Hello friends,
A few days ago somebody posted a video of people dancing at a Grateful Dead concert in 1987… two hours of tie-dyed revelers gyrating in the hallway at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
Bill Graham had the idea to put speakers in the hallways so that he wouldn't have to leave the doors open for the dancers to hear the band.
I was suddenly thrown back in time to 1990, when I attended a Grateful Dead show in Eugene, Oregon. I suppose we decided to go because why not? Maybe because Little Feat was opening? Seeing the Grateful Dead live was kind of a bucket list thing to do, and a trip to Eugene made for a fun getaway. Our traveling group consisted of my brother and a friend of his from college, Nolan’s dad, and me. For some reason my parents let us take their Toyota van, probably because none of us had a car that could comfortably carry four people and camping gear across state lines. The van looked very much like this, though it was gold and had snazzy stripes.
ROAD TRIP!
Ir was June of 1990, and we were off to Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon to see the Grateful Dead! They played two shows that weekend and according to serious Deadheads the show on the 23rd was one of the best - certainly the best show they ever played on June 23rd.
I’ll be honest here - I think it was the show on the 23rd that we went to. I don’t have my ticket stub but it makes the most logical sense, as we probably had to go back to work on Monday.
Anyhow - we drove to Eugene and stayed at a campground near town. Did we have reservations or just wing it? The current me would have made sure we had a guaranteed place to stay - 25 year-old me? Doubtful. We had a place to stay that wasn’t sketchy, that I do remember. It was probably Richardson Park - I remember the lake, and a pleasant summer evening. We were definitely not camped next to this group - I would have remembered the excitement.
The adventure really began the next day when we arrived at the stadium. We parked and made our way to the gates. There were people all along the walk selling things - jewelry, tie-dye clothing, Grateful Dead paraphernalia, and food.
“Veggie bagels!”
I was not tempted, and wondered about food safety practices. I’m sure there were other substances for sale if one was interested.
There was another sort of person outside the stadium - those seeking a ticket to gain entry through the magical gates.
“One ticket? One miracle ticket?” they cried at passersby.
Once inside the stadium we found seats on the floor amongst a sea of people. 36,000 people attended the show that day! It looked very much like this - people in close quarters with each other everywhere. Yikes.
We waited for the show to begin, and during that time I was able to watch the people around us. There was a group of older guys on one side, who sat quietly reading paperbacks and occasionally covering their heads with jackets so they could snort coke. Sure dudes, NOBODY suspects you at all with that behavior. Also - you’re in a sea of people and nobody is paying attention to you! The other group was more interesting - some youngish people I was able to gather were from California, and they looked the surfer type. At one point one of the guys carefully unwrapped a large quartz crystal to show off, maybe to impress the girls?
And the show hadn’t even started yet! Eventually it did, and this is where my mind has big blanks - not caused by any drugs, mind you. Looking back I’d say the cause was BOREDOM. It should be noted that a few years later I fell asleep at a Bob Weir show, so maybe there’s something there. Little Feat were fine, I’m sure. The Dead are known for their long shows, and one must have stamina or good drugs to endure. I had neither that day.
After a while we got up to walk around and this was when we saw what I called the “concourse dancers.”
Which brings me back to the video that sent me down this rabbit hole in the first place. I immediately recognized the hallway dancers as the same type I saw in Eugene. At the time I thought it was odd people would pay to go to the show and not go in where they could see it (thinks the one who was wandering around not watching the show either). Now, I understand that there was no way they could have danced with wild abandon in the seats or packed in like sardines on the stadium floor. The only memento I have from the show is this photo of my brother, standing amongst the concourse dancers with a big smile on his face.
Our parents have the original photo, this is just a photo of the photo I took when visiting them once! I picked my brother’s brain to confirm a few of my dim facts about the show. He ended up getting lured into the fringes of the Deadhead world, attending 5-6 shows altogether. I forgot to ask him if he became a hallway/concourse dancer…
It was fun and I’m glad I went, and although it was 30 years ago I still consider it to be one of the most memorable shows I’ve ever been to. Not for the music!
In my rabbit hole journey I found these articles from the Eugene Register, reporting on the spectacle of a Grateful Dead show and all of their fans descending on town (click through for readable font size). The comparisons between Deadheads and football fans are amusing.
Maybe I’ll tell the story about the wild Neil Young and Pearl Jam concert at the Gorge next. What is your most memorable show?
On a more serious note, Washington State is headed into four weeks of tighter restrictions in an attempt to get this bloody virus under control. Indoor social gatherings with people from outside your household are prohibited. I realize that won’t stop everyone, and I suspect our neighbors will be on the get-together bandwagon for Thanksgiving as they seem not to try very hard at taking precautions.
We won’t be changing anything we do other than ordering groceries a couple of days earlier in the week (not the day we need some of the things). We’ve been staying home since the beginning of the pandemic - not shopping in stores, not taking vacations, not even social-distance visiting friends or family. It’s wearing a little thin watching people around us who obviously aren’t doing these things, who are unwilling to change their behavior for a while so that the need for restrictions is shortened.
Anne Helen Peterson does it again in today’s Culture Study:
You have adapted your behavior over the course of the last nine months, maybe expanded your social circle over the summer, and are now coming to terms with the fact that it’s time, again, to lock yourself down as much as possible. If you or a family member is high risk, you are battling oscillating amounts of terror. You’re pissed and exhausted with what’s happening with schools. And you’re probably harboring no small amount of anger and frustration with the people, from the president to careless woman in your Instagram feed, who’ve put us in this position.
Then:
But I don’t know if my anger is going to change much. The country is cleaved by belief and disbelief in established medicine, by trustworthiness or untrustworthiness of mainstream news. But I’m more convinced than every that our overarching division is between collectivism and individualism: between acting and thinking in ways that aim for the better, collective good, and in acting and thinking in ways that aim to preserve the personal status quo.
She mentions the case of the Maine wedding reception that resulted in 177 COVID-19 cases and 7 deaths (none of whom had attended the event).
Stay home, stay healthy. Please.
With luck, next year we can get back to something closer to what we’ve lost this year.
Tidbits
Agendio - design your own customized planner!
A fun idea for the birds! I’ve got some extra thrift store mugs that would work great. Here are some instructions to make your own.
Rock & Roll Newspaper Press History - relive the heyday of rock & roll through newspaper articles and concert reviews
Watching: the daily migration of 100’s of cross over our house as the head for their nightly roosting spot.
Making: I’m trying to blast my way through the crochet blanket, but have been spending time with my paints too.
Reading: nearly done with The Lacuna! I was just looking at Goodreads semifinalists for their annual “best of” vote, and I’ve barely read any of the books this year. So much of this year I did not feel like reading much. I’m glad I’m back into it now.
Art Zone
When you think of street art, you might think of the giant murals painted on the sides of buildings, or occasionally on the street. What if you walk past street art and don’t even see it because it’s so small?
Michael Pederson, aka miguelmarquezoutside creates small scenes of amusement with signs and other props placed in otherwise mundane spots.
Some of his work is performance art, requiring the cooperation of birds or other creatures.
Click through for the video on this last one. Enjoy!
Video of the Week
It’s a song about leaving the house during the pandemic!
Current Temperature: 50.5F (10.3 C)
Current Humidity: 85%
Wind (max gust): 10.3 mph
Precipitation: 0.0 in
Air Quality Index: 9
Love the Zine thread. Not a Dead fan. I did commit an unreasonable amount of time trying to understand their music and walked away with a good idea of what they meant, accomplished and failed at. In the end though, don’t get the music. Love the scene of immersed but I can honestly say; that part of the psychedelic scene would of been too tame for me. I would of been ejected...
Confession time: I was a deadhead for much of the 80s, traveling up and down the east coast during their tours. It was a hedonistic time that I fully fell into. Paradoxically I was going to Talking Heads shows and then lots of New Wave groups. But enough of that, I really love Anne Helen Peterson. A voice of reason and facts. And thanks for turning me on to Michael Pederson's street art. I love that kind of stuff.
A question for you that maybe we could throw out there for your readers. With the holidays coming and most of us not gathering with our friends and family, what would be some cool monthly subscriptions we could send as gifts. You've given me great ideas for the artists in our lives, but what others could people recommend, say for cooks, readers, nature enthusiasts?
Love you Anne, and love your newsletter. xo