The last full-time member to join the Grateful Dead was keyboardist Vince Welnick, who was born on this date in 1951. Welnick joined the band for Fall Tour 1990 just months after the death of Brent Mydland. Vince was one of a handful of keyboardists to try out for the Dead during a one-day rehearsal held at the group’s Club Front space and won the job over such musicians Ian McLagan, Pete Sears and T Lavitz thanks to his ability to sing high harmony. Tragically, Vince Welnick died by suicide on July 2, 2006 at age 55.
Welnick wrote original songs the Grateful Dead added to their repertoire including “Samba In The Rain” and “Long Way To Go Home.” Vinnie also fronted the band on covers from time to time with a medley of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley” and “Tomorrow Never Knows” standing out as one of the additions. The Grateful Dead debuted the medley as the encore on May 12, 1992 in Sacramento. A few weeks later the band closed out a run of three shows at Sam Boyd Silver Bowl in Las Vegas featuring support from the Steve Miller Band on May 31, 1992 with the pairing. Steve Miller, who later admitted “I couldn’t stand that band,” sat-in on the end of the second set as well as the encore.
Watch fan-shot video of the Grateful Dead and Steve Miller’s rendition of “Baba O’Riley” > “Tomorrow Never Knows” via the JamBase Live Video Archive (JBLVA) below:
Here’s soundboard audio of the entire concert:
Setlist
Set One: Help On The Way > Slipknot! > Franklin’s Tower, New Minglewood Blues, It Must Have Been The Roses, Queen Jane Approximately, Bird Song, Picasso Moon
Set Two: Scarlet Begonias > Fire On The Mountain, Man Smart Woman Smarter, So Many Roads, Saint Of Circumstance > He’s Gone > Drums > Space > Attics Of My Life > Spoonful* > The Other One* > Morning Dew*
Encore: Baba O’Riley* > Tomorrow Never Knows*
* – w/ Steve Miller
[Originally Published: February 21, 2018]
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