The Grateful Dead - Althea (Rockpalast, 1981)

[goldenmonkeycolor]

i am so sick and tired of people talking sh** on garcia for drug habits. You think it could have been different? The only way to cope is to fade to black every now and then. he was the leader of a generation of people.that pressure of giving those people a life is what sucked the life out of him. he wanted to leave but his conscience wouldnt let him leave that many people out in the streets. I wish it was different..we definitely wouldnt have this song without it. they werent sci, they are real

[xxxcutiekittenxxx]

i understand why my parents said i should be honered to have that name, althea rosealee

[DizzeadHead]

movin with a pitch of grace (~);-)

[BlinkBeer]

One of the most beautiful rock songs ever written my favorite dead tune

[sitelookgmbh]

This opened my mind when I was 16... Had the chance to be there in Essen and still ... If there is a wish for 2012... Try to live that groove... All the Best and greetings... Martin

[woodtubeuser]

one dislike hahahaha

[future4you]

Nobody else sounds like this. Nobody!

[future4you]

"Put the phone down, stand in the light and breath heavy so they heard you!"

[moco635]

This is the GD at their best.I saw them in my senior year at Rec Hall at PSU.WHat a great sure.I also met this smokin' hot chick from Philly ...ohhh what a night that was....a lifetime away from nowadays, PZ ...1981...sorry i think it was '

80

[moco635]

This is the GD at their best.I saw them in my senior year at Rec Hall at PSU.WHat a great sure.I also met this smokin' hot chick from Philly ...ohhh what a night that was....a lifetime away from nowadays, PZ

[MattieCooper]

I'm beginning to think that most venues didn't turn Jerry's mic up, or add that amazing reverb. This sounds phenomenal!

[Lisica2008]

@oldmannecklace Exactly where is his bass-playing sloppy? And why are those parts sloppy? Please be specific.

[AliIKarimi]

If theres a better althea out there, I havent found it.

[williamgarwood]

@AliIKarimi Teh Without a Net version 3-15-90 is the only one i can think that rivals this one

[traviskvaale]

Phil Lesh is awesome you bozo that criticized, one of the top bass players ever!!!

[TheMastakilla4201]

Jerry is a g no matter how old he looks

[EmFayg]

Phil is hilarious

[MrMhiokwee]

 ummmm jerry looks old for his age for the same reason Moses looked 50 years older when HE came down from the mountain....k....ya jerry was MOSES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MrMhiokwee]

ummmm jerry looks old for his age for the same reason Moses looked 50 years older when HE came down from the mountain....k....ya jerry was MOSES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[chasinggamefish]

This place is getting HOT!

[dannystrat]

Precisely! "Little Red Rooster" would feature one of his solos. Then Jerry would play one as if to say, "Nice try- but hear this!". Other than that, Bobby would sometimes be the glue, ya know?

[dannystrat]

Tasty slide work from Bobby! And we Heads know that's a big compliment considering his questionable slide ability at the time of this show!

[sparkomatic]

@dannystrat It's funny. His backup/"rhythm" slide playing was usually pretty good. It was just the solos....ouch!

[GhostofCliffGullett]

they destroy all philosophy...  there is philosophy before psychedelics, and after....

Long live the Dead!!

[ABEEZY9]

Trey Anastasio and Jerry Garcia just know how to make you feel good on an indescribable level

[ABEEZY9]

I have legit listened to this song maybe upwards up 50 times in the last 3 days...that number continues to climb

[iSkatedashpinecone]

Phil is such a badass.

[Lisica2008]

@egIeichmmalcquadrat Unfortunately, nicotine stains were the least of his problems.

[sparkomatic]

@jwindyboy Yeah, what was I thinking? Heroin is totally awesome. I mean, there are so many wonderful stories of heroin taking creative people and improving their lives in countless ways. Hell, everyone should do heroin. What could possibly go wrong? Jerry wasn't really in a detox when he died. He didn't really want to quit. It was just a little vacation, that's all. His health didn't go straight downhill whenever he was using junk. Nah, that's just a coincidence. RIP Jerry. We still miss you.

[jkc67]

@sparkomatic Dude you are right on point with your comments. You can love the man while hating what he did to himself. The shame of it all is how well he performed while strung out. He might have gotten sober earlier and stayed that way if he was less functional while on H. There are some great shows in the late 70's and early 80's but that was when his decline really started. So sad.

[ioriorioriorio]

@sparkomatic Yeah well H is a body drug...acid's a mind fuck...Jerry shoulda stuck with the el, He'd still be here

[Raindogs111]

Great version, as most of the Rockpalast videos are.

LOLZ at Phil geeking out at 1:54.

[Baxter5775]

Never cared much for the Dead until I heard this song. It's one of those songs I am so thankful for discovering but at the same time slightly angry for not finding it earlier!

Does anyone know if tabs are available for Jerry's solos or Bob's slide work?

[mw11385]

Sweet.... I love this song.

[schawill]

Thanks for posting these Rockpalast videos.

I saw the concert in German TV. Even knowing that Greatful Dead were a famous "classic" hippie band I wasn't much interested in. This night changed that: I love the whole concert......until today.

[andreja56]

where this dvd's could be bought or found? f anyone has a copy I exchange him for anything from my huge dvd collectio.

Help I am a big GD fan...need this dvd man badly!!!

[cocoalump]

Cant believe it has been almost 30 years since I first sawThe Dead play this..These Rockpalast videos are amazing..fantastic quality..big thanks to the fellow Dead Head who posted them..PEACE

[jqlsd]

this space is getting hot ....

[SuperSkillbill]

seen this first time 20 years ago.still brings hairs on my neck

[MusicCityMiracle]

Althea! I love it.

[sparkomatic]

silly white people--clapping on 1 and 3. lol. Cool jam. You can already see Jerry's life-force being sucked away by heroin. Hard to believe he's only 39 in this video! He already looks 50.

I like Bobby's subtle creativity. Check the feedback swell on the slide riff at 2:24

[ecoben]

@sparkomatic -- Bobby hasn't been subtly creative or played anything remotely sounding like this since the 80s.

[SwordOfTruth3]

@sparkomatic

Sorry you never made it to one of their shows...

[Zepster77]

@sparkomatic Well, it's not just that they're white (though I get your humor) it's more that this is a european audience and they clap differently (or at least they used to) than american audiences. Strange wonderful phenomenon, surprised it hasn't been studied more..

[sparkomatic]

@Zepster77 Interesting point. Those Brazilian crowds seem like the most awesome crazy rock audiences in the world. I wonder if the Dead ever got to play Brazil.

[sparkomatic]

@Zepster77 You're right I was just bein' silly. Interesting point about Euros with their weird clapping and soccor chants, etc.

[JonasAnonym]

@sparkomatic Heroin does'nt make look older, actually the opposite; heroinabuse have shown decreased the testosteron-production; you don't age as fast as normal.

That Jerry looks older than you think he should could depend on many things: genes, alcohol, stress etc.

[sparkomatic]

@JonasAnonym Jerry looked older than ANYONE should look at his age, and said so himself though. You're right though, it probably wasn't just the heroin use. It might have also been all the chain-smoking of tobacco, the cocaine, the stress, the weight problems, etc.

[TheGravygun]

@sparkomatic Gerry still got it tenderly on this.Give m a break.Stranger a in a strange land. Out of the element im sure..Bobby is layin down on this. Europe shows were all kinda shakey..But daddy jerry pushed on to show the boys..

[1Anonymouse]

@sparkomatic

i know man, it's an ugly thing. i just try to look past it. we all know how the story ends and its not good.

[reallygonecat]

where's ringo?

[teleevangelist]

Sheiot, I so love this song, I listen to several versions of this video every day, lol, I so love u tube for letting me make ma day much better, lmao ^5

[irlandos1]

5 stars!

[jjthedog1]

Awesome....just awesome. Thanks for posting!