favorite favorite favorite favorite

WOW! THIS was the start of my tour. My first time to do a whole tour (no tix ahead of time, but tix for most of the tour fell into my lap in Charlotte … a story for another time) and I was lucky enough to get in every night except 1st of the 2 Pine Knob nights (but we found a spot where we could hear it pretty well.) Bruce was a welcome addition and you could see it in Jerry's smile and in the Bruce and Jerry jams that popped up throughout the tour. Could this possibly be the last truly consistently well played tour? It would sure make for a good box set (or two.)

1st set: They come out of the gates screaming with a Jack Straw to be remembered and I feel that it stands up decades later as a true example of good later era "Jack Straw" could be. A sweet TLEO (my 2nd live one... as my 1st was my 1st ever show in NOLA Oct 88 ... another story for another time.) Then on to the ‘blues slot’ for a rompin’ Wang Dang Doodle with Jerry making some odd sounds through his midi on Wang Dang which is cool and different but the song kind of fizzles out at the end IMHO... (Hey, at least it wasn't a post-Brent Rooster.) … And into Row Jimmy - This is a good ‘90s Jimmy, however I remember one later in the tour that may have had more 'umph' in the middle and more reggae feel to the outro. (6/14/91, RFK) The soft smooth Jimmy gives way to a rockin' hot BTW that I remember as being particularly fun to watch as Bob spit on those in the front rows. Then the Big RR Blues really got me in the feels as that was one of the 1st tunes that stuck w/ me from when I was a 14 year old kid years before playing the skull and roses record until I wore out the grooves. I love that jam here and Jerry is all over it. That heat leads us into a windy Cassidy w/ Jerry all over the place and just ripping it up in the middle of the song. Probably my favorite Jerry 1st set closer is next up: Might as Well - and it was a rocker, fast and loose and Jerry belts out the lyrics with ferocity toward the end, although IMHO his guitar chops are a little subdued compared to the Giant Stadium one later that summer.

2nd set: China-Rider is always a welcome way to kick off a tour. Some weird circus-like toy synthy sounds from Vince in the transition, but it is fun and the crowd was really into it. A standard Estimated warms the crowd and gives us a chance to slow down a bit, pack one and relax and sway until we start spinning. They don't delve too far into the void here b/c it sounds like Jerry wants to get to that UJB which is sweet and poignant. Jerry almost croons here. I always got goosebumps at the line 'Their motto is Don't Tread on Me' ... especially that summer since my tour buddy had a Gadsden flag flying high above our parking spot so our spun asses could find the car after the show. Wacky D/S gets out there and has some interesting low frequency rumbles from Mickey. Really trippy stuff ... heady and jammy space ensues IMHO until we almost just can’t take it anymore … but the Wheel's smooth intro brings us all back down to tranquility as Papa Bear guides us on the journey back to familiar places. Pretty soon Bobby winds us back up w/ a somewhat discordant and crunchy Watchtower that certainly rocks. Some have called it cacophonic and I admit it had some cacophonic elements in it... but it did jam while Jerry kind of hides in the shadows a bit here as Bobby goes wild w/ his wacky chords and phrasings that we have all grown to love. Vince seems high in the mix which adds to the madness, but Bruce’s presence seems to stabilize us and clean it up a bit.

Finally, it's Jerry's turn to shine w/ a sweet Stella that makes me want to cry. It seems to me that Stella really came into its own ‘post-coma’ and once we reach the 90s jerry has really learned through life's pain and misery what those lyrics mean and how to place them ever so eloquently over the music. He brings a sweet sadness to it by this time in his career that tugs at the heart strings. Seems like Vince is in the way a bit (or covering for Jerry) in spots where you'd expect to hear Jerry’s notes clearly 'sing from a guitar.' Soon enough Jerry’s notes trickle down and settle in. By summer '91 Jerry seems to fit the words into the song in soulful places that show the nuanced pain that results from living hard in a way that he couldn't seem to quite do in the '70s when it was still a relatively 'new' song. And of course Bobby then leads us through a standard straight forward Lovelight (w/ a little too much Vince?) to end the show on a faster paced note.

Encore: Phil hits us w/ a Box of Rain encore that just floors me.... I walk out of that show knowing that the choice to go on summer tour was a good one. So much potential in that summer to come ... my o my … it seemed that night like the trajectory of this band ‘was never gonna end.’

On a side note: Box is also the encore of the last show of the tour in Denver. I remember at the time thinking that was a cool way to bookend a tour ... not that they planned it or anything. Please listen to this show and go on virtual tour by hearing the shows from this summer in order as the recordings are mostly quite good (when Healy wasn’t distracted … some say Healy was off on 6/6/91 and that the low frequencies aren’t really there the way they would be in a classic Betty Board … which upon reflection may be true but I’ll have to listen on my buddy’s audiophile set up to know for sure …) Charlie Miller seems to have cleaned up any recording problems that may have existed w/ a great transfer as usual (THANKS CM!!!!) The playing is certainly still strong. Jerry seemed healthy and happy on stage and didn’t seem to ‘take off’ too many nights or even too many parts of each show … and the set lists don't suffer from the later songs most of us didn't quite care for (Easy answers, shoe fits, samba, etc.) The Charlotte Terrapin is hot, Sandstone shows were outstanding, and the Chicago Shakedown was bonkers. RFK was ... well … RFK! The Giant Stadium Dark Star insanity and 1st set opener Eyes that are so well known are worth a million listens (well documented shows)... what a summer! Today is the anniversary of the start of that epic summer ’91 tour ... Let's see if Dead and Co can bring the heat and pick up the pace tonight at Deer Creek like the Boyz did back in '91!!!!!!!!!

- June 6, 2018WoW!! A great recording of a Great show of a Great tour!!!!