The Satisfaction is in The Music, man!

It really sucks having my nose all stuffed up while seemingly half strung out on 5 antihistamine cold/allergy tablets that are not doing a damn thing. They sell these things for money in the store -- WHY WON'T THEY WORK?!?!??! Ahh well. I'm still able to dig the tunes. As I type this, the show, coinciding with my review below, is almost through... but not yet which means I'm finding it impossible to keep writing as I did when I was clear-headed. Whatever.

Grateful Dead -- February 17, 1982
Warfield Theatre -- San Francisco, California
soundboard SBD (not lossless SHN or FLAC) mp3 320 kbps download
1st Set: Minglewood Blues, Sugaree, On The Road Again,
Bird Song, C.C. Rider, Tennessee Jed, It's All Over Now,
Loser, Man Smart Woman Smarter

Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-» Fire On The Mountain,
Estimated Prophet-» Eyes Of The World-» Drums-» Space-»
The Wheel-» Not Fade Away-» Wharf Rat-» Sugar Magnolia

Encore: Satisfaction

There's a bit of hiss during the quiet places between first set songs and during Drums, there are some audience-source patches (a couple which are kind of annoying,) and also there are a couple other weird level/mix fluctuations here and there, but overall this is an okay sounding soundboard.

The first set on this second half of a two-night Warfield stand is rather, well, kinda ho hum. Now, ho hum in my book means it's a perfectly acceptable, good, enjoyable listen. Standing out most notably is the gorgeous Bird Song. As the band has a nice time floating around, Brent really shines here.

The second place first set winner is Loser: it is meticulously played and the crowd appreciates the heights this reaches. I can picture the unknowing listener thinking this will be a mellow tune. Yeah, that's how it starts out but it doesn't stay there the whole time, that's for sure! Not that it gets raucous but the guitar work by both Jerry and Bobby is excellent.

It's All Over Now gets an honorable first set mention for the volume on Phil's bass getting turned by someone who seemingly realized it was quite low (to non-existent.) Very cool to hear him a lot more than in songs before that one.

Of minor interest is the Women Are Smarter closing the first set -- this is the first occurrence and only nine more first set appearances took place so this is a pretty rare placement.

A minute or so of audience source starts set two but after the soundboard kicks in, I absolutely love the Scarlet here. So much of the time I found myself locking in on Bob's rhythm guitar. He's not playing anything complicated but it's fantastic how he compliments so perfectly what Jerry is doing. Before diving into Fire, the boys head off in a slightly different direction that most listeners are familiar with. It is indeed, as the Compendium review says, interesting. Eyes might be under the ten minutes but it's so beautiful. Brent is going non-stop and it seems to ramble on forever. A little less wild than the night before is Drums. I had some fun listening to this, however, if only for the open mic to hear Mickey talking to Billy at times. I love the seamless transition to Space; without even really noticing a start and stop point, there's Jerry noodling away and we've begun the end of the show. There's probably not a single flaw to be found through the end of the set. While Jerry doesn't necessarily rip it up, the playing is superb throughout each song. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction to close out the night is plain and simply -- a ton of fun. No, it's not an original Dead tune but it's nothing less than a blast and a half for the Warfield crowd on this mid-February night. Bobby slows the band down has his way with it while Brent is the guilty accomplice. I'm sure Grateful to be hearing it!

transcribed from: The Deadhead's Taping Compendium, Volume II: An In-Depth Guide To The Music of the Grateful Dead on Tape, 1975-1985 [out of print] This benefit concert, the latter half of a two-night Warfield Theatre run, has a comfortable, loose feeling--the Dead as the local house band, playing in a familiar setting before a hometown crowd--and features jams that creatively evoke the imagery of the songs in which they are played. For example, the highlight of the first set is a 9:20 "Bird Song" whose jam calls to mind the back-and-forth of birds in flight, or, more specifically, "All I know is she came a little while and then flew off." This set also includes a fairly unusual "Women Smarter" closer. Set 2 begins with the more familiar "Scarlet" > "Fire" introduction, featuring an interesting, exploratory transition and Jerry's strong riffs on "Fire." The couplet sets the stage for a mostly smooth series. "Estimated Prophet" lopes its way toward that burning shore; "Drums" reflects the era's frenzied use of conventional drum kits (Mickey's and Billy's voices are faintly audible); then a passable "Wheel," followed by a vigorous but somewhat misplaced "Not Fade Away"--pretty good so far. Yet as Jerry, Bob, and Brent harmonize on the "Wharf Rat" bridge, Brent digs down deep and pushes the song to a higher intensity. His playing inspires a romping, joyous "Sugar Magnolia," with everyone positively blasting through to the end of the set. The "Satisfaction" encore is an appropriate coda to a fine show: classic rock 'n' roll, with Bob and Brent sharing the vocals and the crowd invited to sing along. They undoubtedly did. JOHN M. GLEN

The Audience source of this show was taped by the same dude whose recording for the night before is in circulation now... but the sound quality on this second night is markedly better! I'm glad I downloaded it and gave it a listen; definitely above average with some nice instrumentation throughout.

2-17-82 aka 02-17-82 aka 2/17/82 aka 02/17/82 aka 82-02-17 The Warfield Theater

2/17/82 SF @ Archive.org: AUD for downloading ♦ SBD for Listening Only

Audio Quality: AUD♦ SBD

Get The Soundboard Here Source/Lineage: Soundboard> Master Cassette> DAT> CD (shnid=23221) Part 1 - Warfield 2/17/82 2/17/82 Warfield - Part 2