After two previous shows at SUNY-Stony Brook in Long Island in 1967 and ’68, the Grateful Dead returned to the campus gymnasium in 1970 on October 30. It was billed as two separate shows with two separate admissions. This marked the first time that Greg Bell, an Albany area show promoter who grew up nearby, would see the band and he recalls the band’s musical comrades New Riders of the Purple Sage opening up the show and then wondering why their pedal steel guitar player (Jerry Garcia) was setting up with the main act as well. The Grateful Dead were fresh off the heels of their seminal 1970 album Workingman’s Dead which was released just a few months ago. They would set up shop for two nights of shows in Stony Brook which which often attracted major musical acts of the time since, as Bell notes, “the proximity clause to Bill Graham’s Fillmore East conveniently ended about 5-10 miles before Stony Brook.”
The early set kicks off with a rather mellow take of “Cold Rain and Snow,” with Jerry Garcia singing each verse and getting plenty of help on each run through the chorus. The relaxed show opening vibe carries right into the nonchalant start of the (almost) brand new “Truckin’,” a song that made its debut in the live Dead catalog just months earlier. Unlike some of the first few versions of the song, this one elicits a discernable jam that starts off in a plodding fashion but soon enough picks up steam as the band seems to be discovering the possibility for exploration on this one. A spirited run through “Sugar Magnolia” follows this, fueled greatly by Garcia and his guitar’s “wah” pedal effect. This sets the stage for a bluesy cover of “Next Time You See Me,” the first Pigpen-sung tune of the evening who Bell recalls was “running everything that night.”
After Bob Weir leads the group through the harrowing tale of “Me and My Uncle,” Pigpen is once again back on the mic for one rapid verse of the Dead’s cover of The Rascals’ “Good Lovin'” which segues immediately into a mesmerizing drum duel between Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart that ebbs and flows in intensity. Out of this controlled percussive mayhem, the opening drum shuffle beat of “Cumberland Blues” arises and the rest of the band immediately jumps back into the fray. This selection from the recent Workingman’s Dead release essentially comes to a complete stop before the band slowly launches back into the rhythm of “Good Lovin'” for Pigpen to finish up in style. Before “Casey Jones” closes out this first set of music, the band urges the crowd for the early show to stick around outside and then come back in with their ticket stubs after everyone else clamoring outside makes their way in.
After a lengthy break between shows (Bell recounted that the second show didn’t start until around midnight), the Grateful Dead launch into another blues-infused cover, this time it’s “Smokestack Lightning” with Pigpen playing the role of Howlin’ Wolf to much acclaim. His harmonica play compliments the guitar playing of Garcia nicely as the Dead take their time with the opening number. The early portion of the late show also features a vintage pairing of “China Cat Sunflower” and “I Know You Rider,” with the latter showcasing some impressive vocal harmonies from the band. For those who missed the early show, the band rewards them with, interestingly, another take of “Truckin’.” This one features a brief jam that starts off strong with Phil Lesh navigating thee way on bass guitar, but ultimately falls a little short of its early show predecessor.
The “Candyman” that follows sees Garcia in fine fashion once again, both vocally and courtesy of an intensive guitar solo that bridges the lyrics beautifully which gets a nice round of applause from the Stony Brook crowd. Pigpen then takes the reigns once more with his harmonica and leads the band through a harrowingly soulful take of “It Hurts Me Too.” He then jumps back on the organ to start up a cover of the Martha and the Vandellas tune “Dancin’ In The Streets.” This is a much mellower, bluesy rendition than some of the supercharged ones the Dead would play later in their career, yet Weir encourages people to “get up and dance” anyway. It goes on to produce one of the longer jams of the evening as Garcia throws some neatly placed electric guitar mayhem atop the impeccable rhythm section. With Weir strumming along on rhythm guitar, a significant portion of it evokes shades of The Archie Bell & The Drells hit “Tighten It Up” before eventually rounding back into form.
To close out this long night at SUNY Stony Brook, the band first breaks out a rudimentary and fairly stripped down version of “Big Railroad Blues” which makes sense as it was only the fourth time the song was ever played live. They follow this up with a couple of their live show staples, beginning with “Saint Stephen” where Garcia once again leads the band through a brief exploratory jam. The percussive ending of “Stephen” then funnels right into the beginning of the band’s classic cover of Buddy Holly’s “Not Fade Away.” This is paired with its traditional running mate in “Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad” thanks to a silky smooth transition. For the finale. the Dead bust out one more classic cover selection and go big thanks to a 20+ minute whirling dervish of a “Turn On Your Lovelight.” It’s equal parts funk and R&B with Pigpen’s signature improvisational “rap” binding everything together. By song’s end, Weir supplements the vocals with some screeches and madman howling, perfectly apropos for a Halloween’s Eve show. With one night now in the books, the Grateful Dead would play their last show ever in Stony Brook the following evening.
Grateful Dead SUNY Stony Brook Gymnasium – Stony Brook, NY 10/30/70
Early show: Cold Rain and Snow, Truckin’, Sugar Magnolia, Next Time You See Me, Me And My Uncle, Good Lovin’->Drums->Cumberland Blues->Good Lovin’, Casey Jones
Late show: Smokestack Lightning, China Cat Sunflower-> I Know You Rider, Friend of the Devil, Truckin’, Candyman, It Hurts Me Too, Dancin’ In The Streets, Big Railroad Blues, Saint Stephen->Not Fade Away->Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad->Not Fade Away->Turn On Your Lovelight
Comments are closed.