I was at this show and it was awesome. Actually was one hell of a ride and I feel really grateful to have been there.

This show, known for the Shakedown, was Hornsby's only ILL appearance with the band. The first set is one of the year's best. The second set is 2hrs long and features an instrumental Dark Star. Wind was a problem though, described as ruining sound for half the stands (that's one of the problems with stadia). They would come here four more times for eight more shows (plus Fare Thee Well '15). A dual-keys show, it was followed by surprise fireworks. Though not, say, 6/9, it is one of June's top few.

First Set. Great at the top, the two-keys Hellina is rarely this good. The wonderful Shakedown has a monster jam and Jer plays with sax MIDI during the last few mins. It's a very ensemble version. The smooth Wang Dang is gonna have a fuck of a time, though one more vampy than jammy. Masterpiece is polished enough, but in a way more forced than easy. Brown Eyed just might knock you for six and Let it Grow has plenty to leave 'em happy for the break.

Second Set. Truthfully, Foolish Heart has a couple nice sections but it's not among the era's best. In Looks Like Rain Bobby's a muppet, and Crazy Fingers is a wash ... but then ... after a Bruce Dark Star tease on the seg in, Playin' builds a brick-by-brick monolith. The two-keys unit works great here (check Bruce on this). Acoustically full-framed, there's a peak plateau and some Terrapin foreshadowing (must've been setlisted at the break). Terrapin is mostly stock-in-trade - save the iffy Inspiration section - but dig the last 6mins. Jer plays MIDI against Phil, then Bobby. Bruce is in the midst and Vince is also good here. It's one of the longest versions. When Jer starts Dark Star, anxious Bruce pick it up in about a picosecond. Jer plays the verses instead of singing; it's pretty good, actually. It comes as surprise when Jer veers back into Playin', but it works well. The rest is average '91, with Bruce saving the encore.

1st Set:  B
2nd Set: C+
Overall = 3½ stars

Highlights:
Hell in a Bucket - dual key fortification
Shakedown Street - ensemble & oft-noted
Playing in the Band - full-framed

SOURCES: The miller_112775 is slightly more dynamic than the miller_105541 and the others (except it has a dropout in Wang Dang). Shakedown Street is on the All the Years Combine bonus disc. The whole vid is likely on the horizon.

terrapin really benefits from the “big band sound” (as another reviewer put it). a massive coda jam, starting about 9-10 min in. listen loud! drummers are stellar here, pounding away in the fills, and there’s a sinister and deep dark bass effect adding to the intensity. delightfully sludgy and powerhouse sound. around 13 min, phil elevates the jam past the dark sludge of just before and the band lifts off, garcia floating on midi flute. hornsby dropping little dark star quotes in the spaces. nothing too thematic but a flowing, fluid, full band post-terrapin jamming for about 10 great minutes...
drums has loud call and response on the kits for a couple min, before a fun segment of tribal/techno groove, followed by barren alien landscapes and then space. hints of other one when garcia and hornsby tangle up for the last few minutes. then the welcome appearance of a relatively brief but spirited (and all instrumental- garcia plays the verse) dark star and finally the playin’ reprise. nice!

other highlights/notes: seems like a really long pre-drumz segment, shakedown in the number 2 slot, wonderful foolish heart to open set 2.

I sang a little while and then flew on.

Tell it, doug_the_dude! Excellent display of a show, easy five stars. Deadbase has this show ranked tenth among "favorite tapes" for '91. behind some absolute beauties, like 9/10/91 (#1 with 71 votes), 10/31 (55), 9/26 (40), and 8/16 (38). Lots of June '91s in the mix, by the way. For example, you'll find near the top 6/17 (34), 6/14 (33), 6/25 (21), and then 6/22 (18). Further down June shows include 6/7 (8), 6/24 (8), 6/16 (5), 6/6 (4), 6/20 (4), 6/9 (3), and 6/20 (3). That's (to my count) 11 out of 15!

*Hornsby's only show in Chicago.