One more week baby. Way stoked up. Hope they bring all them fixins.

woohoo!! can't wait for this one...these setlists are lookin crazy...see everyone at the hard rock before the show!

Sing Me Back Home will be the bust out tune for this show!!!!! Whoooooaaaaaahooooooooooo!!!!!

Any pre or post-show gatherings? I'm driving up solo from DC and am staying about 1/2 mile from the arena, so it would be cool to meet some people there.

brian, i'm meeting up with people at the hard rock cafe near the gund arena. would love to meet up and have a few before the show! shoot me an email if you're interested.

I just got the word from my boys in Philly.....21st row for Cleveland!!!!!!
"Sing Me Back Home" will be busted out at this show.....I can't friggin' wait!!!!!

Make sure afer Cleveland to hit up the Pittsburgh show.Its a party town.Lets fill this place!

Cant wait I am in the 6th row. Where do you park at for the Gund. Parking Garage or is there a lot.

IS anyone taking a small camera to the show? I was thinking of bringing a one time use camera...are they hard asses about this?

Huge garage and lots all over..the boys have never played this place so who knows what the scene may be like...I think cameras will be allowed...peace

Can't wait man...gonna be RRROOOCCCKKKIIINNN!!!

I'm hopin for a rockin Jack Straw...

Some other cool ones would be Big Boss Man, GDTRFB, Hell In A Bucket...

Pre- turkey day bliss!!! What are the boys going to use to STUFF our asses at the Gund? Cold rain-
Cryptical-Ramble On Rose-Bertha-Wharf Rat-Promised Land in first set. Casey to open second.
Enough for premonitions, hope sound glitches will be fixed for Gund. Figure this show will be short due to holiday and all?? Or will there be an extra portion for us on the table!! Maybe even seconds. Is Gund strick on curfews? How about some pre show feed back. See ya all at Hard rock
pre show.

Got a 5-hour hell-ride solo from southern ohio, is there any paticular hotel where folks are staying? Snow-ice falling here now, please be cool on the roads. My god have you seen the setlists?!

don't forget your change of shorts kids

john Q. swingballs is stuck up. Keep your dirty shorts on.

eat my shorts wedg-o

Wednesday,Wednesday,Wednesday.......

Deadfans,Deadfans,Deadfans!!!!!!!!

Oh yeah........ the boys are back in SOHIO tonight! I'll be hangin' with the Rev & Lady Shabazz. You know where he is?!?! That's where I'll be, come on by for some redeye express time!!!

I'll be wearing my Standard Tapecat Jacket for those chance hallway encounters & NO I will NOT be in the Tapers section as someone is going to run my rig for me.

Take care Driving around Ohio the Cops SUCK!!!! when there's a Dead oriented event going on. WATCH YOUR COLLECTIVE ASSES!

Have a BLAST!!! & See ya there....

setlist please?

1st Set
Cumberland, Estimated, Hard To Handle, Kingbee, Bucket, Bertha, Promised Land

2nd Set
Monring Dew, Born Crossed Eye, St Stephen, Eyes, Drums, Help, Slipnot, Franklins.

Encore
Touch Of Grey

When are they gonna play a Paisley & Topper???

Thanks

skinny!

Man, what a show...

First I must say that I got in a right after they kicked off Cumberland...took a while to get in through the turnstyles, but anyway...

Probably the best parts for me were a good HELL IN A BUCKET, BERTHA, and bout jumped out of my seat for PROMISED LAND...I love that one(it looked like Bob had forgotten some of the words in one part of the song!-Oh well, He played his ASS off and he enjoyed himself-that's what I love about him)...ST STEPHEN, and FRANKLIN's were the second set highs for me...I enjoyed it all very much. People were being crazy and just havin a good ole time...My only gripe was how annoying the screens were with those visuals on it...I wish they would have just showed the band on it the whole time...

But, Had a GREAT time and as far as the NEXT other ones tour...I am already there...

just got back from the show...what a great one it was....got to meet up preshow with jay sabatini and scott truckin867....great meeting you guys and can't wait to do it again in the burgh.

the first set king bee just blew my socks off...second set vote goes to the morning dew and the intro to it and then the SLIPKNOT!!!! there was some crazy jammin goin on during slipknot, i almost thought they were headed somewhere else but it did go back to franklins. bed here i come...see you all in the burgh!!

Finally!..They bust out Promised Land.
It's about time.

It was a smokin Promised Land...Man, I wish I was goin to Pittsburgh, my family stompin grounds...

>>It was a smokin Promised Land


I'm sure it was. I'd give anything to see this tune live.
I was wonderin when, if ever, they were gonna play it on this tour. Jimmy tore it up I betcha.

>Jimmy tore it up I betcha


Yeah he did alright! He tore up ALOT of stuff tonight...They all did a hell of a job! I hope another tour is just a little bit down the road...When do ya think they'll go out again? I doubt this just a one time deal...

Sitting here in Philly. Waiting for Thome. Just kidding.

It is great to read these review as I find myself able to get a feel for the show even though I couldn't be there. Saw 4 shows around here though. NYC NJ PA. It seemed to get better and better each night though my personal favorites were the NJ and Philly shows.

Wanted to see a born cross eyed. That must have rocked.

Jimmy really tore it up this past Sunday, and I am psyched for all of you who got to see that smokin' Promised land.

See you in the Series. The next tour, that is.

>>Finally!..They bust out Promised Land.
It's about time.

Yeah it is not like they played that tune to death in the 70s 80s and 90s

I feel the same way about The Wheel.

Hey now,

Last night was a sweet show. The boys tore up Hell in a Bucket and Bobby got his chance to shine during Estimated and Hard to Handle.
Bertha--> Promised land was solid. The second set was tight. Morning Dew opened with Phils Bombs and the Born Cross Eyed was a treat, they nailed it a little bit better than at Alpine but the energy was there at both shows. St.Stephen got the momentum soaring to soulfully bring in Eyes. A very sweet version. The Help Slip Franks was strong and intense with ripped jamming throughout. Touch of Grey encore was perfect and played flawlessly. I was sincerely shocked by how tight that song was. Great note to end on. Much love to the boys for another fun night.

>>>>>>Finally!..They bust out Promised Land.
It's about time.

>>>Yeah it is not like they played that tune to death in the 70s 80s and 90s

Really. I was thinking the same thing.
WHO was saying "Boy, I hope they break out Promised Land" a month ago?

I noticed something funny about Chuck Berry songs since The Dead died in 1995:

Nobody seems to play them anymore.
I'm no expert on Ratdog setlists, but I don't ever recall seeing one of the Berry tunes on a Ratdog list. Same with P&F & TOO's.

All this time, I (and most folks I bet) were assuming Bob was the one who wanted to do all the Berry tunes.
The lack of them being played since Jerry died leads me to conclude that JERRY was the big Chuck Berry fan..........

Oh, BTW, I like them.
I once danced onstage next to Chuck Berry when he played Johnny B Goode.
He invited 2 pretty young ladies in the front row & about 20-30 of us decided to join them before security could stop the rush.
That was the highlight of the night, with the possible exception of booing Tiny Tim off the stage....

TOO at the Gund, the day before Thanksgiving. The sun went down in honey and the lots got cold quick. Many thanks to the kind folks with the hyper-caffeinated java pops. Mmmmmmm! Shakedown street got shook down by Cleveland's finest, but i don't think anybody got busted up too bad. Friendly reminders that an open flask cost 100 dollars, so pour it out. One cop was scoping out some nice glass pipes, and looked aside to me and asked "what do you smoke in those things?" I think the vender said something like tobacco and the cop smiled and winked and said "hey, I went to college! Gotta pack 'em up, c'mon!"
Late-arriving crowd. Folks looked sparse in the seats at 7 bells, the floor not much better. Gund staff seemed friendly and curious at first, heard many pleasant conversations before the show kicked in. Probably a nice change of pace for them, especially seeing how the Cavs are playing!
The band started about 7.20, revved up a rockin' Cumberland. Vocals sitting up high in the mix, Phil's bass lines hitting the sweet spot. Almost thought they might spin off into Maggie's Farm but instead ended, paused, and ... Estimated! Yummy. Crowd into it. Weir's vocal lines came not back-to-back, but seperated by instrumental lines. Good energy Hard to Handle and King Bee (whoa) with some nice vocals by Susan. Couldn't help remembering Donna dancing onstage while the Dead stretched tunes out, Ms Tedeschi probably feels alot like Donna did back in the day! Jeff and Rob both got solos.
Bertha, always signals high energy, and built up the energy for a hammerin' Promised Land. Mr Weir spaced on some of the words, but laughed it off to zip up the first set.
The house lights stayed off and Hunter came on, opening up with Days Between. I know this kind of venue is not set up for a solo acoustic gig, but kudos to Robert for playing the crowd well. Also hats off to the folks for letting him play and keeping the noise level down to a minimum. We were rewarded by Sugaree and Ripple, great tunes and great vibes between artist and crowd. Much respect to Robert Hunter!
Second set. Morning Dew. Phil's vocals were mixed well, and the sound from section 128 was quite bass-heavy which is fine with me. Born Cross-Eyed came off nicely. I imagine this one's a bit difficult to pull off. First one ever for me. St Stephen captured the crowd. Good jamming, vocals remain strong! Spinning that curious sense of your own. It occurs to me that maybe TOO have worked their asses off in rehersal, all these songs so smooth and strong. Maybe not reaching those dizzying highs characterized by the Grateful Dead, but also not snagging awkward moments out on the edge. Maybe theboys are staying closer to envisioned arrangements, and not completely casting their collective fate to the wind? Still brilliant improvisation and exploring jams, but were those setlists on the stage floor keeping them on this beautifully-winding path? Hmmmmmm?
Killer Eyes. Very powerful imagery. And I don't mean the kaleidoscope-psychedelics on the screens. Actually, i wish we could of had more shots of the band, especially the drummers, who are harder to see from where us commoners were seated. Jimmy's guitar is fantastic, the jam is LARGE, moving from one theme to another. I thought i heard the Garcia lead intro The Eleven form Mr Herring but nobody else agreed. Maybe it was a flashback? Or just hope?
Drums. DRUMS. Great to see Billy and Mickey back together again! On to Help. Cool song. Slipknot was HUGE. I thought it would never end. I HOPED it would never end. Immense sound in the jamming sections. Total satisfaction. Where are they going from here? Franklins? No, too predictable. More jamming, back into slipknot. Yes, Frankin's and well done. Perfect vocals. Jerry always had trouble with those didn't he?
Perfect show closer.
Encore Touch. Started out shakey but picked up momentum. I like to think we had something to do with that. Weir nails all the vocals and the band nails all the changes. Again, the guys sound really tight. Well done.
My only show of the tour. I can't complain although some folks do. This ain't the Dead. But as long as TOO is on the road, I'll bite.
Most thought this was a good show. Strong. I hope they play Gund again. Five hours drive for me, but i would do it again. The same usher that pointed the spotlight on us for lighting up, told us he liked the show. He said it beat the hell out of Peter Gabriel. And Guns 'n' Roses. Later kids.

Cool...

Great review Choo Choo...much better than mine! I agree about the imagery on the screens-personally I hated it...just show the band with no psychadelics mixed in!! I hope they don't do that again...It was cool that the usher you talked about liked the show!

HEY CHOO - great review....thanks from nyc...weirs allowing instrumental lines between vocal lines during estimated must have been fantastic...he did the same during the other one at msg, great tunes to extend in that fashion....i also think its very obvious that they have rehearsed often and they are getting better with each show....msg was far & away the #1 show in my 50+ since 82...viola lee, alligator, tomorrow never knows, dark star, cryptical, other one, lovelight...lsd-free flashbacks....jerry NEVER jammed those tunes out like that in his later, post coma years...it was truly an honor to be present at such an event...continuing on to cleveland & pitt would have been a let down

I'm sure MSG was great doug, but Cleveland was pretty damn good too...

Cleveland and Pittsburgh arguably would be a let down after NYC, but definitely not TOOs.

TOOs are TOOs wherever they are playing. I agree that they sem to have gotten better each show, so I am disappointed that I cannot be on the rest of this tour. However I am so thankful that I was able to attend NJ NYC and both Philly shows.

BTW I thought that although the setlist from MSG was great the shows I saw in NJ and Philly were just as solid Each show had a similar number of highs.

Although I feel these are some of the most amazing shows I have seen, I would not rank them with GD shows. This is a different thing. The absence of Jerry and Pigpen accounts for about half of the GD sound and feel. This is much more of a heavier blues rock jam band a la Allmans with the spirit of the GD.

Phil accounts for about the other half of the GD, and we are all so lucky to have him creating and touring.

Thanks for touring the East. Will be virtual touring the rest of the way.

Hey guys needed a couple days so my review didn't sound like a wet dream. My first dead family show ever and it didn't dissapoint! They played alot of my favorites.

Got there around 6 scouted the lot scene and headed in. They came on about a quarter after 7. It seemed pretty empty maybe they were waiting for it to fill up a little?

Cumberland was great one of my favorite openers and they nailed it. Phil was really layin' it down and then they went into Estimated. My favorite Bobby tune and they jammed it out like I've never heard it done before. It was fabulotastic.

Hard to Handle and King Bee were done well. I think they've been overdoing the blues this tour because of Susan but it wasn't too bad. Had a good time throughout.

Bucket was good and then... Bertha! On the car ride over I said "I hope they play Bertha, Help>Slip>Franks, St. Stephen, and the Eleven" Cross one of my list. This was a jammin' high energy Bertha. They went into a nice rendition of The Promised Land, wasn't bad nice breakout for the tour and a good set closer.

Hunter wasn't bad, I think he did rather well for a solo acoustic act in an arena.

They come back out and... Morning Dew! Another of my favorites and the set had just begun. They played it great. Phil was in the rhythym on bass and his vocals were good.

Next was Born Cross-Eyed. Not one of my favorite tunes but that all changed when they went into St. Stephen the opening riff till the last chorus was pure energy. Jimmy was rockin' and I was lovin' every minute of it. And then they went into Eyes. It was killer, definently one of the better versions I've heard. Jimmy sounded like Jerry and the jam was unbelievable.

And then what I'd been hopin for all night. The Killer beginning of Help into a super spacey Slipknot followed by a great Franklin's. After the last note I was in bliss. All in all probably the best setlist I could have gotten without TOO or the Eleven or Dark Star.

Touch of Grey was a good choice for an encore. They nailed it. Didn't miss any changes and it was high energy the whole way through.

Needless to say, my first show didn't dissapoint. See you all in Pittsburgh!

In the main, Choo Choo nailed the show well - good overview...constabulary-types were rampant...balloon police nailed some folks - "it's in the rules; I don't make them!" - partner clued him in "it's just a kid's toy, dude!"...lol...Shakedown was grooving, even with the ultra-heavy vibe...had a Cheech and Chong moment as a carful of droogs toasted, only to look up and see the heat coming down right in front of them...four doors opening in unison, bailing with the aplomb of a herd of elephants - nothing like attracting attensh when invisibility spells are in order...so, four bailers and a cloud of dense kind, making their escape an incognito tour-de-force...wished I'd had a camera - whoa, I did...3rd eye pic was saved on permanent synapses...

Heavy vibe from authority types kept most from righteously chilling - they should relax and remember they are the Peace Korps and, if given the chance, we do well policing ourselves - thank you very much...remember, if you can't control it, containing it is the the best and most viable option..peace, love and happiness.

I had my Thanksgiving feast a day early -- thanks to TOO!

I loved it, but something has to be done about the sound. Who can I write?

Eric

Hey Choo Choo I heard The Eleven too.

Okay I'll add my two cents (or 5 bucks for a beer lol) The show at the Gund was awesome in many ways...Cumberland smoked with definate hints of maggies, Estimated rocked the lyric breaks made the song intense, Hard to handle and king (Queen) Bee were nice to hear (Susan sang well not overbearing, dont compare her to Donna Donna more often then not screeched out of key, took away from many great nights)Bucket & Bertha rocked and promised Kicked it up a notch.

Just dew it guys.... lots of great tunes around a whole lotta dew...walk me out... and roll away.....Morning dew was awesome lots of energy there..born cross eyed sounded great...happy to hear it .. St Stephen... what more can I say...beautiful, powerful, moving, here comes the Eleven...here it comes...there it went hello eyes
(ö¥ö) once again sounded great less filling..lol ..short drums (let em beat them skins) Help slip franklins... nothing more need be said...Jimmy is absolutely awesome on slipknot...more on Jimmy... He is incredible but he has one slight flaw.... he has keith Emerson disease...(not entirely bad) but he tries to fit 5 notes in where one will do. Technically brilliant amazing fingers, unbelievable...Does an incredible job of the most unenvied gig in music filling unfillable shoes. Touch of grey...nice touch to close game set match well there was my desert before turkey day... gotta do that again.
ALl in all after seeing ratdog, and others in there various side bands..was so good to come home...we were blessed with a hot show on a cool night..this hit the spot...only four complaints I have

1. Who hid the drum circle?
2. Wheres the Hacky sack game?
3. Eleven .... I'm still waiting...Where did ya go....(figures went to pittsburgh...those traitors lol go browns)
4. Show had to end

oh well til next time

from derek trucks listserv:

The Other Ones 11/27 in Cleveland

Just got home from my trip to Ohio to visit the inlaws for the holidays.
As I was reading the dTb post last Wed morning at the family home in
Ohio, I came across somebody's post about Susan being in Cleveland that
night and not in Richmond with Derek. Well, I did a quick check and
realized that I was only 20 miles east of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
(and downtown Cleveland). Yeeehaw!!! I had totally written off this
tour since the closest show to SC was the Virginia area. Kissed the
wife and kids goodbye and hit the highway.Got my ticket for $25 in the
ticket line from a corporate secretary that didn't need all of the
company's allotment of club level seats. Got right off the floor
(nothing but the main floor in front of me and 10 feet below for a
complete unobstructed view) and half way down the floor. Nice mellow
staff with some great tasty Great Lakes Dortmunder Golds to start the
evening as I made my way to the seat.


Nice crowd in the area and I got another beer just in time for my first
"Cumberland Blues". It only took 15 years for that one. Other first
set highlights include Susan getting down and dirty on the "Hard to
Handle" and the "King Bee". She was down and low, it was pure blues
warm and fuzzy all over by that point for me. I guess the chocolate
snack in the lot helped with the warmth and the colors blending. The
Brotherhood of Light really put on a great spectacle for the TOOs. I
was feeling very good for the "Bertha" >"Promised Land" combo. Bobby
goofed the lyrics on the "woke up high over Albuquerque verse; but, the
faithful got it for him. Jimmy was ripping as was Rob Barracco.


Really nice set break with Uncle Robert Hunter for some sweet "Days
Between" "Sugaree" "New Speedway Boogie" (with lots of comments about
George Bush and Iraq, and then a perfect "Ripple". They didn't even
raise the lights for any of the transitions. I could have listened to
Robert Hunter all night at that point.


The second set started with a long spacey jam, there was a "Love
Supreme" jam and chant in there too, which lead into the "Morning Dew".
Then an old 60's relic "Born Cross-eyed" that sounded well rehearsed and
very enjoyable. Then a small warmup jam into the big, bad "St.
Stephen". I caught this with my sister on her 40th Birthday in 2001 in
Charlotte (Susan>ABB>Phil night) and I think this one did that one up a
notch. Good stuff. Really, really heavy and loud. Man, that is
something live. My wishlist was started to get checked and then it got
even better for the "Eyes", which has always been one of my favorite
Dead tunes. Good pre-holiday cheer and warmth. Susan helped make that
one special too. Did I also mention how sexy (nice stretch black and
white pants and loose flowing top.) and cool she is? I guess you know
that already ;-)


Good to hear the Rhythm Devils together after a 7 year break for me.
Drums had a lot of loggerhead turtle, Hawaii underwater images (I guess
Billy did learn something on his retirement to the islands). Nice short
space into my final request "Help>Slip>Frank". This young head from
Pittsburgh kept saying to me "how did you call all of those tunes?"
since we did pre-show and between set wish comparisons. I was electric
by the end of the "Franklins". I turned to the folks and said "now,
that is what I came here for". It was good and I was very satisfied.
Phil came back first and gave his donor speech and then Bobby took the
lead on a fitting "Touch of Grey" for the encore. These guys still got
it!! Get out there and catch them if you get a chance. Jimmy, Rob, and
Susan really help smooth out the rough spots and take it higher. The
highlight of my holiday trip fer sure! Saw lots of mics, so hopefully I
will be able to spread this one around soon. Hope everyone had a great
Thanksgiving. See ya down the road.


Mark H. Johnson

You guys wrote the very best reviews yet, in my opinion.

Mark, that gave me smiles....so sweet, and attentive.

....and, MSG might have more energy than a powerstation, but that certainly doesn't mean it was the best show...rock on.