Good morning fellow Deadheads!
The Grateful Dead and the world lost a fierce and indomitable spirit on this day in 1968, when Neal Cassady passed away after a wedding celebration in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Celebrate Cassady's life and read more about the man and his immense influence on the Dead with our Grateful Dead Guests post on Neal Cassady.
On this day back in 1969, the Dead played an off the hook show at the Music Box in Omaha as they made their way through the Midwest, churning through an eight-concerts-in-seven-days stretch. If anything, though, the hard traveling and long hours on stage seemed to have melded the Dead into even more of a seething, mind-melting, psychedelic steamroller of a band than usual. And this show, with its classic Dark Star> Stephen> Eleven and massive, hallucinogenic Caution, to say nothing of the Schoolgirl and Other One Suite, is, quite arguably, the best of the tour. Listen to the whole show at Grateful Dead of the Day.
Only the most hardcore of Deadheads braved the frigid Wisconsin weather to make it to the Dane County Coliseum back in 1979. But inside the mighty Dane, Jerry and the band heated it up from the start with a jaunty Half-Step into a high octane Franklin's Tower. From there, the magic continues, including a Shakedown Street second set opener, Terrapin> Playin', and Black Peter.
Other February 4th Shows and Recordings:
Until tomorrow, spread the love and enjoy the music!