DARK STAR (modified & posted 4/24/08) This document consists of two parts. The first catalogs all known Dark Star performances and gives timings for all circulating tapes. It is comprised of 4 lists:
Circulating Tapes Of Dark Star Dark Stars Still Missing From Circulation AUD Dark Stars (Dark Stars available only on AUD tape) Fragmentary Dark Stars The second part is a note on the evolution of Dark Star. * CIRCULATING TAPES OF DARK STAR [4/24/08] The following is a list of the 226 live performances of Dark Star plus 4 studio versions for which tape currently circulates, including three tapes, one from spring '68, one from May '68 and another from Fall '68, whose venues and exact dates are unknown. It gives the timing of each, an indication of what is missing if the tape is fragmentary, and the best tape source for each; the existence of AUD tapes is usually not indicated if SBD circulates. American Studios, LA 11/14/67: 2 studio versions 2:48 & 2:41 SBD LA Studio, late 67: 2:38 SBD Warner Bros Single 7186 Carousel Ballroom 1/17/68: beginning clipped #4:48 SBD Eureka 1/20/68: breaks off after 3:17 FM-SBD Seattle 1/22/68: 5:49 SBD Kings Beach Bowl, Lake Tahoe 1/24/68: 6:49 Dick's Picks 22 Portland 2/3/68: 5:26 SBD Carousel Ballroom 2/14/68: 5:54 SBD Carousel Ballroom 3/16/68: 7:20 SBD Carousel Ballroom 3/26/68: 7:14 SBD Carousel Ballroom 3/30/68: 8:45 SBD Alembic Studios, SF early or mid 68: studio rehearsal 11:49 SBD -- formerly dated 11/ or 12/68 UV spring '68: #4:04 SBD only the end of the jam with several minutes missing before it Unknown Venue 5/68: 16:06 SBD Fillmore West 8/21/68: beginning missing 14:14 SBD Fillmore West 8/22/68: 11:19 SBD Shrine, LA 8/23/68: 15:30 SBD Shrine, LA 8/24/68: 11:21 SBD Two From The Vault Avalon 8/28/68: 10:40 SBD Sky River Festival, Sultan, WA 9/2/68: 13:51 SBD Unknown Venue Fall '68: 12:12. Probably the Matrix, probably October. Matrix 10/8/68: 11:40 SBD Matrix 10/9/68: 13:05 SBD Avalon 10/12/68: 15:30 SBD Widely circulated mislabeled "10/13/68." Avalon 10/13/68: beginning missing 13:35 SBD. The actual show for this date. Greek, Berkeley 10/20/68: 10:05 SBD Matrix 10/30/68: two Dark Stars on this date, the 2nd with Jack Casady 17:30 & 19:24 SBD Chico 11/1/68: 11:30 SBD Columbus 11/22/68 beginning missing 12:47 AUD Bellarmine College, Louisville 12/7/68: beginning missing 13:24 SBD Gulfstream Raceway, Hallendale, FL 12/29/68: 10:26 SBD Santa Barbara 1/17/69: 13:18 SBD Avalon 1/24/69: 18:59 SBD Avalon 1/25/69: beginning missing #14:08 SBD Avalon 1/26/69: 9:#45 with cut in middle SBD St. Paul 2/2/69: 15:33 SBD Omaha 2/4/69: 13:15 SBD Kansas City 2/5/69: beginning missing 11:43 SBD St. Louis 2/6/69: 13:54 cut in the middle SBD Pittsburgh 2/7/69: 14:09 Fillmore East 2/11/69: 12:29 SBD Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (Arista) Fillmore East 2/12/69 Late Show only the final 4:58 SBD Philadelphia 2/14/69: first bar clipped 19:23 SBD Philadelphia 2/15/69: 22:42 SBD Dream Bowl, Vallejo 2/21/69: 22:22. SBD Vallejo 2/22/69: 22:17 SBD *Fillmore West 2/27/69: 23:05 SBD Live Dead Fillmore West 2/28/69: 19:50 SBD Fillmore West 3/1/69: 22:48 SBD Fillmore West 3/2/69: 20:37 SBD SF Hilton 3/15/69: 19:07 SBD Pasadena 3/22/69: 15:25 SBD Modesto 3/28/69: 22:45 SBD. Formerly mislabeled "Merced 3/27/69". Las Vegas 3/29/69: 21:15 SBD Avalon 4/4/69: 20:18 SBD Avalon 4/5/69: 18:39 SBD Tucson 4/11/69: 20:20 SBD Salt Lake City 4/12/69: #22:21 SBD *Boulder 4/13/69: 24:01 SBD Omaha 4/15/69 20:20 excellent AUD St. Louis 4/17/69 21:36 SBD Worcester 4/20/69: 21:12 SBD The Ark, Boston 4/21/69: 22:51 SBD *Boston 4/22/69: 30:42 SBD Boston Ark 4/23/69: 21:02 SBD Chicago 4/26/69: 1:25 SBD *Minneapolis 4/27/69: 26:37 SBD Dick's Picks Polo Field, Golden Gate Park, SF 5/7/69: 22:19 SBD Rose Palace, Pasadena 5/10/69: 20:59 SBD Hollywood, FL 5/23/69: 18:47 SBD Springer's Inn, Portland, OR 5/30/69: 17:02 SBD McArthur Court, Eugene 5/31/69: 23:58 SBD Fillmore West 6/5/69: 21:11 SBD Fillmore West 6/7/69: 20:46 SBD Monterey 6/14/69: 15:10 SBD Fillmore East 6/21/69 Late Show: nearly all of central jam missing 7:#43 SBD Central Park, NYC 6/22/69: beginning missing and with cut in middle 12:01 B+ AUD Santa Rosa 6/27/69: 25:49 SBD Electric Theater, Chicago 7/5/69: 18:11 SBD *Piedmont Park, Atlanta 7/7/69: 26:58 SBD Queens 7/12/69: 9:40 mildly degraded SBD Family Dog At The Great Highway 8/3/69 23:07 SBD Woodstock 8/16/69: 17:50 SBD Seattle 8/20/69: 6:38 SBD St. Helens, OR 8/23/69: 1st vocals missing 26:#44 SBD. *Family Dog 8/28/69: 63:#51 SBD (Dark Star 31:16 # 16:03 > Eleven jam 9:49 > Dark Star 6:43) [*w/ Howard Wales & w/o Weir, McKernan, or Constanten] *Family Dog 8/30/69: 28:56 SBD New Orleans 9/1/69: 17:47 mildly degraded SBD Fillmore East 9/26/69: beginning missing 17:24 B AUD Winterland 10/25/69: 21:42 SBD *Family Dog 11/2/69: 30:06 SBD Fillmore 11/7/69: 26:00 with a cut in the middle SBD *Fillmore 11/8/69: DS 14:05 > Other 11:52 > DS 1:55 > UJB's jam 2:23 > DS 3:01 SBD Dick's Picks Fillmore West 12/4/69: 30:55 mildly degraded SBD Thelma Theater 12/11/69: 19:53 SBD Dallas 12/26/69: 26:00 SBD Boston Tea Party 12/30/69: 19:06 with end missing SBD Fillmore East 1/2/70: 30:10 with the end missing SBD Corvalis 1/17/70: 20:51 SBD Honolulu 1/23/70: 18:14 SBD St. Louis 2/2/70: 21:54 SBD *Fillmore West 2/8/70: 26:43 excellent AUD Fillmore East 2/11/70: 17:02 > Spanish Jam 9:40 composite of excellent AUD and SBD *Fillmore East 2/13/70: 29:46 SBD Dick's Picks Fillmore East 2/14/70: 23:36 SBD Pirate's World, Dania FL 3/24/70: 4:54 + 8:54 = 13:48 SBD with cut as noted *Denver 4/24/70: 24:39 A minus AUD Delhi, NY 5/8/70 18:05 with beginning missing, B minus AUD Fillmore East 5/15/70: 19:24 SBD Newcastle 5/24/70: 21:21 SBD Port Chester 6/24/70: 10:20 ... 7:48 ... 3:01 near excellent AUD *Fillmore East 9/17/70: 27:10 near excellent AUD Fillmore East 9/19/70: 24:58 SBD Paterson 10/11/70: beginning missing 20:19 near excellent AUD Port Chester 11/5/70: 21:00 near excellent AUD Port Chester 11/8/70: 24:48 excellent AUD Port Chester 2/18/71: DS 7:11 > Wharf Rat 9:59 > 7:55 SBD Boston 4/8/71: 14:25 SBD Fillmore East 4/26/71: 13:45 SBD Fillmore East 4/28/71: 14:26 SBD Yale Bowl 7/31/71: 21:20 B+ AUD Chicago 10/21/71: DS 14:53 > Sittin 3:14 > DS 2:16 somewhat degraded FM Detroit 10/24/71: 20:59 SBD Columbus 10/31/71: 23:14 SBD. Dicks Picks Harding Theater, SF 11/7/71: 13:15 SBD Austin 11/15/71: DS 12:35 > El Paso 4:35 > DS 7:40 SBD Felt Forum, NYC 12/5/71: DS 8:30 > My Uncle 2:30 > DS 12:56 SBD Ann Arbor 12/15/71: 20:30 SBD Academy of Music 3/23/72: 22:43 SBD *London 4/8/72: 31:30 SBD Steppin' Out *Copenhagen 4/14/72: 29:14 SBD, FM & AUD Copenhagen 4/17/72 30:54 SBD **Dusseldorf 4/24/72: DS 25:15 > My Uncle 2:59 > 15:06 SBD Hamburg 4/29/72: 29:26 SBD also excellent AUD Paris 5/4/72: 40:03 SBD Manchester 5/7/72: 19:27 SBD *Rotterdam 5/11/72: 47:20 SBD Munich 5/18/72: 27:20 SBD London 5/23/72: 31:16 SBD *London 5/25/72: 35:08 SBD *Jersey City 7/18/72: 28:57 SBD Portland 7/26/72: 30:49 SBD *BCT 8/21/72: 27:34 SBD BCT 8/24/72 27:10 SBD *Veneta, Oregon 8/27/72: 31:44 SBD Hollywood 9/10/72: 34:59 SBD w/ Crosby Boston 9/16/72: 26:56 SBD with conclusion patched with excellent AUD **Philadelphia 9/21/72: 37:22 SBD *Waterbury 9/24/72: 34:13 SBD Jersey City 9/27/72: 31:14 SBD Dick's Picks *St. Louis 10/18/72: 28:02 FM-AUD Bear's AUD master, FM-broadcast; SBD Milwaukee 10/23/72: 27:03 near excellent AUD Cincinnati 10/26/72: 21:10 SBD Cleveland 10/28/72: 27:43 Bear's AUD master *Kansas City 11/13/72: 33:36 Bear's AUD master patched @ 11:17 w/ 1:35 of 2nd AUD master *Houston 11/19/72: 31:22 SBD San Antonio 11/26/72: 24:52 SBD Winterland 12/11/72: 33:26 SBD Long Beach 12/15/72: 23:03 SBD Madison 2/15/73: 19:17 SBD Champaign 2/22/73: 13:49 SBD *Lincoln 2/26/73: 25:18 SBD Nassau 3/16/73: 26:46 SBD Utica 3/21/73: 21:41 SBD Philadelphia 3/24/73: 25:36 SBD *Springfield 3/28/73: 32:14 SBD (de-hummed), also excellent AUD *Washington, D.C. 6/10/73: 26:08 SBD *Portland 6/24/73: 26:35 SBD Universal Amph. 6/30/73: 16:15 SBD Jersey City 8/1/73: 24:52 SBD William & Mary 9/11/73: 21:42 excellent AUD, also SBD *Oklahoma City 10/19/73: 27:12 SBD Dick's Picks Madison 10/25/73: 23:14 SBD St. Louis 10/30/73: 26:59 SBD **Winterland 11/11/73: 36:08. SBD Denver 11/21/73: 3:25 SBD Boston 11/30/73: 9:08 SBD Dick's Picks 14. **Cleveland 12/6/73: 43:28 SBD Tampa 12/18/73: 20:56 SBD *Winterland 2/24/74: 28:54 SBD Missoula 5/14/74: 26:41 SBD Miami 6/23/74: 21:52 great AUD, also SBD Chicago 7/25/74: 23:59 SBD *London 9/10/74: 31:03 SBD Dick's Picks Winterland 10/18/74: 31:34 SBD Winterland 12/31/78: 12:30 & 1:11 SBD Nassau 1/10/79: 18:28 mildly degraded SBD Buffalo 1/20/79: 9:16 A minus AUD Oakland Aud 12/31/81: 14:50 SBD Greek Theater, Berkeley 7/13/84: 16:09 SBD Hampton 10/9/89: 18:30 SBD Brendan Byrne 10/16/89: 11:36. 5:23 SBD **Miami 10/26/89: 29:06 SBD Oakland 12/31/89: 14:48 SBD Nassau 3/29/90: 18.18 & 2:51 SBD w/ Branford Marsalis. *Washington, D.C. 7/12/90: 25:18 SBD with missing end patched with excellent AUD *NYC 9/20/90: DS 12:01 > Playin 5:00 > DS 14:37 SBD Berlin 10/20/90: 13:07, 4:07 SBD London 11/1/90: 10:00 ... 10:48 SBD Denver 12/12/90: 13:46 SBD Denver 12/14/90: 7:10 SBD *Oakland 12/31/90: 20:39 SBD w/ Branford Marsalis. Greensboro 4/1/91: 23:31 & 1:16 SBD RFK, Washington, D.C. 6/14/91: 10:45 SBD Giants 6/17/91: 1:28 ... 1:22 ... 1:00 ... 9:48 ... 0:34 SBD Chicago 6/22/91: 7:03 SBD Denver 6/28/91: 1:28 SBD Shoreline 8/16/91: 10:17 SBD Shoreline 8/17/91: 1:18 SBD Richfield 9/6/91: 3:18 SBD MSG, NYC 9/8/91: 10:30 SBD MSG, NYC 9/10/91: 12:29 & 12:40 SBD w/ Branford Marsalis Boston Garden 9/24/91: 14:18 SBD Boston Garden 9/26/91: 15:50 & 6:46 SBD Oakland 10/31/91: 11:16 & 3:18 SBD w/ Ken Kesey. Landover 3/9/92: 11:30 near excellent AUD, also SBD Hamilton, Ontario 3/20/92: 14:27 near excellent AUD, also SBD Richfield 6/8/92: 8:52 near excellent AUD, also reportedly degraded SBD Charlotte 6/18/92: 6:00 SBD Pittsburgh 6/22/92: 4:05 SBD Oakland 12/12/92: 12:14 & 5:44 SBD Oakland 12/16/92: 7:09 SBD Landover 3/17/93: 10:26 SBD Deer Creek 6/23/93: 6:14 SBD Philadelphia 9/13/93: 5:36 SBD MSG, NYC 9/22/93: 7:31 SBD w/ David Murray Rosemont 3/16/94: 11:14. B+ AUD, also FM-SBD Atlanta 3/30/94: 10:21 SBD *, ** = remarkable Dark Stars: * & ** = Top 40. ** = Top Five. DARK STARS STILL MISSING FROM CIRCULATION There are 14 dates on which reportedly Dark Star was played, but for which no tape yet circulates. These dates, and the sources of the claims, are: Shrine Aud, LA 12/13/67 -- DeadBase King's Beach Bowl, Lake Tahoe 2/22/68 -- David Lemieux (defective vault SBD) Carousel Ballroom 3/17/68 -- DeadBase [National Guard Armory, St. Louis MO 5/24/68 -- Latvala, probably a mislabel of 2/6/69] Carousel 6/7/68 -- DeadBase Fillmore West 8/20/68 -- DeadBase Hyde Park Teen Center, Cincinnati 11/24/68 -- DeadBase Winterland 12/31/68 -- DeadBase Fillmore West 2/19/69 -- DeadLists Winterland, 5/3/69 -- DeadBase Fillmore 12/20/69 -- DeadBase Buffalo 3/17/70 w/ symphony orchestra -- DeadBase Fillmore West 4/11/70 -- DeadBase [Mammoth Gardens, Denver 4/25/70 -- DeadBase is probably mistaken] York Farm, Poynette, Wisconsin 4/26/70 -- audience member Ron Ramsey 46th St. Rock Palace, Brooklyn, NYC 11/13/70 -- audience member [Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA 4/14/71 -- DeadBase's list is probably wrong] * Kokomo (Billy & Brent's band from the mid-80s) played Dark Star at least twice: Unknown Venue 8/19/84 12:35 AUD Casino Club, Hampton Beach 85-86: 10:16# AUD breaks off before conclusion Identification of the unknown venue & unknown date would be much appreciated AUD DARK STARS Of the 219 live Dark Stars currently circulating on tape, 16 circulate only or primarily on AUD tape. These tapes are: Columbus 11/22/68: beginning missing 12:47 B+ AUD Omaha 4/15/69 20:20 excellent AUD Central Park, NYC 6/22/69: beginning missing & cut in middle 12:01 B AUD Fillmore East 9/26/69: beginning missing 17:24 B AUD Fillmore West 2/8/70: 26:43 A AUD Denver 4/24/70: 24:39 A- AUD Delhi, NY 5/8/70 18:05 with beginning missing, B minus AUD Port Chester 6/24/70: 10:20 ... 7:48 ... 3:01 A- AUD Fillmore East 9/17/70: 27:10 near excellent AUD Paterson 10/11/70: beginning missing 20:19 B+ AUD Port Chester 11/5/70: 21:00 A- AUD Port Chester 11/8/70: 24:48 A AUD Yale Bowl 7/31/71: 21:39 B+ AUD Milwaukee 10/23/72: 27:03 B+/A- AUD Cleveland 10/28/72: 27:43 A AUD Bear's AUD master, FM-broadcast Kansas City 11/13/72: 32:16 A AUD Bear's AUD master, w/ 1:42 gap patched w/ B+ AUD Buffalo 1/20/79: 9:16 A- AUD Richfield 6/8/92: 8:52 A- AUD FRAGMENTARY DARK STARS Of the 224 live Dark Stars currently circulating on tape, at least 25 are fragmentary. Carousel Ballroom 1/17/68: cuts in near the beginning 4:48. Eureka 1/20/68: cuts after 3:17 on the master SBD Columbus 11/22/68: beginning missing 12:47 AUD UV spring '68: #4:04 SBD only the end of the jam with several minutes missing before it Fillmore West 8/21/68: 2-5 minutes are missing from the begining of this 14:14 fragment of SBD Avalon 10/13/68: This 13:35 fragment is missing its beginning (unlike the Avalon 10/12/68, which circulated for years mislabeled "10/13/68" -- so if you think you have a "complete" 10/13/68 Dark Star, what you have is in fact the 12th) Bellarmine College, Louisville, KY 12/7/68: The first minute or two of this 13:24 SBD fragment is missing. Avalon 1/25/69: beginning missing #14:08 SBD Avalon Ballroom, San Francisco 1/26/69: There is a piece missing in the middle of this 9:45 fragment of SBD. Soldiers & Sailors, Kansas City 2/5/69: The opening of this 11:43 SBD fragment is missing. St. Louis 2/6/69: There is something missing from the middle of this 13:54 SBD fragment. Philadelphia 2/14/69: first bar clipped 19:23 SBD Salt Lake City 4/12/69: something missing at the start #22:21 SBD Fillmore East 6/21/69 Late Show: nearly all of central jam missing 7:#43 SBD Central Park, NYC 6/22/69: The first minute or so of this Dark Star is missing on the AUD tape, which also has a cut around 10 minutes in before breaking off after 12:01. St. Helens, OR 8/23/69: 1st vocals missing 26:#44 SBD. Family Dog 8/28/69: 47:#19 (31:16 + 16:03) > The Eleven jam 9:49 > Dark Star 6:43 + 63:#51 SBD w/ Howard Wales Fillmore East 9/26/69: beginning missing 17:24 B AUD Fillmore 11/7/69: The circulating SBD has a cut at 20:12, 1:45 after the beginning of the Uncle John's jam, followed by another almost 6 minutes to make up this 26:00 fragment. Boston Tea Party 12/30/69: This Dark Star cuts off after 18:53 on the SBD. Probably 2-3 minutes more are missing here on the master. Fillmore East 1/2/70: 30:10 with the end missing SBD Pirate's World, Dania FL 3/24/70: 4:54 + 8:54 = 13:48 SBD with cut as noted Delhi, NY 5/8/70 18:05 with beginning missing, B minus AUD Paterson 10/11/70: beginning missing 20:19 near excellent AUD Waterbury 9/24/72 34:13 there is a cut at 0:53 Some of these Dark Stars may be intact on the masters -- possibilities include 1/25/69, 1/26/69, 2/5/69, 2/6/69, 4/12/69, 9/24/72, and especially: 6/21/69 Late Show: Rob Eaton lists 101 minutes of cassette SBD for this show, but only 91 circulates. One would guess that at least 10 minutes are missing from the circulating Dark Star. 11/7/69: Eaton lists 122 minutes of reel SBD but only about 103 minutes circulate. There is room to hope that the complete tape contains the complete Dark Star. The rest of these Dark Stars are almost certainly fragmentary on the masters of the circulating tapes. ***** DARK STAR: THE EVOLUTION Dark Star 'matured' -- and doubled in length -- during the October '68 Matrix shows. The first full-grown ripe Dark Stars are the Live Dead Dark Stars of the first half of '69. There are more than 30 versions circulating on tape. The structure of this Dark Star (a "Live Dead", or "First Stage" Dark Star) is as follows DS theme & jam > 1st vocals > jam > DS theme jam & 2nd vocals > transition > another tune (e.g. St. Stephen) The Second Stage Dark Star evolved during the summer of '69 -- primarily by the moderate expansion of the jamming before 1st vocals and the addition of "space" after the 1st vocals. Its structure is as follows DS theme & jams > 1st vocals > space > additional jam > DS theme jam & 2nd vocals (or Tiger) > transition > Family Dog 8/30/69 28:56 and Winterland 10/25/69 22:05 are fine examples of '69 Second Stage Dark Stars. The Third Stage Dark Star does not emerge full-blown until '72 but several performances in '69 and '70 anticipate it, notably; Family Dog 11/2/69 30:06, Fillmore West 2/8/70 26:43 AUD, Fillmore East 2/13/70 29:46, and Fillmore East 9/17/70 27:10 AUD. After 11/8/70 they dropped the second vocals. They revive them at the Academy of Music 3/23/72 23:34 and once more at Portland 7/26/72 30:49, and then not again until the Dark Stars of '89 - '94. The climactic Third Stage Dark Star only appears full-formed in Europe '72. It's structure is DS theme & jam > additional jams > return to DS theme jam & 1st vocals > space > additional jams > Tiger > more jamming > transition > After the appearance of the Second Stage Dark Star, nearly all Dark Stars take this form, but after the appearance of the prototypical Third Stage Dark Star there are still many Second Stage Dark Stars -- 'Second Stage' because they lack the additional jams (plural) both before and after the 1st vocals. For instance, the Tiger appears in many Second Stage Dark Stars as the climax of the post-space jamming. What distinguishes Third Stage Tigers is that The Tiger is just one episode in a series of jams following space -- sometimes it forms the climax & leads to transitional jamming into the next song; other times further episodes of jamming follow it (Sputnik, Feelin Groovy Jam, Mind Left Body Jam, ...) Third Stage Dark Stars tend to be more than 30 minutes long. Obvious examples are Wembley London 4/8/72 31:30 Dusseldorf 4/24/72 42:58 (including 3:10 of Me & My Uncle) London 5/25/72 35:13 Hollywood Palladium 9/10/72 34:59 Philadelphia 9/21/72 37:22 Waterbury 9/24/72 34:13 Kansas City 11/13/72 32:16 Houston 11/19/72 31:22 Winterland 12/11/72 32:43 Springfield 3/28/73 32:14 Oklahoma City 10/19/73 28:49 Winterland 11/11/73 35:12 Cleveland 12/6/73 42:27 Rotterdam 5/11/72 48:38 is the longest Dark Star known besides Family Dog 8/28/69 63:#51 Winterland 10/18/74 31:34 represent the tune's dissolution into space. Cleveland 12/6/73 42:27 is remarkable not only for its scale but for its structure, which turns the customary Third Stage structure inside-out, working in toward the Dark Star theme, rather than starting from it, and moving out into space after the 1st vocals rather than back from it. Besides the Dark Star Gigantea, or Third Stage Dark Star, another remarkable species of Dark Star is the Dark Star Ferox. These don't have quite the 30-minute plus dimensions of the Third Stage Dark Stars but they have a characteristic fierceness of attack & intensity that makes them stand out. Obvious examples are Austin 11/15/71: 26:04 (including 4:46 of El Paso) Hamburg 4/29/72 29:26 Madison 10/25/72 24:04 ice petal flower revolving Shall we go you and I while we can? -- Jim Powell [EMAIL PROTECTED]