Dead of the Day: 05-21-1977
Lakeland Civic Center
Lakeland, Florida
Another unbelievable night from the spring ’77 tour serves as our Dead of the Day. A standard ’77 Bertha opens the show, but it is with the They Love Each Other a song later that you really know you are in for a special night. The awesome Cassidy up next confirms it with Jerry inflecting these round, rich notes throughout the tune, but especially in the mid-song jam. From there, a cool and upbeat opening introduces Jack-A-Roe, which continues in that slightly funky style, making for a nice twist on what is already a lovely tune. The set rolls along with enlightened precision with especially hot versions of Jack Straw and Row Jimmy. But the Scarlet> Fire that ends the set is so fine, a clear challenger to the Barton Hall version for best of the tour. The transition between Scarlet Begonias and Fire on the Mountain is a lively bit of powerful lusciousness, presaging a truly epic Fire with Phil and the drummers providing a robust backdrop for Jerry’s scorching guitar.
Bertha, Me & My Uncle, They Love Each Other, Cassidy, Jack A Roe, Jack Straw, Tennessee Jed, New Minglewood Blues, Row Jimmy, Passenger, Scarlet Begonias-> Fire On The Mountain
Set 2
Samson & Delilah, Brown Eyed Women, Estimated Prophet-> He’s Gone-> Drums-> The Other One-> Comes A Time-> Saint Stephen-> Not Fade Away-> Saint Stephen-> One More Saturday Night, E: U.S. Blues
The second set gets off strong with a fiery Samson and Delilah. But it is from the Estimated that the set really begins to take off. The He’s Gone that follows is very well jammed out, which was a rarity for the period and oh so welcome. After a four-minute Drums, the first arcing and racing notes of The Other One burst forth, and the band sets off on a high-paced rush like a roiling dust storm. Then, Jerry provides a gut-wrenching display of emotion and virtuosity on Comes a Time. The Saint Stephen that follows unrolls in splendid fashion, diving into a thundering Not Fade Away before coming out the other side. After a brief moment, the boys arrive at the One More Saturday Night end to the set and US Blues encore.
While other May ’77 nights might be better than this one, you would be hard pressed to find one where Jerry puts out a better performance. It is not that the rest of the band is slacking this evening in Florida, but Jerry’s guitar creates pure bliss all evening and his vocals are textured and resonant.
The show, along with the one two nights prior from the Fox Theater, was released as Dick’s Picks Volume 29.
Yesterday’s Dead of the Day:
Other May 21st Shows and Recordings:
- 1974 – Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington – Seattle, Washington
- 1982 – Greek Theatre, University of California – Berkeley, California
- 1992 – Cal Expo Amphitheatre – Sacramento, California
- 1993 – Shoreline Amphitheatre – Mountain View, California
- 1995 – Sam Boyd Silver Bowl, UNLV – Las Vegas, Nevada
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