For Grateful Dead fans, today marks the 30th anniversary of the start of two surprise concerts at Hampton Coliseum in Virginia on October 8 and 9, 1989. Billed as “Formerly The Warlocks,” the Grateful Dead treated the packed Hampton Coliseum crowds to a ton of songs that hadn’t been played in a while, so these shows were pretty infamous from the jump.
As the band noted in a reminder post yesterday, these shows were quite popular “among trading circles for years” and you can really hear the vibes come through on that “Help on the Way” crowd roar.
At this show, the first of the two, the Dead broke out the Help on the Way>Slipknot!>Franklin’s Tower sequence for the first time since 1985 and the encore was And We Bid You Goodnight. Pretty cool. (In case you don’t already know, tomorrow’s show featured the return of Dark Star to the repertoire after a long absence, along with Death Don’t Have No Mercy and the first Attics of My Life since 1972). [Daily Dose of Dead]
Here are the setlists from the show:
Hampton Coliseum, Hampton VA (10/8/89)
Foolish Heart
Walkin’ Blues
Candyman
Me and My Uncle
Big River
Stagger Lee
Queen Jane Approximately
Bird Song
Promised Land
Help on the Way
Slipknot!
Franklin’s Tower
Victim or the Crime
Eyes of the World
drums
I Need a Miracle
The Wheel
Gimme Some Lovin’
Morning Dew
Encore: We Bid You Goodnight
Hampton Coliseum, Hampton VA (10/9/89)
Feel Like a Stranger
Built to Last
Little Red Rooster
Ramble on Rose
We Can Run But We Can’t Hide
Jack-a-Roe
Stuck Inside of Mobile
Row Jimmy
Music Never Stopped
Playin’ in the Band
Uncle John’s Band
Playin’ Reprise
Dark Star
drums
Death Don’t Have No Mercy
Dear Mr. Fantasy
Hey Jude Reprise
Throwin’ Stones
Good Lovin’
Encore: Attics of My Life
No wonder these shows were traded, and thankfully, if you haven’t heard them, both of these sizzling shows are now available digitally.
Stream both shows below — all five hours and 27 minutes worth — via Spotify or click here to pick your poison.
