ALBUM REVIEW: Grateful Dead - Europe '72

    By 1972, the Grateful Dead had assuredly established themselves as one of the live acts to see - you wouldn't "get it" unless you were there, man. It helped that in recent years since their 1967 studio debut, the group had been putting out an increasing amount of live records for listeners as a means for you to get the feeling within your own home - the major culprit here was 1969's Live/Dead, still one of rock's seminal live recordings and 1971's Grateful Dead (or Skull and Roses) which helped to further garner a beloved group of fans to the group, even with its studio overdubbing. However, their 1972 tour was not guided by their psychedelic past of albums like Anthem of the Sun and Aoxomoxoa, but the group's 1970 studio albums in Workingman's Dead and American Beauty, both of which were greatly influenced by the sounds and spirit of Americana. The entire Western Europe tour stretched across 22 shows, 49 days, 6 countries, and over 70 hours of recorded concert material - Warner Bros. was worried about the incredibly costly tour, so as a result every single show was recorded in the hopes of getting a live record out of it. A live record they sure got, as Europe '72 spans three discs and nearly two hours worth of performances. In spite of a long runtime and expansive versions of songs three times their initial length, Europe '72 may be an even better capture of the Dead's power than Live/Dead, as the group's methodical musicianship and adventurous jamming creates an assuredly impressive collection of live recordings, and a certifiable case for one of the group's greatest albums released.

     While the actual runtime of the album may be long at around 110 minutes, one thing that Europe '72 certainly doesn't do is waste your time or screw around. Throughout the album, the Dead grab from virtually every era of their career, from their debut (see closing track, a cover of Bonnie Dobson's "Morning Dew") to the psychedelia of the late 60s (there's a fantastic medley of "China Cat Sunflower" into "I Know You Rider", the latter of which had been a concert staple since their initial days) to the Americana of the 70s (A 13-minute jam on "Truckin'" opens disc three). This variation in the group's material is ample to keeping the album moving (or truckin', if you'd prefer), and at points helps the album to merge across various genres; somewhere between Americana, psyche, folk, and pure jamming. The other crucial way the album keeps up its momentum is in the variation of tone in the songs, easily apparent in the album's very first side - starting with the upbeat and relatively quick "Cumberland Blues" before moving into the slow and more somber vamp on "He's Gone" before ending on the high energy rocker that is "One More Saturday Night", which always felt to me like a throwback to the days of 50s rock and roll with its bumping piano and its chorus. Then, of course, there's the band's quality - plenty of praise has been levied at Jerry Garcia's guitar skills (see the climatic "Epilogue" for a great demonstration of his skill), but Phil Lesh makes a great time-keeper on bass, as does Bill Kreutzmann on drums. There's also the impressive Keith Godchaux who gives a very honky-tonk style on moments like "Ramble On Rose" and a more driving feel on a song such as "Sugar Magnolia". There's also the stylings of Ron McKernan (or "Pigpen"), although admittedly I have a hard time finding his organ amidst the sea of other instruments - he's certainly present, though, and he does his job in filling out the band, while also delivering a decent vocal shot on a rendition of Elmore James' "Hurts Me Too".

    It may be redundant to talk about the track selection, but is that not one of the most important part of a live album? Luckily, the Dead grab some fantastic moments from their tour, and they do good to choose a few moments that weren't on any album prior - really getting your money's worth with those non-albums, which make up more than a good chunk of the album. It helps that plenty of these non-album moments are the album's golden gems; the gentle "Ramble On Rose" has its fair share of fun metaphors and a lovely chorus to boot; the Dead's ace in the hole is those three-part harmonies that they whip out during many songs on this record. Need proof? Look at the previously mentioned and sensitive "He's Gone", one of the album's immediate highlights, and possibly the best thing I've heard from the Grateful Dead at all. The medley from "China Cat Sunflower" into "I Know You Rider" was not only a brilliant transition, but proves one of the album's sharper moments from the group, as does a great longer take on "Sugar Magnolia". The combination of "Truckin'" into the more exploratory "Epilogue" that takes up all of Side E on vinyl copies is a fun adventure in its own right, as is the final side's "Prologue" into the tender "Morning Dew". Even the album at its weakest with the Hank Williams cover in "You Win Again" has a decent amount of fun at the core, even with the methodical "Hurts Me Too", which has a fantastic display of Godchaux's piano. Really, there's plenty throughout this collection of performances for the listener to enjoy.

    This record is, of course, only a small chunk of the story - in September of 2011, the entirety of the Dead's spring 1972 tour across Europe was released, and is filled with even more goodies and expansive takes on their material (including one performance with a 36-minute version of "The Other One" from their Anthem of the Sun album). As of writing, I've only gotten through the first two performances out of 22, but someday I'll get through the rest. As it stands, though, Europe '72 will be quite enough for anyone ranging from serious Deadhead to casuals wanting to try and "get" the group. Even with that wide disparity in potential audience, there lays very little doubt in my mind that Europe '72 is a testament to the Dead's ability, and quite possibly their greatest live album put down - still, this is a group that thrives off their live performances, and I have a feeling I'll be doing a lot more Dead listening in the future. What a long strange trip it's been, eh?

RATING: ✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯

Listen to Europe '72.