Dead Heads meet at the movies

Thursday, Aug. 1 — The Grateful Dead had just come off their legendary spring tour of Europe in 1972 when they took the stage at the Oregon County Fair to perform a benefit show for author Ken Kesey’s brother’s dairy farm.

That show on Aug. 27, 1972, was captured on 16 mm cameras and has been restored to high definition quality. Concert footage, along with interviews including Kesey, his pal Ken Babbs and Wavy Gravy, was compiled into a two-hour movie called “Sunshine Daydream,” which is playing tonight at 7:30 at the Goodrich Lansing Mall 6 on the west side.

It’s the third annual “Meet Up at the Movies,” in which Dead Heads come together to celebrate the band on big screens across the country. Last year, the Dead’s July 18, 1989 show at Alpine Valley was featured.

“’Sunshine Daydream’ captures the band at the height of their powers (fresh off the Europe ’72 tour) and at the epicenter of the counterculture movement,” says Dead.net, a tribute website to the band.

The film features classic Dead tunes “China Cat Sunflower,” “Jack Straw” and “Dark Star.”

Fittingly, this year’s Meet Up at the Movies falls on what would be bandleader Jerry Garcia’s 71^st birthday.