American Beauty

Grateful Dead - American Beauty

American Beauty
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Category: Music CD
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CD Details

Artist: Grateful Dead
Brand: GRATEFUL DEAD
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
CD Release Date: 2003-02-25
Music Label: Rhino
Soundtracks:
  1. Box Of Rain
  2. Friend Of the Devil
  3. Sugar Magnolia
  4. Operator
  5. Candyman
  6. Ripple
  7. Brokedown Palace
  8. Till the Morning Comes
  9. Attics Of My Life
  10. Truckin'
  11. Truckin'
  12. Friend Of the Devil
  13. Candyman
  14. Till the Morning Comes
  15. Attics Of My Life
  16. Truckin'
  17. Bonus Track 1
  18. Bonus Track 2

Music reviews of American Beauty

Music Review: Mildly Grateful
Rating: 3 Stars

American Beauty - The Grateful Dead (2.5 stars)
Original Release: 11/1/1970

Songs:

Box of Rain (3 stars)
Loose playing rolls along like a river after rain in the hills. The lyrics ask what one can do to help another through the illusion of life created by ourselves. The song builds very subtly in the brief bridge in the middle but goes no further. There is almost a nervous energy, but not quite.

Friend of the Devil (3 stars)
Singer sounds like a character from a John Steinbeck or the character "Behind Blue Eyes"; someone always on the run maintaining a sense of self-sympathy. Folksy guitar and instruments just dance out the notes. It is interesting listening to the lyrical protagonist's issues and his casual acceptance of it all.

Sugar Magnolia (2 stars)
Is this about a woman or a mood-modifying substance? I suppose an artist's goal is to let the listener decide. Nice imagery and a slight boogie to the rhythm on this song.

Operator (2 stars)
Man desperately trying to drop a line to a woman going her own way; in this day of cellphones and facebook this wouldn't be such a problem. The song sounds like a traditional country or folk song.

Candy Man (2 stars)
Slowing down the tempo a notch, there is a slight swing to the melody. Gambler passes through town. Men are drawn by lady luck; women are drawn to the traveller. Life is a series of random events for the rambler, occassional urge to violence. The candy is the chance to win just once I suppose or a metaphor for the effects of cocaine. Instrumental section brings a plaintive guitar and a limp into a minor key at places.

Ripple (3 stars)
Interesting song to set against ELP's Take a Pebble (albums released in close proximity). Here, the individual's path is his own. The message complements the passive lecture of "Box of Rain". Water seems to be a metaphor for the pain and suffering that is part of our lives. The song ends with a small crowd singing in the background.

Brokedown Palace (2 stars)
Lyrics speak metaphorically of the body and the river as the means to finally wash that body away. The river sings a heavenly song; the river is home. Loose piano and vocals make the melody twist and turn gently like a river, a mood/mode that is prevalent throughout the album.

Till the Morning Comes (2 stars)
This is a more upbeat song asking a woman to let go of her worrying it seems. The rhythm sports a slight funk.

Attics of My Life (3 stars)
This song is much slower and almost like a chant. At one point the melody skips a beat...was this a purposeful mistake? The lyrics suggest that there is something that one can call upon when one can't find what is wanted in one's self. The vocals are hypnotic as is the pace of the song.

Truckin' (3 stars)
Sounds like a catalog of various experiences, often not pleasant, that the band accumulated from touring around the country. I'm not at all familiar with the band's history, but I can see from the song that they felt hounded at times. This song features more aggressive guitar playing over a shuffle.

Album:
Although I am a fan of some of the Grateful Dead's music I am not a fan of this popular album. I do not know what attracts people to this pleasant though "plain" music. There is mystery in the lyrics and interesting chord progressions but they pass like a brief summer breeze. The album consists of loosely played pop country songs with a lightly infectious quality. Overall the album's tone acts like a mild depressant. The samples will tell it all here, you like the mood or you don't.

MP3 recommendation:
These are the songs that I preferred.

Better Half (3 stars)
1. Box of Rain (3 stars)
2. Friend of the Devil (3 stars)
3. Ripples (3 stars)
4. Attics of My Life (3 stars)
5. Truckin' (3 stars)
More American Beauty free music reviews:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Description of American Beauty

Expanded & remastered (HDCD) version of the band's 1970 classic featuring many of the Dead's best-known songs plus 6 bonus tracks 'Truckin' (single version) & 5 live tracks 'Friend of the Devil', 'Candyman', 'Till The Morning Comes', 'Attics of My Life' & 'Truckin'. Digipak. Warner/Rhino. 2003.
Who says discipline is a bad thing? No one who's heard American Beauty, the Dead's greatest studio achievement. Showcasing 10 concise, country-rooted gems that sound equally good whether you're hanging on the front porch in the afternoon or nursing a bottle after hours, this one could win over many an anti-Jerry. Bewildered by loss both personal and social--the hippie dream was quickly crashing by Beauty's 1970 release date--the band put its querulousness ("Box of Rain") and wry humor ("Truckin'") into the service of a masterwork. The most impressive cut of all may be "Ripple," Garcia's spiritual credo. --Rickey Wright
Who says discipline is a bad thing? No one who's heard American Beauty, the Dead's greatest studio achievement. Showcasing 10 concise, country-rooted gems that sound equally good whether you're hanging on the front porch in the afternoon or nursing a bottle after hours, this one could win over many an anti-Jerry. Bewildered by loss both personal and social--the hippie dream was quickly crashing by Beauty's 1970 release date--the band put its querulousness ("Box of Rain") and wry humor ("Truckin'") into the service of a masterwork. The most impressive cut of all may be "Ripple," Garcia's spiritual credo. --Rickey Wright

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