GD UIC

Awhile back someone requested 4/11/87 and finally I'm gettin' around to it... sort of. I'm gonna post the whole run at UIC Pavilion that April in 1987. I've been unable to be speedy with requests (my secretary is to blame, of course -- Stoopid Monkey!) but requests are always welcomed and Sugarmag and I are happy to do what we can for ya!

Grateful Dead -- April 9, 1987 UIC Pavilion University of Illinois - Chicago

1st Set: Greatest Story Ever Told-» The Promised Land,
When Push Comes To Shove, Never Trust A Woman,
El Paso, Row Jimmy, My Brother Esau, Far From Me, Deal

Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-» Fire On The Mountain,
Playing In The Band-» Uncle John's Band-» Drums-» Space-»
China Doll-» Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad-» Sugar Magnolia

Encore: U.S. Blues

The first thing you're gonna notice when listening to this is the sound quality ain't so hot... but this is as good as it gets. Master Dead show masterer Charlie Miller says: "This is a very poor sounding Ultra Matrix mix." It's tolerable but not a sweet sounding soundboard.

Greatest Story is pretty nice and Promised Land keeps the kick ass good times a-goin'... I think Bob was havin' some fun as the crowd was really getting whipped into quite a frenzy for a moment there. After that highpoint, the first set rolls along nicely with only one noticeable lyric flub from Jerry in Row Jimmy... but like so many other versions with a mess-up, the song is by no means ruined. It's too bad the sound isn't better because the band is so nicely on throughout every song. To finish the set, Jerry launches during Deal while Phil valiantly tries to out-duel him. Oh, to have a crispy SBD of this would be amazing. Dang it! Probably the best couple minutes of the whole set there. Nice stuff!

Listen closely throughout Scarlet to kick off the second set if you wanna hear more great Phil. He's not tremendously clear in the mix which is rather unfortunate because he's on another roll here. They don't spend a lot of time jamming into Fire but all the way there Jerry and Phil are both in one gear: non-stop.

Unless it's my imagination, the sound quality improves somewhat during Fire -- a little less crowd, a little more (and clearer) soundboard. Not a very long and drawn out combo, more on the concise side, but oh so well played! I don't think Phil let's up for a second. The sounds definitely does improve as Healy must have tweaked a knob or dial so we can better enjoy the rest of this recording. There's not a lot of Brent in the mix but now I can more clearly hear Bob's rhythm guitar filling in perfectly. Playing In The Band heads on out there for a little while, flirting with the edge of space, jamming away across the heavens until it returns to Earth with the introduction to Uncle John's Band. The tune hits a bit of a peak, albeit a brief one and as always, the crowd is lovin' this. There's not a lot of jamming here as they quickly make way for Billy & Mickey to do their thing.

A rather quick Drums->Space leads to a nice China Doll. The run-up to it is filled with such great noodling from Jerry. Thanks to the quiet crowd at this point and the crisper sounding recording here, we get to dig Brent's keys, so delicate and perfectly played, almost like little footsteps ahead of Jerry's vocals. Just close your eyes and be taken away in Jer's guitar. So, so nice but not the song to listen to if you're really tired as Garcia's lullaby will simply send you off to sleepyland... not that it's boring, just soooo relaxing. Before long we're struck squarely in the ears with a bit of Playin' tease which doesn't last more than 20 seconds before they opt to head into GDTRFB. That wasn't long enough to call it a Reprise so that was odd. Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad doesn't hit any mega-heights but it's perfectly danceable, that's for sure. So's Sugar Magnolia! While Jerry cruises there's a lot of fine rhythm work from Bobby who's seemingly hitting his stride right here at the end. The jam leading to Sunshine Daydream works up quite a nice lather with, judging from the crowd noise, a moment of stage theatrics from Weir for good measure. Not the smokinest version ever but a fine, fine way to end the set.

Phil is all over the U.S. Blues encore, runnin' up and down, adding his unique bass signature to the song. Then at the end we get a extra heavy dose of emotion from Jer to put the perfect capper on it. Couldn't ask for a better ending on the night.

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] Aside from some brief post-"Drums" doldrums, this is far and away the most solid show of the run. There's a great deal of high quality FM soundboards of the eleventh in circulation, as well as the soundboard for the tenth, rendering the rather average audience tape of this night much less circulated. On the tape there is a great deal of treble and the most low-end frequencies are missing. The first set is solid, with a great opener from Phil. It's mostly a bluesy set focused on Brent tunes, with a "Good Times" that rips up those tremolos hooked up to his Hammond. The "Scarlet" is very up-tempo, with Phil and Jerry exploring the jam with lots of stutter-step runs parrying each other in turns. The jam is brief but remains fast-paced right through to "Fire" and is reminiscent of some of the versions from the very early '80s that were a departure from the drawn-out dreamy versions of '77 and '78. This is a real rock 'n' roll version. Jerry is definitely making the most of the tempo and pulls out a few quick and scorching solos. The band is right there with him as they play this song duo to perfection. The boys move through "Playing" quite well but it's played cautiously, with little if any chances being taken to move the song into weirdness. But they're right back at the tempo and power during the jam in "Uncle John's Band," jumping into its three-chord punch almost immediately. The "Drums" portion of the show is similarly brief, lasting no more than ten minutes, before Jerry and Bob return to the stage. Following "Drums" there is a very basic run through "China Doll," whose rarity doesn't really make up for the performance. Jerry aborts an attempt at a "Playin" reprise and opts for "Goin' Down the Road," which is similarly uninteresting. The set-closing "Sugar Magnolia" is a good one. The jam before the "Sunshine Daydream" part is played well and is unusually long. A rockin' "U.S. Blues" is the needed encore for this up-tempo start to the U.I.C. Pavilion run. KEVIN WEIL

4/9/87 @ the Internet Archive: a few different Auds for downloading and the Soundboard for Listening Only

Download The SBD Here Source: shnid=90477 ♦ Audio Quality: Lineage: Soundboard-» Cassette Master-» Cassette-» FLAC 4/9/87 - Part 1 ♦ Part 2 - 4/9/87

4-9-87 a.k.a. 04-9-87 a.k.a. 4/9/87 a.k.a. 04/9/87 a.k.a. 87-04-09 mp3 download 320 kbps

The Music Never Stopped, 2009 -- Volume 55