Dick's Picks Vol. 10: 12/29/97 (Winterland Arena, San Francisco, CA)

By the early '70s, the Grateful Dead's blend of country, folk, blues, and psychedelic rock had become a potent, versatile force. Spurred in part by the emergence of pianist Keith Godchaux, the band began to add more pronounced elements of jazz and Eastern music as the '70s progressed. By the time of their mid-'70s hiatus from touring, they were as subtle and nuanced and eclectic as they'd ever been. They returned to the road in June of 1976, and after exploring the depths of their sound across roughly 100 shows, they rang out 1977 with four shows at San Francisco's Winterland. In a way they'd come full circle: subtlety and experimentation were all well and good, but at this December 29 show they seemed intent on reminding everyone that they were a fun, high-energy rockband — resourceful and creative, to be sure, but urgent and exciting too. Jerry Garcia tears into the opening "Jack Straw" and Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried"with vigor. "China Cut Sunflower"/"I Know You Rider" roars out of the bag for the first time in three years. Tellingly, they end things with a Chuck Berry cover.