Grateful Dead Road Stories—Europe '81
The Forum
Copenhagen
10.8.81
I had heard that the Dead were to do a European tour, so I figured out the details, passport, grab a "Lets Go Europe" book, (hey the internet wasn't invented yet!), plane tickets and off I went. I was 22 and went solo!
After arriving in Brussels the morning before, I took an overnight train, then a train ferry to get to Copenhagen. I saw all the flags at half staff, I wondered what happened. Saw a newspaper and found out that Anwar Sadat was assassinated… so sad. He was a leader that worked for peace.
The Dead played at the Forum, a bicycle velodrome. I met a couple of Americans at the youth hostel I stayed at. They were going to the show well as well. During the day I went on beer brewery tours at Tuborg and Carlsberg breweries. Met a group of Israelis on the beer tour and convinced them to go to the show that night. They'd hadn't even heard of the Dead.
The Danish audience was pretty reserved, remaining seated for most of the show and politely applauding at the end of each song. Up by the stage, the security at the gig were Danish Hell’s Angels! One of them was cool with my hanging up at the rail taking photographs.
