1/17/69: robertson gymnasium, santa barbara, CA.

early 1969 finds the dead playing in luminous improvisatory mode, served up with an overwhelming feeling of immediacy. a few weeks prior to the avalon ballroom performance that would provide part of the music for the live dead LP, this performance is a prime example of a band fully in the midst of some absolutely vital creation. the 80-minute set presents some of the most affecting music i’ve heard in quite a while. of note, the dark star > st. stephen > the eleven > death don’t have no mercy sequence is stunning, played with an intensity and spirit par excellence. of course, the mythic status afforded the material on live dead makes it almost impossible for long-time devotees to view it objectively, but rest assured, the music on this evening is of the same innovative and vociferous quality. much of the show is a dramatic flow of dynamic ideas between the band members, who repeatedly pass rhythms and phrases across the stage. the energy is high and the interplay and quick directional changes are quite extraordinary—clearly an unassailable peak in the history of the grateful dead. listen up. https://archive.org/details/gd69-01-17.sbd.miller.89798.sbeok.flac16