Of the three bands represented here, the one I never quite "got" was the Grateful Dead. Still, it is kind of cool to see their somewhat funky take on "Hard To Handle," a song most often associated these days with the Black Crowes. You don't see a whole lot of the Dead here, as the cameraman seems to be particularly fixated on one of those hippie chicks with the bouncing boobs doing the fertility dance that such hippie chicks do. For their own parts, Jerry Garcia sounds pretty damn tasty here, and Bob Weir looks — well, really, really young.
The DVD closes out out with an all-star jam featuring all three bands, plus members of Quicksilver Messenger Service and the Steve Miller Band (although tried as I might, I couldn't see any of the guys from those other bands). Hell, the only thing missing here was Janis and Big Brother. So as historic a moment as having three of the arguably best guitarists in the world in Santana, Garcia, and Kaukonen onstage at the same time was, the spotlight here is once again on Casady. If I didn't say so before, damn is that guy an amazing bass player.
This is an absolutely great DVD. I'm not sure where or how the folks at Eagle Vision continue to come up with such amazing stuff from the archives of rock like this, but here is hoping they continue to do so.
A Night At The Family Dog will be at your local video store this Tuesday August 7.
Article comments
1 - David
Actually, Janis does appear, briefly, dancing in the crowd during the jam. She would be dead about a month later, so it's sort of poignant, if you think that way.