Twenty-Four Performances in Twenty-Four Days: April 6-30, 1973

update: commenter RoG has brought two more gigs to my attention, Wed-Thurs April 25-26 with JGMS at Keystone, so the title has changed from “Twenty-Two” to “Twenty-Four”. All the more remarkable.

update2: oh yeah, I forget to mention another little detail from this period: on April 19th, the Dead decided to start up their own record label (Perry 1973, 50; Troy 1994, 155). Because Garcia didn’t have enough going on.

I got to commune with more Chronicle microfilm a few days ago, and managed to spin through January 1, 1973 through August 10, 1973. I didn’t gather every last listing, just too little time, but I gathered a bunch. These first eight months of 1973 yielded three New-to-The-List gigs, all Garcia-Saunders: April 10-11, 1973 at the Orphanage, and May 24, 1973 at the Keystone.

SFC19730409p45, listing for 4/10/73 JGMS at the Orphanage

SFC19730410p36, Datebook listing for 4/10/73 JGMS at the Orphanage
SFC19730411p41, listing for 4/11/73 JGMS at Orphanage
SFC19730523p58, listing for 5/24/73 JGMS at Keystone
Ah, Garcia, you amaze me.
The last entry lets us see that Jerry played with three bands, three different styles, over three days in May ’73: Jerry and Merl on the 24th, plus already-known shows with Old And In The Way at Bimbo’s on the 25th, and of course the Dead, with NRPS and Waylon Jennings also playing, at Kezar Stadium on the 26th.
Even more strikingly, these new-to-The-List April shows, Tuesday-Wednesday gigs, fill in a remarkable run from that month. I have already written about OAITW in Santa Barbara on the 12th, a four night run at the Boarding House right after these gigs, two with Merl playing inter alia black contemporary, and two with Dawg and Pete Rowan and the rest playing white roots music, taking a deep dive into Friday the 13th, which got a review in the Stanford Daily (Harlow 1973), and also some listening notes from the 16th. But with these shows, we see a truly insane month of shows once the Dead got back from the east coast.
April 6-8: JGMS at Keystone
April 9: off night (Monday – slacker)
April 10-11: JGMS at Orphanage
April 12: OAITW at the Granada in Santa Barbara (two shows)
April 13-14: JGMS at Boarding House
April 15-16: OAITW at Boarding House
April 17: off night (Tuesday)
April 18: OAITW session at the Record Plant (uncertain)
April 19-21: OAITW at Lion’s Share
April 21: afternoon FM broadcast live from the Record Plant
April 22: off night (Sunday)
April 23: OAITW at Orphanage
April 24: OAITW at the Inn of the Beginning
April 25-26: JGMS at Keystone off nights, only consecutive nights off since this run started, and since 3-4-5 after Dead flew back home
April 27: OAITW at Keystone
April 28: OAITW at Record Plant (uncertain); OAITW at Keystone
April 29: night off (Sunday)
April 30: OAITW at Orphanage
Now, there are a few uncertain dates in there – the Record Plant listings come from Richard Greene’s datebooks, but they don’t indicate if it was OAITW or he was doing session work for others. But if my reckoning is correct, this is 2422 performances in 24 days, including four at the Orphanage, which Selvin referred to as a “cocaine speakeasy” (Selvin 1996, 37), which might have come in handy given the unprecedentedly hectic pace of the month’s musical pursuits.

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9 responses to “Twenty-Four Performances in Twenty-Four Days: April 6-30, 1973”

  1. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    The Keystone April calendar has Jerry and Merl with Paul Pena on April 25 and 26 followed by OITW on 27 and 28. That cuts into his nights off a bit.

  2. Fate Music Avatar

    I don't seem to have that calendar … can you please send me a scan? [email protected]. Thanks, RoG!

  3. Fate Music Avatar

    Updated, thanks so much!

  4. Jerry's Brokendown Palaces Avatar

    4/18/73-I have the GD sessions at Columbia Studios, SF.
    (4/15-26)

  5. Jerry's Brokendown Palaces Avatar

    4/15+16/73-GD sessions at Columbia Studios, SF also.

  6. Fate Music Avatar

    Where did you get those dates?

  7. Fate Music Avatar

    And are you sure these are 1973, and not 1974?

  8. Jerry's Brokendown Palaces Avatar

    You may be right, I'm going back to Santa Cruz to find out. This is where I found it.
    MS338, Box 1, Folder 4, Steve Brown Tapes, '74-'76, Grateful Dead Archive

    The dates of the files don't necessarily mean it was 1974. I'll get back to you after I can get back down there.

  9. Jerry's Brokendown Palaces Avatar

    After doing some searching I believe you are correct, it's 1974, From The Mars Hotel sessions. Making the changes.

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