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Truckin Up To Buffalo

© John Manuele

If what I am about to explain sounds repetitive, than I apologize. I still find it important to note the objective nature of this critique. The concert in question took place in my backyard. I was 12 years old when the Grateful Dead made a two-night stand in Buffalo. The Dead had a strange kinship with the COB. Almost every summer since the early years, they made a stop in Orchard Park for a night or two. My brother (four years older than myself), attended shows in 1989 and 1993. Unfortunately he missed the particular outing I came across on www.nugs.net.

Rich Stadium would not seem a likely choice for the Dead to put on a intimate performance at. They could bring the good vibes from their tour with them, thus turning the spacious parking lots and nearby fields into a traveling tie-dye village. The lots had a similar feel to Sundays in the Fall. Die-hards that tailgated before Bills games were similar in spirit.

The Dead opened the show pacing them-selves it seemed. As the show wore on it seemed as though they were not attempting to burn out early. Hell in a Bucket was solid, but not a song typically known as a heavyweight. Shortly after, Half-Step was good but unspectacular. It wasn’t until the Dead launched into Mexicalli Blues that I could tell they were settling into a groove. Loose Lucy and High Time were played strongly. Let it Grow took the crowd into a tranquil abyss before the set ended.

The second set of this was hot from the moment they plugged in until the moment they left the stage. Sugar Magnolias/Scarlet Begonias was an immediate treat. The latter had been played infrequently since the early eighties. Women are Smarted was one of the nicest jams of the evening and led to the emotional climax of the evening. Ship of Fools was delivered masterfully. The vocals contributions from Jerry Garcia were gentle but prone to deliver a powerful jolt at all the right moments. This led to Truckin, a song with lyrics rooted in an experience involving Law Enforcement Officials in Buffalo, NY in the early days.

“Truckin Up to Buffalo…….Been thinking, we got to mellow slow…”

When Bob Weir and Jerry reached that point, the audience hit the ceiling. The energy of that moment is captured nicely even in an 11-year-old recording. The Dead’s pension for instrumental jamming was on display soon after. An instrumental extension of Truckin led into a drum jam (between Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzman). It twisted into a wacky space that lasted for over twenty minutes. The rest of the set wound along nicely with songs like Wharf Rat, Give Me Some Lovin, and Sunshine Daydream. The final encore was Broke-down Palace.