I don’t lack for Grateful Dead CDs. But I wanted a set that compiles their best live performances. I have several of the Dick’s Picks series, but I wanted something that combines the best SONGS, not necessarily shows. After a little research, I settled on a box set, So Many Roads: 1965-1995. I’m generally not a fan of box sets. Unreleased tunes generally aren’t released for a reason. And I’m not terribly interested in rarities and alternative takes. But this one looked promising. Lots of live performances. A few from the studio. I slapped it in the six CD changer in my truck (along with Cafe Tacuba’s first album) and listened for several weeks. Overall, I like it. But there are several spots where I find myself repeatedly reaching for the “skip” button on the CD player.
— Surprisingly, I really like the early selections, circa 1965, including “Can’t Come Down” and “You Don’t Have to Ask,” Both of which didn’t made it into the regular live rotation. They’re an interesting chance to hear the Dead in its formulative stage.
— A 1988 version of “Playin’ in the Band” is everything I love about the band. It stumbles out of the gate, with Weir bungling lyrics, but then it picks up steam and starts chugging forward only to dissolve into total, beautiful chaos. This is what space was supposed to be. Not some prefab chunk of sound that is tucked before or after the drums. The great thing about Dead shows was knowing that Apollonian order could dissolve into Dionysian frenzy at any moment, and being there to revel in it when it did. This version of “Playin’ in the Band” fits the bill.
— I catch myself skipping everything that has Brent Mydland singing lead on it. I never liked him much in that roll, though I love his keyboard work. (I’ll never forget his sound during “Sampson and Delilah” at one particularly serpentine Civic Arena show in the early ’80s; it echoed in my head for WEEKS afterward.)
— Don’t have much use for disc 5 at all. I’ve always found “Terrapin” to be somewhat tedious, and most of the ’90s Dead I’ve heard was as listless as Garcia himself during those years.
— Surprisingly (again), the long Pigpen blues jams don’t do it for me. They get repetitive and start spinning their wheels. I really think I like him much better in the context of their more psychedelic sound.
In the end, I guess I need to get into recording my own CDs and put together a few CDs with my favorite live tunes. This set is good, but it wasn’t really what I was after.