Dead-A-Day: On This Day in GD-Land

[Tone Weaver]

51 years later and still powerful. The Dead kicked off their incredible Europe '72 tour at Wembley Empire Pool 4-7-72.

I've been plunging into the 11 Dark Stars of the tour. I keep being distracted by the just as fantastic Other Ones. Playing In the Band really blossomed on this tour as well. These were the big JAM tunes, apart from Pig's own special takes on Caution, Lovelight and Good Lovin'.



04/07/72 (Fri) Wembley Empire Pool - London, , England
Set 1: Greatest Story Ever Told, Sugaree, Chinatown Shuffle, China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider, Big Boss Man, Black Throated Wind, Loser, Mr. Charlie, Beat It On Down The Line, Tennessee Jed, Playing In The Band, Casey Jones

Set 2: Truckin' > Drums > The Other One > El Paso > The Other One > Wharf Rat, Ramble On Rose, Sugar Magnolia, Not Fade Away > Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad > Not Fade Away, E: One More Saturday Night

[patchthenation]

Thank you TW!! Does anyone have the 2023 GD calendar? They still list the Europe 72 dates as 50th anniversary. Major oversight.

[Tone Weaver]

Dark Star had it's spacey voyages previously, but by '72 Keith blended perfectly into the cosmic mix that would break the 30 minute mark.

I've been binging on the 11 versions they played on that tour. By the time I circle back for another spin, they are still fresh and amazing.

This fantastic version launches the long strange European trip of their psychedelic symphony through the "transitive nightfall of diamonds".

"Shall we go" through those 11 intergalactic movements of their magnum opus?

4-8-72: First epic Dark Star crashes in Europe.

[patchthenation]

Happy Easter! earlier this morning, I enjoyed listening to the holiday-appropriate GSET > Promised opener (and the rest of the show) from 4/9/87 at UIC Pavilion in Chicago.



And in the spirit of the day/holiday

[patchthenation]

Astounding video quality for the Duke 4/12/78 show!

[SunshineSue]

Astounding video quality for the Duke 4/12/78 show!

I'm not usually a Duke fan, but this is truly some priceless video!

[patchthenation]

Second of two shows at Patrick Fieldhouse, and I have to post those Enjoy 4/13/83 in Vermont:

[Tone Weaver]

The Dark Stars over Europe began with fireworks at Wembley on 4-8-72. Brits were treated to a wonderland space-scape adventure, visiting the planet of the psychedelic waltz before the first verse. (The first verse was typically the only DS vocals on the tour.) Phil's Supernova blast off then took the band into lush interdimensional peaks and valleys that eventually revealed a nod to the bass lick in Come Together. This was only two years after the Beatles broke up. They returned to Earth with a little major key folk dance ditty before landing in Sugar Mag.

Brits who missed it would get three more chances to catch a Dark Star that tour. The pattern for their gigs was alternating Dark Star and the Other One, with the exception of the Bickershaw Festival on May 7, Billy's 26th birthday. They would play shorter versions of both DS and TOO separated by a drum solo. The English rain would dampen these takes somewhat. Tuning was more an issue at this show.

The mainland would see the next Dark Star in Copenhagen on April 14. It landed with a space jam that developed into the full intensity feel of an Other One jam.

After the music settled down a bit Jerry would sculpt swells of shimmering sound from his guitar's volume knob, suggesting the effect of an audio Aurora Borealis.

Later Phil would steer them into one of his brisk descending major scale lines for the band to rock out a bit more. The band would lock in with a D-A-G-A chord progression. This interlude would be repeated in later versions.

They would return to more modal, minor and feedback stages as typical of the Dark Stars of the era.

Wonderful stuff. They would play their next Dark Star at the same Tivoli Gardens venue three days later. It's not easy picking favorites, but I'll prefer the next one, if for no other reason than it was a minute longer.

Dark Star, April 14, 1972:

[strangerinboulder]

The Dark Stars over Europe began with fireworks at Wembley on 4-8-72. Brits were treated to a wonderland space-scape adventure, visiting the planet of the psychedelic waltz before the first verse. (The first verse was typically the only DS vocals on the tour.) Phil's Supernova blast off then took the band into lush interdimensional peaks and valleys that eventually revealed a nod to the bass lick in Come Together. This was only two years after the Beatles broke up. They returned to Earth with a little major key folk dance ditty before landing in Sugar Mag.

Brits who missed it would get three more chances to catch a Dark Star that tour. The pattern for their gigs was alternating Dark Star and the Other One, with the exception of the Bickershaw Festival on May 7, Billy's 26th birthday. They would play shorter versions of both DS and TOO separated by a drum solo. The English rain would dampen these takes somewhat. Tuning was more an issue at this show.

The mainland would see the next Dark Star in Copenhagen on April 14. It landed with a space jam that developed into the full intensity feel of an Other One jam.

After the music settled down a bit Jerry would sculpt swells of shimmering sound from his guitar's volume knob, suggesting the effect of an audio Aurora Borealis.

Later Phil would steer them into one of his brisk descending major scale lines for the band to rock out a bit more. The band would lock in with a D-A-G-A chord progression. This interlude would be repeated in later versions.

They would return to more modal, minor and feedback stages as typical of the Dark Stars of the era.

Wonderful stuff. They would play their next Dark Star at the same Tivoli Gardens venue three days later. It's not easy picking favorites, but I'll prefer the next one, if for no other reason than it was a minute longer.

Dark Star, April 14, 1972:

You and your Europe '72 shows...appalling

[Tone Weaver]

The Dark Stars over Europe began with fireworks at Wembley on 4-8-72. Brits were treated to a wonderland space-scape adventure, visiting the planet of the psychedelic waltz before the first verse. (The first verse was typically the only DS vocals on the tour.) Phil's Supernova blast off then took the band into lush interdimensional peaks and valleys that eventually revealed a nod to the bass lick in Come Together. This was only two years after the Beatles broke up. They returned to Earth with a little major key folk dance ditty before landing in Sugar Mag.

Brits who missed it would get three more chances to catch a Dark Star that tour. The pattern for their gigs was alternating Dark Star and the Other One, with the exception of the Bickershaw Festival on May 7, Billy's 26th birthday. They would play shorter versions of both DS and TOO separated by a drum solo. The English rain would dampen these takes somewhat. Tuning was more an issue at this show.

The mainland would see the next Dark Star in Copenhagen on April 14. It landed with a space jam that developed into the full intensity feel of an Other One jam.

After the music settled down a bit Jerry would sculpt swells of shimmering sound from his guitar's volume knob, suggesting the effect of an audio Aurora Borealis.

Later Phil would steer them into one of his brisk descending major scale lines for the band to rock out a bit more. The band would lock in with a D-A-G-A chord progression. This interlude would be repeated in later versions.

They would return to more modal, minor and feedback stages as typical of the Dark Stars of the era.

Wonderful stuff. They would play their next Dark Star at the same Tivoli Gardens venue three days later. It's not easy picking favorites, but I'll prefer the next one, if for no other reason than it was a minute longer.

Dark Star, April 14, 1972:

You and your Europe '72 shows...appalling

...And these are just the Dark Stars I'm talking about.