Dick's Picks Volume Eight

Tracks

Don't Ease Me In [4:38]
I Know You Rider [7:51]
Friend of the Devil [5:59]
Dire Wolf [4:56]
Beat It on Down the Line --> [3:13]
Black Peter [7:02]
Candyman --> [1:43]
Cumberland Blues [5:47]
Deep Elem Blues [7:30]
Cold Jordan [2:35]
Uncle John's Band [6:28]

St. Stephen --> [3:23]
Cryptical Envelopment --> [1:55]
Drums --> [3:28]
The Other One --> [13:55]
Cryptical Envelopment --> [8:59]
Cosmic Charlie [7:23]
Casey Jones [4:45]
Good Lovin' [15:10]

It's A Man's World [10:04]
Dancin' In the Streets --> [15:42]
Morning Dew [12:40]
Viola Lee Blues --> [16:35]
And We Bid You Goodnight [4:59]

Liner Notes:

The article above this one raves about Pentangle. Sure, they gave a fine concert.
BUT - they didn't approach the Dead. The concert was the finest in Harpur history...the finest the Dead have ever given on the East Coast to my knowledge. And the finest concert I've ever seen - and that includes a 3 hour thing in Tompkins Square by the Blues Project, Janis and Big Brother's finest moment at the Fillmore East and also all of Woodstock.

Waiting at the door. Tons of freaks waiting also. Painted. Tripping. Stoned. The doors open. A mad rush for the floor. Balloons fly through the air. "Clear for an aisle." "Anybody got any matches?" "No smoking." "Anybody want electric wine?" Whoo. Whoo. Screams. A Bird Call.
Then the Dead. Garcia and Weir come out and do acoustic stuff. I don't remember most of it. Some was really fine. Most was really fine. An acoustic "Beat It On Down The Line" that was really fantastic. Sit down. Everybody sit down. Garcia plays "Don't Murder Me." Screams. We sit and stand. End of acoustic set.
"Where's the electric?"

Announcing the New Riders of the Purple Sage. Out comes some blond haired freak. Marma-Duke? Fine country music. The crowd roars but "where's the electric?" Riders do a fantastic version of the old Jack Jones song "The Race Is On" and a great "Weight" and "Lodi" which puts Creedence to shame. Then out comes Weir and they sing more country stuff.
Break
The Electric Garcia plays the first two notes of St. Stephen and the crowd goes berserk. The light show [Better than any I've seen] flashed St. Stephen with horns and snake hair. St. Stephen more powerful and better than Aoxomoxoa or Live Dead and the crowd fills in the album screams.
That's It For The Other One, the long first cut on the second album, endless and non-ending and phenomenal. Garcia's guitar is cosmic. Then a song I don't know. Someone told me it was the Train song. People flopping on top of themselves. Garcia throws in a Dark Star riff I think. Sit down, people scream. Good Lovin' or maybe it was Dancing In The Streets. Pipes and Joints flow to the Music.
IT'S IN THE MUSIC
Pigpen gives a stinging rendition of Good Lovin' and Garcia gives a break which almost goes into Lovelight but never quite makes it.

Cosmic Charlie and people jumping up and down. The hour grows late and the Dead is giving their best concert on the east coast and where? AT HARPUR. Here. Binghamton dinktown USA and the Dead are amazing.
IT'S IN THE WATER.
On the screen a cartoon: A guy rolling a stone and falling under it again. Cold Rain and Snow, one of the best things in the set. The music comes on and keeps coming.

Break.
Everybody gets water and runs through the rain. People looking dazed. Some sitting giving TRIPRAPS and others sleeping.
MORE DEAD.
Cool, calm, collected and totally controlled and superb Morning Dew OFF THE FIRST ALBUM. THE DEAD NEVER DO ANYTHING OFF THE FIRST ALBUM ANYMORE. bullshit.

Followed by Viola Lee Blues with three buildups, the last ending with people screaming and shouting and Garcia pulling the most phenomenal notes out of one guitar: AND WE BID YOU GOODNIGHT, which they don't stop singing because no one will let them go.
But they do and the concert ends.
five and one half hours.
IT'S IN THE MUSIC.

Caveat Emptor:

These compact discs were mastered directly from the original half track 7 1/2 ips analog tapes recorded at this show. The acoustic set was recorded in stereo. The electric sets are monaural. While the reason for this remains a mystery, spurious electrical activity is suspected.

Credits:

Grateful Dead
Harpur College, Binghamton, NY 5/2/70

Jerry Garcia: Lead Guitar, Vocals
Mickey Hart: Drums
Bill Kreutzmann: Drums
Phil Lesh: Electric Bass, Vocals
Ron "Pig Pen" McKernan: Organ, Harmonica, Vocals
Bob Weir: Guitar, Vocals

Recorded by: Bob Matthews

Tape Archivist: Dick Latvala
CD Mastering: Jeffrey Norman
Ferromagnetist: John Cutler
Design: Geck Graphics
Band Photo: Morris Zwerman
Special Thanks to: Ron Drumm and Katie Ellis

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