headyversion

find the best versions of grateful dead songs

please login or register.

Carrion_Crow

Stealth Head

+48130


Submissions

1
Might As Well
June 27, 1976
Auditorium Theatre

Whole lot of fun here. Sounds like they meant it on this one. Closes out a great first set.
2
Looks Like Rain
June 27, 1976
Auditorium Theatre

Jerry and Keith are just on fire behind the beautiful vocal duet. This show is underappreciated. Give it a spin....
1
Friend of the Devil
June 27, 1976
Auditorium Theatre

Always preferred the fast ones, but listening to Jerry rip up the solos here and it makes sense. Killer version here (with a rude AUD patch though).
2
Brown Eyed Women
June 27, 1976
Auditorium Theatre

Has a crisp and tight disco shuffle prefiguring the '77 sound. Jerry's solo fills are precise and brilliant. Donna's harmonies are as sweet as ever.
1
The Wheel
June 26, 1976
Auditorium Theatre

Nice on its own, and brilliant as part of a great PITB-SS-Wheel-PITB sandwich. You can hear the fun their having. Short but sweet.

Comments

Wharf Rat
April 25, 1977
Capitol Theater

Gets my vote for best of the year, but I also think it hard to say just where comes back into the Playin' space during the deep jam... They're so far out of the WR structure and into the wild outer spheres before coming back into the recognisable reprise. Not too often that Wharf Rat dips into Dark Star territory, but this is something special.
Playin' In The Band
April 25, 1977
Capitol Theater

Brings the expansive length and transitive madness of the most epic pre-hiatus versions if you take it as part of the whole suite. I don't say 'under-rated' often, but it fits here.
Deep Elem Blues
May 7, 1981
Tomorrow Coast To Coast with Tom Synder

Here it is with great video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chADQBmosEQ. It's quite cool to see this era with a decent/professional camerawork: Nice in-focus closeups of the band, Jerry singing beautifully and his fretwork. A beaut of a version any way you look at it.
Dire Wolf
May 7, 1981
Tomorrow Coast To Coast with Tom Synder

What a rare treat. Sweet video of the performance on the "Tomorrow Show": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chADQBmosEQ.
Estimated Prophet
April 25, 1977
Capitol Theater

Agree with Ernie5 - this is right in the sweet spot for the development of the song. Jerry's coda solo is a wild ride through the scrambled madness of the narrator. Bobby's voice in the C.Miller clean-up (I didn't get the box set!) is smoky and beautiful. For me this song has always been *the* emblem of '77 perfection and here it is on display.