That's right, #4 is a surprise. In their own words:
"I'm Uncle Sam,
that's who I am.
Been hiding out
in a rock 'n roll band."
In combining the following attributes, they became literally great:
* The most concert-goers, ever: 25 million over 30 years
* Lyricists to compose the words that some--myself included--consider the best in Rock
* A cult following that developed by word-of-mouth to become one of Rock's most famous
* The broadest playlist: approximately 500 songs played, 100 of those often, and probably Rock's greatest variety of genres:
Songs and their genres:
40. One More Saturday Night -- Party
39. Mexicali Blues -- Cantina
38. Box of Rain -- Folk
37. Loose Lucy -- Soul
36. Picasso Moon -- Arthouse
35. Dark Star – Space
34. Estimated Prophet -- Reggae
33. Cumberland Blues -- Bluegrass
32. Victim or the Crime - Avant Garde
31. Not Fade Away -- Rock Standard
30. To Lay Me Down – Prayer
29. Me and My Uncle -- Ballad
28. Big River – Swing
27. Playing In The Band -- Self-referential
26. Brown-Eyed Women -- Historical
25. Promised Land – Early Rock
24. US Blues - Patriotic
24. US Blues - Patriotic
23. Wharf Rat – Christian
22. Iko Iko – Cajun
21. St. Stephen – Medieval
20. Peggy-O – Traditional
19. New Speedway Boogie – Rap
18. Sampson & Delilah – Spiritual
17. El Paso – Tex-Mex
21. St. Stephen – Medieval
20. Peggy-O – Traditional
19. New Speedway Boogie – Rap
18. Sampson & Delilah – Spiritual
17. El Paso – Tex-Mex
16. Turn On Your Love Light – R&B
15. Shakedown Street – Disco
15. Shakedown Street – Disco
14. Blues For Allah – Arabist
13. Sugar Magnolia / Sunshine Daydream - Nature
12. Feel Like A Stranger – Punk
11. Casey Jones - Railroad
10. Jack Straw – Cowboy
9. Fire On The Mountain – Pacific Island
8. Mississippi Half-step Uptown Toodleloo – Ragtime
7. Sugaree -- Waltz
9. Fire On The Mountain – Pacific Island
8. Mississippi Half-step Uptown Toodleloo – Ragtime
7. Sugaree -- Waltz
6. China Cat Sunflower – Asian
5. Eyes of the World – Jazz
4. Terrapin Station – Scottish
5. Eyes of the World – Jazz
4. Terrapin Station – Scottish
3. Alabama Getaway - Boogie-woogie
2. Stella Blue – Blues
1. Tennesse Jed – Country
(Included in that 500 songs were 82 covers of others’ work; in the above list: #16: Deadric Malone & Joseph Scott, #17: Marty Robbins, #18: traditional, #22: Dr. John, #25: Chuck Berry, #28: Johnny Cash, #29: John Phillips, and #31: Buddy Holly).
The reason they're a surprise is that they intentionally avoided the limelight. This meant that the hit-maker machinery was turned off for the most part (they had minor hits with "Ripple", "Truckin'" and "Touch of Grey"), and the focus was instead on the improvisation and group-mind fusion that is live performance. Rather than a set play-list, practiced over-and-over, they emphasized timeliness, choosing appropriate songs as the mood struck. But that’s life at its best--and when you think about it, true creative freedom.
And the critical recognition will come, eventually. Songs that, when recorded, deserved to be heard by a wider audience, like "Bertha", "Scarlet Begonias", and "Ramble On Rose", to name a few, will, at an adequate historical distance, shine brightly. When all is said and done, the un-hyped public demeanor, as well as the excess paraphernalia of the times--shocking to some and cautionary to be sure--will sink into irrelevancy, as did lack of self-promotion and the personal foibles of past musical greats, from our country’s jazz pioneers back through Beethoven.
....................................
Each band or performer is graded on four things:
1. Innovation
2. Influence in my life--as a typical American
3. Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
4. Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music
10/7/9/9 = 35 out of a perfect 40
1. Innovation
2. Influence in my life--as a typical American
3. Integrity: the band's approach to music (just making a buck or honing a craft?)
4. Immortality--am I, a typical American--still eager to hear their music
10/7/9/9 = 35 out of a perfect 40
...................................
Behind the Curtain: And who is this band that on September 16, 1978 performed at the Egyptian pyramids–the only rock act to have ever done so? The Grateful Dead.
