it took me awhile to get to this one, but i eventually needed to cover this release, mostly because dp 15 is scheduled to arrive any day now. dp 14 finds the band near the end of a 7 night stand at a new venue for them. the academy of music is really just a 3400 seat movie theater adapted for showcasing up and coming ny acts of the early seventies, now that bill graham has shuttered fillmore east. in a few days they would be headed across the pond to begin their legendary europe 72 tour. the first set is strong, and pigpen is featured prominently, with solid versions of ‘chinatown shuffle’, ‘mr. charlie’, and ‘big boss man’. midway through the set is perhaps my favorite version of ‘looks like rain’, mostly because jerry plays a rare pedal steel and phil’s backups vocals are great. disc 2 and 3 feature a 17 minute ‘good lovin’, a tremendous ‘wharf rat’, and then closes out with ‘not fade away/gdtrfb/not fade away’.

dp 15 is supposed to be 4/22/1978 from nashville. stay tuned.