What a long strange trip its been!!!! Jumped on the bus and still riding ( actually was allready on the bus so to speak -just my 1st show). The beautiful Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh - held around 5k--- Mom got me tix for my 16th Bday through Tickettron - and not even the first day on sale!!! I was about 6th row on the balcony dead center--- people were vending "the bus" up and down the aisles like beer vendors. The crowd well--- it was a lot different from todays. I'd venture nearly 99% plus were "on the bus" and the passing of voluminous amounts of joints started from the time the lights went down till the last note. It was damn near impossible to go more than a minute or 2 without being passed a joint. The crowd was a real freak show... serious tour rats everywhere... the closest I've ever saw a crowd that resemebled the crowd in the 74 GD Movie. I'm sure some of it was just the "first time affect of attending a show" but I saw some truely bizarre folks.... and it wasn't all JUST my imagination/hallucination !!!!! LOL ....
Grateful Dead
03/06/81 (Fri) Stanley Theater - Pittsburgh, PA
Set 1: Jack Straw, Peggy-O, Cassidy, They Love Each Other > El Paso, Row Jimmy > Little Red Rooster, Brown Eyed Women, Let It Grow > Deal
Set 2: Samson & Delilah, It Must Have Been The Roses, Estimated Prophet > Franklin's Tower > Drums > The Other One > Stella Blue > Sugar Magnolia, E: Don't Ease Me In
Going in I had skeletons from the closet & American Beauty and had been exposed to more tunes. I actually knew about 1/3 of the songs. Song number one of my GD career : Jack Straw...had me rocking out the gate.... No one I repeat no one sat the whole show except for Drums.......and many stood for this too... after Cassidy Bobby decides to inform us that "not a
person here knows that Billy keeps a frog inside of his snare drum..he's weird about that"... then the following 3 songs none of which I knew.. I remember thinking geeze this is kind of a country band .. I was snapped back by the Rooster as a huge Stones fan I knew this one and loved it. I remember being way way out there during Let it Grow--I didn't know the song but I was entranced. Jerry came back with a wailing Deal that I did know and I remember being totally blown away.
My buddy says to me "is that it" when the lights came on ..and Jerry wouldn't leave us allready would he? Well some folks were moving about but no one was leaving. I asked the guy next to me they play more don't they? After a big belly laugh he assured me they 'd be back. Everyone around us was super cool knew we were probably a couple of the youngest people there and were "psychedelisized" -- and a feeling of older brother sisters welcoming us and making sure we were ok was quite comforting ( I had been out there numerous times before but never at a GD show).
My biggest memories of set 2 was I loved Estimated ...which I didn't know ... I remember C A L I F O R N I A being footprinted on my brain for weeks. Next up was Franklins another I didn't know but was loving "roll away the dew" which was also in my head for weeks.....probably my clearest memory is during Franklins this group of like 4 guys late 20's ..none of which could have weighed over 125 lbs... they were super skinny.... going absolutely bonkers dancing and rocking during Franklins and the look of pure euphoria on their faces I'll never forget. In retrospect I reallize these guys were hard core tour rats who had probably allready seen 100's of shows. I remember thinking I can't wait to do this again ...this is the SHIT!!! Drums were a revelation...they had huge kits and all sounds were organic and man made. Post drums the Other One was playing blender with my head.... then I remember Jerry giving us a nice sweet rest with a really great tune ( stella which I didn't know) before a tune I did know and a balls to the walls Sugar Mag that caused such pandemonium in the crowd I thought we were all gonna levitate. I was hooked.
Needless to say my buddy and I wanted to try to recapture this the next night and got back aboard the bus and listened to all the dead we had the next night. We took his dogs for a walk and it was just incredible--this was really cool too LOL ... the stuff then was so clean.. ah man gone are the daze....
Grateful Dead
03/06/81 (Fri) Stanley Theater - Pittsburgh, PA
Set 1: Jack Straw, Peggy-O, Cassidy, They Love Each Other > El Paso, Row Jimmy > Little Red Rooster, Brown Eyed Women, Let It Grow > Deal
Set 2: Samson & Delilah, It Must Have Been The Roses, Estimated Prophet > Franklin's Tower > Drums > The Other One > Stella Blue > Sugar Magnolia, E: Don't Ease Me In
Going in I had skeletons from the closet & American Beauty and had been exposed to more tunes. I actually knew about 1/3 of the songs. Song number one of my GD career : Jack Straw...had me rocking out the gate.... No one I repeat no one sat the whole show except for Drums.......and many stood for this too... after Cassidy Bobby decides to inform us that "not a
person here knows that Billy keeps a frog inside of his snare drum..he's weird about that"... then the following 3 songs none of which I knew.. I remember thinking geeze this is kind of a country band .. I was snapped back by the Rooster as a huge Stones fan I knew this one and loved it. I remember being way way out there during Let it Grow--I didn't know the song but I was entranced. Jerry came back with a wailing Deal that I did know and I remember being totally blown away.
My buddy says to me "is that it" when the lights came on ..and Jerry wouldn't leave us allready would he? Well some folks were moving about but no one was leaving. I asked the guy next to me they play more don't they? After a big belly laugh he assured me they 'd be back. Everyone around us was super cool knew we were probably a couple of the youngest people there and were "psychedelisized" -- and a feeling of older brother sisters welcoming us and making sure we were ok was quite comforting ( I had been out there numerous times before but never at a GD show).
My biggest memories of set 2 was I loved Estimated ...which I didn't know ... I remember C A L I F O R N I A being footprinted on my brain for weeks. Next up was Franklins another I didn't know but was loving "roll away the dew" which was also in my head for weeks.....probably my clearest memory is during Franklins this group of like 4 guys late 20's ..none of which could have weighed over 125 lbs... they were super skinny.... going absolutely bonkers dancing and rocking during Franklins and the look of pure euphoria on their faces I'll never forget. In retrospect I reallize these guys were hard core tour rats who had probably allready seen 100's of shows. I remember thinking I can't wait to do this again ...this is the SHIT!!! Drums were a revelation...they had huge kits and all sounds were organic and man made. Post drums the Other One was playing blender with my head.... then I remember Jerry giving us a nice sweet rest with a really great tune ( stella which I didn't know) before a tune I did know and a balls to the walls Sugar Mag that caused such pandemonium in the crowd I thought we were all gonna levitate. I was hooked.
Needless to say my buddy and I wanted to try to recapture this the next night and got back aboard the bus and listened to all the dead we had the next night. We took his dogs for a walk and it was just incredible--this was really cool too LOL ... the stuff then was so clean.. ah man gone are the daze....
