I was there that day. Wandering via car through the Malibu hills trying to find a way to Ventura we drove down a street, the sign said, "Morning View". I said to my friend, "This is a sign, we will hear Morning Dew today.

I seem to remember a nearly-perfectly timed arrival of a southbound train across the tracks behind the stage, just during the "Whistle is screaming..." part of Terrapin Station. Any corroborating reports?

Had a fine day - so turned on!

I just listened to this show on Youtube and as I have long suspected it is one if not one the best shows I ever launched. I also thought this was way too much for an 18 year old kid from the middle of nowhere. Dancing? forget about it after that they just didn't quit. I was front and center in front of Jerry and the reason he fucked up the lyrics on Terrapin is there was a bouncy ball floating towards the stage and as soon as it got in front of him he got distracted and forgot to sing the 1st verse. That's how cosmic that day was. I was listening and couldn't figure out what that vibe was but read "Indian drumming" in the reviews and that was it a real "ceremony" that day. Aho Kwa kwai

Mahalo once again Archive, Healey, Tapers, Band; Superb Dew! Listening to this brought me back to all the times.. great stuff! Keep it rollin' if we can!

Yes this show is top notch! I didn’t make it to Ventura until 1985, but I can feel the vibe of this sweet show by the sea crystal clear. One cool aspect of Ventura is that these shows started at like 2 or 3 in the afternoon (at least they did in 1985). So there you were zooming along in broad daylight - no light show - just the bright day, cool sea breeze and beautiful Heads dancing all around. Highlight for me is the intense space that gives birth to a scorching Dew - the transition is max-psychedelic. Like one reviewer below recounted, I can imagine me, hours after a show like this, just shaking my head In wonderment over what has gone down.

P.S. to those lobbying for a Dicks Pick, I see your point - but he would need to somehow fix up Jerry’s lyric flubs in Terrapin

Brent slays it all show long that transition and the man smart is so solid

Yes, there were wild young blond Indian pow Wow! Women dancing the Rainbow Rainstorm to come! The dust 🌹 in the bull pen by the endless wav s of ocean mist broken only by the Cassidy of mysteries,.. yes I was there,.. the Terrapin was built upon the shoulders of a 7 foot man juggling 8 bags of circumference at once! The artful dodger with a growl from Jerry in Deal like No other Deal!

I had been to a few shows before - the first one was on the East Coast and the friend I turned up with had a ticket - it was his birthday , and I couldn't get one. He handed me the ticket and just said that I had to go and see this band. That was 83. A few shows later and I was enjoying the Dead.

On the Saturday of Ventura (day before) they were pretty hot as well. And then something happened during the Sunday show. Terrapin started, the drums, the space that raised the Indian spirits in the Ventura hills......and by Phil's thundering opening Bass note of the Dew....well things were never the same. I was in the Dead Zone and they were taking me away with them.

I remember being in some diner after the show somewhere LA way - with 2 friends.. and I just could not fathom what had happened. It was fantastic! What a show!

And the wonderful thing is that it still happens - they just keep getting me to go with them - following notes,strung together for wonderful moments followed by yet more wonderful moments - always full of surprises and twists that appear out of nowhere and are then gone again sometimes to never reappear.

Yes - this is where I got it! I am a Deadhead - starting on that incredible Sunday afternoon -

and what a long strange trip it has been! Wonderful!

The sound as has been said is pretty much perfect! (rare for SBDs in 1984) Jerry has that growl in Loser that I love so much, he started getting it in 84'-86' Then it kinda went away but it's so emotional!!! And dick & Dave can't pick Lol imo. SO many good 83-85 shows that aren't released or they want a fortune for part of them Lol, like trips around the sun. If you love 83-84, which I do, you'll love this. Loser is epic and the dew-dancing-ship of fool's. nuf said. I do like the Philly run better but I tend to like east coast shows better as the boy's really brought it. And I'm on the w coast.

hi

15 years old and about to get my ass kicked by The Source.

Thanks Charlie Miller

Mostly well played.
Highlights: Dancing In The Street

Some thoughts on the throw-back tunes...

To truly understand Dancing in the Streets in context, you have to watch the video that accompanied the Mick Jagger/David Bowie cover that played on MTV around this time. Compared to the bite the song had in the sixties, it's hard for this song to avoid sounding just a little silly - and Jagger/Bowie took silly to a whole new level. Donna added something very pleasant to the mid '70s versions that kept them from cliche, but in my opinion all of the post '78 versions are unsatisfying.

Similarly, and easier to point at the reason, are the resurrected Pig covers like Midnight Hour. Bobby and Donna changed Good Lovin' completely and made it their own, but Bobby is no Pig (and never pretended otherwise) and the grittier standards suffer by comparison.

If Rob Bertrando digs it I do. But I dug it before his review as I was there and every Ventura show. And agree with augy the best. 82 was the first and epic in it's own way augy, but the playing this weekend was sublime and flawless. The Loser is talked about a lot and for a reason. Jerry nailed it. I just wanna make love to you is the 2nd of 4 times played. First in 66 at the Matrix. 3rd in Worchester on fall tour 84 and last in SLC 95. The dumz>space>Dew is cosmic perfection. But download both 84 Ventura. Both are Olympic efforts.

And shockman, the Olympics started a week after not before these shows.

And majordumbo, Jerry mumbling himself through Terrapin? R U serious?

Stick to Celine Dion.

Word to Pure.orange on the smokin' bass and cigarettes maximum "Loser", damn!
I recall on tour in the 1980s the word was that the band LIKED Ventura, and were known to tear the roof off there on a regular basis.

play the 82,83,84 shows non stop , just brings back memories , flash backs what ever you wanna call it , but man this is legendary shit , greatest band ever , playing in a surreal super cool just dead family atmosphere , simply amazing
85 and 87 great as well .... I really feel the band no matter how disjointed they got around this time somehow made it happen in ventura , I live here and travelled up and down the coast to see the dead , these were special shows

I'll agree about the vocal quality in Jerry's voice being unique on this 'Loser' but if you want an even more outlandish solo, check out 3-24-90

I just joined the site, 'cause I was doing a search for this show and found it. I was there and remember a chain link fence getting finally pushed over so we could drink beer in the audience instead of being corralled off,.....does anyone else remember that? Jd

did you ever just know you won't remember the chords? uh,uh. they don't--- on dancing in the streets. and good old jerry is mumbling his way thru terrapin. too bad---one of the best quality 84 boards i have heard but i did not get too far deeper into this one.

gives me chills
M-F chills, man

My favorite Loser of all time. Phil's bass on this tune is the reason they invented the Thunder Lizard line of speakers. And I've never heard Jerry, in his unmistakable 1984 too-many-cigarettes-and-whatever-else-he-was-using growl, lay it down that hard in the final chorus.

This is super terrific! Besides the only time that I know of Brent doing "I just want to make love to you", the "Percussion" -> "Improvisation" (remember there is no air in space) -> "Morning Dew" is definitely some of the greatest. Plus "Dancin' in the Streets" and "Midnight Hour"
The rest is pretty good too!

Augy
San Diego

Good musicianship as usual. Grate C Miller remaster. If your a Phil Phreak this is for you. You might find you have to turn the treble down because the high hat cymbals are predominant.

Super clarity and zero distortion. Home stereo loves it 250W worth! Thanks Charlie.
Bob

After listening to countless hours of dead on this amazing site, I don't believe I've ever heard a show with such great sound. Not only that, but this is a top-notch performance as well, and not just by post-70s standards. Definitely a smoker and an overlooked show, I believe. Thanks to CM and the best band ever, the goddamned Grateful Dead!

say what you will about '84 being up and down, the five best shows of the year occurred consecutively from the Greek run through these two Ventura shows... and IMO these five rank in the Top 10 for the 1980s.. in the zone.

thank you Charlie Miller for the countless hours of enjoyment i've experienced... you're like the fifth Beatle.

Sorry, the date was 9-15-85 for the Chula Vista show and I can't erase my post.

This show blew all of the minds of we who were there in the audience that day. The Terrapin >Drums>space was mind boggling. The space was tapping into some sort of marine mammal singing . It gives me chills just to listen to it again. Thank you.

What a nice little synopsis of what occured at this time period for some people (shockman)..I can picture it in my mind just fine....thanks..

Sounds great, and for me this tour started at SPAC. What a trip. Much blissnessness, and a dancing partner sprite eating watermelon with tears in her eyes by the horse stalls and sweet sweet sweetness of life.

Ventura Co. Fairgrounds,July 22,1984 was very Grateful Dead. Yeah The '84 Olympics had closed in LA about a week before. These were true Olympic shows. Ventura '84 and '85 were blisterous and outstanding. Dick can't pick if Dick don't pick this or a Ventura '85 show.
Clear, clean, with heart stopping power. Legendary in the Deadhead rumor mill. True shame I can't download this show. But I do have a
SB tape.
I remember that, sometime during drumd>space, a thick blanket of grey clouds came in from the ocean, covering the entire arena. But the Dead' dynamic music poked a tiny hole in the marine layer. Then,like the iris in a camera's lens, the hole became a spot light of sun shine (just on the stage), and spiraling slowly the opening continued to swirl and increase in size to allow the blue sky to come back, and the sun began to shine on the entire audience. WOW!! Mythical, magical, majestical: some of the best moments with the Grateful Dead could never be recorded on tape.
Love to all...I miss you.
shockman / shocker10@earthlink.net

This is a nice clear recording of a great concert, one of the two best shows I ever went to (the other being July 21st, 1984 at Ventura). You can't feel the gentle rain falling during Cassidy, or see the way the clouds opened up into a big circle of blue sky directly overhead as the band worked its way into Terrapin station, but God smiled on that show and you can hear it in the music. I've probably forgotten more of that weekend than I remember, but the music was as good as the people I met along the way, even with Bob Weir mangling the lyrics.

This is from the vault master PCM tapes....cm

I agree that this should be a Dicks Picks using this show in its entirety, with additional selections from the previous day.

For those that weren't at these shows, both days were killer California summer days that will forever remain etched into my synapes! Given the excitement from the previous three Greek shows, the energy and anticipation was high for some killer end of the summer shows. From the opening notes of Dancin In The Streets, to the final notes of Brokedown Palace, this show just stands out as an excellent example of everthing almost just exactly perfect. Play this for your friends and family if they don't believe the GD play anything other than the same song over and over again.

90 my ass! 1984 or STFU!!

I'm thinking this could be a 'Dick's Picks'S' I cant imagine what the master tapes sound like from the Vault if there are any.I revised my previous review,the snakes have disappeared,This show really does deserve a 5 for performance. and a strong 4 for quality.I'm not into saying bad things about shows or songs,so I appolgize for saying unkind words about a song from Dick's picks 21. I'm so grateful that we all have the Live music archive. We all knew this day would come and I love to hear everyones tour and show stories and exclamations of Best ever! that's cool.Next to Augusta and Berkeley comm(Nov)this could be one of the best of 1984.Here is a very dark space that melts into a Morning dew.Download this show that was played in so many parking lots at Dead shows

I've listened to this show many times (and was at this show). Two incredible moments always stand out to me. i) Jerry reaching DEEP on the vocals and guitar on Loser, and ii)the wailing end of Terrapin with Bobby feedback and Jerry knitted into the jam. Both are very unique versions worth checking out.

The sound is noticeably better than '84 SBD cassette masters. The playing is great. 'Nuff said.