41 Years Ago Tonight: Spectrum 8/29/80: Summer Touring

Thanks Krab - I am always looking for more tips towards some early 80's stand-outs and always personally thought Philly was more consistently good for GD than NYC....many Heads will likely disagree though.

^ let me be the 1st to respectfully disagree. MSG shows are 2nd to none. 

Spectrum + Hartford are tied for 2nd, followed by Providence, then Albany, then Hampton,,,,

Then pretty much every other east coast venue,,, finally west coast gigs hold up the rear.

They just played better on the east coast, played with a higher octane, sorry lefties. 

Best recordings ? Bear, Betty Boards +  Healy matrix recordings,,, toss up there.

^No love for Nassau?

88 MSG was weak.

Odd but there again: '90 Nassau with Branford blew off the roof and Summer '89 Philly seemed to run circles around the Giants run of 2 as well. I am sure there are plenty of MSG's to compare so whatchagot?!?

I was there--both night, this one and the next night, 8/30.  What I remember most about 8/29 was how figgin hot it was in the Spectrum.  They actually had some of the outside doors opened during most of the second set to let some air in.  This was a nice, back to back, one-two punch, Philly run.

>>88 MSG was weak.

Yeah, sure, all 9 shows were weak.

Wow Hampton after Providence not in my experience but that is what makes it interesting. I loved going to MSG for shows there is really nothing like a show in that neighborhood, but musically none of the ones I saw stood out. I would say Hampton, Portland, Nassau, MSG, Hartford, Providence, Boston Garden, Albany, Worcester in that order, but of course didn't come close to seeing them all.

Sadly never made it to the Spectrum, but they always showed up in that building. The east coast thing just comes down to having that many shows in row, mostly indoor, combined with slightly crazed spun up attendees. Never heard the routine crowd roar on the west coast that you heard at just about every east coast show. 

Look at Bri, my new troller!

Where is Mikey?

Calling out your stupid shit isn't trolling. Plus, I don't say squat about 90% of the stupidity that you post.

Garcia Band rocked the Spectrum in 89. It was louder than any Dead show I'd seen.

88 IMO was the weakest 80's year. The inertia of 87 had waned.

One of the best tours since I got on the bus. I was only able to attend 8/30 as I was 17 and lying to my parents about where I was going. The Jack Straw to close the 1st set was one of the best I have ever seen. These shows are when CC Rider & Red Rooster were put back in the rotation I believe. Not sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. 

Yes to that 8/30 Jack Straw--I close my eyes and can still see it.  I saw some great and weak Spectrum shows--they tended to show up at a better than average level at most spectrum shows--saw everyone from 77 to 81 when I went off to college and then most from 82 through 87 when I moved.  Have to say, they had shows scheduled if I recall in November of 1978 ( a few days after the Capitol Theater, Passaic Dead Heads broadcast show and Jerry's laryngitis) and either Garcia was sick or a killer snow storm made it impassable--I can't recall-but they canceled and rescheduled for back to back Friday nights January 1979- 1/5/79 and 1/12/79.  That was great.  I remember taking my buddy Tim Kelley who later on would become the guitar player for Slaughter until his untimely death in a car accident.  He wasn't a Dead Head, so I said come and see what its about.  In those days, Jerry would kind of rock back and forth when he was digging in to a solo, and I just remember Tim saying, "Jerry is wailing dude, this is awesome, he's rocking-check him out" over and over one of those nights.  I saw so many good shows at the Spectrum--gosh, one of my top 5 was the ABB in 1979 during the Enlightened Rogues tour with Bonnie Bramlet and the Henry Paul Band opening up.  ELO with Kingfish opening up (sans Weir), Clapton on the Slowhand tour with Muddy Waters opening up, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 1980, Garcia Band in March of 1978--they called it Spectrum Theater--basically, made only half the seats available and cut the palace in half to give it a more intimate feel.  That was the only Spectrum Theater configuration I can recall seeing. Of course Dr J and the 76ers, Bernie Parent and the Flyers games--I miss that dump

>>>one of my top 5 was the ABB in 1979 during the Enlightened Rogues tour with Bonnie Bramlet and the Henry Paul Band opening up

8/29/1979; forgot about Bonnie, great show, miracled my neighbor, he thanks me to this day.

Krab--I remember that--I was at college in Pittsburgh so didn't come back for that--they used to do a few select spectrum theater show when it wasn't likely to sell out, they would make it a more intimate setting--JGB was the only one I recall seeing

Voodoo Chile--Thanks for the flash back review--I remember reading that one back in the day.  I used to deliever the Bucks County Courier Times and the Trentonian when paper routes were a thing--though I was done with that career by then. One thing about that ABB show, it was one of the few I can recall that blew past the Spectrum's curfew.  It was a school night for this this 10th grader and when we got out, SEPTA trains had stopped running to Bucks County.  So 5 of us piled into a cab for the ride back home---that is another story us and the cabbie won't ever forget!  FYI, that Spectrum show wound up being recorded for The King Biscuit Flower Hour and it was broadcast many months latter on WMMR--I still have the original Maxcell XLII cassette somewhere.  That Don't Want You Know More/Not My Cross To Bear opener was staggering.  Blue Sky, Crazy Love and Gregg pouring his hear out on It Just Ain't Easy are what I remember most

They played a lot of very good shows at the Capital Centre too.  26 shows from 1974-1993, including the first performances of Touch Of Grey and Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, and the only performance of Fever.

https://www.herbibot.com/?place=Earth/US/MD/Landover/Capital+Centre