A cozy little delight - hand percussion, contemplation, great stereo drums, and some rip roaring riffage. Comes in under the radar, but worth a visit.

As much as I love May 77 Sugarees, Spring 76 is where it's at for me. Subtlety, separation, and Garcia's whispery, silver-dipped guitar breaks.

1978: Prime weather for Candyman. This performance, like many from then, highlights the bleak world of the narrator. Garcia's break: spidery.

Bubbly, bratty storyboard version. Character & twang for miles. I'd pay to see this band. Two for a tenner? Four please.

This is a very sweet Terrapin. Everyone's fired up to play it. All you need to do is watch the vid to see the pure joy this brings Garcia. Memorable.

The extended intro alone is worth the price of admission. The rest of it is Grade A exploratory rock music. Just a group that can pretty much do what it likes. Such an amazing time for live Dead. A favorite show.

Super Garage Power! Not quite as apocalyptic as the 60s versions, but swagger to burn and lots of swing. 1970 Capitol Theater: Guaranteed Mark of Quality. Right before the 6 minute mark, shit gets intense. And yet - they're obviously having a blast. Not just historically significant, but a thrilling piece of art.

1. Great audience recording. 2. 1982 C>Rs are sneaky kick-ass. Garcia's bluegrassy, spidery runs create the feeling of a train roaring down the tracks. This one is SUCH an '82 C>R! Dig it!

I generally prefer '73 Row Jimmys b/c I prefer Garcia sans slide, although he executed many lovely slide breaks in this song thru the years. His eschewing of the slide in the second break on this song reminds me of the gold-leaf majesty of the '73 RJs but with the mature patience of Spring '77 Garcia. When he pushes it in this second break, it's super earned (both thematically and emotionally). As he does so often, he stretches himself as far as his ability allows. That's where the real shit comes from. A lovely RJ.

A gorgeous melodic entry and then a Lesh soliloquy and surprising but smooth burst into the actual song. Excitement ensues. + Kreutzmann is barely holding his sticks - almost sounds like a trap jaiz drummer. Then: the abstraction - Lesh and Garcia have this one. No worries. Just goes to show that this song is a career highlight and, when you see it on as setlist, you know there's always the chance for levitation. Especially 1968-1977. But mot (otherwise known as not) limited to that time frame. + This goes pretty damn far out and rarely does it not swing. Kreutzmann is so underrated. As are these Fall 1973 shows - their jazziest tour (whatever that means). No surprise Godchaux's up for it.