Dark Star Orchestra, a band dedicated (ok, deadicated) to recreating the look, feel and sound of classic Grateful Dead concerts, returned to the Palace Theatre in Albany on November 15, performing a show from 1973 that had a healthy dose of Donna Jean Godchaux’s vocals on display.
The early 70s show started out with hit after hit – 15 songs over 90 minutes, many songs that would qualify as fan favorites these days, the kind you can hum a few bars of to brighten your day. This was among the first tours with Keith Godchaux and wife Donna, who were fitting into the band, with fans adjusting to the loss of founding Grateful Dead member, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan.
Let’s skip ahead to the setlist, since this show has already been on the books for more than 50 years.
Grateful Dead – Onondaga County War Memorial – Syracuse, NY – Wed. September 17, 1973
Set 1: Tennessee Jed, Me & My Uncle, They Love Each Other, Beat It On Down The Line, Sugaree, Mexicali Blues, Loser, Looks Like Rain, Row Jimmy, Jack Straw, Loose Lucy, You Ain’t Woman Enough, El Paso, Casey Jones
Set 2: Mississippi Half Step, Let Me Sing*, Truckin’*-> Eyes Of The World*-> Weather Report Suite Prelude*-> Weather Report Suite Part 1*-> Let It Grow*-> Stella Blue, Sugar Magnolia
*with Joe Ellis on trumpet and Martin Fierro on saxophone
First, there was no trumpet or saxophone this evening, but that’s not a knock on the show by any means. Looking back at the setlist from the original show, what stood out was how the crowd heard the rare (and only performed live on the Fall 1973 tour) “You Ain’t Woman Enough” with Lisa Mackey channeling all the energy into her vocals, and what was left over she incorporated into her noodley dance moves.
We are also in the one-drummer era of the Dead, so a band usually made up of seven was only five or six, depending on the song.
“On “Beat It On Down The Line,” Donna Jean Godchaux makes her voice heard for the first time as she and Weir harmonize throughout on another crisp albeit brief opening set selection. The musical reins are then passed back to Garcia who leads the band through a slow and soulful “Sugaree” with Lesh coming in hot on bass towards the song’s end.”
Tim O’Shea, review of 9/17/73
The first set seemed to just keep going and going with 14 total songs, nothing overly jammed out, just a jam-packed set of early 70s Dead tunes.
The second set felt shorter by comparison, with Rob Baracco taking time to play a little medley while the band got situated for the set. The pairing of “Truckin’” and “Eyes of the World” were a treat, combining for roughly 30 minutes of focused, intense playing followed by serene and blissful orchestration. A full “Weather Report Suite” followed, including the Prelude which was only played in a short span of the early 70s, with a proper build towards “Let It Grow”. The beautiful “Stella Blue” gave way to “Sugar Magnolia” which got the crowd up and dancing once again to close the show
“Overall, there are moments of greatness, mainly during compositional and slower sections, but the horns seem to try to do a bit too much when the improvisation kicks into high gear. This is likely what led to some Deadheads being less than enthused about their addition to a traditional Grateful Dead show.”
Tim O’Shea, review of 9/17/73
While the Grateful Dead didn’t perform an encore for this show back in ‘73, the band chose an apt song given the recent passing of Godchaux, “Box of Rain.” The American Beauty track, written by Phil Lesh for his dying father, made sense this night, with Godchaux having passed less than two weeks prior, and the chosen show having the presence of Donna’s vocals throughout the night.
Photos of Dark Star Orchestra Palace Theatre by Zak Radick
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