The Grateful Dead performed at the Iowa State Fairgrounds 50 years ago
The Iowa State Fair Grandstand will be packed this week as the 2024 fair gets into full swing.
The opening game coincides with the end of another group – Dead & Company. The rock band made up of former members of the Grateful Dead known for popularizing the group’s music to a new audience, is wrapping up its Las Vegas residency this week.
And, it turns out that the first Grateful Dead was a big seller at Grandstand.
When did the Grateful Dead play in Des Moines?
On June 16, 1974, The Grateful Dead played to a crowd of 18,000 Deadheads at the fairgrounds, tickets were sold for $6.50 at the gate, which in 2024 would be $43.16.
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Des Moines Register Reporter, James Healey reported on the show and said, “They played well and were often together, but without apparent effort or pressure. They really got around and together long enough to play their music easily. But the Dead’s comfort was more.
Also:The 2024 Iowa Stata Fair concert program has been set. Who plays on the Grandstand?
What happened to the Grateful Dead’s 1974 concert in Des Moines?
At the summer concert, the group brought the “Wall of Sound,” a large system designed for the jam group. At the time, it was the largest concert sound system. The Wall of Sound was built in 1973, but due to its size and weight, touring the full system became prohibitively expensive, and it was only fully operational from March to in October 1974.
The Register noted the size of the system, saying, “It’s about the same size as the old system, which is to say it’s bigger. But the speakers are placed above and behind the array instead of down to the side.” on the other side of the stage. , this allows the band members to hear the sound when the crowd hears it and thus allows them to mix the sound in a good place.”
Des Moines concert featured on Grateful Dead’s Road Trips Volume 2 Number 3′.
The Grateful Dead has released over 200 albums, and their extensive catalog includes official releases and archive recordings. In 2009, The Grateful Dead released “Road Trips Volume 2 Number 3,” focusing on the Des Moines concert and two subsequent concerts, held in Louisville, Kentucky, and Atlanta, Georgia, on June 18 and 20, respectively.
“Road Trips Volume 2 Number 3” captures the Grateful Dead during musical exploration, highlighting their improvisational skills and unique Grateful Dead programming experience.
“The music felt good, the performance was competent but some fire died. Maybe on purpose,” Healey reports. “The method they are pursuing would be inappropriate or ineffective unless musicians took a simpler approach to their work than before.”
Have the Grateful Dead ever played anywhere in Iowa?
The Grateful Dead made several appearances in Iowa over the years, including playing at the University of Northern Iowa in 1978. According to archival concert records, the Dead played nine times in Iowa, four times in Des Moines.
Is The Grateful Dead Touring Again?
The Grateful Dead’s last tour was in 1995. It started in June and ended on July 9, 1995, at Solider Field in Chicago. A month later, lead singer and songwriter Jerry Garcia died on Aug. 9, 1995.
After Garcia’s death, the remaining members formed new groups and projects, most notably Dead & Company, which formed in 2015 and includes former Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart, along with John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti. .
In 2023, Dead & Company toured the US on the “Final Tour”. However, since May, Dead & Company has had a residency at Sphere Las Vegas, and the last residency show is Saturday, Aug. 10. No announcements of future tours are made by the group.
Jessica Rish is an entertainment, food and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. He can be reached atJRish@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_
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