Grateful Dead songwriter, Robert Hunter, dead at 78

UPI ^ | 24 Sept 2019 | By Fred Topel

[VietVet876]

Saw them live twice. First time in San Diego in a smaller indoor arena downtown in 1968 when they were doing the “Live Dead” double album songs. Sat about twenty feet from the drummers. Then again in 1974 at the Spectrum in Philadelphia. We got there around 9PM when the Dead started playing and left around 2AM while they were still playing.

[Vision]

“He’s Gone”
Robert Hunter

Rat in a drain ditch
Caught on a limb
You know better but
I know him
Like I told you
What I said
Steal your face
right off you head

Now he’s Gone
Lord he’s gone
Like a steam locomotive
rolling down the track
He’s gone
He’s gone
and nothing’s gonna bring him back
He’s gone

Nine mile skid
on a ten mile ride
Hot as a pistol
but cool inside
Cat on a tin roof
Dogs in a pile
Nothing left to do but
smile, smile, smile

Now he’s gone
Lord he’s gone
Like a steam locomotive
rolling down the track
He’s gone
He’s gone
and nothing’s gonna bring him back
He’s gone

Going where the wind don’t blow so strange
Maybe on some high cold mountain range
Lost one round but the price wasn’t anything
Knife in a back and more of the same
Same old rat in a drain ditch
Out on a limb
You know better but I know him

Now he’s gone
Lord he’s gone
Like a steam locomotive
rolling down the track
He’s gone
He’s gone
and nothin’s gonna bring him back
He’s gone....

[SaveFerris]

[pissant]

Good to see you here too! They were quite the thing in the 1969-70 timeframe. Back when San Fran was a top notch city.

I saw them about a dozen times from 77 thru the early 90s.