History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice)

History of the Grateful Dead,
Volume One (Bear's Choice)
A complex interlaced image of blue, red, and white centered around the Grateful Dead "Steal Your Face" skull logo
Live album by Grateful Dead
Released July 13, 1973 (1973-07-13)
Recorded February 13–14, 1970
Genre Jam, rock, folk rock, blues
Length 47:28
Label Warner Bros.
Producer Owsley Stanley
Compiler Owsley Stanley
Grateful Dead chronology
Europe '72
(1972)		 History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice)
(1973)		 Wake of the Flood
(1973)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [1]
Rolling StoneMixed[2]

History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice) is the ninth album and the fourth live album by the Grateful Dead, released in July 1973 on Warner Bros. Records. It offers concert highlights from the band's performances of February 13 and 14, 1970 at the Fillmore East in New York City, and peaked at number 60 on the Billboard 200.[3]

Content

The album was compiled as a tribute of sorts to Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, the band's original keyboard player and blues aficionado, who died while it was being prepared. The "Bear" of the title is Owsley Stanley, underground chemist turned Dead sound man. The original album was recorded and produced by Stanley, and fans often simply refer to the album as Bear's Choice.[4] Side one consists of acoustic performances by McKernan, Jerry Garcia, and Bob Weir on country blues material, with one original from Workingman's Dead and an interpretation of one 1950s rock and roll number by the Everly Brothers. The second side features performances by the entire band backing McKernan on two repertoire items, "Smokestack Lightning" by Howlin' Wolf, and "Hard to Handle" by Otis Redding.

The mournful "Black Peter" received the most amount of album oriented rock radio airplay. The album was originally intended as the first in a series but Volume Two never came to be, as the band's contract with Warner Bros. Records was not renewed. The parenthetical "Bear's Choice" also prevented confusion with a homonymous, non-contractual album, in retail bins at the time.

The album was remastered for compact disc in 2001 as part of The Golden Road (1965–1973) box set, and later released separately in 2003. Four bonus tracks were included: one from the same run at the Fillmore East, and three from a week earlier at the Fillmore West in San Francisco. In keeping with the tributary nature of the original record, three of the four bonus tracks feature lead vocals by McKernan. Dick's Picks Volume 4, released in 1996 from the "Dick's Picks" archival series, also chronicles these performances.

Cover art and iconography

A large complement of iconography is associated with the Grateful Dead. Along with the "Skull & Roses", dancing terrapins and the "Lightning Skull/Stealie", perhaps the most ubiquitous are the "Dancing Bears", which notably made their first appearance on the rear cover of this album. Designed by Bob Thomas, they have been incorporated into an endless array of both fan-produced and official merchandise and ephemera. Though usually referred to as the "Dancing Bears" they are, in fact, marching and not dancing. The front cover also has the first appearance of the "Good Old Grateful Dead" epithet.

Track listing

Side one

  1. "Katie Mae" (Lightnin' Hopkins) – 4:44
  2. "Dark Hollow" (Bill Browning) – 3:52
  3. "I've Been All Around This World" (traditional) – 4:18
  4. "Wake Up Little Susie" (Felice and Boudleaux Bryant) – 2:31
  5. "Black Peter" (Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter) – 7:27

Side two

  1. "Smokestack Lightning" (Howlin' Wolf) – 17:59
  2. "Hard to Handle" (Al Bell, Allen Jones, and Otis Redding) – 6:15

2001 reissue bonus tracks

  1. "Good Lovin'" (Rudy Clark and Arthur Resnick) – 8:56
  2. "Big Boss Man" (Al Smith, Luther Dixon) – 4:53
  3. "Smokestack Lightning" (Howlin' Wolf) – 15:11
  4. "Sitting on Top of the World" (Lonnie Chatmon, Walter Vinson) – 3:20

Notes

Personnel

Technical personnel

Charts

Album – Billboard

Year Chart Position
1973 Pop Albums 60[3]

References

  1. ↑ Planer, Lindsay. History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice) at AllMusic
  2. ↑ Davis, Stephen (September 27, 1973). History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice), Rolling Stone
  3. 1 2 "Artist Search for "grateful dead"".
  4. ↑ Bear's Choice on The Best of Web Site
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