It is great to see the band returning to the Rosemont Horizon, now known as All State Arena, and the Chicago area, a place filled with loads and loads of wonderful Grateful Dead concerts from 1968 to the very final Grateful Dead show, on 7/9/95 at Soldier Field.
The first time the Grateful Dead visited Illinois was in November, 1968, when they’d played the Kinetic Playground for two nights (with Procol Harum), a venue to which they’d return two months late for two more shows. From November 1970 to October 1971, the band performed six shows in Chicago on four separate visits, two each to The Syndrome and the Auditorium Theatre. A couple of these concerts, 8/23&24/71 have been released on CD as Dick’s Picks Vol. 35 (aka The Houseboat Tapes) and Road Trips Vol. 1 No. 3, both releases worth checking out if you like that stripped down one drummer Grateful Dead. With Pigpen beginning to feel a little under the weather, those concerts featured really more of a quartet, with occasional organ, vocal and harmonica contributions by Pigpen. The concert on 8/24/71 featured the first of two live versions of Pigpen’s Empty Pages, included on DP 35. The Dead would return to the Auditorium Theatre in 1976 during the comeback tour, and 1977 for two shows on the magnificent April-May 1977 tour.
In 1978, the Grateful Dead moved on from the Auditorium Theatre, performing at the Uptown Theatre on the three separate occasions in 1978 for a total of eight shows. They’d also play six more shows there in 1980 and 1981, three per year. Other venues in Chicago worth noting in regards to the Grateful Dead’s history there include UIC Pavillion, where they played three great shows in 1987, the International Amphitheatre (site of shows in 1973 and 1974) and Solider Field, site of nine Grateful Dead shows from 1991-1995. The title track from the So Many Roads boxed set was recorded at Soldier field at the very last Grateful Dead show. The site of these shows on The Dead’s current tour was also the home of 13 Grateful Dead shows from 1981 to 1994, and was pretty much the band’s indoor home in Chicago starting in 1981. Brent Mydland’s final concerts too place in the town of Tinley Park just outside of Chicago, at the World Music Theatre in July 1990. Just days later, Bret was gone. Also worthy of honourable mention is a venue not in Chicago, but also not too far, and that’s Assembly Hall in Champaign-Urbana Illinois. I only mention it because two outstanding Grateful Dead shows took place there in February 1973 (and a pretty good show in December 1981).
Musically, there was plenty of great material played by the Grateful Dead in Chicago. The second show at the Electric Theatre in 1969, on 4/26/69, was included on Dick’s Picks Vol. 26 (coupled with the excellent show the next night in Minneapolis). The show on 7/25/74 featured a distinct Slipknot! jam coming out of Dark Star, the second such stand-alone attempt at Slipknot, and the last time it would be played on its own before being joined with Help On The Way and Franklin’s Tower in 1975. The three show in January-February, 1978 were incredibly tight and were closer in their energy and format to the 1977 sound than they were to the 1978 sound that was more distinctly formed in April, 1978. The Soldier Field show on 6/22/91 was one of the finest shows from a very, very good year of Grateful Dead performances, and features a terrific opening sequence of Hell In A Bucket, Shakedown Street, Wang Dang Doodle. That’s some music certainly worth seeking out.
The late-add of the second night in Chicago on the current tour by The Dead is definitely a welcome addition. It just didn’t seem one night would be enough to pack in what we expect will be so much great music in such a great city.
We'll update this page shortly after the show with the setlist and to recap each performance by The Dead as it relates to the context of the Grateful Dead's history at this venue or city.
Recap of Set 1
Happy Cinco de Mayo! The craziest thing, earlier today I was listening to the Grateful Dead in Chicago on 5/12/77, and listened to that excellent Dancing In The Street that ended the first set, thinking to myself, ‘what a great song.’ And then the band opens with it tonight, very cool. I certainly didn’t call for it (I gave up on that a very, very long time ago after countless wrong calls), but it is nice when the band plays something you were hoping for. And as the next song, Tennessee Jed, another song played on 5/12/77, although back then it was played before Dancing, not after as it was tonight. And then a song that DEFINITELY wasn’t played on 5/12/77, The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion), the Grateful Dead’s non-hit single from their first album. It was one of the first tunes that got me hooked on the band. Heard back-to-back with Uncle John’s Band, I couldn’t believe a band could sound this different three years apart, but still create music that was so good but diverse. This is followed by Mister Charlie, always fun to hear, especially a touch of Pigpen is a nice tribute to great Grateful Dead frontman. Then comes another song that was also played on 5/12/77, They Love Each Other. There’s really nothing to this but coincidence, and I’m really only pointing it out because I was so jazzed listening to the Dancing In the Street from Chicago ’77 that it has me paying attention. They then follow this up with Touch of Grey, and I’ll now shut up on the 5/12/77 thing. Hey, did you know that just across town, the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team is hosting a playoff hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks? And oddly, the Blackhawks scored to make the score 3-1 (for Vancouver) just as The Dead kicked into Touch of Grey. How’s that for useless trivia? Capping it all with Weather Report Suite is a great ending to a first set, just like the old days.
Set 2
Chicago, New York, Detroit, it’s all the same street… Truckin’ to open the set is always so much fun, and something the Grateful Dead didn’t do all that often in their last decade or two. I think I only saw the GD play this as a second set opener once, at that mighty fine 1989 Cal Expo run, on 8/4/89. Another classic Grateful Dead song, this one from the 1980s, features next in the show, Throwing Stones, a tune I never tire of. Next is another song from the 1970s, Unbroken Chain, in its third appearance of the tour. This was a song played at the final Grateful Dead show, right here in Chicago on 7/9/95. Whereas that version came out of Drums and Space, this version went into this sequence, which is followed by Come Together. This band does Beatles songs very well. Jumping back into the same territory as the pre-Drums Throwing Stones, up next is Hell in A Bucket from the mid 1980s. With the last song, to remind us where yesterday’s first night in Chicago began, they wrap everything up with I Know You Rider, a cool way to bookend the shows here in the windy city. A Brokedown Palace encore is the perfect way to send the tour on its way to the mile high city, Denver, for a show on Thursday. Although it seems it all just began yesterday, the tour has been rolling for more than three weeks, and there are only five shows left. Plus Rothbury.
name to the list of people attending the show.
(Set 1)
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Dancing in the Streets
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Tennessee Jed
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The Golden Road
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Mr. Charlie
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They Love Each Other
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Touch of Grey
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Weather Report Suite Part 1
-
Let It Grow
(Set 2)
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Truckin'
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Throwing Stones
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Unbroken Chain
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Drums
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Space
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Come Together
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Hell In A Bucket
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I Know You Rider
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Donor Rap
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Brokedown Palace
(Encore)
Comments
Heading to the show tonight
Heading to the show tonight from the Quad Cities! We cannot wait! Is there any truth to the rumors that you cannot tailgate in the Allstate Arena parking lot?
COME ON NO TAILGATING WHERE
COME ON NO TAILGATING WHERE DID THIS COME FROM
Peace
Amazing show last night... am looking forward to this evenings show.
WOOOOHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOO
HOLY MOLY!! THE CHCAGO SHOW LAST NIGHT WAS FREAKIN AWESUM!! WE WERE SEC 208 RIGHT OVER WARREN BACK CORNER AND THE SOUND WAS AWESUM AND THE LIGHT SHOWEVEN BETTER!!!!
KEEP ON TRUCKIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DoDa Man ;^ )
Without love in the dream it'll never come true
=================================
Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
LOT WAS AWESUM, IT WAS ALL
LOT WAS AWESUM, IT WAS ALL SHAKEDOWN STREET, VENDORS, GOODIES, FOOD, DRINKS, JUST DONT BE A 2 FISTED SLOPPER AND YOU WILL BE GOOD!!!
DoDa Man ;^ )
Without love in the dream it'll never come true
=================================
Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
HERE COMES THE BUS!!!
HERE COMES THE BUS!!!
Awesome! Glad to hear it.
Awesome! Glad to hear it. We'll be there ready to party this afternoon! What time does the lot open?
LOT open now
They opened it up so people could stay there for $75 overnight, so the LOT is OPEN!!! ON THE BUS BAYB!!!!!
DoDa Man ;^ )
Without love in the dream it'll never come true
=================================
Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Gettin' ready to head
Gettin' ready to head out!!!!
The BUS is taking off in a few!!!!!
Is SPANISH JAM too obvious?!?!? Hope we get a CHUGGIN VIOLA LEE!!!!!!!!
song list to 5-04
SONG SHOW #
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall (acoustic) 2,16
Alabama Getaway (Warren vocals) 2,9
All Along The Watchtower 1,11,16
Alligator 6,14
Althea 5,15
Bertha 3,11
Big Boss Man 3
Big Railroad Blues 2
Big River 7
Bird Song 5,12
Black Peter 11
Born Cross-Eyed 6,10,16
Box of Rain 8,14
Brokedown Palace 10
Brown Eyed Women 4,9,15
Built To Last 8,16
Candyman 8
Casey Jones 4,13
Cassidy 2,10
Caution (Do Not Stop On The Tracks) 1,8,14
China Cat Sunflower 5,10.16
Cold Rain and Snow 4,14
Come Together 2
Comes A Time 4,14
Cosmic Charlie 1,10
Cumberland Blues 4,11,15
Crazy Fingers 3,13
Cream Puff War 6
Cryptical Envelopment 10,15
Dancin in the street 5
Dark Star 2,9,12
Days between 5,13
Deal 6,13
Dear Mr. Fantasy 12
Death Don't Have No Mercy 9
Dire Wolf 8
Doin' That Rag 3,13
Don't Ease Me In 9
Dupree's Diamond Blues 5,14
Easy Wind (Warren vocals) 2,9
Estimated Prophet 1,12
Eyes of the World 7,12
Feel Like A Stranger 5,12
Fire On The Mountain (Warren vocals) 6
Fire On The Mountain (w/ Branford Marsalis) 12
Foolish Heart 3
Franklin's Tower 1,12,15
Friend Of The Devil 14
Gimme Shelter 10
Good Lovin' 6,15
Good Morning Little Schoolgirl 6,15
Glory Road (acoustic) 2,11
G-L-O-R-I-A 3
Goin' Down The Road Feeling Bad 5,9,16
Greatest Story Ever Told 11
Hard To Handle 14
Hell In A Bucket 6
Help On The Way 1,15
Here Comes Sunshine 6
He's Gone 1,10,15
High Time 3,12
Iko Iko 8,16
I Need A Miracle 1,16
I Know You Rider 5,13
Imagine 16
Into The Mystic 4,16
It’s All Over Now 7
It’s All Over Now Baby Blue 9
Jack Straw 1,9,14
Johnny B Goode 5
King Solomon's Marbles 2,11
Knockin' On Heaven's Door 9
Lazy River Road 2
Let It Grow 6
Liberty 8,16
Little Red Rooster 11
Looks Like Rain 9
Loose Lucy 7,14
Loser 7
Lost Sailor 9
Lovelight 6
Maggie's Farm 7
Mason's Children 3,15
Me and Bobby McGee 7
Me and My Uncle 8
Mexicali Blues 16
Midnight Hour 8
Milestone 5,12
Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo 3,14
Momma Tried 7
Morning Dew 15
Mountains of the Moon 5
Mr. Charlie 8
New Potato Caboose 1,12
New Minglewood Blues 4
New Speedway Boogie 3,14
Not Fade Away 4
One more Saturday night 5,10,15
Passenger 2
Peggy-O (acoustic) 2,9,16
Playing In The Band 3,7,14
Playing In The Band (Reprise) 14
Pride of Cucamonga 2,13.16
Promised land 7
Ramble On Rose 7,13
Revolution 8,15
Ripple 2,11
Row Jimmy 11
Saint of Circumstance 9
Samson And Delilah 1,6,11,15
Satisfaction 6
Scarlet Begonias 6,12
Shakedown Street 1,10,14
Ship Of Fools 10
Sittin' On Top Of The World 13
Slipknot! 1,6,15
Smokestack Lightning 7
So Many Roads 8
Stagger Lee 8
Standing On The Moon 3,16
Stella Blue 7
St. Stephen 3,10,15
Sugar Magnolia (with Tipper Gore on drums) 2
Sugar Magnolia 14
Sugaree 4,10
Tennessee Jed 8
Terrapin Station 5,13
The Eleven 3,10
The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) 8
The Other One 4,10,15
The Music Never Stopped 1,13
The Weight 11
The Wheel 6,13
They Love Each Other 7
Throwing Stones 4
Till The Morning Comes 11
Tomorrow Never Knows 11
Touch Of Grey 1,9,13
Truckin' 1,7
Turn On Your Love Light 12
Unbroken Chain 4,10
Uncle John's Band 2,6,10,15
US BLUES 12
Viola Lee Blues 4,11
Wang Dang Doodle 16
Weather Report Suite Part 1 8
West LA Fadeaway 4,11,16
When I Paint My Masterpiece 9
Women Are Smarter 13
space/ 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,910.11,13,14,15,16
rhythm devils drums 1,2,3,45,6.7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16
4/28*With Branford Marsalis
Fire On The Mountain*
Birdsong*
Feel Like A Stranger*
Turn On Your Love Light*
(Set 2)
Estimated Prophet>*
Milestones>*
Drums>*
Space*
Dear Mr. Fantasy>*
Dark Star>*
Eyes Of The World*
(Encore)
Franklin's Tower*