Jerry Garcia

By the 1990s, the Jerry Garcia Band rivaled the Grateful Dead in terms of consistently high levels of performance. This two-plus-hour DVD is the first of its kind to feature the Garcia-led sextet, whose membership also boasted longtime musical associate John Kahn on bass along with more recent recruits organist Melvin Seals, drummer David Kemper, and backing vocalists Jackie LaBranch and Gloria Jones. For Deadheads, 2005's Live at Shoreline will probably have even deeper significance, as the Grateful Dead were originally scheduled to play this gig on September 1, 1990, at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA. Sadly, the death of the band's then-current keyboardist, Brent Mydland, found the venerable rock veterans in a temporary state of flux. Rather than cancel the date altogether, the Jerry Garcia Band took up the gauntlet. While there are no specific references to Mydland's passing, Garcia's fretwork takes on an added mantle of profundity during "Stop That Train," "I Shall Be Released," and "That Lucky Old Sun." The latter is given all the more emotional portents as the languid arrangement drifts somewhere between a soulful ballad and a heartfelt dirge. Garcia's solo songbook draws upon an extensive array of styles and influences, ranging from the upbeat Motown staples "How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You" and "I Second That Emotion" -- opening sets one and two respectively -- through to Garcia and Seals' exploratory excursion during the Beatles' "Dear Prudence." Although Robert Hunter supplied lyrics to a majority of the Garcia-led songs in the context of the Grateful Dead, there was rarely much crossover between them and the Jerry Garcia Band's material. Of course, exceptions exist and "Deal" is perhaps the most prevalent example. Here the uptempo rocker is infused with some intense soloing from the guitarist, building up to the typically climatic conclusion. Parties fond of the extended jams will not only get more than their money's worth out of the aforementioned "Dear Prudence," but the quarter-plus-hour reading of the semi-obscure R&B nugget "Don't Let Go" similarly develops into a lengthy and often experimental expedition, blurring the boundaries between rock and soul, even stretching into free-form jazz at times. The visual presentation of Live at Shoreline is extraordinary, with all bandmembers getting adequate screen time. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the accompanying audio track. While a 5.1 Surround Sound option does exist, it is a computer-generated hybrid of the stereo soundboard mix with an audience-derived tape for the rear channels. This results in a lack of low end and a midrange that is thin at best. Choosing 2.0 stereo seems to help, but does not totally alleviate the problem. The main program is augmented by a pair of brief but highly informative interview segments -- one with lyricist Hunter and the other an open discussion with former JGB members Seals, Kemper, LaBranch, and Jones. Additional features of note are short documentaries on the songwriters whose tunes are covered within as well as a photo gallery of still images. ~ Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide