favorite favorite favorite favorite

Around x 2 opens up the evening with full audio balance and a nice amount of energy!

Dire begins with some earnest notes, and takes on a slow tempo. The slowness, in this case, is too slow for me.

Bobby McGee brings the tempo back more in line with what I would prefer, solid work...

I was a bit concerned going into Sugaree that the momentum may be lost again, but this is not the case. A fine rendition, best of the year to this point.

Mexicali

HCS is rocking, one of the better tempos the song has maintained, and the jamming is therefore energetic and fantastic... lots of hopping. It's the most driven version of the song I can remember at the moment.

BIODTL

Ship takes an unexpected slot in the first set, and I dig it, as I often do. A rare Jerry instrumental flub at the start of the solo was surprising, and the tempo just isn't quite there. They do pick up the tempo a smidgeon and, more importantly, the energy, by the end.

Jack Straw starts off so slow for a moment I thought it was the intro to LLR, and got depressed. I was happy when the realization it was Straw hit, and it does a nice job on tension/release.

Deal is fun and moves well!

Promised Land>Bertha>GSETGreat trifecta to end a set, wish they had done this more often though it means no PITB in this case. Can't play it EVERY night. Keith starts the Bertha with a run down the piano. I really looked forward to the GSET, and was rather thoroughly let down. It was generally slow, and then Donna let out a terrible extend-o-scream. Ironically, this seems to have pumped up the band. I call it an unacceptable catalyst, I mean, I wouldn't accept wasting ten gallons of gas to start a car.



Row Jimmy

WRS>LIG>Stella

The first meat sequence of two in the second set starts off solemnly. Part 1 has some sloppiness to it, but is largely agreeable. LIG cruises through largely uneventful, with full Bob chords nicely done, and then opens up for the extended jam at the end. The ensuing jam is lengthy and great, a nice tempo for the period (though I prefer the post-retirement tempo). The segue to Stella comes out of a slowdown that Phil pushes, and we have a nice, small meat package ready to be wrapped up. The solo is melodic, and reaches some high points, though it lacks the crash down many enjoy. In the end, that was still a stellar 30 minute ride!

Big River is killer, par for the course. Definitely a great version though, Jerry just runs this one. Very close to X-factor appeal.

Ramble On, Jerry flubs this a bit, lyrically.

MAMU is just what the doctor ordered to usher in the coming meat sequence.

He's Gone>Truckin'>Drums>TOO>Eyes>OMSN

Gone has a nice tempo, but the outro jam is where it's at. Great energy as they explode into it. It slowly grows bluesier and blusier, suggesting that Truckin is coming up next, though they could have gone to TOO pretty easily from where it left off. The opening notes of Truckin' make their appearance, though again a bit more mellowly than I would like. It picks up speed nicely, and the explosion build up is out of control! The post-explosion jam keeps the momentum going for a bit, and then settles back to the bluesy, but still upbeat, Truckin' theme. Perhaps Bob needed a break though, as they take this opportunity to go to a drum solo... The drum solo comes to an end courtesy of Bombardier First Class Phillip Lesh. They basically pick back up where the post-Explosion jam would have gone without the drums solo thrust in the middle. After the verse, about halfway through TOO, they head into a spacy jam that quickly picks up speed and weirdness, thrusting it into hyperspace, where the Tiger lurks. It's an especially weird Tiger, and does the trick before settling back down into deep space. The journey out of this space features a Slipknot! theme, which was an usual and enjoyable turn. After this awesome jam completes we get a triumphant return to the lyrics. Eyes surfaces nicely out of this, but the jam after the first verse markedly slows the momentum. It does pick up, but the damage seem to be done. In the post-2nd verse jam Jerry and Billy do what they can to speed things back up, to good effect, and I'm back in the groove. The third verse jam, which sometimes is where the lack of energy from in this period, actually does a very good job of maintaining the energy they finally built up in the song. Phil is a big part of that, putting in some great work in this particular passage, and again heads into a Slipknot! like theme.

Casey Jones



Encore: JBG>AWBYGN

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Performance Summary

The first set is blessed with the rocking opener, one of the best HCS's I've heard, and a nice Deal. However, there are some serious slow downs that kill some momentum. The 2nd set is better, but again sometimes overly mellow without being magically mellow. I enjoyed the show a lot, but there are certainly better from 74!



Sound Quality

A+, about as good as it is going to get from back in 1974! Another Miller Masterpiece.

- June 5, 2014Holy HCS!