Grateful Dead - Dick's Picks, Vol. 19: Oklahoma City, OK, 10/19/73
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Grateful DeadBrand: GRATEFUL DEAD
Edition: Music CD
Format: Box set, Live
CD Release Date: 2004-08-31
Music Label: Grateful Dead / Wea
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- Promised Land
- Sugaree
- Mexicali Blues
- Tennessee Jed
- Looks Like Rain
- Don't Ease Me In
- Jack Straw
- They Love Each Other
- El Paso
- Row Jimmy
- Playing in the Band
- China Cat Sunflower
- I Know You Rider
- Me & My Uncle
- Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleloo
- Big River
- Dark Star
- Mind Left Body Jam
- Morning Dew
- Sugar Magnolia
- Eyes of the World
- Stella Blue
- Johnny B. Goode
Free Music Notes for Dick's Picks, Vol. 19: Oklahoma City, OK, 10/19/73
Free Music Review: A near-obligatory Pick: the essence of late 1973's glory
Hit: 5 Stars
By any measure you care to use, 1973 was a banner year for the Grateful Dead in terms of live performance. It came right in the middle of their so-called "Golden Age" of 1972-1974, and caught them at a point where they had begun to expand not only their repertoire (most of the songs from Wake Of The Flood would, once introduced, never leave their setlists), but also their musical palette as well. Many have labelled the Dead's music from late '73 and '74 as "jazz-rock," and while the term is somewhat inapt (it doesn't capture the "Promised Land"/"Sugaree" side of the band, for one thing) it does help to approximate the laid-back vibe of classics like "Eyes Of The World" as well as suggest the purely free-form improvisational cast of many of their jams. Without a doubt the Dead were developing a lighter touch: Kreutzmann had redefined the band's rhythmic approach over the last year in adjusting to his role as sole drummer, and his quickness, natural sense of restraint, and timing enabled the Dead to evolve a much more agile, ethereal sound.
Dick's Picks 19 captures every aspect of that "sound," which made the Dead mesmerizing in this era, in one near-perfect concert. This show is a very special one indeed, kicking off an immortal Fall '73 tour where the band managed to capture lightning in a bottle night after night, pushing out into new improvisational territory and juggling setlists and song-sequences with devil-may-care abandon. (There are many - I'm one of them - who would argue that Fall '73 is every bit the equal of Europe '72; there's a reason that THREE Dick's Picks have been released from this two-month span.)
Just about the only complaint one might make is about the first disc. It represents the bulk of the first set, which means it's full of shorter songs. There are many fans who express impatience with this side of the Dead, but when the band's hearts are into the music I'm not one of them. 10/19/73 was one of those nights: it's surely not the BEST first set they ever gave, but the performances of "Sugaree," "Jack Straw" and especially "They Love Each Other" are all spot-on, and I even find myself enjoying songs which normally irk me like "Tennessee Jed" and "Don't Ease Me In." Near the end of the disc (i.e. the last four songs) the band begins to settle into the gentle, joyful, peaceable mood which will define the particular magic of this night.
And from disc 2 onwards this show simply vaults into that icy-blue sky so beautifully depicted on the back cover. Set 1 ends with a gorgeous, ghostly "Playing In The Band" (this song peaked in late '73 - buy this album and listen to one example of why), and then Set 2 begins with one of the defining "China Cat Sunflower" > "I Know You Rider" sequences of the year. "Mississippi Half-Step" continues this mood, flowing majestically all the way across the Rio Grand-i-o into a (thematically united) "Big River" which choogles as Garcia's electric-bluegrass guitar busily burbles and hums like water rushing downstream.
The show could have ended right there and still have been noteworthy. But what comes next guarantees its immortality: Disc 3 is one of the best single discs of Grateful Dead music available for purchase. It begins with an unearthly "Dark Star," one which eschews the "full freak-out" atonal jamming often employed in this era's performances for a much sweeter, gently inquisitive attitude. The emphasis on melody (and on sustaining the delicate, wistful mood which has been built throughout the previous two hours) becomes all that more apparent when they move into a rapturous jam based on a descending chord sequence popularly referred to as the "Mind Left Body Jam" - I believe the first time it was ever played in this context. Then, a quiet "Morning Dew" which builds to an anguished demonstrative climax. We're not done yet! After a concluding "Sugar Magnolia" the Dead, clearly thrilled by how well they're playing tonight, come back for one of the longest encores of their career: a 15-minute "Eyes Of The World" that slides imperceptibly into a crystal-clear, dead-calm "Stella Blue." One more blast of rock 'n' roll to send the kids home on an up note with "Johnny B. Goode," and the Dead finally leave the stage for good: after delivering one of their most consistent shows, one which has an emotional and musical UNITY that few others can boast...one for the ages.
Some have complained in their reviews about the sound quality of this Pick (rather, the sound MIX - the fidelity itself is sterling, far better than any '74 shows). Admittedly such things are subjective and a matter of taste, but I find the mix to be utterly unproblematic after the first few songs. (The "Caveat Emptor" included on this Pick notes this, warning of a "rather skeevy ouverture.") If anything, the mix heightens the thoughtful, introspective sensibility of this show.
If you enjoy '73 Dead then I would argue it's inconceivable not to own this Pick. If you're unfamiliar with the year and are looking to test the waters, then this is still a great place to begin - an unrepresentative night in that it captures them in an unusually pacific mood (one which, incidentally, is also conveyed by the stunning artwork on this release, easily the best of any Pick), but also a representative one in that it shows off so many aspects of their greatness at once.
Further recommendations from this era (...):
- Dick's Picks 28: February 26th-28th, 1973 (one the top 5 Picks in the series, no less)
- Dick's Picks 14: November 30 & December 1st, 1973
- Dick's Picks 1: December 19th, 1973
Dick's Picks, Vol. 19: Oklahoma City, OK, 10/19/73 Poster
No Description AvailableNo Track Information Available
Media Type: CD
Artist: GRATEFUL DEAD
Title: VOL. 19-DICK'S PICKS
Street Release Date: 08/31/2004
Genre: ROCK/POP
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