Old Dead Concert Photos

I'm currently in the process of moving to a place closer to UMass. Since I already live within walking distance, if I move any closer they'll charge me tuition! In the course of packing some things I came across an old photo album and paused to flip through it. I laughed when I came across some pictures from a July 4th Grateful Dead/Bob Dylan concert in Foxboro, complete with ticket stub. Since I was just recently posting about Dylan and the Dead, I've decided to share these crowd shots. The one below gives you an idea of how the Dead could pack even a giant football stadium to the last row. And why not? Wherever the Grateful Dead played was always the greatest party on Earth.

 



I took no pictures of the band, which would have been a waste of film since we were so buried back in the crowd we couldn't even really see the stage. Still, it was always fun to be deep in the audience, since security there was always lightest and a spirit of anarchy reigned where no law of God or Man applied. You could do anything you wanted, as long as you didn't hurt anybody. It's not clear from these pictures, and I don't really remember, but I may have been naked at this concert. Certainly I was nude at some Dead shows, if not this particular one. I was obnoxious about always taking my clothes off when I was young. In any case, look how studly I was in my youth!

It's hard to believe this concert was (gulp) nearly twenty years ago! Here's a picture taken by Jay Libardi of the motley crew that came to that concert from Pine Point. The shirtless guy with the bandana is James Pirog, the guy with the reflector sunglasses is my cousin Roger, the girl with the Dead hat is Michelle Taylor, the girl in the green Pine Point Cafe shirt is my sister Beverly and behind her is me, busy doing something. 

This picture was taken when I got home, pitifully stoned with a terrible sunburn, but glad to have had a great musical adventure.

 



Walking through the UMass Campus Center at lunchtime today I saw this table set up to support the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama. That's campus Republican leader Ben Duffy on the left shaking hands with the student Democrat Party leader. I get the impression that Obama is a favorite among college students. 

  Obama certainly seems like a nice enough guy, but what is he really saying? I fear he is the national version of Deval Patrick, whose soaring rhetoric gets him elected, only to have competency issues arise once in office.