American Beauty
There's no fillers here, as the band's collaboration with songwriter Robert Hunter yields another great collection, a selection of blues-tinged country compositions. Its easy to see why the versatile Jerry Garcia is held in such high esteem, his contribution here (as usual) is superb, an example being his acoustic guitar playing on "Friend of The Devil" which is a delight, but I'm certainly not overlooking the great contribution from the rest of the band.
Its sometimes said that the band's vocals lack power, and that may be so, but personally I don't want to be blown out of my chair with powerhouse vocals when listening to these songs. I find the vocals here to be sensitive and emotional, and blend perfectly with the often beautiful and tender music/lyrics.
My fave tracks are "Box of Rain" - the personal pain behind Phil Lesh's aching vocals add extra emotion and poignancy to this classic opening track. Then "Friend of The Devil". Also, the truly beautiful "Ripple" with it's moving lyrics and vocals. The catchy "Truckin" is an uplifting foot-tapper. A great album from a uniquely special band, an album that still sounds fresh over forty years after it's release.
Its sometimes said that the band's vocals lack power, and that may be so, but personally I don't want to be blown out of my chair with powerhouse vocals when listening to these songs. I find the vocals here to be sensitive and emotional, and blend perfectly with the often beautiful and tender music/lyrics.
My fave tracks are "Box of Rain" - the personal pain behind Phil Lesh's aching vocals add extra emotion and poignancy to this classic opening track. Then "Friend of The Devil". Also, the truly beautiful "Ripple" with it's moving lyrics and vocals. The catchy "Truckin" is an uplifting foot-tapper. A great album from a uniquely special band, an album that still sounds fresh over forty years after it's release.
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