Grateful Dead

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Wednesday March 23rdNassau Coliseum SUMMARY: Bob Weir is OK. What he may occasionally lack in song selection he more than made up for tonight with musicianship. Extra tickets in abundance at showtime. This was my first show of the tour, and with Healy gone and reports of bad sound quality I was worried going in, but the sound was fine (up close on the side, anyway). Great Shakedown to open the show. Little Red Rooster was also way swell -- worth noting for all who swear they hate this song. Row Jimmy, and Bob's El Paso with the acoustic guitar. Those of you on tour have seen this already, but if you haven't it's great, and a wonderful change from the usual cowboy songs or Dylan tunes. Jerry let loose with a fabulous Might As Well, and seemed ready to leave for intermission, but that would only have been five songs, so Bob went into Promised Land. Started out great, but Jer lost interest halfway through. China/Rider opened the second set, followed by a truly amazing Women Are Smarter, proving once again that set lists don't tell the whole story. During the second half of the song Jerry hunched over, tried to turn invisible, and went in search of The Magic Missing Note and damn near found it. Jerry sang a beautiful So Many Roads -- three songs into the second set and the main jam hasn't begun yet! They start Truckin' from a standing start, and it's kinda nice to hear it more relaxed instead of the big football cheer it can become. Phil's voice coming through loud and clear on the choruses. No big crescendo at the end of Truckin', and Jerry looks unhappy with the Jam. Those of you who have seen shows more recently than me (or have seen them from closer up front) have noticed that the band members can now speak into their microphones during songs or between songs without the audience hearing it -- are these messages going to the soundboard or to each other through the earsets? (Vince appears to have a separate microphone behind him just for this purpose). If anyone knows, I'd be curious. ANYWAY... during the jam after Truckin' Jerry is looking sideways and talking up a storm that we can't hear. Finally takes off his guitar and leaves the stage. Phil and Bobbie play a beautiful jam, lead by Phil. Drums with the string synthesizer are wonderful but unexceptional. When the guitarists return to the stage, the space takes a turn toward the weirder. Jerry tries several MIDI voices for his guitar including an oboe and a violin, but doesn't seem happy with any of them. The rest play a VERY discordant space, while Jerry pushes a lot of buttons, taps a lot of foot pedals, and looks unhappy. Hints of The Other One are heard, but Bobby pulls off a surprisingly good (and somewhat apt) I Need A Miracle. (No, really! It was good!) Jerry plays a PHENOMENAL Standing on the Moon, with a crescendo finish reminiscent of Morning Dew. Good Lovin' Follows, and the show is over. U.S. Blues encore. OK goodnight. Peace Glen (written immediately after the show)