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Music History Grateful Dead Review

Ben Hayden

Music History 212

October 8, 2008

Grateful Dead: Workingman’s Dead

The Grateful Dead released Workingman’s Dead in the United States in 1970. The album was produced by Bob Matthews and Betty Cantor. The album was recorded at Pacific High Recording Studio in San Francisco and released by Warner Brother Records. (Silberman, 1) The Grateful Dead consisted of six members. Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, Phil Lesh, and Micky Hart. Each member came from a diverse background which attributed to the bands unique rock sound. Garcia who plays lead guitar in the band previously played in a jug band, playing the banjo and the guitar. Lesh, who plays the bass, had a background as a composer of electronic music. Kreutzman, on drums, McKernan on keyboard, and Weir on guitar previously played in rock bands in San Francisco and played in various R&B groups (Silberman, 2). The diverse background of the musicians converged together to create a distinctive sound on the album which can be traced back to the bands folk, blues and country influences. Lyricist Robert Hunter and Jerry Garcia wrote all of the songs on the album. The music for the album was composed by Phil Lesh and Jerry Garcia (Silberman, 1). The album encompasses eight songs with over 35 minutes of music.
The first track on the album is titled Uncle John’s Band and is 4:42 length. This song became one of the most commercially known and was the Grateful Dead’s first big radio hit. A unique feature to the song is the acoustic riff at the beginning of the song. The vocals in the song aren’t solely dominated by Garcia, instead there is tight vocal harmony involving all members of the band. The instrumentation of the song is basic acoustic guitar playing, accompanied by soft drums and a keyboard. The lyrics of the song talk about a band singing by the river, and throughout the song the band sings about American culture.
The second track on the album...