By 1978, the Grateful Dead were a lean mean music machine. With a firmly cemented lineup that included Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Keith Godchaux, and Donna Jean Godchaux, the band continued to press their songwriting abilities to their fullest potential. Some of the band’s most celebrated songs were written in the late 1970s, like “Terrapin Station”, “Estimated Prophet”, and more. The band was truly on a roll.
As a whole, the music scene became fascinated with a new genre called disco. Somewhere in the realms of dancehall funk, disco was a true fever, and not even the Dead were immune. Their sole attempt at disco would be the behemoth known as “Shakedown Street”, a song that made its first appearance during a show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on this day in 1978. You can hear the crowd getting really into the jam when Garcia lets loose with a solo, not recognizing the tune but getting down to it all the while.
Thankfully, full audio from the performance exists below, courtesy of the DeadLists Project. Though no one knew it at the time, “Shakedown Street” would be one of the band’s most well-known songs, even going as far as to become the unofficial name for the row of vendors that pop up in the parking lots outside of concerts. Listen to the full 1978 performance with the first-ever “Shakedown Street” below.
Grateful Dead – Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, CO – 8/31/78 – Full Audio
[Taped: Paul B; Seeded: T. Wiley; Uploaded: Jonathan Aizen]
Setlist: Grateful Dead | Red Rocks | Morrison, CO | 8/31/78Â
Set One: Mississippi Half-Step, El Paso, Peggy-O, New Minglewood Blues, Candyman > From the Heart of Me, Jack Straw
Set Two: Shakedown Street, Good Lovin’, Ship of Fools, Samson and Delilah, Terrapin Station, Playin’ in the Band > Drums >Â Not Fade Away > Nobody’s Jam > Not Fade Away, Black Peter, Sugar Magnolia
Encore: Johnny B. Goode
[Originally published 8/31/17]