Grateful Dead - 50 Shades Of Black & White (2CD)

$22.99

"I will get by. I will survive" So the 20,000 or so Deadheads who filled the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey on 7th April 1987 chanted, in unison with the Grateful Dead, on the opening number of what became known as a first rate Dead show. The fateful words came of course from 'Touch of Grey', the group's only ever Top 40 single, which would peak at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, and which remains probably the best known song from the band's huge back catalogue. Although the group played Brendan Byrne 16 times over the course of the 1980s, the two shows performed there in 1987 are recalled particularly fondly by the Dead faithful. Having kicked his drug habits in an attempt to improve his rapidly failing health, Jerry Garcia had slipped into a diabetic coma for several days in July 1986, causing great distress among his band mates and fans. However, such matters didn't keep Jerry away for long, and he returned to the band soon after, fully recovered and rejuvenated. Now touring in support of their 1987 In the Dark album, which spawned the aforementioned single, fans delighted in the new energy exhibited by the front man - and indeed the rest of the group. Many in attendance reported seeing a rainbow above the parking lot prior to the gig, and this was taken as an omen of what was to come. "Jerry was really on it that night", said a local Head, "the performance did something...that just swept me away". This double CD set features the entire gig performed that early spring evening almost 30 years ago. Taken from the FM radio broadcast of the concert made by WNEW New York, and thus providing a superb quality recording of what many consider to be one of the very finest 80s shows by this extraordinary collective, this first time release is sure to become a welcome addition to every decent Grateful Dead collection out there.

Track Listing

Disc 1:

Touch Of Grey
New Minglewood Blues
Friend Of The Devil
Beat It On Down The Line
Stagger Lee
Mama Tried
Big River
West L.A. Fadeaway
Hell In A Bucket
Don't Ease Me In
Disc 2:

Box Of Rain
I Need A Miracle
Bertha
Ship Of Fools
Man Smart, Woman Smarter
Drums
Space
Gimme Some Lovin'
Morning Dew
Throwing Stones
Not Fade Away