The day after one of the year's best shows has carryover flashes of the same energy. It is mostly known for the incredible sequence at the top of the second set. Blair (and others) pick this as a fave Help>Slip>Franks, and Althea has received credits as well. Overall, these two shows are possibly the best venue pair of the year. Unfortunately they never played The Land of Enchantment again. This venue became unavailable and no Albuquerque promoters booked the band after this show.

First Set. You can use an AUD or the MTX to hear this Alabama, but they don't extract the previous day's juice until the fine Greatest Story. The SBD starts to settle on Dire Wolf. Hellina gets better as it goes, but X Factor totally returns for the fantastic West LA Fadeaway - arguably the year's best version. There's a call out from Mickey[?] for Looks Like Rain, but Bobby opts for Me & My Uncle; an average version but check Phil for shades of the day before's bass. Mexicali has a kewl extended jam. Again Phil is king. This is an awesome Althea that goes places (also may be year's best). Bobby's Slide Practice™ on See, See Rider Blues makes a frustum of this pyramid, and Might as Well is a bit ragged, but the majority of the people up front spontaneously swarmed in a dancing circle, to Jer's amusement

Second Set. A solid Help on the Way spawns a Slipknot! with wild & peak ensemble playing that's almost as good as the one a few days earlier. Then, the uptempo Franklin's is one of the better '83s. There are better individual sections of the trilogy, but taken whole this is a top version. And there's a bonus: the surprise second set Let it Grow is a honey-glazed, crackling journey (the SBD has a 14sec cut @10:38, so use the MTX). He's Gone ain't no slouch, capping one of the era's best sequences. The best part of Truckin' is the long tranny coming out of Space. In Wang Dang Doodle Bobby's mic went out. Jer starts to shut 'er down after 5mins, but then it picks up again - with Bobby on board [remember those Dead stickers?]. The first chorus comes after 6mins, making this version lengthy if nothing else ("snuff juice" sounds like "stuffed cheese everywhere"). Morning Dew is the only one in the second half of '83. The rest picks up again, with Brent's turn in Around and a Sugar Mag that's just right for this set. U.S. Blues is a solid signature to the two days, securing a 2hr set.

1st Set:  C+
2nd Set: B-
Overall = 3¼ stars

Highlights:
West LA Fadeaway - very satisfying snack
Althea - goes places, settles back easy
Help on the Way>Slipknot!>Franklin's Tower - peak uptempo ensemble playing
Let it Grow - crackling journey

SOURCES: The best SBD, unk_109158, is screwy until partway through Alabama, then it improves. You still need to intervene with the balance, and you don't get all instruments until a few songs in (though the mix is never ideal). The 131805_mtx matrix has updated mastering and is a better choice in several places. A much better AUD than we used to trade has also shown up (the 141025_FOB_Beyer, which runs slightly fast).

Was there for this show. Worked 36 hours straight stuffing magazines into mailing envelopes to pay to ride a motorcycle, 2 up from Venice Beach, CA to Santa Fe, NM. Fond memories and many of them. Back to listening......

I went with my parents, actually, their only show. I think this Dew is better, although the Philly show rocks, but its not the same.

to Quote Frank just listening to Wang Dang wasn't really gonna review it though. Nice Jam though but everything and one seem to be doing they're own thing. I guess sometimes it makes for killer jams. All in all a decent show

I see why that head said this , especially when you compare this Dew to the one at 'Toga 3 months earlier , not even close ...

Good sound and I'm OK with the AUD patches..I love the way Brent sounded in 83'-84'...trippy bells!! Great start to 1st set with the Alabama>Greatest Story..you can feel the high energy and Jerry is ripping it up..solid on through with a nice CC Rider>Mighty Swell to cap of the set..The 2nd set opens with a sweet Help>Slip>Franklins followed by a solid Let it Grow and He's Gone..The Wang Dang gets Doodled followed by a respectable Morning Dew..years back I had this on cassette and wore it out..so please GIVE IT A WHIRL