Live in Foxboro, MA 7/2/1989

Brent Mydland isn’t merely serenading a stadium packed with 60,000-plus people when he begins to sing “Dear Mr. Fantasy” on July 2, 1989 in Foxboro, MA. The Grateful Dead keyboardist is in the process of turning the Traffic staple — a collective plea to a musician to break an overriding gloom by playing an upbeat tune that puts everyone in a good mood — into a resonant biographical statement. In the song, communal happiness comes at a simple albeit exacting cost, spelled out in the lyrics: Laughter for many in exchange for the tears of one, namely, the performer. Mydland knows the deal all too well. So does guitarist-vocalist Jerry Garcia.