It Was 20 Years Ago Today : Grateful Dead, Oct 7, 1994, Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA

     Hello everyone. I hope you are doing fine as we enter the autumnal season. So much to look forward to: harvest parties, football, fantasy football, gambling on football. But what I most look forward to are the Fall Tours. But today I'm looking back to the Dead's 1994 Fall Tour. And this will be my least favorite post ever, as I write about the worst Grateful Dead show I ever saw, Oct 7, 1994, in Philadelphia at the Spectrum.
      At the time I had no idea, but Jerry Garcia's health was failing him. He had been admitted to a hospital in the fall of 1992 but he seemed to be all right the next few years. But by 1994, he was losing the battle with his demons, specifically heroin. So the monolithic lumbering beast that was “corporate Grateful Dead” (Phil's term) rolled into Philly.

10-07-94 The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pa. (Fri)
1: Stranger, Sugaree, Same Thing, B. E. Women, El Paso@, Tennessee Jed, Music
2: Victim, Samba, Foolish Heart> Corinna> Drumz> Last Time> TWBS> Morning Dew E: Johnny B. Goode

You can stream it here

http://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1994/10/7

      For all the dap my famous memory gets most of the time, I really have no recollection of most of the adventures leading up to and after this show. I'm pretty sure we drove back to Penn State after the show. The show had a lot of hype as it was the 50^th time the boys were playing the Spectrum. They unfurled a banner in the arena and the first set was high energy for the era.

       The second set was a HUGE disappointment. No real flow, and no real jam vehicles. Victim has a few moments but Samba in the Rain and Corinna are shitty songs. The first half of a second set should not be less exciting than the first set that preceded it. It was such a letdown. My roommate, whose brother got me into the Dead, swore he would never see them again.

      But less than 3 weeks later I would have my faith in live music, psychedelics, and humanity restored when I saw Phish on Halloween and a whole 'nother universe opened up for me.

Dave Kemp

BA American Studies

PhD Rock and Roll