Disco de Grateful Dead: “Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack”

Some people won't believe me, but I swear, I swear it's true! Just two days ago I watched The Grateful Dead Movie I rented (from an online movie rental company) and I really wanted to get the CD soundtrack from the movie! Imagine my surprise when I just found out this remastered five CD set/soundtrack is actually a BRAND NEW release! I ran out, bought the set and after a listen I felt compelled to write this review from sheer enthusiasm! GRIN! Ecstasy, man!

First of all, if you've ever been to a Dead concert or heard your friends talk about the group you know they were first and foremost a live performance band. (But yes, they put out many albums, too.) They were also well known for their generous many hours' long concerts-and you know what? This five CD set of live performances reflects again the group's generosity! Just as they gave us so much more than the standard two hour concert length many groups after them began to give, there are FIVE CDs here with not only the movie soundtrack but with 32 bonus songs! Making this set even more valuable to fans and collectors is that these songs were recorded in 1974 at San Francisco's legendary Winterland when The Grateful Dead were far more than just kinetic and mesmerizing! All in all everything here makes for a "DeadHead's Delight" and this set is a must for any serious rock fan.

The film is just over two hours so there wasn't time to show the band performing the full length versions of these songs during the movie. But on this set you get it ALL! This CD set more than makes up for that with a 32 minute awesome "Playing In The Band!" and the entire 60-minute blockbuster jam featuring "Sugar Magnolia," "He's Gone," "Jam," "Caution Jam," "Drums," "Space," "Truckin'," "Black Peter," and "Sunshine Daydream." "Not Fade Away," and "Dark Star" are both here, as well as classics many people know even if they aren't serious fans of The Grateful Dead: "Casey Jones," "Uncle John's Band," "Truckin'" and an electric performance of "Johnny B. Goode!"

The set includes some great photos and memorabilia from the movie presented in a 24 page booklet. A good plus!

Simply put, if you're a rock fan and especially if you're a Dead fan you just can't go wrong with this five CD set. It is very reasonably priced for five CDs-you're gonna be thrilled to say the least! A grand slam home run by the best! POW!

'74 is by far one of my favorite performance years in the Dead's touring history. other greats are '68, '70, '72, and '77. This is strange considering I was born in '79, but thats why I love the Dead's commitment to releasing archival live recordings, because I can familiarize my self with every era. I have over 100 Dead albums and live performances and I can definately say this is a top five collection. This is collection of the Dead at their jazziest.

Disc 1:

The set begins with well played versions of US Blues and One More Saturday Night just as they are featured in the Grateful Dead Movie. We are then treated to an energetic China>Rider. Eyes of the world is jazzy and flows nicely into a peaceful China Doll. It that isn't enough we get a nearly 32 minute version of "Playing In the Band." The jam section of this tune is other worldly and never dull.

Disc 2:

Scarlet Begonias is a welcome addition to any collection. Jerry's guitar playing is always sooting on this tune and I actually enjoy Donna's ooohing on this version, it kind of gives the tune an ethereal feel. The rest of the cd is all jam, beginning with He's Gone through some strange and spacey stuff that leads nicely into a rumbling version of The Other One which calms into a beautifully performed Stella Blue.

Disc 3:

This disc begins with a great version of Weather Report Suite. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe '73-'74 was the only time this tune was performed in its entirety. Later versions just began at Let It Grow. This disc is also a jam heavy affair with an excellent Dark Star, Morning Dew, and the always great combo of Not Fade Away and GDTRFB.

Disc 4:

Uncle John's Band is a great performance as usual. However disc 4 contains the collection's only low point in Tomorrow Is Forever. This tune and its performance just plain sucks. The rest of the disc is flawless. The jam begins with Sugar Magnolia and continues into another version of He's Gone. This is where the jamming becomes very interesting. As He's Gone closes it flows nicely into a Caution Jam that teases at Truckin' before moving toward space. The drums follow before we hit an early performance of Space which does decsend back to the Truckin' that was hinted at earlier. The performance is pure improvisational magic.

Disc 5:

After all the great music contained on the first four discs its hard to imagine that disc 5 could be any better, but it is. Mickey Hart rejoins the band after nearly a three year absence and the band is clearly energized by Mickey's presence. It truly shows in the percussive performances of Not Fade Away and The Other One. These are sandwiched between portions of another fantastic Playin' In the Band.

All in all I just can't get enough of this collection. So much of the jamming is truly exploratory and you can hear something new every time you listen. At nearly six hours in length most probably won't listen to it all in one sitting, but it is fantastic nonetheless. Buy this collection along with Dick's Picks 4 and you will have two of the greatest live albums that the greatest live band of all time have released. (Dick's Picks 4 Dark Star>Thats It For the Other One>Turn On Your Lovelight combine for ninety minutes of continuous jammed out ecstasy. nuff said)

In October 1974, the Grateful Dead played for five nights at the Winterland in San Francisco by way of a temporary farewell, filming the shows for a film that they hoped would serve as a substitute until they resumed touring, but which didn't appear until 1977, by which time they were back on the road.

Meanwhile, selections from the concerts had appeared on the double-album set Steal Your Face. Generally regarded as the Dead's poorest live album, both in the song selection and the sound mix by Bear and Phil Lesh, it came to be known as Steal Your Money. It's not an album I have heard, but I do know that none of its detractors level the same criticisms at this magnificent 5CD set, culled from the same shows. It is the CD equivalent of the film but with much added, even more than the extended 300-minute DVD set that came out in 2004. There is little overlap with Steal Your Face: four songs appear on both (Ship Of Fools, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, US Blues, Stella Blues) but only Ship Of Fools comes from the same night. As the sound has been radically upgraded by Jeffrey Norman for this set, it would be interesting to compare with the earlier master.

At the time of these gigs Mickey was on a gap year (but guests on the final night) and Keith and Donna were fully paid-up members alongside Jerry, Phil, Bob and Bill. The recording dates are given and show that each disc favours one night in date order, but can contain performances drawn from any night between 16th-20th. For example CD1 contains tracks from every night except 20th but features a full half-hour segment of Playing In The Band from the opening night, whereas CD5 is entirely drawn from the final night. All the performances are complete (unlike the film) and when the songs run into one another (as they do for all but two tracks on CD2) they always come from the same performance.

Some songs are kept short, others are fully stretched, and each disc contains doses of spacey jams or drum extravaganzas. A few songs reappear on different nights (Playing In The Band, The Other One, Not Fade Away), always with good reason, and CD3 features the relatively new Weather Report Suite almost side by side with the ever evolving Dark Star (a blissful 24 minute version).

The Grateful Dead are unique among the rock fraternity and this generously priced, lovingly assembled artefact helps explain why and is bound to win them many new fans drawn from different generations. The package is rounded off with a colour booklet of photos and artwork. There are no notes but full credits are listed at the back. A tour de force.

First, let me say that the sound quality on this is excellent. The only problem that I guess I have is that a lot of the jams have been edited. David Lemeiux (the band's vault archivist) said after the release that this was originally going to be a seven disc set instead of five (what it now is) but the higher ups thought that seven was too much and so it was edited down to five.

The first disc opens with a great U.S. Blues and is followed by hot versions of One More Saturday Night, China Cat Sunflower->I Know You Rider, Eyes Of The World (although over 5 minutes have been edited out to fit)->China Doll and ending with a massive Playing In The Band. The second disc starts off with a great version of Scarlet Begonias which is followed by a massive He's Gone->Jam->Weirdness->The Other One->Spanish Jam->Mind Left Body Jam->The Other One and ends with an edited Casey Jones. The third disc starts with Weather Report Suite and includes a massive Dark Star->Morning Dew. Disc four has great versions of Uncle John's Band and Big Railroad Blues, a rarity in Tomorrow Is Forever and another great jam that features He's Gone, Truckin' and Black Peter. The fifth disc has Mickey sitting in for the first time since 2-18-71, features a great jam of Playing In The Band->Drums->Not Fade Away->The Other One->Wharf Rat->Playing In The Band and is rounded out with great versions of Johnny B. Goode and Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo->We Bid You Goodnight.

First off I miss Jerry baddly!!I would rather been on Tour than Work any day,enough said about that,This C/d is very kind on the Ears,and the Dvd,which is also Sweet as hell is Heaven sent,back to the review,I would really like to give it a pure 10,it is worthy of greater things,maybe instead of Stars make them Darkstars :},if your the casual listener please do yourself the favor and listen to the Perfect "Eyes of the World"you can't go wrong,if you like that just listen to the pretty Jams that jerry was known for,think sunroof back zipp'n thru the woods,while Sugur Magnolia permeates thru the Airwaves,then imagine your in what some of us Hippies call a Serenity Zone,go there its safe,its warm and freindly the trees make for the sparkly ocean,you have arrived suns down on you,its a golden grahams day and its o.k., be well buy it your soul will be replentished.Larry {DEADHEAD} :}