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History of the Grateful Dead, Vol. 1 (Bear's Choice)
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History of the Grateful Dead, Vol. 1 (Bear's Choice)
Current price: $26.99
Barnes and Noble
History of the Grateful Dead, Vol. 1 (Bear's Choice)
Current price: $26.99
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This 1973 release was the very last collection that
authorized during their tenure with
in the late '60s and early '70s. However, this live disc was a sort of melancholy affair, as it centered on material featuring
(guitar/vocals/mouth harp), who had left the band due to illness in June of the previous year.
is somewhat misleading, as a follow-up never came to pass. Band historians, however, claim that this release was optimistically titled because the label had hoped to issue a series of live recordings (a la
) containing highlights from a variety of vintage
performances. Alas, with the formation of the group's own label it was not to be. The single disc includes performances from a highly touted series of shows held over two nights (February 13-14, 1970) at
in New York City. While most assuredly not the finest example of
's formidable acoustic sets, the platter opens with a quartet of cover tunes -- many of which had been entries in
(guitar/vocals) and
's folky
repertoire prior to ultimately forming the electric,
.
's playful cover of
'
is a somewhat lightweight affair. He counterbalances ad-libbed lyrics with his own very sparse solo guitar picking, which is in perfect keeping with the lonesome nature of this
and
(guitar/vocals) join in on the remaining "unplugged" tracks. Both the affective and noir
reveal the command of this highly under-utilized sub-division of
. Clocking in at seven-plus minutes, the album's sole original composition,
is masterfully executed. It ultimately bests the original
(1969) version in sheer emotive realization. The two electric offerings -- a cover of
's
-- are full-blown rave-ups allowing the entire band to weave their collective
-influenced
, unedited and in real time. Both tracks had become assertive vehicles for
's no-nonsense
sensibilities. In 2001,
was included in the 12-disc
box set. The remastered edition comes replete with a newly inked 16-page liner notes insert containing an essay from the "Bear" (aka
) himself. The expanded track list yields four additional performances from the same cache of shows: the
-led
a second and equally scintillating version of
as well as an up-tempo
the latter of which keeps the frenetic spirit of the reading from
's self-titled debut firmly intact. ~ Lindsay Planer