GRATEFUL DEAD

To Terrapin:Hartford '77

$19.98 CD

 In the spring of 1977, the Grateful Dead jammed their way through one of the most fabled tours of their career, one that many fans rank as their best ever. Delivering 26 epic shows in a mere 37 days, they were at the top of their game, playing with unbridled energy and almost magical fervor. A tour for the ages, it ended on a euphoric high note in Hartford, Connecticut on May 28-a Saturday-as the band previewed tracks from its soon-to-be-released album Terrapin Station and ripped through a set list packed with classics. That legendary night is revisited on TO TERRAPIN: HARTFORD '77, presenting the complete-and previously unreleased-show on three CDs.  

 All 21 tracks have been mastered to HDCD specifications from the original reel-to-reel soundboard tapes. The deluxe package is enhanced with artwork by Scott McDougal and a 16-page booklet boasting rare photos from the actual show and in-depth liner notes by Gary Lambert. 

 The Dead concert experience brought to new life on TO TERRAPIN: HARTFORD '77 opens with a peak-form trifecta of “Bertha”/“Good Lovin'”/“Sugaree,” and serves up other pillars of the Dead canon including “Jack Straw,” “Playing In The Band,” “Candyman” and “One More Saturday Night.” The three-disc set also spotlights seminal interpretations of cuts from the album Terrapin Station-released less than two months after this exuberant show-that would become staples of the Dead's repertoire. These include Bob Weir and John Barlow's cool, off-kilter reggae groove “Estimated Prophet,” Phil Lesh and Peter Monk's “Passenger” and a buoyant version of the Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter masterpiece “Terrapin Station” that's at the heart of the performance's second set. 

 The spring '77 Grateful Dead line-up included Jerry Garcia (lead guitar, vocals), Donna Jean Godchaux (vocals), Keith Godchaux (keyboards), Mickey Hart (drums), Bill Kreutzmann (drums), Phil Lesh (bass, vocals), and Bob Weir (rhythm guitar, vocals). When they rolled into the Hartford Civic Center, the Dead had been back on the road for nearly a year following their almost complete touring hiatus in 1975. Hitting a new stride in the marathon journey's final 26 shows, they played with a freshness and intensity that made May 28, 1977 anything but one more Saturday night. 

 The former Hartford Civic Center-now the XL Center-is one of the stops on the Grateful Dead's 2009 tour, which features a core of four from the spring of '77: Weir, Lesh, Kreutzmann and Hart.  

Selection # 6008

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