ZINE SPONSOR
By the late 1980s, the Grateful Dead had simply gotten too massive for local amphitheaters. If you wanted to see the full band in New England, you were heading to Sullivan Stadium in Foxboro, or you were packing shoulder-to-shoulder into the sweltering Boston Garden.
But for two glorious, late-summer nights—September 9 and 10, 1989—the leader of the pack brought it back to the woods. Jerry Garcia brought the Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) to Mansfield.
For New England Deadheads, this was an incredibly massive deal. It was a rare chance to see Jerry in a (relatively) intimate 15,000-seat wooden shed, completely surrounded by the chaotic, joyful, deeply familiar energy of the Great Woods dirt lots.
The Vibe and The Opener
Because it was a much smaller venue compared to the massive stadiums they were used to playing, the Great Woods parking lot those two nights felt like a classic, old-school gathering. The weather was vintage September in New England—crisp at night, but still holding onto the heavy warmth of summer during the day.
Adding to the massive draw of the weekend was the opening act: Bob Weir and Rob Wasserman. Having Bobby open the shows meant the Mansfield lots were absolutely buzzing with fans treating it like a full-blown Grateful Dead family reunion. Weir and Wasserman played stripped-down, incredibly tight acoustic sets, effectively warming up the restless crowd before Jerry took over the main stage.
Night 1: Setting the Groove
Jerry’s backing band during this specific era was an absolute, undeniable powerhouse. Alongside his life-long bassist John Kahn, the 1989 lineup featured Melvin Seals on the keys, David Kemper holding down the drums, and the incredible, soaring gospel harmonies of Jackie LaBranch and Gloria Jones.
On Saturday, September 9, they opened the run with a bouncing, joyous cover of Marvin Gaye's "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" and spent the entire evening effortlessly weaving through R&B classics, reggae, and Bob Dylan covers.
> ARCHIVE_RETRIEVAL: SEPT 9, 1989
THE FIRST SET:
- [+] How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)
- [+] Stop That Train
- [+] I Second That Emotion
- [+] Forever Young
- [+] That's What Love Will Make You Do
THE SECOND SET:
- [+] The Harder They Come
- [+] Mission In The Rain
- [+] Waiting For A Miracle
- [+] Think
- [+] The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
- [+] Don't Let Go > Lonesome And A Long Way From Home
Night 2: The E Street Crossover
While Saturday was a fantastic, rock-solid show, Sunday night is the legendary gig that remains heavily circulated on bootleg cassette tapes to this very day.
Why? Because Clarence Clemons—the legendary "Big Man" from Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band—came out and sat in with JGB for the entire show.
Having a rock-and-roll titan like Clemons blowing the saxophone over JGB staples was ethereal. The crowd absolutely lost their minds as the band tore into the opener, "Cats Under the Stars," and Clemons fit in perfectly. He wove his massive, booming sax tones effortlessly around Jerry's wandering guitar solos on tracks like "Tangled Up In Blue" and "Run For The Roses". It was a collision of rock royalty on a wooden stage in the suburbs.
> ARCHIVE_RETRIEVAL: SEPT 10, 1989
*Entire show featuring Clarence Clemons on Saxophone*
THE FIRST SET:
- [+] Cats Under The Stars
- [+] They Love Each Other
- [+] Knockin' On Heaven's Door
- [+] Run For The Roses
- [+] Mississippi Moon
- [+] I Hope It Won't Be This Way Always > Deal
THE SECOND SET:
- [+] I Second That Emotion
- [+] And It Stoned Me
- [+] Simple Twist Of Fate
- [+] Waiting For A Miracle
- [+] Evangeline
- [+] That Lucky Old Sun
- [+] Tangled Up In Blue
THE LEGACY
Those two nights encapsulate exactly what made Great Woods so incredibly special in its early days. It wasn't just a place to see a concert; it was a destination where entire musical worlds collided.
You had Jerry Garcia playing Dylan covers, Bobby Weir stripping things down on acoustic guitar, and the Big Man from E Street completely blowing the roof off the wooden pavilion—all while 15,000 fans danced barefoot in the dirt.
It will always be Great Woods to me, and I bet you too!