I agree with everything you say - Friday night was special not just because the boys were spot on, but because the crowd was as cool as can be (my friend and I, who have seen many dozens of shows together - everyone from Yes to John McLaughlin and Frank Zappa to Larry Coryell - commented repeatedly to one another that we felt like we were in a 1977 Dead crowd - and that's a GOOD thing) and because the venue may have contributed more than just a few of it's own magic molecules. I would add only that Trey's guitar tone was pure honey and molten glass all night - don't know if that's attributable entirely to him and his techs or partly to the audiophile sound reinforcement equipment at Bethel Woods, but the quality of the sound itself (as a distinct entity from the quality of the playing) was as good as I've heard at any concert ever in my 45+ years of regularly attending live shows. We're talking Carnegie Hall level sound quality here, not MSG. Also, for me and everyone around me on the lawn at least, Walk Away as the first set closer was euphoric.

Thanks for the well-thought-out review, you really nailed it. Great night all around.