Dead of the Day: 06-15-1985
Greek Theatre, University of California
Berkeley, California
We turn to a 1985 show at the wonderful Greek Theater in Berkeley for our Dead of the Day. The show gets started with a desultory Touch of Grey, but hurtles into a smoking hot gear with the Minglewood as Brent delivers a tour de force until Jerry starts positively wailing towards the end. The Friend of the Devil that comes next slows things down considerably, but keeps all the intensity. Jerry’s vocals are so rich and poignant, and Brent’s keys add a lovely extra note to the tune. Following the FOTD, we get a great, crisp Cassidy where Jerry scorches the jams and lays in some really good licks while Bobby rolls through in fine form on both vocals and loaded guitar. The rest of the set is pure magic too with a phenomenal Dupree’s and a hot Me and My Uncle> Big River before ending with an upbeat Might As Well.
New Minglewood Blues
Friend Of The Devil
Cassidy
Dupree’s Diamond Blues
Me & My Uncle >
Big River >
Might As Well
I Know You Rider >
Lost Sailor >
Saint Of Circumstance >
Terrapin Station >
Drums >
Space >
The Wheel >
Gimme Some Lovin’ >
Throwing Stones >
Not Fade Away
She Belongs To Me
U.S. Blues
Bob Weir – Guitar
Brent Mydland – Keyboards
Phil Lesh – Bass
Bill Kreutzmann – Drums
Mickey Hart – Drums
The second-set opening China Cat bristles with energy as the band delivers as tight and exuberant version as they ever played. The transition into I Know You Rider is seamless awesomeness, and then Jerry and Phil really come out to play with the latter dropping some earth-shaking bombs. Next, the boys turn to the pair of Bobby and Barlow tunes, Lost Sailor> Saint of Circumstance. The first, as always, is mellow and contemplative, but so luscious, while the second builds a little more heat. At the end, Jerry holds a final note before transitioning into an incredible Terrapin with Brent adding so many nice touches. Throughout the tune, the drummers become more and more prominent before they finally take over the stage with a long Drums, followed up by a truly out there Space. The Wheel builds for a while out of the ether before finally arriving in full force and gaining energy as it churns along, spilling right into a short, but tasty, Gimme Some Lovin’. The set then closes with a solid Throwing Stones> Not Fade Away. The first encore is a beautiful version of She Belongs to Me, which the Dead only did a few times, all in ’85 with the exception of a single night in early ’66. Then the boys see everyone off with a rocking US Blues.
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