Dead in Frogtown

I happened to notice Turner Classic Movies this morning was showing in order:

David Copperfield

A Tale Of Two Cities

Scrooge

Hmmm... Scrooge in February? That's cool and I actually wanted to watch it 'cause who says you can't watch Christmas movies only in December... right, Sugarmag (who just recently watched The Santa Clause 3 with her kids?!)

Anyway... Copperfield, Tale of Two Cities, Scrooge -- what do all of these films have in common? Anyone? Anyone?? Bueller??? CORRECT: they all star Matthew Broderick! No, wait... they're all from works by Charles Dickens. Yeah, that's it.

Hmmmm... must be Dickens' birthday or somethin' and TCM was doin' a little commemoratin' and rememberin', etc. That's cool. But ya know what? I prefer Mark Twain, thanks.

Hmmmmm... speaking of Mark Twain, how's about a little Grateful Dead?!

Now how in the world did I go from Mark Twain to the Grateful Dead? Anyone? Something to do with a young Samuel Clemens and a frog, a jumping frog... in a town called Angels Camp. (Now, I didn't actually have to spell it out for ya, did I?!)

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Grateful Dead -- August 22 1987
Calaveras County Fairground
Angels Camp, California

.
Mountain Aire Music Festival -- David Lindley & El Rayo-X then Santana opened
.

1st Set: Touch Of Grey-> Little Red Rooster, Tons Of Steel,
Friend Of The Devil, My Brother Esau, Tennessee Jed,
When I Paint My Masterpiece-> Bird Song,
Good Morning Little Schoolgirl*#, In The Midnight Hour*

Set 2: Hell In A Bucket, When Push Comes To Shove,
Estimated Prophet-> Eyes Of The World-> Drums-> Space->
The Other One-> Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad->
Throwing Stones-> Turn On Your Lovelight

Encore: U.S. Blues
.
* with Carlos Santana -- # 1st Time Played since 9/19/70 (over 1,100 shows!)

Even though it starts a little bit Audience-sounding, this is not a bad recording. I'm a-thinkin' there was an unneeded mic open because at 1:20 of Rooster, some adjustment is made and a little of that extra crowd noise dissipates; the soundboard clears up a bunch at that point. There are a couple rough patches here and there, notably at the beginning of Bucket but overall this is pretty sweet.

Without a doubt, Carlos on Schoolgirl is the first set highlight! Well, at least for me. Very cool the way Weir introduced him and they go into something not done since Pigpen. It's a nice set basically all the way through but the end just shines! Midnight Hour rocks the first half to such a great close.

Bobby, during Estimated, really begins to go off with some screamage that puts quite a charge into the crowd. Sound guy Dan Healy begins tweaking his mic a little and I think Weir just kinda runs with it, in a manner of speaking; he's actually kind of subdued but he really works it and gives the song quite an added layer of life.

I'm not gonna spend a lot of time reviewing this one. After a few listens so far, I really just want to Press Play on it again. It's good stuff with barely anything bad to say about it. I've posted the Deadhead's Taping Compendium review below, if you're interested.

Oh, and a side note: I tried to locate a copy of the Santana opener which I wanted to include in this post for folks to also download... but Crikey!, not an easy find for 8/22. Had I gone and posted 8/23 then that'd be a different story but one show at a time, a'ight?

transcribed from: The Deadhead's Taping Compendium, Volume III: An In-Depth Guide To The Music of the Grateful Dead on Tape, 1986-1995 [out of print] The opening show the boys played at the Mountain Aire Music Festival in August of 1987 comes charging out of the gates thanks in large part to Mr. Phillip Lesh. After a rousing "Touch of Grey" opener with strong vocals by everyone and thunderclap bass blasts, the band heads right into "Little Red Rooster" without a breath. Phil's blasts have become even louder, like funky soul squalls, and Bobby works, and then overworks, the slide effect. "Tons of Steel" falls flat musically after a long break in the action even though both Brent and Phil are both singing their hearts out. Jerry finally steps forward with "Friend of the Devil" laying down beautiful cascades of notes while Brent adds scintillating fills on the keys. The whole band is subtly clicking while Weir rasps and hollers the morality play of "Brother Esau." The "Tennessee Jed" that follows is not bad but is nothing special, though Brent is again playing his ass off! "When I Paint My Masterpiece" is perfect, though. It is one of those versions where Jerry sings the harmony part from the get-go and it provides the ardor that pushes this one over the top! The beginning of the jam in "Bird Song" is sloppy and rather tentative, but they dive back in and recover nicely with an atmospheric and spiraling, albeit short, glide toward the horizon before returning to earth and the vocals and wrapping it up. In putting the final touches on set 1, the Dead put an old friend on the spot with fine results! Bobby announces that they've been friends with Carlos Santana a long time and they call him out to see if he, and they, can remember the next tune. A slinky "Good Mornin' L'il Schoolgirl" that would shame any of the reworked 1995 versions follows with Santana stepping out early and crisply while Billy, Mickey, and Phil provide the sleek backbeat. Garcia and Santana then trade licks while Weir belts out the chorus. The only disappointment here is that the song just dissolves with no real ending proper. A spirited "Midnight Hour" that has Bobby and Brent going back and forth vocally while Jerry and Carlos do likewise on guitar shows that they remember this one, too, and it caps a fine set of music! A rocking "Hell in a Bucket" kicks off set 2 thanks to Weir's extra vocal antics and manic screams that push Garcia to add some fire to the solo at the end of the song. A fat and sassy "When Push Comes to Shove" gets the toes tapping thanks to Phil's chunky thump, Brent's spine-tingling dance down the keys, and Garcia's emphatic singing. The band shifts into cruise control for a good part of "Estimated Prophet," even with Weir's vocals being rather subdued. The jam ups the ante some thanks to Lesh, and Healy's hijinks with Weir's vocals at the soundboard, which seems to jump-start the rest of the band, too, as they wade into "Eyes of the World." It is a peppy, fluid version that flies right along despite a couple of cases of the chorus mumbles by Garcia. There is a strange, tribal bell beat that Brent works into the post-"Eyes" jam before the drummers take over. They continue the rhythm of it and stretch it out a bit but are quickly rejoined by Jerry and Bob as a winding "Space" unfolds. The "Other One" comes quietly slithering out of "Space" but keeps building in tension and volume. Garcia is flickering lead lines and the rest of the band is right there with him, lurking on the edge. The dark clouds drift away as the first strains of an infectious "Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad" kick in and the whole band jumps on the moment. There is another interesting touch by Healy to the "Throwing Stones" that follows. He adds a slight echo effect to Weir's voice that makes the song sound even more foreboding, and the band's playing is angry and emphatic. Ah, but never fear, Jerry cuts through the ending chorus and they end the set with an enthusiastic "Turn on Your Lovelight" that struts right along and would put a smile on even the most curmudgeonly face. And just in case there are any Grinch-like characters still sulking about, they throw in a bouncy "U.S. Blues" encore for good measure! ANDY LEMIEUX

8-22-87 aka 08-22-87 aka 8/22/87 aka 08-22-87 aka 87-08-22 --

Source: Soundboard> Master PCM> DAT> CDR> SHN Audio Quality:	8/22/87 Angels Camp @ the Internet Archive: the Soundboard for Listening Only
Download It Here 1st Set - 8/22/87 8/22/87 - Set 2

Keith H!
Hey Now, here's your request! I didn't forget!!
It took me a little while but I'm happy to get this up for ya!