July 30, 2003
Dead finish first leg of tour
The good ol' Grateful Dead have finished up the first leg of their Summer Getaway tour, the part with Steve Winwood and Willie Nelson, with an amazing night run at Red Rocks amphitheatre in Colorado, where they've played 25 times over the years.
Mickey Hart continues to blog the tour on his Trip Diary. Sounds like the last shows came off well.
Went to the Denver Art Museum this morning with Caryl and Reya. During our visit I found the following Paiute dance song
The wind stirs the willows,
The wind stirs the grasses,
The whirlwind, the whirlwind
The snowy earth comes gliding,
The snowy earth comes gliding,
The rocks are ringing,
The rocks are ringing in the mountains...
It has been an amazing run here at red rocks. The story is the music and the sense of place. The dry hot wind billowing up from the amphitheater, whippings down the canyon. This wind comes in a flash and then it's gone just as quickly as it appeared. It's as if the spirits of the rocks were talking to us. We become aware of the forces and lean into the groove. The sound is magnificent. The rocks shapeshift the sound into beautiful contours. After these days it is a fond memory of this run that I will take with me. It has been a musical odyssey for us. We have experienced a rebirth in sprit on this tour. The band has never played this consistently for this length of time. Looking forward to a bit of a rest, then ramping back up for the second leg and beyond.
As Hunter would say...
Full head of steam
Look out the wind blows high
Full head of steam
Grab your hat & wave goodbye...
Second leg is through the midwest with Bob Dylan and Robert Hunter, and then a couple of California shows. But just a few. Closest to me is in Irvine, don't know if I want to drive down there or not. It'd be a lot of hassle. But these shows are each jewels, something to savor, really worth it in the end. Dylan's a big dead head, these guys playing at their best could inspire to who knows what?
Robert Hunter, longtime songwriter for the Dead, has also been keeping a journal of his own recent touring. Also worth a read.
