Road Trips, Vol. 1 No. 1: 10/25/79 (New Haven Coliseum, New Haven, CT) & 11/6/79 [The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA) & 11/8/70 (Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, NY] & 11/9/79 - 11/10/79 [Crisler Arena, Ann Arbor, MI]

The Grateful Dead were in a revitalization period in the fall of 1979. Brent Mydland (who replaced keyboardist Keith Godchaux and backup singer Donna Godchaux) had been touring with the band since April, and the band's live sets included tunes that would turn up on the 1980 album Go to Heaven. Though the only Go to Heaven song featured here is the country-rocking "Alabama Getaway," the Dead sound fully fired up tackling tunes from their previous few albums, from the funky "Shakedown Street" to the elaborate art-rock suite "Terrapin Station." Keith Godchaux had mainly played piano with the band, so Mydland's introduction of surging organ riffs into the mix spices things up considerably, whether he's backing Bob Weir's bluesy shout on "I Need a Woman" or working up a soulful frenzy on the Dead's cover of The Young Rascals' '60s hit "Good Lovin'." Perhaps most importantly, Jerry Garcia seems fortified by Mydland's beefy backing, firing off fierce solos left and right, at times leaving the audience audibly astonished.