Grateful Dead

kjh13

Posted: June 26, 2007 - 11:06am
April 8,1978 Veterans Memorial Colliseum/Jacksonville,Fl.
I'll check my ticket stub for the date but I'm pretty sure of this. As far as the show itself, from what I can I remember, I remember too well. Out of over 100 Dead shows I have been to, this was my first and it was not a good one.

Looking back I can say that with very little exception this just wasn't a Grateful Dead crowd.

Note: This was also the same venue (I believe it's torn down now) where I saw a Lynyrd Skynyrd gig (this was "their" hometown) a few years before this, when Ronnie Van Zant collapsed onstage from exhaustion and/or whatever, some of the crowd rioted ripping the stage and all of their gear apart!
I do recall Keith Godchaux was "not looking well" and just seemed out of it. In fact despite what seemed like every good intention by most of the band to right itself, the magic was not going to happen that night.
Part of, if not most of this "crowd" were actually booing them! I was in total disbelief of what I was witnessing. I was standing down on the floor (general admission days) pleading with the people around me to stop booing when a Jack Daniels bottle whizzed past my head missing by only inches and smashing right in front of me. I did manage to stay to the end of the show and left with my head down, to put it mildly.
Also I believe this had to be one of the shortest shows they ever did.
I can't really recall the whole setlist, just a few songs, but I have never seen a list that seemed to be accurate, to me anyway.
My next show was at Stabler Arena, Lehigh U. in 1981 and it was one of the best shows anyone could ever hope too see. Truly the "yin" and the "yang".
All the Best,
Kevin