Customer Reviews

Dick's Picks, Vol. 3: Sportatorium, Pembroke Pines, FL, 5/22/77

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This, of any recorded music I own, is my favorite. You can say what you want, but the second disc of this set is among the most exhilerating American music ever recorded. It belongs alongside anything done by Miles or Coletrane, any Hendrix solo, any Delta Blues anthropological treasure. It belongs alongsde the Carter Family, Scott Joplin, John Cage, Ella Fitzgerald or Frank Sinatra at their finest. It starts with "Estimated Prophet" and ends up with a cataclysimc "Morning Dew". Absolutely flawless, painfully beautiful, unforgettable. This is what the Dead was all about, what youth is all about, what life is all about. You think I'm overstating it? Listen for yourself.

This record made my world stop! I've been listning to the Grateful Dead since I saw them live in '95. Of all of the shows that I've heard I am convinced that this was the night that God Himself touched Jerry Garcia on the head with his finger. "Eyes of the World" on disc two all the way through "Walk Me Out In The Morning Dew" is the finest music that I have ever heard in my entire life. This set changed my outlook on life. It made me realize that music is more than just sound. It is an expression of life itself. The sound is alive and crackling with energy. I've listened to disc two more than 100 times and I know I keep finding something that I've never heard before everytime!

This is my favorite Dick's Pick, and I really love some of the others. While I normally gravitate to the 72 - 74 era, this show is hands down one of the Dead's most spectacular musical performances. The uninterupted jamming from Estimated through to Morning Dew is a flawless masterpiece of improvisition.

This is why I loved that Band!

I have owned this record for probably about ten years, since I was 8 or so, and I never really listened to it because I was addicted to a couple other Picks and great studio albums, and I just never got around to hearing the '77 edition of the Dead. But I picked it up again recently after reading the incredible reviews here, and I can only say that I wish I had done so a lot sooner - my high school self's happiness might have been salvaged had I had this to listen to.

The Music Never Stopped was always one of my favorite songs primarily because of the lyrics, and this disc has a great, short rendition of it at the top of the set (after a somewhat questionable 30-second "Funiculi Funicula"). I never quite took to "Sugaree" until I listened to this version, and I realize now that it is truly an exquisite piece of music. But nothing could have prepared me for what was to come. Lazy Lightning -> Supplication is pretty cool, and had me tapping my feet to its intricate, somewhat lounge-jazzy rhythms and chord progressions. Dancin' in the Streets, now disco-fied, actually pissed me off until I realized that once the first four minutes of the song have passed it really becomes just a vehicle for a 10-minute long funky jam. Then...

HELP ON THE WAY! Oh my dear lord OH OH OH MY GOD! I have always LOVED the studio version of this song on Blues For Allah, but this..... oh my God. I can't even put words into this little box that will come close to getting anyone to understand its majesty. Then Slipknot, and a 15 minute Franklin's Tower BRIMMING with Garcia solos that are just so freaking incredibly happy yet totally sophisticated and complex, I can barely keep myself from smashing my face into the wall and thanking God that I was born after this recording was made so I get to listen to it. So I left disc one in a state of utter shock, having been totally unprepared for what it ended up being.

But I had no idea what was to come - Disc 2 is surely the greatest live recording ever made. Samson & Delilah is a great song with Weir doing a great job keeping the energy up with his guitar and vocals. Sunrise is a brief, interesting, and sad excursion from Donna Godchaux, and it held my attention surprisingly well. Then comes the real meat of this whole package. A 50-minute medley that changed my whole life: Estimated Prophet -> Eyes Of The World -> Wharf Rat -> Terrapin Station -> Morning Dew. I can't really say much more. Wharf Rat is just sublime, Terrapin, Eyes..... nevermind, there's no point. I'm sorry for wasting your time with this review, you should just be listening to this music.

This is a slice of 1977 Dead from the month of May. On that tour, the band performed a series of powerful shows that were captured on tape for the band by Betty Cantor. These shows were stashed in a trunk for years, until they were found by a kind soul who then made them available to the band and the Deadheads. And what a find they were. This show comes from that era, and upon listening, you can hear the full, swaggering sound the Dead was laying out at that time. The whole band seems to be having fun and they play and sing with confidence and creativity.

It's not the complete show from this night in Florida, but with a first set that opens with a fluid, stomping Music>Sugaree and closes with a ripping Help>Slip>Franklin's, you get more than your money's worth on Disc 1 alone. Disc 2 builds quickly and springboards from a robust 1977 Estimated Prophet to four straight Jerry songs. A blissful, fully explored Eyes Of The World, then into a majestic Wharf Rat, before ending up somewhere halfway in the middle of Terrapin Station - which they pull off effortlessly - before segueing perfectly into the showstopper, Morning Dew. Deadheads will recall the famous Cornell show from 2 weeks before and the awe-inspiring Dew Jerry and the boys produced that evening. While not quite the equal of Cornell, the peaks they reach from a near silent start in this version are no less stunning.

The third installment in the "Dick's Picks" series of live Grateful Dead recordings captures the band in peak form during the much-acclaimed year of 1977. This two-disk set includes a number of the '77-era chestnuts in heavy rotation at the time(The Music Never Stopped, Sugaree, Lazy Lightning/Supplication), as well as a stellar Help on the Way=>Slipknot!=>Franklin's Tower that showcases Garcia's inimitable guitar style at it's finest. The Estimated Prophet=>Eyes of the World=>Wharf Rat=>Terrrapin Station=>Morning Dew is worth the price alone. And essential addition to any fan's collection.

In many cases, you have to overlook an occasional ragged vocal or missed musical cue in order to mine those nuggets of pure inspiration that mark many Dead concert performances. This pick, however, stands out as a nearly flawless snapshot of the band at its concert best. The musicianship is extremely crisp and tight throughout, and the sound quality is fantastic. The second CD is particularly choice, weaving several of my favorite songs into a magical tapestry of this band playing at its very best. This is clearly one of the top two or three of the DP series.

I'm the type of person who likes all sorts of music, the type who can talk to anyone about music no matter what their tastes, including rap, house, rock, acoustic, you name it. I think that the end of the second disc is perhaps the most beautiful piece of music I have ever heard, from Estimated Prophet all the way through Morning Dew. I was once driving home to Massachusetts from Canada, in the Vermont Green Mountains as the sun was setting one summer, and tears came to my eyes when I heard the last guitar solo during Morning Dew. However, the last few songs has it all: exhiliarating moments, innumerable beautiful moments, thought-provoking lyrics, and music influenced from everything from reggae to classical. Thank you for the music, it is truly beautiful!!

This is hands down the best Dead CD I own (I own a lot, albeit not all!). It showcases improvisational / creative force, juxtaposed with professional rigor. Although I always liked seeing a show, the band wasn't always in professionally rigorous form. When they were, when they were hitting on all pins, it really was magical. The problem with live recordings is that they sometimes aren't professional quality, and the problem with studio recordings is that they aren't nearly as improvisational. This albumn has both, which is why I feel it is the best Dead CD I own.

Ok, so you're a deadhead if you're even considering ordering a DP.

This one is number one. From Funiculi Funicula forward, it's one big Jerry fest, with great fanning and guitar work on Music Never stopped and Sugaree. The Help/Franklins is terrific, too.

The real deal is the Estimated/Eyes/WharfRat/Terrapin(that starts with "Inspiration")into the one for the ages Morning Dew. No fancy studio tricks on this, just killer singing and playing.