Tracks

1. Help On The Way

2. Slipknot!

3. Franklin's Tower

4. King Solomon's Marbles: Part I: Stronger Than Dirt

5. Part II: Milkin' The Turkey

6. The Music Never Stopped

7. Crazy Fingers

8. Sage And Spirit

9. Blues For Allah

10. Sand Castles And Glass Camels

11. Unusual Occurrences In The Desert

12. Groove #1 (Instrumental Studio Outtake)

13. Groove #2 (Instrumental Studio Outtake)

14. Distorto (Instrumental Studio Outtake)

15. A To E Flat Jam (Instrumental Studio Outtake)

16. Proto 18 Proper (Instrumental Studio Outtake)

17. Hollywood Cantata (Studio Outtake)

Performer Notes

The Grateful Dead: Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir (vocals, guitar); Keith Godchaux (vocals, keyboards); Phil Lesh (vocals, bass); Donna Godchaux (vocals); Bill Kreutzmann (drums, percussion); Mickey Hart (percussion).
Additional personnel: Steve Schuster (flute, reeds).
Originally released on Grateful Dead (4001) on September 1, 1975.
Grateful Dead: Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir (vocals, guitar); Phil Lesh (vocals, bass guitar); Keith Godchaux (keyboards, background vocals); Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann (drums, percussion); Donna Jean Godchaux (background vocals).
Personnel: Donna Jean Godchaux, Keith Godchaux (vocals).
Additional personnel: Steven Schuster (flute, reeds).
Audio Mixers: Grateful Dead; Dan Healy .
Liner Note Author: David Fricke.
Recording information: Ace's, Mill Valley, CA (02/27/1975-05/07/1975).
Author: Bob Weir.
Photographers: Ed Perlstein; Richard McCaffrey.
As any Deadhead will tell you, the magic of the Grateful Dead was always better captured in a live setting than in a recording studio. Still, while they've probably released more live records than any band ever, their career has been punctuated by solid studio efforts featuring songs that would become staples of their live sets. BLUES FOR ALLAH, released in 1975, was rich in future nuggets. It marked a return to the studio after a string of mostly live releases, and it was an accomplished and varied record.
BLUES FOR ALLAH begins with a jazz-tinged song cycle: the astringent funk groove of "Help on the Way" seguing into the flowing instrumental "Slipknot!" which, naturally enough, slips effortlessly into future concert classic "Franklin's Tower," with its enigmatic but irresistible refrain, "roll away the dew." High points include the sleek, backbone-loosening "The Music Never Stopped" and the languid, psychedelic reggae of "Crazy Fingers." The record is not without its unsettling moments, especially the ominous title track, which probably caused a few freak-outs in its heyday.

Professional Reviews

Mojo (Publisher) (p.153) - "This is pure Dead music, performed and created as one, and is a complete assimilation of styles that goes beyond recognized genres."