Scarlet Begonias -> Fire On The Mountain
May 7, 1978
Field House - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
I don't understand the critique that the Scarlet is "standard." If one lumps the transition into the Scarlet, then, no, this is not "standard." There is a lot going on in the transition - which is a close relative to 4/24, with a long Donna section to start and then dreamy Jerry licks to begin his segment. This transition is better than 4/16 or the mescaline show. If one is to compare just the lyrics and the solo in Scarlet to others from the same year, then this one stacks up against any of the '78 greats - only those with botched lyrics or an awful solo would fail to meet this "standard" for which the bar is pretty low. The intro to the Fire is not particularly strong but the solos are strong at one time or another. Grendel and Klaus are right about the final chorus. The outro is pure '78: sloppy, but shredded.