There’s just not enough places in the world where the owner of the joint flies over the crowd…IN A GIANT DOOBIE! … dressed as Father Time and sprinkles them with fairy dust and actual doobies, hitting the stage at the stroke of the New Year (1978-79) in a cloud of smoke, confetti, & balloons as the Grateful Dead strikes up “Sugar Magnolia”, then plays for five and a half hours with breakfast served at dawn for 5500. Winterland’s Bill Graham made a habit of it every New Years Eve, sometimes delaying New Years an hour so he could do it cross town at another venue. Now THAT’S dedication to theater. Not enough places like that.
If you missed San Francisco’s Winterland Arena, HERE’S WHAT YOU MISSED.
[In the bottom pic, Bill/Father Time crashes into stage while Jerry Garcia & Bob Weir look on and Elwood Blues (Dan Aykroyd) exits stage right (in top of pic).]
