Like many people who have been listening to the Grateful Dead for decades now, my interest in the band waxes and wanes. Jerry's long gone and with the other members happily playing in their own bands or semi- retired in Hawaii, the spirit of 1977 seems further away than the simple passage of years suggests. With no new songs, recordings or tours on the horizon, fans are in the peculiar position of looking back instead of forward and nostalgia was never what the Grateful Dead were about.
The dissolution of the Dead's own company and the decision to delegate Rhino Records with the responsibility for new archival releases did nothing to quell the uneasiness in much of the fan base, and I - like many other Deadheads I know - have simply kept on with our lives, fondly remembering the many good times of years past. Indeed, the first few releases from Rhino had a tenative feel to them - even with the oversight of David Lemieux, the Grateful Dead's archivist- it was as if they somehow lacked an essential spirit.
Many people have criticised the label's decision to release compilations of a tour rather than records of complete shows. For serious Deadheads, context is everything and performances robbed of their original running order in a show are seen to be missing an essential element. This was demonstrated by the lack of cohesion in Road Trips Vol.1 No.1 - the first tour to feature Brent Mydland on keyboards in 1979. In retrospect, the discomfort I felt when listening to that three disc set may have had as much to do with Brent trying to fit into the band's groove as it did with the chopped up shows and running sequences.
Thankfully, Road Trips Vol.1 No.2 is a seamless affair and is delightful to listen to from beginning to end. Two generously filled discs of music from the band's October 1977 run through New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana will remind you why you loved the Dead in the first place. After not listening to any music by the band for a few months, I put the first disc into my basement computer and began absent mindedly listening. All of the laundry I'd hoped to fold and put away was almost instantly forgotten as I stopped doing anything and sat on the couch and closed my eyes. After being lost for an hour as Let it Grow and Sugaree wound their way through to Help/Slipknot and Franklin's Tower, I came back into the world again, feeling better than I had in days. Indeed, the rest of the day was a write off as I ignored filing my taxes and everything else I promised myself I'd do before my kids came home. Stellar versions of Playing in the Band, The Other One and Brokedown Palace confirmed for me that - at least for a moment in time - there was no better band in the world than the Grateful Dead. It has become a tired cliche in Dead World, but 1977 was the pinnacle. This music is indispensible, timeless - as good as it gets anywhere.
Do yourself a favour and buy this collection off of Dead.net. You'll get an extra disc with killer takes of Scarlet/Fire and Estimated Prophet from the same tour. If you haven't listened to any Dead music recently, this will be the collection that'll bring you back. Simply Outrageous!
The dissolution of the Dead's own company and the decision to delegate Rhino Records with the responsibility for new archival releases did nothing to quell the uneasiness in much of the fan base, and I - like many other Deadheads I know - have simply kept on with our lives, fondly remembering the many good times of years past. Indeed, the first few releases from Rhino had a tenative feel to them - even with the oversight of David Lemieux, the Grateful Dead's archivist- it was as if they somehow lacked an essential spirit.
Many people have criticised the label's decision to release compilations of a tour rather than records of complete shows. For serious Deadheads, context is everything and performances robbed of their original running order in a show are seen to be missing an essential element. This was demonstrated by the lack of cohesion in Road Trips Vol.1 No.1 - the first tour to feature Brent Mydland on keyboards in 1979. In retrospect, the discomfort I felt when listening to that three disc set may have had as much to do with Brent trying to fit into the band's groove as it did with the chopped up shows and running sequences.
Thankfully, Road Trips Vol.1 No.2 is a seamless affair and is delightful to listen to from beginning to end. Two generously filled discs of music from the band's October 1977 run through New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana will remind you why you loved the Dead in the first place. After not listening to any music by the band for a few months, I put the first disc into my basement computer and began absent mindedly listening. All of the laundry I'd hoped to fold and put away was almost instantly forgotten as I stopped doing anything and sat on the couch and closed my eyes. After being lost for an hour as Let it Grow and Sugaree wound their way through to Help/Slipknot and Franklin's Tower, I came back into the world again, feeling better than I had in days. Indeed, the rest of the day was a write off as I ignored filing my taxes and everything else I promised myself I'd do before my kids came home. Stellar versions of Playing in the Band, The Other One and Brokedown Palace confirmed for me that - at least for a moment in time - there was no better band in the world than the Grateful Dead. It has become a tired cliche in Dead World, but 1977 was the pinnacle. This music is indispensible, timeless - as good as it gets anywhere.
Do yourself a favour and buy this collection off of Dead.net. You'll get an extra disc with killer takes of Scarlet/Fire and Estimated Prophet from the same tour. If you haven't listened to any Dead music recently, this will be the collection that'll bring you back. Simply Outrageous!
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