The transition year behind them, '77 coming on strong... a great and historically relevant version. Could be much higher, but probably sits between the '73 and the '77 fans' choices.
Bertha
Dec. 31, 1976
Cow Palace

Best one of the year: Deliberate, tight and right. Compare this to the weirdly accidental previous one they played on 15 October (the only clunker in that otherwise world-shatteringly brilliant show) and this makes me think they'd been thinking about bringing Bertha back into rotation, rehearsed it, nailed it, and brought it back in with diesel.
Comes A Time
Oct. 15, 1976
Shrine Auditorium

The transition out of this is so good it transforms the Franklin's that comes after it into an almost entirely different song. Strong performance and great show. Check out around 08:00: They go into a 12/8 meter riff that may be unique in the oeuvre. In any case this may be my top choice Comes A Time of all time.
The Other One
Oct. 15, 1976
Shrine Auditorium

Both a musically tight, breakneck roller-coaster and a psychedelicore madhouse filled with twists and turns a jump-out-at you moments of mind melting gooeyness. Around 08:35 they sound like they're going into a totally new jam, but it gets whisked away like so many hallucinations. Brilliant suite and one of the best of the few TOO of the year.
He's Gone
Oct. 15, 1976
Shrine Auditorium

This is one of the best shows of 1976, and every song just jams and jams beautifully (except maybe Bertha, which sounds like an unplanned mess). This He's Gone is one luscious peak after another. So beautiful, so fine.
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