Grateful Dead - Candy Man (2CD)

Purely a touring ensemble by 1991 - their final studio album, 1989's Built To Last was no classic - Grateful Dead were nevertheless as active as they'd ever been, and indeed between 1990 and 1995 the band earned $285 million, second only to The Rolling Stones in tour revenue for the period. Their show at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena, on 27th October '91, featuring both Carlos Santana and Gary Duncan on a brace of tracks, was, as-almost-ever, considered extraordinary by fans. Thus those who attended are best placed to comment; "This show is special for many reasons, mainly the death of Bill Graham just a few days earlier. However for me, it's the jamming by Mr. Duncan........PLEASE listen to his Eastern- influenced jams during Iko>Mona>Jam. If you listen carefully you'll notice both Jerry and Carlos completely let him go off on 2 occasions. I was never a big fan of QSMS, but holy criminy is he the shit!" Courtesy mgags/archive.org Emotional is indeed the word here to describe this show; there is a voodoo to a great many of these songs in terms of their placement and interpretation - Sugar Magnolia to open, a just-ironic-enough Touch of Grey to close the first set. 2nd set is top notch; Gary Duncan's play is much more prominent than Santana's in the extended Mona-jam, which evokes some great multi-dueling-guitar moments a la 2/11/70. But don't let that jammy jam overwhelm you - the China Cat > Rider, SAMSON, and Miracle are exciting beyond all hell. Courtesy dougthedude/archive.org

Track Listing

Disc 1:

Sugar Magnolia
Sugaree
Walking Blues
Althea
When I Paint My Masterpiece
Touch Of Grey
China Cat Sunflower
Samson And Delilah
Disc 2:

Candyman
Cassidy
Iko Iko
Mona
Wheel
Miracle
Wharf Rat
Good Lovin'

Release date 11.8.19