Sometimes, ya just gotta stand back, take a breath, collect yourself,
and marvel at how special Jerry is. There's all those incredible
guitar players, those myriad beasts worthy of the highest praise,
and . . . well, there's Jerry.

Them that don't know what I mean never will. Those who do, no
explanation is necessary. I speak to the latter.

Let us have a moment or ten of reflection on the matter.

< . . . 7, 8, 9, 10>

Ok, the bit that kicked of this current bit of effusion is JGB
8/15/84, Middletown New York, a community college.

Jerry. Workingman's Dead in theory and practice. Priceless.

I've waxed on about the glories of the 11th, 12th, and 13th, as they
are as good as it gets. This is the night after those. I'm not even
through the first set and I just might declare this better than those.
Mercy.

This tour from 7/31 through 8/18 is simply dazzling. After my
experience with those killer shows mentioned, I went to the first two
nights of the tour, thinking whatever they were, they couldn't be as
flat out fiery brilliant as that 11-13 run, since, well, they're the
beginning of the tour.

I'm not sure I was correct in that assessment, and now this 15th show.
As it goes on it just gets better and better, which means it's all as
good as that first hit I took on the 11th. Then came the bit with the
12th and 13th, and, well, with the 15th, it's quite a week, Jer.

This one, it's just strands of gold and silver, endlessly weaved into
each and every tune, to the point where you get so locked into it you
forget the last tune they played, and, sometimes, the tune they are
playing right now.

It's Jerry as apotheosis, Platonic wonder of the from, the bar, as it
were. And the besterest part of all is that there's endless examples
of this truth, slathered across the years, enough to please everyone,
regardless of their pet era/s.

Which brings us back to the crux:

Sometimes, ya just gotta stand back, take a breath, collect yourself,
and marvel at how special Jerry is.

Fred