http://www.avclub.com/features/savage-love/
He’s also the guy that started the whole Santorum thing. Santorum compared consenting male adults having sex to bestiality. Mr. Savage took offense and the rest is history. Go ahead, Google Santorum and see how Savage redefined one man’s last name. So I bring you another installment of my semi famous series, It was 20 Years Ago Today, The Grateful Dead, RFK 7/12/90.
I tried to convince my folks to go let me see the Dead in the summer of ’89 but that was a no go from the start. So when the Spring Tour was announced, the boys were doing 3 shows in mid March. My folks agreed but I couldn’t get tixs so I was resigned to do with a t-shirt that a friend got me in the lot. Said friend also picked up a lot of treats and whatnot in the lot. He ended up getting busted, shunned by the faculty (he was a straight A student and stealth Head, so all of this came a surprise to a lot of people). He has gone on to be a successful businessman and has a beautiful family. So suck it squares!!!
I made sure to get my ticket request into the Dead’s lottery to ensure myself tickets for the grand event at RFK stadium in Washington DC. This was back before the Internet and you had to snail mail it in. For a bunch of hippies, the Dead had slot of rules to follow. First, you had to have a #10 business sized envelope. Then, a 3x5 index card upon which you enter your information. Each show had to have it’s own card. After that first show, to this day I always have those within a short grasp. Actually went old school to get Hampton tixs for Furthur this April. Got the tixs and saved almost 15 bucks on each tix. Furthur!!!!!!!
I went down to the shows with an old friend from Clark Summit, a suburb outside of Scranton. I lived there from the mid 70’s until 1988 when I moved down to Hanover. His brother got us into the Dead (a whole long and funny story which will appear here sometime in the near future when I don’t have anything to write about). I stayed in touch with him after I moved down here and we were all set. My vehicle of choice was a grey 1986 Plymouth Horizon. I loved that car. Had it through high school and then shared it with my brother through college. Had some AMAZING dead stickers on it. Sweet little ride, heady stickers, I am ready for a show.
Got directions to the stadium that took us through a rather normal section of DC. And by that I mean ghetto lite. But for every show after that, I took the same route to the stadium. State route 50 into the city, left on New York Ave., left at the Lucky 7 liquor store. They always hung a banner that said, “Welcome Deadheads.” Follow that for a mile and the stadium and lots are on the left. We get there and find a parking spot in the Lot.
Holy shit, THE LOT. You can just imagine how my mind was blown upon my first experience in the Lot. Vendors everywhere, people stopping strangers, just to shake their hand. Such a sense of brotherhood and friendship I have never experienced before with some many strangers. And then I went through puberty a second time. Why you ask? Two words HIPPIE CHICKS. Wow, cool chicks who by the way they dress and the music they’re into make me feel like I’m at a show whenever I’m around them. Where the fuck do I sign up. To be honest, a lot of my love for hippie chicks can be traced to actress Olivia D’Abo, who played Kevin Arnold’s hippie sister on The Wonder Years. No Winnie Cooper for me, give me the hippie chick!! Now you see why I embrace the concept of HMLL’s so much?
After behaving and soaking up the Lot, we head into the show. We had floor seats (general admission) and head in. We went down front not knowing any better. Holy shit was it crowded. I mean like on a Japanese subway car crowded. One of the reasons why I’d rather have room to dance than be way down front.
No room to dance, and I’d like to apologize to the older Heads who I keep bumping my backpack into. Hey, I wasn’t always this cool, believe it or not. Edie Brickell and the New Bomienians opened. They were ok and after a long wait, the Dead finally came on stage and the Bus pulled out.
07-12-90 Robert F. Kennedy Stadium, Washington, D.C. (Thu)
1: LTGTR, Stranger, Bertha, Little Light, Queen Jane, Stagger Lee, Cassidy, Tennessee Jed> Music
2: Box Of Rain> Victim> Foolish Heart> Dark Star> Drumz> Watchtower> Mr. Fantasy> Hey Jude Finale> Touch E: The Weight
Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians opened - "Funiculi Funicula" tuning before "Bertha" - "Take A Step Back" before "Box Of Rain" - final "Hey Jude Finale"
Let the Good Times Roll opener? Hell yes. Bertha! Complete with a rainstorm. It ended up raining for a good part of the first set. Cassidy, Ten Jed, Music Never Stopped, all classic GD, I was in heaven. During Music, some really fucked up guy grabbed my arm and tried to take me up front. Somehow got myself out of that and waited through setbreak. I also learned a very important lesson about chafing. Boy, does it hurt when you get rained on at a show and dance. At Phish Camden 2000, it rained cats and dogs and I was ensconced in my poncho. Adrian was all like, this feels so good, you should be dancing in the rain, etc. He then had to deal with chafing the rest of the evening. We all have to learn one way or another.
Phil comes out and does the Take A Step Back thing. Have I mentioned how crowded it was? Wasn’t a huge fan of Victim or Foolish Heart and Victim seemed to be very long. Then Dark Star. Holy shit. Only the fifth Dark Star since they brought it back. Some Heads have never seen it and I get it at my first show. While cool, I was totally sober and not as enlightened to the power of music, so I thought it was a little boring. Drums and Space was rather LONG, but Watchtower blazed out of it. Then Brent steps to the forefront and does Dear Mr. Fantasy>Hey Jude Finale. Wow, so wanted to hear that. During Touch, they had a skeleton as tall as the stage dancing along side it. Rather cool and never saw that again. The encore was a perfect way to send us off into the night.
So we get out to my car and it won’t start. Holy shit! In downtown DC, no cell phone, first Dead show and this!?!?!!? Guys parked next to us jump-started us and we let it run awhile. Turn it off. Won’t restart. Uhoh. So once I start my car, don’t turn it off. Sit in traffic just to get out of the Lot, follow another crazy way out of the Lot. As we’re on Route 30 in MD (my absolute favorite way to roll home from a show), the headlights start getting dimmer. Damn, better turn off the radio to conserve power. And the windshield wipers. Somehow made it home. But what am I saying? I was home down at RFK
Dave Kemp
BA American Studies
PhD Rock and Roll
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