Grateful Dead Live at Civic Arena on 04-02-1989 The 1987 Bob Dylan tour with the Grateful Dead almost didn't happen. Larry Mishkin shares a rare Bob Dylan story that happened prior to the start of their historic tour. and their collaboration with in 1987. He explains how Dylan found it challenging to rehearse with the band due to their preference for playing his more obscure songs. Produced by PodConx Deadhead Cannabis Show - https://podconx.com/podcasts/deadhead-cannabis-show Larry Mishkin - https://podconx.com/guests/larry-mishkin Jay Blakesberg - https://podconx.com/guests/jay-blakesberg Recorded on Squadcast
Grateful Dead Live at Civic Arena on 04-02-1989
The 1987 Bob Dylan tour with the Grateful Dead almost didn't happen. Larry Mishkin shares a rare Bob Dylan story that happened prior to the start of their historic tour. and their collaboration with in 1987. He explains how Dylan found it challenging to rehearse with the band due to their preference for playing his more obscure songs.
Deadhead Cannabis Show - https://podconx.com/podcasts/deadhead-cannabis-show
Larry Mishkin - https://podconx.com/guests/larry-mishkin
Jay Blakesberg - https://podconx.com/guests/jay-blakesberg
[00:00:00] Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of the Deadhead Cannabis Show. I'm Larry Michigan of Michigan Law Chicago. I am not joined today by, uh, my regular, uh, host, a guest, uh, co-host Rob Hunt, as he is still, uh, out of town on spring break with the family. And we hope he's having a great time, uh, skiing and doing all the things she likes to get out and do, uh, and all well deserved.
We will look forward to talking to Rob again soon. And, um, in the meantime, we've got a great show for you today. I'm very excited about the Dead show that we've selected, uh, 34 years ago to actually 34 years ago yesterday. Um, they, they did have a show on the [00:01:00] third as well. Uh, but the show on the second I think was better.
It's also my mom's birthday, so we're going with that show, the Grateful Dead, April 2nd, 1989 from the Civic Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. And let's get it started. Dan.[00:02:00]
I used to love her, but it's all over now. It's a, uh, a great tune, uh, a staple of dead shows from that era. Uh, always Bobby doing it. Uh, and coincidentally, the song was written by Bobby Womack Will, along with his sister-in-law, Shirley first performed by the Valentinos in 1964. Uh, but the dad really made it their own, and it was, I, as I say, a staple and we always loved hearing that.
Bob, you're having a great time. And how about Brent, uh, getting in there with a little bit of jazz riffing as he's jamming away on the keyboard. Uh, this is a big, big Brent show, as you'll see as we go through. He, he makes this presence felt everywhere. Um, unfortunately, you know, we're, we're starting to get into the, uh, the end of the, uh, Brent Midland era here.
He still [00:03:00] has about another year left with, uh, with everybody a little bit more than a year, but, He's out there whaling and that's great. Uh, little bit of background about this show really fast. Pittsburgh has always been a hotbed of Grateful Dead activity. Uh, there's a Darby, uh, uh, was it the theater in Darby, Pennsylvania?
Can't think of the name of it off the top of my head. Um, they've played all over the city and the Civic Center was kind of the, uh, the, the cookie cutter ice arena where the, um, Pittsburgh Penguins played. And, uh, they would hold concerts there and the Grateful Dead were no strangers to that venue as well.
Uh, and this was a two night run in April of 1989, April 2nd and April 3rd. As I said, I went with the April 2nd show, uh, because I think it stands up a little bit better. Um, and then when we start to get to the next show, uh, well, let me just take an aside here, because we are coming to the end of the N NCAA basketball Tournament in 1989.
The Michigan Wolverines won the tournament with a big overtime victory over Seaton Hall [00:04:00] on April 3rd, 1989, and of course, the dead were playing that night. And then as it turns out, uh, two nights later, they would, uh, open a two night stand, uh, on the fifth and the sixth in Ann Arbor, Michigan at Chrysler Arena.
Shows that I attended with my wife and my brother Steven, his first two dead shows. And, uh, uh, coincidentally enough, not withstanding all of my, uh, dead shows up to that point, I had never seen The Grateful Dead in Ann Arbor. The last time they had played there was 1979, the year before I started. We could never get them there while I was in school.
Uh, but 1989, they show up in two days before Michigan wins the National Tournament. Coincidence? I don't think so. Um, but this was a great run. And so right from Pittsburgh, they were on their way to Ann Arbor and, uh, really, really playing strong. But back in Pittsburgh, they had some problems. And this was really kind of the beginning of the end, if you will.
Uh, at least in the way a lot of touring Deadheads felt about it because this was a show, uh, where the Deadheads got out of control. Um, [00:05:00] and they really, uh, teed off with the Pittsburgh police. Uh, there was a rumor, uh, that an usher inside the arena was, uh, letting people in the back door for 20 or $25 cash crowds of people swarmed around there.
Uh, eventually the guy just threw the door open and took off with his money and, you know, Crowds of people were pouring in, the police were trying to control the whole thing. Um, and as we went into the summer of 1989, uh, we had all sorts of instances, uh, some of them, uh, more infamous than others, but Deer Creek had a problem and, uh, they had a problem, I think, at the show in Ohio.
And, um, the Deadheads, I don't like to say the Deadheads, the Deadheads never were the problem. The problem was the people who liked to come and show up and just do a lot of partying, and they knew that the Deadheads, uh, were a great group to go do that with. And as a result, uh, huge, huge, huge numbers of people far larger than the actual capacity of wherever they were playing would show up to take part in this.
In this big party. And while on the [00:06:00] one hand, yes, it's kind of fun and open and you know, everybody who wants to come and be peaceful and have a good time is welcome. Uh, on the other hand, there had to be a recognition that the venues and the facilities where the dead were setting up camp, uh, weren't always equipped to handle such a large overflow in terms of parking, in terms of facilities, in terms of food and water, and certainly not in terms of security.
Trying to keep the Ticketless fans out of the. And it got so bad in Pittsburgh, uh, that, you know, we have one of these wonderful moments where an American politician who doesn't really know anything about the Grateful Dead, uh, just kind of flies off the cuff based on the news that they're hearing. And in this case, it was Pittsburgh Mayor Sophie Maslo, who famously declared, I don't want these dead headers ever back again, calling the band The Dreadful Dead.
Okay? So, you know, that's kind of what as Deadheads we were used to at that point in time. Um, and, and two things I'll say about that, uh, the first is that if you ever went to a dead show, it was probably the most peaceful, mellow, laid back type of place you could ever be. [00:07:00] You didn't have big bikers coming in, getting drunk.
You didn't have, uh, big frat boys coming in and getting drunk and pushing people around. There were no fights. Um, everybody was just kind of stoned or trippy and enjoying the band doing their thing. And there was no time, uh, to be, uh, To be dangerous or unruly or or hassle. The, the cops, yes, it happened, but that was not, uh, the primary focus of where we're at.
And if you compare that, uh, to so many other bands at the time that were out there playing, uh, where it was, uh, a rite of passage for people to go and get drunk and pick fights. The Rolling Stones shows were famous for that for years and years. Uh, the presence of the Hell's Angels didn't necessarily, uh, tamp that down any, um, but the, the dead.
Very, very, very mellow, peaceful band. And the audience was the same way. And, but there were so many of us that showed up. And in a crowd, you're always gonna have bad apples. And there were certainly bad apples in these crowds, there's no doubt about it. But the, the, the politicians would jump in and they'd, they'd latch onto the one [00:08:00] bad apple and paint the whole group with a broad brush.
So, uh, in April of 1989, we have Mayor Maslo saying that the dead headers will never come back. I don't want the dreadful dead in my town again. And what happened? Well, a year later, uh, right around July 1st, I believe it was, the dead headers and the Dreadful Dead were back for a huge show at Three River Stadium opened by Crosby Stills and Nash.
I was at that show. It was a very peaceful day. It was a wonderful day of music. And interestingly, I did not see Mayor Maslow anywhere that day. Um, but I'm sure she and her city gladly accepted all of the wonderful revenue that the dead generated for them. Uh, when they drew a crowd into Three River Stadium that was probably larger than any crowd a Pittsburgh sports team had ever drawn before.
Well, maybe not the, uh, Steelers from back in the, uh, super Bowl era. But, um, other than their brief breakthrough in 79, the Pirates were not known, uh, as a team that would draw a lot. And, uh, the dead Teds tested out the limits of the stadium. It passed with flying colors. I bumped into my good buddy Jack there, and we had a chance to [00:09:00] watch the show together.
It was a lot of fun. But let's go back to the show we're talking about today, and it was all, uh, part of this 1989 run. And, uh, we talked about Brent really kind of going out and flexing his muscles just a little bit. And, uh, Dan, if you'll spend the next tune, we, we get a full dose of Brent.
Walk into the, there's a hole in the where the in
afraid of the, but now it on the Asph land hammer, God's left hand.[00:10:00]
Brent really, uh, flexing his wings there and, um, how great it is. Uh, what a talent. Uh, you know, you, you read posts and people talk about Oh yeah. The eighties, the Brent era, not like the good old days. And I'll tell you, the eighties were my good old days. And while, uh, you know that Rob and I are are huge fans of 73 dead, 77 dead, 78 dead, 72 dead, 70 dead, uh, the late sixties, and the primal dead.
Um, the, the dead that I experienced was an [00:11:00] absolutely amazing band. Now can I compare them to what it was like when they were playing at the Fox Theater in St. Louis and cranking out those wonderful shows? No, because I wasn't there. Uh, so I take the band for what I got when I got them. And yes, there were nights where they were flat and they weren't as strong.
Uh, but for the most part, uh, They were sailing right along and they were great. And in the eighties, that's a big, big credit to Brent Midland, who really stepped in, breathed a huge breath of fresh air into that band. Uh, and I think really, uh, motivated Jerry in a way, uh, that he hadn't been motivated in a while.
And, uh, we can run as a, as a great example of that. Um, we've been playing other Brent Toons lately, and we will continue to do so because, uh, Brent deserves the credit and he deserves a place among the, uh, the dead legends. You know, he may not be a Pigpen, um, but you certainly have to put him up there with Keith, I think.
Um, and although Vinny is a great talent and really did it too, he never had a chance to really flourish. So, um, as far as I'm concerned, uh, Brent Midland is as good as it gets with the post primal, uh, [00:12:00] grateful Dead. And, um, I'm very, very happy and very lucky that I got so much of Brent at the shows, uh, that I made it to, um, In the world of music, there's just great stories that pile up on top of great stories.
And what always amazes me is how many of them, uh, seem to really involve the Grateful Dead? And here's what I mean. Uh, thanks to, uh, our producer, Dan Humiston, for pulling this out and, uh, getting it over to me today so that, uh, we could talk about it. Because sometimes, uh, the, the best stories slip by if you're not looking for him.
So everyone knows that in 1987, uh, Dylan and the Dead toured together, uh, Dylan a year or two before had kinda started a habit of touring, being backed by big bands. If you know, originally he was of course backed by the. And I believe in 85 or 86, uh, Dylan was touring with Tom Petty and the [00:13:00] Heartbreakers as his, as his band.
Um, and you know, they would basically be the, the backup. Dylan would be up there, you know, singing his songs and they'd be playing his songs, adding some vocals. And of course, petty being a great guitar pair player, would add his own little touches to it. And they were great and they were really a lot of fun to see.
Uh, they performed really well and everyone really felt that it energized Dylan in a great way. 1987 rolls around and Dylan's getting ready to tour again, and this time he selects the Grateful Dead. Now that's interesting for a lot of reasons. Um, not to diminish Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and their, their place in American music.
But in the mid eighties, uh, we're, we're in the, um, touch of Gray era now cuz Touch of Gray came out in 86 or 87. So the Grateful Dead were beginning to really max out on their popularity. Year after year. They were the highest, uh, grossing touring act. Uh, rolling Stone Magazine or Billboard [00:14:00] would always have those articles and we'd read them that, you know, the Dead were out drawing almost anybody in, in a year.
Maybe when the Rolling Stones tour, the Dead might come in second. But otherwise they were top Bill everywhere. And, you know, here was Dylan, who I suppose if at that time, if there was anyone in the musical world who could be said to be even a little more senior, a little cooler, a little hipper, a little more to the scene than the Grateful Dead.
Well it had to be Bob. And Dylan reached out to the dead and said, um, you know, you're gonna be, it, you know, the, the, the dead were different though. They were kinda loose jammy. Uh, they wanted to work with a much bigger set list, uh, uh, of songs than Petty. And actually, um, this is where it gets great. So Dylan, uh, started going out to the, um, uh, grateful Dead's Front Street recording studio in San Raphael, just outside of San Francisco, to start meeting with the, with the Dead.
And Dylan wrote all about this in his book Chronicles, and he, he said, I thought it would be as easy as jumping rope. After an hour or so, it became clear to me that [00:15:00] the band wanted to rehearse more in different songs than I had used to be doing with Tom Petty. They wanted to run all over the songs, the one they liked, the seldom scene ones.
I found myself in a peculiar position. I could hear the brake screeching. If I had known this to begin with, I might not have taken the dates. So let's think about that for a minute. The Grateful Dad, who probably covered Dylan as much, if not more, and certainly as well as anybody out there used to reach deep into his category, used to like to pull out a catalog, excuse me, pull out songs that, as Dylan here himself admits, you know, we're not necessarily songs that he had been playing with Any frequency or, uh, any regularity.
Um, if you're familiar with the Dylan in the Dead album from that era, uh, certainly the song Joey leaps to mind, um, that they did Slow Train, Cummin, um, you know, and a and a few others that were on that album that were not songs that, uh, Dylan was typically doing in his concert. But those are the songs that Jerry liked to play and the band liked to play.
So what's Dylan [00:16:00] Sang? He was like, well, wait, this didn't necessarily know what I was getting in for. So he said, uh, Dylan says, I had no feeling for those songs. I didn't know I could sing them with any intent. Um, a lot of them might have been sung only once, maybe even the time they had been recorded.
There were so many I couldn't tell, which was, which I might not even get, I might even get the words mixed up with the others. Um, I, I couldn't see how I could get this stuff off emotionally. So Dylan says I felt like a goon and didn't wanna stick around on that, thinking the whole thing might have been a mistake.
Uh, so what did he say? He went up to the band and he told them, oh, I left something back at the hotel. I'll be right back. This is Bob Dylan. He steps outside onto Front Street, starts walking, putting his head down against the drizzling rain and says, I wasn't planning on going back. If you have to lie, you should do it quickly and as well as you can stop right there.
Bob Dylan is walking out on the Grateful Dead and not just walking out with on them, not even telling them that he's walking out on them. This is like one of the greatest rockers in history, getting ready to jam with one of [00:17:00] the greatest rock bands in history. And he has a, an existential crisis over the song cause they wanna play, and I don't mean that negatively.
I think the Dead do that to a lot of bands cuz the songs that they focus on and like to play are not necessarily the song that the original, the songs that the original artists, uh, like to focus on. And that's just the way it is. Um, But this is Bob Dylan for God's Sakes, and he's so freaked out by the, this, this kinda loose jammy, they're gonna do whatever they want style that it was too much for him.
So he's, he's walking out on them on a lie and, uh, getting ready to head back to his hotel and said he was set to abandon the tour, but then he got some inspiration. So he was walking up the street, maybe four or five blocks, and he heard sounds of a jazz combo playing. Uh, he walked into the bar and something was calling me to come in.
He says he walked in along the long narrow bar to where the jazz cats were playing in the back on a raised platform. He got within a few feet of the stage and just stood there, ordered a gin and tonic. So now you know what Bob Dylan likes to drink. Um, [00:18:00] and he was watching the, uh, the band. He commented on the singer and his style and the songs that they were playing.
Jazz ball, stuff like Time On My Hands and Gloomy Sunday. And he and Dylan says that the singer he was watching reminded Dylan of Billy Epstein. He wasn't very forceful, but he didn't have to be. He was relaxed. He sang with natural power. And then Dylan says, suddenly it was out warning. It was like the guy had opened a window to my soul.
It was like he was saying, you should do it this way. And all of a sudden Dylan says, I understood something faster than I ever did before. I could feel how he worked at getting his power where he was going to get it. And I knew where the power was coming from and it wasn't his voice. He said, I used to do this thing.
I'm thinking it was a long time ago. No one ever taught me this technique was so elemental, so simple. I had forgotten that Dylan remembered. It was like I had forgotten how to button my own pants and I wondered if I could still do it. Nevertheless, a rejuvenated, Dylan turns around, walks back down front street, returning to the Grateful Dead's rehearsal Hall, as if nothing has happened.
Went to the hotel, got my [00:19:00] stuff, guys, I'm back. Picked up where he left off, couldn't wait to get started. Um, and he said at the beginning, he was kind of hard. He described it as. Uh, he, all he could get out was a blood choke, coughing, grunt, um, to try and get it to bypass his brain. He said. But eventually he realized that the scheme wasn't sewed up too tight.
We need a lot of stitches. Um, I was burning, but I was awake. I grasped the idea. I had to concentrate like mad because I was having to maneuver more than one stratum at the same time, thanks to the dead. But now I knew I could perform any of these songs, uh, without them having to be restricted to the world of words.
This was revolutionary. And he said Dylan was game for any and all songs that the Dead were going to throw at him. He played 'em all with the dead. I never had to think twice about it. Maybe they just dropped something in my drink. Uh, and then he goes back to say he thinks the old jazz player. That's just a wonder.
Wonderful, wonderful story. Um, and, and what I love about it is the Dead aren't, isn't the party that redeemed Dylan. [00:20:00] Uh, they're the ones that originally, uh, caused his self-doubt and caused him to walk out on them, kinda walk away and just say, nah, I'm outta here. I I'm just gonna slink off. Um, but he hears something that triggers it and then he comes right back and all of a sudden, you know, he can see where, who the dead are, where they're coming from, how they wanna play, and it all fits together so nicely.
And, uh, you know, I like to think that that's just who the Dead were, you know, they forced people to kind of challenge themselves. If you wanted to play with the Grateful Dead, cuz you just never knew where they were gonna go or more to the point you knew where they were gonna go, but you didn't know how they were gonna get.
Um, and it's wonderful, uh, that at the end of the day, Bob Dylan, uh, kind of had this moment of, of, of, uh, light and, uh, where he was able to kind of pull it all together and think of all the wonderful music we would've missed had they not toured in 1987 like they did. Um, and millions and millions of Deadhead fans and Dylan fans out there out about millions, but certainly a lot of them are, are, are [00:21:00] very happy, uh, that not only did Dylan pull it back together, but he had the fortitude to walk back down, join up with the dead, and go out and, and, and make some beautiful music.
Um, so yes, of course, if we're talking about Bob Dylan, uh, and we're talking about the Grateful Dead, this is a perfect time to segue right back into our third song clip here and, uh, the dead playing.
Trying to prove the truth. Conclusions should be,[00:22:00]
Queen Jade, approximately also from Highway 61 Revisited. Uh, what a great song. Um, and, and, and Bobby just plays it with Gusto, you know, it was, it was one of a, uh, uh, a few different songs that one stuck inside a mobile with the Memphis Blues. Again, when I paint my masterpiece, uh, Part of a three or four song Dylan Circle that Bobby at this time was always playing right around the middle of the first set.
Again, it [00:23:00] was a great introduction for those of us that weren't yet Dylan fans or hardcore Dylan fans, to all of these wonderful Dylan tunes that got me circling back and, and really getting into him, uh, and getting into him and his songs. And Queen Jane approximately is just one of those I, I know it probably has some deep di intended meeting.
I have no idea what it is. Uh, but I do know that when Bobby sang it, he sang it really well, and it was always very, very well received by the Deadheads. Um, you know, who appreciated. Uh, the effort who appreciated, uh, the dead covering, you know, maybe the greatest, uh, rack and roll mu individual musician, uh, of all time, uh, who amazingly is still out there doing his thing today.
So, uh, that's our Dylan connection. Uh, and one other thing is, I hope you guys heard Brent's keyboards in there. As I say, this was a strong Brent Knight, and he was really all over the place. And so, you know, this is a Dylan tune. Uh, it's a bobby number. He's kind of in the spotlight, and as they kind of circle through all the mu musicians during the jams, having a chance to really play it out, brunches rises to the top now after the next verse.
[00:24:00] Um, then they go into a really good Jerry Jam and, and we've heard a lot of great Jerry Garcia guitar solos and, uh, with Dylan tunes and all of that. But boy, just the, the whole, again, the whole extra level of energy and, and, and beautiful creativity that Brent brought to that scene and how he really took those Dylan songs and enhanced them, uh, in a Brent way to just make 'em wonderful and, uh, and so much fun to hear.
So, uh, very good with that. But let's turn to marijuana for a few minutes. Uh, we are the, that had cannabis show and, uh, there's some, actually, mostly some really good things going on in, uh, the marijuana world today. And let's start off with this, uh, Congressman Earl Blumenauer from Ohio, or excuse me, Oregon, uh, told the, um, uh, the, uh, department of Health and Human Services.
Sorry about that. Uh, that he thinks that the, uh, that the federal government is hopelessly out of step, uh, with the American public on marijuana [00:25:00] legalization. Um, he said that the American public overwhelmingly supports ending cannabis prohibition pointing to the fact that a majority of states have legalized marijuana in some form over the past several decades.
Uh, the, uh, the House in Ways and Me House Ways and Means Committee, um, congressional Cannabis Caucus, uh, Was the to which Earl Blumenauer belongs. Sorry about that. I'm having trouble getting my name straight today, uh, was speaking, um, to Xavier Becerra, the head of the Health and Human Services, uh, division, uh, and pointing out these issues to him.
And Blumenauer went on to say, I welcome the president's Biden's call to do a reappraisal of how we characterize this so we can have the federal government catch up with where the American people are as it deals with the reality of cannabis. And I look forward to working with you. Blumenauer.
Blumenauer said too, uh, Beara. Now Beara didn't directly address Bauer's remarks during the hearing, uh, but the health [00:26:00] official said in an interview last week that his department will be taking into account shifts in what marijuana means to Americans over the last several decades as part of the Cannabis review.
Um, this is important because. Uh, it was pointed out, uh, that there weren't any states where marijuana was legal for purpose, for any purpose until 1996, and now there's 37 states with medical cannabis and 21 where it's also legal for adult use. Obviously, some overlap there and polling shows that support for any cannabis prohibition together hovered around 20 to 30% of the early nineties, whereas now it's almost 70% backing.
Legalization folks. I don't think there is an issue out there in the United States today on which the, uh, American public as a whole is so strongly behind. 70% are fine with legalization. Uh, so Beara said last week, he's aware that there is significant public interest in the [00:27:00] timeline for the administrative review, but government, government, government, there are a few hoops we need to jump through before completing that assessment.
Uh, the Food and Drug Administration, uh, under the Health and Human Services, uh, needs to complete. Its part of the review process. Uh, and several Biden administration officials have now used the word expeditiously, uh, but they've declined to provide a spec, a specific timeline now with the, uh, food and Drug Administration.
Look, we know how they work. We've already talked about this with C B D, right? They discover it on their doorstep and act like they've never seen it before and ignore 50 years of medical research to pretend like they're the first ones who have ever looked at it. So if we're really sitting around waiting for the F d A, uh, that could take wherever, that could take forever.
Now, when he, when he was asked specifically when health and human services. Whether it would make its decision by April 20th. Ber laughed, apparently, uh, getting in on the four 20 joke and all he said was, I know we're moving to try, I know we're going to try to move [00:28:00] quickly. That's not the strongest endorsement that they're gonna be coming out and really lighten the fire under this thing and getting to it.
But on the other hand, I guess it's better than nothing. And you know, he, he says they gotta go hoops and hoops. Safety and efficacy are what will drive this determination. So stay. Good. But guess what? Safety and efficacy have already been determined a long, long time ago. You know, we've talked about this before.
We have medical studies that show what's going on and show that marijuana, uh, is safer than nicotine. It's safer than tobacco, it's safer than alcohol, it's safer than so many other things that are out there. And yet we treat marijuana, you know, as the, um, uh, as the, the. The bad guy in all of this is the, as the substance that we really need to be afraid of.
And, you know, we have to make sure we're safe. We are safe, we are safe. And if you've ever gone to a dead show and seen all the people that are getting stoned and then they all go home and then they all show up the next night and they all get stoned and then the next day they all go to work and they do that until the dead come back and then they go again.
And I'm not [00:29:00] saying that there's not people in the world who have maybe had a negative reaction to marijuana. Everybody's allergic to something. But when you're looking at it overall, there's just no question. And when you wanna talk about efficacy, uh, this is a direct shot at our little schedule one myth here, right?
Marijuana Schedule one, it has no known medical uses, which is a lie. It was a lie at the time that Schedule one and that marijuana was put on schedule one. So, you know, to, to suggest that these are things that still need to be discovered, uh, is disingenuous and maybe even dishonest to some degree. Um, and, you know, there, there really should be nothing.
Holding up everything at this stage of the game, and we're really at a point where this just needs to go forward. Um, it just needs to get done. Uh, Biden's scheduling directive represents an opportunity to make honest assessments of the origins and implications of federal policy, adding that marijuana was scheduled based on stigma, not science, and it's time to address [00:30:00] marijuana's existing reality as a state regulated.
What a great statement by this guy. I mean, really, he's, he's hitting the nail right on the head. It's safe. The American people, uh, uh, really like it and don't, uh, Hey guys, we need to go back for a minute here, says Blumenauer. And we need to find out why it was even put on schedule one in the first place.
What was the government's real intent not to protect people from marijuana? Not at all. Um, and, and good for him. Good for an American politician on the US Senate level. Calling this out in a meeting, uh, with a head administration official, uh, and kind of really throwing the issue at them, uh, as directly and bluntly as they can, uh, without really giving 'em a whole lot of room, uh, to wiggle out.
Now, uh, there could be a lot of things that are motivating this little move right now. Um, and of course not the least of them is we see that 70 plus percent, uh, of Americans, uh, approve of marijuana legalization. Uh, we've looked at the numbers of sales of marijuana products and, um, [00:31:00] How Americans, uh, love it and, and, and, and can't get enough.
We've talked about, its, its efficacy when compared to alcohol or tobacco or, uh, caffeine or any of the other substances out there that cause people to miss more days of work, far more days, uh, than are missed because of, uh, uh, marijuana use. And of course the factor that most of those other substances when used to access will kill you and marijuana won't.
But we keep finding more and more stories, right? We talked about how teenage smoking is going down. We talk about how, uh, traffic fatality fatalities go down and overall driving is safer, not because it's safe to drive on marijuana, but because it's safer to drive when you're high than when you're drunk.
And if you can get people to stop drinking alcohol and to start smoking marijuana, then we will have fewer fatalities because the driving, although still not perfect, will be a lot safer than it was when people were all drunk. But in this country, the testing ground for things not unlike other [00:32:00] countries, um, Often seems to be the military.
What is the military doing? How does the military handle this? And lo and behold, we have an article, uh, that quotes the, uh, department of Defense saying that marijuana's active ingredient, Delta nine THC is the most common substance that appears on positive drug tests for active duty military service members.
That's amazing. That is amazing. More than anything else out there that they could be getting their hands on. Why? Because people in the military have been smoking marijuana forever. It, it's kind of a, a sad joke about, uh, uh, Americans in the Vietnam War sitting around getting stone tripping on acid and doing all that.
Although I would argue that anyone who was thrown into a foxhole in the Vietnam War would be doing the exact same thing, uh, and just as much, if not more, but soldiers. Have certain responsibilities. They have to be places at certain times. They have to perform in certain ways. They have to protect this country.
They have to [00:33:00] protect one another. These guys are professionals. And I would never been in the military myself, so I'm only going to speak from ignorance here, but ignorance. And you know, what I would like to think is, is a little bit of common sense. If you know you're gonna get thrown out into a situation where you're very survival in the survival of, of your comrades and maybe the survival of your countrymen depend on your ability to perform on a certain level.
It's very reassuring to see that the product that they have all picked to relax with is marijuana. Um, it's, again, it's one of the safest things out there. Uh, it doesn't make you. Overly aggressive and, and I would suggest that in a time of war, having a really drunk, overly aggressive person is not the right answer.
Um, you probably want somebody who's a little more, uh, capable of being able to assess the situation around them and acting in a way, uh, that takes into account their training and what's best, uh, for everybody else. But the Department of Defense said that in fiscal year 2021, [00:34:00] Delta nine thc, the most well-known intoxicant, Cait cannabinoid was the most prevalent drug for active duty service members accounting for 73.4% of all unique drug positive active duty service member tests at that period of time.
Now, that's followed by Delta eight, T H C, which we've talked about is, uh, a naturally occurring cannabinoid in hemp and therefore legal, even though it can produce a, a small but notice, Buzz and now everybody's all aast. That when they passed the, uh, farm bill and all of its constituent cannabinoids and made them all 100% legal, all that, nobody told us that Delta nine had th or Delta eight had th hc except that the standard you guys adopt said that hemp could have 0.3% THC in it.
But nevertheless, so the, the top two things, cuz this showed up in 42.7% of drug tests. The, the top two substances are marijuana and C B D surprise. Of course not. Not at all. [00:35:00] It, it's, uh, exactly what we would expect from this. Uh, based on what we know about drugs, cocaine was detected in 14.4% of drug tests, fentanyl and, um, metabolite, non fentanyl, nor, excuse me, nor Fentanyl, was only identified in 2.5% of screenings combined.
Now maybe it. Question of availability, maybe it's a lot of other things. Um, but to begin with, nobody's allowed to use drugs in the military. So if you're gonna take a chance, you know, you're, you're putting yourself out there. And again, uh, at least I'm happy to see that for those service, uh, members, um, who, who look for, uh, some type of intoxicated to help them with the, the stress or the pain or whatever they're dealing with as a result of their service.
Uh, that marijuana, uh, seems to be the go-to, uh, uh, drug.
But again, there's such a lack of understanding, uh, [00:36:00] in terms of what's going on here. Everybody knows that this is the case, but they also know that marijuana stays in your blood system a lot longer. So it's, it's very possible that these tests may not be entirely accurate, depending on the point in time when they test people.
Um, but of course it raises the issue with marijuana, again, the one we've always talked about, which is presence versus impairment. Sure it's present, but the fact that it's present does not mean that the person is impaired. Um, which I is probably why. Again, so many service people feel comfortable going to marijuana because they know, uh, that if they smoke marijuana one evening, by the next day, they're good to go.
Again, they're not gonna be impaired. If you go out on a bender and had a lot to drink, you may not be able to get out of bed, let alone go on a five mile hike or do whatever the hell, uh, your, your, your sergeant makes you do. Um, so you know, this is the direction that they go, but the government, um, Last year, the d o d put out a notice expressing concern that even using c b din infused products like hand [00:37:00] sanitizer or hemp granola could inadvertently compri compromise military readiness.
And so they're off limits. Now, this is just stupid. This is the, the, the military seeing something and instead of saying to themselves, Hmm, I wonder why so many of our people are using this product instead of something else. They make a stupid statement that, that if you use CBD din infused hemp sanitizer, it's gonna somehow, apparently get you stoned or put you in a state of mind where you're not militarily ready to perform.
Okay? That's something that they're gonna have to work out themselves and, uh, they're just gonna have to figure it out. The Air Force, uh, is getting into it. They've granted far more marijuana waivers to recruits, um, than. Than other things when they were launching, uh, certain pilot programs. Now that doesn't mean that you can test positive once you're in the service in the Air Force, but it does mean, uh, that if you test positive at, at the time that you applied to join the Air Force, they give you 90 days to get yourself clean [00:38:00] and then they let you come back and test again.
So I guess the good news is they don't automatically disqualify you as a degenerate, uh, even though they do make you, uh, go back and follow the silly rules. Um, such as it is the Navy has a policy where sailors are barred from using C B D and hemp products no matter their legality. Um, They've even tried to justify their position.
Coast Guard says that sailors can't use marijuana or visit state legal dispensaries. Okay, well, you know, there's a difference between marijuana and, uh, C B D I understand that, but nevertheless, it's, it's just so important, uh, that we have to know what's going on. So what do we have now is a joint explanatory statement that was attached to a large scale congressional defense bill that was enacted last year.
Contains a directive for the military to examine the potential of. Based therapies like cannabis and cer certain psychedelics, uh, for service members. Thank God the US Senate Committee approved a bipartisan bill last month to promote marijuana research [00:39:00] for military veterans becoming the first piece of standalone cannabis legislation ever to advance through a committee in the chamber.
Good, good for them. Let's throw out this other nonsense that everybody can't seem to get right and recognize, um, that, that this is what we're gonna do. And in the same line, applauding the federal government for a minute, the US Justice Department just announced that they're launching applications for certificate of pardon for simple possession offenses.
Now we know that last year, uh, president Biden, uh, came out with a statement saying, uh, that they were going to grant official pardons to anyone who had been config. Convicted under US Law of Simple Possession. There's not a lot of people arrested for simple possession. Um, but nevertheless it must be about 20,000.
Cuz now using this new program, uh, that was just established, uh, they launched an application, uh, to receive a certificate of pardon for federal convictions of simple marijuana possession that occurred on or before October 6th, 2022. The [00:40:00] application will enable 6,500, uh, to 20,000 Americans to apply for written proof that their federal convictions have been pardoned.
Uh, this is significant. It's a step in the right direction for cannabis reform. Uh, and we're no longer ruining people's lives over simple possession issues like we were before. So, uh, good for the federal government, uh, baby steps, but at least they're doing what, what they need to do. Um, and so we're very, very happy about that.
Um, We'll get into more marijuana in a minute. I wanna dive right back into this show though, because we have so many good songs. Uh, we get to another late first set song here, Tennessee Jed, always one of my favorites, and I will tell you that for 1989, I think this is really one of the best Tennessee jed's out there.[00:41:00]
Well, we may not always [00:42:00] like Tennessee and the way their government works and some of the things they say and do. Uh, like the guy who said after the tragic recent shooting, um, that, uh, Nope, there is no cure for this. We're just gonna have to live with it. But I digress and I don't wanna get into politics.
That's a great Tennessee Jed. Um, and, you know, hats off to the people of Tennessee, cuz obviously, uh, the dead love you guys enough that, uh, uh, they play this song with regularity. Um, and they all. Always did throughout their touring years. And it was always just one of those songs, it's very distinctive right at the beginning.
And it's kinda like, Jerry's just gonna lay it out for you folks, sit back and enjoy. Uh, and he does and he does it in a great way. Um, I, I heard people, um, who saw the Dead a lot in, in the mid to late seventies. Sometimes say that they found that the dead were a little flat when they played this tune, and I've gone back and listened to some of those shows.
And maybe that's the case, but maybe it's because there were so many other dynamic tunes they were playing around it. Uh, but I, I can concede that if you're there on a night where Jerry's a little bit slow, if his voice isn't really working so great, if he [00:43:00] doesn't have the same bounce in his step, uh, Tennessee can kind of slog Tennessee Jet can kind of slog down a little bit.
Um, but I think that, uh, for the most part, when Jerry plays it, uh, he just has a good time telling the story and, uh, and, and, and really rips into it. So if you, if you have a chance to download this show archive.org, I would definitely go for it. Um, because this is, this is a great show and, and you should really focus on this tune and, and one or two others that we're gonna play for you here before we, before we check out at the end of this show.
Um, but it was just a sign of the dead doing their thing and really performing in a way that they wanted to perform. Um, We are the Deadhead Cannabis show, and I understand and appreciate all of that. But I do want to take a minute here and I wanna also acknowledge that, um, we just recently passed a milestone, which is the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest selling albums of all time.[00:44:00]
Pink Floyd's, dark Side of the Moon, that was released, I believe, on March 1st, 1973. Um, for many of us, it was one of the really first kind of, you know, exploratory, you know, hardcore rock. Pot acid type albums, uh, than any of us ever heard. We all got hooked on Money, which was the one song on the album that was regularly played on Standard FM radio.
Um, and it, we all ran out. We all bought it. Every one of my friends had Dark side of the moon. Um, when I traveled to Israel in 1979 with the youth group, all the people we visited, we'd go to their houses and they all had copies of Dark Side of the Moon. People in Europe all had copies of Dark Side of the Moon.
It's just one of those absolute, uh, classic albums. It was the, the best selling album of the seventies. The fourth be fourth best selling album, all time over 41 million Worldwide Sales. Uh, supposed to be a concept album, focusing on the band's pressure regarding the arduous [00:45:00] lifestyle, uh, of a rock and roll band.
It went platinum 14 times, uh, in the United Kingdom. And here's a statistic you don't hear very often. It charted on the billboard top. 200 for almost 20 years consecutively. That's an album. That's a popular album. That's an album that how many people go out and buy an album for God's sakes. And people are still buying it.
Um, and while sometimes these days, um, some of us may have issues with some of the members of, uh, pink Floyd or the former members of Pink Floyd, uh, and some of their political views. Music is music and I can go back and put on Pink Floyd. Uh, and I get right to that same happy place, uh, notwithstanding anything Roger Waters may be saying these days.
Um, and I have no problem giving Dark Side of the Moon in the entire Pink Floyd catalog, all of the due that it deserves all of the impact that it's had on, uh, on rock and roll music, on music in general, on the lives of so many people, [00:46:00] uh, who heard it and just, uh, enjoyed it so much and, uh, took so many positive things out of it and, and moved on to bigger and better rock and roll experiences.
But, um, it, it is one of those albums and it's, it's iconic prism cover with the, the beam of light coming in and then going out and all the colors of the, of the prism. And on the off chance that there's anyone out here who's listening to this show, and I would find this hard to believe, who's never listened to the full Dark side of the Moon album, put it on.
Just listen to it from front to end. I would very much recommend being stoned at the time you do it or being stoned while you're doing it. Um, cuz it will take you to amazing places and it never fails, uh uh, even for me, even after 50 years. And I guess it's kind of hard to believe that it's been 50 years and that I've been, I'm old enough to know that all but time March is on.
And thank God the music has been there with me during this time and that I've. Been lucky enough to be able to enjoy it, um, in the way I have. Uh, now quickly back to [00:47:00] some Grateful Dead here again because, uh, this show's just too good to stay away from. And this next clip probably is the best song. In this entire show, and I've talked to a number of Deadheads who think this is the best version of going down the road, feeling bad in 1989 and maybe even over a couple of years.
So let's listen and see what you think.[00:48:00]
What a great song, one of my all-time favorite songs to hear. The Grateful Dead Play always credited as traditional, arranged by the Grateful Dead. Um, but w and when paired with, um, uh, not Fade Away as it certainly in the, uh, net we talked about in the 1970s, what a great pairing those two songs made on the s Skull and Roses albums.
A is an excellent example of it. If you wanna really get the full impact of the dead jamming on both of those, just tremendous, tremendous tunes. Um, and this night when you listen [00:49:00] to the entire version of it, it, it just moved you. You can hear the audience cheering and I think that one of the reasons is, I think on most nights the Grateful Dead were there musically.
Certainly some nights were better than others, but I think where they sometimes were a little bit lacking was in the energy that they showed on their stage presence and. Primarily when they're singing. And you can hear here how sharp and tight Jerry's voice is and how he's, he's punctuating those syllables as he's singing the song.
And, you know, he's right on top of his game here, both musically, vocally, uh, and the crowd appreciates it and, and gives him the due to which, uh, uh, he and his group are, are, are so very well entitled and, and that we, uh, we applaud. Um, before we wrap up, I want to give a, uh, a quick rundown of where things stand in the United States on, uh, marijuana, because there's a number of states that are moving out there, uh, that have, uh, issues being considered by the state legislature or where they're gonna get ready to vote on it.
And so let's just do a quick rundown, uh, just so people know what's happening. In case you're listening in one of these states, [00:50:00] Delaware, uh, the Senate has approved adult use and it's been sent, uh, to the governor for a signature that's John Kearney, a Democrat. Now, interestingly, Kearney, uh, previously vetoed a, uh, a prior, uh, adult use bill that was passed by the Delaware legislature.
And at the time, uh, he expressed concern because he wanted to know what its impact would be on young people and highway safety. Hey, governor Kearney, guess what? We just had, listen to our podcast. We've had two or three shows where we've talked about that when in states where marijuana has been made legal under adult use.
Teenage smoking goes down. So what's the impact on young people? They're smoking less of it. Okay. Or the effect on young people is they're smoking marijuana instead of drinking alcohol. So they don't have to worry about waking up the next morning. And as far as highway safety goes, really, do you read the studies that are out there that all show the number of traffic fatalities that have gone down?
The number of, uh, DUIs and everything that have all gone down, because again, we don't [00:51:00] advocate driving on marijuana when you're high. But if you're high, you're safer, a better driver than when you're drunk. And in this country, as we replace drunk drivers with stone drivers, the numbers of accidents go down.
The number of traffic fatalities go down. And don't be fooled when they say that all these drivers have marijuana in their system. Presence versus impairment. They never tell you that they smoked the joint two weeks ago. All they tell you is there was, there was THC that was found in there. Governor Kearney, get with the program, learn your stuff, and let the good people of Delaware have their marijuana.
Now, interestingly enough, in Kentucky, it's the governor urging the voters to put pressure on the lawmakers to pass a medical marijuana bill later this week. That's Democratic Governor Andy Bashier, um, who I really, really liked, not just because he got elected as governor of Kentucky as a Democrat, but because he's got very sensible policies and he's, he's really speaking here to the fact that the people of his state enjoy cannabis.
That there are medical people for whom it could be a benefit. And [00:52:00] apparently the legislature's not listening to him. So he's reaching out to the people and saying, call your elected official and tell 'em that this is what you want him to do. And of course, that he's saying that. He's a smart guy. This is the way it should be, and there's no reason to be screwing around with this any longer than necessary, especially on the medical front.
Can we all just agree that even if you wanna screw around with adult use for a little while, we're gonna let medical go through so that the people who really need it can have it and use it. In Maryland, senators approve marijuana sales bill as the state prepares for legalization this summer. So, bully, bully for Maryland, and that's gonna be great, uh, as they move forward.
And hopefully once they're legal, um, the, uh, our, our friends in the, uh, United States Senate will ease up on the District of Columbia and let them run their little, uh, town the way that they wanna do things. Uh, New Hampshire lawmakers have sent to marijuana, bill to the house floor a second time with New Amendment.
This one is sponsored by a couple of Democratic lawmakers, and they're working on fiscal provisions that already [00:53:00] passed once, but was sent to their house. Weighs and Means committee now sent back, and now the House weighs and means committee has approved the additional changes by a 16 to four vote. Um, and guess what Folks in New Hampshire adult use is going to have a four ounce limit.
Most of the states around that I know have a one ounce limit. Um, uh, new Hampshire's not screwing around for adult use. We're talking medical typically tends to have higher, higher limits, but God love New Hampshire a four ounce limit. So that's a great thing and get a load of this. North Dakota. The governor there, uh, Doug Bergman, uh, Doug, excuse me, Doug Bergum, a Republican.
Uh, he signed a bill letting people who, uh, citizens of North Dakota, who are in hospice care, self-certify as medical marijuana patients. And that proof of admission to hospice care is sufficient. For a patient to be recognized as a medical marijuana patient and caregivers to these people are no longer delayed, uh, in getting their licenses by background [00:54:00] checks in a very, very conservative state, the governor has recognized the EF efficacy, the listening federal government, and the healing, uh, not the healing or the healing in the palliative, uh, use of medical marijuana and is saying, let's get it to the people who need it now.
No farting around in the legislature. Let's move on this. We gotta get it done. And they are. Finally, let's go back down to the south, the wonderful state of Alabama, which has a great football team, not as good of a basketball team as they think, but an Alabama possession of marijuana, even in the smallest amount, can lead to a cascading series of personal crises.
Arrest, taking, uh, right in the police car, a booking a night or more in jail at a minimum, waiting for a bail hearing, and upon conviction, a year in jail and $15,000. This is for possession of a joint of marijuana in Alabama. So, We know about things in the south, but in reality, um, in a state that still jails its residence for this simple possession, um, some of the [00:55:00] communities are pushing back and, uh, they've already done it in Tuscaloosa, but now in, um, Montgomery, which is the capital of Alabama, we're seeing that, um, And, and by the way, it's a city that does have a very high percentage of its population that are people of color.
Um, and they're examining ways to make the encounters with the police less painful. And this is all being, uh, sponsored by the Southern Poverty Law Center. And just a quick plug for them, if you don't know who they are, check them out online. If you're not contributing to them, start contributing. The Southern Poverty Law Center is an amazing, amazing group.
They stand up for so many things that are right in this country and back. People who otherwise don't have people to speak for them, I cannot recommend them enough. Um, and they're involved in this and they're advocating for a policy change that would make it possible for police in the city to write a ticket for a charge of misdemeanor possession instead of making an arrest for marijuana.
And as we said others, uh, Tuscaloosa has done this. Huntsville has done [00:56:00] this. Um, and they're just gonna treat it like misdemeanors, like a speeding ticket or running a red light. Hey, by the way, they were doing that in Ann Arbor in the early 1980s. $5 is fine with me. People who are charged with this crime can go back to work.
They can go back to their school, they can go back to their family because they haven't been arrested, they haven't been thrown in jail. There's not a picture of them in the local newspaper. And of course, by no surprise, uh, in Tuscaloosa, we have seen that black men have been disproportionately imprisoned in Alabama for even recreational use of drugs.
Uh, in, in, uh, one of the representatives districts, they state that over it's over 75% black and that their community has been impacted by this. We know that these people should not have to get arrested. We know that this will save the city dollars. We know this will make prisons less crowded. We know this will save law enforcement time and effort, so we do what we need to do.
Let's do it, and get police on the street solving real crimes. If you told me I'd hear that outta the state of Alabama, I would've told you you were a liar. But it just goes to show that even when you're in a southern strike that I shouldn't say southern, although a lot of [00:57:00] 'em are, but when you're in a red state, With a mayor who's about as red as it gets.
Sometimes it takes local politicians, the people who are actually have day-to-day contact with the population, who hear about the struggles, who know about the problems, who see the issues out there in a way that governors don't always see. And good for these cities for pushing for this and setting it up, uh, so that when you're in a state where you can get arrested and go to jail for up to a year for possession of a joint, uh, if you're in the right cities, um, you, you know, hopefully you don't have to face those during difficult tasks.
So we'll see if that can be, uh, captured in other places too. So overall, I would say a good day for marijuana. A good day for the Grateful Dead Heads off to Pink Floyd. Um, And, uh, another fun show for us. I hope you've enjoyed spending time with me this afternoon. Um, please remember that when you're listening to this on Monday, April 3rd, 2023, it was only 34 years ago that my Michigan Wolverines beat Seaton Hall [00:58:00] as my good friend Casey would call them America's dorm team in overtime, roomi Robinson, the all-time Michigan legend hitting two key free throws in overtime.
It was a great moment. Go blue. Sorry if you're not a Michigan fan, but I am. And it's my show. So that's it. We will talk to you all again next week. Uh, we have more great stuff coming down the line In a week or two, I'm gonna be joined by Bob Hoen, uh, one of the leading cannabis attorneys out there. And, uh, a guy who I could say is probably as big of a deadhead, if not bigger, uh, than both Rob and I.
So we'll be talking, looking forward to talking with him. Our good friend. The, uh, deadhead Bicyclist is coming back soon and he's gonna have another show, uh, that he likes and has been looking at lyrics for us, Stu Sao. So we're very excited to get him as well. Um, but in the meantime, uh, as we head out the door here, uh, I'm gonna leave you with a song that was, uh, the encore for so many of my early years with the Grateful Dead, an encore tune that when you heard it.
Yeah. You were a little bit sad cuz you knew the show was [00:59:00] over. But it was like the Grateful Dead, wrapping you up in a warm blanket and sending you out on a cold night and nothing was better. So as we head into, it's all over now, baby Blue. Uh, everyone have a great week. Enjoy yourselves and please enjoy your cannabis responsibly.
Thank you.
The.[01:00:00]