7: 1968-02-14

6:15




Carousel Ballroom




This performance is really about 5:55, but here I follow the timings in the video linked above. A variation on Main Theme beginning at 1:27; first verse at 2:05 (so about 1:45 after start of song); Verse melody at 3:12; again (see 02-03) Jerry walks up to one iteration of Falling Star (3:49) before beginning a Bright Star section at 3:52; then Falling Star begins again at 4:13; staccato main theme at 4:31; this leads to the second verse at 4:55 (so about 4:35 after start). Goes into China Cat Sunflower.

This is an energetic version, quite compact with a kind of nervous energy throughout; Garcia comes out firing with a dirty sound, and while he doesn’t really introduce any new ideas, he seems ready to shoot from the hip. A vigorous and effective version, although it doesn’t push things any further along.




What was said:

By far, the best yet. Right from the get-go, this one means business. Nice intro, better pacing and great interplay between guitars and bass. This Dark Star sounds far more developed than previous versions and structurally, it’s more interesting. Jerry seems to be playing longer solos here, which are exquisite. I love the faint swirling sounds (organ?) in the background, the shaker (?) isn’t as obtrusive, here it blends well with everything else. Musically sublime. Again, it’s quite short but I think all the themes are touched upon. The first great Dark Star.





I'll be the contrarian again! I don't think this Dark Star is any better or more developed than the previous versions, and it's no longer than average for the tour. Really the biggest differences from one version to the next in this month might be just the mixes....here Pigpen's organ is front & center.
But Jerry does seem kind of pumped up here, to the point of sloppiness. One thing about this version is that he gets fixated on these repeating phrases... Notice around 1:30, he starts repeating the Dark Star theme way out-of-time to the rest of the band, which throws off Pigpen who stops playing. (But they soon recover!) During the main solo, after the verse-melody jam, Jerry repeats a Dark Star theme variation a bunch of times, then repeats the Falling-star lick a bunch of times, then repeats the Dark Star theme again a bunch more times. The repetitiveness is kind of unusual and hypnotizing....this is like the mantra version of Dark Star.




Ha! It’s all good. Yeah, maybe it’s the mix that makes it sound better (to me). I must also admit I’d had a few beers so I might have exaggerated slightly. I do feel it’s the best one so far, though.




LIA just gives a one word comment on this one--"Standard." Of course, it hasn't been around that long, I don't know if "Standard" is established yet...




I can see what LIA means, it doesn't really move the ball exactly so much as very emphatically deliver everything Dark Star has been able to provide thus far.




I agree that it’s an energetic version (and the nervous energy that @bzfgt notes could be related to the refreshments). I also see what @Mr. Rain means about Jerry seeming a little sloppy out of the gate but he still brings it overall. The fact that Bobby makes a point of saying “we’re blowing this one on the first set” instead of saving it for the radio broadcast shows they were already viewing the song with some importance, although not enough to save it for the radio set.




And yet a year later (6 April 1969) on a radio broadcast from the Avalon Ballroom they do not perform Dark Star, in spite of the majestic heights the song had then attained.




This one has a frenetic energy right off the bat, something about it feels much more caffeinated that usual. The organ is doing lots of interesting little things, going from that swirling sort of sound mentioned above to a little staccato riff once or twice. Jerry seems to have a little extra fuzz on his guitar too, particularly when he amps up a little over halfway through. My timings are a little different from those noted above, but probably because I'm using the Charlie Miller source on the archive since I don't have that Road Trips. Overall this is a fine and frenetic little version, the only blemish would be when they have a little trouble coming together vocally for the second verse, but that's some early rust. I do like that clear, piercing guitar line that wraps this up and sets up "China Cat".