An intimate very early Bird Song - Quartet-styled, which serves this song really well. Also: you can hear the thinking, especially between guitars.

Ho-Hum: Another outstanding 1972 TJ. This gem from the sorta overlooked summer tour. Garcia aces the break, natch. Band - unconscious. Whew! at end.

From Garcia's cheeky intro on, this graceful cabochon throws a faint, warm light. 1976 elegance w/a sick, raw spider web guitar break.

First show - I didn't know this gem very well & after this criss-crossy version, I was hooked. Dark & murky.

Download Series - An intimate, casual living room Loser. Garcia coming out of the guitar break is divine. Not the actor.

A very crisp, high-energy Estimated that can stand with some of the redwoods from Spring '77. Garcia's coda Mu-Tron monologue is especially fluid - no need to call it a "guitar solo" because its really just a beautiful piece of improvisation, period. It's almost another lead voice taking over for Weir - a new character in the song. And this character has some darkness.

Very springy, early TJ - Godchaux is a major difference maker. His piano adds body and warmth to an otherwise wiry performance. And I say "wiry" as a positive.

Agree w/Carrion: get past the sorta dodgy recording - (1) there are far worse; (2) this Dark Star is wide-screen. Yet another deep, dark, space age 1970 Dark Star. Super worth your time unless you just can't deal with less than crystal clear recordings (which I understand). To me, the audience lends some sense of what it was like to be there. That's irreplaceable. Wouldn't mean much if it weren't a major Dark Star. It is.

A huge fan of '71 Other Ones - and this one is a really good example. To me, it's definitely '71 in spirit, although maybe this performance carries a little bit of the '70 wildness into the proceedings. With just Kreutzmann at the helm, the group is steered into a cleaner, spacier, more jazzbo feel. I've read that they were way more into playing Other One at this point than Dark Star b/c O1 propelled them into different territory - territory they were excited about exploring. Here, Garcia, in particular, seems very happy to ride the wave and let it push/pull him into all sorts of grey, intimate places. And I love the chimey stuff @ 7:30 - Weir playing behind the nut? Almost TC/Lagin-esque. Very large version. Thanks for the rec!

From the start, you can definitely hear the loving attention to storytelling in Garcia's vocal. Also: this version has a lovely bounce in its step. Playful - like the 1/22/78 version (also a fave).