The Grateful Dead at Roosevelt Stadium, 1974

Roosevelt Stadium was in Jersey City, but most of us there were New Yorkers, so I’ll include this one.

It was the summer of 1974. Nixon had just resigned, and the mood was jubilant. A friend who attended a Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young show on the night Tricky Dick stepped down said that the crowd was so rowdy the band could not do an acoustic set.

Getting to the stadium involved taking the PATH train from what was then called Hudson Terminal. The World Trade Center was under construction, and it was a pretty noisy, chaotic place. Once at Journal Square we caught a bus to RS, a run-down minor league ballpark on the edge of what was then a somewhat rundown town. Seating was general admission. True to tradition, our first stop was not at the stadium, where a long line was already forming about 7 hours before show time, but the nearby Pathmark supermarket, where we stocked up on beer. Only later were we advised by security personnel that no glass bottles or cans would be admitted, so we had to drink up before we went inside, several hours before the scheduled starting time.

It was then that the rain started. Our tickets said “Rain or Shine;” nobody made any announcements, and the Dead’s huge Alembic sound system was in place, so we just found seats in a section of the stadium that was covered. Everybody waited, and waited. Finally Bob Weir came out to announce that everyone was to come back the next week. Ushers gave us these paper rain checks, but also said that we could use our ticket stubs to get in the next time. This presented some people with a golden opportunity; if you had both your stub and one of those rain checks, then you could bring a friend for free.

Returning to the stadium we were prepared for the no bottle rule, and brought with us several empty gallon jugs. We just bought quarts of Bud at the Pathmark and filled these up. No hassles from Security; as long as your booze was not in glass or metal, you could bring in whatever you wished. This time the sky was clear and the entire field was filling quickly. The Dead always permitted taping of their shows, and there were always many microphones on high poles looming over the crowd. Many of the poles also held banners depicting art from the group’s album covers. It was almost like a religious revival.

At exactly 7:00PM the Dead came onstage, beginning with “Bertha.” Micky Hart was not with the group at the time. I was anxious to hear the amazing Alembic system in person, but for some reason on this night it was terrible, especially for the vocals; they sounded as if they came out of a cheap transistor radio. No matter. It was the Grateful Dead. After a long first set which ended with “Playing In the Band” everybody took a full hour intermission.

It was just after sundown when the second set begun with “Uncle John’s Band.” Fireworks boomed overhead. It really did feel like a magical experience, and I loathe describing things with such words. Our crew were Dead Heads. We believed in the Grateful Dead and the friendly, informal lifestyle associated with them.

After a while the whole stadium full of people seemed to be crowded onto the field. You could barely move. Going to the bathroom was not a practical option. Still, the crowd was incredibly orderly and good-natured. The show closed with “Loose Lucy” from the then-new “Ugly Rumors” album. Before the encore (“US Blues”) Jerry Garcia thanked everyone for coming. “You people are too much!” It was midnight when we started for home.

Not long afterwards Roosevelt Stadium was torn down and replaced with a housing development.