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Author Conners, Peter H., author

Title Cornell '77 : the music, the myth, and the magnificence of the Grateful Dead's concert at Barton Hall / Peter Conners
Published Ithaca : Cornell University Press, 2017

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Description 1 online resource
Contents Prologue : grown up Dead -- The Sex Pistols, disco, and the Dead -- Cold rain and snow -- Sonic experiments -- Just the right night -- First set -- Second set -- Betty Boards -- The show that never happened -- Epilogue : a band out of time
Summary On May 8, 1977, at Barton Hall, on the Cornell University campus, in front of 8,500 eager fans, the Grateful Dead played a show so significant that the Library of Congress inducted it into the National Recording Registry. The band had just released Terrapin Station and was still finding its feet after an extended hiatus. In 1977, the Grateful Dead reached a musical peak, and their East Coast spring tour featured an exceptional string of performances, including the one at Cornell. Many Deadheads claim that the quality of the live recording of the show made by Betty Cantor-Jackson (a member of the crew) elevated its importance. Once those recordings--referred to as "Betty Boards"--Began to circulate among Deadheads, the reputation of the Cornell '77 show grew exponentially. With time the show at Barton Hall acquired legendary status in the community of Deadheads and audiophiles. Rooted in dozens of interviews--including a conversation with Betty Cantor-Jackson about her recording--and accompanied by a dazzling selection of never-before-seen concert photographs, Cornell '77 is about far more than just a single Grateful Dead concert. It is a social and cultural history of one of America's most enduring and iconic musical acts, their devoted fans, and a group of Cornell students whose passion for music drove them to bring the Dead to Barton Hall. Peter Conners has intimate knowledge of the fan culture surrounding the Dead, and his expertise brings the show to life. He leads readers through a song-by-song analysis of the performance, from "New Minglewood Blues" to "One More Saturday Night," and conveys why, forty years later, Cornell '77 is still considered a touchstone in the history of the band. As Conners notes in his Prologue: "You will hear from Deadheads who went to the show. You will hear from non-Deadhead Cornell graduates who were responsible for putting on the show in the first place. You will hear from record executives, academics, scholars, Dead family members, tapers, traders, and trolls. You will hear from those who still live the Grateful Dead every day. You will hear from those who would rather keep their Grateful Dead passions private for reasons both personal and professional. You will hear stories about the early days of being a Deadhead and what it was like to attend, and perhaps record, those early shows, including Cornell '77."
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes In English
Print version record and CIP data provided by publisher
Subject Grateful Dead (Musical group) -- Performances -- New York (State) -- Ithaca
Cornell University
SUBJECT Cornell University fast
Grateful Dead (Musical group) fast
Subject Deadheads (Music fans)
MUSIC -- Instruction & Study -- Voice.
MUSIC -- Lyrics.
MUSIC -- Printed Music -- Vocal.
MUSIC -- Individual Composer & Musician.
Deadheads (Music fans)
Performances
New York (State) -- Ithaca
Form Electronic book
LC no. 2016053083
ISBN 9781501712562
150171256X
9781501712579
1501712578
1501708562
9781501708565