Actually my birthday was the night before, but it was also 2nd night of Passover, and my Dad insisted that I be home so they could celebrate my birthday and have a Seder with me. So I missed what sounds like a pretty good setlist but not so much the performance (was it possible for Jerry to sound any WORSE than he did the last two nights of this run?)

Anyway, I was blown away by the energy of the first set, but let down by its shortness. I was hoping Dancing would build into something like a 1970 version, but no, Bob cut if off before it got started.

The second set, and especially the Dew are overrated. As psyched as I was to finally get my first Morning Dew, it had to be this one! Jerry croaked his way through, messing up the lyrics badly, and then completely cut off the buildup at the end. From the quiet section, he went straight to the trilling at the end. It was still really good, but not what I hoped for.

The whole thing's still definitely worth a listen or two. Shakedown is taken at a slower tempo than in earlier years, but still brings the funk. Samson is very slow here. Woman Smarter into Drums never did it for me. The whole after Drums, even allowing for the *$ed up Dew, is quite the package.

.........Right before it went to Hell in a bucket.........for sure.....moments before they released Touch of Grey? Almost killed him, then he rose, on the third day..........

THEN FUCK OFF. GO FIND ANOTHER BAND. THIS IS THE DEAD AT ONE OF ITS MOST ROUGHEST, RUGGEST STAGES AND THEY BARREL THROUGH AND KICK UP FRACTAL SPIRAL DUST AS THEY TROD ACROSS THE DUSTY STREETS INTO ETERNITY. ON MY WAY.....

I was born while the Dead were on stage this night

This show is great. But I think that the next night is better.

Would never dose or pay homage to something other than our Lord and savior Jesus Christ on the day he rose from the dead to defeat sin.

That said Bob's "Thank you, Jesus" sounds (at least) sincere.

Do it in the road is a sloppy opener - but hi ya hi ya.
Bird Song is a definitive force.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave it his only begotten son that all who would believe in him would be saved."

My first ever Dead show with some of my college buddies. From the first strains of WDWDIITR, I was hooked. Awesome Shakedown and the Smokestack > Dew.... WOW!!!! This was the day that changed my life forever.

This show is much better than the brutal night before with a slight improvement in Jerry's vocals. The playing might not be as inspired but it's a hell of a lot easier to listen to.

They open with a rousing Why Don't We Do It in the Road. Although not very well played, it's a lot of fun and it sounds as if they are having a blast. Brent especially is letting loose with some high pitched squeals. Half Step follows and while Jerry's voice is rough it is a nice improvement from the previous show. A quick version that goes into a decent C.C. Rider(minus Bob's awful slide solo). Nice extended jams and great vocals. The highlight of this first set is Bird Song. The vocals are very rough around the edges but the jam is majestic, soaring to great heights. They close out the set with competent versions of Dancin' and Deal.

Set 2 starts off with a lengthy Shakedown that has brutal vocals but a very nice funky jam. Great energy and some nice jamming to start the set. A fiery Samson follows featuring hot leads from Garcia and strong vocals. She Belongs To Me comes next and is a nice treat. Although the lyrics re handled better than the breakout version the week before, this version isn't delivered with the same passion and Garcia's voice isn't in top form. this segues into a very energetic, bouncy Man Smart. The transition from Space into Gimme Some Lovin' is awkward but this version is competent. Truckin is brief but segues into a bluesy Smokestack which is always a treat. The Morning Dew>Sugar Mags is a great ending to a decent show. Again, Jerry sounds like death but the instrumentation is excellent and the jams are very intense. Sugar Mags is one of the highlights of the evening and brings the house down. Amazing leads from Jerry!

This show should get a higher rating but Garcia's vocals kick it down a notch.

Jer's voice is shot!

This sounds aweful...

I don't know if it was a slip of the brain or a nod to Philly as the home of American Bandstand....but as the Shakedown chugs along Jerry says "Used to be the heart of sound."

She belongs to me was sublime. Bow down to her on Sunday.......Jerry's voice may have actually benefited the treatment..... It was a happy, happy show. Perhaps lots of hiya, hiya, hiya kids on a chocolate bunny buzz?

I went to this show with my future wife after spending most of Easter Sunday meeting her relatives for the first time. Saw all three shows at the Spectrum in 85 and this was by far my favorite.

We sat in the tapers section and managed to produce a somewhat lisstenable tape of the show with some cheepo equipment. I remember the nervous looks of the surrounding tapers while we danced wildly through a serpentine of mic stands.

My favorite SBTM and GSL of all time. 'Do it in the road' was the off the charts!

This is an outstanding first set. One of the rare cases where i have listened to a first set more than the second set over the years.
p.s. The Easter bunny got dosed!

Earlier I said this show was a mixed bag and not up to summer 85 standards.

Revision- This show, despite Garcias blown vocal chords (no lack of effort on Garcias part though) is one of the finest in 1985, and is absolute pure GD magic. Recording is good too. A must have for anyone looking for the best available from each year.

There's an incredible moment in the Half-Step refrain where Phil steps up and belts out the vocal with the rest of the band, and the energy level practically jumps through the roof, even on the soundboard copy. Those precious little moments are what it's all about. :)

Easter Sunday. Parents dropped me off at noon, and were really a little discomforted that a 15 year old and two friends had to get to an 8 PM show at noon. When they got to the Spectrum, their fears only escalated. We took some potent lysergic and drifted into the Spectrum only to find three strange folks in front of us all dressed in matching Star Trek pajamas. Little did I know what would happen when the lights went down! The Dew was incredible and my mind is forever blown! Hopefully, this is an improvement over my 18 year old Maxell SBD! Thanks archive.org!

Still cant find Friend of the Devil from the Sunday show. Anyone who has it please write me at lmwsconsult@yahoo.com. The Sunday show, the last of the 3 day set, was actually on April 6th, 1985. A good show and a great weekend.

Although Jerry's voice was still hurtin pretty badly, this show was definitely better than the night before. It was Easter Sunday and family obligations combined with a mixed exit on the Turnpike got me into this show during the Birdsong. When I found out we missed WDWDIITR, I was distraught.

I still enjoyed this show immensely as I love Shakedown Street. But the Shakedown Street is shaky, real shaky. The playing on it is good, but the vocals are bad, really bad (what vocals Jerry remembers). This show still has one of the best post-Space jam song lineups I've seen.

But the biggest memory I have from this show was the guy behind me who totally freaked out once they started Day Job. Obviously he had seen too many. He started beating on his chair violently and I mean violently. He tried everything he could to pull that chair out of it's concrete mount (he failed). The whole time he was screaming "fuckin' Day Job" this and "fuckin' Day Job" that. I still crack a sick smile thinking about it. I had never seen anything like it (up to that point... it was only my 7th show).

This was an easter sunday show. My brother and I watched on TV the riot downtown. I found out some folks decided to lay waste to several blocks after seeing "the last dragon" and after seeing the movie I understand how they could be pissed about wasting that 1 1/2 hours. The first set was one of the shortest but most intense I have seen. I couldn't wait for the second set! The Shakedown opener was expected with the happenings earlier and the rest of the set was just amazing! The rap Bobby does about Jesus was really fun.