MERL SAUNDERS & JERRY GARCIA
KEYSTONE COMPANIONS: THE COMPLETE 1973 FANTASY RECORDINGS,
SEPTEMBER 25 2012
231:51
DISC ONE
1/Hi-Heel Sneakers
Robert Higgenbotham/8:14
2/Keepers
Saunders/7:54
3/The Harder They Come
Jimmy Cliff/6:23
4/It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
Bob Dylan/6:21
5/It's Too Late (She's Gone)
Chuck Willis/7:47
6/My Funny Valentine
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers/18:14
7/Mystery Train
Junior Parker / Sam Phillips/11:37
DISC TWO
1/I Second That Emotion/10:59
2/Someday Baby
Sam Hopkins/10:15
3/Merl's Tune
Saunders/13:34
4/It Ain't No Use
Hollinger/9:36
5/Positively 4th Street
Bob Dylan/7:45
6/How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)
Lamont Dozier / Brian Holland / Eddie Holland/8:09
DISC THREE
1/It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
Bob Dylan/7:06
2/Keepers
Saunders/6:34
3/One Kind Favor
Blind Lemon Jefferson/6:39
4/That's All Right, Mama
Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup/4:11
5/The Harder They Come
Jimmy Cliff/10:09
6/My Funny Valentine
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers/18:05
7/Money Honey
Jesse Stone/8:21
DISC FOUR
1/Someday Baby
Sam Hopkins/10:15
2/Merl's Tune
Saunders/12:21
3/Like a Road Leading Home/11:02
4/How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)
Lamont Dozier / Brian Holland / Eddie Holland/10:20
The recordings that made up the original Live at Keystone albums by Jerry Garcia, Merl Saunders, John Kahn, and Bill Vitt took place over two nights in July of 1973. The band had been playing a regular gig at the famed San Francisco venue for some time, but it was here that it gelled. Their program was a wide range of covers from Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come" to Motown numbers, Bob Dylan songs, jazz standards, and even a wholly improvised jam. Recorded by the Grateful Dead's sound engineers Betty Cantor and Rex Jackson, the first release was issued in late 1973, compiled from the "best" of both nights. In 1988, two volumes called Keystone Encores were released on three discs. This deluxe four-disc package contains remastered versions of all the material from both those concerts presented in original running order. In restores the three-and-a-half-minute jam "Space" with the full, nearly 14-minute version, now entitled "Merl's Tune." In addition, there are six more previously unreleased selections. All are different takes of songs that were featured on the earlier sets, including "The Harder They Come," "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry," "My Funny Valentine," "Merl's Tune," "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)," and "Someday Baby." Taking it all in, it's fascinating to hear how complementary Garcia and Saunders were, and the degree to which they trusted one another in moving a set arrangement in another direction on the spot. Contrast the two versions of "My Funny Valentine." On the latter one, Saunders shifts tonalities from a straight, subdued reading toward a more modal and exploratory one. Garcia responds by extending the tune's entire harmonic reach. The rhythm section, too, is unshakable -- check their astonishing interplay and shifting time signatures on the first version of "Merl's Tune." There are many surprises to be found here, not the least of which is the remastered sound by Paul Blakemore, who retained the atmosphere that made the original recordings so appealing. His attention to detail in dynamics, textures, and presence is noteworthy. This box also includes a poster, a pin, a coaster, and a "scratch book" -- it seems matchbooks are no longer allowed. The definitive presentation of these recordings underscores what a historic -- if low-key -- partnership this was. The music, by any standard, is simply excellent.
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