The Daily Nugs - April 17, 2025
From Grateful Dead of the Day
On this day in '82, the spring East Coast tour continued to charge onwards, throwing off pixy dust - of one sort or another - as the Dead laid down another sweet night at the Hartford Civic Center. The tight picking on It's All Over Now followed by an exploratory Birdsong highlight the first set, while the boys' spacey Spanish Jam before a lovely, crowd-pleasing Uncle John's is not to be missed in the second half. Get on over to Grateful Dead of the Day and give the entire show a listen.
The Dead took it to the Ivy League on this day in 1971, laying down a monstrous show at Princeton University. With his second-to-last King Bee, a roaring Big Boss Man, a Lovelight, and killer Hard to Handle, Pigpen is the undisputed champion of the show. But it is the Good Lovin’, featuring Pig's “Brooklyn Bridge” rap about an encounter with a particularly large prostitute, that makes this show truly special. Listen to Pig and the boys rage, if you can handle it.
And while you are listening to what is probably Pig’s greatest extemporaneous performance from that Good Lovin' at Princeton’s Dillon Gym, may we also suggest that you check out our Pigpen bio and check out some of his best performances.
In just the fourth show of the 1984 spring East Coast tour, the boys delivered a mesmerizing night of music, highlighted by the Help> Slip> Franklin's that opens the second set and leads to a heavenly Woman Smarter> Eyes. But don't stop there; listen to the entire show.
With a dream 1969 setlist, this show is so hot. For a long time, it was only available as a digital download from the Dead. But back in 2022, a Dick Latvala DAT by way of Rob Eaton and Charlie Miller appeared on Archive. And now anyone can enjoy the show in all its glory.
This remastered video starts off with Pig on It Hurts Me Too and follows the set through Truckin'. On Big Railroad Blues, the boys don their Bozo hats for some high comedy, and that Truckin' is an epic '72 version, as you probably already guessed. What a treat to see the band during Europe '72.
April 17th Shows and Recordings:
1970 - Family Dog at the Great Highway - San Francisco, California
1971 - Dillon Gym, Princeton University - Princeton, New Jersey
1984 - Niagara Falls Convention Center - Niagara Falls, New York
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Until tomorrow, spread the love and enjoy the music!