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Dispatches from the Highlands
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membership and touring a foreign continent. In hindsight, that they pulled the tour o is no surprise considering what they had already undergone and would later accomplish, but in the moment, logistical aspects were anything but smooth sailing. at the results sound so perfect and encapsulate an entire career that had yet to completely unfold is its true beauty. e tour has since gone on to be released in full on CD. Volume two of the immensely successful original release dropped in 2011. It's also seen recent record store day features, and the entirety of the four-night, tour- concluding Lyceum run will soon become available on a 24-LP set. is is the Grateful Dead, and the 22-show spring jaunt back in Europe '72 is the gi that keeps on giving.
Album Notes from Erickson “The Soundtrack to your Chill”
Grateful Dead Europe '72, Vol. 1 & 2 is past May of- fered an opportunity to celebrate a tour that concluded 50 years ago, has since become immortal-
ized on numerous releases and gone down in the annals as one of the nest in the career of a band known for their live performances. Just like public opinion on the San Francisco pioneers, that of this transatlantic run has only grown over time. Deservingly. e spring of '72 was a period of transition for the Grateful Dead. It marked the last tour with original keyboardist and blues-focused organ playing of Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. It also featured his then counterpart and future replacement Keith Godchaux, who had joined a few months prior and was followed shortly thereaer by his wife Donna on vocals. e Dead embraced Keith's piano and its prominence sent them in a new direction as a band, which, combined with the departure of second drummer Mickey Hart a year earlier, provided fertile ground for the streamlined "classic" '72-'74 era notable for its nimbleness and clarity. I am not alone in the fanbase of those born years later who "understood" the Dead because of shows like these. Yes, it's easier to grab on to than some of those '60s explorations or '80s drums/space, but it's also ridiculously good. e spring tour would be immortalized that November on Europe '72 . Choice cuts of concert staples and others that would soon ll that role, many of which never had studio versions formally released, made for a triple LP representing a band at (one of) the peaks of its powers while simultaneously adjusting
MJ Lenderman Boat Songs
MJ had me hooked from "Jordan." Jordan wanted to sign with Adidas for shoes But Nike gave him an o er that he could not refuse It wasn't a pizza that poisoned him in Utah, with a hotel bill to prove ree thousand dollars on just ve dudes I bought fake Jordans, they weren't even shoes Oh, he looked so sick It was all over the news But it wasn't the pizza and it wasn't the u Yeah, I love drinking too, I love drinking too William Blake it is not, but so constitutes "Hangover Game," the rst track on MJ Len- derman's Boat Songs . Most sports fans my age will be intimately familiar with game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals. Whether those from that generation or any other will enjoy the Ashe- ville resident's third solo release as much as me, I cannot say. But if you're into chill, lo- , 90s indie leaning tunes with tongue-in-cheek lyrics and a slacker vibe, you just might.
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