Customer Reviews

History 1

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

 

 

This is one of my favorite Grateful Dead Live discs. There's only 7 songs but its 45 minutes plus of Pigpen, Jerry, Weir, Lesh, and Bill the Drummer. This show is from February 13th and 14th 1970, at the Fillmore East. 1970 is a great year for the Dead. (my favorite Dead era lies/lays within 1967-1972). Bear's Choice starts off with a bluesy Pigpen lead, Katie Mae. Katie Mae alone is an awesome blues song. Give Pigpen a guitar and the spotlight, you got one of the best blues performances ever. He starts the song off with a good humored argument from someone in the crowd or on stage....Katie Mae then goes to Dark Hollow. Dark Hollow is an awesome bluesy song with a hint of Country (kinda puts me in mind of Ripple in a Dead way)with Weir on lead vocal...so far, Katie Mae and Dark Hollow are among my favorite Dead songs. The next song is Jerry's turn with: I've Been All Around This World, a great slow ballad with great rythm. A Deadsized Wake Up Little Suzie follows All Around this World, a great jam and a great rocker, yet it's the shortest song on this disc. Track five is a Workingman's Dead hit, Black Peter, yet another slow bluesy jam. At 18:00 minutes long, Pigpen and the Dead jam through Smokestack Lightning. Smokestack's sound kinda resembles CCR's Susie Q, great tune with different jams throughout. The last song is Hard To Handle...sung by Pigpen. Hard To Handle, much like its' name and with Pigpen's vocals is a hard rocker, a great closer for this particular set.

1. Katie Mae-4:46 2. Dark Hollow-3:30 3. I've Been All Around This World-4:40 4. Wake Up Little Susie-2:40 5. Black Peter-7:20 6. Smokestack Lightning-18:00 7. Hard To Handle-6:14

Overall, this set does include a reaction from the audience during each jam, however, you can tell that it's not just one big medley jam/set. At the end of certain songs (ie-Katie Mae>Dark Hollow) you can hear the difference in audience reaction levels; just a note for fans of Dead-Sets-With-Audience-Interaction (thats all) but the crowd can be heard... This particular set is one of my faves (along with Dicks Picks 8 and Ladies and Gentlemen...) to play on Wine Nights (which are quite frequent) This album came out the year Pigpen died :(

The album cover is 'perhaps' the origin of the infamous Beanie Bears that are collected today-for Dancing Beanie Bear collectors-Dark Hollow is one of the newest in the latest series, and it's from this particular show/set.......

There is no other Dead album remotely like this, both in content and production. Bear (whom I believe was the great Owzely Stanley, an early Dead patron)-- who chose these pieces -- clearly had great taste. This album was a seminal one for me -- steered my interest from rock and roll to roots folk fifteen years ago (just like Garcia's Old and in the Way introduced me and lots of other people to bluegrass). Side one (at least on the record version) is the Dead at their most acoustic -- alternating between Pigpen accompanying himself on the guitar and Garcia and Weir performing folk duets -- old Appalacian tunes (no twang here at all, though -- which made this kind of music accessible to me for the first time); a loping cover of "wake up little susie," and a very slow and affecting version of the Garcia/Hunter dirge "Black Peter." These tunes have a wholly different sound than many of the Dead's later (large stage) recorded acoustic sets: Garcia and Weir don't play at all fancy -- their licks are straight-ahead, simple bluegrass runs (none of the Garcia's trademark noodling arpeggios) and feel totally elemental, and their vocals from this period are neither affected nor out of tune. The effect is uniquely intimate -- feels like you're sitting around a campfire with them. Side two consists of two great Pigpen tunes -- Hard to Handle is probably my favorite Pigpen number anywhere. This recording finds the Dead at their least psychodelic (at least in their live recordings), but it's got some really nice moments.

If you really want to buy this, get the remastered version instead. It has nicer packaging, better sound quality and 30 minutes of bonus material. To find it, search on History of Grateful Dead (it won't show up if look for Bear's Choice).

This is a Grateful Dead album that you can't live without. The honest, down to earth feel on this live recording is beyond description. And Pigpen is here too! What more could you ask for? Buy this!

I am a big dead-head, and love this album for its atypical content and bluesy rhythm. Its like love ballads for the nerves. You get lost in the howls!!

This record was released in the early seventies, I believe, and I got the impression that it served as a kind of Pigpen Tribute. In itself, that's a good reason, because I think Pigpen's contribution to the band has been underestimated (and it was a sore loss, I think, when he died) but I don't think he would've been entirely happy with the result.

Compared to the recent release of Dick's Picks 4 that give us recordings of the same gig, the recordings on "Bear's Choice" are surprisingly less engaging. Frankly, it's a bit tame. Nevertheless, there's some good news too.

On side 1 for example, we find "Katie Mae", never included on other (official) releases, and it's good bluesy fun, including Pigpen's mistake-turning-into-a-joke. "Wake up .." is rare too. The other tracks on side one are more familiar, and aren't particularly interesting. Side 2 is of more interest (and recorded at another gig ?). "Smokestack Lightning" is solid, but over-long. For me the best track is the one that closes the record. "Hard to handle" is without doubt the best song on the record, full of energy and groove and I'd like to have more of that stuff to remember Pigpen by.

"Bear's Choice" is a somewhat odd collection of songs, but as it contains some of the Dead's rare & marvellous, it's still a good buy. But, uh - is there anybody who is willing to release a more fitting tribute to our lost hero ?

Hans Wigman.

Excellent Hard to Handle and Smokestack Lightning electric. Acoustic (including Wake Up Little Susie!) songs are fun if not exemplary musicianship as Reckoning was from later 1980. Excellent album for Pigpen fans! Not an album of long powerful improvisation, but illustrates the authentic American influences that bred this unique band. 2nd best acoustic recordings of Dead after Reckoning. From the same 2/1970 shows that are on DP #4...which is 10 stars!

Love Pig-Pen? Love the old-school roadhouse blues influence he brought to the band? This album captures nicely that sound for sure.

This is very good acoustic Dead, rawer than Reckoning, and seemingly recorded in an intimate space. Very enjoyable both for the music and the archival importance.

The Bear's Choice Expanded Edition focuses on the Grateful Dead live in concert. Four additional tracks are added to the original seven and the late Ron McKernan(Pig Pen) sings on six of them.

The opening five acoustic tracks are warm and intimate if not overly spectacular. The Pig Pen sung Katie Mae stands out a bit from the rest. The Smokestack Lightning jams are a bit excessive even though they can be a bit mesmerizing if you merely have them on in the background. However, the highlights of this disc are Pig Pen's stylish singing on Big Boss Man and Hard To Handle. Old Piggie sure knew how to sing the blues.

Anyway, definitely like Jerry Garcia's interpretation of Sitting On Top Of The World. Again, Good Lovin' is another bonus track on this CD as it was on Europe 72. The jam is somewhat excessive although the drum solo is pretty captivating.

Again like Europe 72, several good moments and I like the idea of both acoustic and electric sides of the Grateful Dead. However some of the jamming certainly goes off the deep end. My only advise is know how much endless instrumental noodling that you can take.