The Grateful Dead earned the band’s first-ever gold record in 1971 with its self-titled live album. Known to many fans as “Skull & Roses” (a reference to the cover art by Alton Kelley and Stanley Mouse) the original double-LP included songs recorded in March and April 1971 in New York and, the band’s hometown, San Francisco. Grateful Dead celebrates its 50th anniversary with a newly remastered audio from the original tapes. Originally released on October 24th, 1971, the album includes a collection of songs played at the Winterland Ballroom in March 1971 and New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom and Fillmore East in April 1971. Skull & Roses notably went on to be recognized as the Grateful Dead’s first gold-certified album. GRATEFUL DEAD (SKULL & ROSES) is available as a double-LP set ($44.98) that features the newly remastered version of the original album pressed on 180-gram black vinyl.
Grateful Dead archivist and legacy manager David Lemieux shared, For the The Grateful Dead’s second live album, released two years after its predecessor LIVE/DEAD, the band delivered an equally magnificent, but entirely different, Grateful Dead sound. Whereas LIVE/DEAD was a perfect sonic encapsulation of the band at the peak of their Primal Dead era, SKULL & ROSES captures the quintessential quintet, the original five-piece band, playing some of their hardest hitting rock ‘n’ roll (‘Johnny B. Goode,’ ‘Not Fade Away’), showing off their authentic Bakersfield bona fides (‘Me & My Uncle,’ ‘Mama Tried,’ ‘Me & Bobby McGee’), and some originals that would be important parts of the Dead’s live repertoire for the next 24 years (‘Bertha,’ ‘Playing In The Band,’ ‘Wharf Rat’). Of course, the Dead were never defined by one specific ‘sound’ and amongst the styles the band brought to this album, they also delved deeply into their psychedelic, primal playbook with an entire side dedicated to their 1968 masterpiece ‘The Other One.’ This is one of the most deeply rich and satisfying tracks preserved on an official Grateful Dead album, up there with LIVE/DEAD’s ‘Dark Star’ and EUROPE ’72’s ‘Morning Dew.’ SKULL & ROSES sounds as fresh today as the first time I heard it in 1985, and as fresh as it was upon its spectacularly well-received released in 1971.
TRACKLIST
A1 – Bertha – 5:27
A2 – Mama Tried – 2:42
A3 – Big Railroad Blues – 3:34
A4 – Playing in the Band = 4:39
B1 – The Other One – 18:05
C1 – Me & My Uncle – 3:06
C2 – Big Boss Man – 5:12
C3 – Me and Bobby McGee – 5:43
C4 – Johnny B. Goode – 3:42
D1 – Wharf Rat – 8:31
D2 – Not Fade Away > Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad – 9:14
David Lemieux – Seaside Chat: Skull & Roses Video
Have Your Vinyl Record Ultrasonically Cleaned Before Shipment
$5.00
Ultrasonic Cleaning
Your vinyl record will be cleaned by the Degritter120kHz ultrasonic cleaning system. It has been carefully designed to make sure that records are cleaned thoroughly and without any damage to the surface of the record.
Ultrasonic cleaning works by creating a large number of microscopical bubbles in the cleaning bath, a phenomena called cavitation. The bubbles are a vacuum created by high frequency pressure waves moving through the water.
Every ultrasonic cycle bubbles are formed and collapsed, releasing energy as heat and minuscule strong water jets. These effects combined thoroughly clean all surfaces down to a microscopic level.
Cost of service is per vinyl record. For example, Double LP records will require TWO cleaning service purchases. Price will include a new antistatic sleeve.
