Grateful Dead | Here Comes Sunshine 1973 – Boxset Review

Attention, it’s another live release from the Grateful Dead! Yes, there’s a regular rotation of the band’s live material bubbling to the surface, although you might want to take a step back Here comes sunshine in 1973. We’re talking a 17-CD line-up of five never-released shows recorded in the spring of 1973, arguably a peak period during the union of Jerry Garcia, Bobby Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, and Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux.

By all accounts, 1973 was a pivotal year for the Grateful Dead. Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, a founding member who sang, played keyboards and played the harp, passed away on March 8 after a long illness (he played his last gig with the band last summer). Regardless, new music was already brewing. “Eyes Of The World”, “Here Comes Sunshine” and “China Doll” all made their live debuts in February and later ended up at 1973 follow the tidethe group’s first album on their own label, and in 1974 From the Mars Hotel. The Dead evolved into a more sophisticated ensemble than they had been in the ’60s, but still pounded their own drums without much interference.

When the band returned from an 11-day tour of the East Coast in the spring of 1973, they were in fine form when they arrived in Des Moines, Iowa on May 13th. The Mother’s Day show was an electrifying three-set burner, with one contestant saying that it was raining on “Looks Like Rain,” the sun came out on the next number, “Here Comes Sunshine,” and a showed on “Sugar Magnolia.” double rainbow. You can practically feel the drips as “Looks Like Rain” smashes through your speakers, though Lesh’s “Box Of Rain” gets pretty soaked too.

After you’ve dried off and caught your breath, you can hop on over to the Santa Barbara show starting May 20th. Seemingly because they worked so well in Iowa, the Dead reprized the tracks “China Cat Sunflower” and “I Know You Rider.” combination plate; an epic, slightly shorter “Playing In The Band”; and a poignant “Jack Straw” in which Garcia and Weir swap verses and cross their six-strings while Keith Godchaux’s deft piano work shimmers through the gaps.

Setlists didn’t vary as much as they did back then, having recorded a whopping seven studio albums in the late ’70s (down from just three in the ’80s). Back then, nobody cared to hear “Sugaree,” “Truckin’,” and the newer songs the band played night after night.

Legend has it that a falling speaker nearly ended the afternoon concert in Santa Barbara, but the Dead persevered and put on a terrific performance that included a lively cover of Noah Lewis’ “Big Railroad Blues” and an enticing “Jam” that unfolded meanders before merging into a “drums” segment. That’s eventually swallowed up by Lesh’s rumbling bass intro on “The Other One,” which in turn mutates into a chaotic, galloping rumble of palatial elegance. It was a musical domino game that likely kept the beach town going for the week that followed.

A trip to the West Coast would not be complete without a visit to San Francisco for another three set concert at Kezar Stadium. The homecoming was bittersweet, as this was the dead man’s first appearance in the city by the bay without her beloved pigsty. It was another afternoon show with other highlights like “Jack Straw”, “Looks Like Rain”, “Playing In The Band” and “Here Comes Sunshine”. They roll through a spirited “The Race is On”. Donna Jean Godchaux takes the spotlight on Loretta Lynn’s “You Ain’t Woman Enough,” though her vocals are a little quiet in the mix.

Although “He’s Gone” wasn’t written for Pigpen, it would become a significant tribute to the late musician. One can’t help but think that inclusion in the Kezar setlist was intentional. The dynamics surrounding this particular version, especially in the middle, conjure up a divine aura that evokes vivid memories of Pigpen and the origins of the Grateful Dead. You have to imagine that after the end of this number not a dry eye remained.

The acclaimed two shows on June 9th and 10th at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, DC, recorded by the only Owsley “Bear” Stanley, could be the crown jewel of the collection. The weekend run also featured the Allman Brothers Band, so there was great expectation that the two camps would somehow mix. The first show is the shortest of all five and features many of the same songs they played. Still, it resonates with particularly punchy renditions of Chuck Berry’s “Promised Land” as well as “Deal,” “Loose Lucy” and “Beat It Down The Line.”

Lesh really sinks into a particularly bold “Box Of Rain” and “Greatest Story Ever Told” is a good example of how close the band was. Without second drummer Mickey Hart, who left The Dead in 1971 and fully reinstated in 1976, original timekeeper Bill Kreutzmann became an accelerated heartbeat that helped take the songs in new directions.

On June 10, 1973, the Allman Brothers Band’s Dickey Betts and Butch Trucks joined the Dead for a crowning third set. In addition to its inclusion in the 17 disc Here comes sunshine in 1973the almost five-hour show is also available as a set with four CDs and eight LPs. The atypical opener ‘Morning Dew’ effectively takes off and pulls you in as it builds and blooms. A rather droning “Ramble On Rose” has Garcia purring, while “Wave That Flag,” another new song that would become “US Blues” after this gig, will cheer you up and salute Old Glory before lacing up your dancing shoes .

There is little doubt that “Bird Song” swings its melody back and forth with the ease of a swinging pendulum, accentuated by Kreutzmann’s subtle touch. At 26 minutes, Dark Star is everything you can imagine and more. Lesh turns his bass into a lead instrument while Kreutzmann circles the changes like a snake, assessing its opponents and looking for a way in. Returning to the chorus, the song resolves into a beautiful “He’s Gone” followed by an equally seductive “Kairatte.”

The third movement leads easily with a tepid nod to Bob Dylan’s “It Take A Lot to Laugh, It Take A Train To Cry.” When all else fails, oldies like “That’s Alright Mama,” “Promised Land,” “Not Fade Away,” and “Johnny B. Goode” were obvious hip-shakers guaranteed to keep the stadium buzzing and captivating to the end. Garcia and Dickey Betts play their guitars particularly wildly on “Not Fade Away” and “Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad,” turning it into a sort of Allman Brothers Band and Grateful Dead collective that would inspire over half a million people Venture to Watkins Glen the following month.

The Here comes sunshine in 1973 The Dead.net exclusive box set is as impressive as its content. It’s packed with liner notes, show-specific details, a custom-colored tenugui, and a poster. Whichever format you choose, you can consider this release as something exceptional compared to the others that have come before and since, as the vault is constantly being dug up for sonic treasures. You should get involved – the anticipation of these recordings becoming legally available was unusually high. It only took 50 years, but it was definitely worth the wait.

~ Shawn Perry