Hell in a Bucket - Grateful Dead Song Review

Everything works about this song, Hell in a Bucket is Grateful Dead magic.

This song came out in the mid 80's when a lot of bands from the Grateful Dead era were putting out some real garbage  (hello Starship "We Built This City" and Neil Young "rockabilly and electronica experimentation"). In fact, the entire music world was generally putting out crappy music during the greedy Reagan era. Hell in a Bucket might have never been a radio worthy track but who cares? It rocked the opening to many shows.

I like that Brent is credited for the music (along with Bobby of course), and the enigmatic John Perry Barlow penned the words.  Some of the lines seem "groan worthy," but as a whole it really works.

The spirit of this line:

There may come a day I will dance on your grave
If unable to dance I will crawl

reminds me of the rebellious and humorous spirit embodied in songs like Saint of Circumstance and Touch of Grey (which is the opening track that precedes Hell in a Bucket on In the Dark).

Hell in a Bucket is very consistent and a great opener.  Jerry would usually play incredibly great (and fast) on Hell in a Bucket, and then as soon as it's over -  it's Jerry's turn to pick a song so Bucket sets up a strong 1st set by priming Jerry for an energetic and well played 2nd song.

There's some great tunes that comprise the group of songs the Grateful Dead regularly opened with: Jack Straw, Mississippi Half Step, Touch of Grey, etc.  In my opinion Hell in a Bucket holds it's own with these.

I've included a live performance video below from a show that I was actually at - Las Vegas, Sunday June 26th, 1994. This video brings back great memories from that night.  I believe this is the exact a feed from the video screens the Dead used on that tour - and some very creative intermingling of footage can be seen.

There's an "MTV" style music video for this song, do yourself a favor and DO NOT seek it out.  You will be disappointed.

Hell in a Bucket Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 9.3

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.

Greatest Story Ever Told - Grateful Dead Song Review

Moses came ridin'  up on a quasar

How I Learned About Greatest Story

Greatest Story Ever Told is a "first set" rocker that smokes.  This Bobby song was introduced way back in 1971 and played all the way through 1995. But for some reason I associate this song with hot 1980s shows (with Brent) that I would listen to on low quality cassette tapes that I would get from friends, so I always hear this song as low quality and "treble-y" when I hear it in my mind's eye (ear).

This song would always appear in the 1st set (sometimes the opener) and be  smokin'. It has a revved up beginning that is a "Chuck Berry" style riff (chords that are played by Phil!) and then just tears into its faced paced verses. The band punches through accents while Bobby spits the lyrics out and Jerry wails with his dynamic filter sound.

Greatest Story Ever Told appeared on Bobby's first solo album Ace, which was really a Grateful Dead record because the entire band was involved in providing the music that backed up Bobby's vocals.  That album by the way is a "must have" with 7 of the 8 songs becoming Grateful Dead concert favorites (including Cassidy and One More Saturday Night).

Some Crazy Lyrics in Greatest Story

There's not too many Bob Weir songs that feature lyrics written by Robert Hunter.  I must say, this song highlights the difference between the way that Bobby would use lyrics versus the way Jerry would.

For instance, some lines in Greatest Story really ring out and remind me of the cleverness of Robert Hunter lyrics that are in Jerry tunes:

I asked him for mercy, he gave me a gun

or

I asked him for water, he poured me some wine

But other lines sound like nothing of Hunter that Jerry ever sang:


Moses come riding up on a quasar 
His spurs was a-jingling, the door was ajar

or

Abraham and Isaac digging on a well
Mama come quick with the water witch spell



Lines like these  remind me of Bobby's habit of employing "nonsensical" lyrics that make the meanings to his songs hard to discern (for example, Estimated Prophet).  Also, as with the line "water witch spell," Bobby often uses consonance in his lyrics that make them very difficult to sing (like "quick beats in an icy heart, catch colt draws a coffin cart" from Cassidy).

So, although I can't figure out heads or tails of what the song Greatest Story Ever Told is about, I still think it's a good rock song that would get the crowd going.  I enjoyed it the one time I got to see it (at Shoreline). This is a nice and short upbeat song that I always listen in its entirety when it comes up on show recordings I am listening to.

Greatest Story Ever Told Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.2

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.

Good Lovin'- Grateful Dead Song Review

This song was ever present in the 2nd set throughout the vast majority of the Grateful Dead's live tours.

I've always considered it a "feel good" Bobby 2nd set closer like Lovelight and Around and Around. I like it as an "uplifting closer" more than those 2 songs (but less than Sugar Magnolia or Not Fade Away which are also popular closers).

I did not know until I just visited Dead.net that it was originally performed in the 60's and sung by Pigpen (with a few versions sung by Jerry). Good Lovin' was also shelved from 1970-1976 (when they dusted it off and put Bobby on lead vocals).

The song was originally penned by Rudy Clark and Arthur Resnick and performed by The Young Rascals.  This is the version that most people are familiar with (and also the one that is played in a hilarious fishing scene of the movie Joe Versus the Volcano).  A Grateful Dead studio version was released on Shakedown Street in 1978.

Bobby Going Falsetto

Good Lovin' has an almost '50's rock vibe to it and so it was inevitable that Bobby would use it as an opportunity to go falsetto and do some of his "barbershop quartet" style high pitched singing.  A lot of Deadheads refer to this as "Bobby cheesing out."

Bobby would also use the song as a platform to "hold court" and give an "inspirational rap" somewhat like a gospel preacher during the song, saying things like "you know that you need it and you know that I need it too, c'mon everybody and give each other some good lovin!" Pretty amusing stuff.

A few times in 1987, the band would interpolate La Bamba into Good Lovin' - with Jerry singing La Bamba.  This is a formula for an especially great Good Lovin', and I've embedded a youtube into the blog post at the bottom where you can hear and see the band play it (thanks to LoloYodel for posting that footage).

Good Lovin'  Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.7

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.

Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad - Grateful Dead Song Review

This song is also known as "GDTRFB" (as it was abbreviated on tapes) and is always a treat to hear.

Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad is a really uptempo boogie blues number that usually appeared late in the show (after Space). It  is not  an original GD tune and I can only find the credit for the words/lyrics to "traditional" so it must be a really old song. On Dead.net it states that Jerry learned the song during the cross Canada train tour that was chronicled in the movie Festival Express.

The band played the song from 1970 up through 1995.  During the period that I was seeing shows (1993-1995) this would be considered a somewhat rare treat -  they didn't play it very often.  I got to see it one time (on Saturday night, June 26th, 1994 in las Vegas).

Jerry would sing the verses by himself and the band would join in for the chorus.  In my experience this song is always really consistently delivered, perhaps owing to its simplicity and position in the show (when the band is very warm). Jerry's solos are usually very tightly delivered and sometimes resemble the "flatpicking" guitar style.

The song definitely has that "rock band on the road" sensibility and they make me imagine the years of hard touring and cheap hotels that they had to endure. Lines like this:

Going where the water tastes like wine
I don't wanna be treated this old way

remind me of that sly mischievous Jerry Garcia recurring  theme of having "one foot out the door" because he is "getting no respect" (a la Rodney Dangerfield). Other songs that have this kind of theme are Shady Grove and Cold Rain and Snow.  Of course none of these songs are GD originals so it's obviously a recurring theme in Americana music.

The end of GDTRFB always cuts to a half time instrumental version of the We Bid You Goodnight melody (at least in the late 80s and 90s versions that I am familiar with). That's a really nice little tag-on to finish the song.

Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.5

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.

Golden Road - Grateful Dead Song Review

Ahh, the "Golden Road," the full title is: The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion).

Everytime I hear this jumbled ball of energy, I am transported to pushing "play" on my Skeletons in the Closet cassette the first time (my first Grateful Dead album). It's the first song on side A and it just sounds like the Summer of Love come to life.  This song was also the first song off of the debut album for The Grateful Dead (called simply, The Grateful Dead) released in 1967.

This song is only 2:13 long and extremely catchy. There's a lot of overdubbed sounds on the track, many of which I can't identify.  During the chorus you can really hear Phil singing backup clearly and there is a lot of the band "singing over each other" during the song which is why I describe it as "jumbled" (in the best possible way).  This amount of vocal shouting kind of leads me to consider this song as a "chant" of sorts... and the title (the part in parentheses) also lends itself to this perception.  The lyrics as quoted on Dead.net for the chorus seem lacking: 

Hey hey, come right away

Come and join the party

Every day

I can't even hear these specific lines being sung in particular but I can hear a lot of other shouting and chanting going on. 

The First Shot Fired in the Grateful Dead Revolution 

I think of this song as "the first shot fired" in the Grateful Dead revolution. It's literally about the culture of San Francisco in the 60s that the band would embody and carry forth for decades.  The music and lyrics are credited to The Grateful Dead (as a whole, instead of individuals) and that's perfect.  

This line seems especially prophetic: 

Nobodys finished we ain't even begun...

How true was that statement? Wow.  Also, this one became kind of iconic for The Grateful Dead: 

Everybody's dancing in a ring around the sun

I remember often seeing a very particular sticker with this quote, I will try to dig up a picture and post here.

I always thought this song deserved more reverence in the Grateful Dead echelon of music, but I suppose that it wasn't really a live concert standby through the 70s/80s/90s.  

It's definitely 2:13 of pure bliss and a great way for me to have been introduced to The Grateful Dead - more than just a rock band.

The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 9.3

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.

Gloria - Grateful Dead Song Review

In the song review before this one ("Gimme Some Lovin'"), I said that song was part of the GD's habit of mixing in fun "party rock" songs into their set to make sure they put on a remarkable "rock n roll" show (and probably had a lot of fun themselves).  Gloria falls into this category as well.

It's a great rock song written by Van Morrison, universally known and enjoyed.  If you were at a Grateful Dead show when they busted out this tune, you know you were having a good time.  I would also add that if it was your first time seeing The Dead and you didn't really know the canon of songs that they played throughout the concert, you would definitely be "on the bus" when they played Gloria (I said the same thing about Gimme Some Lovin').

I admit that when I watch the videos on youtube of the band playing Gloria, it sounds a bit loose and messy. I have no doubt that the song took whatever show to another level though just by it's sheer accessibility.

(...really wish that Jerry would have sung this one though)

Gloria Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.4

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.

Gimme Some Lovin' - Grateful Dead Song Review

Gimme Some Lovin' is a relic from an era of The Dead that I narrowly but regretfully missed.

Throughout The Grateful Dead's career they mixed in fun "party rock" songs into their set to make sure they put on a remarkable "rock n roll" show (and probably had a lot of fun themselves).  These songs provided a counterpoint to more "serious" and "though provoking" songs like China Doll, Let it Grow, Space etc.

Gimme Some Lovin' is a Spencer Davis Group song written by Steve Winwood, Spencer Davis, and Muff Winwood.

It is a mid tempo rock song that Brent and Phil sang together. If you never noticed that Phil was singing too, you are not alone (I kind of forgot myself until I queued up the below video to get psyched to write this).  Brent really owns this song vocally and of course his screaming organ is heavily featured in it.

This song seemed to come up in the 2nd set and alleviate any tension built up by songs like Terrapin, Space, etc. I love hearing it when it comes up on tapes and can't even imagine how great it would've been to have seen it live (like at the Alpine show which there is a video for below - thanks thepitts3463 for posting). You can see in the video how much fun the band is having while playing this song.

If you'd never heard of The Grateful Dead and found yourself at a show in the mid to late 1980s because someone drug you there (most of us ended up at our first Dead show this way), you might struggle to enjoy some of the music without having heard it and developed a connection to it.  But if they played Gimme Some Lovin', then most likely you would be on the bus instantly from that point on.

Gimme Some Lovin' Song Rating on a Scale of 1-10: 8.5

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.