New Riders of the Purple Sage

I must be listening to different album than is the other reviewer. I find this to be a beautifully produced, arranged, and mixed album. The songs are all excellent (although Henry and Glendale Train have long ago worn out their welcome). Torbert's bass playing really shines, although he doesn't contribute any songs or lead vocals until the next album. Garcia's steel playing is unique and fits this music, however his style is clearly not "Nashville," and would have been completely out of place on any mainstream C-W music of the time. I probably hadn't heard this record in 20 years, and it is once again one of my very favorites. Amazing how well it has stood the test of time.

This is the debut album of the New Riders, and though it contains some of their best songs, it's obvious that the band had some things to work on. The pros: John Dawson's songs here are the most inspired that he ever wrote. Jerry Garcia offers gorgeous pedal steel and proves just as adept soaring through a country ballad as he does spicing up the extended jams of his other band, the Grateful Dead. The cons: the production and mixing aren't that great. The drums, bass, and pedal steel are too quiet, and the guitars are too loud. The vocals are often doubled and layered in a sloppy manner. They are generally either to quiet or too loud, never quite right. Also, the only members who contribute much are Garcia and Dawson. The rest of the band does little more than accompany them. The rest of the group had yet to develop into its own seperate entity and the whole purpose of this album seems to be a way for Dawson to show off his righteous songwriting and for Garcia to show off his Nashville-caliber country chops. Overall, I would recomend this album. It was a landmark acid-country album and contains some truly great tunes. It's great for road trips, especially when there's plenty of beer and weed. Don't expect a flawless product, though.