Been All Around This World

AMG Review of Been All Around This World

Ken Dryden
All Music Guide

Jerry Garcia and David Grisman enjoyed getting together in Grisman's studio to record informally for their friends, with the mandolinist wisely choosing to share their best efforts with the public by releasing a series of CDs following Garcia's death. With various members of Grisman's quintet and a couple of other musicians as well, the two old friends explore a wide range of material, including a luegrass treatment of James Brown's "I'll Go Crazy," an instrumental of a popular old sea shanty renamed "Handsome Cabin Boy Waltz," and country legend Jimmie Rodgers' "Blue Yodel No. 9," along with fresh interpretations of works by Bob Dylan, Merle Travis, and Mel Tillis. Throughout these undated sessions, Garcia's brilliant guitar and folksy vocals are beautifully complemented by Grisman's imaginative mandolin accompaniment. According to Grisman's liner notes, this may be the final collection of their previously unissued collaborations to be issued; like earlier volumes, it is highly recommended.