Dead of the Day: 10-21-1978

Winterland Arena

San Francisco, California

The Ollin Arageed that opens the show builds into an amazing thing of beauty as Hamza chants and plays the oud, the boys come in subtly one by one, and the crowd adds in their own percussion. At the end, the band dives right into a rocking Promised Land with Hamza still going strong. The Sugaree is more of the same inimitable, achingly magnificent magic that only the Dead could concoct. The rest of the set is stellar stuff, but, aside from those first few tunes, pales in comparison to the mind-melting ridiculousness of the second set.

Recording info
Use alternative player
Identifier:
gd1978-10-21.sbd.nugs.21248.sbeok.flac16
Source:
SBD>Master Reel>Cassette>DAT>WAV
Notes:
Despite some minor flaws, this is the best representation of what went down at Winterland in October of 1978 (short of an official Vault release which we can only hope for). All five shows come from soundboard sources of varying degrees of quality. Some sets are spliced together from various sources, with an audience patch at the end of 10/21/78 Stella Blue. There are some cuts due to cassette flips. Special thanks to dug for the sources.
Description:
Set 1 Ollin Arrageed -> The Promised Land Sugaree Passenger Ramble On Rose Looks Like Rain Stagger Lee I Need A Miracle Set 2 Bertha -> Good Lovin’ It Must Have Been The Roses Estimated Prophet -> He’s Gone -> Drums -> Space -> Got My Mojo Workin -> The Other One -> Stella Blue -> Sugar Magnolia Encore U.S. Blues
Lineage:
Transferrer:
Play
Pause
Back
Forw.
Volume
00:00
1
Hamza Jam #1
07:50
2
Ollin Agrageed
18:41
3
The Promised Land
06:22
4
Sugaree
11:52
5
Passenger
05:17
6
Ramble On Rose
08:05
7
Looks Like Rain
08:59
8
Stagger Lee
07:37
9
I Need A Miracle
07:42
10
Bertha
07:30
11
Good Lovin’
09:22
12
It Must Have Been The Roses
07:10
13
Estimated Prophet ->
14:49
14
He’s Gone ->
07:54
15
Drums ->
10:34
16
Space ->
07:30
17
Got My Mojo Workin’
10:40
18
The Other One ->
07:23
19
Stella Blue ->
11:54
20
Sugar Magnolia
08:53
21
U. S. Blues
06:11
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In the latter half, things really go off the hook with the Estimated as the band plays a hypnotic series in the interlude between the first two verses. Then Jerry and Phil saunter around in the background while Bobby toys with the vocals for a bit before they all head into full-on face-stealing jam mode the rest of the way into He’s Gone. He’s Gone contains some nice vocal harmonies with Donna at her best. And the Drums that follows is out of this world; we are not sure what the horn sound is in the latter half, but it is awesome. Then we get a tremendous Mojo jam with Lee Oskar of War joining in on harmonica giving it a real bluesy, open feel. The segue into The Other One is so smooth you cannot tell where the Mojo ended and The Other One began, but suddenly you realize that it is indeed that unmistakable theme steaming toward you. And watch out because it gets super head-exploding hot and funky before dropping into an unbelievably sumptuous Stella Blue. A few different folks on Archive said that this version actually brought tears to their eyes, and we do not doubt it for a second. Fortunately, the band washes away all the misty melancholy loveliness by sending out the set with a wild Sugar Mags. Go, listen, now!

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Comments

2 responses to “10-21-1978”

  1. Chris Ripple Avatar
    Chris Ripple

    Parts of this show were released on the Dead’s Road Trips series as From Egypt With Love along with tracks from the 17th & 22nd. Have to admit it’s nice to hear the complete show. Good choice. They were definitely on a high for this one.

  2. Lawrence Latane Avatar
    Lawrence Latane

    Kudos for pointing out how the dead could “wash away all the mistiness” or something like that.

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