This is a 3-hour mix of highlights from the Grateful Dead’s three-show, June 1993 run at Deer Creek in Noblesville, IN. It is pulled from matching SBD sources, except for “Loser” and “High Time,” where the audience recording worked better.
The band was crackling on a lot of first set tunes during this run, particularly in the good times and old-timey zones, with a heavy Garcia-song tilt. Twangy, funky. Some of it has a light touch, but much of it is surprisingly fierce, given the songs. The first disc of this mix pulls that kind of material together into a really fun, unconventional first set. No jam necessary.
The second and third discs collect the big numbers, which have a nice dynamic range. There’s plenty of intense exploration in the 24-minute “Terrapin,” and the first two-thirds of “Fire” are fiery. In contrast, there’s a chill, focused vibe to much of the rest of the improvisation – “Scarlet,” “Dark Star,” “Eternity,” and “Victim.” (I edited the latter two songs to instrumentals specifically to nestle them up alongside this short-but-sweet “Dark Star.”)
“High Time” was played very rarely after 1991; this is the sixth from last. “Dark Star” is the fifth from last. This mix doesn’t include Drums>Space highlights, which I’m reserving for a future mix dedicated to only that stuff. Caveat: The first few minutes of "Terrapin's" sung parts are rough, but the performance gains steam as the song progresses, flowing into a great jam, so I didn't edit it down.
Disc One (70 minutes)
- Jack Straw >
- Friend of the Devil
- Jack-a-Roe (slight edit)
- Loose Lucy
- Way to Go Home
- Let the Good Times Roll (edit)
- It’s All Over Now
- Lazy River Road
- Black Peter
- Loser
- High Time
Disc Two (49 minutes)
- Scarlet Begonias >
- Fire on the Mountain
- Terrapin Station > Jam
Disc Three (53 minutes)
- Dark Star
- Eternity Jam
- Victim or the Crime Jam >
- Crazy Fingers
- He’s Gone
- I Need a Miracle Jam >
- Days Between (edit)
- Encore: I Fought the Law (slight edit)