Jerry Garcia’s 10 Greatest Songs
The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion),” ‘The Grateful Dead’ (1967): This sunny, pedal-down tune is the closest the Dead ever came to AM-radio garage-band pop.
Here Comes Sunshine,” ‘Wake of the Flood’ (1973): The title of the Dead’s 1973 album Wake of the Flood came from the beautifully spacey track that opened its second side.
Might as Well,” ‘Reflections’ (1976): This jaunty Garcia solo track immortalizes the Dead’s time on the Festival Express tour.
Brokedown Palace,” ‘American Beauty’ (1970): Lesh considered this proudly old-fashioned ballad “among the finest products of Garcia.
He’s Gone,” ‘Europe ’72’ (1972): Like everyone in the Dead organization in 1970, Garcia was shocked when their manager, Lenny Hart.
Doin’ That Rag,” ‘Aoxomoxoa’ (1969): On which Garcia reinvents the past.
Standing on the Moon,” ‘Built to Last’ (1989): The best, most affecting song from what proved to be the Dead’s final studio album.
Terrapin Station Part 1,” ‘Terrapin Station’ (1977): The densely orchestrated, seven-part.
New Speedway Boogie,” ‘Workingman’s Dead’ (1970): The disastrously violent Altamont Speedway Free Festival of December 1969 deeply affected the Dead.
Shakedown Street,” ‘Shakedown Street’ (1978): By the end of the Seventies, it was easy to forget that the often less-than-propulsive Dead.