Grateful Dead, 4/18/1969, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana

Grateful Dead, 4/18/1969, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana

1 set
Hard To Handle, Morning Dew, Cryptical Envelopement-> Drums-> The Other One-> Cryptical Envelopement-> Sitting On Top Of The World-> I'm A King Bee, Doin' That Rag, Turn On Your Love Light, Cosmic Charlie, Beat It On Down The Line

In honor of this show's 37th anniversary, (and mine!) I thought I would post an abbreviated retro review of this often unfairly maligned and overlooked gem from 1969. I'm not sure why this show gets such a bad rap, particularly because it has so many high points that make it stand out.

First of all, there's a near-flawless soundboard source circulating pretty openly. I had a difficult time finding someone with this show before the Archive made it available to the general public, but since then it has been widely circulated. There's a few cuts and dropouts but nothing too bad. The sound is crisp and clear, with a great mix.

Jerry Garcia is in fine form, fresh, energetic, vocally and musically. Pig Pen steals the show, however. This show should hold an honored position in anyone's collection for the Lovelight alone: over 25 minutes of rocking and raunchy hilarity, this Lovelight is truly epic and phenominal. Other highlights include a really good Cryptical->TOO->Cryptical with a nice, easy segue into a surprisingly energetic Sitting On Top Of the World. Fun stuff. Doing That Rag is a fun song, with a nice easygoing jam at the end that is unfortunately marred by a dropoff during some of the best jamming. Cosmic Charlie seems short and aborted, not one of the better versions. King Bee is slow but good if you like that kind of bluesy Pig Pen stuff. The Dew, near the beginning of the set, is a Garcia showpiece, with highly emotional singing and playing. A stellar version.

This show is a worthy addition to anyones collection. As my "date of birth" show, it will always hold an extra special place in mine. Give it a stream at the archive, http://www.archive.org/audio/etree-details-db.php?id=12871 and if you like it, drop me an email at Jobygoob@aol.com and I would be happy to direct you to a link where you can download the show in MP3 format.