@lumpblockclod said:

First off, the idea that the 9/1 Light, only one of the most gripping, intense, lift-you-off-your-feet jams they've played in the last for years, is overrated is ridiculous. It ranks among the very finest (i.e. Top 5) jams that they have performed since they've been back IMO. Take issue, if you must, with the first few minutes (it isn't bad by any stretch, but it isn't special either), but the last 15 min are pretty much unimpeachable and about as good as it gets as far as I'm concerned.

That said, 8/31 isn't overrated at all and almost has to be considered the best show of the three, even if you think (as I do) that the Light and Sand were the best two jams from Dicks. 8/31 was so good from start to finish and had four jams, any one of which would have been the highlight of over half of the shows this year.

I'll respectfully disagree here, and also take issue with the qualification of my opinion as 'ridiculous'. When you have lots of people calling it the jam of the summer, and "among the very finest (ie. Top 5) 5 jams that they have performed since they've been back," I think it's fair to at least question whether or not it's being overrated. I never suggested it wasn't great, just not that great. To my ears and my taste, it only starts to come together at around 10 minutes. Trey doing some of those quick jabs that Mike Boogie Ons-top off, while Page staccatos. Ok, cool enough. There's about 8 minutes of great development through this funky Manteca-like groove, before they get spacey and build up, but then again, to my ears they just kind of veer into a straight-ahead rock finale that's uninteresting (though the bluesy coda to close is neat). I would not put this jam in my Top 5 of 3.0 by any stretch though. I find the Sand considerably stronger, actually, much more cohesive and just as dynamic. But I don't think I'd put it above the 8/31 Chalk Dust, and probably on par with the rest of the 'big 4' 8/31 jams. ...

Yes, the kind of jams the band played on 8/31 are what I really chase. Taste is a funny thing, and I'm not about to tell anyone they're hearing something 'wrong' or that they're opinion is ridiculous. But as I see it, if the majority has a certain opinion that seems to be gaining steam, all the more reason to question it if you feel differently, no?