9/10/2000 Reviews

September 10 Continental Arena, East Rutherford, NJ
Aiko Aiko > (Bobby, Bruce, and Mark)
Rainbow's Cadillac
Little Red Rooster
Down the Road
Long Tall Cool One
I Shot the Sheriff (w/ Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, without Alphonso)
Victim Or the Crime > (Bobby and Alphonso acoustic, Bruce on accordian, Steve)
Looks Like Rain (Bobby, Mark, and Alphonso acoustic, Bruce on accordian, Steve)
Weather Report Suite > (Bobby acoustic)
Let It Grow >
Drumz/Jam > (Mickey on kalimbra for jam)
Estimated Prophet >
Wharf Rat > (Bruce)
Valley Road >
Not Fade Away
E: Samson and Delilah

What a show last night. Blew Hartford out of the water. "I Shot the Sheriff" w/Ziggy and Stephen Marley. Victim w/Bobby (acoustic), Steve (electric), Bruce (accordian) and AJ (standup bass) standing in a tight semi-circle playing off of each other beautifully. WRS>Let it Grow. All I can say is STEVE! Drums - welcome back Billy! Esitmated - EPIC! Bobby losing it. One of the best I have ever heard live. Wharf Rat - Tears in my eyes. Samson - Killer! Actually, the last 3/4 of the show was the best post-95 sequence I have heard (WRS>Let it Grow>Drums>Jam>Estimated>Wharf Rat>Valley Road>NFA E Samson).

A couple of overall impressions on both shows: attendance was about 15,000 for both shows (which is about 90% capacity for Hartford, 80-85% for Meadowlands). I thought the scene was nice and mellow which was surprising considering the horror stories I have been reading. For all of the people who have posted that the boys are not having fun or not jamming enough, all I can say is what shows were you at?? I had great seats for both shows and I can safely say that they are having a ball and if you want to hear jamming, get a tape of last night's show (BTW is it too early for a shamless grovel...). Last night was by far the best TOO show I have seen (4 in 98, 2 so far in 2000 with 2 more to go) although 7/24/98 and Alpine 98, which I have on tape, are right there too. I can't wait for Boston and Camden. GO SEE THIS BAND!
Peace,

--Craig Davis

* * *

I was very excited for this show to finally arrive. As a veteran of close to 100 GD shows, every Furthur tour and 8 P&F shows (4 line-ups), I was excited to see Weir, Hornsby and the Rhythm Devils together again. With Kimock also on board, the potential abounded for a great show. GDTS was kind enough to hook me up with 2nd row seats right in front of Hornsby. The seats alone were worth it, but the show sparkled as well.

The scene outside the show on this hot Sunday afternoon was typical of a 90's Dead show, only scaled back considerably. There was quite a bit of vending going on with the typical tie-dyes, glass pipes, beer and food. As usual, there were plenty of non-heads vending and trying to get a piece of the pie.

We decided to enjoy the parking lot and skip Ziggy. Probably a mistake, but sometimes you make wrong choices. We got to our seats around 7:50pm and watched as the techs did some last minute testing of the equipment. The arena looked about 1/2 full, but all I cared about was on stage. Right in front of my face, about 8 feet in front of me, was a microphone set-up in front of Hornsby's piano. I wondered what it was for and thought that possibly Hornsby comes out to this mike when he plays accordian. Lights went down around 8:10pm and on came the band. The band tuned up and found their way into Aiko Aiko. The sound level was very low considering the PA stack was about five feet in front of me. The Aiko had it's moments with Bobby taking must of the verses and Bruce and Mark adding one each. Mark had a nice solo, but overall the song never quite jelled. Aiko led into Rainbow's Cadillac and Bruce seemed pumped. Alphonso stood out for the first time on this song, and it had many a nice groove to it. I especially liked the ending with Bruce, Alphonso and Kimock playing a Slipknot-style lick simultaneously. Little Red Rooster was next an it was the low point of the show IMO. Nothing at all good to report on this one. 2 or 3 times during the song, Bruce got up and left his piano and talked with people on the stage. Down the Road followed, and I think this was one of the highlights. Not that I love Mickey's rap or anything, but the song sounds a lot like FOTD, and Kimock was wailing on the lap steel guitar. Plus, that line about Garcia gets the crowd pumped. After Down The Road, Alphonso left the stage and Ziggy and some Melody Makers came on stage (bass, guitar). The enlarged band played I Shot The Sheriff and this was so awesome. The music was tight, and Ziggy sang the hell out of the song, sounding a lot like his pop. Bobby sang a verse in only the way Bobby knows how, and Bruce sang a verse as well, but it was Ziggy and his Melody Makers who made this song and they helped TOO pick up the tempo for the balance of the set. Long Tall Cool One followed and honestly I can not remember much about it, so I will skip on to Victim. Acoustic Victim with Bruce on Accordian, Bob on Acoustic guitar and Steve on Electric was actually quite good. Although I never particularly liked this song when the Dead played it, Victim has some great chord changes that are typical of Bobby songs. I only wished that Steve layed in some more leads during the song. Looks Like Rain followed and Mark Karan came out and added another Acoustic guitar to the mix. Mark was playing the lead throughout the song and did a very nice job. The timing wasn't quite on for the duration of the song; it seemed Bobby was 1/2 beat in front of the rest of the band. Also, Bruce's accordian was too loud in the mix. Towards the end of the song, Billy came out and played light drums. Weather Report Suite followed and I was totally psyched to finally hear this live. Bobby was still playing his acoustic guitar, but the rest of the band went back to electric. I didn't like the way Bobby changed the accents in the lyrics, but it's his song and he can do what he wants. It was still sweet to hear the suite. As WRS built into Let It Grow, the band was on fire. Just before the Let It Grow lyrics started, Bobby switched to electric guitar with the help of a roadie. The transition forced the postponement of the beginning of Let it Grow a couple of measures, but when Bobby started singing, the show kicked into overdrive!! Let it Grow was absolutely spectacular. Kimock was on fire and really tore into the ending jam. A couple of times Bobby stepped forward to signal the end of the jam, but Steve would not look up and Bobby had to abort, shaking his head. But Kimock didn't give up and really played the hell out of this song. Let It Grow led into a great Drums segment. Now my ears were ringing as the drums got really loud and I discovered that the PA stack right in front of my face was the sub-woofer stack and all the Drums were coming right out of them and slamming me in the face. Drums wound into a jam with Mickey playing his RAMU along with Kimock on guitar. This led nicely into Estimated! Another high point. Bobby hit all the lyrics perfectly and Karan and Kimock both ripped nice solos. Estimated led into Wharf Rat and Bruce sang it beautifully. Wharf Rat wound into Valley Road, which was OK. It sounded a little different than I remember from those fall 90 tapes, but it was still pretty good. This led into Not Fade Away which was very tight and well jammed. The encore was Samson which was a great up tempo rock & roll encore. Bobby reminded me how much I love his rhythm guitar playing during Samson as he layed down those perfect off beat chops that only Bobby does.

Overall, a very enjoyable show. If I was not a family man with responsibilites on the home front, I would probably jump on the tour for 3 or 4 shows. Phil's bombs were definitely missed, and maybe the band will reconcile and get together for Furthur 2001. Here's hoping. Enjoy the rest of the tour!

--Mark Bonifacio

* * *

I promised myself I would not be negative, so I will do it quickly and be done. The best qualities this venue has are ample bathrooms and the fact that it is 7 miles from my home. The sound in this arena has never been good. Tonight it was so terrible I thought I might scream. Low volume, bad mix, horrible reverb. Reading other reviews from this tour I have come to the conclusion that these guys, responsible for the best sound in concerts ever, need to hire a new crew immediately; preferably before Camden. The sound engineers should be embarressed. Sound quality is crucial to the overall presentation of this particular brand of music. The band spoiled us rotten for years and years with their sound quality, so I don't think it is totally unfair of us to ask for at least decent quality now.

This show was weird. When these guys come to NY, especially for only one show, we want stellar, raucous foot stomping out of this world energy.

So, they opened with Aiko (huge in "98), and everyone got fired up despite the sound which was at its worst here.

Rainbow's Cadillac - I couldn't get into it because of the sound, but my touring bud for the last 14 years thought it was pretty good. Take his word. Too mellow after an Aiko opener.

Rooster - not bad.

Down the Road. Mickey never sounded so good, and I really mean this. His vocal was great! Sweet slide from Kimock. Solid lines from Karan. I still get goosebumps on the last verse. You feel the presence before the lyrics even get sung. A high point of the show. This is a great song musically, even without the references. I wanted some of the richness of last nights "Limo", but...

I Shot the Sheriff with Ziggy and his lead guitarist. (Sorry, not up on the Melody Makers) This could have been great, but for two things. The guitarist was way too loud, and the song didn't belong here. It did get the crowd up again.

Victim - we were the victims of this crime. Who planned this setlist?

Weather Report Suite - we had really wanted to hear this in its entirety so were really psyched with the opening bars. Again, the sound was barely audible. They turned it up, but not soon enough. People were craning to hear.

Drums - Great. I actually stayed. Previously a bathroom song, but we had already had two to pick from. Toward the end Mickey came forward with Karan and they had this cool thing going. Karan is like watching a kid that finally got the hang of his skateboard. This guy makes you happy just watching him BEAM his beautific smile! Again, an old standard out of drums that I cannot remember the name of.

Estimated - Really fine. Again a song you've heard a million times, and just now you realize you miss it live. Bobby's vocals not as full of "oomph" as in the past.

Wharf Rat - The first real rocker of the night and I am not kidding. It was killer with Karan and Kimock nailing every goddamned note. Finally, the energy is emerging.

Valley Road - Done really well. Hornsby's vocals barely audible but the back up vocals were terrific.

Not Fade Away - Nailed! Some awesome, big pure rock and roll solos here. Finally I heard Bobby. Every note! First time in two nights. This was fun!!! ...and for the first time in two nights, Weir dancing and bopping and smiling!!! Maybe the mix is bumming him out too. Previously he would have stopped playing until they fixed it.

Samson - Killer! Totally weird encore, and I thought we might be getting more than one at this point, but so so great!!!!

Notes: Guys, if you need to do the acoustic stuff, maybe the beginning of the show as a prelude would be a better choice. I like hearing it, but it really disturbs the flow of the show. "Sheriff" would have been an awesome encore after ending the set with NFA and Samson. The setlist for this show was very disjointed and lacking flow. The "Second" set was kickin', and gave those who haven't had a taste, or who can't make it to another show the opportunity to see what this band is capable of. We are talking a serious band, with major potential to go the distance, if they so chose. I hope they do.
Camden is now a necessity, not an option for me.

--Lisa Lamborn

* * *

It was nice to see Weir, Hornsby, Kreutzmann, & Hart perform together again. Alphonso Johnson, Mark Karan and Steve Kimock are all talented musicians but there were times where there was a great big hole in the music where Jerry's lead guitar fit into the high-register. It was most pronounced during Estimated Prophet but was also noticable during (Jerry's missing solos on) Not Fade Away. Highlights of the show for me were Weather Report Suite (acoustic) and I Shot The Sheriff w/ Ziggy Marley. It's amazing how close Ziggy's vocal inflections sound like Bob Marley. I also enjoyed the way they reworked Down The Road and the acoustic part of the show was a nice quiet interlude.

--Howard Horder

* * *

I would first like to say that I saw The Other Ones the last 3 nights and not the Dead. I have to say that each show got better. At Continental last night, we got the privilege of seeing a GREAT TOO show. Too many folks were leaving the arena last night saying the show was good, but not great. For the Other Ones, who I have seen 6 times during the last 2 tours, this was by far the best I have heard them. As one past review mentioned, the string of Estimated>Wharf Rat>Valley Road>NFA and Samson as an encore is as good as it has gotten for these guys. They played perfectly. It was one of those NFA's where the security guards were looking around the arena and smiling. I love it when everybody can find joy in the music.

One final note regarding the Hartford show. I ran into Bruce Hornsby's brother in the elevator of the Hilton and he said that because of the 10:30 hard stop they had to cut Corrina from the set. As would be expected they were suppose to encore with Saturday Night.
Waiting anxiously for Camden, Live Oak>Atlanta.

--Steve

* * *

Last night was a magical night for me. I arrived with an open mind and was delighted with the show. I thoroughly enjoyed Ziggy and the Melody Makers; they were an excellent opener for the wonderful experience to come. The Other Ones played beautifully together and at times transported me back to
early Grateful Dead shows. Bruce's Rainbow's Cadillac sounded so good it was like he wrote it for this band. Bobby's Looks Like Rain really touched me. There were many very special moments, the most exceptional being after Not Fade Away when the audience kept it going until the encore.
PS - Thanks, Larry, for the ride and the pleasant company!
Love & Peace

--Debbie O'Connor

* * *

Sunday night's Meadowlands show was without a doubt the best of the weekend. It was almost as if they were holding back Saturday night, a bit unsure of themselves. If you were able to stay in your seat Sunday night through songs like Sheriff, Estimated and S&D, you're in a coma.

I think something happened to Bob when Ziggy and the Melody Makers came on Sunday night. When Bob kept flubbing the "Sheriff" chorus, it was if he became determined to show everyone that he was better than that. That's why we were treated to top-notch versions of LL Rain and Victim. He really worked these two, and both songs were sweet. That was the nicest version of Rain I've seen since Virginia Beach '96, the first time I saw Bob sing it since Jerry's death. Sunday night rapidly became the Bob show (except for Wharf Rat), running into Weather Report Suite/Let It Grow, Estimated, etc. And Bob delivered the goods!

Bob -- at least through the four shows I've seen so far -- has been having some lyric troubles (looming shades of Jerry's early '90s Teleprompter). In case you missed it, he even flubbed a "Ripple" chorus during Friday night's encore. Let's cut the guy a little slack. It looks like he's being harder on himself than any fans could be. What would you rather have him do, sit at home?

You can welcome me to the legion of believers in Mark Karan. This guy is not only talented, he's having a ball up there. All of my seats so far have been close (thank you, thank you GDTS) and I'm getting a great view of the onstage chemistry and the synergy that develops (or fails to develop) each night. Check out what goes on between Mark and Bruce, or Mark and Mickey. This guy is hot and getting hotter all the time. And be sure to keep an eye for Mark in the parking lot before the show. I got the chance to meet him, chat and get an autograph. What a nice guy!

I cannot emphasize enough how enjoyable these shows are. If you're on the fence about going, get off your butt and get a ticket. And get there early enough that you can enjoy the parking lot and still see Ziggy -- you're missing a great show if you're skipping the opener.

There's still six more for me -- see you at Nissan, Camden, Hampton, Greensboro, Florida and Lakewood...

--Charlie W.

* * *

In the interest of brevity, I won’t go on like I did in my Hartford review, but I must say that my second time around was well worth the price. For as strong an opener as Jack Straw was the night before, Sunday’s obligatory Aiko truly raised the roof off the former Brendan Byrne Arena. The airtight transition into Rainbow’s Cadillac continued the momentum, with Kimock and Karan’s harmonic guitar lines and Bruce’s grand piano pounding paving the way.

Rooster showed that Bobby still does, and hopefully always will, have the blues – as well as an affinity for slide guitar numbers. The “familiar sound” verse of Down the Road provided the emotional peak for the show, and the song’s arrangement works well given the song’s beginnings with Mickey’s Mystery Box in 1996.  Its hard to believe that these guys have been on the road for only a month after hearing how tight they were in Long Tall Cool One and I Shot the Sheriff (the latter with a little help from the Melody Makers). I always liked Victim better as an acoustic song, and it clicked, as did Looks Like Rain, although Bobby forgot to stop singing to allow the solo to punch in; too bad because Kimock was waiting on his wooden stool, steel guitar on his lap.

The entire Weather Report Suite was, as always, a treat, as was the rock-solid Estimated that followed the Drumz segment. Wharf Rat had to represent the show’s peak. Bruce sang it with the passion, if not the poignancy, that Garcia always had, and the band manipulated the dynamics of the sound more during Wharf Rat than any other time during the show. Valley Road and Not Fade Away were likewise much appreciated by everyone. And what would a Sunday show be without Samson!

--Jay Jaffe

* * *

After seeing 10 of these first 13 shows I feel I can say that this was one of the best. The stretch of tunes from Sheriff to Samson was one of the hottest of the tour and right up there with the best moments of TOO 98. The Estimated gave me goosebumps and I loved the classic Bobby headbob/lunge during the Estimated. Total rock star mode! This show was hot and the sound was great- as it has been all tour. I'm not sure what concert some people have been at, but the sound has been loud, clear, and well balanced at every stop on the tour. Hey- if you're having trouble hearing Bobby, just move over to his side a bit. You'll hear all of his crazy licks. (You don't have to stay in your assigned seat you know..).  Sadly, this is the last stop for me. I must head on home with great memories and visions of TOO-thousand one dancing in my head.
Some final thoughts- Drumz has been stellar every night. Billy and Mickey are, I believe, the greatest drum duo in all of rock. Individualy they are awesome--together they are magical. TOO is a great band and is only getting better. The lot scene has been a blast at almost every stop. It seems that some people didn't even
know that Billy is back in the saddle. To all of you who haven't shown up this year--you have missed one hell of a time, but hey, thanks for leaving some extra space for me to groove.
Well, that's it for me. Enjoy the show and I'll see y'all next time around. ...enjoyin' the ride...

--James Yakemonis

* * *

I flew from LA to see this and let me tell you, it was worth it. To the people who missed this show last night, you missed the best TOO show to date. To all the poeple who have had negative comments about the tour, especially this show, shut up, listen and enjoy the music for what it is.

--Jack B

* * *

I'm getting older, with a life happily complicated by kids and a fun but time-consuming job. Good thing I live in Nuevo York, an express stop on the continuing run of that old Terrapin Flyer. I would not want to have missed the music that transformed the homely Continental Arena into the French Quarter, Shanty Town, a windswept coastline and finally a crumbling temple. I knew the vibe was positive when I saw two arena security folks abandon their posts to dance together with abandon during I Shot the Sheriff. While some folks mildly griped for more volume during Victim, I recalled the response of Segovia at his final NYC concert to a request to play louder. "Listen FURTHUR!" he said with a chuckle. Good advice to us all.

--Ted B.

* * *

I think this show Rocked from start to finish. TOO were on big time. Everybody was dancin' thru out the whole show. Everybody had a great time. I seen TOO here back in 98 & I think this show was better. I always have a good time at the Meadowlands & the vibe was great lots of cool people. My advice to anyone whose not thinking of going: GO. You never know how long TOO are going to be touring. I'm waiting for Camden.

--Itm

* * *

The Other Ones at Continental Airlines Arena on 9/10/00 was a good time and also a good show. The pace was somewhat faster than I was used to in seeing the Dead over the past 21 years (a plus). The band looked like they were having a great time. I wasn't on the floor but the sound seemed real good from where I was. I walked away quite satisfied.

While the beginning of the show focused more on separate tunes - once they hit Weather Report on, they really began to open things up and crackle. Not much need to get any more specific. As noted in the above reviews, it seems that - as in the past - everyone has a somewhat different personal experience at these shows. For some, it's bad, for others, its totally satisfying and a great time. I would question those who had complete negative experiences at this show, as to what they are comparing to? Anyway, thanks to TOO for a fun night.

--Debo

* * *

This show was not good it was definitely subpar. The mix was barely audible, Bob Weir has got some real issues when it comes to song selection. VOTC is a Ratdog song not TOO. Phil and Jerry would have never treated the Tri-State area to such a average setlist. Bobby was turned up so loud, that you could barely hear the rest of the band. Don't get me wrong, I love all these guys with all my heart, but Bobby has to realize that he is on stage with six excellent musicians. There was no sense of muicianship at this show. It was all about Bobby trying to prove to us that he is the man. Bobby might want to observe what his brother Phil is treating us to. It's about musical interplay and exploration with the brothers and sisters that you share the stage with. As you know this is only my opinion, and it is better to see the TOO back together regardless of what issues they have performing. Just a little side note I saw every TOO show on Further '98 and it was much better than this TOO tour. God Bless all my sisters&brothers. Safe Travels***

--Chris C.

* * *

Folx:
My two cents for 9/10:
Thank you GDTS!....People were actually walking around the Meadowlands parking lot with open beers, etc, and not getting hassled or beaten...odd for NJ!

Inside---
Ziggy was louder than TOO, at least from the center of the floor. Aiko had some energy to it, but it seemed to our group, some of who had never seen the real thing, that energy was flagging and dying until Ziggy came out and saved them.... Atleast it woke Bobby up, and he wisely decided to regroup and start again acoustically.... I must say I was shocked at first site, recognizing him after two years---short, short hair, looked kinda like Dan Ackroyd hobbling out on stage hunched over.... but he woke up and became good ol' Bobby again, for sure!

WRS onward seemed to finally capture the crowd---people stopped leaving, as they had been since about 10 minutes into the show. Samson was good.

After looking at the previous lists, I was really disappointed that there weren't ANY first-set Jerry tunes--a definite hole was there in the selection that night. Definitely in marked contrast to TOO '98, where they took care of all us NY area Heads in one fell swoop, ecstatically!! I don't see how a previous reviewer could even compare 9/10 with the GDTRFB/Scarlet/Fire....Phil singing Mountains of the Moon...Bobby and Phil's eyes while they were synchronizing the St Stephen verses.....DAMN!

Two years ago, they lost something, and they gained something, and it was real good if not great for the four shows that I saw then.

Now they lost two things, and it really, really shows.... C'mon, guys, you KNOW what we want....

--G'reeG'ru

* * *

The Other Ones in NJ was OK. It's nice to see Weir and Hornsby and the drumming/percussion was most similar to any dead show. It's funny but the Drumz always worked as a laxative no matter where I was as soon as Hart and Kreutzmann kicked in I felt a sudden urge to go to the bathroom.

It must be classical conditioning (ring the bell and Pavlov's dog salivates). The highlights for me were seeing Ziggy Marley join the band onstage for I Shot the Sheriff and Weather Report Suite Prelude acoustic and WRS Part I. Estimated Prophet was nice until a great big void appeared right where Jerry's lead fit in. The lead guitar solo was also noticeably missing during Not Fade Away.

I'm sorry but neither Kimock nor Karan can fill those frets. I hope Kreutzmann has a good pension plan. He looks like a Florida retiree. I think he should move to Boca Del Vista and hang with Jerry Seinfeld's parents.

--Howard Horder