An original review of this show was written for BUZZ Magazine in July of 1990 and can be found below.
It was 30 years ago tonight, on Wednesday, July 25, 1990, that Iron Maiden front-man Bruce Dickinson and Kings of the Sun took the stage at the legendary Saratoga Winners in Latham, just outside of Albany.
Bruce Dickinson, Saratoga Winners, Latham, NY, July 25, 1990, picture by Mark Kurtzne
This bill also played The Chance in Poughkeepsie, on July 20, 1990. Dickinson was on a break from Iron Maiden, promoting his debut Tattooed Millionaire solo LP. It wasn’t a bad record, although not on par with his better Maiden stuff. He didn’t play any Maiden, unless you count “Bring Your Daughter To the Slaughter,” which at that point was still a Dickinson solo track from a soundtrack; Maiden wouldn’t do record it until their next album.
Janick Gers, Saratoga Winners, Latham, NY, July 25, 1990, picture by Mark Kurtzner
However, Dickinson opened the show with his pre-Iron Maiden band Samson’s “Riding With The Angels,” which rocked, and played a bunch of solo songs and covers. Good shows, both packed, mostly with Iron Maiden fans, and a ton of Iron Maiden t-shirts.
Janick Gers, Saratoga Winners, Latham, NY, July 25, 1990, picture by Mark Kurtzner
Dickinson’s guitarist this night was Janick Gers, who at the time was the former guitarist from Gillian, the early 80s metal band led by Deep Purple member Ian Gillan. He had also been in a new wave of British Heavy Metal band called White Spirit – as a fan of both of those bands, I was excited to see him, and he played great. But soon enough he could become far more well-known when he replaced Adrian Smith in Iron Maiden.
Bruce Dickinson, Saratoga Winners, Latham, NY, July 25, 1990, picture by Mark Kurtzner
The opening band, Kings of The Sun, were great at one show, kind of crap at the other. They were from Australia, a band led by a couple of brothers, playing good heavy rock ’n’ roll in the vein of AC/DC, on the heels of a pretty solid self-titled album out at the time.
Our look back at the Grateful Dead’s tour history in New York makes a stop in the heart of Central New York, with a trip back to September 28, 1976 and a show so good it deserved placement on a Dick’s Pick release. The latter half of Volume 20 of this particular series of live shows showcases the band at the top of its game as it rolled into Syracuse in late September, after a show at Rochester’s War Memorial the night before.
New York has always served as fertile ground for memorable Grateful Dead shows and this particular one at the Onondaga County War Memorial falls right in line, with the band continuing to break new ground as they explode through this transformative mid ’70s era.
The proceedings start with an upbeat and inspirational “Cold Rain and Snow” that seems to warm the collective hearts assembled in Central New York this evening and gives the band a chance to warm up their harmonies early.
A “Cassidy” that later follows takes the set’s early momentum and runs with it, courtesy of its typically brief yet intense ending progression section. The band then stretches their collective legs a little with a version of “Tennessee Jed” that has a delightful, rambling jam attached to it and a stout version of “Candyman” soon follows. But the real highlight of the opening stanza is an an enthusiastic “Let It Grow” that fosters a jam which meanders effortlessly through the highs and lows provided by a rhythm section in lock step with the vocals of Bob Weir and Donna Jean Godcheaux before it dissolves into psychedelic bliss. This more than helps provide the kindling for a set closing “Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad” that easily catches fire, ending the first set in a pristine blaze of glory.
A direct and authoritative “Playing In the Band” opens the second set with Jerry Garcia on lead guitar laying down ferocious melodies atop a bed of intense rhythms fueled drummers Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart and bassist Phil Lesh. The near 11-minute opening salvo is the band at their finest as they collectively finesse through a psychedelic jaunt that eventually makes way for “The Wheel.”
A joyous “Samson and Delilah” follows, which wastes no time after its completion before seguing into another blissful, guitar-driven improvisational jam with Garcia still leading and the rest of the band in hot pursuit.
Much like the first set, the bulk of this show’s punch comes towards the end, in the form of a tidy “Drums” section that gives way to an absolutely blistering “Eyes of the World” that sees the full band in complete cohesion and harmony, in a somewhat speedy version that was not atypical for this era of Dead.
This rapid rendition of “Eyes” then gives way to a loose, ragged collective jam that’s since been dubbed the “Orange Tango Jam,” the only one of its kind and seemingly a nod to the local Syracuse confines. This off-the-cuff jam has flashes of inspiration but eventually peters out and gives way to a rousing “Dancing In The Streets” before the set concludes with a bookending “Playing In The Band.”
Make no mistake. Even through this show might be the second half of Volume 20 of the esteemed Dick’s Picks archival releases, it takes a back seat to very few others from this era. It shows the band playing relaxed and cohesive as a whole, with the ability to shift into unstructured territory at a moment’s notice – a sign of things to come with the band soon entering perhaps the most explosive year of its existence.
Grateful Dead – Onondaga War Memorial Aud., Syracuse, NY – September 28, 1976
Set 1: Cold Rain and Snow, Big River, Bertha, Cassidy, Tennessee Jed, New Minglewood Blues, Candyman, It’s All Over Now, Friend of the Devil, Let it Grow, Goin’ Down the Road Feelin’ Bad
Set 2: Playin’ in the Band > The Wheel >Samson and Delilah > Comes a Time > Drums > Eyes of the World > Dancin’ in the Streets, Playin’ in the Band
On July 10, 1994, Phish headlined for the first time at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Two years prior, the Vermont group had opened for Santana at SPAC, one of the few opening slots Phish would perform in their career.
via Brendan McKenna, as published in PhanArt: The Art of the Fans of Phish
The summer of 1994 would feature The Eagles, Peter Gabriel, James Taylor, The Beastie Boys and the debut of Dave Matthews at the classic Upstate amphitheater, in addition to Phish, whose performance was at the tail end of their summer tour.
Of note from the first set is the “Stash,” which appears on Live Bait 10, and fun with the lyrics of “Julius,” adding “I haven’t decided, no no no’ during the chorus, and “Ya Mar” where the band gave shout-outs to Trey’s dog Marley, including “Who is she?” (also their record label’s name) and “Who’s the Mar Mar?”
Tickets were only $18.50 for reserved seats
The middle of the second set held the heat with a strong “Mike’s Groove”, adding in “Low Rider” to the typical three song sequence inside of “Mike’s Song.” At the end of the second set, The Dude of Life came to the stage and sang his composition “Crimes of the Mind” with the band.
Phish – SPAC, Saratoga Springs, NY – July 10, 1994
Soundcheck: Jive Talkin’, The Old Home Place, Nellie Kane, work on Jive Talkin’
Set 1: Chalkdust Torture, Horn > Peaches en Regalia > Rift, Stash, If I Could, My Friend, My Friend > Julius, Cavern
Set 2: Sample in a Jar, David Bowie, Glide, Ya Mar, Mike’s Song -> Low Rider -> Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, Bouncing Around the Room, The Squirming Coil, Crimes of the Mind
Encore: Golgi Apparatus, Rocky Top
Notes: My Friend included a Purple Haze tease and Julius contained a Buried Alive tease from Trey. The Dude of Life sang vocals on Crimes of the Mind
It’s not too often you see the Grateful Deadopening for another band, especially not in the 1980s. But on July 4, 1986, the Grateful Dead linked up with Bob Dylan and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for one of only four shows together that summer, performing at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, NY, home of the Buffalo Bills.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette characterized the show on the 4th of July perfect for “The Dead’s vagabond odes and Dylan’s outspoken songs of freedom.” Sweltering heat during the day led to a first set that was cut short, but rain during “Cold Rain and Snow” to start the second set provided respite for the crowd. Perhaps out of exhaustion, fans were reported to have left after the Dead encored with “U.S Blues.”
While the Dead opened, a trio of songs were featured in a satellite broadcast live to Farm Aid 3. Prior to “The Wheel,” Bob Weir said to the crowd “America is an example of an agrarian nation, let’s keep it turning.”
Six days and two shows later, Jerry Garcia slipped into a diabetic coma and was unconscious for a week, but would recover and be back on stage later that year. This show at Rich Stadium would be one of the last times the Dead would perform in New York for nearly a year, before returning to Rochester on July 2, 1987.
Setlist, Grateful Dead, July 4, 1986, Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY
Set 1: Jack Straw, Dupree’s Diamond Blues, CC Rider, Tennessee Jed, My Brother Esau, Touch Of Gray
Set 2: Cold Rain & Snow-> Fire On The Mountain-> Samson & Delilah*-> The Wheel*-> I Need A Miracle*-> Uncle John’s Band-> Drums-> Gimme Some Lovin’-> Goin’ Down The Road Feelin’ Bad-> Turn On Your Love Light
Encore: U.S. Blues
*broadcast as part of Farm Aid 3
Dylan and fellow Traveling Wilbury Petty joined up for a tour featuring the Heartbreakers backing Dylan. Dylan played a few solo acoustic songs, while the Heartbreakers played their hits that are still classics today, and all joined together for “Rainy Day Woman # 12 & 35.”
Bob Dylan with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, July 4, 1986, Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY
Set: So Long, Good Luck And Goodbye, Positively 4th Street, Clean Cut Kid, Emotionally Yours, Trust Yourself, We Had It All, Masters Of War, Straight Into Darkness (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Think About Me (Petty & The Heartbreakers), The Waiting (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Breakdown (Petty & The Heartbreakers), To Ramona (Solo acoustic), One Too Many Mornings, (Solo acoustic), A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall (Solo acoustic), I Forgot More Than You’ll Ever Know, Band Of The Hand, When The Night Comes Falling From The Sky, Lonesome Town, Ballad Of A Thin Man, Bye Bye Johnny (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Make It Better (Forget About Me) (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Spike (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Refugee (Petty & The Heartbreakers), Rainy Day Women # 12 & 35, Seeing The Real You At Last, Across The Borderline
Few bands have a relationship with the state of New York like the Grateful Dead. Performing over 300 shows throughout the Empire State in a span of 28 years, the Grateful Dead made their mark starting with their first New York performance in Tompkins Square Park on June 1, 1967
In some ways, the Grateful Dead’s maiden trip to the East Coast via New York City mirrors the ongoing circumstances we see there and across the country today. The year was 1967, right in the heart of the Civil Rights Era. And, locally, tribal tensions were beginning to boil over as well, stirred by the wrestling of control over the communal jukebox that had become Tompkins Square Park, a public space in the Alphabet City section of the East Village.
Tompkins Square Park 6/1/67
This being the “Summer of Love,” San Francisco was not the only place towards which hippies were flocking. Those that had descended upon Manhattan’s Lower East Side grew fond of playing their congas and bongos at the park. Puerto Ricans, the neighborhood majority, wanted their music to be prevalent and the Black community also fought for control of the musical output. Over the last few weekends, fighting at the park had become rampant.
Most recently, 38 people were arrested at Tompkins Square Park on Memorial Day after being confronted by police for sitting on the grass where they were playing music, both park violations. Per a Village Voice article from June 8, 1967, “A couple of cops went over to the park and told the hippies to shut up and get off the grass. The kids laughed, and kept singing. The cops ordered them to leave. ‘They laughed at us,’ patrolman John Rodd explained. ‘That’s when the trouble began.’”
Throw in all the other issues that the summer of 1967 undoubtedly brought and it becomes clear that local police were in danger of losing their city, as far as popular opinion went, and needed to rethink their tactics. Maybe it was someone on the force who somehow had an early copy of the Grateful Dead’s eponymous first album, released just months earlier. Or maybe it was “Cream Puff War,” the album’s second single that was slowly beginning to garner some radio airplay, that had somehow made it to a patrolman’s ear. Whatever the root cause may have been, the Grateful Dead were about to be met with an interesting quid pro quo from the city in the effort of keeping the peace.
Grateful Dead playing Golden Gate Park, just a few months prior to their first East Coast trip
Although the band was still in its nascent stage, they were definitely on the local radar. This was made evident when they were greeted by two separate welcoming committees upon their arrival to the Big Apple, each with a distinct agenda. According to Rock Scully, one of the band’s early managers, they had drama as soon as they arrived at their hotel. According to his book, Living with the Dead: Twenty Years on the Bus with Garcia and the Grateful Dead, Scully and the band were greeted upon their arrival with one of the oldest tricks in the book.
“I put the briefcase down on the front desk right next to me – it had all of our expense money in it – and the next thing I know somebody comes up and asks a question. I turn around and when I turn back, bang! the money’s gone. ” ~ Rock Scully
After returning to the hotel later that day, the band is greeted by the NYPD and Thomas Hoving, head of the Parks Department. Unsurprisingly, this was not a follow up for details to the heist from earlier in the day but, rather, a business proposal that would seem to benefit both sides. The Dead is presented with an offer to do the city “an honor” by playing an additional show at the bandshell in Central Park. As it stood, their only planned shows were a series of gigs slated to go down at the Village’s Cafe Au Go Go.
Who would say no to an extra show at such an esteemed locale in the most populated city in America? Surely, there had to be a catch. Well, there was. Now that the band had been buttered up, so to speak, the police then politely asked if they could give them “a hand with this little problem we’ve been having in Tompkins Square Park.”
The Grateful Dead may not have been a worldwide attraction yet, but they were known as a band that had no problems playing outdoors, and to great numbers at that. Word of the “Human Be-In,” a large outdoor show at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park in January which the Dead were prominently involved in, had clearly reached New York City. A band with mass appeal that played outside and catered to hippies would be just what the doctor ordered. Although, understandably, the band had their concerns about jumping into the local fray.
“We can’t even hang on to our per diems and they want us to sort out a gang war in Alphabet City? They must be desperate.”
Rock Scully, Living with the Dead: Twenty Years on the Bus with Garcia and The Grateful Dead
It became clear to the band that the caveat for being allowed to play Central Park was their assistance in this local matter. After some initial reluctance, they were nudged to accept after lead guitarist Jerry Garcia spoke up, seeing it as a chance for outsiders like them to bring another community together via music. In the name of harmony, the Dead encouraged all local bands and musicians to attend and share the stage with them.
So on June 1, the day after the Memorial Day skirmish, the Grateful Dead went down to Greenwich Village where they were given the royal treatment, hailed as foreign troubadours here to deliver peace. Per a Village Voice article from the following week, “A happy, scruffy parade of 80 marched down St. Mark’s Place, complete with police escort, to present the Dead with a white carnation key to the East Village, graciously accepted by Pigpen. And the Tompkins Square bandshell rocked with San Francisco glory until a noise complaint was lodged in the late afternoon.”
But true to the band’s initial vision, they were only a part of the festivities that drew some 3,000 people to the park over the course of the day. They played from 2 – 5 p.m. and delivered their signature sound of amplified rhythm and blues meshed with psychedelic rock that was being consumed by an East Coast audience for the very first time. A Newsday review claimed the music could be “heard for blocks in every direction.”
Tompkins Square Park video footage from 6/1/67 (no audio first two minutes)
Throughout the course of the day, music of all kinds filled the air in what had to be one of the largest, free musical gatherings in New York to date. The gathering, dubbed a “real-in,” was a successful mass protest of sorts, in response to the events from Memorial Day, signaling to the local authorities that the local community was capable of policing itself.
It was certainly highlighted by the Dead’s first East Coast gig, but they willingly shared the stage with The Fugs, a much more well known local act, as well as local Puerto Rican and Black musicians who had also assembled – a true “pop-up” festival with some San Francisco flair. The Grateful Dead’s collective mindset, especially Garcia’s, is perhaps best summed up by Scully and his take on the day’s proceedings. “ Then other musicians come up with their congas and marimbas and bongos and cowbells, and they see this isn’t a turf thing at all. Music is music as far as the Dead go. African music or Puerto Rican salsa, it don’t make no difference to Garcia.”
And so, the band’s long, strange relationship with the State of New York had begun – dropped into the middle of civil unrest in return for an unexpected show at Central Park. Both those shows and the following string of dates at Cafe Au Go Go went off without a hitch and the Dead had officially stamped New York City as its first East Coast mainstay. They would return many times and wind up playing shows in almost every region of the state – which we look forward to writing about and covering here in New York State Music’s “Golden Road” series.
Setlist: June 1, 1967, Tompkins Square Park – Manhattan, NY (setlist is incomplete and approximate)
The Golden Road (to Unlimited Devotion), Dancin’ in the Streets, In the Midnight Hour, Beat it on Down the Line, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, Cold Rain and Snow, Morning Dew, Viola Lee Blues
Bonus footage from the band’s performance at the “Human Be-In” in Golden Gate Park 1/14/67
After performing at SPAC and taking a day off to celebrate the release of A Live One, Phish headed to Jones Beach for their first two-night run at the Long Island amphitheater. Growing their following, especially from New York metro area high school and college students with a summer off, was part of Phish’s broadening appeal as they performed in bigger and bigger theaters.
The first show on the 28th featured the retired “Axilla (Part II)” and an 11-minute “Foam” demonstrating the patience of the foursome from Vermont. The rest of the set after “Fast Enough For You” reads like a fantasy setlist, and it was only the first set, including one of two “Fluffhead”‘s from that tour.
Set 2 unleashes a 30+ minute “Tweezer” that is one for the books, so much that it was added to Live Bait 10 (scroll down for video). This experimental version of the jam vehicle included the ever rare “Dave’s Energy Guide” and a jam on The Breeder’s “Cannonball.” If you were still clamoring for more, the “Harry Hood” and “Tweezer Reprise” to close the set are likely to seal the deal.
Soundcheck: Sweet Home Alabama, Jam, Ginseng Sullivan, Red River Valley Jam, Dog Log (slow)
Set 1: Axilla (Part II) > Foam, Fast Enough for You, Reba[1], Punch You in the Eye, Stash, Fluffhead > Chalk Dust Torture
Set 2: Sample in a Jar, Poor Heart > Tweezer -> Dave’s Energy Guide -> Tweezer > Gumbo > Sparkle > Suzy Greenberg, Harry Hood, Tweezer Reprise
Encore: Sweet Adeline, While My Guitar Gently Weeps
[1] No whistling.
Ha Ha Ha was teased before the start of the first set. Reba did not have the whistling ending. Dave’s Energy Guide was played for the first time since March 8, 1991 (479 shows). The secondTweezer included a Cannonball jam with quotes from Trey.
The next day the fans returned to Jones Beach for another round of Phish, and were greeted with “Runaway Jim” -> “Taste.” The straightforward first set was enthusiastic and energetic, and ended with an acapella “Carolina.”
If you were getting your first taste of Phish over these two nights, you might think that nearly half hour versions of songs were the norm, and for a time, they were. Both “David Bowie” and “You Enjoy Myself” topped over the 25 minute mark, with “Bowie” taking chances getting spacey, and “You Enjoy Myself” including a bass and drums section.
From here, Phish would have two more two-night runs, at Great Woods in Mansfield, MA and two-nights in at Sugarbush in North Fayston, VT
After being banned from SPAC for three years, the Grateful Dead returned on Tuesday, June 28, 1988 for one final outing at the famed Saratoga Springs venue. This being their first show since the release of 1987’s In the Dark and the Top 10 single “Touch of Grey,” a new generation of Deadheads were seeing the group for the first time, who were disparagingly referred to as ‘Touchheads’ by some veteran fans.
While this was the final performance for the Grateful Dead’s at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, the band had a strong fanbase in the greater Capital District. Add in a new audience of younger fans and the band would find themselves heading half an hour south for future performances in the region, at the Knickerbocker Arena, starting in 1990.
Locally broadcast on WPYX, the Tuesday show was aired on the radio in an effort to dissaude fans from arriving at the show without a ticket. This did not prevent gatecrashing from occuring early in the night, and fans on the lawn were found heading into the pavilion balcony as they did in 1985.
Rain fell on the crowd as storms passed through, and lightning was seen during the rain-soaked “Candyman,” leading to a chill coming over the crowd as the show wore on. A solid variety in the straightforward first set seemed to swap Bobby and Jerry songs from the outset of “Hell in a Bucket,” and ending with “Victim or the Crime” and “Foolish Heart.”
More rain came down early in the second set, similar to the rain in 1985 that began during “Fire on the Mountain.” Listen to “Scarlet Begonias” > “Fire on the Mountain” > “Estimated Prophet” > “Crazy Fingers,” and you’d likely be enjoying dancing in the rain as the thousands of fans did that night.
Following a hypnotic “Drums” and “Space,” a beautiful version of “I Will Take You Home” by Brent Mydland appeared, and a late second set “Stella Blue” found Jerry stumbling just before pouring buckets of emotion into the ending jam. The Dead had left their mark on SPAC, one of the most beloved venues in the Northeast.
Grateful Dead, Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), June 28, 1988
Set 1: Hell In A Bucket-> Bertha, Walkin Blues, Candyman, When I Paint My Masterpiece, Row Jimmy, Victim Or The Crime, Foolish Heart
Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-> Fire On The Mountain, Estimated Prophet-> Crazy Fingers-> Drums-> I Will Take You Home-> Goin’ Down The Road Feelin’ Bad-> I Need A Miracle-> Stella Blue-> Not Fade Away
On June 26, 1995, Phish performed for the third time (and second as a headliner) at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Phish’s 1995 Summer Tour was into full swing by this point with the final 11 shows in the Northeast, four of which were in New York.
Back in 1995, reserved tickets for this performance at SPAC cost only $20. An “Acoustic Army” soundcheck with teases of “Shine” (six months and a day before “Shine” would debut on New Years Eve during “Fly Famous Mockingbird”), and Little Feat’s “Time Loves a Hero” reappeared for the first time since soundcheck on April 15, 1989.
A little Led Zeppelin could be found in “Possum” with a “Heartbreaker” tease, and in “You Enjoy Myself” containing a hint of “Immigrant Song.” The highlight of the show is surely a spacey and unfinishes “Down with Disease” that led into a monster “Free,” seen below.
The penultimate performance of The Meditations “Don’t You Want to Go?” was found in the first set, alongside a unique trio of “It’s Ice” > “Dog Faced Boy” > “Tela,” and the aforementioned “Possum.” Set 2 is a fiery one from the start, with a “Down with Disease” > “Free” that Phish.net calls “a multi-movement masterpiece.” A huge “You Enjoy Myself” (seen below) and “Sleeping Monkey” > “Rocky Top” encore are among the many highlights of this stand out show. It would take 9 years before Phish returned to SPAC, shows that stack up well against June 26, 1995. This show was released by Live Phish in 2017.
Soundcheck: Time Loves A Hero > Dog Log/Time Loves A Hero mashup, Nellie Kane, Santana Instrumental, Rocky Mountain Way
Set 1: My Friend, My Friend, Don’t You Want To Go?, Bathtub Gin, NICU > The Sloth, My Mind’s Got a Mind of its Own, It’s Ice > Dog Faced Boy > Tela > Possum
Set 2: Down with Disease [1] -> Free > Poor Heart > You Enjoy Myself, Strange Design > Run Like an Antelope
Encore: Sleeping Monkey > Rocky Top
[1] Unfinished. My Friend started with a Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 tease from Trey. Trey teased and quoted Long Tall Glasses in Bathtub Gin. Possum contained a Heartbreaker tease and YEM contained Immigrant Song teases from Trey. Down with Disease was unfinished.
At Transit Drive In in Lockport, NY, live music returned for the first time in over three months. The drought was lifted with three shows from Aqueous, who performed with a limited crowd that was safely distanced throughout the grounds.
As Sunday attendee Pete Connors of Utica attested, “For a post-apocalytpic world, they put together as close to a first class event as you’re gonna see this year.” From the looks of therecap videoby Jim Houle and just shared by Aqueous, the joy on the faces of the fans, even spread out among the Drive-In grounds agrees with this sentiment.
With a line forming at noon for the matinee concert, doors opened at 1pm for two sets starting at 2pm. From most points around the state, you’d be home in bed before it was dark. The sound was reported as fantastic from all fronts, even if the sound had to be adjusted to appease neighbors.
Each dad had its own unique highlight from the band. Friday opened up with local legend Rick James’ “Below the Funk,” and Saturday featured a single song second set of “Half In Half Out,” with teases throughout. On Sunday, the band left the stage before “Kitty Chaser” with a looped beat playing, as they staged a runaway golfcart marathon around the ground, saying hi to fans (from a safe distance).
In time, we’ll remember the shows and the return to live music, even if the details get foggy. Fans are grateful for music more than ever thanks to intimate experiences like Live at the Drive In, and the easing back into live music will present us all with a new appreciation for the blessings of music around us.
Setlists via Darren Kemp
Friday, June 19th, 2020
Set 1: Below the Funk¹ > They’re Calling For Ya > Numbers and Facts, Little Something to Me, Strange Times² > Burn it Down³ > Below the Funk
Set 2: Mind Games, Say it Again > Complex Pt. II, Realize Your Light
Encore: What’sThe Connection?⁴
Notes: ¹ BUSTOUT LTP 12/7/2018 (100 shows)² Unfinished³ G’z and Hustlaz (Snoop Dogg) tease⁴ Birds of a Feather (Phish) tease
Saturday, June 20th, 2020
Set 1: Staring into the Sun¹, Good Days, Split the Difference² ³ > Underlyer, Bring Me Down⁴
Set 2: Half In Half Out⁵
Encore: Freedom⁶
Notes: ¹ w/ ending² Wedge tease (Phish) between songs³ So Fresh So Clean (Outkast) tease⁴ Original – Debut�5⁵ Teases galore, including 20/20, Below the Funk (Rick James), Sample in a Jar (Phish), YYZ (Rush), Echoes (Pink Floyd), Californication (Red Hot Chili Peppers)⁶ Jimi Hendrix Cover, BUSTOUT – LTP 2011/6/11 (858 shows)
Sunday June 21st, 2020
Set 1: Dig It Good, Josie > Second Sight¹ > Good Enough, The Median
Set 2: Can You Get Me There?, Willy is 40 > Loop Jam² > Kitty Chaser (Explosions)
Encore: Freebird³, Complex Pt. I > Second Sight⁴
Notes: ¹ Unfinished² Band set loops on their instruments and proceeded to drive through the audience on golf carts thanking fans³ Lynyrd Skynyrd cover, Partially played as a joke, mostly acapella from Rob⁴ Ending
The writing was on the wall, and if 1994 didn’t confirm it, 1995 certainly did. And on June 21-22, the Grateful Dead performed their final shows in the state of New York at the Knickerbocker Arena (The Knick) in Albany.
The Dead had performed over 300 shows in New York State alone since their first in 1967, but the last two in Albany would serve as a curtain call for a band that treated the state as a second home, musically speaking. After all the shows and runs at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Fillmore East, Paradise Garden, Capitol Theatre, Nassau Coliseum, Rich Stadium, the Carrier Dome and more, and these would be the finale, even if it was not announced as such.
via JerryGarcia.com
The June 21st show would offer up the final “Row Jimmy,” “Man Smart, Woman Smarter,” “Supplication Jam” and “Morning Dew,” and what a “Morning Dew” this was. Fans were in tears as the ballad played, one fan saying “all difficulties disappeared for a few precious moments and we were all treated to a beautiful, final rendtion from the boys.” Listen or watch the full show below and judge for yourself.
Grateful Dead – The Knick, Albany, NY – June 21, 1995
Set 1: Hell In A Bucket, Loser, Take Me To The River, Row Jimmy, Broken Arrow, Promised Land
Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-> Fire On The Mountain, Women Are Smarter, It’s All Too Much, Playin’ In The Band-> Drums-> Space-> Easy Answers-> Morning Dew
Encore: U.S. Blues
The next night would be the final show in Albany, at The Knick, and in New York State for that matter. The tour would head to Washington, D.C., Auburn Hills, MI, a few more stops in the Midwest before the final show at Soldier Field in Chicago, IL.
via JerryGarcia.com
This show features an incredible “Franklin’s Tower,” clocking in at 18 minutes, a near-record for its final version ever. The final “Help on the Way” and “Slipknot” preceded the set closing jam, as did an emotional “It Must Have Been the Roses.” Early in the second set, “Estimated Prophet” -> “Terrapin Station” combine for 30 minutes followed by 25 minutes of “Drums” and a “Silent Way” jam ahead in “Space.” Final versions of “All Along the Watchtower,” “Black Peter” show up later in the set, with an encore of “I Fought the Law” to close the run.
The Grateful Dead made their mark on the Empire State through nearly 30 years of performances, one that lasts in every corner of the state to this day. Revisit those final shows, 25 years later.
via gratefuldeadoftheday.com
Setlist June 22, 1995
Set 1: Touch Of Gray, Walkin’ Blues, It Must Have Been The Roses, When I Paint My Masterpiece, So Many Roads, The Music Never Stopped Help On The Way-> Slipknot!-> Franklin’s Tower
Set 2: Samba In The Rain, Estimated Prophet-> Terrapin Station-> Drums-> Silent Way Jam-> Space-> All Along The Watchtower-> Black Peter-> Around & Around
