Dumbek's Random Stuff

9/14/91 - Grateful Dead - Madison Square Garden - New York, NY

My first time at MSG. Wow. The energy in this place is fantastic. Nothing compares to it. The band used to say they've played in 3 places: San Francisco, NYC and the road. It was a very different experience, compared to other cities. There's no parking lot. No tailgating. Unlike other towns - where the band rolls in and the Deadheads pretty much take over everything - you could walk a block away from The Garden and not even notice The Dead were in town. I went to this show with Mike - a guy who I met earlier in the summer. My first real boyfriend. I was on top of the world at the time. Not only was I dating a cool guy, but he was a Deadhead on top of everything else. Things were going quite well at the time. The show itself was fairly mellow for a Saturday night. Nothing special. Just really nice. We were sitting directly behind the stage. Very close, but in the back. Those seats give you a great view of the drummers, who are usually fairly hidden from view. Good Lord, they have a million toys back there. Interesting perspective from the back. It gives you a glimpse of what the band is looking at from the stage. Sitting in the back was always a good way to just sit back, relax and take it all in.




9/14/93 - Grateful Dead @ The Spectrum in Philly

I don't really remember anything about this one. The setlist looks pretty lame. Too many new songs, although I did always like hearing Phil sing "Broken Arrow." No big jamming vehicles, other than "Bird Song". "Way To Go Home" and "Corrina" in the same set? Ugh. No thanks. Again - I don't remember anything bad about this whole Spectrum run. I just remember anything special about the shows either. I think around this time I was beginning to get a little jaded and questioned whether or not it was worth going to every show within reach. I decided to start being a little pickier about where and when I'd go see them.





9/14/2000 - Furthur Festival.

I have to admit that most of the Furthur/Other Ones/The Dead shows blend together for me. I saw a ton of them, but only a few stand out. The 2000 version had Ziggy Marley opening. Ziggy was fun, but depending on my mood - I either loved him or was annoyed by him. That's my fault though - not his. He was fine. This version of The Other Ones included Bob, Billy, Mickey and Hornsby - but no Phil. This tour was exciting primarily due to the return of Billy K. on the drums. It was worth following these shows just to watch him and Mickey go at it again.