Jerry Garcia's music and spirit graces Tanglewood

It was far from one more Saturday night as the latest project involving the works of the late Jerry Garcia made it debut at Tanglewood along with one Wolf sighting.
Let me  begin by stating that for many of us Dead Heads we have never  experienced the likes of Tanglewood which welcomed our tribe in with open arms, warmth and civility.
It was a  warm, carefree  night and to be able stroll in a few hours before the music would start with food and  drink was a treat a to say the least and with not be subjected to a TSA style searches was a rare pleasure for the rock goer.They even let you go back to to your car if you forgot something, as I left my phone in the car, by graciously giving you a red card. Wow! To be treated like a human being.
Plus with a view like this for dinner it was a very auspicious start.

As this being the only New England appearance of this tour many Dead tour veterans, who strolled around in a pleasant awe, as well as Tanglewood regulars were in attendance. This included many families with children playing soccer or frisbee on the well manicured spacious grounds.

Show time was to start at 8:30 PM and would include two sets and feature some of Garcia's best music. The beginning of the concert was just  that as  the electric trio led by Mule guitarist Warren Haynes, drummer Jeff Sipe, bassist, Lincoln Schleifer with the Boston  Pops Orchestra led by Conductor Keith Lockhart, dressed in a colorful tye dye, launched into a Dark Star medley  which was  rich in it's sounds, and for the non- believer quite pleasant to hear. This fluttered into one of the high lights of the night with the classic Bird Song written for Janis Joplin.  With a full strings and a horn section unveiling the true depth and beauty of this song with conductor Keith Lockhart really emphasizing that. Haynes voices was in peak form too as his rich raspy voice and delicate playing shined while playing one of Jerry's most famous guitars, Wolf.

In the program they sadly did not list  who did each of the orchestration for each piece. I did find out that Chris Walker, Sean O' Loughlin, and Steve Bernstein all contributed to this project.
The first set took off from there as they played Crazy Finger, a tour first of  the Irving Berlin classic, and Jerry Garcia Band favorite, Russian Lullaby which featured some of Warren best playing and versatility.

The trio next played a short jam that jovially danced into rich and jazzy Scarlet Begonias which had the crowd erupting into pure joy. Warren flashed a  big smile and conductor Lockhart, who was extremely attentive to Warren's cues, flashed an enormous  grin of appreciation at the end. He and the BSO was clearly moved by our devotion and  appreciation of their efforts.
This went into the funky work horse Shakedown Street. The crowd all on its' feet by now and once again the strings providing a deep and rich sound to this classic.
The set ended with  the Grateful Dead's most famous, and crowd pleasing, cover of the  1960's anti-nuclear war ballad Morning Dew  Once again Warren's rich vocal and emotion catapulted this rich and historical piece. The BSO really added some extra  power to it as well, especially at the bridge. The audience gave a well deserved standing ovation to the Pops at the end.

Set two begin with taste of the Mission in the Rain medley into that Working Man's Dead classic High Time. Once again featuring heartfelt vocals  from Warren and his two back up singers, who excelled the entire night, Alecia Chakour and Jasmine Muhammed. This transitioned into a majestic and free flowing Uncle John's Band,  which chords flourished with brashness and joy and once again featuring full accompanying vocals from the audience, was a clear high light.

With the summer Solstice super  moon on it's way Warren felt Standing on the Moon would be a perfect choice and it was  good, but the ending was not fully explored and those rich chords could have been better developed as this song was performed that way by Garcia and the Grateful Dead live. To know what I mean one only needs to listen here.
Warren then jumped into a  personal favorite of his, the gritty early 1980's street song West LA Fadeaway. Now it's placement this late in the set might confuse and piss off any well respected taper, but this arrangement really acknowledged the influences Leonard Bernstein had on Jerry as the  sensual bluesy feel  expressed by the full horns section was both seducing and sinister. It was a very pleasant surprise and Warren was all smiles at the end.

Now for any well respected Dead Head, the one song the Grateful Dead never played live in their entire career, well along with France, was the full Terrapin Station Suite. Furthur and Rat Dog has each played  show stopper versions of this 20 minute plus epic piece and on a night like this one  would think this piece would have to be played in it's entirety...sadly it was not.

This was a grave missed  opportunity, the Slipknot! sandwiched in, was a worthy effort but honestly the lilting bridge was omitted that delivers us to " Inspiration move me  brightly" verse as was the fast flowing At a Siding, which on the original record is a high light.
It was very good but overall felt rushed and due to these revisions the energy of this piece  never reached it full and well deserved potential.  Although listening to it again I did hear how John Stafford Smith's influence was worked into this arrangement. Clearly Jerry was a fan of the Star Spangle Banner. The ending crashing crescendo was great with Keith Lockhart literally  jumping in the air to end the piece.

We all went wild for that ending and then Warren expressed sadly that the curfew was fast approach. The 1970's ballad Ship of Fools, which they sound checked as well, closed the night with one of Warren's most emotional and extended solos. Over all Warren was often too hesitant in  his playing and  played  Wolf with a well respected softness and finesse but honestly he needed to unleash at certain points.We all knew that improvisation would be limited but it is fine to be louder than the orchestra, especially in this project, as that is what truly made Jerry's playing so special and spontaneous.

The musicians and conductor came out twice to the loving  adoration of the audience and it was clear this was a "grate" idea but may need some tweaking if they plan to do it again next summer. This might mean shoring up the second set with some more upbeat songs. Consider the possibilities of tunes like Dupree's Diamond Blues, Deal, or going deep with choices like Comes a Time ,Believe It Or Not or even one of Jerry's best covered Dylan songs Visions of Johanna? Or clearly the most obvious... Ramble on Rose. Can you imagine the crashing horns and strings leading to rejoice in the final chorus in this setting?

On a final note one can only hope Phil Lesh participates in the future, or at one of the shows in San Francisco, as  his classical training and playing would elevate this project to even greater highs.

Over all a historical and very rewarding musical experience and one this reviewer is grateful that he did not miss.
Thanks to this wonderful night we plan on going back to Tanglewood in July and  you should too at least once.
The place is that cool.
Happy Trails.