Grateful Dead
Date 1984-06-14
Red Rocks State Park Amphitheatre
Morrison CO

Set 1
d1t01 - Iko Iko
d1t02 - Cassidy
d1t03 - It Must Have Been the Roses
d1t04 - New Minglewood Blues
d1t05 - Brown Eyed Women
d1t06 - Jack Straw     //
d1t07 - Day Job        &

Set 2
d2t01 - Shakedown Street >
d2t02 - Playin' in the Band >
d2t03 - Dear Mr. Fantasy >
d2t04 - drums // drums >
d2t05 - space >
d2t06 - Playin' in the Band >
d2t07 - Black Peter >
d2t08 - Throwin' Stones >
d2t09 - Not Fade Away
d2t10 - crowd NFA chant     +
d2t11 - U.S. Blues

Recording Information:
//   Tape Flip
&    missed first few seconds following tape flip
+    Bobby says,"on this date in 1877 they adopted the American Flag, err, the stars and stripes as the American Flag."

MAUD CA: Beyer M88 cardiod XY > Sony TCD5M|maxell MX90 x2 no NR
Location: 80 feet from stage DFC
Transfer: Nakamichi MR2 > Marantz PMD661|SD
Recorded by: Executive Crew Tom Pinney, Sean Murtha, Chris Kidwell, Kyle Holbrook
Transferred by: Kyle Holbrook

shntool

    length     expanded size    cdr  WAVE problems  fmt   ratio  filename
     9:15.427     159962924 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7255  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t01.flac
     5:26.960      94164524 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7291  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t02.flac
     6:36.827     114286124 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7157  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t03.flac
     8:14.413     142391084 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7271  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t04.flac
     5:42.853      98741804 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7159  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t05.flac
     6:09.027     106279724 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7303  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t06.flac
     4:16.601      73901006 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7423  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d1t07.flac
    14:01.667     242400044 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7372  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t01.flac
    10:18.333     178080044 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7322  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t02.flac
     6:40.627     115380524 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7442  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t03.flac
    10:05.067     174259244 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7152  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t04.flac
     7:27.027     128743724 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.6946  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t05.flac
     2:48.320      48476204 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7310  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t06.flac
     7:34.453     130882604 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7247  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t07.flac
     8:02.760     139034924 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7389  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t08.flac
     6:02.947     104528684 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7380  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t09.flac
     1:22.853      23861804 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7116  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t10.flac
     5:01.144      86729600 B   cxx   --   ---xx   flac  0.7476  gd1984-06-14beyerm88-24d2t11.flac
   125:07.305    2162104590 B                            0.7281  (18 files)


====================================================================================================================
The tour story:
Night 3 on the Rocks. For the 1984 run Barry Fey was forced to schedule the band during the week hoping they would contain the relative mania of crowds showing up without tickets by not playing on a weekend. It certainly did not work this year. This was the Thursday night show closer of the run and the weather turned out much better than the day before, however we were a bit late showing up so we wound up several rows behind the soundboard area. Also this year the security was outrageous in their searching for recording gear, several tapers were shut out on nights 1 and 2 and for this night's sneaking in we had resorted to Tom's observation from the night before about possibly being able to get a rope down from the bathroom to the floor of the venue outside the bathroom which happened to be BEFORE where they took tickets at the gates. He and another taper came up with the idea, located someone with a climbing rope, circulated the concept among the tapers, and on this third day about ten taping rigs were brought through in this manner. I was "volunteered" from my crew and Chris Nubar was his crew's stand-in; the two of us settled in below the bathroom window in about 90 degree heat with part of the area directly in full sun bearing down on us. The tiny area was 10-15 feet toward the side of the rocks so we could sit there without being seen by security. Gradually people would bring us backpacks full of recording gear, mic stands and water. We waited there about two hours and then were told gates were opening. Sean and Tom told us later that from their perspective, guys were going in the bathroom with empty backpacks and walking out with full ones, sometimes "palming" mic stands as they diverted away from the bathroom up the steps toward the soundboard area. The first sight Chris and I saw was a yellow rope coming 10-12 feet down the wall of the bathroom, we hooked the first backpack to it, Tom pulled it up and it was too large- wouldn't fit- uh oh! so he was smart enough to lower it back, we removed some gear, made it smaller, it fit. We were in business; it must have been 12-15 rounds of gear with about 5 mic stands all put up through the window with guys coming in and out of the bathroom muling gear toward the tapers section. From our perspective below the window in the crook of the rocks it was truly a sight to behold. Chris and I were so energized from sweating it out all afternoon, once getting the gear up inside, I recall pure joy as we went inside with our tickets carrying no gear!

The rain from the previous night had soured everyone's mood a bit but had built up a bit of expectation for this show and I can say at the start it seemed it might be a disappointment. Once the Iko-Iko was over and they had only played a seven song first set we truly expected fireworks for set 2 and got a three song pre-drums which had Bobby barely able to play. Jerry was tearing it up, Brent was doing his part but Bobby was not all there this night. I know the altitude can mess with performers up there in the mountains and usually the medics have lots of oxygen available but I suspect something else. Listening back to this several times I can hear the moment in the Playin' jam that Jerry and Phil push for the China Doll but Bobby wanted nothing to do with it, so Phil gives up and Bobby is about to leave the stage when Jerry looks at Brent and they start these chords, sort of China Doll but not...then...what? "Dear Mr. Fantasy play us a tune, something to make us all happy". DAMN! What would later become a Brent Mydland staple had its' first ever playing by the Dead and smiles of joy were seen from Left rock to Right rock; we were there for a breakout and it felt INCREDIBLE. Some claim this version isn't perfect, there were better ones played etc.; they more than likely weren't there, in the moment, with all of us experiencing the sheer joy of this unexpected live music.

From humdrums to hallelujah's all at the turn of a note. While the rest of this show is pretty pedantic, that one moment, the sound of the band discovering a new musical path and the audience accepting it then screaming wildly then grooving to the tune. Notice that although Brent starts the first verse Jerry sings harmony on the first refrain then they almost trade off line for line as to who leads. For the last two verses Jerry's voice is strong, riding over top of Brent's. I realize I'm biased as I was there, but to my memory, this makes my top 10 Grateful Dead moments of 1984; huge bustout, awesome original tune they just threw into their songbook, and what a way to send us all home after three tough days at the Red Rocks State Park Amphitheatre.




