Grateful Dead

dead.net the official site

This was my first Dead show, had tickets for the late show, which didn't let out until dawn. I was 14 at the time, my parents called the State Police at some point to see when the show would be over, they told them the late show was really late, said he won't be home until sometime in the morning. We made it home around 9:00 that morning. Little did they know what lie ahead, but they went with the flow. Lotta good memories!

I was at both the early and late shows. As we were filing out the back door from the first show the crowd literally lifted me up and back in the back door of the gym. I met Clark Kent and Lois Lane and kept running into them during the shows. Nice people.Excellent Fleischer cartoons between acts, Betty Boop, St. James Infirmary. I had been attending an anti-war protest in NYC earlier that day and while returning from it on the train a friend suggested we get of at Stony Brook to see the Dead. I barely knew who they were even though I was very into rock...don't know how they'd gotten past my radar. I returned to see them play some 30-40 times more over the years, especially between 71-75. Jerry's fingers must have been bleeding...that night and the night before he played a total of 8 shows! 4 Riders, 4 Dead.

The crowd was let in free for the late show. No tickets taken at the door. A light projectionist wore a wizard costume, pointed hat and all. Pig Pen wore a firemans hat that had each panel painted a different flouresent color. How your day "glowin ?" Due to a late start the show ended around 5AM. As we filed out the back door of the Gym, Pig Pen was right in front of me and I had to wait while he loaded into the limo. I said "thanks alot Pig Pen" and he asked "Did you have a good time?" and I replied "Yes" and he replied "That's good" My one time meeting Pig Pen. Makes sense as it was November 1st, Day of the Dead. I hitched a ride home in a Dodge Charger and the guy drove 90.Time and Space warping from the past to the future.