Don't Ease Me In - Grateful Dead Song Review

She brings me coffee
You know she brings me tea
She brings 'bout every damn thing
But the jailhouse key

Ahh man this song is putting a song on my face as I listen to it and prepare to write this entry.

To me, this is the sound of the first set coming to an end (on a good note).  I don't know why this one is such a favorite - it's such a simple song but I really like it 

In the songbook it states that Don't Ease Me In was composed by traditional - which means it's such an old standard the original composer is unknown. That might partially explain my affinity for the song - it's a historical classic so there must be something to it.

I have heard it referred to in the Dead scene as "Don't Cheese Me In" but I cannot disagree more with that sentiment.

According to Alex Allan's awesome resource "whitegum.com", the song was released as a B Side for the first single (Golden Road?) in 1966 and played throughout the band's entire career. Of course, they recorded a version as the last track on the Go To Heaven album as well. 

What else to write? The lyrics are light hearted and humorous as you can see from the snippet I put at the top of this entry.  You can kind of imagine Jerry with a big smile when he sings that one.  It's a simple rock tune but definitely a personal favorite.  It also is short and sweet - clocking in at about 3:20 or so- how many Dead songs can you say that about? I've heard versions of Finniculi, Finnicula longer than that!

  

Don't Ease Me In is a tune I never skip past on a bootleg, and in fact, I always turn it up.

Don't Ease Me In Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.1

Disclaimer: This is part of my blog that reviews all things Grateful Dead for fun. Music is a beautiful thing because it is so personal and subjective, so keep in mind that this is one man's opinion (and be sure to read my blog manifesto to understand a little more about where I'm coming from).

Desolation Row - Grateful Dead Song Review

I'm a huge Dylan fan so I wonder why this song isn't more of a favorite of mine.

In an interview I read in the Relix Compilation Book Jerry Garcia was asked what songs he wants to remove from the Grateful Dead repertoire.  Surprisingly instead of dodging the question outright, he responds "some of the Dylan" tunes (something along those lines*).  The interview was from later in the band's career - I believe in the 1990's.

I imagine Jerry was referring to Desolation Row and/or Queen Jane Approximately - first set "Bobby songs."  When I paint My Masterpiece seemed to be a little more of a favorite of the band (and much shorter with a harmonic modulation to keep it interesting).  Phil's Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues was rarer and pretty great too.  There are more examples of Dylan tunes (Watchtower, Baby Blue, Memphis Blues, etc.) but in my opinion Jerry was talking about Desolation and Queen Jane.

Why would Jerry be wanting to remove these songs from the Dead setlist?  For the same reason I think Desolation Row is a little lackluster - they are simple, long, and a bit boring.  Desolation Row is basically a very long acoustic beatnik poem that the band adopted to the live setting.  There's just too much firepower on stage to waste it on 11 minutes of Desolation Row.   The song also had no real jam section, just soloists taking "a verse here," and "a verse there."

So while there are some iconic lines like:  ....playing the electric violin on Desolation Row.
And: Cinderella she seems so easy, it takes one to know one she smiles, and puts her hands in her back pockets, Bette Davis Style...

Overall, the song is a little lackluster.  It would've been great to see Desolation Row (I never did) but it is hard to make it through it on tapes.

Desolation Row Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 6.8

*the Relix book is great and reviewed here, but it does not have a table of contents so it is hard to find specific articles.

Disclaimer: This is part of my blog that reviews all things Grateful Dead for fun. Music is a beautiful thing because it is so personal and subjective, so keep in mind that this is one man's opinion (and be sure to read my blog manifesto to understand a little more about where I'm coming from).

Big Railroad Blues - Grateful Dead Song Reviews

Big Railroad Blues

Continuing yet again on the theme of the songs that start with B’s – largely 1st set blues/rockers that aren’t exactly the tunes that get my heart pumping, we arrive at Big Railroad Blues.

Big Railroad Blues is an energetic blues song that Jerry sings - so it has that going for it.
It has a really catchy melody and of course being a blues is a reliable vehicle for Jerry et al to rip and deliver a good consistent song. Just like the last song reviewed (Big River) it also was performed throughout the entire Grateful Dead band’s history.

Big Railroad Blues is a bit “ho hum” but to me distinguishes itself because Jerry sings it and the tempo is upbeat enough to be noteworthy (what Dead songs are played at a higher tempo than Big Railroad Blues? I can’t think of any).

Big Railroad Blues Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 6.4

Disclaimer: This is part of my review of every Grateful Dead song from A-Z. Music is a beautiful thing because it is so personal and subjective, so keep in mind that this is one man's opinion (and be sure to read my blog manifesto to understand a little more about where I'm coming from).

Big River - Grateful Dead Song Review

Big River

This is a rough patch of song reviews because there seems to be a lot of 1st set “blues/rockers” in this ‘B’s’ and that’s not my cup of tea.

I’m beginning to sound like a broken record about this concept but Big River falls into that category (yet again) of songs that rock live – and serve their purpose as a rockin’ tune to get the crowd moving but are somewhat mundane to listen to on tape after all these years.

Don’t get me wrong, Big River has a lot going for it. It is a great composition by (I think Johnny Cash?) and I love the song structure - which is a refreshing departure from the traditional I-IV-V structure. Also, I love Dead songs that have the bouncy I-IV bass progression (like Cumberland Blues, Maggie’s Farm, etc). Another thing that Big River always delivers is that Jerry rips during this song and it seems almost as if he doesn’t even need to try and think about it because it is just always so consistent. The Dead played this song throughout their entire twenty odd years listed in Deadbase X so Jerry must’ve known how to play this progression like the back of his hand.

So Big River is actually a pretty good 1st set rocker after all and I will give it a much higher song score than it’s counterparts like Me and My Uncle and New Minglewood Blues.

Big River Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 5.1

Disclaimer: This is part of my review of every Grateful Dead song from A-Z. Music is a beautiful thing because it is so personal and subjective, so keep in mind that this is one man's opinion (and be sure to read my blog manifesto to understand a little more about where I'm coming from).