Drummer Bill Kreutzmann commented, "Wales came to us through Jerry, who played with him in side projects. Howard Wales, another musician from outside of the band, added keyboards to three songs. "I just bumped into Jerry at a baseball game in Fairfax, and he said, 'Hey, you wanna play on this record we're doing?' " commented Grisman, whose playing is heard on " Friend of the Devil" and especially " Ripple". It was also during the recording of this album that Garcia first collaborated with mandolinist David Grisman, a friend who had recently relocated to California following the dissolution of Earth Opera. Lyricist Hunter commented "We went back into American folk tradition but, being experimenters, nothing would do but that we try to reinvent that." Compared to Workingman's Dead, American Beauty had even less lead guitar work from Jerry Garcia, who increasingly filled the void with pedal steel guitar. īoth Workingman's Dead and American Beauty were innovative at the time for their fusion of bluegrass, rock and roll, folk, and, especially, country music. Barncard also mused "I had heard bad stories about engineers' interactions with the Dead but what I found were a bunch of hardworking guys". Instead, studio staff engineer Stephen Barncard replaced Bob Matthews as producer – "a move that irks Matthews to this day" (Matthews had co-produced the band's two previous albums ). In between near-constant touring and gigging, recording began only a few months after the release of Workingman's Dead – without their regular sound crew, who were out on the road as part of the Medicine Ball Caravan tour (which the Dead were originally scheduled to join). The album was produced after the discovery that the band's manager, Lenny Hart (father of drummer Mickey Hart), had renewed their contract with Warner Brothers Records without their knowledge, and then skipped town with a sizable chunk of the band's wealth.
Included are Phil Lesh's " Box of Rain" and Bob Weir's " Sugar Magnolia", both written with Hunter, and "Operator", Ron "Pigpen" McKernan's only singing-songwriting effort on a Grateful Dead studio album. However, unlike the previous effort, where almost all the songs were written solely by the pair, the album saw more input from the rest of the band. This was the only time the band would return to the studio so quickly. Recording Īmerican Beauty was the result of a prolific period of the songwriting partnership of Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter – one that yielded two studio albums in one year for the Grateful Dead. In 2003, the album was ranked number 258 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, 261 in a 2012 revised list, and 215 in a 2020 revised list. On July 11, 1974, the album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, and it later reached Platinum and Double Platinum certification in 19, respectively. Upon release, American Beauty entered the Billboard 200 chart, ultimately peaking at number 30 during a nineteen-week stay in January 1971. Records, the album continued the folk rock and country music style of their previous album Workingman's Dead, issued earlier in the year. Released in November 1970, by Warner Bros. the Dead’s iconic skull and lightning bolt logo) to books, footwear and even condiments inspired by the band, check out our picks below.American Beauty is the fifth studio album (and sixth overall) by rock band the Grateful Dead. From tees emblazoned with the Stealie (a.k.a.
Whether you’re a well-traveled Deadhead or a recent convert, we’ve rounded up the best Grateful Dead merch for channeling the group during your next auditory adventure. Tickets are available now on Vivid Seats. Dates for the Dead + Company Vegas residency have officially been announced for May and July 2024, featuring Dead legends Bob Weir and Mickey Hart alongside Mayer, bassist Oteil Burbridge, keyboardist Jeff Chimenti, and drummer Jay Lane.
The band has gone on tour every summer (with the exception of 2020 during the pandemic), but lineups have occasionally shifted, especially with Kreutzmann’s health issues. While you can always tailgate and trade at Shakedown Streets in Vegas, there are other ways for Deadheads to pay tribute to the psychedelic gurus of rock.ĭead and Company started in 2015 with three of the band’s original members: Weir, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann, along with Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti. While last year was supposed to mark the final tour for Dead and Company, the John Mayer-featuring band will now be kicking off a lengthy residency at Las Vegas’ Sphere in the Spring. If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Rolling Stone may receive an affiliate commission.