In 1973 the Grateful Dead played about 75 shows and they played He’s Gone at 25 of them. That’s a pretty good batting average for the song. This version was the last one for the year at their last show of the year, down in sunny Florida.
Well, I assume Florida is sunny in December. I’ve never actually set foot in Florida. But being from the midwest there are enough snowbirds that spend the cold month in Florida that I have to assume it is. When you think of the snowbirds this song takes on totally new meaning, doesn’t it?
As for the rationale behind this pick, I was looking for something that was representative of 1973 from this album. I know that He’s Gone wasn’t on Wake of the Flood, which the band was touring behind at this point but it was still new enough that the song got a lot of play. If you listen to some of the other He’s Gone selections (links at the bottom) you can hear how the band changed the tempo and the feel of the song over the years. This one is definitely more laid back, but that provides a lot of room for the band to create.
