headyversion

find the best versions of grateful dead songs

please login or register.

grendel

Books and Music

+24543


Submissions

24
Franklin's Tower
May 1, 1981
Hampton Coliseum

One of the best played versions from one of the best played shows in the Brent era---ever.
16
Shakedown Street
March 24, 1981
Rainbow Theater

15+ minutes of funk w/extended overlapping vocal rounds of "just gotta poke around", etc. before jam Brent adds cool "fuzzy" SFX
1
Big Railroad Blues
Oct. 30, 1971
Taft Auditorium

Check out Keith on this one! He's never been so up front before & right outta the gate!!
21
Cream Puff War
July 3, 1966
Fillmore Auditorium

Peppy early version w/Jer belting out lyrics & Pig doin' some nice work on organ. No archive copy exists; got this off 30 Days of Dead-worth the DL!
9
Passenger
May 7, 1979
Allan Kirby Field House

Super-charged EARLY Brent version rips and tears and shreds. Final jam before the coda is the best they ever did in this tune. Goes to 11.
show more submissions

Comments

Lazy Lightnin' -> Supplication
May 12, 1980
Boston Garden

Yes, this whole show is amazing and underrated. The Caution Jam out of He's Gone is a monster! Agree with you that this LL>Supp combo tops Go To Nassau, which is hard to do.
Eyes Of The World
May 5, 1978
Thompson Arena - Dartmouth College

Did I forget to mention the beautiful, super-lengthy intro that has Jerry playing some of the jazziest Eyes notes ever? I did? The rest is pretty damn impressive, too. Hey, I can't vote for my own entry, but c'mon, folks....2 votes? It's May '78. Give it a listen.
Eyes Of The World
April 12, 1978
Cameron Indoor Stadium

On a quest to bump up every sadly underrated version of this song on the Big Board. Starting here.
Scarlet Begonias -> Fire On The Mountain
May 7, 1978
Field House - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Back to give this one some more love. The vocal coda in last verse of Fire may be the very best they ever did. Everyone's into it and singing in rounds and it's fantastic. Then Jerry shreds out the last instrumental bit before the Scarlet return. This whole version Scarlet to Fire is phenomenal. May be the best of '78 or at least right up there with the beasts of April.
Scarlet Begonias -> Fire On The Mountain
April 23, 1977
Springfield Civic Center

Another version I've listened to forever but took for granted in voting for, but recent re-listening has given me a new appreciation. Super energized "Scarlet" (check out Jerry growling out "aint nothin wrong with the way she moves" line) & the sweet transition features Donna gently cooing, not caterwauling, into a mind meld Fire segue and then Jerry really does some magic from intro on out. Take off half a point for flubbing the last verse, but it's not egregious and he does that more often than not anyway. Definitely could be higher on this list.
show more comments
headyversion loves the dead but is in no way affiliated with The Grateful Dead or affiliated enterprises. find out more >:) >:)