151723 Winterland 29:21 (29:00)
Main theme at 18:26.
First verse at 19:04.
Goes into Morning Dew.
The beginning seems slightly more sprightly than we are getting used to. The beauty the band is capable of is in full flower from the first note; the introductory jam doesn’t do anything really novel, but it unfolds with the inevitability of perfection. There are subtle shifts between major and minor modalities, without a definitive decision being made either way; the mutual sensitivity and communicative acumen of the instrumentalists lets them maintain the kind of cohesive flexibility that they have been honing for five years now.
At 4:45 Garcia settles into a rolling pattern that gathers the rest in and drives the jam forward. Kreutzmann pushes a little harder, and the beat lopes forward for a bit until they subside without peaking into a brooding minor soundscape at 6:30. Here tension builds, a gathering storm. Another sally is soon underway, but again they don’t push it too far. Listen from 8:35, as it starts to seem like everyone is echoing everyone else; a sort of fractal beauty is the anarchic result.
By 10:30 we’re spiraling down into a hole; although there’s a beat, it’s just one more element, not a foundation. A minute later the whole thing lifts; they drive toward a peak without ever narrowing their focus. They ease over the summit at 12:40, and now it starts coming together; they open a space for the theme, which they nevertheless withhold, although there are strong hints before they wander off into abstraction.
At 14:35 Lesh and Kreutzmann have something tribal and funky, yet still tentative, going on; the others calibrate their abstract caterwauling to the beat, and another peak is attained. Lesh starts jabbing at the Elastic Ping Pong riff, and at 15:45 he finally uncorks it. He soon wanders off, though; the band is chugging along, and that seems to satisfy him. He brings back a variant of it at 17:01, and this again pushes things along, and he again strays. It’s a brilliantly executed segment, and it’s hard to think of a better exemplar of Phil’s improvisational genius, as he manages to drive the band through the jam without ever locking into a pattern for more than 10 seconds.
The peak at 17:45 is more emphatic than anything previous, and now there is a big windup for the theme. They don’t linger long, but head right for the verse which Garcia enthusiastically brays, a bit out of tune at first. Little matter, he sounds like he’s really into it tonight.
They have so much momentum that they seem unable to pull back into space. Weir hits some nice a descending pattern, and then goes right on to take the lead. This he shares with Godchaux, as the others accompany them. Garcia seems ready to reclaim it at 21:40, and now there is a three-pronged melody with Lesh taking an uncharacteristically supporting role in this segment. At 22:30 they finally wind down, and the audience cheers as the band heads into space.
Bob is still feeling his oats, and he still seems to be leading things here. At 23:55 there seems to be a group decision to take it to a meltdown, but then Weir calls and audible at 24:15 and starts Spanish Jam. Kreutzmann can dig it, but nobody else seems too committed, and by 24:55 it starts going somewhere else. Jerry is playing some pellucid and otherworldly slide licks, and Keith seems to want to rock out, but they all congeal around Garcia, although it takes them a little while to determine what they’re going to do.
Jerry gives them another nudge at around 27:00, getting into a pattern they can rally around and a lovely two-chord jam pops out. Once it’s established, Garcia shoots for the skies, and the music that ensues is heavenly indeed. Another chord somehow gets into the mix—now there’s a B part, and somehow they’re all more or less together. The next time through they let it get away, slipping into a magnificent Morning Dew.
This is where it’s at. The post-verse stuff, in fact, is much better than I remembered it being—there is some indecision, and it is possible to regret that the final section doesn’t last longer, but only because it is so painfully beautiful, and yet so temporary and fragile—like life itself, I suppose. But the mystery and power of Dark Star never ceases—it’s always playing somewhere. Take heart!
What was said:
JSegel:
Dave’s Picks 13
Back to Winterland, again Dark Star is late on the 3rd night of a 3-night run opening these shows, first of 1974, this weekend being the only shows in the first few months of the year (and one a month later at the Cow Palace.) The Wall of Sound will be appearing over this year.
Some teasing with the intro riff while tuning, a cymbal swell and into the riff and to the groove, they relax it back. Some teasing stretches from Jerry and into a sashaying pace. It threatens to fall apart after even a couple minutes building into echoes of one another in shorter riffs, into a new world. Little sideways modal suggestions from Keith and Jerry, it gets pretty spaced out into little worlds, musicians each on their own phrase lengths, they get into a tremolo arpeggio which breaks out again into a jazzy groove for a short time, till it fritters away. Keith is still pushing chromatically away they settle into F# and a weird ascending pattern (7min) some arpeggios from Bobby. And down into a morass of phrases circling a downbeat that holds off with Keith continuing some rhythm phrases and Bobby trilling. A drum and bass thing with odd arpeggios hovering around it develops (10min). A hint of theme at 11:10, but that’s all we get.
Bill is going endlessly in 12/8s while the other musicians are spacing out on some sort of Dark-Star-adjacent progression, they enter a fast modal area for a while. It dwindles out in the 12th min and no groove emerges, though Bill is playing up a storm still, they space it out again, into echoing falling patterns and off-kilter chromatic tonality. Another fast jazzy thing emerges after a minute or so. It gets hot by 15 and sounds like they might try to head to the MLB idea for a sec, but it doesn’t happen and the mode gets out of control for while. By 17min we’re back in a groove with little fast licks. Even gets a slightly surfy vibe for a sec at 17:45.
Over this groove and up the other side is an overlapping change of tempo with the Dark Star theme and then into the verse at 19 min.
Great, very strong vocals, intimate but also a little scary-warble on the starts of lines 2 and 3. Line two has nice piano outside notes at the starts, it has a nice feel to the fermata. Line three is back in the groove with descending and ascending little bits from Keith and Bobby.
Nicely into the refrain with echoes from Keith. Bobby is developing on the transition riff a few times before repeating it into an arpeggio. Bill has bells or some hand percussion? They keep the tempo up on a suspended chord, light and under control volume wise, Keith rolling on some rhythmic suspension, it fades out finally at 22:30 into bass weirdness. Keith is playing along, sort of echoing—his playing lately has been really reminding me of echolalia, like he is compulsively playing whatever he hears as he hears it. Some scary volume swelled guitar notes, dark grottoes as we get deeper to a low bass note and something emerging at 24min, Bill is keen to go, Jerry is scratching strings and wah-pedal, Bobby has a chord progression for a second and then back into small eddies of notes and rhythm, little blooms of sounds in major key. Jerry brings out the slide for a bit.
Min 26, Phil is picking up a little into a groove. Jerry plays a bit of the rhythm and then takes off on a run, tries a few things and settles in an arpeggio D major thing heading for the C, but then a wind up for an ending at the end of min 28 and into a big start of a stately Morning Dew.
______
Well, this is a very spacey version, nobody seems to be committing to much of a groove or even a common downbeat for a greater part of this evening’s presentation. “5 guys in search of a downbeat!” Bill is shredding, but very quietly a lot of the time! There’s almost no repeating phrases at all, everybody is continuously moving away from playing “the theme” or anything like a repetitive groove, each line seems to fritter away. Yet somehow they continue playing, endlessly spacing out. (This sort of reminds me of my own experiences of trying to play on acid, but in those cases, mostly people just spaced out until they weren’t playing at all anymore, and I’d look up and be the only one playing some feedback or something!)
I couldn’t tell if I loved this version or hate it, it’s weird because the spaciness sort of made me unsettled (full disclosure: I was high). I recently went back and listened to several versions from 1969, 1972 and even a year previous in ’73, and they are much more “coherent” in musical ways, with the modes used and the themes guiding the improv (like back in the 60s when they even played through the verse progression as a high point in the improv jam.) I really liked that, and while the band are better players, the versions of Dark Star are becoming very dissipated, and it has already spit out its themed jams to other places in the sets. I guess they had developed their musical ideas into some advanced state where the song itself is implied, (like bop jazz chord progressions) and they are all playing along with some inner platonic ideal of Dark Star that nobody can actually hear. It allows it go anywhere, of course, ultimate freedom. Though today, I’m sort of missing the beauty of the plainly stated theme, and the builds to great heights contrasted with the space. Again, forest for the trees, this reading is in the context of listening to Dark Stars in sequence. On its own it's a masterpiece of spacey improv!
Dahabenzapple:
For me the 2/24, 5/14 & 10/18/74 versions are all incredible. Add in the verse less stunning creation from 6/23/74 and we have 4 of the 5 being high points of the song. Part of the strength is that the “thematic” materials are *not* in Dark Star any longer. Yes it is running out which is why we get only 5 versions out of the 40 concerts.
adamos:
Some quick preview notes from Phil, Billy does a roll and then out of a cymbal wash they're off. There's an easygoing vibe initially but also some pace and tightness to the playing. Nice interweaving right from the start which comes through well on the recording. Jerry's line has some trebly sparkle as he wanders forth. Bob adds complimentary textures and Keith's fills become more prominent as they go. Billy rides the cymbals and Phil works his own subtle line. It feels like something beautiful and intricate is slowly opening up.
There's some stair-stepping starting around 2:25 with multiple players and then they spill out of that and carry forth in the clouds. Things get a little airier for a spell and then slowly some deeper fullness returns. They wind through passages with Jerry and Phil working lines and Bob and Keith accenting nicely. A percolating repeating thing emerges around 4:45 and they lock in with that for while. Jerry ascends and adds some tremolo and then keeps winding forth, higher then lower. Billy's cymbals continue to add subtle sparkle as he works a varying beat.
After 5:50 things start slowing up; Jerry plays some repeating notes and they collectively ease into a deeper zone. It feels like they've emerged in different territory; brooding is a good word for it although there's still some sparkle to it as well. They explore this deeper zone for a good while and there's a descending, spiraling feel. Jerry works some subtle sparkly notes, not quite Sputnik-like but everyone plays off them and the collective sound is really nice, sort of like multi-instrumental wind chimes.
By 10:25 or so this dissipates and they ease along in sparser yet still pretty territory. Not for long however as the interweaving and pace picks right back up. Jerry winds and ascends just a bit and they collectively rise up accented strongly by rolling notes from Keith and Bob. This crests at 12:40 and it feels like the theme is about to emerge. But instead they dissolve into a spacier zone with subtle thematic touches at first but then it's out towards the Kármán line.
They wander in this spacey zone for a spell and then slowly things start picking up. Around 14:20 Keith gets a little thing going and Billy works the beat and Jerry does some quick, short runs and everyone embraces this new jazzy direction. They spin it up nicely and Jerry's guitar cries out and Bill and Phil are working it with plenty of Bob and Keith too. Phil introduces the Elastic Ping Pong riff at 15:45 as noted by bzfgt but that jam doesn't fully materialize. Instead they continue to spin up a complex cauldron that flows along with both groove and abstraction.
By 16:55 or so the groove further coalesces, there's a touch of funkiness from Bob and the intensity rises. They they take it to a small peak with Jerry and others hitting strong notes. Things start to give way after 18:10 and they wind down and spin up the theme, taking their time before fully latching on but then quickly moving on to the verse. Jerry's vocal has as a little extra oomph.
After the verse they reset and Phil, Bob and Keith play some emphatic notes and it feels like something is spinning up. Then there's just a touch of spacey sound and they get into a holding pattern of sorts led by Keith and Bob. A dissolution is expected but Bob and Keith keep going and then Jerry comes in with complimentary sounds that edge them towards spaciness. This turns out to be a nice mini-jam which they eventually let go around 22:30 and then drift further into space.
Phil plays slow spacey notes and there's stretchy guitar from Jerry while Bob works some patterns. Phil lays down some heavier, fuzzier notes starting at 23:40 which seems to presage a darker passage. There's a brief quiet out of which more ominous, melty sounds emerge. But then just when a meltdown is starting to break out Bob inserts the Spanish Jam riff which creates an interesting juxtaposition. Billy latches on to it but Jerry still wants to roar so he keeps at his own melty thing. Keith comes in with something complementary to the Spanish Jam but before long they let it go.
Things partially quiet and Jerry keeps working his stretchy, spacier lines and they hover and swirl a bit. There are hints of thematic melody and they float along in this stretchy transitional zone. Keith plays some repeating notes and Billy is still working a subtle beat while Jerry slowly winds along. Things get quieter again and Jerry's tone shifts to a pretty sparkle complimented by Keith.
Around 26:40 Jerry winds lower briefly then gets a new pattern going that's more sparkly again. Everyone latches on and the collective sound is pretty and melodic and in certain spots almost sounds like it could morph into the PITB riff. They rise to a lovely, uplifting peak and Jerry plays soaring notes and then they shift to a rolling thing just a little lower while still sparking along. It's a really nice passage. The intensity builds again and then they slowly bring it down and transition into Morning Dew.
A wonderful performance. The whole thing is pretty enchanting with varying degrees of loveliness, complexity and spaciness. And even the parts that don’t fully come together are still compelling.
Mr. Rain:
There's some tuning and waiting around for a couple minutes before Dark Star, but no tuning jam this time; instead the crowd gets increasingly excited. Bill starts off Dark Star with a cymbal rush, which seems new to me -- maybe he was doing that all the time but the cymbals are recorded louder now. (I'm following the Miller copy, but the track starts a little soon so it adds some 20 seconds to the timings.)
Crystalline opening, elegantly laying out the theme. Keith is on piano; he takes a little break & comes back at 1:40. Then the jam starts to wander -- at first it feels a little restless & unfocused for a few minutes, the playing a little too busy, patterns forming & dissolving. A jazzy tinge enters the playing. But Jerry channels them into the softer direction he wants: the jam gets smokier around 6m, and they conjure up an opium dream. (Bill keeps busy on drums, which are recorded in stereo, a bit more prominent in the mix than they've been lately.) The music ebbs & flows with its own internal tides, the band sailing as one. Jerry pulls them into a little mini-Sputnik at 9m, which becomes even more clear at 9:30. They're lost in a sparkling fog. After 10:30 the air clears a bit and they languidly putter forward; the playing gradually picks up more drive & energy, which then subsides after 12:30 before it gets too forceful.
Jerry seems to be wandering around randomly at this point, just enjoying the scenery but in no hurry to enter the main theme. The rest of the band swirls around him, drifting on endless tides. Bill starts a kind of tropical beat after 14m, and ever so slowly the band adjusts to it with spicier playing, though it never solidifies into a groove. Phil brings up a brief, choppy Marbles line at 15:45, but he doesn't stick with it; though he hints at it again after 17m I wouldn't really call it a Marbles jam, more a passing quote. The other players have their own thing going, a kind of oblique free-jazz serpent tangle. (Jerry hints at Slipknot at 17:20, in passing.) Finally at 18:25, Jerry brings up the main theme; the boys gather round with a warm embrace, and the verse soon comes at 19:04.
The band gets all wobbly after the verse, but they don't topple into space right away -- Keith & Bob keep spinning their hypnotic patterns over Phil's drone, and Jerry drops in some shimmery wah lines. It's rare to hear Keith not want to step aside for space! But after 22:30 they pause and Phil at last nudges them into the twilight zone. This is very different from the drone & feedback-heavy spaces they were doing in fall '73, more of a melodic wah passage with everyone supporting. Jerry starts making Tiger-like sounds at 24m, the others following him at first. But as a meltdown descends, Bob starts a chipper Spanish Jam riff at 24:15, which Keith & Bill are happy to back up, but Jerry & Phil are not interested! This immediately derails the meltdown, and instead by 25m they collectively change direction and head to a goopy melodic place. Jerry's doing his slow poignant wah textures while Keith in particular seems fired-up and wanting to play more energetically. The next couple minutes are kind of indecisive (but pretty), the band torn between spacey clouds or a rhythmic beat. But after 27m Jerry finds the solution by pulling out a beautiful melody riff that pulls everyone together. A very nice uplifting jam around this theme closes out Dark Star. Jerry gracefully winds it down after 29m and glides into Morning Dew.
Excellent version, weaving an intoxicating spell. The opening jam is a long hazy voyage through distant galaxies, the second part more of a tug-of-war where they go this way & that. The band isn't quite working together, they're a little at odds about where they want to take this, and especially after the verse they're in disagreement and pulling in different directions. And yet, as a group they're together enough to make it work, to create a psychedelic fever dream where phantom themes flit past and disappear.
The audience tape sounds surprisingly good for Winterland. Murkier than the sbd, the music sounds even more like it's floating in the clouds of an opium den: a recommended listen to hear an especially trance-like Dark Star, foggy and beautiful.
Miller's notes say there's a tape cut in Dark Star. The audience tape & both of the matrix mixes of this show have Dark Star at 29:30, so there are 30 seconds cut in the sbd! The cut comes at about 25:50 in Miller's copy (disguised with a crossfade) -- from about 25:35-26:05 in the audience tape is aud-only. Nice spacey part, too: another reason to listen to the audience tape!
I'd agree with this, but would emphasize that the spaciness is well-done and powerful in its own way. For me the aud tape in particular brought out the surreal quality of this music, all a smoky cosmic swirl. Not only do the Dead keep from committing to a groove almost the whole time, they manage to avoid every theme they've been playing in Dark Star. No sooner does an idea get brought up than it's tossed away. Nonetheless, when the main theme does finally come it's very satisfying, and Jerry manages to round out Dark Star with a solid catchy melody that contrasts with the amorphous haze it comes out of -- the classic Dark Star technique.
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