:)Thanks Rob The Organ - I was about to compose an email asking for a beginners guide to The Grateful Dead, so your list of what's what is going to be a great help and is much appreciated.
Ah, but Andrew - that's not necessarily a beginners guide to the Dead. Anthem of the Sun certainly isn't one to start out with!
For a beginners guide, I'd opt for three (albeit one of them a 3LP set) titles:
GRATEFUL DEAD (1st album; 1967)
As Ron says - fun. Still a lot of "freak beat" going on there, mostly quite uptempo, all clanging guitars and Vox organ with the occasional taster from Garcia of what's to come later. Viola Lee Blues is the only true wig-out on here, and Garcia's breathtaking bluegrass-voiced solo in their countrified take of "Sitting on Top of the World" is worthy of a mention. Still a great bar-band in those days, and the late Pigpen very much the frontman, whether from behind the organ or when blowing his harp.
AMERICAN BEAUTY (1970)
The second of two "back to basics" LPs from the post-psychedelic era. This phase was very useful in seeing which of the San Francisco notables were actually any good in the cold light of day! As well as the changing times, The Band had happened by then and pushed the "reset" button, bringing a shift to more focused, simpler songs with some roots tradition. The Dead rose to the challenge perfectly, whereas Jefferson Airplane started to fall apart (except Hot Tuna who emerged strong) and Quicksilver reunited with Dino Valenti and... well. Choice cuts are Sugar Magnolia, Ripple, Friend of the Devil, Truck...oh, all of it.
EUROPE '72
Originally a triple vinyl, some strong performances from their Euro jaunt in 1972 - albeit tidied up a little before release. Great guitar from Garcia and plenty of back catalogue gems given an extended airing. Pigpen's swansong. Not much more to say really - "does what it says on the tin".
See how you get on there, then try Live Dead and Workingmans Dead, followed by the rest of the 67-72 catalogue. Hope this helps!
