Hello and welcome back. This week at the Tapers' Section we have music from 1973, 1977 and 1981, each jam featuring some excellent playing.

First up this week is the second-of-three weekend shows in May, 1973, this one being from 5/20/73 in Santa Barbara, a wonderful jam consisting of Truckin'>The Other One>Eyes of the World. The late spring and summer of 1973 was somewhat odd in the Grateful Dead's touring history in that there wasn't any really big summer tour, aside from a short six night run on the west coast at the end of June (Vancouver, Seattle, Portland and three nights in Hollywood). Instead, the band played a few well-selected larger scale shows between 4/2/73 and 9/7/73, specifically: Des Moines on 5/13, Santa Barbara on 5/20, SF on 5/26, Washington DC on 6/9&10, Watkins Glen on 7/27&28 and Roosevelt Stadium on 7/31 and 8/1. The quality of these shows certainly made up for the lack of quantity.

From the first night of a two night run at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, on 5/18/77, we're very pleased to play the start of the second set, featuring Jack Straw, Ship of Fools, Estimated Prophet>Eyes of the World. The next night on 5/19/77 is a little more well known, thanks largely to its inclusion on the massive 6-CD Dick's Picks Volume 29, but this 5/18 show contains plenty of great music.

Lastly this week, 5/17/81 in Syracuse, we have the second set opener of Cold Rain and Snow>Samson and Delilah, Ship of Fools, Estimated Prophet. There was plenty of good music played on this tour, including the 5/6/81 show from Nassau that is Dick's Picks Volume 13, and for all of you video enthusiasts, the Tom Snyder Tomorrow Show with which you might be familiar was taped was on 5/7/81.

Be sure to check in next week for three massive jams, two from 1972 and one from 1977. See you then, we hope, and feel free to write with questions or comments to the email address below.

David Lemieux
vault@dead.net