Anyway - on 4/5/69, China Cat was returned to the setlist, with an extended intro and a long exit jam. China Cat was more feisty and rollicking in early '69 than it would become - Garcia sings emphatically, Constanten adds his organ swirls, the drums bash all over, and the playing is very energetic. Though they're sloppier than later 'classic' China Cats, these early April-June '69 versions are all recommended for their exuberant feel. The jamming at the end sounds fresh and exciting, since they're playing 'free' without any set format of where they're going to go. On 4/5 the jam almost sounds like it's heading into Rider....but over the next few months, they'd segue into a variety of songs: http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-04-05.sbd.miller.18701.sbesok.shnf China Cat>Doin' That Rag http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-04-15.sbd.cotsman.6288.sbeok.shnf China Cat>Doin' That Rag>It's a Sin 4-26-69 - Dick's Picks - Mountains>China Cat>Doin' That Rag http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-05-24.sbd.kpfa.16177.sbeok.shnf Doin' That Rag>Friend of Mine>China Cat>Eleven>Death Don't http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-06-05.sbd.cotsman.15204.sbeok.shnf China Cat>Sittin' on Top of the World http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-06-08.sbd.cotsman.19285.sbeok.shnf Dancin' in the Streets>Friend of Mine>China Cat>New Potato Caboose http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-06-13.sbd.barbella.7775.sbeok.shnf China Cat>Morning Dew http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-06-21.early-late.aud-sbd.cotsman.16334.sbeok.shnf China Cat>Morning Dew (AUD) http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-07-05.sbd.cotsman.4282.sbefail.shnf China Cat>High Time>Mama Tried http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-07-12.sbd-aud.hanno.4645.sbeok.shnf Doin' That Rag>China Cat>Mama Tried>High Time (poor AUD) http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-08-21.sbd.cotsman.13850.sbeok.shnf Minglewood>China Cat>Doin' That Rag http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-08-30.sbd.barbella.8594.sbeok.shnf China Cat>Doin' That Rag http://www.archive.org/details/gd69-09-27.aud.hanno.14857.sbeok.shnf China Cat>High Time (AUD) China Cat never came to a stop, but was always jammed into another song. Doin' That Rag was the usual segue, but other odd combinations were tried. Morning Dew was a strange song to try to segue into, but High Time was a diabolical choice - on 7/5 the attempt to slow down is quite awkward. 7/12 is a notably long China Cat; the Dead seem to have been somewhat dazed at that show, and the intro to China Cat is stretched out with Weir taking a long solo to start the song! - but they head into an intense jam. 8/21 is unusual since there's a guest playing flute and whooping through China Cat; the band tries to accommodate him, but he's very repetitive and doesn't add much. 9/27 is the last China Cat that doesn't go into Rider; it has a nice long jam, from which the Dead exit into.....a super-slow High Time.