1day 9hours 16minutes!

Hopefully these will be a 5,6,7,& 8 continuation of the march shows!

This weekend can't come quickly enough!!!

OK, so I'm getting so amped up I thought I would put out a wish list (hello...Jill?)without seeing the St. Louis set yet. Here are songs I am hoping to hear in Chicago Fri/Sat. I am also taking into account what they have played the last two times they have been here (Dead in 2009, Furthur in March 2010):

Terrapin (the whole suite)...extra bonus: Sunrise
China Doll
Sailor ->Saint
Till the Morning comes
Brokedown
Dupree's
BIODTL
Here Comes Sunshine
DEW!!!!
High Time
Black Throated Wind
Baby Blue
Hard to Handle
Samson
Weather Report Suite (Dead played in 2009 but LOVE IT!)
Loser
To Lay Me Down
Doin that rag (played in March)
Crazy Fingers
Looks Like Rain
Might as Well
New Speedway (played in March)
Wharf Rat (played in March)
Stella Blue
Comes a Time (bring it here too!)

So....yeah...if those can just be worked up into a couple shows..

Funky things they played at Angel's Camp:
Sage and Spirit
Sunrise (hey, a guy can hope)
Blues for Allah
Rosemary


Of course, the basic awesomeness of (with the breaking it up with a song in between they seem to love now):
St. Stephen -> the Eleven
Estimated -> Eyes
Scarlet ->Fire
China ->Rider
Help>Slip>Franklins


Other Jerry Tunes (if they start going that route since they did Rueben and Cherise last year)
Gomorrah
Run for the Roses
Tore Up
Dont Let Go
Mission in the Rain
Sisters and Brothers
Cats
He aint give you none

Other Things I haven't seen Furthur break out which would be fun:
Far From Me
Easy to Love you

I GUESS I need to actually go do some work now, but...CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU GUYS!!!

Maytbe the full Terrapin Suite? Never played in Chicago, since it was a new addition this summer. I would like that, and wish for it Saturday, since that will be my only show of the tour.

I'd flip for a full Terrapin.

If they play terrapin it will be the full one. Thats the way it is these days. It is spectacular

Flight is leaving LaGuardia at 1:40ish. I'll be touching down at O'Hare around 4. Can't wait!!!

I have only one request:
DARK STAR.

Headin' to the train station, be in downtown Chi-Town for lunch! w00t!

I'm feelin' a Dark Star, and Terrapin this weekend......

And maybe wishful thinking, but a Jack Straw open TONIGHT!

See you freaks @ the show!

PASSENGER> JUST A LITTLE LIGHT > REVOLUTIONARY HAMSTRUNG BLUES !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What about Morning Dew!!!?
I never got one with the Jerry and the Boys(gave my ticket away Sat night in Vegas 95', Doh!), nor with The Other Ones, or Phil and Phriends or The Dead.
Does Furthur play it?
Man what does a guy got to do for a Morning Dew?!?

I tried to put the past three shows side by side but I dont think this format allows it. so here they are top down, old to newest. If this helps figure what could be on the agenda for the weekend!

Minn
Maggies Farm
Don't Ease
Loose Lucy
Hell in a Bucket
Stagger Lee
Bertha
Nobody Girl
Sugaree

Scarlet
Women Are Smarter
Lovelight
Help>
Slipknot
Golden Road
Frankilins
Comes A Time (luv this tune)
Sugar Magnolia
NFA

Enc: Like A Rolling Stone

Iowa
Feel Like a Stranger>
Music Never Stopped
Brown Eyed Women
When I Paint My Masterpiece
Alabama Getaway>
Big Bad Blues>
Liberty
Casey Jones

Dear Mr. Fantasy>
Playin in the Band>
Fire on the Mountain>
Other One>
China Cat Sunflower>
I Know You Rider
Black Peter
Feelin Alright
GDTRFB
And We Bid You Goodnight

encore:
Touch of Grey

St. Loius
Uncle John's Band
Cassidy
Mangolia Mountain
Cumberland Blues
High On A Mountain
Here Comes Sunshine
So Many Roads
Next Time You See Me

Any Road
The Wheel
Eyes Of The World
St. Stephen
The Eleven
Truckin'
New Potato Caboose
Stella Blue
Let It Grow

E: Attics Of My Life

I am FREAKING OUT! The Boys are on their way!!!

Alomst every song I hoped for at the top of the thread is in play...I will focus my good vibes on:

Sailor->Saint
Terrapin Suite
Dew
China Doll

If the set list Gods are kind, we could be in for a couple amazing shows!!!

Here is an InfoGraphic that should provide some clues as to what is on tap for this weekend.

http://www.thebarnpresents.com/InfoGraphics/Setlis ts/Furthur/

It will be updated after every show this tour.

KingBee - I like your picks!!

Let's Dew this!!!!

The last Chicago show still stands as one of the best Furthur have ever played!!

See you in the Lot...

You lucky windy city bastards will get an Unbroken Dew, Terrapin suite and a Dark Star this weekend. How I wish I could join you there!
-Doc

I'll see you freaks on Saturday. I'd like to hear Monkey and the Engineer!

can someone or a few let us know what the scene is like at UIC. Havent been there in a few years. Also let us know about security getting in. I think you know what I mean.

thanks,

UIC has always sucked - living in madison and mpls for the last 18+yrs, I saw many shows @ UIC and have never been to one where I did not witness or partake in a bad exchange between security and heads... Another reason (besides convience) that I chose Mpls and Iowa over both Chitowns on this run... By about 2005 I was refusing to go the UIC even if it meant skipping a show when i was already on tour (usually SCI) because it is a very poor overall venue. The sound sucks like Rosemont/Alliant Center and the lines getting in can be terrible long and slow. definitely get the crotch wallet going for the door shake-down as well
Good luck and get down on the floor in the sweet spot if you want sound quality rivaling the first three venues on tour.
-Doc

What the heck is a Crotch Wallet???

....that what she said.

What's up Doc?
I hope your reasons will justify missing 2 hot shows. UIC is not the Chicago Auditorium, but it is going to good.
Don't be hater, Mr. Crotch Wallet.
This shit is ON tonight!!

Kinda sad i get sloppy seconds on Tuesday. ;)

the Eddie Bauer travel (crotch) wallet - flat zipper pack with mesh pockets inside that loops aound your belt and you tuck it down the front of your pants - no elastic resistance or boobie squeezes required to bring your party favors inside... Chicagojoe i hope you have one so you can enjoy your ice-cold sidewalk time in line while the first set is starting tonight!!! Rosie Auditorium was the Shizit, UIC is a toilet, and I already got 1.5 hot shows between Mpls and Ames
-Doc

crotch wallet? ha! The Eugene and Redmond shows in September were zero security, just walk right in and fire it up! Still, wish I could be there in chicago. I saw Sublime in Portland a couple night ago and security there sucked, a friend had two pipes taken away but at least they did a scarlet begonia cover (not a good one though)

amazing the knowledge you acquire when living in the midwest.......
-Rip it up tonight guys!!!
Doc

Come on zoners...where is everyone...i don't sense a big buzz duringthis tour so far.

set list please.

looks like a jack straw opener

www.twitter.com/furthurband

I'm stoked about this tour. I think that it's a busy time of year, and not many Midwesterners are on the Zone.

Jack Straw
mississippi half step

Furthur

11/12/2010

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step

is chicago an hour behind ny standard time?oops i forgot.

yes, cst

Furthur

11/12/2010

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose

Docta Jones - Spent the first set of the first night of the world theater shows (90?) on the interstate in the back of my buddies station wagon GRIDLOCKED beyond belief even though we had left the hotel at 4 pm. Felt the hate of the UIC goon squad myself in 87 as well as more of the same from Rosemont security. I too grew up in the mpls area. After the world situation, I implemented a boycott of all shows windy in the city. In retrospect I missed some killer shows at Soldier Field etc. Moral of my story, I let the dark side win while I hated the haters. The Furthur show from this spring in Chi Town sounded great and I'm sure these shows will be smokin as well. Having fun in spite of people who enjoy acting like A holes is the only path to victory. PS What you call a crotch wallet I call Fruit of the Loom. Peace

thank u for the set list updates.

Is the concept of streaming over? Is this an issue of the band frowning on such activity? Is it a situation where the show is not sold out so tapers don't stream in respect to the idea of filling the house? I will quit groveling for a stream nightly as I'm sure it's not interesting reading for anyone, I'm just curious what has brought this space aged delightful concept to a screeching halt. Thoughts, comments, complaints, ideas, suggestions?

Furthur

11/12/2010

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence

If you want up to the second updates here. http://search.twitter.com/search?q=furthur

Looks like they played Dear Prudencce.

Furthur

11/12/2010

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence
Alligator

11/12/2010

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence
Alligator
Hard To Handle

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence
Alligator
Hard To Handle

Set Break

I like that setlist

best first set yet!!!

Sailor/Saint
-I will go to chitown shows @ good venues _ I caught the Rosie Auditorium shows this spring and loved everything - love the chicago theater as well, riv & aragon I will tolerate, but NOT UIC or ROSEMONT - just never had positive experiences in either building - neither sounds nor scenes.
Hope everyone is enjoying themselves tonight though, and since i was going to do three shows at max this run, the band's venue choice made my decisions a little easier
Cheers
Doc

Can anybody answer sailor saint,any ideas about
why there are no kind streams.....very curious..
thanx for thee updates on setlists..
In Iowa they played Feelin Alright,is that the
Dave Mason song???????????????

it is the dave mason song, drippin with more cheese than a fondue pot

First set list looks killer!

Hot 1st set. Alligator, WOW! Still hope for Monkey & the Engineer tomorrow

jealous of my hubby...

Set II

Viola Lee Blues

thank you for the drippin bubbly on the mason song....
now what about big bad blues?????
is that big railroad blues or something else....
you rock spencer jones....

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star

there probably arent any streams cuz last fall there were people streaming over phones and such and they got caught. so the band and security are looking out for it, and ejecting folks who try

Friend there is right:"Sick show!"

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street

killin it tonight on paper!

Wonder if that was the whole DS?

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street
Viola Lee Blues (v2)
Born Cross Eyed
Dark Star (v2)

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street
Viola Lee Blues (v2)
Born Cross Eyed
Dark Star (v2)
Viola Lee Blues (v3)
Standing on the Moon

That looks amazing.

I love their Standing on the Moon,esp. Philly II!

Time to rest my head beside the lazy river. See you fuck ups tomorrow. Someone please tell Jill Monkey & the Engineer!

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street
Viola Lee Blues (v2)
Born Cross Eyed
Dark Star (v2)
Viola Lee Blues (v3)
Standing on the Moon
New Speedway Boogie

Set II

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street
Viola Lee Blues (v2)
Born Cross Eyed
Dark Star (v2)
Viola Lee Blues (v3)
Standing on the Moon
New Speedway Boogie
Good Lovin

Encore:

Box of Rain
Ripple

A question for the sports fans at the show tonight: the football jerseys that the backup singers were wearing - were those Oakland Raider jerseys for #12 Kenny Stabler and #25 Fred Biletnikoff (sp?)

Just got back from the show. I am quite tired due to the 5 hour drive from St Louis. A flip of the middle finger to Illinois finest for their drug stop on I-55 just south of Springfield Il.

On to more important stuff,,,the show. It was very good, but I preferred St Louis. Why? Bobby singing songs he should not.....Dear Prudence was great to hear played, but no Bobby no. Let John sing the Jerry songs!

I LOVED the start....Jack Straw-Half Step-Ramble on Rose-Big River, but bobby singing DP was a downer. Just my thoughts..also loved the Box / Ripple encore!!!

Killer show, indeed! I can't wipe the grin off my face. Phil's donor rap included a thank you to us for digging all the jams. After the encore he blew the crowd a kiss.

They really opened it up in that 2nd set. Can't wait for tomorrow night! (Or tonight, as it's well after midnight here....)

how was the sound?

Sound wasn't the best. Sports arena muddiness to it. The March shows were vastly superior in that respect.

Grate light show though, the new backdrop looks gorgeous, and the cds are sounding good!

First set sound wasn't so good, especially Phil. You could feel him, but you couldn't hear him very well. Really, neither aspect was that great. Second set, they did some EQing, and you could hear AND feel Phil much, much better. The imaging in that place pretty much stinks, but I have to give them credit for making some significant adjustments between sets.

Maybe I'll write more later about the music itself, but I want to know what the F'ing deal is with Bob being in a hurry all the time. Does he not like to jam anymore? Is he not in the right state of mind to enjoy it anymore? Getting the Alligator was beautiful, but then he rushed us right through it. I've noticed this several times before, so this isn't the first time...or even the second or third time. And I really don't care for this formulaic situation of first set = songs, second set = jams. I really appreciated some of the new quasi-formulas of PL&F that didn't make me think if 80s and 90s GD; not that I didn't enjoy the shows I witnessed in those decades. New formulas, whether new to me or new in general, are better than old formulas that I never much liked anyway. It's as if the first set is Bob's, and the second set is Phil's. Sorry, but I really do not care for that compromise.

Tonight, I came to the conclusion that most people lack the attention spans to make it through a 10-minute song, let alone a 3-hour show. That only makes sense, since we [almost] all are losing our ability to focus on long-term tasks. Talking TALKING T-A-L-K-I-N-G. Checking email. Texting. Calling people. You name it, they do it...every possible thing BUT listening to the music. Every single show I attend, the same thing, except some people come up with new ways to not watch the band. For the entire first set, the guys in front of me tonight talked about installing cable in their homes. We were in front of a cluster of speakers, so they had to yell, so everyone within a 6ft. radius heard that conversation. Amazing. SHUT THE FUCK UP!

2nd set was a real treat. Phil sure likes those Viola sandwiches when he plays Chicago. We had a great one of those a couple years ago with PL&F when they played on the lake. JK is using a poor choice of effects for his Dark Star tones. That, and I just don't think he gets that song. His personality and the improvisational demands of that song don't mix very well. I'm always glad to hear the first few measures of Dark Star, but then it mostly fall apart for this band. I wish it was within their grasp, but I don't think it is. If there is every a moment I miss Jerry, it is with Dark Star. I'm not one of those people who sits around calling JK "fake Jerry" or who lives in the past, associating every little thing with Jerry's absence, so this is sort of a foreign annoyance to me. They should maybe consider dropping it from there repertoire. (JK doesn't seem to get The Eleven, either. Just one of those things. He gets some things, and others he does not. No ill will towards the greater gift he gives us all. Just shave a few songs out because they don't work with this group)

The first note of the second set from Phil was amazing. Talk about a bomb. I know none of the recordings are going to translate that mother very well.

Nice political comment in Tom Thumb. First set highlight was Dear, and that isn't easy for me to say.

Apologies for all the negativity. The music WAS really grand, and I was very happy to be there with everyone. I just wish Bob and some of the rest of us were as into the music and exploration as I am. I'm not better than anyone for my take on things, but maybe it is time for me to stop going to shows if what I value isn't in tune with what everyone else values. No whining. Maybe just the cold, hard facts of it all. An epiphany, if you will.

Oh, and yes, the tie-dye backdrop is really great, and the longsleeve shirt design is pretty ace (the $35 price tag notwithstanding).

Thanks for the take Zeno. Nice to have a sense of the experience of tonight's show, even if it was just yours.

My overall experience of this band does not share your perception that Weir is in a hurry though...In fact it's just the opposite.

We call him "Extra measure Bob" around my neighborhood these days.

The Encore 09-17 (and entire show for that matter) in Eugene speaks definitively against a "Hurry up Bob" situation in Furthur.

Now, my Oregon Ducks on the other hand, have a hurry up offense never before seen in football, having no effective counterpoint......

Look, from an east coaster, I think the shows have been really good on paper thus far. St. Louis wasn't my cup of tea but the rest really fine. As for streaming, I don't know what to tell you. East coast shows have been pretty consistent, and those of you who keep track know who to thank. That being said, chi-town will get the love. I'm sure tomorrow will rock. MSG is the end game. Can't wait. I'm jealous of all of you who have seen shows thus far on the tour. You'll get your Terrapin suite, and it'll be worth the wait. I saw it in Brooklyn and it's awesome. I'm glad to see the boys hitting spots like MN and IA. Shows that this is no fluke and they're trying to expand the reach of the music in some historically great places from the dead's past, Baltimore being another one. What I'm bummed about is the lack of tapers posting shows on archives. Those of us waiting in anticipation here on the east coast want to hear those shows. So if you got em, share the love. Hope to see some of you at MSG. Until then, much love and keep the bus moving.

I agree Jim, and someone please, upload these shows!

>>I just wish Bob and some of the rest of us were as into the music and exploration as I am.

I don't think Bobby's against exploration (listen to the 17 minute Playin' from 11/9), but he will move a jam forward, or cut it off, if it's not going anywhere. I actually appreciate that, most of the time. Case in point, when Kimock got on board with Ratdog for a couple tours, a lot of their jams were extended, and after a full tour, some got to the point of plain melting into pure feedback (11/11/07 Other One...pretty epic as far as Bob jams go), and i think that's because Kimock had more input in that realm of exploration that captured Bobby's fancy, and he let it carry on. So, I noticed your critique of JK in Dark Star, and maybe that has something to do with it. With all of Bobby's "still hearing Jerry in the music" maybe he gets impatient with other's inability to reach that bar that he's already hearing, lol. YMMV

But it is a good topic of discussion. For instance, I love the Playin' from the Steppin Out 72' release, even though it's only 11 or 12 minutes. It still reaches the stratosphere. I don't know if it would have been served by another 5-10 minutes, but who knows.

Very small group of tapers in residence tonight. I know I saw Rosemary there, so I assume he is sharing his pulls on his torrent site (or eventually will). and LMA: http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection %3AFurthur%20AND%20year%3A%222010%22&page=5

Oh btw your critique of our age of distraction is spot on. To hell with these people who are always talking or staring at their iphones for entire shows. It's an ADD epidemic. I just read a review, maybe 4 paragraphs, of the Iowa show, and someone actually followed it by saying "did anyone actually read that whole review," as if it were a novel or something. Pathetic.

In the mean time, I'm jammin to Nassau 3/28/85. What a show! These guys love New York!

You're so right about the ADD thing - why do these good people bother coming?
These observations take me back to a big bunch talking all the way though So Many Roads at the Nokia in 2008. Actually, they talked through the whole show but it was in So Many Roads that the person next to me lost his patience with them - dead right too!
However, whilst it may be getting worse, I'll never forget a lady striking up a loud conversation with me in the Black Muddy River encore on 7/9/95 ... sorry Jer!

By the way, the 11/8 and 11/9 shows were both up on the archive yesterday! From what I listened to of the 8th the band is just warming up. We'll see what craziness comes out on that twisting road to MSG! I'll be there... can't wait!

The Alligator > Hard To Handle was awesome. The second set lived up to the set list. Big props to JK for standing up there with Bob and Phil and laying it out. Every song was stretched out just like the old Phil and Friends days. Even Box of Rain had a nice middle jam in it. Ripple was the cherry on the whipped cream on the cake. Don't know what's going to happen tonight but MUCH LOVE to the band!

The lot was great last night....good peeps everywhere inside and out. Really, this was the best crowd I have seen in a long, long time. The sound was good on the floor, but it was too low to start the show. They turned it up as the first set got rolling.
Now, to the music:
This was my first show since Jay left the band and I missed his drumming. Two drummers give the band more punch, but Russo is no punk. He did a great job!!
Set I
Jack Straw - good, better last time in Chicago.
Mississippi Half Step - very strong
Ramble On Rose - good and tight
Big River - ok
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues - best version I have ever heard!! Phil played it well.
Dear Prudence - JGB tune for me, average
Alligator - Kick Ass!! Highlight of first set
Hard To Handle - Powerful and F U N...crowd went nuts for the end of this set...killer.

Set II
Viola Lee Blues - good, weak jam into DS
Dark Star - enough said, right into Shakedown
Shakedown Street - POWERFUL, sweeeeeet version
Viola Lee Blues (v2) - samwich
Born Cross Eyed - good
Dark Star (v2) - samwich...crazy time signature jams in these DS...
Viola Lee Blues (v3) - back into it...yep,yep.
Standing on the Moon - alright
New Speedway Boogie - great version
Good Lovin - Crowd went crazy and nice version
E:
Box of Rain - average
Ripple - show highligh...very nice

Overall, I had a great time and everyone on the floor was getting down. These guys are still delivering the goods. I had a blast and the scene was the best I have ever witnessed for my home town. Inside and out - everybody could enjoy themselves....best Chicago shakedown. It remind me of Soldier Field days, but smaller and real fans of the music.
Forget the suckers who posted about how bad the Chicago scene is....it's all good.

See you tonight!!

how was security last night? were they letting people from the bleachers fill the floor? how did it sound in the bleachers? JK ballad tonight for sure for you guys in set2 - the bobby Prudence and Standing do slow momentum for some, including me
-Doc

Well said ChicagoJoe, for me Big river and Alligator really ripped the first set, and Good Lovin and Ripple completely melted me into a puddle of true joy. Luckily, I managed to reaccummulate my electrons, get some rest, reflect, smile, medicate, and am grateful to be ready for one more Saturday night. Today I pray for a nice BMR, full Terrapin Suite, and some Dew for a total remelting. ALL talkers stay home, let's rock the UIC tonight heads. Peace and love to everyone everywhere.

Rotation InfoGraphic updated with songs from last night. Terrapin and King Solomon's look like good bets for tonight.

http://www.thebarnpresents.com/InfoGraphics/Setlis ts/Furthur/

It will be updated after every show this tour.

To put it all in one post:

Jack Straw
Mississippi Half Step
Ramble On Rose
Big River
Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues
Dear Prudence
Alligator
Hard To Handle

Viola Lee Blues
Dark Star
Shakedown Street
Viola Lee Blues (v2)
Born Cross Eyed
Dark Star (v2)
Viola Lee Blues (v3)
Standing on the Moon
New Speedway Boogie
Good Lovin

Box of Rain
Ripple

The scene was good. No issues from the authorities. Do wish some folks would stop talking during ballads. The crowd was very quiet during encores and it was so sweet. Hey in the last 2 nights: St Louis Encore an accapella Attics of My Life and Chicago Night 1 encores, Box of Rain & Ripple. Wow! We are blessed indeed. I am sure we are in for some treats tonight! Thank you Bob and Phil.

Hey all, this show has been posted on archive: Sweet! thank you thank you

http://www.archive.org/details/furthur2010-11-12.a kg483

glad chicago cops have found better things to do than harrass heads after they pay $$ for a show and hotel and restuarant in their town - seems like the band might be negotiating hands-off treatment at every venue, because the scenes at Mpls and Ames were extremely permissive versus the normal heady shows (Dylan, ABB, Widespread, etc.) at the same venues that feature heavy handed security...get up close to the sweet spot tonight and you guys should be in a for a good one. On another note, Chicago teams are known for their defense and ChicagoJoe embodies that defensive mindset... look for him tonight- he'll be sporting a Cubs hat/Orange Urlacher jersey combo, blathering uncontrollably about the '85 bears to any ill-fated passerby within a 20 yard radius.
-Doc

Oh, Doc, not the Cubs!

Just for that, I'll have to dig out my Steal your Sox shirt!

"blathering uncontrollably"??
Doc,
relax Buzz....you got me all wrong.
I was just having a little fun with you.
If I hit a nerve exposing something about yourself and your fear of my great city,
i am sorry.

and for the record, the BEARS will win on sunday...i don't have to blather.

PEACE.....tonight is going to ROCK!!!

I'll take Ron Kittle's coke-bottles over Leon Durham's Gold glove anytime as well Buster!
-Doc

What's your call tonight Doc?
Terrapin
Dew
Playin'

I am local and can't go tonight, so last night was my only show for this tour. Loved the JS opener, always welcome to my ears. It was a big Chimenti version for sure - I didn't really hear JK much on the jams. Phil took the Jerry lines (Tulsa/Watchman). JK and Bob split the verses pretty nicely for Half Step and ROR. Half Step featured a little call and response thing on the refrain that I've never heard before, kinda cool and a sign the band has been rehearsing/arranging together. Big River was classic old school 80's Dead style, as opposed to some of the very slow versions we've heard from Weir/Ratdog. Went over very well. We saw Phil counting off Tom Thumbs loud and clear and he rocked it. He said "Speaker of the House" instead of "Sergeant at Arms". I wasn't too excited when they started Dear Prudence (really loved those late Jerry/Melvin Seals versions) but they had me by the end. JK got some heavy guitar off in the jam, and the extra vocalists really nailed the arrangement. Alligator was definitely the set highlight for me, though I too wished they'd just split it the hell wide open. I also noticed here that JK is great at hitting the opening line of a verse really powerfully, but then he sags a bit on the following lines, which saps the power a bit. I wonder if that's intentional or just a minor technique issue? Not a big deal, but something I wouldn't mind hearing him rectify over time. Hard to Handle was solid funky fun for sure - better than other post-Jer versions I've heard. Is it me, or is Weir making an effort to more closely match some of Pig and Jerry's phrasing these days? I get the feeling he's working to appease some complaints there. I wasn't one of those complainers, but I do admit it helps the audience sing-along factor (which can be very hit or miss itself...). First set clocked in at just under an hour and left everybody pretty happy. Security was present in the building but very loose - very little ticket checking or issues with people standing in aisles, smoking, etc.... quite chill throughout. Second level was open and maybe 1/4 full, if that. I didn't check out the sound from up there. Sound was good but not great where I was about halfway up the bowl off the back of the floor, JK side. It definitely got louder and more dialed in as the show went on, esp. where Phil was concerned.

Set two was a classic Viola Lee Club Sandwich. Dark Star was a nice first transition choice - though I'll have to listen back to this one to see what really went down. JK broadcast the Shakedown nicely with the telltale guitar tone change, then they slammed into a rocking version a minute later with solid vocals all around. They didn't do the "shake it down, shake it down down" thing that I believe i heard last time they were here. The post-Shakedown return to VLB was a bit of a pothole to my ears, pretty forced with Phil driving hard to the goal with everyone else not quite on board, but they moved ahead without hesitation from there after syncing back up. JK again broadcast the Born Cross Eyed transition by hitting that juicy opening chord in the midst of the prior jam, at least a min or two before they actually turned the corner as a group into the song. Nicely done, I always dig hearing this one (esp. after never even considering it an -option- when I was seeing the band between 85-95). I think the transition back into VLB was much stronger this time but I'll go back and check it out on the Archive. Standing on the Moon emerged quickly from the ashes of Viola with Bob at the helm rhythmically and vocally. I am fond of this song from seeing some very nice Jerry versions, so I dug it, but I admit it's bittersweet on some level without Jerry there to sing it. But I didn't think it dragged or sucked the energy down too badly, as some have stated about other recent versions, and JK peeled off some nice leads to bring it home. Bob then hit the Good Lovin' chord progression (which was my immediate cue to go take a walk - not the song I long to hear...), but Phil quickly trounced it with New Speedway Boogie, which pleased me greatly and kept me in place. A solid rocking version, always a good song to hear for me. The inevitable return to Good Lovin' emerged right on schedule, only this time with Phil's old-school bass intro, which I was happy to hear. After the intro, I took a walk and quickly saw 6 or 7 yellow jacketed security goons man-handling a young hippy girl who was clearly in some distress, but seemingly pretty lucid, esp. when she yelled "YOU ARE HURTING ME" to the guy dragging her along by her upper arm. I almost intervened on her behalf but thought better of it as she and the goons disappeared very quickly behind a curtain. Not a pleasant scene, but over and done in 10 seconds. I hope it ended well for her. My good buddy Alien appeared out of nowhere, pinched my gut, and screeched WOOP while running past me to the bathroom while I was focused on this little incident. He returned just after it ended, and we got down real close to the stage on the JK side for the end of Good Lovin' and the encores. The sound was notably better down here and made me wish I hadn't stuck in my original section as long as I had. Box got off to a tad of a rough start. I saw Phil shoot the band a look as they seemingly dropped a beat on him or something like that. Things then smoothed out quickly and the inner jam was pretty tall. I swore they were going back into Dark Star for a minute, which frankly I really wish they had, how cool would that have been? But any gripes about that were quickly dashed when a very nice Ripple came wafting up during that moment of everyone wondering if the show was over. Always a fine way to end it.

The lot scene was rocking with tons of vending and some very good chow from multiple sources, which was great news - we enjoyed it on both sides of the show. The extra warm weather certainly helped, and there was little if any security presence until about an hour after the show, when shut-down became apparent in a hurry, at which point we adjourned to Quenchers up in Logan Square for a friend's birthday party.

I had a great time and am sorry I can't go again tonight. I was really hoping for my first full Terrapin Suite last night. I feel sure that's coming tonight. Enjoy!

teased good love before standing and the band just stops.......no transition flat silence...like oops missed some songs...high lite was phils incomplete tom thumbs
wished bobby would of sang alligator...jk was off....couldn't figure out who was slowing phil down.........it was weird...some umph factor was missing.... jk is slow....for now.....won't be to hasty wait until sunday in cincinnati.....but for now jk is down on the list next to ryan adams....but i hear the zen trickster....jammin with dark star, is on it.....the sound was so weird for me i skipped tonight and got out of dodge catching th sunrise south i have never done that. feelin sad tht there wasn't any mojo wth last nites show. the lot scene was super on it.......couldn't believe the turn out...why isn't bobby singing more.......for 60 bucks a ticket i would want bobby to sing when phil isn't.....i'd rather hear bobby do jerry then jk........i hate posting anything negative about my favorite band.......it felt so empty and down....i don't know what it was exactly except there is a big piece missing and jk wasn't hitting th spot.......sorry for review
born crosseyed was another highlite with good love......darkstar was not spacy or trippy...
to be to be was the box ending and it means of course a short fricken time to be here......or to be here now.....beecha cha's
last night made me miss jimmy and rob

I'm sorry but someone who wants more Bobby def has a different view of what he wants from a show than I do! it's all good

Joe- I'm havin fun too, no worries:
you WILL GET an Unbroken>Dew tonight: rock out with your Richard Dent jersey! have fun my man! we are stuck in a foot of freaking wet snow in mpls tonight
-Cheers
Doc

It was a Dew>UBC night 2

DOC,
good call!!

go bears!!

SOund was definatly not right in UIC this night. It's a rock concert, TURN IT UP! I shouldn't have to concentrate on hearing drums and bass. That being said I thoughrouly enjoyed the 1st set and most of the 2nd set. Real good energy and happy happy people throughout the 1st. The 2nd set was killer, right up until SOTM. WTF? worst version I've ever heard. C'mon Bobby! Killed all the energy and was painful to listen to the vocals. Just awful vocals. What was once a beautiful song is now a complete disaster. Thanks Bob. And then speedway and good lovin' really never took off, bad way to end a perfectly good experience. Phil's box and ripple definately picked up my spirits, thanks phil. Wish I could see more shows this tour. Have fun kids.

Sorry you missed out on the old days nairfoxob. Bob does a super job of doing Bob. He doesn't do Jerry well at all. And me thinks the ONLY way we could get to hear Bob sing more would be to wait and got to a Ratdog show or catch Bob, Rob and Jay with scaring on Cruis Jam.
JK is the man, do you think this current group would be doing so well without him?
By the way if you get a chance go see the Rhythm Devils with Tim and Davey, Mickey and Bill have a super hard rocking band that sheds NEW LIGHT on the Dead catalog. They are hard core smoking!!


Thank you for a real good time!!!

did anybody else run near the k9 drug search on I-55 NB?? thank the lord for illinois state route 4

Is the floor at UIC still GA, standing room only?
I seem to remember it that way from the '99 PLF
Halloween show. I just got home from the St. Louis and Cinci shows.
The floors had seating and the security (especially Cinci) would not tolerate dancing unless
you were right in front of your seat,
in which case dancing was nearly impossible and kinda made me feel like a goofball.
Despite hearing bad things about UIC,
I think I will be sure to catch the next show there
if I know that I will have some reasonable dance space.

my feet were off the ground both nights ;)