Customer Reviews

Nightfall of Diamonds

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This release captures the raw power and exquisite musicianship of the Grateful Dead during one of its peak periods (1989-1991). "Nightfall of Diamonds -- 10/16/89 Meadowlands Arena" is a must for any Deadhead's collection. The Dead coming roaring out of the blocks with an energetic and well-played first set (disc one) opening sequence of "Picasso Moon">"Mississippi Half-Step">"Feel Like A Stranger". This opening sequence is matched only by the set closing "Let It Grow">"Deal", where Jerry Garcia's immense talents are fully on display. The second set (disc two) is what the Dead were all about; free-form musical exploration. Generous versions of the then-recently-revived "Dark Star" and Dead-standards "Playing in the Band" and "Uncle John's Band" are seamlessly linked by long, spacey sequences powered by Phil Lesh's impressive bass work and Garcia's melodic, midi-augmented guitar lines. Also, solid playing by Bob Weir, Brent Mydland and the drummers help place this set among the very best the Dead ever played. The band also throws in the rare "Attics of My Life" and "And We Bid You Goodnight", which makes this show extra-special. The sound quality is excellent and the music is well mixed. There has been much debate among Deadheads regarding the historical and musical importance of the 10/16/89 Meadowlands Arena concert. However, one listen to "Nightfall of Diamonds" should quiet most, if not all, critics of this show. "Nightfall of Diamonds" is a monument to the Dead's last "Golden Age", which in my view, was equal, if not superior, to any other period of the Dead's work.

This set is a worthwhile purchase for the second set alone. The first set has many highlights, such as the Picasso Moon>Half Step>Stranger opening sequence, and the Let It Grow>Deal closer. I wish the Let it Grow did not have MIDI "horns", since it sounds similar to the version on Without a Net. In fact, there is quite a bit of MIDI "trumpet" in this set as Jerry was really enjoying his new equipment. Still, it adds interesting texture to familiar songs. It's a good first set, not spectacular.
But, man, do things change in the second set. The Dark Star>Playing>UJB>Jam is incredible. The DS is not mindblowing, but it gets pretty spacey. The music stays in the outer realm during Playing In The Band, only to come back to earth for a short time for the Uncle John's verses. The Dead mess up the lyrics to UJB, but so what, Ive heard worse. Then it's back into flight for the JAM. This is one of the best Jam's I've ever heard on a Dead CD. Melodic and Spacey, it continues the Playin' theme for a while, then melts down into Drums and Space. The post-drums has IWTYH, an OK Brent song, then the unusual choice of Need a Miracle(very well played)>back into Dark Star for the rare second verse, into Attics (excellent). Whew! What a trip!
I can only say that Jerry was completely ON during this show. Every note, every phrase was absolutely Nailed! And the sound quality is perfect.
Highly Recommended!

Nightfall of Diamonds captures the grateful dead atop the final plateau of their storied career. Through the years, various personal and musical transitions coalesced into a variety of musical textures and distinct "vintages" of grateful dead composition. This album captures a compelling version of the dead's final peak incarnation.
The musical landscape of this recording (and period) is marked by momentum and musical density. The band creates a robust (occasionally bloated) sound that favors force over subtlety. This "full" sound is prominently exhibited throughout the first set, in the half-baked melodies of "Picasso Moon," and "Victim Or The Crime," as well as in the dramatic, invigorating set closer "Deal." The band does demonstrate its ability to return to subtle dexterous play on the Dylan cover "Stuck Inside of Mobile..." (the band truly dances with weir's vocals on this one, particularly jerry and phil). SIOM... coupled with "Deal" reveal the extent of the first-set highlights.

As stated in detail, the second set represents the noteworthy music of this recorded evening. In particular, the first half of the second set showcases the syncopated magic of the band's collective consciousness. The band slinks in, around, and through the familiar melodies of archetypal dead tunes, which exhibit a renewed sense of spirit. These familiar melodies are seamlessly tied together with delightful, spacious periods of collective investigation and discovery. From the opening notes of Dark Star through Drums the band breaths as one organism. The post space portion of the second set is a strong worthy showing, but relies more on the smoke and mirrors of set list construction as opposed to mastery of play. But this critique is only possible in comparison to the pinnacle results of the first half.

We use to buy tickets in hopes of 5 transcendent minutes. This album gives you 40 to start the second disc.

I have many many Grateful Dead CDs...and the vast majority
of them are from the years 1968 through 1977. So the fact that
Nightfall of Diamonds is from 1989 caused me to not buy it for
the longest time...but then I went ahead and bought it beccause
I was curious about the Dark Star. Guess what? It's GREAT.
Dark Star, Playing in the Band, Jam, Space...all GREAT.
The Dead were most certainly ON that New Jersey night in 1989.
And, while I tend to listen to jams rather than vocals...there
are some really fine vocals on CD 1. The "Deal" is one of the
best versions ever, with a fine long jam at the end. The
"Mississippi Half Step" has something other versions don't have;
that is, instead of singing that "across the Rio Grand-ee-oh" part, Jerry just jams beautifully. And guess what...this
live version of "Built to Last" is tremendous. So all in all
I very highly recommend Nightfall of Diamonds. Buy it for the
Dark Star--Playing in the Band--Space--Jam sequence on CD two,
then discover the vocals on CD one. Nightfall is now one of
my favorite Dead sets.

I will probably get hammered for this, but I think I am in the minority. By the late 80s the dead was heavy into electronic manipulation, simulation and alterations. A very electronic and spacey sound. If you are into their phase where they throw in a lot of synth and MIDI sound effects, you will likely be into this show. If you are used to the Dead of the late 60s, early and late 70s, early 80s and the nineties you may want to check this out, but invest your money somewhere. There is no denying that Set 2 is great. The Dark Star>PITB>UJB is especially good. But know, there is a LOT of echo, a LOT of sound effects, and a LOT of MIDI. I couldn't help but think it was the Dead gone prog, 80s style. The "Feel Like A Stranger" is also very good, BUT like the rest of the show it has a strong Emerson Lake Palmer feel to it. Personally, I would get Dick's Pick 6 if you want a great 80s show with a super second set. Don't get me wrong, the show is strong and a historic piece, but it won't get many spins on my player.

I never saw the Dead much (only four times) so I'm not one of the "I fondly remember this show" crew. Nevertheless, it's as good as they say it is.

Obviously no one show can tell you all about the Dead, but like many of the live shows not on Dicks Picks, this does very well. If you're new to the Dead, this is a good start (when you've heard a little of the more mainstream stuff, then it's time to investigate Dick's Picks).

I've been buying and listening to around ten Dead live sets over the last three months, and each time I'm wondering if the latest one will be the one where I tire of the music for a while. It hasn't happened. It may never happen.

It seems that the Dead never disappoint, or at least there are so many stellar performances over the years that releases like this will never stop. Don't listen to the "Side one was great but side two wasn't/Side two was great but side one wasn't/They actually made MISTAKES" views expressed here. Every Dead set I've listened to lately has jaw-dropping moments, and this has more than most.

Oh well. Only another eighteen or so Dick's Picks to get, and a few other live sets, and of course there the new "Grateful Dead go to Nassau." I may never be able to keep up.

What a wonderful thought. :)

Buy this if you like hearing the Dead live. For a newer show it stands out for its progressiveness. The "Dark Star" is different from the ones done in the 60's and 70's, and one would think differently since they hadn't played it for so long. Playing it would have given them a chance to slowly improvise on its structure over time.

... I remember the anticipation that the Dead would perform "Dark Star." as soon as the second set stared ..., "Da Da Da Da, Da Da Da Da," everyone went crazy. It seemed like it would never end. Some of this is ... felt when listening to the CD especially with the way they went from "Playing in the Band" to "Uncle John's Band" and back again.

A lot has been said highlighting the value of the second set on this CD, and rightfully so. But for me, the first set is laced with an upbeat energy and superb execution by the Dead that make it one of the best in my collection. I'm a big Garcia fan, but find that The Grateful Dead capture my interest during the first set usually on only two or three tunes and then I wait for the second set, which most often holds my interest and enthusiasm. However, on "Nightfall of Diamonds," the first set is one that I find myself returning to again and again.

This complete show recorded on 10-16-89 (Bobby's 42nd birthday) marks the end of an era in a way. While there were many great shows still to come, I think 1989 was the last most consistant year from beginning to end. The band was getting ready to celebrate their 25th anniversary and had been bringing back songs not played in years as well as a new studio album in the works. Starting in May, the band began to record their shows multi track for a live album to be put together by Jerry as part of the anniversary. The band was also mixing up the set lists with different song placements as well as the revivals. The idea was to release a 2cd set of "standard" Dead songs for Arista and then another disc to be sold separately from the Dead made up of the songs that were brought back after years of not being played (IE We Bid You Goodnight, Death Don't Have No Mercy, Dark Star and so on). Unfortunately, after the New Year's '89-90 run Jerry pretty much gave up on the idea due to the lackluster response of Built To Last and the project went to Phil and becameWithout a Net. Brent died the following July and by the time of the Europe tour in the Fall of '90, Jerry was back to his bad habits.

This show was the last in a five show run that was pretty strong dispite the death of fan Adam Katz on the 14th. The on the band's night off on Friday the 13th, Bob and Jerry even stopped by David Letterman's show with everyone in good spirits. A rough but ready finds birthday boy Bob starting off the show on a good note. Next is a pretty cool Half Step which was supposed to go straight into Feel Like A Stranger which is why the Across bridge isn't used. However there's a very brief pause which was more than likely done in case the band decided to use the cut on the forthcoming live album. If one listens to the shows that were recorded during this time, you'll notice the band at various times pausing briefly before beginning the next song even in jams. Built To Last is fun and Never Trust A Woman is something of a rarity. Stuck Inside A Mobile finds Bob going off kilter which is why the song was never played too much after this. The Let It Grow->Deal is a classic.

The Second Set began with the audience trying to sing Happy Birthday to Bobby but the cd begins with the band tuning to Dark Star. This Dark Star is a thing of beauty and is "a rainbow full of sound". There is another very brief pause before the band launches full into Playing In the Band. This Playing is also great heading off into deep space. Once again the band sort of slows down instead of just "hitting" Uncle John's Band like was often the case at the time giving us a rather unique sounding transition. Unfortunately, the band gets rather lost and loses it's way at one point which drains the energy. However, the band bounces back with the Playing Jam which is wonderful. The Drums/Space is quite nice. I Will Take You Home is not a favorite but this version is as good as any. Too bad we couldn't have gotten Just A Little Light instead. I Need A Miracle is rockin'. Dark Star starts up where the band left off earlier and is still quite nice. Attics Of My Life which was brought back with Dark Star at Hampton the previous week shows weak vocals again I'm afraid. While great to hear at the time, this is not something you would want to play around non-heads. Playing ends the set as good as it began. The We Bid You Goodnight encore is iceing on the cake.

I only give this release four stars - after all, I gave Ladies and Gentlemen five stars, and don't want to create the impression that this and L&G are equivalent!

That said, I am very happy to have this release, and it is unfair to compare 70s and 80s Dead. The recording quality is superb here, and many of the song selections are released in an official live disc for the first time. Highlights include Deal and the jams on disc 2. The UJB has many flubbed lyrics, which detracts as that is a very vocals oriented song. For newbies who are unfamiliar with Dark Star, enjoy this rendition but take it lightly - versions from 70-74 are the ultimate.