Shady Groove

Happy Hanukkah!

Before all the hoopla begins for the Christmas music phenomenon, lets celebrate Hanukkah. But alas, there are not many songs for the festival of light (besides the Hanukkah Song penned by none other than Adam Sandler, but that’s been played out). So intead, I thought I’d bring you a story.

I recently recieved this story from my uncle Jay and it really made me think.

“Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right”.

Story: Light in the strangest of places

Very eloquent words from a master of his craft. Think about it and you will realize that it is an endlessly positive message. Perfect for the Hanukkah season. Even in the darkest time of the year, there’s always a light. So in response to this, I went searching for my favorite version of Scarlet Begonias. I sieved through endless bootlegs and archival releases to inevitably fall back on this version from the Dead’s infamous show at Cornell University’s Barton Hall. You can just feel the energy oozing from this cut. There’s no denying for me that this show is my all-time favorite, and it is also known universally as one of the Dead’s best live performances. Ever. The tone, timing, and emotion are all flowing in unison on this night and the band is really ‘hitting the note’. Love it. Live it. Here it is from Ithaca, NY on May 8th, 1977:

mp3: Scarlet Begonias

Plus, as my uncle Jay put it, “Just goes to show, we are everywhere. Jews and Deadheads!”