Dark Star Graph

 Dark Star Graph (downloadable as an image)

DARK STAR TIMINGS

1/17/68 – intro /1:05 – verse 1 – jam 1:36 – verse 2 (4:49)

1/20/68 – intro 2:38 – verse 1// (3:08/)

1/26/68 – intro 1:33 – verse 1 – jam 1:52 – verse 2 (5:36)  

1/27/68 – intro 2:18 – verse 1 – jam 2:38 – verse 2 (7:06)

2/2/68 – intro 1:52 – verse 1 – jam 2:03 – verse 2 (6:33)

2/3/68 – intro 1:30 – verse 1 – jam 1:40 – verse 2 (5:22)

2/14/68 – intro 1:44 – verse 1 – jam 2:00 – verse 2 (5:53)

2/22/68 – intro /1:36 – verse 1 – jam 2:37 – verse 2 (6:25)

2/23/68 – intro 2:14 – verse 1 – jam 2:18 – verse 2 (6:49)   

3/16/68 – intro 1:49 – verse 1 – jam 3:15 – verse 2 (7:15)

3/29/68 – intro 2:14 – verse 1 –jam 2:48 – verse 2 (7:28)

3/30/68 – intro 2:48 – verse 1 – jam 3:50 – verse 2 (8:59)

6/xx/68 – intro 4:52 – verse 1 – jam 9:16 – verse 2 (16:06)

8/21/68 – intro 3:51 – verse 1 – jam 8:10 – verse 2 (14:30)

8/22/68 – intro 2:56 – verse 1 – jam 6:43 – verse 2 (12:07)

8/23/68 – intro 5:33 – verse 1 – jam 7:30 – verse 2 (15:28)

8/24/68 – intro 1:32 – verse 1 – jam 7:23 – verse 2 (11:20)  

8/28/68 – intro 2:02 – verse 1 – jam 6:25 – verse 2 (10:49)

9/2/68 – intro 5:00 – verse 1 – jam 6:50 – verse 2 (14:06)

10/12/68 – intro 4:15 – verse 1 – jam 8:30 – verse 2 (15:00)

10/13/68 – intro /2:38 – verse 1 – jam 8:53 – verse 2 (13:53)

10/20/68 – intro /3:00 – verse 1 – jam 5:05 – verse 2 (10:17) 

11/1/68 – intro 2:50 – verse 1 – jam 7:00 – verse 2 (12:17)

11/6/68 – intro /5:10 – verse 1 – jam 4:50 – verse 2 (12:20) (studio rehearsal)

11/22/68 – intro /2:39 – verse 1 – jam 7:15 – verse 2 (11:52)

12/7/68 – intro /3:20 – verse 1 – jam 7:40 – verse 2 (13:26)

12/29/68 – intro 3:00 – verse 1 – jam 5:03 – verse 2 (10:25)

1/17/69 – intro 4:35 – verse 1 – jam 6:03 – verse 2 (13:09)

1/24/69 – intro 7:12 – verse 1 – jam 9:21 – verse 2 (19:38)

1/25/69 – intro /3:39 – verse 1 – jam 8:10 – verse 2 (14:06)

1/26/69 – intro 4:05 – verse 1 – jam 3:10// - verse 2 (9:38)

2/2/69 – intro 4:37 – verse 1 – jam 8:35 – verse 2 (15:38)

2/4/69 – intro 3:39 – verse 1 – jam 7:14 – verse 2 (13:13)

2/5/69 – intro /2:10 – verse 1 – jam 7:04 – verse 2 (11:41)

2/6/69 – intro 4:33 – verse 1 – jam 7:06/ - verse 2 (14:02)  

2/7/69 – intro 4:30 – verse 1 – jam 7:10 – verse 2 (14:07)  

2/11/69 – intro 3:12 – verse 1 – jam 6:45 – verse 2 (12:29)  

2/12/69 – jam //3:24 – verse 2 (/4:59)

2/14/69 – intro /5:34 – verse 1 – jam 10:46 – verse 2 (19:03)

2/15/69 – intro 4:08 – verse 1 – jam 15:37 – verse 2 (22:19)  

2/21/69 – intro 7:27 – verse 1 – jam 10:33 – verse 2 (20:38)

2/22/69 – intro 6:54 – verse 1 – jam 12:55 – verse 2 (22:19)

2/27/69 – intro 4:46 – verse 1 – jam 14:28 – verse 2 (21:44)

2/28/69 – intro 3:57 – verse 1 – jam 13:25 – verse 2 (19:47)  

3/1/69 – intro 7:40 – verse 1 – jam 12:55 – verse 2 (23:01)

3/2/69 – intro 5:07 – verse 1 – jam 12:25 – verse 2 (20:03)  

3/15/69 – intro 6:17 – verse 1 – jam 11:35 – verse 2 (20:30)

3/22/69 – intro 2:21 – verse 1 – jam 10:00 – verse 2 (14:47)  

3/28/69 – intro 5:56 – verse 1 – jam 14:14 – verse 2 (22:46)

3/29/69 – intro 5:38 – verse 1 – jam 13:00 – verse 2 (21:01)

4/4/69 – intro 5:21 – verse 1 – jam 12:15 – verse 2 (20:03)  

4/5/69 – intro 3:55 – verse 1 – jam 11:04 – verse 2 (17:27)

4/11/69 – intro 4:29 – verse 1 – jam 12:55 – verse 2 (19:59)

4/12/69 – intro /2:35 – verse 1 – jam 16:28 – verse 2 (21:35)

4/13/69 – intro 7:50 – verse 1 – jam 13:40 – verse 2 (23:56)

4/15/69 – intro 6:55 – verse 1 – jam 11:00 – verse 2 (20:21)

4/17/69 – intro 7:20 – verse 1 – jam 11:40 – verse 2 (21:35)

4/20/69 – intro 6:28 – verse 1 – jam 12:13 – verse 2 (21:13)

4/21/69 – intro 5:20 – verse 1 – jam 14:50 – verse 2 (22:41) 

4/22/69 – intro 8:54 – verse 1 – jam 16:00/ - verse 2 (27:21)

4/23/69 – intro 6:39 – verse 1 – jam 11:47 – verse 2 (20:56)

4/27/69 – intro 9:00 – verse 1 – jam 14:50 – verse 2 (26:31)

5/7/69 – intro 5:48 – verse 1 – jam 15:30 [ - drums] (22:18)

5/10/69 – intro 5:05 – verse 1 – jam 13:10 – verse 2 (20:56)

5/23/69 – intro 6:49 – verse 1 – jam 9:38 – verse 2 (18:58)

5/30/69 – intro 4:30 – verse 1 – jam 11:35 (17:03)

5/31/69 – intro 7:26 – verse 1 – jam 13:56 – verse 2 (23:53)

6/5/69 – intro 6:55 – verse 1 – jam 11:10 – verse 2 (20:32)

6/7/69 – intro 5:03 – verse 1 – jam 13:25 – verse 2 (20:51)  

6/14/69 – intro 4:28 – verse 1 – jam 8:13 – verse 2 (15:11)

6/21/69 – intro 2:42 – verse 1 – jam 2:00/ - verse 2 (7:21)

6/22/69 – intro /7:20 – verse 1 – jam 3:03 (11:26)

6/27/69 – intro 7:33 – verse 1 – jam 15:55 – verse 2 (26:07)  

7/5/69 – intro 3:50 – verse 1 – jam 11:45 – verse 2 (18:19)

7/7/69 – intro 13:02 – verse 1 – jam 11:10 – verse 2 (26:50)

7/12/69 – jam //9:48 (/9:48)

8/3/69 – intro 12:37 – verse 1 – jam 8:05 – verse 2 (23:20)

8/16/69 – intro 8:20 – verse 1 – jam 9:45 (19:06)

8/21/69 – intro :17 – verse 1 – jam 3:48 – verse 2 (6:33)

8/23/69 – intro 11:45/ - [verse 1] – jam /13:30 – verse 2 (26:57)

8/30/69 – intro 7:05 – verse 1 – jam 18:55 – verse 2 (28:51)

9/1/69 – intro 4:51 – verse 1 – jam 10:06 – verse 2 (17:39)

9/26/69 – intro /3:34 – verse 1 – jam 10:37 – verse 2 (16:50)

10/25/69 – intro 6:57 – verse 1 – jam 12:28 – verse 2 (22:02)

11/2/69 – intro 9:18 – verse 1 – jam 18:12 – verse 2 (30:07)

11/7/69 – intro 5:48 – verse 1 – jam* 17/30 – verse 2 (26:00)  (*includes Uncle John’s jam)

11/8/69 – intro 5:22 – verse 1 – jam 7:34 – OTHER ONE (12:00) – jam* 5:05 – verse 2 (21:03)  (*includes Uncle John’s jam)

12/4/69 – intro 13:45 – verse 1 – jam 13:43 – verse 2 (30:14)

12/11/69 – intro 3:35 – verse 1 – jam 14:16 – verse 2 (20:32)

12/20/69 – intro 5:02 – verse 1 – jam 12:57 – verse 2 (20:38)

12/26/69 – intro 6:08 – verse 1 – jam 16:01 – verse 2/ (24:00)

12/30/69 – intro 7:02 – verse 1 – jam 11:20/ - [verse 2?] (19:23)

1/2/70 – intro 6:52 – verse 1 – jam 21:36 – verse 2 (31:30)

1/17/70 – intro 3:39 – verse 1 – jam 13:50 – verse 2 (20:00)

1/23/70 – intro 4:28 – verse 1 – jam 11:41 – verse 2 (18:43)

2/2/70 – intro 5:16 – verse 1 – jam 13:55 – verse 2 (21:52)

2/8/70 – intro 6:21 – verse 1 – jam 17:01 – verse 2 (26:11)

2/11/70 – intro 16:19 – Spanish Jam 9:40 (25:59)

2/13/70 – intro 8:50 – verse 1 – jam 17:48 – verse 2 (29:24) 

2/14/70 – intro 4:34 – verse 1 – jam 16:17 – verse 2 (23:37)

3/23/70 – intro 4:42/ - [verse 1] – jam /9:00 (13:42) 

4/25/70 – intro 6:32 – verse 1 – jam 15:26 – verse 2 (24:39)

5/8/70 – intro /1:13 – verse 1 – jam 15:49 (18:05)

5/15/70 – intro 3:01 – verse 1 – jam 13:54 – verse 2 (19:37) 

5/24/70 – intro 5:16 – verse 1 – jam 13:35 – verse 2 (21:22)  

6/24/70 – intro 6:15 – verse 1 – jam 2:25 – ATTICS (6:35) – jam 7:09 – SUGAR MAGNOLIA (2:30) – jam 1:29 – verse 2 (19:57)

9/17/70 – intro 4:08 – verse 1 – jam 19:40 – verse 2 (26:30)

9/19/70 – intro 6:35 – verse 1 – jam 16:05 – verse 2 (25:24)

10/11/70 – intro /4:08 – verse 1 – jam 13:48 – verse 2 (20:29)

10/17/70 – intro 3:12/ - verse 1 – jam 14:26/ - verse 2 (19:17)

11/5/70 – intro 4:34 – verse 1 – jam 13:55 – verse 2 (21:06)

11/8/70 – intro 6:42 – verse 1 – jam 8:45 – Main Ten 8:42 (25:19)

2/18/71 – intro 3:26 – verse 1 – jam 2:38 – WHARF RAT (7:20) – jam 5:50 – verse 2 (14:21)

4/8/71 – intro 4:27 – verse 1 – jam 7/53 – verse 2 (14:35)

4/26/71 – intro 5:42 – verse 1 – jam 6:05 (12:52)

4/28/71 – intro 3:30 – verse 1 – jam 7:51 – verse 2 (14:00)

7/31/71 – intro 9:40 – verse 1 – jam 11:40 (22:35) 

10/21/71 – intro 6:35 – verse 1 – jam 7:13 – SITTIN’ (3:20) – jam :29 – verse 2 (17:09)

10/24/71 – intro 7:15 – verse 1 – jam 10:40 – verse 2 (20:49)

10/31/71 – intro 7:18 – verse 1 – jam 14:47 (23:14)

11/7/71 – intro 8:06 – verse 1 – jam 4:45 [ - drums] (14:00)

11/15/71 – intro 7:04 – verse 1 – jam 4:40 – EL PASO (4:57) – jam 7:49 (20:44)

12/5/71 – intro 8:01 – UNCLE (2:49) – jam 12:16 (20:17)

12/15/71 – intro 10:05 – verse 1 – jam 9:07 (20:23)

3/23/72 – intro 4:40 – verse 1 – jam 15:27 – verse 2 (22:44)

4/8/72 – intro 10:56 – verse 1 – jam 19:20 (31:30)

4/14/72 – intro 16:46 – verse 1 – jam 11:19 (29:13)

4/17/72 – intro 9:48 – verse 1 – jam 20:00 (30:55)

4/24/72 – intro 11:07 – verse 1 – jam 13:23 – UNCLE (3:23) – jam 14:53 (40:38)

4/29/72 – *intro 14:40 – verse 1 – jam 14:07 (29:54)  [*preceded by 35-second drum intro]

5/4/72 – intro 12:25 – verse 1 – jam 5:46 – drums 2:31 – jam 15:55 – verse 2 (39:25)

5/7/72 – intro 15:05 – verse 1 – jam 3:10 [ - drums] (19:30)

5/11/72 – intro 13:45 – drums 3:40 – jam 5:25 – verse 1 – jam 23:07 (47:11)

5/18/72 – intro 12:49 – verse 1 – jam 12:26 (26:29)

5/23/72 – (tuning jam 1:36) – intro 11:00 – bass/drums 2:05 – jam 4:36 – verse 1 – jam 10:59 (29:33)

5/25/72 – intro 16:46 – verse 1 – jam 16:27 (34:30)

7/18/72 – intro 16:00 – verse 1 – jam 10:00 (27:13]

7/26/72 – intro 9:46 – verse 1 – jam 18:16 – verse 2 (30:49)

8/21/72 – intro 9:46 – verse 1 – jam 16:21 (27:25) [+El Paso (4:39)>space 3:44]

8/24/72 – intro 11:04 – verse 1 – jam 14:48 (27:09)

8/27/72 – intro 11:39 – verse 1 – jam 18:36 (31:27)

9/10/72 – intro 19:00 – verse 1 – jam 12:07 – drums 1:33 – jam 1:28 (35:20)

9/16/72 – intro 10:59 – verse 1 – jam 14:47 (26:59)

9/21/72 – intro 12:01 – verse 1 – jam 24:08 (37:21)

9/24/72 – intro 10:22 – verse 1 – jam 16:17 – drums 1:59 – jam 4:14 (33:56)

9/27/72 – intro 24:38 – verse 1 – jam 4:55 (30:49)

10/18/72 – [drums – ] intro 11:34 – verse 1 – jam* 15:32 (28:21)  (*includes Philo Stomp)

10/23/72 – intro 12:59 – verse 1 – jam 14:07 (28:23)

10/26/72 – intro 15:38 – verse 1 – jam 4:36 (21:32)

10/28/72 – intro 11:29 – verse 1 – jam* 15:00 (27:43)  (*includes Philo Stomp)

11/13/72 – intro 13:18 – verse 1 – jam* 19:18 (33:50)  (*includes Philo Stomp)

11/19/72 – intro 11:44 – verse 1 – bass/drums 8:28 – jam 4:16 – WRS Prelude Jam 6/00 (31:40)

11/26/72 – intro 10:27 – verse 1 – space/bass solo 5:00 – jam 8:31 (25:11)

12/11/72 – intro 16:48 – verse 1 – jam 16:17 (34:27)

12/15/72 – jam 14:25 – verse 1 – jam 9:15 (25:00)

2/15/73 – intro 13:01 – verse 1 – bass solo/jam 5:02 (19:17)

2/22/73 – intro 7:18 – verse 1 – jam 4:56 (13:30)

2/26/73 – intro 17:12 – verse 1 – jam 6:37 (25:05)

3/16/73 – intro 13:53 – verse 1 – jam 12:02 (27:13)

3/21/73 – (WRS Prelude 1:06) – intro 9:34 – verse 1 – jam 10:55 (21:44)

3/24/73 – Jam 22:30 – intro 2:09 – verse 1 – jam :33 (4:00 or 26:30)

3/28/73 – (WRS Prelude 2:16) – intro 19:14 – verse 1 – jam 11:39 (32:08)

6/10/73 – intro 7:31 – bass/drums 2:30 – jam 4:30 - verse 1 – jam 11:03 (26:34)

6/24/73 – intro* 15:55 – verse 1 – jam 10:05 (27:13)  (*80-second drum solo before the verse)

6/30/73 – intro 9:02 – verse 1 – jam 5:53 (16:10)

8/1/73 – intro 13:13 – verse 1 – jam 10:22 (24:50)

9/11/73 – intro 16:26 – verse 1 – jam/bass solo 4:33 (22:16)

10/19/73 – intro 12:16 – verse 1 – jam* 12:45 (26:20)  (*includes Mind Left Body jam)

10/25/73 – intro* 12:45 – verse 1 – jam 9/02 (23:02)  (*includes Mind Left Body jam)

10/30/73 – intro* 15:40 – verse 1 – jam 10:10 (27:07)  (*includes Mind Left Body jam)

11/11/73 – intro 16:33 – verse 1 – jam* 17:47 (35:38)  (*ends with Mind Left Body jam)

11/30/73 – jam 9:37

12/6/73 – tuning 2:06 – intro 23:27 – verse 1 – jam 17:17 (44:07)

12/18/73 – intro* 11:15 – verse 1 – jam 9:07 [ - drums] (21:44)  (*includes Mind Left Body jam)

2/24/74 – intro 19:00 – verse 1 – jam 9:07 (29:37) 

5/14/74 – intro 12:46 – verse 1 – jam 12:38 (26:39)

6/23/74 – intro/jam 17:54 – Spanish Jam 4:10 (22:04)

7/25/74 – intro/jam 24:00  (*ends with Slipknot jam at 21m)

9/10/74 – intro 22:32 – verse 1 – jam 7:34 (31:18)

10/18/74 – [Seastones – drums] – Jam 7:47 – intro 7:48 – verse 1 – jam 15:12 (31:58 or 24:11)

12/31/78 – intro 6:55 – verse 1 – jam 3:20 – OTHER ONE (5:00) – theme 1:00 (12:21)

1/10/79 – intro 8:59 – verse 1 – jam 8:10 (18:24)

1/20/79 – intro 3:58 – verse 1 – jam 4:09 (9:23)

12/31/81 – intro 3:58 – verse 1 – jam 8:12 – verse 2 (14:54)

7/13/84 – intro 1:23 – verse 1 – jam 10:56 – verse 2 – end jam 1:30 (15:54)

10/9/89 – intro 1:04 – verse 1 – jam 8:32 – verse 2 – space 7:35 (19:23)

10/16/89 – intro 5:34 – verse 1 – jam 5:03 (11:37) - ### [47m] – jam 3:49 – verse 2 & outro (5:24) (total 17:01)

10/26/89 – (prelude 1:15) – intro 2:11 – verse 1 – jam 10:50 – verse 2 – space 12:45 (27:59)  

12/31/89 – intro 6:42 – verse 1 – space 7:24 (15:05)

3/29/90 – intro 5:53 – verse 1 – space 11:15 (18:19) - #D/S# [17:50] - intro 1:32 – verse 2 (2:47) (total 21:06)

7/12/90 – intro 7:23 – verse 1 – jam/space 9:50 – verse 2 – jam 5:40 (24:55) 

9/20/90 – intro 6:20 – verse 1 – jam 4:38 – PLAYING (4:42) – jam 2:33 – verse 2 – space 11:31 (27:14)  

10/20/90 – intro 3:12 – verse 1 – space 8:48 (13:06) - #D/S# [16:30] - intro 1:50 – verse 2 – jam 1:40 (4:38) (total 17:44)

11/1/90 – intro 3:33 – verse 1 – jam 5:28 (10:10) - #D/S# [17:00] - intro :20 – verse 2 – space 9:33 (11:00) (total 21:10)

12/12/90 – intro 5:52 – verse 1 – jam 6:55 (13:47)

12/14/90 – intro 4:38 – verse 2 – jam 3:28 (9:10)

12/31/90 – intro 1:29 – verse 1 – jam 6:48 – verse 2 – space 10:05 (20:36)

4/1/91 – intro 8:46 – verse 1 – jam/space 13:50 (23:34) - #D/S# [16:50] - intro 1:40 – verse 2 (2:45) (total 26:19) 

6/14/91 – intro 1:57 – verse 1 – jam/space 7:55 (10:58)

6/22/91 – jam 7:30 (7:30)  [*inst. verse @1:00]

8/16/91 – (noodling 1:28) – intro 2:20 – verse 1 – jam 5:23 (10:12)  

9/10/91 – intro 3:39 – verse 1 – jam 7:44* (12:24) - #D/S# [12:40] - intro :29 – verse 2 – space 10:41 (12:16) (total 24:40)  [*inst. verse at end of pt. 1]

9/24/91 – intro 4:30 – verse 1 – jam 9:05 (14:40)

9/26/91 – (tuning jam 2:10) – intro 8:45 – verse 1 – jam 5:37 (15:27) - ### [47m] - intro :35 – verse 2 – jam 4:29 (6:13) (total 21:40)

10/31/91 – intro 3:46 – verse 1 – jam (w/recital) 5:38 (10:32) - #D/S# [27:20] - intro 1:20 – verse 2 – outro :50 (3:14) (total 13:46)

3/9/92 – intro 2:40 – verse 1 – jam 7:21 (11:03)

3/20/92 – intro 1:21 – verse 1 – jam 6:26 – inst. verse – jam 4:09 (14:13)  

6/8/92 – intro 1:08 – verse 1 – jam 6:40 (8:46)

6/18/92 – jam 6:00 (6:00)  [*inst verse @ 2:26]

6/22/92 – intro 2:52 – verse 2 (4:01)

12/12/92 – noodling/intro 2:56 – verse 1 – jam 9:00 (12:57) - #D/S# [17:00] – jam 4:35* (total 17:32) [*>Miracle jam 4:30 at end of Space]

12/16/92 – intro 2:32 – verse 2 – jam 3:41 (7:18)

3/17/93 – intro 2:26 – verse 1 – jam 6:48 (10:15)

6/23/93 – intro 2:29 – verse 1 – jam 2:57 (6:25)

9/13/93 – intro 3:17 – verse 1 – jam 1:11 (5:33)

9/22/93 – intro 1:59 – verse 1 – jam 4:40 (7:44)

3/16/94 – intro 4:30 – verse 1 – jam 5:52 (11:14)

3/30/94 – intro 4:48 – verse 1 – jam 4:40 (10:29)

1968 HARTBEATS

10/8/68 – jam 12:00

10/10/68 – jam 13:09

10/30/68a – jam 17:30

10/30/68b – jam 19:10/ (cut)

8/28/69 – jam 47/33

(On 8/28/69, Deadlists shows a return to Dark Star after the Eleven jam, but I disagree – they never come back to the theme.)

EARLY TEASES

4/26/69 – 1:37 (after Mountains)

11/21/73 – 3:26 (after El Paso)

6/28/74 – 3:30 (after Mind Left Body jam)

7/18/76 – 2:30 (after Let It Grow)

1991 TEASES

6/17/91 – 1:30 tease before Masterpiece – 1:15 tease before Truckin’ (inst. verse) – 3:35 tease out of UJB jam (w/ inst. verse – part of longer jam, timing is somewhat arbitrary)

6/28/91 – 1:32 (inst. verse in Wharf Rat)

8/17/91 – 1:20 (inst. verse in Space)

9/6/91 – 3:25 (inst. verse>jam out of Space)

9/8/91 – 9:05 (loose jam out of Saint, DS theme only hinted)

*

The intent of this graph is to show the basic structure and evolution of Dark Star over time – basically, when and where are the verses played, and how long are the jams before and after the verse?

All Dark Stars were timed from scratch.

Timings are not exact – they may be off by at least several seconds.

Due to varying tape speeds, different copies of a Dark Star often have different timings (20 or 30 seconds apart isn’t unusual), but I tried to pick the best copy to time. The actual length of a Dark Star doesn’t always match its track time, which sometimes includes a stretch of tuning or dead air at the start.

/ indicates a cut.

## in the ‘90s shows indicates Drums/Space (and sometimes other songs) between the two parts of Dark Star.

This list was only made to show the timings for the graph, so the full song suites aren’t listed – my purpose here is only to look at Dark Star itself.  

The verses are just listed as ‘verse 1’ and ‘verse 2.’ I didn’t specifically time them, but they ranged from 50-75 seconds long (depending on the speed of the performance) – the average verse length was a minute. Dark Star almost always had a little 30-second outro played in 1968-71, which is included in ‘verse 2.’

I generally didn’t subdivide the jams, unless there was a notable bass or drum solo inside the Dark Star, or unless it ended with a distinct thematic jam that’s usually tracked separately. (A few major theme jams within Dark Star are noted, but not all – for a list of the Feelin’ Groovy and Soulful Strut jams in Dark Star, see this post.)

Note that some Dark Star dates have changed from the old familiar tape dates: "1/22 & 1/23/68" are actually 1/26 & 1/27/68; "3/24/70" is likely 3/23/70; and "4/24/70" is actually 4/25/70. "8/28/68" is also from some nearby date that week, but I left it since the actual date isn't known.

Not every Dark Star is on the main list. Some Dark Stars are structural outliers and I felt didn’t belong with the others: the Hartbeats jams of ’68, and the short instrumental teases over the years (especially in ’91). These range from the shortest Dark Star jams ever played (90 seconds), to the longest (a 47-minute Hartbeats behemoth). In any case, without the usual verse structure these would stick out on the graph, so I decided to list these separately at the end.

For a more complete Dark Star catalog and list of song transitions, see:

http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2017/06/dark-star-catalog-guest-post.html

TIMING QUANDARIES

In the early years, drum solos inside Dark Star are included in the timing. But drum breaks at the end are considered separate and aren’t included (for example: 5/7/69, 11/7/71, 5/7/72, 12/18/73). In later years, Drums/Space is not included. It can be argued that Space at least should be counted as part of Dark Star; but I felt that the Dark Stars coming out of Space are distinct.

12/15/72 – I included the 14-minute post-Truckin’ jam as part of Dark Star, but the theme is not played until 25 seconds before the verse is sung, so Dark Star may be only 11 minutes long. To me the whole post-Truckin' jam feels like Dark Star, even though (as on 12/6/73) the theme isn't actually stated for a long time.

3/24/73 – The post-Truckin’ jam is listed, but the reader can decide whether this is part of Dark Star or not.

10/18/74 – It’s tricky to know where to start the pre-Dark Star jam, but the most obvious point is when the band comes in after the drum break, which seems to me to mark the end of Seastones. I timed Dark Star itself from when Garcia first plays the riff and the band clearly enters Dark Star mode. (This is inconsistent, I know.) If you include Seastones as part of the full Dark Star jam, then the entire length becomes a mammoth 61:30.

Over the years the Dead sometimes played little pre-Dark Star jams before the intro, often as part of tuning. I tried to list these but usually didn’t include them in the Dark Star timing. More on these in the next section:

SONGS GOING INTO DARK STAR

Mountains of the Moon>Dark Star – 2/11/69, 2/15/69, 2/22/69, 2/27/69, 4/5/69, 4/22/69, 6/7/69

This is perhaps the most mystical and appropriate opening to Dark Star the Dead ever came up with, but they didn’t develop it very far. This particular transition raised a categorical question – should the little jam played before Dark Star be considered a Mountains outro or a Dark Star prelude? (Of course, it’s both at once.) Out of custom, I didn’t include it in the Dark Star timings, but for the record these are the jam lengths, timed from the point Garcia starts playing electric:

2/11/69 - :22

2/15/69 - :16

2/22/69 - :30

2/27/69 – 1:02

(3/1/69 does not segue.)

4/5/69 - :40

4/22/69 – 1:00

6/7/69 – 0:00 (Garcia jumps right into Dark Star.)

If you want to time the prelude from the moment Garcia stops playing acoustic (about where it starts on the Live/Dead album), it usually takes only 10-20 seconds for him to switch guitars, so even the longest of these preludes is still under 90 seconds. The longest, ironically, is on 4/26/69 where Garcia plays for 1:24 before deciding to skip Dark Star.

On 5/23/72, a 90-second jam leads out of tuning and serves as a little prelude to Dark Star, kind of a flashback to the Mountains preludes. It’s very effective, but they didn’t follow up this idea until the next year.

A couple times in early ’73, the WRS Prelude was played as an intro to Dark Star: 3/21/73 (1:06)

3/28/73 (2:16)

Then in fall ’73, they made a habit of introducing Dark Star either with little bass intros or melodic tuning jams, more deliberate than the quick tuneups earlier in the year. This is consistently done before every non-segued Dark Star that fall, so it seems to be their way of ‘setting the stage’:

9/11/73 (tuning jam, a minute)

10/19/73 (a little tuning jam, about 45 seconds)

10/25/73 (just a few bass strums out of tuning)

10/30/73 (bass intro, a minute)

11/11/73 (tuning jam, a minute)

12/6/73 (2:05 tuning jam) (This one I included in the timing since Dark Star doesn’t start with the theme as usual, but flows out of tuning.)

A few late-period Dark Stars also start with significant short jams before the intro: 10/26/89, 8/16/91 and 9/26/91 (noted in the list of times). A couple other Dark Stars begin with a little unrelated noodling before the actual theme is played: 10/16/89 (40 seconds) and 12/12/92 (20 seconds).

These are the songs that went into Dark Star a number of times:

Cryptical>Dark Star: 3/30/68, 2/28/69, 4/15/69, 8/21/69, 1/23/70

Other One>Dark Star: 11/5/70, 1/20/79

Truckin’>Dark Star: 11/8/70, 7/18/72, 10/26/72, 12/15/72, 3/24/73

Let It Grow>Dark Star: 11/30/73, 12/18/73, 5/14/74

Playing>Dark Star: 10/9/89, 11/1/90, 3/17/93, 9/13/93, 3/30/94

Estimated>Dark Star: 3/29/90, 6/14/91, 9/10/91, 9/22/93 (Three of these shows are with sax players. 6/14/91 Estimated has repeated DS teases at the end.)

Drums/Space>Dark Star: 9/20/90, 12/14/90, 6/22/91, 9/6/91, 6/8/92, 6/18/92, 12/16/92, 6/23/93

These are all the other songs that only segued into Dark Star once or twice over the years:

1/20/68 Caution Jam

1/22/68 Spanish Jam

6/5/69 Sittin’ on Top of the World

5/25/72 Wharf Rat

10/18/72 Playing>drums (the only time Dark Star came directly out of Drums)

10/18/74 Seastones>drums

12/31/89 Victim

7/12/90 Foolish Heart

12/31/90 Eyes

(6/17/91 Uncle John’s Band) *tease only

(6/28/91 Wharf Rat) *tease only

(9/8/91 Saint) *tease only

10/31/91 Spoonful

3/9/92 Corrina

6/22/92 Victim

This list only includes the first part of Dark Star in the ‘90s – the second part almost always came out of Space (with a couple exceptions: it followed I Need a Miracle on 10/16/89, and the Other One on 9/26/91).  

Some songs didn’t make this list since there are hard stops of a few seconds before Dark Star starts (like Iko on 12/12/90, Ship of Fools on 9/24/91, or Man Smart on 3/20/92 & 12/12/92).

Dark Stars in the early years predominantly had cold starts, but in the ‘90s Dark Star usually segued from another song. From ’89-94, only eight Dark Stars (out of about 33 full versions) had non-segued starts.

NEW ‘90s ARRANGEMENTS

When Dark Star returned after the hiatus, it often served as a second-set container in which other songs or abstract pieces would be played. No songs had been played ‘inside’ Dark Star since 1972, but on 12/31/78 they ventured a (brief) Dark Star>Other One>Dark Star. ‘90s shows frequently had Dark Star split in two.

The most adventurous attempts were 10/16/89 and 9/26/91, which had entire song suites between the two parts of Dark Star, but this was rarely tried. 9/20/90 had an unusual post-drums Dark Star>Playing reprise>Dark Star, but otherwise Dark Star song sandwiches weren’t attempted in this era.

(There was one unique reverse sandwich – Playing>Dark Star>Playing on 11/1/90, the only time a full Dark Star was played inside another song. The Wharf Rat>Dark Star tease>Wharf Rat on 6/28/91 is also notable for echoing Wharf Rat’s debut inside Dark Star on 2/18/71.)

More common were Dark Stars with Drums/Space inside: 3/29/90, 10/20/90, 11/1/90, 4/1/91, 9/10/91, 10/31/91, and 12/12/92.

Just as common were the Dark Stars that faded out into Drums/Space and never returned – for instance on 12/31/89, 6/14/91, 9/24/91, 3/9/92, 3/17/93, 9/22/93, and the last two Dark Stars in March ’94. After 1990 it became the norm for Dark Stars to be left dangling and unfinished.

One feature unique to the ‘90s were Dark Stars split across shows, starting in one show and finishing some days later: 12/12-14/90, 6/8-18-22/92, and 12/12-16/92. 

A case could be made for the various Dark Star teases of summer ’91 as continuing a ‘single’ Dark Star across shows, but I don’t think so. If this was the intent it doesn’t quite come off – to me they’re just unfinished teases.

The second verse, not sung since 1972, returned in the ‘80s. Garcia sang it pretty regularly through 1990, but it became rare after that as Dark Stars were increasingly left unfinished. The second verse appeared only four times in 1991, three times in 1992, then was never heard again.

In 1991-92, Garcia frequently played instrumental verses instead of singing them – these are noted on the list. This was something of a throwback: during Dark Star’s first year, he would typically play the verse melody during the jam, but this practice faded out in ’69, only to resurface 22 years later. The difference in ’91 was that an instrumental verse often replaced a sung verse, or simply served to identify a passing jam as Dark Star.

It was rare for a Dark Star to be played at length in the final post-Drums part of a show. Dark Stars in the ‘90s (including the ones split across shows) were usually finished after Space, and sometimes there would be short Dark Star jams coming out of Space, but most of these are wrapped up quickly. However, on occasion an entire Dark Star would be played in the last stretch of the set: 1/20/79 was the first time, and 6/23/93 the last, and not surprisingly these are kept short. 9/20/90 is the huge exception in being the only full-length two-verse Dark Star played in the second set after Space.

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GRAPH ISSUES

I made the graph using a Google spreadsheet. This had the benefit of being free and relatively easy to use, but imposed severe limitations on the graph. In short, it’s not at all what it should be: 
- There’s no text in the graph to indicate times, song titles, cuts, etc. – ideally these would be displayed within the bars. 
- Everything in the list (tunings, other songs, Drums/Space breaks) was included in the total Dark Star times, which was not the intent, but couldn't be avoided.
- I couldn’t easily indicate time breaks for the Dark Stars split across a show (e.g., something like the 6/17/91 teases was impossible to represent on this kind of graph).

- On the graph, times had to be converted from seconds to decimals, so the lengths are more approximate than exact. (You’ll notice the time totals are in fractions of 100 rather than 60.) These figures could be improved and made more accurate, but they’re close enough for now.

- For Drums/Space, I set an arbitrary time of 10 minutes for each; otherwise the total lengths for these Dark Stars would be considerably inflated. I would have liked to just display something like a slash // in place of these lengthy interludes.

- I simplified the jam divisions to make the graph less cluttered – no bass or drum solos are marked, for instance. But these should be noted with symbols. The color key was also kept simple, since most of the labels had to be duplicated to plot out the graph. 
- Years couldn’t be spaced out; I would've preferred a more pastel color palette than this program offered; and the appearance isn’t quite what I hoped for.

Basically, I regard this as a rough draft that needs to be replaced. If someone with more graphing experience wants to undertake a new and better graph, at least I now have all the Dark Star timings needed to make one.

For a different example of a Dark Star graph, see this one made many years ago by Volkmar Rupp & Uli Teute:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1klOkGfWHKoXJiATg2nUGHTeE01V3udR2/view?usp=sharing

Though it’s missing a number of Dark Stars due to its age, it also has several advantages over my graph, including text within the graph and many more jam labels.

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RANDOM NOTES

11-13-72 – Bear’s AUD has a tapeflip; the best copy is patched at 11:17 with 1:35 of the alternate AUD. The other AUD seems to still be 40 seconds longer but that’s because the tape slows down. 
2-26-73 – the first Dark Star where I noticed a lengthy cymbal intro at the start, which Bill did a number of times in ’73. Still need to check if he did it earlier. 
11-30-73 – needs a 20-second AUD patch from 7:33-7:52 
2-24-74 – needs a 30-second AUD patch from 25:47-26:19

The Shortest Dark Stars 1969-1974

For some time I’ve thought about writing a piece on the shortest Dark Stars of the ‘70s. Dark Star was not a song known for its brevity -- it was designed to have expansive, open-ended jams. So I thought it might be interesting to look at the times when it wasn’t so expansive: what do the brief Dark Stars have in common, and why did they turn out that way?

Ironically, this will be a short post, since the Dead at the time hardly ever played short Dark Stars (say, less than 15-20 minutes). You’d think that at least a few times, they would enter Dark Star, realize things weren’t working, and bail out quickly. But this almost never happened. Even under the worst conditions, at Woodstock, they still jammed it out to an impressive 19 minutes. In these years, once Dark Star began, the Dead almost always committed themselves to a lengthy jam, even if they weren’t quite feeling the spirit. So the rare occasions when they did shorten or abandon Dark Star may be worth investigating.

This post isn’t meant to list the shortest Dark Stars ever played (many of which can be found in the ‘90s), but the shortest in these particular years – some of which are still pretty long! The comparison is with other Dark Stars during these years, not the entire history of this song.

Dark Stars shortened by tapecuts are not considered here. Most of these are found in 1969, including Dark Stars like 1/26/69 (9:45), 2/12/69 (4:58), 6/21/69 (7:43), and 7/12/69 (9:52). These were probably normal-length Dark Stars as played, but are hard to judge on tape due to the giant cuts. (In an odd irony, the longer Dark Stars became after 1970, the fewer lengthy tapecuts are found in them.)  
For a full catalog, see: http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2017/06/dark-star-catalog-guest-post.html

Our journey begins in 1969. I’ve already written a piece on Dark Star’s first year, 1968, and it goes without saying that all the earliest live versions are short. In January-February ’68, Dark Star usually ranged from about 5 to 7 minutes. By summer ’68 it had already expanded considerably and the Dead played a number of 15-minute versions that year. The shortest Dark Stars of late ’68, 10/20 and 12/29/68, were about 10 minutes each and came in shortened festival sets where the Dead were pressed for time and raced through the show in a hurry. Naturally the Dark Stars in these circumstances were quick and compressed. But this would not be a factor very often after ’69.

http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2009/08/dark-star-1968.html

After a number of 12-15 minute versions early in 1969, Dark Star first passed 20 minutes in February ’69, and the longest versions would gradually creep upward in length through the year, up to 30 minutes. Most of them weren’t that long, though – only about ten Dark Stars that year went over 25 minutes. Dark Star’s running times varied widely in ’69, ranging anywhere from 15-30 minutes, with an average length around 20 minutes.

Technically, the shortest Dark Star of 1969 was the tease played on 4/26/69. After Mountains of the Moon, Garcia switches to electric guitar and they jam in a Dark Star groove for about 90 seconds (as on the opening of the Live/Dead album). But, for whatever reason, Garcia decides to skip Dark Star that night and abruptly switches to China Cat Sunflower. It’s debatable whether this can even be considered a Dark Star jam since they never get to the actual intro.

https://archive.org/details/gd1969-04-26.sbd.miller.97393.sbeok.flac16 (1:37)

(Also on Dick’s Picks 26.)

Otherwise, 8/21/69 is by far the shortest full Dark Star of the year. Following a ragged Other One, the Cryptical reprise peters out after only 90 seconds as Garcia audibly loses interest and starts teasing Dark Star instead, until the rest of the band comes round. There’s no intro jam – he starts singing the verse immediately. Afterwards, the jam is quite sleepy and laid-back, not building to any peak; instead it gets quieter and more minimal until the second verse a few minutes later. Whether the Dead are tired or distracted, evidently the time isn’t right for Dark Star, and the Dead wrap up the show with Cosmic Charlie, unable to face the challenge of St. Stephen.

https://archive.org/details/gd69-08-21.sbd.cotsman.13850.sbeok.shnf (6:33)

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DIGRESSION I: UNFINISHED DARK STARS

One trend that started in 1969 was the Dead abandoning Dark Star mid-jam and leaving it unfinished, jumping into another song without playing the second verse. This didn’t yet happen very often (only in five versions that year), nor did it always result in shorter Dark Stars, but it hinted at how Dark Star would be played in later years.

5/7/69 Dark Star (22:18)>drums>Lovelight

https://archive.org/details/gd69-05-07.sbd.cotsman.6028.sbeok.shnf

5/30/69 Dark Star (17:03)>Cosmic Charlie

https://archive.org/details/gd1969-05-30.sbd.miller.87516.sbeok.flac16

6/22/69 Dark Star (/11:25)>Other One (AUD – opening cut)

https://archive.org/details/gd69-06-22.aud.hanno.8836.sbefail.shnf

7/12/69 Dark Star (/10:02)>Other One (only second half of Dark Star survives on tape)

https://archive.org/details/gd1969-07-12.123434.sbd.latvala-lee-smith.flac16

8/16/69 Dark Star (19:06)>High Time

https://archive.org/details/gd1969-08-16.sbd.gmb.fixed.95918.flac16

In some of these cases, the Dead may be abandoning a Dark Star that wasn’t working out – for instance on 7/12, a very loose and amorphous Dark Star jam heads into a brief Other One as the scattered Dead try to collect themselves. On 8/16 they also seem to be struggling with a Dark Star that doesn’t quite come together as the jam never really gels; when they head to the second verse, Garcia decides to give it up and strike out for High Time instead.

5/7 is another show where they sound out of their heads, but this Dark Star is fully played, a nice dreamy, drifting version. I think Garcia breaks a string around the 19-minute mark since he sits out the last three minutes, leaving the rest of the band to groove for a bit until they give way to a long drum break. 5/30, in contrast, is more of a tough, aggressive Dark Star – in the depths of a wild feedback-filled jam, Weir starts the childlike intro to Cosmic Charlie and the rest of the band picks it up in a great transition, presaging the unexpected song transitions of later years. (St. Stephen follows.)

6/22 has a lengthy opening jam of at least seven minutes (possibly several more are missing), and sounds like it’s turning out to be a great version, but only a few minutes after the verse the Dead take a left turn into the Other One. I think this may be the only version out of these that was really cut short before its time – the other versions sound like they’re close to a natural finish anyway.

A few more instances followed in 1970:

2/11/70 Dark Star (instrumental, 16:19)>Spanish Jam (9:40)>Lovelight (with guests)

https://archive.org/details/gd1970-02-11.sbd.smith.patched.99154.sbeok.flac16

3/24/70 Dark Star (13/:45)>Other One (several minutes lost in a tapecut)

https://archive.org/details/gd70-03-24.sbd.miller.32054.sbeok.flacf

5/8/70 Dark Star (/18:05)>Dancing in the Street (AUD – opening cut)

https://archive.org/details/gd70-05-08.aud.miller.32056.sbeok.flacf

11/8/70 Dark Star (16:06)>Main Ten (8:50)>Dancing in the Street (AUD)

https://archive.org/details/gd1970-11-08.aud.weiner.28609.sbeok.shnf

It can’t really be argued that these Dark Stars are incomplete or unsatisfying! They’re fully played, and three of them end in significant thematic jams (the Spanish jam on 2/11, Feelin’ Groovy on 5/8, and the Main Ten on 11/8). 2/11 takes an unusual instrumental course due to the extra guitarists. 3/24 is an instrumental version on tape since a tapecut wipes out the verse. 5/8 and 11/8, coincidentally, are the only Dark Stars that segue into Dancing in the Street – it’s often a good indication of a show’s strength when Dark Star is paired with another long jam number.

Early 1971 was the final era for regularly played “complete” two-verse Dark Stars – except for these two which the Dead exit without an ending:

4/26/71 Dark Star (12:52)>Wharf Rat

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-04-26.sbd.miller.105814.flac16

7/31/71 Dark Star (22:36)>Bird Song

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-07-31.132730.sbd.miller.flac16

From 10/31/71 onward, Dark Star’s second verse and ending would usually be dropped, and the band would almost always segue into a new song mid-jam.

*

1970 didn’t really have any short Dark Stars – even the shortest are 19-20 minutes long. In general, the only versions that year that are less than 20 minutes are due to tapecuts. The one exception is 3/24/70, the shortest Dark Star of the year, even considering that a few minutes are lost in a tapecut. It’s the only Dark Star of 1970 that’s really shortened due to circumstances, as once again the Dead zip through a fast-paced set cramming all the songs they can into a short timeslot. Nonetheless it’s still a great, hard-hitting version – Garcia sounds ready to take the jam to new heights, until Lesh prods the band into a quick five-minute Other One (somewhat like on 6/22/69).

https://archive.org/details/gd70-03-24.sbd.miller.32054.sbeok.flacf (13:45)

1971 is another story, as the Dead rethought and reassembled Dark Star into a new form. I won’t go into detail here since I’ve already written a post on this year:

http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2010/03/dark-star-1971.html

But in brief, the few versions from early in the year tend to be much shorter than 1970 Dark Stars, only 13-14 minutes long. 4/26 turns out to be the shortest of the year, barely making 13 minutes as Garcia changes direction mid-jam to play Wharf Rat as he did on 2/18, but this time he never returns to Dark Star.

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-04-26.sbd.miller.105814.flac16 (12:52)

Other '71 Dark Stars like 4/8, 4/28, and 11/7 are only about a minute longer. The fall ’71 versions are more jammed-out; Keith Godchaux’s first version on 10/21 is some 17 minutes long, and most of the following versions are a little over 20 minutes (despite losing the second verse). The 14-minute 11/7/71 is an exception, a scattershot version that doesn’t really cohere as the Dead seem to flail around for a few minutes after the verse; finally Garcia gives up and leads the band into a more successful Other One.

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-11-07.127503.fm.boswell.smith.flac16 (14:00)

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DIGRESSION II: DARK STAR SANDWICHES

Sometimes in 1971-72 the Dead would play a song inside Dark Star and then return to the Dark Star jam, a trick they frequently pulled in the Other One. It was much less common in Dark Star – in fact they had only done it a couple times before:

11/8/69 Dark Star (14:08)>Other One>Dark Star (6:38)>St. Stephen

https://archive.org/details/gd1969-11-08.sbd.wise.17433.shnf

6/24/70 Dark Star (9:37)>Attics of My Life>Dark Star (7:12)>Sugar Magnolia>Dark Star (3:03)>St. Stephen

https://archive.org/details/gd_nrps70-06-24.aud.pcrp5.23062.sbeok.flacf

They didn’t do it very often in ‘71/72 either, only six times:

2/18/71 Dark Star (7:02)>Wharf Rat>Dark Star (7:19)>Me & My Uncle

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-02-18.sbd.miller.111793.flac16

10/21/71 Dark Star (14:57)>Sittin’ on Top of the World>Dark Star (2:12)>Me & Bobby McGee

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-10-21.sbd.miller.112086.flac16

11/15/71 Dark Star (12:49)>El Paso>Dark Star jam (7:45)>Casey Jones

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-11-15.sbd.unknown.31607.flac16

12/5/71 Dark Star (8:01)>Me & My Uncle>Dark Star (12:16)>Sittin’ on Top of the World (instrumental DS)

https://archive.org/details/gd1971-12-05.131532.miller.sbd.flac16

4/24/72 Dark Star (25:46)>Me & My Uncle>Dark Star (15:05)>Wharf Rat

https://archive.org/details/gd72-04-24.sbd-aud.cotsman.16332.sbeok.shnf

8/21/72 Dark Star (27:25)>El Paso>space (3:44)>Deal

https://archive.org/details/gd1972-08-21.139581.sbd.miller.sirmick.fixed.flac16

After that the idea was dropped (to return occasionally in later years), so it appears the Dead weren’t very comfortable interrupting Dark Star like this. I bring up this list here to ask whether these Dark Stars were shortened by the extra song segues – did we miss out on more Dark Star jamming that might have occurred? In general, the answer is no: these Dark Stars are still average lengths for the tours they were played in. Usually the Dead pick up right where they left off once the middle song finishes, and even seem inspired by the interruption. By late ’71 they had generally stopped singing the second verse, but most of these later versions still find natural ‘conclusions’ where they restate the theme. (8/21/72 is the odd man out here, with its awkward little Phil/Jerry space appended to El Paso. It’s hard to tell whether they intended to continue Dark Star but were derailed by tuning, or if they opportunely turned a tuning break into an eloquent space duet.)

*

1972 is not a year known for short Dark Stars. Instead, the Dark Stars became giants, regularly surpassing 30 minutes, and occasionally even reaching 40 minutes. Even the shortest Dark Star of the year is still almost 20 minutes long – 5/7/72 at the Bickershaw Festival. It’s only half the length of some others from this tour, but this little runt of a Dark Star is still pretty great during the long pre-verse jam. After the verse, though, there’s just a brief three-minute space, then the band suddenly drops out for a drum solo, before charging back in for a half-hour Other One. This was the only time all year (and the last time until 1978) that Dark Star and the Other One would be played in the same show. I’m not sure if the Dead planned this transition ahead of time or if it was a spontaneous decision, but the lengthy Other One makes up for the skipped second part of Dark Star!

https://archive.org/details/gd72-05-07.sbd-aud.clugston.9193.sbeok.shnf (19:32)

(Also released.)

The next-shortest Dark Star of ’72 came in the fall, 10/26/72. It’s two minutes longer and more “complete” in a way (in that it has some post-verse jamming), but I include it because it’s a fascinating failure – the weakest version of the year. The Dead had started the second set with a giant 26-minute Playing in the Band, the second-longest of the year (after 11/15) and one of the best-ever versions. Often at the time, when the Dead did a big second-set Playing like this it would be the jam centerpiece of the set, replacing Dark Star or the Other One (for instance on 11/12, 11/15, and 11/18). It was becoming rare for Playing in the Band and Dark Star to share the same set – 10/18 and 11/26 are two of the few other examples from ’72. (In fact a few months later, 3/28/73, was the last time Playing and Dark Star would share a set until 1989.)

In any case, 10/26/72 was one show where Dark Star was a jam too far. This version comes out of a rather quiet, low-key Truckin’ jam – it starts out well enough, until about 13 minutes into the pre-verse jam it starts to fizzle out into tuning and never really recovers. After the verse, Garcia only plays for a minute in a short, subdued jam before he and Weir both drop out, leaving the others to noodle for a bit until the jam collapses in a bass/drums break. The guitars return in the final minute, but rather than try to revive Dark Star, Weir decides to rescue matters with a rousing Sugar Magnolia. It’s unusual in this period to hear a full-length Dark Star running out of gas midway and sputtering to a halt, but this is a clear example of the band abandoning the song when it wasn’t working.

https://archive.org/details/gd1972-10-26.sbd.miller.32717.sbeok.flac16 (21:32)

In 1973, the average Dark Star length was reduced – out of 20 versions that year, just half of them are over 25 minutes, and only three reach a half-hour. The Dead also played a number of abbreviated Stars, less than 20 minutes, including 2/15, 2/22, and 6/30. (On 2/15 there’s not a full-band jam after the verse, but a bass solo – 9/11/73 would follow the same pattern. The other two are complete but fast-paced mini-Stars seemingly played with an eye on the clock; all are shorter than the Eyes that follow.)

1973 also features what may be one of the shortest Dark Stars ever played, on 3/24/73, although this status has been hotly disputed. (It’s also the last of five Truckin’>Dark Stars – 11/8/70, 7/18/72, 10/26/72, 12/15/72, and 3/24/73 - all very different from each other.)

Here the music pauses for a bit after the Truckin’ jam, and Garcia teases Dark Star (at :36 on the official CD) but no one commits to the theme; instead they continue with a loose uptempo jam. Typically for the era, this turns into a lengthy bass/drums break. The others return for some spirited jazzy jamming, and after a few minutes Weir throws in the Spanish Jam chords (for the first time since 2/11/70). The band happily roams in the Spanish theme for a while, until it gradually subsides into a quiet wah space. They drift through space for a few minutes; then at last Garcia introduces the Dark Star theme, and they launch into the song. With over 20 minutes of jamming behind them, Dark Star’s intro jam is kept brief, just a couple minutes before the verse; and afterwards no jam follows – Garcia heads straight into Wharf Rat – then changes his mind and starts Sing Me Back Home instead.

The debate continues to rage whether this is a four-minute Dark Star (as the official CD tracks it), or a unique reversed 26-minute version in which the jam precedes the song. This wasn’t unheard-of at the time: 12/15/72 and 12/6/73 also have Dark Stars which are jammed at length before the theme is stated. But in those cases, the openings sound more like part of the song and there is also a “full” Dark Star after the jam; here we get some rather generic, unrelated jamming concluded by a quick verse. It’s up to the listener to decide how much Dark Star we have here.

https://archive.org/details/gd1973-03-24.139595.sbd.betty.composite.miller.clugston.flac16  (4:00…or 26:40?)

(Also on Dave’s Picks 32.)

Also found in 1973 is what might be the first instrumental Dark Star tease since 4/26/69 – though this one’s also debatable. It occurs in the giant Playing in the Band song suite on 11/21/73. After El Paso, the band revisits the Playing jam for a minute, then suddenly slows down and drops into a hybrid Wharf Rat/Dark Star jam which lasts a few minutes before they start Wharf Rat proper. Musically Dark Star and Wharf Rat are very similar, and in the same key, so it’s hard to pin down this neat little jam – it sounds like Weir’s playing Dark Star, Lesh is playing Wharf Rat, and Garcia could go either way, and they hover in a liminal space until Garcia settles on Wharf Rat. I’m happy to call it a Dark Star jam; either way it foreshadows the instrumental Dark Star teases of the ‘90s. (There would also be a couple strong Dark Star teases in the Wharf Rats of ’76 – on 6/12/76 & 7/18/76 – mentioned here.) 

https://archive.org/details/gd1973-11-21.sbd.fix.miller.97468.sbeok.flac16 (3:26)

(Also on Road Trips vol.4 no.3.)

There had not been many instrumental Dark Stars up to this point (not counting Hartbeats versions or Dark Stars made verseless by tapecuts) – really only 2/11/70 and 12/5/71. The Dead returned to the idea on 11/30/73. This version comes out of a fine Let It Grow jam, the first of three Let It Grow>Dark Stars (the others would follow on 12/18/73 and 5/14/74). The Dark Star theme is clearly stated at the start, so this time the Dead’s direction isn’t in question. The jam that follows seems like a rather unfocused Dark Star intro jam – compared to nearby Dark Stars, the music is more decorative than purposeful, and somewhat half-hearted like Garcia is ready to back out of it. Around six to seven minutes in, it sounds like they’re going to head to the verse, but Garcia changes his mind and drops into one of the quiet drifting spaces so common that year, then starts a nearly twenty-minute Eyes.

https://archive.org/details/gd73-11-30.sbd.vernon.8099.sbeok.shnf (9:25)

(Also on Dick’s Picks 14.)

Only six Dark Stars were played in 1974, and none of them were short – even the briefest is still 22 minutes. But it’s telling that the two shortest versions of the year were both instrumentals – on 6/23 and 7/25/74. Both end in thematic jams: the Spanish jam once again on 6/23, the new Slipknot theme on 7/25. In both of these, it seems to me like they remain instrumentals because the Dead don’t feel like concentrating on the song, but skitter restlessly around the jams. 6/23 heats up as it goes along until it peaks in a powerful Spanish jam – 7/25, on the other hand, disintegrates over time; Phil disappears for most of the second half, and without a center the unfocused group dissolves into random riffing.

https://archive.org/details/gd74-06-23.sbd.cribbs.16780.sbeok.shnf (22:17)

https://archive.org/details/gd74-07-25.sbd.miller.12656.sbeok.shnf (24:00)

There’s one more instrumental Dark Star tease to mention, during the giant half-hour jam on 6/28/74. The Dead come storming out of a Let It Grow jam; slow down for a contemplative space; then wander through a Mind Left Body jam for a few minutes before turning into Dark Star (around 10:30 in the jam on the official CD). At least, the Dark Star theme is stated – most clearly by Weir, the others dance around it – but the jam soon strays away into other themes, culminating in a meltdown and a segue to US Blues. So it’s hard to say just when the Dark Star portion ends – could the next 17 minutes be considered part of Dark Star? In this case I’m inclined to be strict and say that only the part that’s recognizably Dark Star should be timed, up to the point around 14:00 where Garcia starts strumming a new chord pattern.

https://archive.org/details/gd1974-06-28.139780.sbd.miller.fixed.flac1644 (~3:30)

(Also on Dick’s Picks 12.)

By 1974, Dark Star was in much the same position it would be in during the 1990s – not a song the Dead wanted to fully explore very often, but a theme they’d revisit from time to time, sometimes just as an instrumental. With the Dead’s changing interests and waning focus in long improvisations, it’s little wonder that Dark Star didn’t survive the hiatus. Over the next ten years the Dead would occasionally revive it as a novelty piece – these versions are played at a respectable length (save for the dwarf Star of 1/20/79 which is rudely cut short after nine minutes). When it returned in 1989, Dark Star was played at full length again to start with, but by ’91 it started to shrink into a nostalgic reminder of itself, and in ’92-94 Dark Star returned to early-'68 lengths with few versions reaching ten minutes. This is the true era of short Dark Stars…but the ‘90s are beyond the scope of this post!  

As far as the early years, what can we conclude about the shorter Dark Stars of that era? They were infrequent, with only a small handful of truly shrunken Dark Stars being played over a five-year period. There were a variety of reasons Dark Star might be reduced:

-         the Dead faced a time limit and had to hurry up with the jams;

-         the Dead dropped the post-verse jam in favor of the next song;

-         the Dead just didn’t feel like playing it once it started, and the jam fell flat.

None of these happened very often. It was also rare for Dark Star to be truncated by another song; even the ‘interrupted’ Dark Stars are usually full-length versions. When we do find a brief Dark Star, as often as not the Dead may have just played a long jam or might head into another lengthy jam number, so even the shortest Dark Stars tend to be adjacent to longer improvisational pieces. Sometimes the magic didn't descend, but there were hardly any true misfires – with few exceptions, any Dark Star in this period was played by a band eager to jump in and explore it at length, and not anxious to let it go too soon.