Just thought I'd get this one going.......

Can't wait!!! WOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Anyone else y'all are looking forward to on the bill? I'll be there for a bunch of people besides the Dead, but I'm probably the odd man out on that one...

I can't wait to see Willie and Merle Haggard and Leon Russell. This is going to be one hell of a fine day of music.

Ubiq

I'm looking forward to alot of people on the bill, especially Merle Haggard and Neil Young.

I'll be the guy with the big cardboard sign that says. "I LOVE THE DIXIE CHICKS!" while Toby Keith is playing.

What the f&$! is Titty Bingo? LOL

garaunteed 'jackstraw' (leaving texas forth day of july) and I'll bet they also do 'Rockin' in the freeworld' at this show.
Whatever they play though, I'm sure it will be a great day of music. Wish I could make it out!! Have fun everybody!!

Hey Johnny Ray-

I'll look for that at the show. Toby Keith is a misguided bitch!

This going to make for a hell of a show, this whole 4th of July in Texas bit. You have vocal militaristic idiots like Toby Keith (and, sadly, the pro-war Merle Haggard), and then you have a slew of Deadheads.

My my.

Ubiq

am I correct that Willie is closing? understandably, it is his party...weird to see the dead open up for anyone, and I hope that doesn't lead to a cursory or curtailed set. if not, is it entirely too obvious to suggest a u.s. snooze encore with fireworks?

Yes, Willie is closing.

The music runs from Noon to Midnight. We should get a full Dead set, I think/hope.

I bet on Liberty or Sing Me Back Home as the encore.

Ubiq

YYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
Alright whos ready for a badass show??? I AM!
Definitely Jack Straw but Im not too concerned about missing much cause Im going for the wonderfully long trip at Red Rocks.
Correct me if Im wrong ( Im pretty sure Im not) but isnt this upcoming 5 night run the longest the boys have done since we lost Jerry?
mmmmmmmm so gooood.
Im ready for a little Alligator>>Caution>>Feedback on the 10th!

It would be great, in addition to Stella, if Willie would sing:
Must've Been the Roses
To Lay Me Down...

Living as Americans in America we all have the right to our own opinions. The July 4th gig will pool together a bunch of musicians who have different political opinions.


QUESTION: WHO GIVES A RAT'S PATOOTIE WHAT A MUSICIAN THINKS POLITICALLY?

none of these guys are running for office, thank God on all counts! It's about as relivant as suggesting Phil belt himself into a Nascar Stock and race in the Daytona 500! Just as he isn't a stock car driver, he, Willie, and Toby are not in politics either.

Thanks Willie for having such a diversified group of individuals gathered together! Stuff like this keeps us Americans well rounded.

Happy 4th of July!!!!!!!!!
To all Zonners have a safe and happy day!!!!
I will be in Corte Madera in Marin at the parade!!
Then off to a post birthday for yours truly
((((WINO)))

Christopher, well said.

Sadly it is The Dead, followed by Toby Keith, followed by Willie. I wouldn't expect more than 1 1/2 hours from the boyz. I'm sure Toby will get more time than they do.

Jack Straw w/ Willie!

Happy Independence Day y'all!

and happy birthday wino!!

It looks like a promising day for music and interesting collaborations...

But with all due respect Christopher, I couldn't disagree more with your analogy. Unlike NASCAR, all Americans are "in" politics, or at least should be. Just because someone is a musician shouldn't DQ them from speaking out about their politics any more than being an law student should stop me.

Rightly or wrongly, people look up to musicians and other public figures. I, for one, am glad that they do. And thankfully, there's no qualification requirement to speak one's mind. Just take it all w/ a grain of salt.

BTW, isn't Toby Keith's new song about bringing back public hangings, et. al.?

Can't wait to hear the reviews...Happy 4th all!

Happy Forth to the Zone. Peace Lew

happy 4th ya'll, hope you enjoy the day and the show for those of ya'll in Texas!

Jam>
Let The Good Times Roll>
Truckin'>
Tomorrow Never Knows>
Baba Jingo>
Cumberland Blues>
Black Throated Wind>
Music Never Stopped>
Eyes of the World

Thank you to Eddie for the list.

Happy Birthday America

wow btw.music.eyes - hopefully for everyone there that is an end of a 1st set - it is worthy of our nations birthday.

Willie Nelson Picnic, Spicewood, TX - The Dead - 7/4/03

Set 1:
Jam>
Let The Good Times Roll>
Truckin>Jam>
Tomorrow Never Knows>Jam>
Baba Jingo>
Cumberland Blues
@Black Throated Wind
Music Never Stopped>
Eyes Of The World

Set 2:
Jam>
Jack Straw>Caution (Joan Mojo, Phil solo)>
^@El Paso
^@Ripple>
^Milestones>
Piano/Drum Jam>
Drumz/Space (Joan chants)>
China Doll>
China Cat Sunflower>
I Know You Rider>
Not Fade Away
Donor Rap
<<no encore>>

^ w/Willie Nelson
@ Bob acoustic

must be savin liberty and us blues for willies set??

Did Willie sing any lead w/ the dead?

taperrob - you are the best!

thanks rob, happy 4th of july everybody, ours is a great country.

Sorry I need to vent

TRAFFIC WAS A NIGHTMARE !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Figured what would be a 1 hour journey turned into 4 hours. Got into the venue around 6:20 and the Dead had already started, walked in toward the end of Baba Jingo. Can't really comment on the first set.

On to the second set. Short jam into Jack Straw, I was so happy they didn't open the show with this song. Body rush on the "Leaving Texas" line. Loved watching Joan prowl the stage during Caution, Phil sounding good from where I was sitting. Maybe went on a bit longer than necessary, waiting for Willie? Bobby (?) commenting on the sunset. El Paso ok, but I've always liked the cowboy tunes. Starting with Ripple kicked back soaking in everything. The setting of this venue is spectacular, during Drums/Space watched fireworks being shot off in the surrounding area. Joan and China Doll, ok by me, would of been a lot better if some guy behind me would have shut up. Strong China > Rider carried the momentum into NFA.

To sleep now, then off to Red Rocks sometime tomorrow.

No, Willie did not sing.

>>No, Willie did not sing..< Not at all...???

No Minglewood?!!!

Just a few notes about Willie’s Picnic from a novice reviewer. Or one who has a hard time being critical. Just moved back to TX from NC so that may taint my opinion even more, boy I didn’t realize how good I had with everyone stopping in Charlotte and Raleigh. Anyway drove from Dallas to Austin alone since my buddy had to bail at the request of his spouse! Hit the traffic that most everyone did but it was in the city due to an accident, getting into the parking lot was not that bad but I was there around 12:00.

The venue was not to bad. I wouldn’t say I’m a big country music fan so the low point for me may have been sitting in the rain, with a slightly chilly breeze, listening to Ray Price. I had read a tentative schedule that put the Dead on as the 2nd to last before Willie but that changed and I think it was somewhere after 6 that they came on.

I will say that I felt energy from the stage, a feeling that they weren’t just going thru the numbers. When I saw the Other One’s in Greensboro in 2000 I didn’t feel anything at all. I enjoyed the Phil shows that I saw last year but I have to admit last night the feeling I felt was the same energy I got from Ratdog in May here in Dallas.

Let The Good Times Roll was nice for me to hear. Everyone looked like they had big smiles up there. I know there are different camps on Joan but I enjoyed watching her interact up there. I thought BTW was nicely done; the acoustic seemed to get the non-Dead fans moving a little bit. It was nice to look around at what was becoming a very nice scene, with the sun breaking thru patchy clouds, and listen to Eyes.

I don’t remember for sure when Bobby commented on the sunset but I think it was during or at the end of the 2nd set jam. I was amazed how quickly my opinion of the venue changed? It really was something to look around during the obligatory Jack Straw and see a ton of happy Dead fans. I again got a sense of fun and energy while Joan was checking if Bobby and Phil had their Mojo. Enjoyed Willie out there and thought Ripple was very nicely done. I for one really loved China Doll with her vocals. I heard complaints on the way out about China>Rider being terrible, maybe I was just happy to be there and cant offer an objective opinion? I thought I heard an Aiko coming for a second and I really wasn’t ready for a 2nd dose of Mickey but I must have been imagining things because NFA came out and you knew things were winding down. The only bummer for me was that no one could get a NFA chant started, maybe because of the diverse crowd? I would imagine a lot of people stayed on I-70 and skipped this one.

As I said earlier it is hard for a beggar to be a chooser so this is not an objective, song by song review. Just my personal highlights and thoughts, and by the way the XM feed is already out on bit torrent for those who want to hear it.

>>and by the way the XM feed is already out on bit torrent for those who want to hear it.


been playing all night long on Zone Radio:


http://www.live365.com/stations/2012_live

did anyone join willie for his set?

This is my first posting(been around for the past year or more but...) So another novice reviewer here. Not really going to try to get too detailed about the music since you can hear it yourself

Took my daughter to her first Dead show, she had seen Ratdog and a couple of Phil and Friends. Also took one of her friend to her first show (which is always fun to introduce a new person to the Dead).

The show did not disappoint me in the least. It started out as rainy day, but by the time we got there the last of the rain was falling and had stopped by the time we got through the gate. Partly cloudy which was good to keep the heat down. Sunset was pretty enough that Bob pointed it out in the middle of the show. Partial rainbow off to the side at around the same time.

So much for the weather. Traffic into the lot was backed up for at least a half hour. Got in just as Merle Haggard finished(had wanted to hear him). They had shifted the schedule so there was no chance to hear the S.Austin Jug Band(thought that would be neat given the Dead's past). Leon Russell was disappointing.. Ray Price sang some classic and a couple with Willie… Interesting but…

So the Dead came on at 6 and ended at 9:45. Good solid performance. You can hear that yourself on the stream. So I've got to bring this up, even though I hate the negative. China Doll literaly sent shivers down my back, beautiful .. At the end of China Doll, Phil had to stop playing and threw his hands in the air, turned and walked back by the equipment. I really hate to say it but it looked like Bob was just a little bit behind on the entry into China Cat. Something to remember seeing. Setlist speaks for itself, fantastic mix of styles and to me a show with Eyes of the World and China->Rider is a winner. My daughters friend is from El Paso so.. that was neat. We had a good time as did most
all the people around us.

Anyway, thanks terapintravel(ler) my daughter and I spent time listening to Phil's GOTV 2002 7/5/02 performance. I downloaded the show from the DCN website the day before I left for Austin. We both think that the Dead's performance for an entire show is not at the level of P&F from last summer. My dauther's comment about Joan was that she seems out of place for a Dead show but so does the existance of those setlists being taped to the floor at the start of the show. Got to grow.. Phils solo in Caution was not at all impressive. Bob actually did a pretty good solo after Phil.

All in all, the crowd was a real mix and interesting to see. Joan did not get the ladies into it with her rap and the fact there was no encore may have been due to time contraints and the number of bands still to go. We stayed for Pat Green who sounded to me like an out of control Jimmy Buffet and whipped the crowd by the front of the stage into a frenzy. Did not stay for Toby Keith or Willie. Show probably went on to 1am if there was no curfew, we left at 11:15.

Sure can appreciate the Dead after seeing other 'music' at the same show.

btw, forgot to mention, at the start of the 2nd set, the entire band came out wearing red bandanas... not sure about Jimmy, may have been under his hat..

Wow, This band is really coming together. I'm listening to this one on Live365 and have not heard anything since Camden. I can't believe the difference. The transitions are 1000% better. Jimmy is finding the way from one song to the next with few harsh drop into songs. Way to go guys.

Could somebody please review the rest of the show, Neil Young et al... Thanks!

HOLY SMOKES!!! Who let these guys out of their cage? I have the show streaming right now (thanks) and I can't belive what I am hearing. Jimmy running wild, Joan blending in perfectly--did I hear Bob singing the right words???

That's it, I'm getting a babysitter and taking Mrs. Whack down to Jones Beach. I saw Hartford and thought it was a good show, but The Dead keep raising the bar.

Hey now, all-just wanted to clarify in regards to early posts on this thread mentioning Uncle Neil (Young) that I DID see his show Fri. night, only it was RIGHT HERE in my hometown of Saratoga Springs, NY! (he wasn't at Willie's picnic-unless they had some sort of video feed from Saratoga, which there was no indication of such at the show.)

I just caught the boys (+ Joan) here on 6/20; 20 years and two days from my first show on 6/18/83 here at SPAC. I've seen all SPAC shows plus Other Ones 7/4/98, and approx. 75+ GD and side bands.

Anyway, not to digress too bad, but Neil's set was "interesting" to say the least. I've seen Uncle Neil enough times over the last 20 years that I know he's going to do whatever he wants and each show has been something different from before. 1st "set" was the new "Greendale" production, which I didn't know anything about until walking into the show last night. Overall, I think it gets added to the gallery of Neil's better work, with some fine music, most notably "Carmichael" and "Bandit".

Then he and Crazy Horse finished with about an hour of "classics" (played with all the grunge/distortion and more honesty/passion than any new music crap on radio):

Hey, Hey, My, My (into the black)
Sedan Delivery (great to see-might be my 1st)
Powderfinger (extended solo measures)
Roll Another Number
We Don't Wanna Be Good(newer Crazy Horse?-something against record co.)
Like A Hurricane (amazing as always)
Keep On Rockin' (slower tempo)>
Taps tease

Not many songs (I heard others' complaints about not getting enough of the old-read:familiar/mellow acoustic-stuff), but the old electric songs did stretch out to about an hour after the 1-1/2 hour "Greendale" set. Total show time: 2-1/2 hours. Overall, very enjoyable for me. If you know Neil & CH, they just lock into a heavy groove and go for the feel. Best "garage/grunge" band going for 30 years now.

If I can't be with Wille/the Dead on the 4th (Buffalo '86), I figure the next best thing is being with Uncle Neil in my hometown! Lucinda Williams opened and she was absolutely great/rocking! Worth catching a show on this tour if you can; I scored a $30 lawn tix for $20 outside SPAC right before show time, so that's BONUS.

Peace & Love,
Chuckster

Ok-I just checked the hyper-rust site and apparently Neil played yesterday (Sat.7/5) at Willie's picnic. Here's THAT set list:

1. Love To Burn
2. Sedan Delivery
3. Powderfinger
4. Prisoners of Rock 'n' Roll
5. Roll Another Number (For The Road)
6. Down By The River [with Willie]
7. Rockin' In The Free World

"Prisoners of R&R" is the song I wasn't sure the title of in my previous post re: the July 4th SPAC set.

No "Greendale" 1st set at Willie's picnic. But here is the song listing for that production (as given in the free "Show Bill" handout at the venue):

Falling From Above
Double E
Devil's Sidewalk
Leave The Driving
Carmichael
Bandit [solo acoustic guitar]
Grandpa's Interview
Bringin' Down Dinner [pump organ]
Sun Green
Be The Rain

I noticed the tour buses leaving immediately on Fri. night, so I guess Neil and the boys flew a "red-eye" from (most likely Albany) NY to Texas to be at Willie's on Sat.

Sorry for the non-Dead posts, but I just wanted to provide the Zoners with factual info.

See you at Jones Beach!

I'm listening to the china > rider from this show right now, and I have to say, I'm impressed. Really smooth segue. And the left turn into NFA ain't bad either. Man, i can't wait till Jones Beach. God damn! this band is good!

>Bobby (?) commenting on the sunset.

The sunset was gorgeous, as was the show and the entire weekend. I was backstage for much of it, and will post my review sometime this week (hopefully tonight). I met Bobby very briefly, talked to Rob for awhile, and met Chimenti. As I played guitar, I'm hoping shaking Bobby's hand has imbued my picking hand :-) It was very cool because instead of seeking autographs from the guys/girl, we gave them pictures of Nepal and Glacier Nat'l park.

"and bobby made a quote about the sunset..." WOW! SWEET! Good vendinng scene....

Part One:

The journey to Spicewood, TX:

We left New Orleans at about 10:30am on Thursday. My friends don’t get to go to shows as much as I do and they wanted to get an early start in the festivities, which was most certainly was alright by me. Considering it’s always nice to get a good sleep the day before a show instead of having to drive 6 or 8 hours and then have to go right into the show, boy I used to be able to do that but, I’m getting to the point where I need a good solid rest before a show, yeah me at the tender age of 28. The ride there was safely accomplished with no major SNAFU’s.
It was dark when we got there and setting up camp was a little challenging. We had tents and there was a lot of hard rock to contend with. But we ended up getting set up fairly comfortably.

The weather:

Well it rained some and there was enough cloud cover to keep us from frying like eggs, we were very blessed in this respect. I was prepared for a warm one.
I think at one point our thermometer read 105, but that didn’t last long thankfully. It was raining before the Dead came on, but man was it nice out there after it had stopped. The timing couldn’t have been better.



The scene:

Lots of locals, lots of cowboy hats, lots four wheel drive trucks. There was the ATV posse riding around making sure there wasn’t any vending going on in the campground.
I could tell the campground was mostly filled with locals that had their styled out RV’s. These are the folks that come to Willies Picnic every year.
I had brought with me about five cases of water and mixed drinks to sell, but there was no Shakedown to speak of in the campground. So I pretty much ditched that idea from the get go, which I was prepared for, I figured it was highly likely that vending was going to be a ‘no-no’.
I decided I might make an attempt to take my cooler up to the main daytime parking lot looking for Shakedown, but after assessing how long that journey would be (about a mile walk down and up a fairly steep hill, coupled with the fact that there was a pretty good chance there wasn’t any type of Shakedown going on up in that Lot either, I decided to scratch the vending idea and to save the water to be sold in a more tolerant venue. I gave out some mixed drinks to whoever wanted one because we’re beer drinkers at home, so the stuff just sits there and collects dust anyway.
When we walked up to the venue I saw about 6 mounted Texas State Troopers on horseback just ‘keeping an eye on things’, you know homeland security and all. When I walked up to the gate I noticed they were shaking people down pretty good and got my things together to make the entrance. To add to the heightened sense of awareness and concern on making my stealth entrance, I saw a young lady being ticketed by the police to the left of the entrance most likely a ticket for possession of herbage. So I got myself in order and went to make the plunge. We all passed through with a breeze (Nice). The person that was most ‘weighted down with the goods’ went through without even a pat down.
I saw Texas State Troopers inside the venue up top where all the ‘official’ vending area was, once I even saw them walk through the crowd during the music lower down behind the soundboard. It seem to me, or I got the sense for the most part they were turning the other cheek when it came to illegal activities such as partaking in some herbal enjoyment.

Point of interest for some folks: A ‘NORML’ table was set up inside the venue. The banner inside the tent read ‘Stop Arresting Responsible Marijuana Users’ or something to that effect.




Overview:

Well what can I say; this band was not the same band that I saw at Bonarroo. Wow!
I haven’t heard Bobby’s voice sound that well in quite awhile. You could hear every instrument separately and clearly in the mix. Joan’s voice was up front but not to the point where it was overbearing, I think she brings a lot to the band and in my opinion the words mystical enchantment come to mind when describing her voice) keeping in mind that I am not a student of musicianship or had any formal training but I get the sense that Joan’s vocals actually help this band stay in key, (because lord knows I’ve heard them be out of key in the last couple of three times I’ve seen them live, and heard on disc the Other Ones/Dead ) she’s quite the singer and feels right to me in the sense that she is fitting in very well, they all seemed much more comfortable up on stage last night then they did at Bonnarroo . You could tell the band was having fun, a lot of fun up there. And I was very happy for them because they were on a mission to show this Texan crowd how to jam out and get your groove on.
Oh by the way folks, I’ve never seen so many cowboy hats in one place in all my life, not that that’s a bad thing, just different for me to see at a show.
There weren’t any Phil songs where he had any lead vocals it seemed like the Bobby and Joan show and they did a marvelous job and almost always throughout the show had beautiful harmonies, for example Ripple… I didn’t hear any major train wrecks during this show, only maybe a couple of times where the band was a little confused where to go next. It seemed like to me Phil was calling the shots as I saw him speak into the ear monitors between most of the songs.
Jimmy was stepping out much more and taking some chances and was playing solo’s where Jerry would play a solo but WITHOUT copping Garcia’s licks. He was playing Jimmy licks within Grateful Dead tunes, which made me smile from ear to ear. I was very happy for him. I honestly feel like this was where I think he should be playing/heading musically when it comes to this sound of being/playing with the Dead.
But at the same time of having to be under the tremendous pressure of filling that void as a Grateful Dead lead guitarist in this band and having to feel your way through. I could understand the early tentativeness of Mr. Herring.

(On a side off the wall side note; I think this band is waiting to get their shit together for you left coasters, seriously. They have some real magickal potential and they know it and are just honing their skills for some big blowout in the Bay area)

The jams:

They were much better formed with a sense of thoughtful direction and purpose more so then I’ve seen anything recently from the core four in quite awhile. This is probably for me in my opinion the most promising thing for the future of this band. I was impressed and even surprised at how well the songs/jams flowed together seamlessly, for the most part.

Also to note: my choices for altering my conscious that night was a combination of chocolates and fractals. So differences in perception when it comes to song reviews may be different from yours.

Another note: I saw Willie sit in with a bunch of people, but to my dissapointment I did not see him do one full set of music. I was thinking/hoping/expecting to see him do a set of music at the end of each night. The first night I was too burnt to stick around to see him jam with Toby Keith *gag*. Supposedly they did some song together where Toby was singing about himself getting too high with Willie backstage (whatever).
The second night I did stick around and he did two songs (BUMMER!!!) As I was walking back up the hill I saw I guy with shitkickers and a big 'ol Stetson Hat, yelling 'you fucker I paid $160.00'

Seeing Willie play with Merle Haggard was a treat most notably Okee from Muskogee.

Neil Young's set rocked, but again I was dissapointed that Neil's set was abbreviated. Keep on Rockin' was the shit, especially since it looked like to me Neil had local Native American tribesmen on stage dancing around.

Part II:

Songs:

Note to: Live 365 listeners: The first set sounds much muffled on the recording then it sounded in person, what I recall was crystal clear, and even mentioned to my friend that they sounded ten times my better then they did during Bonnarroo halfway through LTGR. But not the second set on Live 365 is clear and not as muffled. I wonder why this is.?

Set 1:

Jam>: I was a bit surprised (in a good way) that they came out jamming. Looking back and thinking on this. Coming out with a jam and noodling around some is a good way to get a feel for a sound system in which you don’t get a sound check before playing a song. Also to note during this jam someone came out onstage and taped something to the floor of the stage in front of Joan. I was thinking probably a Joan tune (1000 Stars possibly)

LTGTR>: Yes, yes! I’ve wanted to hear this one for quite awhile and am happy to report that they did not disappoint me. I told my friend that they sounded a lot better then at Bonnaroo already halfway through the first song. Le Bon Temps Roule`!!! Joan sang her verse and then she looked over at Bobby and pointed down to the sheet of paper and he look down and nodded and then proceeded to sing the same exact verse that she had just sung. If my memory serves me correctly no one sung ‘Jerry’s verse—it might be 6 o clock it might be 8’.

Truckin’>: Solid rendition, a total crowd pleaser, I saw cowboy hats waving high with the first licks of this tune. Bobby’s voice was crystal clear out front, and no lyrics were flubbed. I was actually happy to hear a Truckin’ that was heartfelt, and Bobby shone like I know he can. Impressive to say the least. Also a nice choice in song selection up to this point by playing these tunes (playing ‘known’ songs) is good way to get the local crowd into the music and get the energy flowing and the bones shakin’.

Tomorrow Never Knows: I wasn’t looking to hear this song, in fact I don’t care for it all that much (Maybe because I fear the dreaded Baba O Reilly) but it was well played, and I was smiling.

Baba Jingo>: Well played solid rendition. But alas it was a Mickey tune. Out of all the music played by the Dead on this night this song was the one with the least clarity and distortion. I’ve heard better live versions of this tune i.e. Alpine/Terrapin Station, but it didn’t make me run to the bathroom either.

Cumberland Blues>: I kind of expected to hear this one played. This is one of the spots where the band seemed a little tentative with the start of this song, a slight miscue vocally at the beginning and kind of quiet. It took them about 30 seconds for all of them to get together and be where they needed to be. All in all a solid version. I think I recall them revving it up at the end with some nice jamming, which melted slowly down, down, down….into

Black Throated Wind>: The best live (or taped) version of this song that I have ever heard. I couldn’t believe that Bobby nailed this one. Crystal clear vocals, no flubs. I’ll admit I’m just a big of a critic of Bobby’s musicianship as the next guy, and I’m happy to report that he proved me oh-so-wrong. I was so happy for him. My heart was warmed and I smiled big as I sung along. By far one of my favorite Bobby tunes before and after.

At this point I’d like to comment on “the group mind or X factor” whatever you want to call it…I don’t think there was a strong presence of synergy this night amongst the crowd. Which doesn’t surprise me. I mean it’s Willie’s Picnic in central Texas, not Golden Gate Park. There were those individuals that were spun though (besides me) I could see it in their eyes. I felt like for the most part that my flight was a solo one, but that every once in awhile something or someone would peek in to see what was up. They/It never stayed around for long, which in a way for me was kind of refreshing. The ‘peeking’ of synergy didn’t put me off. I’m used to it. It was just…. different, but in a good way.

Music Never Stopped>: Not much to say except that it was a very well played version with beautiful harmonies. Very Nice. At this point I left my standing place about 20 feet in front of the soundboard it got crowded (too many shitkickers…haha) plus my peak was coming on so I needed some breathing and dancing room. So I went back up on the hill to where my group of friends was about 50 feet behind the soundboard.

Eyes of the World: Again excellent harmonies. When they broke into this one everyone around me was looking up, all smiles.

I have no idea how long the set break was, seemed like forever to me.

Set II:

Jam>: Don’t remember too much about this. I was in hyperspace at this point. But the place went nuts when they broke into…

Jackstraw>: Again nice song placement, by this point all of the predictable calls were out the window so I was happy to hear this one come out of a jam at the beginning of the second set. Not so predictable in my opinion. This was a mighty rendition, in which Bobby was fully in control of the drivers seat on this one.

Caution>: This was pretty cool. I liked it a lot. I thought Joan did this well but she went a little to long and drawn-out on the Mojo stuff. Otherwise I thought it was great and truly in the spirit of Pig-Pen. Phil’s solo wasn’t much of a solo, seemed like to me it was only a couple of bars or measures…whatever the correct terminology is. The jam dwindled and almost came to a complete halt but then…

El Paso: I hear the notes come softly out of the jam that seemed like it was going to sputter into confusion, but no Bobby Weir steps up to save the day, yes that’s right folks. Bobby Weir saves the day. This was most definitely a crowd pleaser; cowboys and cowgirls were riding high. I’m not sure but I think at this point at the end of El Paso Bobby says softly into the mic. “Check out the sunset.”

Ripple>: I was still looking up around at the sky and taking it all in, how beautiful this moment was and noticing how I had truly lost a sense of self which in a lot of ways I think is the whole point of a good musical experience especially a Grateful Dead experience. Losing sense of oneself and being totally immersed in the music. I was listening to Bobby sing Ripple, and saw a rainbow to the left of me. It was just a straight bar of colors appearing from the clouds and then melding back into them. I was blown away and saw the people around me looking up and smiling. I know this might be cheesy, or overly dramatic…but I started thinking about Garcia. I got the sense that a lot of people were wondering where he was. But then something weird happened I looked up at the rainbow again, and I had my answer…amazing. Ripple was played perfectly and during the harmonies I swear I heard Garcia’s voice.

Milestones>Piano/Drum Jam>Drumz/Space (Joan Chants)>: The Milestones was a very pleasant surprise. I’ve heard PLQ tease this but I’ve never heard a full on version. In fact at the time I wasn’t for sure it was Milestones until after I had come home and saw the set list. (I gotta give myself a pat on the back for knowing this one)

Drum/Space was pretty damn spacey and once again I got ‘lost’ for a while there. My friend who hadn’t seen a Grateful Dead related event in 8 years commented on how trippy the Drum/Space was. I told him well you sure as hell picked the right time to come back my friend because I haven’t heard these guys play this well in quite awhile, if ever!

I’d like to take a minute to comment on the ‘Joan Chant’. Jimmy was playing licks off of Joan’s voice. I’m guessing here…. trying to be in key with her vocals possibly?
Anyways, the general idea of what those two were trying to pull off is a great one. I don’t think they quite made it there this time around, but I can totally see this in the future for this band. Jimmy and Joan doing weird vocals and matching guitar weirdness at the same time, playing off each other during Space.

China Doll>: Joan’s vocals were beautiful. Mystically Enchanting. Garcia like, but with estrogen!

China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider>: Well played, although I still wish Bobby didn’t sing this one. The Rider was quite uplifting and the mention of Cool Colorado Rain had me smiling, if not a bit jealous ;) of those folks that will be at Red Rocks.

Not Fade Away: Man, I was so pissed that the crowd didn’t get into the clapping thing at the end! Not! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Psyche, Psyche, Psyche!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

>especially since it looked like to me Neil had local Native American tribesmen on stage dancing around.

I met the one that was dancing backstage. He was a Navajo from Okalahoma named Dennis Rogers. The other one with the black headdress was from another tribe from some other state. Dennis Rogers has apparently been dancing with/for Neil for quite awhile now.

>>>He was a Navajo from Okalahoma named Dennis Rogers. The other one with the black headdress was from another tribe from some other state.

Right on. Thanks for the info on that. I wasn't sure what the dealio was, except that Niel knows WTF is up.

So Eric, you were backstage eh? Did you see any artists back there that looked like they were extremely wasted? Like they were so high they didn't even have any business being up on stage?

I didn't see anyone that fucked up before they performed, but later in the evening (maybe around 10 or 11) on Saturday the 5th my gf and I were walking past a bus door and this old (maybe 70s?) guy, whose name I won't mention (not Willie - another semi-famous country guy that I wasn't really familiar with) stumbled out of the bus and right into my gf. The bus REEEEEEEEKED of the stankiest nugs I can imagine. So my gf and I kept walking, then took a seat behind the stage, just relaxin, and we were wondering who it was. A minute later he came out of the port-o-johns and my gf walks up and asks, "was that your bus?"

He responded: "Why, what happened?" and got nervous! LOL! It was funny. She said he was guzzling tanqueray straight outta the bottle. He was definitely bleary :-)

I'm writing my review in spurts - its turning into a memoir, so I will post excerpts when I am done - It's already 4 pages and I've only gotten to The Dead's setbreak and we got to the show one song into the first set!

Woohooo....right on man, keep the reviews comin'...that's funny.

At the beginning of the second set Bobby says "This is for Roger, The Kid"

Roger McHenry, aka Skjelly, was a member of the otherones.net message board crew, and one hell of a kid.

He was killed in a car accident on 7/02/03 on his was to the St. Louis show...