The Grateful Dead's last lineup returned intact for In the Dark, an album that ironically thrust the band back into the spotlight on the strength of the band's lone Top 40 single, "Touch of Grey." Fans had long mused that the Dead's studio albums lacked the easygoing energy and natural flow of their live performances, and In the Dark does come close to capturing that lightning in a bottle. Jerry Garcia, who apparently had to relearn the guitar after a near-fatal illness, approaches his instrument recharged, while his voice (a beneficiary of the extended hiatus?) shows some of its original smoothness. Of his four songwriting collaborations with long-standing lyricist Robert Hunter, "Touch of Grey" is far and away the best. "When Push Comes to Shove" and "West L.A. Fadeaway" use familiar lues-based riffs that lack the pair's often-contagious chemistry, and "Black Muddy River" has one foot firmly stuck in mawkish MOR terrain (although Garcia can be dealt a free pass here in light of the song's real-life implications as an attempt to make his peace with the world). What pushes In the Dark past the band's also-rans are two terrific songs from Bob Weir and John Barlow, the cheerfully cranky "Hell in a Bucket" (co-written with Brent Mydland) and the cautionary tale "Throwing Stones." Rarely have Weir's songs sounded so effortless; punctuated by Garcia's guitar, they have more in common with the upbeat, flavorful sound of past Garcia/Hunter compositions than the pair's own work this time out (a rare case of role reversal). In the middle of it all is a country-rock song from Mydland, "Tons of Steel," that sounds oddly out of place. Although the album is unmistakable as the work of the Dead, much of it recalls the punchy, pungent production of Dire Straits' recent work. It's not the second coming of the Dead, but a more entertaining epilogue you couldn't ask for.
6:10am on super tuesday, and to paraphrase Bob Weir's message from last night at 9:30pm, "get your ass out and vote, it could be the last chance in your lifetime to bring about fundamental change" is it that dire? i don't know, but lots of heavy shit is going on, and there is nothing like having a tiny little voice in it. if you need to register to vote, go here http://www.headcount.org/but scr...
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Grateful Dead at the Civic Center in Providence, RI on September 7, 1987.Opening night of fall tour after a crazy summer of stadiums and platinum records!SetlistSet IFeel Like a StrangerFranklin's TowerWalkin' BluesWhen Push Comes to ShoveMy Brother EsauIt Must Have Been the RosesFrere JacquesFar From MeLet it GrowSet IIIko IkoSaint of CircumstanceShip of FoolsUncle John's BanddrumsTruckin'Spo...
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6:10am on super tuesday, and to paraphrase Bob Weir's message from last night at 9:30pm, "get your ass out and vote, it could be the last chance in your lifetime to bring about fundamental change" is it that dire? i don't know, but lots of heavy shit is going on, and there is nothing like having a tiny little voice in it. if you need to register to vote, go here http://www.headcount.org/but scr...
More >
from WGBH and PRI this weeks installment of Surviving Survival"Every day we hear about survivors - survivors of horror, of domestic violence, of poverty and worse. How do we survive our own survival? This award-winning edition of Sound & Spirit focuses on survivors' search for meaning, and the art, music, and faith that can uphold them. From survivors of Cambodian and Nazi genocide to survivors...
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Dancing bears, meet the Banana Slugs. The surviving members of the Grateful Dead are turning over the rock band's archives to the University of California at Santa Cruz.The archive will hold the band's correspondence and other memorabilia, but not its recordings, longtime band spokesman Dennis McNally said Wednesday.Ex-Dead guitarist Bob Weir and drummer Mickey Hart will announce a partnership ...
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Grateful Dead at the Civic Center in Providence, RI on September 7, 1987.Opening night of fall tour after a crazy summer of stadiums and platinum records!SetlistSet IFeel Like a StrangerFranklin's TowerWalkin' BluesWhen Push Comes to ShoveMy Brother EsauIt Must Have Been the RosesFrere JacquesFar From MeLet it GrowSet IIIko IkoSaint of CircumstanceShip of FoolsUncle John's BanddrumsTruckin'Spo...
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Touch of Grey |
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| 2 Hell in a Bucket |
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| 3 When Push Comes to Shove |
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| 4 West L.A. Fadeaway |
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| 5 Tons of Steel |
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| 6 Throwing Stones |
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| 7 Black Muddy River |
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 "In the Dark")
