The Dead, formerly The Grateful Dead, are touring again, their first tour under this name. They’re about midway through the tour, which began June 17 in Virginia Beach.
I went Saturday night to the Tweeter Center in lovely downtown Camden, New Jersey. It’s an outdoor venue, and I’d never seen them outside before.
So first, is anyone else going to any of the Dead shows this summer? (A list of dates and venues is here.)
And second, let me tell ya about the Camden show!
I went with my little brother, who’s all of 17 and 99/100ths old. We went to a show last fall, when they were “The Other Ones.” It’s always so fun to break people in! After all, these shows really are unique experiences. I’d call them snowflake concerts, as no two are alike.
With the Tweeter, most people have lawn seating. We got there very early and paid the ungodly sum of $15 to park … three blocks away. Hey, traffic was shuttled thataway.
We went into the Center early, too, not hanging out too much outside. Found a prime spot on the lawn. Watched people rent chairs - expensive, I’m guessing.
Willie Nelson opened, going on around 6 pm, and played for about 90 minutes. Some songs I actually recognized, and he sounded good.
The band came onstage around 7:30 or so. Here’s the first set:
Alabama was a great start, sounded just like the album. Bobby was in form on vocals, although Jerry always sang it.
Bobby, in fact, sang nearly every song, but they have a new vocalist for this tour: Joan Osbourne. You might remember her from the song “One of Us.” She was absolutely outstanding. After Bobby did Alabama, Mama Tried, and Little Red Rooster (the latter two are Bobby staples, really), Joan joined him in The Race Is On, and I gotta tell you - they sounded perfect.
Next up was a sprightly Truckin’, which is aging but still a definite crowd pleaser. I always love stamping the ground when they get to “Set up like a bowling pin, Knocked down, it gets to wearing thin, they just won’t let you be…”
Joan sang “Built to Last” from the album of the same name. Wasn’t a tune I’m familiar with, but she did a great job with it.
Let’s also note that it’s often pretty tough for any musician or vocalist, no matter how talented, to simply slide into the band’s fold. There are so many nuances to their style of play, and it takes no small amount of skill to know when to jump into a song, when to finish one, and so forth, as these guys usually don’t pause much between songs, opting instead to let one flow into the other.
The final song of the first set was a traditional show stopper: One More Saturday Night. I’m sure they play it any night, but it always feels good to have them play it on a Saturday. I’ve always felt that this song is one that could be played for anyone, anywhere, as it feels the most like a traditional rock song. You could play it at a wedding reception and let people dance to it.
The band broke after this seven-song set. The intermission was about 30 minutes.
[Second set in next post; wise not to make OP any more unwieldy than is necessary.]
