Grateful Dead Dick'S Picks 14: Boston Music Hall 11/30/73 & 12/2 CD

Four CD set. This is one of the more unusual volumes in the entire DICK'S PICKS series, both with respect to band configuration - neither Mickey Hart nor Donna Godchaux (who was off tour having a baby) are here - and the circumstances of the recording, as the first disc begins with a version of 'Morning Dew' that had to serve as both a show opener and a sound check because the band was three hours late arriving for the gig! Interestingly, the last disc ends with an encore of 'Morning Dew' (in a particularly spectacular version) too, and one imagines archivist Dick Latvala chuckling over that symmetry as he put together this set, which compiles highlights from two nights of a three-night stand at Boston Music Hall. Lovers of Keith Godchaux's keyboard work will find much to savor, as he is higher in the mix here than on probably any other Pick, and the 'Mind Left Body Jam' on Disc Four coming out of 'Playing in the Band' is stellar. And how often do you hear (on Disc One) a FIRST set that begins with 'Morning Dew' and ends with 'Playing in the Band'?! All with a uniquely mellow vibe throughout, this is the Dead easing away from the jazzy 1973 sound towards the next step in their ceaseless evolution (the Wall of Sound is four short months away). Another keeper.

1. Morning Dew 2. Mexicali Blues 3. Dire Wolf 4. Black-Throated Wind 5. Don't Ease Me in 6. Big River 7. They Love Each Other 8. Playing in the Band 9. Here Comes Sunshine 10. Weather Report Suite 11. Dark Star Jam 12. Eyes of the World 13. Sugar Magnolia 14. Cold Rain and Snow 15. Beat It on Down the Line 16. Brown Eyed Woman/The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down/Beer Barrel Polka 17. Jack Straw 18. Ramble on Rose 19. Weather Report Suite 20. Wharf Rat 21. Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo 22. Playing in the Band 23. Jam 24. He S Gone 25. Truckin 26. Stella Blue 27. Morning Dew