Review Summary: A brilliant look at the Grateful Dead before they hit super stardom.
The Grateful Dead are probably the most successful band to have survived the Psychedelic scene during the mid to late 1960s. Such super star acts as The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Jefferson Airplane, Cream, and Janis Joplin helped to put Psychedelic music on the charts, but inadvertently collapsed on themselves like a dying star during the process. The Grateful Dead however stood strong, but altering their writing process and going back to their roots of Bluegrass and Folk music, they were able to last for so long. The Grateful Dead was released before this though, when the acts mentioned before were just beginning to peak; a time when everybody was dropping acid, when liberation and freedom were king.
I think it's very important to not just understand what was happening on a large scale in America, but also what led the Dead to writing a lot of their material, and to really getting to know each other musically. When they were first starting off, they would play some of Ken Kesey's Acid Test Parties as well as the numerous Tripps Festivals. The thing that they said was the best about the AT's, was that it was so relaxed and let them do virtually whatever they wanted. They didn't have to play a certain song, or repeat something, they were mainly background music at the parties or tests. The people weren't there to see them, so it let them really explore the possibilities of what they could play.
The Grateful Dead is much different than any of the Dead's other material. Even their other albums that were released around this time, Anthem To Sun and Aoxomoxoa have obvious differences. Phil Lesh has been quoted saying that the band felt very rushed when they were in the studio, no one had had any experience with studios or recording at this point. It was recorded in only four days.
The band's performance on this album is stupendous. It's incredibly high in energy and very uplifting. It's impossible to feel at least a little elated after listening to The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion). You also get a real sense of authenticity after hearing Viola Lee Blues. GD really does an interesting job here of mixing psychedelia with blues. Psychedelic Music is obviously heavily influenced and based from Blues, but the Dead combine the two in a really neat way. It's bluesy, but in a very subtle way. You can definitely pick up the influence, but it isn't so overt like it is on Hendrix's or Janis Joplin's albums.
All of the instruments are exceptionally good for this being their first album. The technicality that was ever so present in later years is much more minimal here. Viola Lee Blues is possibly the best example for this. Almost 7 minutes of it is the band trading off solos with each other. Jerry and Bob do some really cool things with their guitars on this song, that are really unique and interesting.
The keyboards also have a pretty big part in this album opposed to later albums. They are one of the driving forces of the band at this point, and Pigpen really outdoes himself. He propels Cold Rain and Snow from a mediocre song, to an absolutely breathtaking one. Phil Lesh also plays an important part in the album. It's fairly easy to distinguish him in the mix, and his style of bass is very unique. He doesn't just follow the drums or the guitar, he plays in between them filling in the gaps. It's really fun to listen to him play.
Another big thing on this album is the vocals. They are much much different than on any other Dead album. The harmonies when done are incredible, but they aren't utilized as much as they were on later albums such as Workingman's Dead, or American Beauty. I love Jerry's and Bob's voices to death, but they are just so weak on this album. However, they are bursting with passion and emotion, so it makes up for that.
This album is a definite must buy for any GD fan. It is so high in energy, even when being compared to later releases like Live/Dead, or Anthem of The Sun. It takes a great look at the Dead before they went back to their roots, and when they were still riding the wave of psychedelia that was sweeping the nation. Only a few of these songs have stayed in rotation in the later years of their career, so it's fun to hear some of the songs for the first time. I give this a 4/5, and recommend it for any fans of psychedelic music or the Grateful Dead.
Recommended Tracks
-The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)
-Cold Rain And Snow
-Beat It On Down The Line
-Viola Lee Blues
lolzThis Message Edited On 03.30.08
