Spring ’90 is synonymous with many things to many people, but in the Grateful Dead world, it was perhaps one of the most vital tours in the beloved band’s history: everything was clickin’. Over the next few weeks, Glide will be revisiting Grateful Dead’s Spring ’90 tour in honor of its 30th anniversary, with recaps and video highlights. For those stuck at home during these bizarre times, there’s no better time than now to go back 30 years and couch up this run…
March 16, 1990 – The Capital Centre, Landover, MD:
The final show of the tour-opening three-night stand found the band in similarly fine form as the inspired playing and choice bust-outs continued. After a particularly upbeat start to the first set with crowd-favorites “Let the Good Times Roll” & “Touch of Grey”, the group eventually delivered a powerful version of Jerry Garcia’s “Loser” before bringing back Weir’s long-forgotten “Black-Throated Wind” for the first time since 1974. The opening frame closed with a sermon from the Church of Brent Mydland as the keyboardist delivered an impassioned version of his signature number “Blow Away.”
The second set, while admittedly not the strongest of the tour, still features some highlights including a highly unusual and well-played “Scarlet Begonias->Estimated Prophet” opener as well as serene takes on the Garcia/Hunter ballads “Ship of Fools” and “Stella Blue.” The encore featured the first East Coast version – and 2nd performance overall – of the Rolling Stones rocker “The Last Time”, which had made its Grateful Dead concert debut only a few weeks prior.
“Loser”: A first-set staple since its 1971 concert debut, this Garcia/Hunter testament to desperation and chance was often a popular choice for Garcia to sink his world-weary teeth into, leading to nearly 350 total performances through 1995. Garcia once described his fondness for the song during an interview with David Gans, “Like sometimes I sing that song ‘Loser’ and it’s a self-congratulatory asshole. Sometimes it’s an idiot. The lyrics have the guy an idiot, but the idiot’s version of himself is, ‘Hey, I’m great!’ I can ride that either way and there’s lots of shading in between where it’s both those things at the same time. I love it when a song is ambiguous like that.” Buoyed by Mydland’s dramatic yet sensible use of his Hammond-B3 organ, Garcia elevates this version to a new level with strong and emotional vocals as well as an explosive solo that slams into the final chorus with the force of a runaway freight train.
“Black-Throated Wind”: This Bob Weir/John Barlow tribute to America and her cadres of road-warriors became an immediate first-set staple after it’s 1972 debut. Often working itself up into a frenzy towards the end of the song with Weir screaming like a man possessed over top of Garcia’s dizzying lines, this gem appeared with clockwork-like regularity until it was abruptly shelved in 1974. Hinting at its future, Weir discussed the song’s origins as well as its possible return in a 1981 interview, “It was a process – it took me a while. I was snowed in in this little cabin in Wyoming with Barlow, a guitar, a typewriter, and a bottle of whiskey. The catalyst, a bottle of Wild Turkey 101. We just sort of pounded away at it. That one’s a fairly strange song – I intend redo the lyrics on it, and it may resurface.” The lyrics were, in fact, ultimately altered and this updated version made its debut at the Cap Center, marking the song’s first live appearance in 16 years.
“Blow Away”: Debuted in 1988, this Brent Mydland lover’s-lament quickly went from an impressive mid-set rocker to a bona fide show-stopper that emphatically closed several opening sets. Equipped with a dynamic and catchy chord progression, the end of this song would invariably develop into a passionate inspired heartbroken plea from Mydland that worked the crowds into a frenzy and bore a surreal likening to some of Pigpen’s infamous raps from the late 60’s. This version is perhaps one of Brent’s finest and the band seems to realize it as they can be seen, Garcia in particular, beaming at Brent from across the stage as he plays his ass off and bares his soul for all to see.
“Scarlet Begonias->Estimated Prophet”: After a bubbling & rollicking version of the Garcia/Hunter fan-favorite “Scarlet Begonias” opened the second set, it seemed things were on course for its usual foray into the song’s eternal twin “Fire on the Mountain”. Jerry had made the anticipated switch to his Mutron envelope filter during the delicate outro jam and it seemed as if the familiar two-chord melody was just seconds away. Then, out of nowhere, the band made a hard left into a surprise reading of Weir’s mystical “Estimated Prophet”, marking one of the very few times this pairing occurred. This version is a particularly strong late-era performance, with a soaring & climactic solo that features an animated Weir egging on the crowd with some of his trademark moves before the song dissolves into a spacey jam that would ultimately land on “Ship of Fools.”
