Europe '72
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Europe '72 | ||
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| Live album by The Grateful Dead | ||
| Released | November 5, 1972 | |
| Recorded | April-May 1972 | |
| Genre | Rock, Country, Folk | |
| Length | 109:25 | |
| Label | Warner Bros. Records | |
| Producer(s) | no credit given | |
| Professional reviews | ||
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| The Grateful Dead chronology | ||
| Grateful Dead aka Skull & Roses (1971) |
Europe '72 (1972) |
History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice) (1973) |
Europe '72 is a 1972 live triple album by the Grateful Dead, from performances on their Spring 1972 tour of Western Europe.
Contents |
[edit] History
This was the third live double or triple album in the Dead's past five releases, revealing how the group's reputation rested on their live performances. Indeed, the liner notes simply stated "THERE IS NOTHING LIKE A GRATEFUL DEAD CONCERT." The album contained considerable new material in addition to versions of tracks found on previous studio albums.
Despite the band being out of the country, Europe '72 showcased the Dead's mixture of American bluegrass, folk, and country influences, and provided the culmination to the band's early 1970s sound. Archetypal American images abounded on "Jack Straw", while "Cumberland Blues" and "Tennessee Jed" were firmly rooted in their regional feeling. "Truckin'", which had recently become the band's first hit song, catalogued its own troubled-but-resilient pathway through American life. The Dead's start-stop-restart segue of "China Cat Sunflower" into "I Know You Rider" also linked their psychedelic past into a more traditional context. Reviews specially praised track "(Walk Me Out in the) Morning Dew", a ten-minute rendition of the melancholy folk standard that features guitar crescendoes from Jerry Garcia.
Europe '72's packaging was designed by Alton Kelly and Stanley Mouse under their Kelly/Mouse Studios name (they also did other Dead albums) and set against mostly white, empty foldouts. The front cover shows a large Truckin' boot crossing the Atlantic, while the back cover depicts the corresponding Truckin' fool smashing an ice cream cone against his forehead. (Some of the ice cream flying through the air spells out the word "LIVE".) The inside cover credits are in a reserved type font, but do not forget to list "Family", including Mountain Girl. The included color booklet contains photos of European sites and the concerts, a quote from Revelations, and a long account of how the tour split into two factions, the Bozos and the Bolos, with references to St. Dilbert and the Feast of Fools.
This was one of Ron "Pigpen" McKernan's last tours before he died in 1973, and the last album he would be on. It was the first album to feature Keith Godchaux and his wife Donna Jean Godchaux.
Originally a triple album on vinyl, Europe '72 was later reissued as a 2-disc CD in 1995 and again in 2001 with bonus tracks as part of the band's box set, The Golden Road (1965-1973).
Europe '72 has been the Dead's best-selling live album, and one of their best-selling albums overall, achieving double platinum status in the U.S.
[edit] Track listing
[edit] Side one
- "Cumberland Blues" (Garcia, Lesh, Hunter)
- "He's Gone" (Garcia, Hunter)
- "One More Saturday Night" (Weir)
[edit] Side two
- "Jack Straw" (Weir, Hunter)
- "You Win Again" (Hank Williams)
- "China Cat Sunflower" (Garcia, Hunter) →
- "I Know You Rider" (trad., arr. The Grateful Dead)
[edit] Side three
- "Brown-Eyed Woman" (Garcia, Hunter)
- "Hurts Me Too" (Elmore James)
- "Ramble On Rose" (Garcia, Hunter)
[edit] Side four
- "Sugar Magnolia" (Weir, Hunter)
- "Mr. Charlie" (McKernan, Hunter)
- "Tennessee Jed" (Garcia, Hunter)
[edit] Side five
- "Truckin'" (Garcia, Lesh, Weir, Hunter) →
- "Epilogue" (The Grateful Dead)
[edit] Side six
- "Prelude" (The Grateful Dead) →
- "(Walk Me Out In The) Morning Dew" (Bonnie Dobson, Tim Rose)
[edit] Bonus tracks, 2001
- Further information: The Golden Road (1965-1973) disc ten and disc eleven
[edit] Recording dates
The actual dates for most of the tracks have been determined as follows: [1]
"Cumberland Blues" - April 8, 1972
"Brown-Eyed Women" - April 14, 1972
"Jack Straw", "China Cat Sunflower", "I Know You Rider" and "Tennessee Jed" - May 3, 1972
"Sugar Magnolia" - May 4, 1972
"He's Gone" - May 10, 1972
"You Win Again" and "It Hurts Me Too" - May 24, 1972
"Truckin'", "Epilogue", "Prelude" and "Morning Dew" - May 26, 1972
"One More Saturday Night" - May 26 1972
"Ramble On Rose" - May 26, 1972
"Mr. Charlie" - May 23 1972
[edit] Personnel
- Jerry Garcia - lead guitar, vocals
- Bob Weir - rhythm guitar, vocals
- Phil Lesh - electric bass, vocals
- Ron "Pigpen" McKernan - organ, harmonica, vocals
- Keith Godchaux - piano
- Donna Godchaux - vocals
- Bill Kreutzmann - drums
- Robert Hunter - songwriter
[edit] Charts
Album - Billboard
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Pop Albums | 12 |
Singles - Billboard
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | "Sugar Magnolia" | Pop Singles | 91 |
