Welcome back to the Tapers’ Section, where this week we have some terrific music spanning nine years in Grateful Dead history, with tunes from 1977, 1978 and 1986.
Our first stop this week is from the first show of what’s widely considered one of the finest tours in Grateful Dead history, with the first notes of the lengthy trip across the east coast and Midwest, featuring Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, Looks Like Rain, Deal, El Paso, Tennessee Jed, Estimated Prophet, Peggy-O from 4/22/77 at the Philadelphia Spectrum.
From a year later in the same state, from 4/18/78 in Pittsburgh, we have the start of the show from New Minglewood Blues, Sugaree, Looks Like Rain, Dire Wolf.
Lastly this week is the entire first set from 4/22/86 in Berkeley, featuring Box Of Rain ; Visions Of Johanna ; Mama Tried ; Big River ; Bird Song ; Little Red Rooster ; Deal. This is the first Bay Area Box Of Rain since the Kezar show on 5/26/73, and even on this board tape you can hear the crowd reaction.
Be sure to join us here next week for more music from the vault.
David Lemieux
vault@dead.net