Dead & Company finally blessed North Carolina with some live music to open The Summer of Stirfry Tour 2016. The energy in the days leading up to the multi-city tour has been palpable in Grateful Dead & Company Land and after the long build up of anticipation, The tour of life got underway. Everybody was wide open and waiting to take the plunge with our favorite musicians but folks in NC got “just the tip”. The first thing I noticed while scanning through coverage was a much improved and enormous video screen behind the band. With the size of Summer shows and the seating arrangements we end up with, this is a huge plus. Also a huge plus, Derek is getting over his keyboard volume phobia and Jeff could be heard for a change. When Jeff is LOUD, we all benefit!

The Music Never Stopped is a great way to kick off a tour and while the music never stops, it’s getting slow enough at times to almost stop. Dead & Co’s version should be called The Music Almost Stops. Mama Maia… That’s all I’m gonna say about that. John loves Cold Rain and Snow like transgenders love the Ladies Room and that came next. Friend Of The Devil and They Love Each Other should never be played back to back. Those 2 songs together are like feeding old folks then putting them in an easy chair. There’s gonna be some sleeping motherfuckers before long. Many of US are old too and shit like that will send 50% of US right to dreamland. Liberty got played for the first time and after some rocky moments, Cassidy got some legs. The Promised Land has been a favorite set closer for a long time and woke up everybody that started sleeping half way through FOTD.

Eyes always has and always will provide incredible moments for US. With the announcement of Soundboards for all shows being available through nugs.tv or .net or whatever, everybody will finally get to experience what has always been lacking in audience recordings and live streams. That’s clean, clear and full bass. Oteil’s playing is consistently outstanding but it’s difficult to pick up on periscope or mixlr streams. Listening to the boards of The Fillmore gives you a full dose of what Oteil is bringing to the party. His playing during Estimated and Dark Star, in particular, are clear examples of his talents. Oteil is the best thing that’s happened to Dead Music since Irwin made Tiger or Rosebud. While Phish gives everyone that bought a ticket a download of the show for free, you’re gonna have to pay for Dead & Company SBDs. That shouldn’t really be a problem since we’ve been passing shit around for over 50 years now.

Eyes, Deal, Estimated was a great way to kick off the second set and the party shifted into high gear. Stranger out of Space was cool and lead into Black Peter. At this point, I’d like to make a Public Service Announcement. When Dead & Co is playing, particularly ballads, lets all play a game. The game is called, When Dead & Co are playing, SHUT THE FUCK UP! Mama Mia… I don’t know what it was like there but from the streams, I can hear a bunch of absolutely extraneous and random conversations. Some dude talking about driving all the way from Florida that morning, somebody talking about maybe buying a shirt, just all kinds of chatter that goes into a folder labeled, “Nobody Fuckin Cares”. It’s one of the reasons I always go to great lengths to have seats way up front. The closer you are to the source, the less of that you have to deal with. Everyone would be safe to assume that while the music is being played, we’re not interested in a damn thing you have to say… That’s all I’m gonna say about that… Until I say some more…

When it comes to Garcia ballads, I wish Weir didn’t sound so… Weir like. His style is completely unique and I have appreciated it tremendously throughout the years. He lags back behind the moment then rushes to catch up to it lyrically. Garcia often played his guitar the way Weir sings. It’s an incredible observation. It’s always been his thing and it’s great on his stuff. On Garcia’s ballads, it comes across as completely awkward and unsettling to me. I’m well aware that he could totally drop a stink bomb and many of you would inhale deeply and swear it smells like roses. In that case, I’m happy that you’re happy… He’s an amazing musical legend with talents that far exceed most but, Garcia ballads fit Weir like his shorts would’ve fit Jerry. Either way, I feel exceptionally fortunate to be living through these times with our favorite artists. Love You Bob! Not on Dews or Black Peter but altogether as a human!

For an encore, Oteil screamed, “QUEEN CITY!” once… Shortest fuckin song I ever heard… I know, I know, hard 11:00 curfew. The band has been doing this for over 50 years, drums and space should’ve been abbreviated instead. A double encore was planned, as was New Speedway and Uncle John’s prior to space but for whatever reason, time got away from them. Might be time to practice “We Bid You Goodnight” for those moments when you get lost in what was going on and only have 2 minutes until the curtain. We’ll all Love it!

The Busses are parked at Bonaroo as the most awkward collection of musical acts ever assembled will come to a grand finale when Dead & Co take the stage later tonight. It’s a long tour and I’m certain there will be many mind-blowing and magical moments ahead! We’re living in some of the days that we’ll look back on and say “Those were the days”. Enjoy every second you can with this group of greats! Love Y’all Long Time and Forever! See ya soon!

Here’s The Rocky Video of my intense training for Summer Tour if you missed it:

Dead To The Core,

Dean Sottile (pronounced So Tilly)
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