''Dave's Picks Volume 31'' is a three-CD live album by the rock band the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

. It contains the complete concert recorded on December 3, 1979 at the Uptown Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. It was released on July 26, 2019, in a limited edition of 20,000 numbered copies. ''Dave's Picks Volume 31'' also includes three songs performed at the same venue the following night. Additional tracks from the December 4 Uptown Theatre show can be found on '' Dave's Picks Volume 47''.

Uptown Theatre

The Uptown Theatre is a large, very ornate theater that was built in 1925 and was originally used for showing silent movies. It seats about 4,400 people. From January 1978 to February 1981 the Grateful Dead played there 17 times. Still standing, the theater has been closed since 1981.

Critical reception

On AllMusic, Timothy Monger said, "Plucked from a Chicago run at the end of 1979, ''Dave's Picks, Vol. 31'' features a jaunty trio of sets from the Grateful Dead, who were at the point still in the honeymoon phase with their newest recruit, keyboardist Brent Mydland." In ''Glide Magazine'', Doug Collette wrote, "In front of close to forty-five hundred attendees, the Grateful Dead were opening a three-night run... and proceeded to blend together tried-and-true material like "Brown-Eyed Women" and "Wharf Rat" with fairly new compositions such as "Alabama Getaway", "Althea" and "Fire On The Mountain"."

Track listing

Disc 1 :''First set:'' #"Alabama Getaway" (

Jerry Garcia Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American musician best known for being the principal songwriter, lead guitarist, and a vocalist with the rock band Grateful Dead, which he co-founded and which came to prominence ...

Robert Hunter Robert Hunter may refer to: Arts * Robert Hunter (painter) (died 1780), Irish portrait painter * Robert Hunter (encyclopædist) (1823–1897), British editor of the ''Encyclopædic Dictionary'' *Robert Hunter (author) (1874–1942), American sociol ...

) – 7:05 #" Promised Land" ( Chuck Berry) – 4:35 #"Brown-Eyed Women" (Garcia, Hunter) – 5:48 #" El Paso" ( Marty Robbins) – 4:26 #"Ramble On Rose" (Garcia, Hunter) – 7:44 #" It's All Over Now" ( Bobby Womack, Shirley Womack) – 8:58 #" Jack-a-Roe" (traditional, arranged by Grateful Dead) – 5:39 #"Lazy Lightning" (

Bob Weir Robert Hall Weir ( ; né Parber, born October 16, 1947) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the group disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead ...

, John Perry Barlow) – 3:16 #"Supplication" (Weir, Barlow) – 5:25 #"Althea" (Garcia, Hunter) – 11:33 #"The Music Never Stopped" (Weir, Barlow) – 8:17 Disc 2 :''Second set:'' #"

Scarlet Begonias "Scarlet Begonias" is a song by the Grateful Dead. The lyrics were written by Robert Hunter and the music by Jerry Garcia. The live debut of "Scarlet Begonias" came on March 23, 1974 at the Cow Palace in Daly City, California. The song begins in ...

" (Garcia, Hunter) – 11:42 #" Fire on the Mountain" (

Mickey Hart Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 until February 19 ...

, Hunter) – 15:28 #" Samson and Delilah" (traditional, arranged by Grateful Dead) – 7:45 #"Terrapin Station" (Garcia, Hunter) – 14:11 #"

Playing in the Band "Playing in the Band" is a Grateful Dead song. The lyrics were written by Robert Hunter and rhythm guitarist Bob Weir composed the music, with some assistance from percussionist Mickey Hart. The song first emerged in embryonic form on the self-t ...

" (Weir, Hart, Hunter) – 11:20 #"Drums" (Hart, Bill Kreutzmann) – 10:02 Disc 3 #"Space" (Garcia,

Phil Lesh Philip Chapman Lesh (born March 15, 1940) is an American musician and a founding member of the Grateful Dead, with whom he played bass guitar throughout their 30-year career. After the band's disbanding in 1995, Lesh continued the tradition of ...

, Weir) – 2:27 #"Lost Sailor" (Weir, Barlow) – 7:06 #"Saint of Circumstance" (Weir, Barlow) – 6:11 #"Wharf Rat" (Garcia, Hunter) – 11:05 #" Truckin'" (Garcia, Lesh, Weir, Hunter) – 9:33 :''Encore:'' #

Johnny B. Goode "Johnny B. Goode" is a 1958 rock song written and first recorded by Chuck Berry. Released as a single, it peaked at number two on ''Billboard'' magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart and number eight on its pre-Hot 100 chart. "Johnny B. Goode" is con ...

" (Berry) – 4:49 :''Uptown Theatre – December 4, 1979:'' #

"Estimated Prophet" (Weir, Barlow) – 12:01 #"Franklin's Tower" (Garcia, Kreutzmann, Hunter) – 10:12 #"Jam" (Grateful Dead) – 10:27

Personnel

Grateful Dead *

– guitar, vocals *

– drums * Bill Kreutzmann – drums *

– bass * Brent Mydland – keyboards, vocals *

– guitar, vocals Production *Produced by Grateful Dead *Produced for release by David Lemieux *Associate Producers: Ivette Ramos & Doran Tyson *Recording: Dan Healy *Mastering: David Glasser *Art direction, design: Steve Vance *Cover art: Tyler Crook *Photos: Jay Blakesberg, Kirk West *Liner notes essay "A Little Bolt of Inspiration": David Lemieux

References

{{Grateful Dead 31 Rhino Records live albums 2019 live albums