Whenever a Grateful Dead discussion ensues, the year 1977 generally soon follows. And for good reason. Many argue it’s the best, or at least their preferred, era of the band’s music, pointing to such epic shows in New York like ones earlier this year at Cornell on May 8 and the next day’s show in Buffalo. But thankfully The Grateful Dead was not quite done with the state just yet as they decided to end their 1977 Fall Tour in Binghamton. Their first appearance at Broome County Arena on November 6 would mark the final show on the East Coast for this most holy of years, closing out one of the most revered chapters in the band’s history.
One of this show’s highlights is arguably the opener, an incendiary “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” that features pristine vocals from Jerry Garcia to along with his even cleaner guitar tone. He casually drops a trio of effortless solos after each of the song’s opening verses, with the final one culminating in a beautifully built crescendo of emotion as Donna Jean Godchaux et al join in for the “Rio Grande” section of the lyrics. The rest of the band seems to feed off of this opening musical salvo and it results in a patiently aggressive opening number, truly emblematic of the band’s sound during this seminal era of their career.
The Dead then trot out two familiar friends in the first set in the form of “Jack Straw” and “Tennessee Jed.” The dulcet vocal tones of rhythm guitarist Bob Weir lead the way on an emphatic “Straw” that’s also highlighted by the precise piano melodies being supplied by Keith Godchaux as the band continues to stay fully locked in. Garcia once again provides the six-string fuel for an increasingly passionate musical bridge that ends a song with another outpouring of emotion. After Weir requests the Binghamton crowd to “take a step back” on behalf of the fans in the first few rows, the Dead launch into “Tennessee Jed.” With Godchaux’s lively piano play still very much present and high in the audio mix, the band coats this classic number with a veritable honky-tonk jam, closing out an impressive opening section of the show.
The first set also features a breakneck, in the best possible way, version of “Me and My Uncle” that sees Garcia unleashing a barrage of effortless guitar licks that provides an absurdly frenetic pace to this number, giving a little more flare than usual. Bassist Phil Lesh makes his sonic presence felt and then some with thunderous bottom end work in the “New Minglewood Blues” that follows. And then the Dead give the Binghamton audience a true treat in the form of the reemergence of “Dupree’s Diamond Blues.” The band dusted off this old school number last month after a more than eight-year hiatus from live show performances.
To close out an impeccable first set of music, “The Music Never Stopped” before the music did indeed stop temporarily. With more indicative play from this period of Grateful Dead music, it’s a funked out version that has the band fully in synch from start to finish. Weir strolls through the lyrics with ease and the song produces a jam that once again sees Garcia and Godchaux delivering a flurry of notes on guitar and piano, respectively, as it slowly but surely builds in fervor and intensity before peaking.
After a typically boisterous cover of The Young Rascals’ “Good Lovin’,” the Dead delighted Broome County Arena with the second to last “Saint Stephen” of 1977. Another cover in Buddy Holly’s “Not Fade Away” later continues the closing sequence of songs in the second set, with its rhythmic start taking the natural bridge built for it by tonight’s “Drums” sequence which immediately preceded it. “Not Fade Away” produces a slow, bluesy jam and a veritable “fake out” of sorts as Garcia seems to indicate the frenzied opening notes to “Truckin’” before the music takes a left turn into a powerhouse version “Wharf Rat” instead. Garcia steers a triumphant outro jam into a quick ending of “Saint Stephen” before finally giving in and closing out a standout set of music with a “Truckin’” to match.
Grateful Dead Broome County Arena – Binghamton, NY 11/6/77
Set One: Mississippi Half-step Uptown Toodleoo, Jack Straw, Tennessee Jed, Mexicali Blues > Me and My Uncle, Friend of the Devil, New Minglewood Blues, Dupree’s Diamond Blues, Passenger, Dire Wolf, The Music Never Stopped
Set Two: Samson and Delilah, Sunrise, Scarlet Begonias > Fire on the Mountain > Good Lovin’, Saint Stephen > Drums > Not Fade Away > Wharf Rat > Saint Stephen > Truckin’
Encore: Johnny B. Goode
