Three from the Vault

The Capitol Theatre show

The February 19, 1971 Port Chester concert marked the beginning of Mickey Hart's temporary departure from the band. The previous night's show would be his last with the Grateful Dead until his return on October 20, 1974. The February 19 concert included the first live performances of the songs "Bird Song" and "Deal", and the second performances of "Loser", "Bertha", "Playing in the Band", "Greatest Story Ever Told", and "Wharf Rat". The concert, which was on a Friday night, was the second of a series of six shows in seven days at the Capitol Theatre.

The opening act for this series of concerts, and for many other shows of that era, was the New Riders of the Purple Sage. At that time the lineup of the New Riders featured Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead playing pedal steel guitar. The band also included John Dawson, David Nelson, Dave Torbert, and Spencer Dryden. Songs that they recorded at the February 21 and February 23, 1971 shows at the Capitol Theatre were released as an album called Vintage NRPS.

Other live Grateful Dead albums recorded in early to mid 1971 with the same band membership as on Three from the Vault are Skull and Roses, Ladies and Gentlemen... the Grateful Dead, Dick's Picks Volume 35, and Road Trips Volume 1 Number 3.

Disc One

1. Two Ditties: "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" (Friend, Franklin), "Spring Song" (Mendelssohn) — 1:19
2. "Truckin'" (Garcia, Lesh, Weir, Hunter) — 8:09
3. "Loser" (Garcia, Hunter) — 6:23
4. "Cumberland Blues" (Garcia, Lesh, Hunter) — 4:58
5. "It Hurts Me Too" (Elmore James, Tampa Red) — 6:10
6. "Bertha" (Garcia, Hunter) — 5:21
7. "Playing in the Band" (Weir, Hart, Hunter) — 5:14
8. "Dark Hollow" (Bill Browning) — 3:15
9. "Smokestack Lightning" (Howlin' Wolf) — 14:42
10. "China Cat Sunflower" > (Garcia, Hunter) — 3:24
11. "I Know You Rider" (traditional, arranged by Grateful Dead) — 7:02

Disc Two

1. "Greatest Story Ever Told" > (Weir, Hunter) — 4:22
2. "Johnny B. Goode" (Chuck Berry) — 3:26
3. "Bird Song" (Garcia, Hunter) — 7:04
4. "Easy Wind" (Hunter) — 8:17
5. "Deal" (Garcia, Hunter) — 4:22
6. "Cryptical Envelopment" (Garcia) > "Drums" (Kreutzmann) > "The Other One" (Weir) — 16:09
7. "Wharf Rat" (Garcia, Hunter) — 9:08
8. "Good Lovin'" (Artie Resnick, Rudy Clark) — 18:43
9. "Casey Jones" (Garcia, Hunter) — 5:00

Grateful Dead

Production

Charts

Album - Billboard