Towards the tail end of the 1980's, Bob Dylan was somewhat disillusioned with the direction of his own music, and so began trying to regain it through his fandom for the Grateful Dead. To him, they represented a clear exit door for this growing world of artistic commercialism, which began to subtly taint his work in the latter part of the decade. Both intrigued and fearful of this necessary change, Dylan decided to join the band on tour in 1987 as a third guitarist, before putting his name to an immortal project with the band. That spirit of live show magic that had clearly struck a rod of lightning in Dylan’s career was captured on their 1989 live album 'Dylan & The Dead', which consisted of seven songs written and sung by Dylan, with the Grateful Dead providing accompaniment. Rattling through a string of Dylan hits, the album showcases the unlikely synergy between these two artists, unshackled by the expectations of artistic commercialism, they indulge themselves as they descended into spiralling renditions of 'All Along The Watchtower' and 'Slow Train'. A clear, unspoken agreement existed between both Dylan and The Dead on this record, that ensured the songs they played would be nothing more than loose blueprints for a plan of musical spontaneity. But while the Grateful Dead might have, on paper at least, seemed like a rather bizarre and esoteric choice to return Dylan to a state of glory, there is a transcendental crossover that exists between the two artists that is showcased on the album. It was recorded during a successful stadium tour known as the Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead 1987 Tour, featuring the two artists performing separately and together, but although it achieved strong initial sales, the album was poorly received by critics, although they did have some kind words for several of the tracks. Despite this, the album initially sold well, reaching No. 37 on the Billboard charts in the U.S., No. 38 in the UK, and earning a Gold certification in the U.S. Prior to embarking on the tour the two artists rehearsed nearly fifty different songs together, mostly Dylan compositions, but also including Buddy Holly's 'Oh Boy', Paul Simon's 'The Boy In The Bubble', and Kris Kristofferson's 'They Killed Him'. I've taken the very best of these recordings and compiled a double-disc set of nineteen of those rehearsals, of which only three eventually appeared on the live album.
Track listing
Disc I
01 When I Paint My Masterpiece
02 Man Of Peace
03 I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
04 I Want You
05 Dead Man, Dead Man
06 Queen Jane Approximately
07 In The Summertime
08 If Not For You
09 Gotta Serve Somebody
10 Tomorrow Is A Long Time
Disc II
01 John Brown
02 The Wicked Messenger
03 Watching The River Flow
04 They Killed Him
05 All I Really Want To Do
06 John Hardy
07 Pledging My Time
08 The Ballad Of Frankie Lee And Judas Priest
09 It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
