Franklin's Tower

Pretty good version of this. That movement into OMSN was a little rough though.

US Blues

Ended out disc 2 just fine. Nothing wrong with that.

Might As Well

Never been a big fan, but I actually like the piano and "might as well" chorus here.

I could do without this 'Mama Tried'. I don't believe you.

Yeah, this is kinda draggin' me down a little. The last minute is decent, but I think they were just excited to get it done, haha.

Ramble On Rose, Cassidy, Deal

This is a nice run here. I'm digging, though the Cassidy from the previous night was better.

I really like this slow shuffling on Friend of the Devil.

Ramble on Rose made me think -- we haven't had a single Must Have Been The Roses yet??!!!

El Paso, Loser, Promised Land

El Paso was ok. Something seemed a little off. Loser went by pretty much unnoticed, and the 2nd Promised Land is picking up the slack a little bit.

Yeah, its nice in a way. It works with the song, while the slow poke version of S&D not so much.

Dancin' In The Streets

We've come to the over-Donnafied DitS. Egh.

sounds like i need to grab this last show.

I wouldn't miss never having to hear El Paso ever again but I'm a fan of Loser. Ever hear the excellent cover by Cracker?

I'm with you there. It's one of those songs that should never be covered.

also, a couple more good books:

if you're into the lyrics and want to dig a bit deeper, highly recommend:


for more of a "coffee table" book, full of really great photos - but also lots of history:

Dancin'>Wharf Rat>Dancin'

Not a big fan of DitS here, but Wharf Rat turned out to be amazingly good, and then unfortunately coming back to DitS. I really liked WR. Not sure if I wasn't paying attention and it just flowed, or whether it was genuinely good. I'm gonna have to listen again.

I'm hoping this might find its way into my hands at some point. I flipped through it at Borders and was into it.

Samson and Delilah

Man, they really couldn't hold this down over two nights. I know a lot of people hate this song, but I'm actually not against it. However, these two performances were so slow, and horrible it makes me almost reconsider why I like the song.

Not that the first two sets were all that raucous, but it seems like Mexican cough syrup was the backstage drink of choice before they did Friend of the Devil. Very sleepy...

I can vouch for the cough syrup, BTW

I was thinking barbiturates.

It was a welcome respite in a storm of complete shit. Fuck I hate DITS.

And count me in as someone who really like El Paso, and what it adds to the Dead sound/repertoire.

Playing In The Band

While I think this song sounds best when turned up, and played nice and fast--this mid-tempo version ain't bad.

I don't know. For me when the Dead do covers, there are times when I just don't fucking believe them, which is probably because of the drugs and/or motivation in the particular set/show/year. This is by no means a blanket statement because during some shows even DITS can swing. But when I'm hearing 'El Paso' I rarely buy it.

Damn, Traw Anastasio stole that little run Jerry did at the end of Slipknot verbatim.

Also, I could do without another Franklin's Tower.

i thought that was one of the more interesting versions of Dancing In the Street, they did a part where everyone was locked in with each other and no noodling. I don't think they normally do that on DitS.

Back from lunch and resuming...

Drums>The Wheel

I like it when they keep Drums short and it almost segues perfectly into a song like The Wheel. Jewels you were talking about all the band members being in line, I really think The Wheel is a perfect example of this. Everything really seems to be firing here. No one is trying to one-up, or even outplay anyone else. Its extremely tight, is enjoyable.

Its gonna be a push/pull between you and Jasn on that one.