The year 1991 is often called a very good year for the Grateful Dead, and with their concert on June 17 at Giants Stadium, I can understand why. It was a real challenge to replace Brent Mydland after his passing in 1990, but the Bruce Hornsby/Vince Welnick combination proved to be a gifted duo. For the umpteenth time in their career, the Dead found a new lease on life and style, and I was curious to see what this concert at RFK Stadium would bring. It was a venue that suited them well, as they played there no fewer than 15 times, making them the leader in terms of the number of performances.
This time, no multiple nights in a row, as they would do a few days later at Giants Stadium, but what a wonderful concert this is! I cannot imagine finding anything better in the year 1991 (coincidentally also my birth year), and that is partly due to the setlist. While material from Blues for Allah usually remains fairly limited, here we are treated to no less than 4 songs (!) from that studio album. Personally, I can't really view Help on the Way and Slipknot separately, although Slipknot made its live debut at Winterland on October 20 1974, whereas Help on the Way didn't debut until a year later at that same Winterland on June 17 1975, and Blues for Allah just happens to be my favorite Grateful Dead studio album. In any case, it is a concert that swings wonderfully, and I really can't imagine being able to sit still for long during the first set. Hornsby immediately pulls out his accordion for Cold Rain and Snow, and Welnick is truly on fire during Maggie's Farm. I have no idea why, but I always enjoy these kinds of songs where they all take a verse, especially since I haven't seen Welnick do that before. At the encore on June 17, it was only Phil Lesh, Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, and Bruce Hornsby who sang a verse.
So, lots of Blues for Allah stuff (and the audience - just like me - goes absolutely wild when they hear the first notes of Franklin's Tower), but we are also treated to a Dark Star! Admittedly a fairly short one, where only the first verse is sung, but that too was a very pleasant surprise. It is also striking how Welnick simply lights up a cigarette in the run-up to the Dark Star jam. Furthermore, the interplay really stands out again. It sometimes looks a bit messy; certainly with Estimated Prophet, they don't seem to be entirely on the same wavelength, but that is precisely what gives their performances that little extra charm. Hornsby still seems to be wondering how on earth he ended up here and looks around like a kid in a candy store, while Garcia's hair blows in the wind and Welnick plays his heart out. The first time I’ve known him to be so present; he should do that more often. Furthermore, a number of personal favorites like Turn on Your Lovelight, although that will always remain a Pigpen song in my heart, and a fine It's All Over Now Baby Blue cover by (naturally) Bob Dylan.
I don't hold the 90s in such high regard, and I always thought June 17th was a solitary outlier, but nothing could be further from the truth. I would even rate this show at RFK just a little bit higher, if only for that amazing setlist. June 17th will also always hold a special place; it was my first Grateful Dead at the Movies, but the Blues for Allah stuff and a great Welnick win me over. The last 3 songs are actually from another show, namely July 12 1990.
Tracklist:
- Cold Rain And Snow
- Wang Dang Doodle
- Jack-A-Roe
- Big River
- Maggie's Farm
- Row Jimmy
- Black-Throated Wind
- Tennessee Jed
- The Music Never Stopped
- Help On The Way
- Slipknot!
- Franklin's Tower
- Estimated Prophet
- Dark Star
- Drums
- Space
- Stella Blue
- Turn On Your Lovelight
- It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
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