Shining Star - Great JGB Footage from 1991

Once again going to have to give a shoutout to LoloYodel for producing, and uploading gems like this.

This just speaks for itself.  I love Shining Star, and I think everyone does.  It's 14 mellow minutes of Jerry alternating between singing and playing solos.

Jerry seems very happy playing this, pay special attention to 4:10 and onward. This is something I don't see from him very much in other videos on Youtube, but the way I remember him at JGB shows.

Who Was John - Jerry Garcia Band

I've heard more than one person say they enjoyed JGB shows more than Dead shows.  Songs like this support this line of thinking.  Even Donna sounds good:




I'm going to digress unnecessarily here and hypothesize that the era that I saw the dead (mid 1990s) was probably the time that you could best make the argument that JGB was a better show.  FIrst of all, JGB was sick at this time. Secondly, the Grateful Dead started struggling in the mid 1990s, especially in 1994 and 1995.

I think Jerry seemed very happy playing in JGB.  Bill Kreutzmann has controversially stated that Jerry did not enjoy playing with The Grateful Dead during the bands' swan song.

 (thanks Jimmi B for posting this on Youtube)

JGB at Blockbuster Pavilion, Devore CA 5-13-1994

The first few minutes only are stills.  This is Jerry playing a really great show at this late date.

Many people don't know that The Grateful Dead had shows booked the following year (late 1995) at this location which was sometimes referred to as the Glen Helen Blockbuster Pavilion in Devore CA. Tickets to this concert were sold, but the shows were not meant to be.

Thanks to BurningShoreProphet for the youtube post.

Happy Halloween

Jerry Garcia Band plays Werewolves of London on 10/31/92.

Very special thanks to TitoDead on Youtube for posting this gem.

Comes a Time - Grateful Dead Song Review

Well, if you've read my blog manifesto you already know that I am a huge Jerry Garcia fanatic and Jerry ballads are the pinnacle of the Dead experience for me. I recently reviewed China Doll, and eventually when I eventually review songs like Morning Dew and So Many Roads
it will be obvious that my favorite part of the show was the Jerry ballad slot.

That being said, Comes a Time does not really do much for me.  I feel like stating this is somewhat blasphemous.  I mean, the song is slow, soulful and deep.  This is what I look for in music.  I assure you that I'm definitely someone who has been down and out.  Songs like Mission in the Rain are songs that get me through.  I still occasionally go through low depressive periods during which I love slow sad songs.  Still, Comes a Time just doesn't really do it for me.

It is on Reflections which is probably my favorite Jerry Garcia solo album.   I will at some point review Reflections but I must take a moment here to say this album is a totally underrated gem.  I honestly think that track for track it is more consistently good than almost any Grateful Dead album.  However, Comes a Time is my least favorite song (or tied for last with Tore Up Over You).

To me the song is slow, plodding, and uninteresting.  The first line is definitely a memorable one:

Comes a time

When the blind man

Takes your hand and says 

Can't you See? 

But the rest is just kind of vague and unmemorable for me personally.  I always associate this song with To Lay Me Down for some reason.  Probably because it is also a Jerry Garcia solo song that was played with the Dead.  I actually like To Lay Me Down even less, but that's another review.

Comes a Time Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 7.0

Disclaimer: This is part of my review of every Grateful Dead song from A-Z. Music is a beautiful thing because it is so personal and subjective, so keep in mind that this is one man's opinion (and be sure to read my blog manifesto to understand a little more about where I'm coming from).