On 12/15/71, the Grateful Dead were playing the second of 2 nights at beautiful Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, MI. There's even a fun Run Rudolph Run in there, for some holiday spirit! I say it's about time that Furthur graces that acoustically perfect venue.

Set 1: Bertha, Me And Bobby McGee, Mr. Charlie, China Cat Sunflower-> I Know You Rider, Beat It On Down The Line, It Hurts Me Too, Cumberland Blues, Jack Straw, You Win Again, Run Rudolph Run, Playin' In The Band, Brown Eyed Women, Mexicali Blues, Big Railroad Blues, Brokedown Palace, El Paso, Casey Jones
Set 2:Dark Star -> Deal, Sugar Magnolia, Turn On Your Lovelight -> King Bee -> I'm A Man -> Turn On Your Lovelight, E: One More Saturday Night

archive.org/details/gd1971-12-15.sbd.miller.97718.sbeok.flac16

And a few other shows on this date, including the special show when Jerry returned after his coma in 1986.

12-15-72 Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, Ca.

archive.org/details/gd1972-12-15.sbd.yerys.2329.sbeok.shnf

12-15-78 Boutwell Auditorium, Birmingham, Al.

archive.org/details/gd78-12-15.sony.wiley.9479.sbeok.shnf

12-15-86 Oakland Coliseum Arena, Oakland, Ca.

archive.org/details/gd1986-12-15.sbd.wal...r.99035.sbeok.flac16

12-15-94 Los Angeles Sports Arena, Los Angeles, Ca

archive.org/details/gd94-12-15.akg.ladner.14266.sbeok.shnf

I was at that 94 LA show. Drove from Va. to LA . My first Shakedown and it was amazing and after show I got to say hi to Jerry and he said hello back the highlight of the trip foe sho. Next night I remember Jerry singing He's Gone and smashed His face against the mic. I was like holy shit did he really do that.

THE significance of 12/15 in GD lore is the return of Jerry and the GD following the coma on 12/15/86.

I was living in Boulder at the time, and certainly not in position to make the trip. But hell, why should that have stopped me? Rather than do the responsible thing, I loaded up in a car with three friends and headed west. Jerry (although he had played a couple of JGB gigs a couple of weeks prior) was returning to the stage!

We arrived in Berkeley at about 4:00 a.m. after driving all day and night. Driving down the street, we passed several people hauling Christmas trees, and then a Christmas tree lot with the fence torn down! After some well earned sleep at a friend's house, we headed to the show.

I saw the Grateful Dead from 4/30/81 - 7/9/95, close to 200 shows. If I told ya 'bout all that went down... But it's this moment that I will take with me always: the lights dropping down in the Oakland Coliseum Arena, and an absolute explosion of JOY! Jerry walking onto the stage - giving that little offhanded wave, hoisting the guitar. And people just literally falling into each other's arms. Tears streaming. I've never heard a roar like it and don't to ever hear anything like it again.

For one moment - no concern about the setlist, about the muffed lyric, about people invading your space, about ticket price. Nothing but pure, unadulterated gratitude and love of THIS moment. That we were there. Together. And that the bus was rolling again.

The inevitable Touch of Grey rode on the voice of every single person in the room. The Candyman - hand me my ol' guitar/pass the whiskey 'round/won't you tell everybody you know that the Candyman's in TOWN!!!!!!! These weren't just cheers, they meant something that night.

Were there other great 12/15 shows? Of course. Maybe some that might be "better" than 12/15/86. But let me tell you about the time that we got Jerry, the Grateful Dead and each other all back at the same time...what a gift.

Tombo wrote:


Absolutely. Anyone only need to listen to the show and hear what you're saying.
I had a ticket but was on some hard times, and had to part with it.
So what else was there to do but stay home and listen to the Grateful Dead hour, as there were no streams then. David Gans, during the broadcast, offered a ticket for the next nights show for the first 10 callers. I was one of the lucky 10, and it was still quite an exhilarating feeling, despite having seem him with JGB at the Stone in his return to the stage the October preceding.

That next night - 12/16/86 - was one of the best shows of the YEAR. Still one of my favorite pick-me-up listens. The Box of Rain is BEAUTIFUL.