By Steve Romanoski
Acoustic Disc Recordings
personnel: Jerry Garcia- guitar, banjo & vocals/ David Grisman- mandolin, banjo & vocals/ Pete Rowan- guitar & vocals/ Bill Monroe- mandolin & vocals/ Vassar Clements- fiddle/ John Kahn- bass/ Joe Cravens- percussion/ Jim Kerwin- bass & fiddle/ Ewan MacColl- vocals/ numerous unidentified musicians
Grateful Dawg (live)/ Wayfaring Stranger/ Sweet Sunny South/ Old & In The Way Intro/ Pig In A Pen/ Dawg's Waltz/ Sitting Here In Limbo/ Off To Sea Once More/ Jenny Jenkins/ Arabia/ The Thrill Is Gone/ Friend Of The Devil/ Grateful Dawg (studio)
Some might consider Jerry Garcia and David Grisman to be an odd couple for inclusion in the world of serious bluegrass and acoustic music. In reality that assumption could not be more of a falsehood! Both Garcia and Grisman have championed the exploration of bluegrass and traditional music alongside their own progressive styles of art. Garcia and The Grateful Dead presented their audience a full plate of musical flavors during their extended career, which included everything from straight out bluegrass to experimental electronic soundz. Grisman has participated in numerous bluegrass sessions and has brought the mandolin into frontiers that even Bill Monroe could only dream about. It is only natural that these two artists would find an artistic kinship and create another vehicle to explore the many facets of this music. Grateful Dawg is a documentary by David Grisman's daughter Gillian, which illustrates the bond that existed between these two artists and spread to the musicians around them.
Pete Rowan states, early in the film, that Jerry Garcia and David Grisman were "born from the same cosmic egg." And the film truly communicates this bond in a highly entertaining manner. The show begins with an intro by Grisman, which attempts to explain how the paths of these two artists have crossed over the years and the musical fruit, which has been harvested, from their fields. The theme of the film is the title cut, which is presented live in the opening moments of the film. The tune, "Grateful Dawg," is truly a blend of styles. If you've spent any time listening to the music of the Grateful Dead, you'll find the signature Jerry Garcia guitar riffs present throughout. Grisman, too, injects phrasing and sounds that have become a staple in his performance. But each of these, very personal, statements rapidly become a single message that is transmitted with brazen eloquence by Garcia and Grisman. The film presents comments and statements from participants like Grisman's longtime manager, Craig Miller, Vassar Clements, Deborah Koons Garcia and Rowan into the film, during the music to tell the story. The soundtrack, on the other hand, allows the listener a full portion of the music. Thus, the listener is exposed to the best of both worlds. It's very easy to find the connections between past an present styles by digesting the music, while the film counters with a saga about two old friends who actually met in 1964 at a Bill Monroe concert at Sunset Park, Pennsylvania.
The title cut holds more than a duet format. Both Grisman and Garcia have built reputations around an artistic generosity that lives within their ensembles. Here, Grisman and Garcia stand aside and let percussionist Joe Cravens and bassist Jim Kerwin hold court. Craven, in particular, generates a pulse that is slowly expanded as his solo segment moves on. It's really magic to experience a percussionist with an element of taste in his work. Cravens is just that and he does more than simply expose the beat. He improvises around it. Kerwin later provides the link between the harsh reality of a percussion solo alongside the melodic approach embraced by both David Grisman and Jerry Garcia.
Early in the film, Gillian Grisman, provides the audience with a glimpse of the past with a series of still photos of Garcia and Grisman in their initial bluegrass days. Included is a shot of Jerry playing fiddle in 1964 and band photos of Garcia's Asphalt Jungle Mountain Boys and Grisman's New York City Ramblers and Garrett Mountain Boys. The background music here is Bill Monroe's "Wayfaring Stranger" as a backdrop. Here the listener can feel the connections between Monroe's soulful mando work and Grisman's energized, but respectful, playing. However the scene shifts back to concert footage for a banjo duet between Jerry and David on "Sweet Sunny South."
Perhaps the most intriguing segment of the Grisman/Garcia connection occurred in 1973 when, during a break in the touring schedule of The Grateful Dead, Jerry and David put together a straight bluegrass band. This ensemble, christened Old & In The Way, consisted of Vassar Clements (and occasionally Richard Greene) on fiddle, bassist John Kahn, Peter Rowan on guitar, Jerry on banjo and Grisman holdin' down the mando chores. This spawned a recording and countless live shows around the country. The soundtrack includes the entire band intro and a version of "Pig In A Pen." Now, if you believe that Garcia and Grisman couldn't translate their sound in a bluegrass direction, you obviously ain't heard Old & In The Way. The film again offers still shots of the band in 73. I would have loved to see some film of the band playing but it was not to be.
The film moves through several other points in the Grisman/Garcia partnership with some additional concert and interview footage. It's really interesting how few boundaries got in the way of the music. The project illustrates this by presenting a traditional sea shanty performed from an old recording of folk icon Ewan MacColl. Then contrasting it against a live version from the mindset of the Garcia/Grisman Band. Again, these musicians aren't rigid in their approach to anything, however, the tone of the original is echoed in the version that Jerry and David produced. The same sense of value is heard in the included version of a children's song, "Jenny Jenkins." Here one can experience the duo's gentle side and, in the film, experience how David convinced Jerry to do a recording of music for children. Few audiences are more taken into in the spirit of music than children. And it's natural that Jerry and David were able to capture that simple emotion in their rendition of the tune.
The duo is shown performing with the band on stage at The Warfield Theater in San Francisco, in Grisman's studio and in living room. They were engulfed in music and their plans for the future, which always included music. David commented that they thought that they could do this for the rest of their lives. And, they did.
The crème of the crop is an extended version of Grisman's composition "Arabia." The tune's structure is free form, yet controlled. Perhaps the facet that holds this kind of work together is the mutual understanding that's evident in the bond between these two exceptional players. Yet the intensity of the moment is evident on Garcia's face when they show the band working the composition out in the studio. The meandering performance is textured with intricate layers of sound. Grisman noted that the composition was a potpourri of elements. David had an Arabic sounding tune, which was matched with Garcia's fusional guitar and a Cuban folk song from Kerwin. Each player then found their particular groove yet never broke from the whole. And, while the tune holds to sixteen minutes in length, the continued interaction makes this one a special experience.
Gillian Grisman assumed the chore of producing a film about her father and a musical legend. David Grisman insisted that his daughter use complete versions of the songs so the film would be more about the music than the people involved. I believe that Grateful Dawg accomplishes this goal. The music in this film is intense and the effect is multiplied in the soundtrack. There are introspective moments with Jerry Garcia in this documentary that create a vision of a man who loved music. David Grisman noted, in the film, that he was the disciplined one in the duo and that Jerry lived more for the moment. Yet, in the end, this duo produced magnificently and learned to be excited about working with each other. Grateful Dawg is a fine film. It brings out the joy of making music alongside the performance of some stunning work. I came away with a deeper appreciation of both David Grisman and Jerry Garcia as a result.
The soundtrack for Grateful Dawg, like the film, features each piece of music in its entirety. Unlike the film, the soundtrack contains just the music and not the interview snippets. As usual David Grisman's production work is crisp and clear. Each composition actually breathes and brings an air of pure excitement to the listener. Additionally Acoustic Disc didn't cut this project short. The CD includes over seventy-five minutes of music, which is something that most labels steadfast refuse to supply on a recording.
Grateful Dawg, the film, is in limited release around the country. To find a theater near you check out gratefuldawg.com and then go out and see it if you can!
End of article.
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