Grateful Dead Albums Ranked From Worst to Best 

🤠 Acid Dead? Yes. Folk Dead? Sure. Prog Dead? Absolutely. Reggae Dead? Sometimes. Disco Dead? Hell yeah. Yacht Rock Dead? Without a doubt. MTV Dead? Hard pass. Live Dead? Magic.

I honestly LOVE ANTHEM OF THE SUN & AOXOMOXOA. Think they’re both criminally underrated

STUDIO: 1. American Beauty (1970) 5/5 2. Workingman's Dead (1970) 5/5 3. Anthem of the Sun (1968) 4.5/5 4. Wake of the Flood (1973) 4.5/5 5. Aoxomoaxa (1969) 4/5 6. From the Mars Hotel (1974) 4/5 7. Grateful Dead (1967) 4/5 8. In the Dark (1987) 4/5 9. Blues for Allah (1975) 3.5/5 10. Terrapin Station (1977) 3.5/5 11. Shakedown Street (1978) 3/5 12. Go to Heaven (1980) 3/5 13. Built to Last (1989) 2/5 CONTEMPORARY LIVE: 1. Europe '72 (1972) 5/5 2. Live/Dead (1969) 4.5/5 3. Reckoning (1981) 4.5/5 4. Grateful Dead [Skull & Roses] (1971) 4/5 5. Without a Net (1990) 4/5 6. Steal Your Face (1976) 3.5/5 7. Dead Set (1981) 3.5/5 8. History of the Grateful Dead Vol. 1 (1973) 3/5 9. Dylan & the Dead (1989) 2.5/5 RETROSPECTIVE LIVE (TOP 10): 1. Cornell (Barton Hall), Ithaca, NY 5/8/1977 2. Sunshine Daydream: Vaneta, OR 8/27/1972 3. Fillmore East, New York, NY 2/13/1970 4. Dick's Picks Vol. 15: Raceway Park, Englishtown, NJ 9/3/1977 5. Dick's Picks Vol. 1: Curtis Hixon Hall, Tampa, FL 12/19/1973 6. Europe '72 Vol. 13: Bickershaw Festival, Wigan, England 5/7/1972 7. Dick's Picks, Vol. 14: Boston Music Hall, Boston, MA 11/30/1973-12/2/1973 8. Dick's Picks Vol. 3: Hollywood Sportatorium, Pembroke Pines, FL 5/22/1977 9. Road Trips Vol. 2 No. 2: Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, CA 2/14/1968 10. Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA 11/11/1973 (appears on Winterland 1973: The Complete Recordings) CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER: 4.0 Grateful Dead (1967) 4.5 Anthem of the Sun (1968) 4.0 Aoxomoaxa (1969) 4.5 Live/Dead (1969) 5.0 Workingman's Dead (1970) 5.0 American Beauty (1970) 4.0 Grateful Dead [Skull & Roses] (1971) 5.0 Europe '72 (1972) 3.0 History of the Grateful Dead Vol. 1 (1973) 4.5 Wake of the Flood (1973) 4.0 From the Mars Hotel (1974) 3.5 Blues for Allah (1975) 3.5 Steal Your Face (1976) 3.5 Terrapin Station (1977) 3.0 Shakedown Street (1978) 3.0 Go to Heaven (1980) 4.5 Reckoning (1981) 3.5 Dead Set (1981) 4.0 In the Dark (1987) 2.5 Dylan & the Dead (1989) 2.0 Built to Last (1989) 4.0 Without a Net (1990) There's a magical place- call it "the zone"- you can only get to by playing live onstage with other musicians. No one visited that magical place more often than the Grateful Dead. But just saying they were "godfathers of the jam" or "pioneers of psychedelia" doesn't do them justice. Their music touched on almost every genre known to man at some point in their career. The Dead's '67 debut does a good job of capturing their early bluesy period, with "Morning Dew" being the most enduring cut. Strangely, it's their only studio LP to feature prominent lead vocals from founding member and pianist, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. Their second offering, Anthem of the Sun, is a Frankenstein-like patchwork of studio and live recordings. The term 'acid rock' fits more snugly here than at any other point in their discography. The best songs open each side of the album- "That's It for the Other One" and "Alligator"- but "Born Cross-Eyed" is the only track I ever skip. 1969's Aoxomoaxa feels like a watershed. For the first time, the band puts the full range of their musical abilities on display, from the pastoral "Mountains of the Moon" to the hypnotic "China Cat Sunflower." For most non-Deadheads, their two studio LPs from 1970 (Workingman's Dead, American Beauty) mark the band's absolute zenith. Foregoing long improvisations, the Dead construct intricate country/folk music based on tight arrangements and close harmony singing. Tunes like "Ripple" and "Casey Jones" never fail to impress, no matter how many times I hear them. The Dead's resident wordsmith, Robert Hunter, was also spinning gold during this period- the lyrics to "Black Peter" and "Brokedown Palace" cut particularly deep. Regarding their early live albums, I'm not the biggest fan of the avant-garde freakout "Dark Star," so I'd take Europe '72 and its treasure trove of new songs over Live/Dead (1969.) Although, the intensity of the performances on Live/Dead are undeniable, especially "Turn On Your Love Light." (1971's Skull & Roses is great, too.) Pigpen's passing in early 1973 (he's a member of the "27 Club") brought keyboardist Keith Godcheaux and his wife, Donna, to the fore. There's a slow erosion of consistency during their tenure in the band (1973-1979) but there are no shortage of highlights, either. Wake of the Flood (1973) deposits the megaliths "Eyes of the World," "Stella Blue," and "Row Jimmy." From the Mars Hotel (1974) answers with "Scarlet Begonias," "Ship of Fools," and "China Doll." Things get even more jazzy than usual on 1975's Blues for Allah, thanks to "Help on the Way" and "Franklin's Tower." Terrapin Station (1977) is sometimes referred to as the Dead's prog album, mostly due to "Estimated Prophet" and "Terrapin Station Medley." Shakedown Street (1978) and Go to Heaven (1980) get panned for being soft rock, but tracks like "Alabama Getaway," "Fire On the Mountain," and "Althea" save those LPs from perdition. 1987's In the Dark qualifies as a return to form- it even spawned the Dead's first top 10 hit in the U.S., "Touch of Grey." (As a teenager in the mid-1980s, "West L.A. Fadeaway" and "Black Muddy River" were among the first songs that made me take notice of the Dead.) In terms of their late-career live albums, I'm partial to Reckoning (1981) for its emphasis on the band's acoustic profile. On a side note, 1989's Dylan & the Dead is not as bad as its reputation. If the Dead had a weakness, it's that sometimes their singing was a bit sketchy. I don't think a truly exceptional vocalist ever went through their band. Jerry Garcia was probably their best singer. Then again, Jerry Garcia was their best everything- he's one of the most talented cats ever. How many musicians can claim to be one of the greatest guitar players as well as one of the greatest songwriters? That's a short list of people. The Grateful Dead have never stopped growing on me. If you'd asked me 25 years ago, they would not have made my top 50 artists. Nowadays, they're camped out inside my top 30. MY RATING SYSTEM: 5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs) 4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both) 4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's one of the best things for this artist/style) 3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting) 3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting) 2.5 = fair (competent but uninspired, not worth revisiting) 2.0 = poor (difficult listen) 1.5 = awful (can't finish it) 1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse) ▪︎"Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that feature iconic songs or have an iconic sound. (Albums I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing legendary songs or being highly influential.) ▪︎I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible, I don't care to differentiate anymore. ▪︎Anything I rate 3.5 stars or better is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.

Saw over a hundred shows between 1981 and 1995. I owned American Beauty and Workingman's Dead on vinyl early on before my first show. I think I owned Shakedown Street on CD at some point. To me the studio albums are blueprints. They're the place where the band got all the lyrics right, the chords and tempo. To paraphrase Jerry: "Making a studio album is like building a ship in a bottle, playing live is like being in a rowboat on the ocean." Also Jerry: "We don't sell albums, we sell tickets."

Lots of cool stuff to be found. Listened to the Twilight Zone soundtrack as a bonus. 1. American Beauty - 4.0 (8.5) 2. Aoxomoxoa - 4.0 (8.0) 3. Workingman's Dead - 3.5 (7.5) 4. In the Dark - 3.5 (7.5) 5. From the Mars Hotel - 3.5 (7.5) 6. Shakedown Street - 3.5 (7.0) 7. Wake of the Flood - 3.5 (7.0) 8. Blues for Allah - 3.0 (6.5) 9. Terrapin Station - 3.0 (6.5) 10. Anthem of the Sun - 3.0 (6.5) 11. Go to Heaven - 3.0 (6.5) 12. Grateful Dead - 3.0 (6.5) - The Twilight Zone, Volume One - 2.5 (5.5) 13. Built to Last - 2.5 (5.5)

The relationship the Dead had with their fans is intriguing. It's amazing how many people dropped out of their straight lives to follow the Dead on the road.

1. American Beauty 5.0 2. Aoxomoxoa 4.5 3. Workingman’s Dead 4.5 4. Blues for Allah 4.0 5. Wake of the Flood 4.0 6. From the Mars Hotel 3.5 7. Anthem of the Sun 3.0 8. Terrapin Station 3.0 9. In the Dark 3.0 10. The Grateful Dead 2.5 11. Shakedown Street 2.0 12. Go to Heaven 2.0 13. Built to Last 1.0

I wouldn't call myself a Deadhead by any means, but if Workingman's Dead and American Beauty aren't five star records, the whole idea of rating music on a scale is a joke--which it probably is, anyway. Both are stunningly written and performed. Landmark albums in the country rock vein.

These guys are on my mount rushmore for the best music discussion channels on youtube. They have more personality and interesting presentations than most other channels. Definitely subscribed.

Another great episode. I think I’ve watched this one 3 times since you uploaded it over a year ago. It’s great having three of you breaking things down. Gives a better perspective than 2 people reviewing. Cheers

1:Anthem of the Sun 2: Aoxomoxoa 3: From the Mars Hotel 4: Terrapin Station 5: Workingman's Dead 6: American Beauty 7: The Grateful Dead 8: Blues for Allah 9: Wake of the Flood 10: Shakedown Street

It was interesting hearing your take on The Dead but saying they're not good songwriters has no connection to reality. They had multiple excellent writers and Garcia/Hunter are among the very best songwriting duos ever

01 Aoxomoxoa 02 Wake of the Flood 03 American Beauty 04 Workingman's Dead 05 The Grateful Dead (1967) 06 Anthem of the Sun 07 Blues for Allah 08 From the Mars Hotel 09 Shakedown Street 10 Terrapin Station 11 In The Dark 12 Go to Heaven 13 Built to Last

My personal ranking #1: American Beauty #2: Workingman’s Dead #3: Wake of the Flood #4: From the Mars Hotel #5: Terrapin Station #6: Aoxomoxoa #7: Blues for Allah #8: In the Dark #9: Self-titled debut album #10: Anthem of the Sun #11: Shakedown Street #12: Go to Heaven #13: Built to Last

My top 5: 1. Aoxomoxoa 2. American Beauty 3. From the Mars Hotel 4. Workingman's Dead 5. Terrapin Station Their early solo albums are basically Grateful Dead albums because the whole band played on them. If we could count those, Garcia would be my #2. Great album.

Well done guys! I great guide to Grateful Deads studiorecords. Never been into them but now I know where to start and what albums I should avoid.

I'm beyond excited for this video

a compromise would have been the live albums that came out before Jerry's death. that would have given you live dead, skull and roses and europe 72 which are pretty essential dead albums but I appreciate that you have to draw a line somewhere. the dead are an endless rabbit hole when you get into live recordings

1. Workingman's Dead- 5 2. Wake of the Flood- 4.5 (strong, 5 if I can get over Keith's singing) 3. American Beauty- 4.5 4. In the Dark- 4.5 (low, a weirdly nostalgic and personal one for me) 5. Blues for Allah- 4 6. Anthem of the Sun- 4 7. Aoxomoxoa- 4 8. From the Mars Hotel- 4 9. Terrapin Station- 3.5 (high, still good stuff here) 10. Grateful Dead- 3.5 11. Go to Heaven- 3.5 12. Shakedown Street- 3 13. Built to Last- 2 or lower it sucks

50 years ago today GD played Maples Pavilion at Stanford University. Eyes of the World, Here Comes Sunshine, Row Jimmy (off Wake of the Flood), China Doll, Loose Lucy, U.S. Blues (off From the Mars Hotel) and They Love Each Other all debuted in this show! Springy basketball court made for strange wavy feeling for dancers!

If you dig Jerry's pedal steel, he plays it on a lot of other people's albums of this Era. Nash's Songs For Beginners, Crosby's If I Could Only Remember My Name (Jerry's pedal steel on Croz's "Laughing" may be his peak on the instrument). CSNY's "Teach You Children," Jerry's on that too.

Thanks for this episode guys. I’ve been a supporter for years and a patreon and always get a kick out of seeing my name at the end of each episode. I’ve been wondering if you were ever going to do the Dead on this channel, though was a bit nervous you’d rip them to shreds as none of you seem to be the type to dig their music. So glad to hear your take on them. The Dead and the Beatles are my two favorite artists, not really sure who gets the top spot, depends on the day. I’m a strange kind of Dead fan - I actually absolutely love their studio output unlike most fans and band members themselves. Their live stuff can be transcendental or can be aimless and boring, but it’s always a unique experience. Also, my rankings will be strange to most, I don’t love a few highly regarded albums. 13. Anthem of the Sun - I’m a rare Dead fan who is not into drugs or alcohol, so this album, which Jerry said was them on acid constantly and mixed for the hallucinations, never quite did it for me. 12. Grateful Dead - Seven of the nine tunes are covers and although they’re all good, its not really what I want from the band. The only album with no Robert Hunter tunes, whom I consider a lyrical genius. 11. Blues for Allah - This is where I part form most Dead fans, as this album is well thought of. I never liked the 12-minute title track, plus Weir’s “The Music Never Stopped” and two instrumentals never did anything for me. “Franklin’s Tower” is great though. 10. Go To Heaven - I like Jerry’s tunes “Alabama Getaway” and “Althea,” but never cared for Brent’s songs for Bob’s “Feel Like a Stanger.” “Lost Sailor” -> “Saint of Circumstance” is good. 9. In the Dark - There are very few Hunter/Garcia songs in the Dead and Jerry’s solo catalogue that I don’t care for, but two of them are back-to-back here “When Push Comes to Shove” and “West LA Fadeway.” Though “Touch of Gray” and “Black Muddy River” are epic. Weir’s “Throwing Stones” is solid, but I never cared for his other tune or Brent’s song. 8. Shakedown Street - Generally disliked by Dead fans, there’s a lot I like here. The title track boogies, and “Stagger Lee” is solid. I’m perhaps the only person in Earth who like “France” (Bob Weir dislikes it so much he denies writing it). “Fire on the Mountain” is a bit flat on record though it’s a beast on the live stage. I never cared for Bob’s “I Need a Miracle.” However, the masterpiece to me, and I’m so happy Jason liked it, is the lovey “If I Had the World to Give,” Written as a challenge to Hunter and Garcia to come up with a conventional love song, the band only played it live three times so it has become basically forgotten. What a shame, its amazing. Check out the piano based cover by Bonnie Price Billy on the wonderful 2016 Day of the Dead compilation. 7. Bulit to Last - Told you my rankings would be unconventional. Everyone hates this record, include the band, the fans, and you guys, but I really like it. Jerry’s three songs are all great, especially the emotional “Standing on the Moon.” I admit Brent Mydland isn’t a brilliant singer, but I’ve heard many worse. Both “We Can Run” and “Just are Little Light” aren’t great, but his other tunes, “Blow Away” and the lovey “I Will Take You Home” are so good. Brent was tragically a tortured soul and would pass away from an overdose the summer after this album came out, and I think knowing that adds more punch to these songs of love and sadness. Weir’s two songs “Picasso Moon” and “Victim or the Crime” are generally hated by Dead fans, but I think they’re fine. 6. Aoxomoaxa - So many great tunes, but the unlistenable “What’s Become of the Baby” does in fact torpedo this album. The songs are bit clunky - Hunter didn’t have down the best way to make lyrics flow in rhythm yet, as a result many of these songs weren’t played live for long by the band. “Doin’ That Rag,” “Rosemary,” St. Stephen,” and “Cosmic Charlie” are all great. The masterpieces are the gorgeous “Mountains of the Moon” and the sly “Dupree’s Diamond Blues.” 5. Terrapin Station - I agree side one isn’t great “The Dancing in the Streets” cover is ghastly “Samson and Delilah” never did anything for me - though it was a monster that brought down the house live. I do like Donna’s “Sunrise” and Bob’s “Estimated Prophet.” But the 16-minute epic title track is one the great songs ever recorded. The lyrics are beautiful, the playing is sublime, and its perfection. In an alternate world, this would be regarded by all as an all-time epic of classic rock. 4. From the Mars Hotel - Putting aside Bob Weir’s “Money Money,” a joke that doesn’t land, the songs are amazing. Phil Lesh puts forth a pair of amazing tunes, sadly his dissatisfaction with their recording and he vocals basically retired him from songwriting and singing for the rest of the Dead’s run. Jerry’s five tunes are rollicking (“US Blues”), haunting (“China Doll”), raunchy (“Loose Lucy”), pure pop (“Scarlet Begonias”), and pure beauty (“Ship of Fools”). 3. Wake of the Flood - I was delighted to see you guys enjoy this album so much. With the lone except of “Let Me Sing Your Blues Away” (Keith’s vocals are so bad its amusing), the songs are great. “Stella Blue” is the masterpiece - check out Willie Nelson’s cover - but “Row Jimmy” and “Eyes of the World” are sonic perfection as well. 2. Workingman’s Dead - The progress of their first four albums -from cover band, to LSD noodlers, to structured but weird songs, to this magnificence in just three years is just stunning to me. There’s not a bad moment on this album. It displays a past America of stone jack ballers, mine workers, traveling bands; the colorful characters of the dying protagonist of “Black Peter,” and the train engineer not watching his speed make this an epic. My 4th best album ever. 1. American Beauty- A sublime 10/10, my all-time second favorite album ever, there are so many classics on it, “Box of Rain, ““Friend of the Devil,” “Sugar Magnolia,” “Candyman,” “Ripple,” “Breakdown Palace,” “Attics of my Life,” “Truckin’.” I should have just listed the songs I don’t think are perfect. It flows perfectly, the playing is immaculate and the songs are incredible. I can’t image my life without it. Thank you Freaks and Geeks for introducing me to it. In spite of the Brent Myland (the worst singer ever, Kramzer?! Really ?!) and Bob Weir slander, I greatly enjoyed finally having my beloved band ranked by this channel. Thank you, gentlemen.

Was never much of a fan, but enjoyed the rankings!

13) In the Dark (1987) 2.5/5 12) Built to Last (1989) 2.75/5 11) Aoxomoxoa (1969) 3.25/5 10) Go to Heaven (1980) 3.25/5 09) Shakedown Street (1978) 3.5/5 08) From the Mars Hotel (1974) 4/5 07) Blues for Allah (1975) 4/5 06) Workingman's Dead (1970) 4/5 05) Terrapin Station (1977) 4/5 04) Wake of the Flood (1973) 4/5 03) The Grateful Dead (1967) 4.25/5 02) Anthem of the Sun (1968) 4.5/5 01) American Beauty (1970) 4.5/5 Ratings Scale: 0 stars - irredeemably terrible/insultingly bad/the worst .5 stars - terrible 1 star - bad 1.5 stars - pretty bad 2 stars - weak/mediocre 2.5 stars - meh 2.75 stars - "It's OK, but quit playing it." 3 stars - OK/decent 3.25 stars - pretty good 3.5 stars - good 3.75 stars - really good 4 stars - very good 4.25 stars - very, very good 4.5 stars - excellent 5 stars - the gold of sunshine Chronological Order: 1967 - 4.25 - The Grateful Dead 1968 - 4.50 - Anthem of the Sun 1969 - 3.25 - Aoxomoxoa 1970 - 4.00 - Workingman's Dead 1970 - 4.50 - American Beauty 1973 - 4.00 - Wake of the Flood 1974 - 4.00 - From the Mars Hotel 1975 - 4.00 - Blues for Allah 1977 - 4.00 - Terrapin Station 1978 - 3.50 - Shakedown Street 1980 - 3.25 - Go to Heaven 1987 - 2.50 - In the Dark 1989 - 2.75 - Built to Last Notes: * I was fairly familiar with the Dead going into this. I had heard the debut, Workingman's Dead, American Beauty, and some other stuff. I had some Dead bootlegs on tape back in the day. * I saw the Dead at Madison Square Garden on September 17, 1993, a few years before Jerry died. I had a blast. It's a tie between this one and the Smiths as to which concert I have had the most fun at. At the Dead concert, I really wanted to trip acid, but I never found any. Smoked plenty of weed though. I remember the aisles were filled with twirling dresses that looked like umbrellas. There were times when the mood died down and people actually took their seats (I'm fairly certain this was when Bob Weir took the lead). Other times were ecstatic, especially when Jerry took flight. And boy, did he soar. I feel really lucky that I got to see him in action. * Even though they released new songs with their live albums, I have confined my list to the core 13 studio albums. I feel trying to include live albums let alone solo albums (that were essentially Dead albums with all the members playing) is opening a can of worms, and I prefer to keep things simple. * I think the debut is, overall, almost excellent. I love the kind of music they made just starting out. The slightly menacing tone on the Bluesy "Good Morning, Little School Girl" is tasty, like the singer is a "bad boy." "Viola Lee Blues" is an extended romp more akin to what they were doing live - Jerry solos into orbit! * Anthem of the Sun is an amazing, one-of-a-kind mixture of live and studio music. * They stumble on Aoxomoxoa. St. Steven and China Cat Sunflower are pretty great, love the whirlwind of sounds on the latter. But I find "Dupree's Diamond Blues" to be rather dorky with clunky lyrics. "What's Become of the Baby" has some trippy elements that I like, but the vocals are hard to take, and ultimately, it's rather unbearable. "Mountains of the Moon" is very good with some cool harpsichord, but the rest of the songs are nothing special. * Workingman's Dead and American Beauty are usually both highly acclaimed at about the same level, but I don't quite get to a 5-star song on WD, while there are several 5-star songs on AB. * Wake of the Flood expands the palate with violin and sax, and their particular brand of reggae with jazz inflections starts taking hold. As ever, Jerry's guitar playing is crucial. Keith Godchaux makes his mark on keys (and his wife Donna also joined on vocals at this point), and it's the first album made without the talented but more Blues-based Pigpen who tragically died. * Godchaux kills it on From the Mars Hotel, but none of the songs quite get to 5 stars. "Scarlet Begonias" is a highlight, Donna Godchaux wailing at the end. Some nice pedal steel on Lesh's "Pride of Cucamonga" by a guest musician. Love the brief changeup in the beat. Like many Dead albums, there's one song that totally bombs, and in this case it's Bob Weir's lame "Money Money." * Blues for Allah would probably be a 5-star album if it wasn't for the extended last track, the title track. On the excellent songs (pretty much everything else), they get a little funky, a little reggae, but it's all about what Jerry is doing with his guitar. * Terrapin Station doesn't have any bad songs. I think their version of "Dancing in the Street" is good. While it can't touch the original (or even Van Halen's version), it's got a good disco beat with horns and it's fun. But the highlights on the album are the funky reggae opener with sax, "Estimated Prophet," and the proggy title track closer which builds to a nice climax. * Go to Heaven begins the keyboardist Brent Mydland era, possibly the worst thing to happen to the Dead. I find his playing and songwriting to be generally limp. A lot of this album sounds too commercial. The first side is good - Alabama Getaway has some pep and Althea is excellent, but the second side is nothing but mid - I rate every song on it 3 stars. * I found In the Dark to be quite disappointing. "Touch of Grey" is a good song, but merely good. The guitar is good, but overall, it's too limp, thanks especially to those tinkly rinky dink keys. But "Black Muddy River," the Garcia ballad at the end, is excellent. * Built to Last has a weak first side, but the second side is fairly strong, especially Standing on the Moon. And Mydland redeems himself at the end with an excellent piano ballad. * This experience didn't turn me into a Deadhead, but I found out their studio album catalogue is much stronger than I knew it was! * Cheers mates!!!!!!!!!!

thanks for this - had Live Dead back in the day (early 80's) for Dark Star and eventually picked up American Beauty but since your show I'm loving Wake Of the Flood and bought it on LP today. turns out my 18-year son's band was already covering Stella Blue, unbeknownst to me as I don't catch them at all their NYC teen hangout shows ;)

It’s amazing that you can listen to all their studio albums and never hear Dark Star, which is such a classic Dead song.

I’d love to see you guys talk about the Time Out of Mind remixes 🙏 Pretty new to the channel and just been binging a ton of stuff. Mostly a fan of singer-songwriters, so I get hyped whenever you guys talk about Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Paul Westerberg, etc… you should do a video on Westerberg’s solo stuff, took me a while to get into it, but some of those albums were *really* worth turning over for a while (especially the messy garage stuff when he kinda gave up on commercial aspirations). When Stereo finally hit me every song on it felt like heaven, even the ones where the tape randomly cuts lol

This was more entertaining than I thought it would be when I suggested it. Well done. I'm not sure if you guys mess with folk-country artists, but I'd love to hear your take on Gillian Welch's albums someday. I promise you, you will get tens of tens of views. BTW... There's a Lowell George sung version of Good Lovin from the Shakedown Street sessions that make Bob Weir's version seem even worse somehow. Also, I think they kept Mydland around because he was an ace on the Hammond B3.

As a dead head this hysterical

Love that debut Squeeze vinyl in the background Jason 😊

Lads as usual dont always agree, but your content is very refreshing and causes me to buy more and more music. Tks

My top Dead studio are probably Anthem of the Sun, Aoxomoxoa (Edit: the original 1969 mix) and Workingman's Dead. Let's say I'm a '67 to '72 type of 'fan'.

Easy to tell who has never tripped

Ok, you guys weren't as tough on them as I feared. I'm a huge Deadhead. I have hundreds of live shows as well as their studio stuff. You guys need to listen to Europe 72 which has a bunch of their best tunes not on any studio album (Tennessee Jed, Ramble on Rose, Brown Eyed Woman). Listen to some 69 shows where they stretched out Dark Star. Any show from 72,73,74 and 77 is worth listening to. 76 is an interesting year. I saw tham starting in 79; when they became a little more predictable but still many great 80's shows. The live stuff is where it's at. They were never comfortable in the studio. Also a lot of their best tunes appear on the first couple of Jerry solo albums. Also Weir's Ace album. They became live staples

Thanks! Just a little tip for all the work you guys do!!

Joe has been knocking out out of the park! Agree with his number 1 here, and he was the only one to have the right Kinks album at #1( village green might be a top 10 album all time for me). Bravo Joe!

Kramzer was talking about albums that begin with a cover. Diver Down, the album that contains "Dancing in the Street" which Kram mentioned, begins with a KILLER cover.

Not a lover or hater. I bought Shakedown Street when I was in high school because I liked the guitar. It is a good album, I liked it more than our three heroes. Liked your video as usual, thanks for your hard work.

You guys missed some really integral songs altogether by not including Europe '72. Yes, it's a "live" album, but they overdubbed almost all of the vocals and did some other touching up as well. But, more importantly, half of the songs are originals which appear on no other albums (until after Jerry Garcia died) and which are considered canon, and perhaps the best of their whole catalog of originals. Plus, it's really, really good.

I enjoyed the episode, and I know rules are rules. BUT The Dead had so many great new songs on Europe '72 and the self-titled double album, and I believe that all or most of them don't appear on studio albums. When you do the Neil Young or Jackson Browne rankings, do you leave out Time Fades Away or Running on Empty, because all those new songs were performed live? Still enjoyed the episode, but including those 2 albums would have made the rankings better (I think).

given the limitations: 13. Built to Last 12. Anthem of the Sun 11. The Grateful Dead 10. In the Dark 9. Go to Heaven 8. From the Mars Hotel 7. Blues for Allah 6. Shakedown Street 5. Wake of the Flood 4. Terrapin Station 3. Aoxomoxoa 2. Workingman's Dead 1. American Beauty (but "Europe '72" is my favorite, 'Skull and Roses' second... )

I liked everyone's ranking . Here's my top 5 in order of preference : American Beauty Workingman's Dead Aoxomoxoa Wake of the Flood Blues for Allah . Thanks !

As far as leading off an album with a cover goes, nothing beats Don't Want You No More on the Allman Brothers' debut. Thats one of the most badass entrances ever - hard to believe its even a cover.

Europe 72 is my favorite album by them and it's live

Fun video 🦩nicely done 🐸

I'm gonna have to disagree with Kram are about the lack of emotion in the songs… Garcia does "plaintive" pretty darn well… Not as well as Thom Yorke but pretty darn well… In addition early-mid career Robert Hunter was writing all sorts of sad ass songs… As a lyricist Hunter is as good as it gets… Dylan would agree I'm sure ...he has collaborated with very few other songwriters but Hunter is one of them… Hunter and the dead, along with Dylan and with the band created an americana landscape that probably doesn't really exist but which is so compelling that it feels like all these locations are in our head… and there is a lot of sadness and emotion they capture that is going on in that landscape.... box of rain, dire wolf, wharf rat, black Peter, broke down palace, ripple, attics, mission in the rain, to lay me down, Stella blue, row jimmy... cmon man, the list is near endless

Hopefully you will tackle Jefferson Airplane/Starship soon. And if so, do Airplane & Strarship together and include the Kantner/Slick albums which are basically the same artist.

Pigpen's throbbing organ really stood out on "Sitting On Top Of The World." A bit stiff, but meaty enough to fill up the space.

Jerry knew most of these records were bad. They bear little to no resemblance to the live versions no matter what the year. This is a bad intersection for you guys because you don't do live records, of which there are plenty of good ones. There are certain live records that come very close to the Dead "sound" of any era that you guys referenced. Live/ Dead, Grateful Dead (71), Farewell to Winterland ( 78), Dead Set, Without a Net, and of course the magnificent Europe 72. This is a case of them being bad at making records, but none of that makes any difference when you were seeing them live, at least until 1990. We all did get VERY tired of hearing Brent's songs. His strength was as a band player, not lead vocalist. The secret to their live sound was the tension and release. Garcia's playing drove the band and the audience, on the records he's just punching in. Makes a huge difference. You nailed most of the failings on these though, good work. Btw, just leave off the "A"s in "Aoxomoxoa". It's pronounced "Oksamoksa"

You guys better not trash them! I'm looking forward to this?

Never got into Grateful Dead but I have heard Workingman's Dead and thought it was a good album. Will be able to use this as a guide now because I know their discography is a little tricky.

I enjoyed this.. Thanks.. I would only add, and perhaps differ from the guys on, two extra points. For me, one of the things that makes GD shine is the high quality of many of the Garcia-Hunter compositions. They have a large batch of very good songs. The second is that I have always thought of Garcia's singing as having a fragile highly emotive quality to it.. Not a "good" singer in the schooled singer sense, but highly effective, especially within the framework of the Garcia-Hunter compositions (plus Cold Rain and Snow, Morning Dew, etc..)..

Would love to hear you guys tackle “Old 97’s”. A band with a lot of great tracks and albums to list.

That's what I love about the Dead's studio discography. Apart from Built to Last (and maybe Go to Heaven) most people's lists are completely different to each others. Makes for interesting convos!

1. American Beauty 2. Workingman's Dead 3. Wake of the Flood 4. Aoxomoxoa 5. In the Dark 6. Terrapin 7. The Grateful Dead 8. Blues For Allah 9. Shakedown Street 10. Anthem of the Sun 11. From the Mars Hotel 12. Go to Heaven 13. Built to Last Most listened to album: One From The Vault

‘We’re not doing the live ones’ 😂 Bring it on, guys! 👍

I enjoyed this episode even though I spent more time watching it than I have spent listening to the Grateful Dead. I do now feel more inclined to listen to at least your respective # 1's.

Hi guys, well done, great video as usual, i've been into Grateful Dead on and off, i like them but i don't worship them like Jefferson Airplane and CSN/Y. i've listened quite often to American Beauty and Workingman's Dead, i'll make good use of your list to try "wake of the flood" and "from the mars hotel" which i didn't know, my list is limited to a top 5 at the moment 1) American Beauty 2) Workingman's dead 3) Grateful Dead 4) Aoxomoaxa 5) Blues for Allah PS: I'll be back with a revised list after listening to 3/4 other albums

If you guys want to hear legendary live Dead. Find "Cornell (Barton Hall), Ithaca, NY 5/8/1977". Try to get the ultimate matrix version. Doesn't get much better.

The Grateful Dead was never able to capture what they do live in the studio. If you only listen to their studio albums, you're not really getting what the Grateful Dead is. That said, it was cool to hear what people think of the dead just based on their studio albums.

Anthem Of The Sun is incredible, but it didn’t surprise me at all to see Joe and Jason put it so low.

Yes! Joe finally got Keith and Donna Godchaux right! I knew you could do it Joe. You pushed through and hit the bullseye.

Awesome

13. Built to Last 12. Go to Heaven 11. In the Dark 10. Terrapin Station 9. Shakedown Street 8. Grateful Dead 7. Anthem of the Sun 6. Aoxomoxoa 5. Workingman’s Dead 4. American Beauty 3. Wake of the Flood 2. From the Mars Hotel 1. Blues for Allah I’d recommend listening to the album, ‘Hooteroll?’, by Howard Wales & Jerry Garcia.

Grateful dead alchemy in music one of my favourite bands of all time

In the Dark recorded live as a studio album. Underrated album. Brent Mydland added a great dimension to the band. Europe 1972 highlights the best era of the Grateful Dead

I'm a song guy. That's one of the reasons I mike the Dead. Alot of the Garcia/Hunter songs do touch me emotionally. If you think Brent Mydland is bad, you should check out their final keyboard player, Vince Weilnick. Truly terrible. I don't think they ever did find their thing in the studio like you said. Check out Garcia's first solo album, 2 from the vault, Europe 72. I do have massive respect for them. They were kinda the ultimate DIY punk ethos as far as the self-made success they made. On a different topic, have you guys done a Dr. Dog or Ween episode? Both of those groups have some great interesting songs.

Grateful Dead Week! Yes indeed. Here we have all 3 TLM boys firing on all cylinders, J, J & K each with very thoughtful, reasonable reviews of a band near and dear to my heart, and I suspect many other TLM viewers. The simple fact that J, J, & K didn't grow up with the Dead's music, culture and live show experiences gave me, I think, legit concerns going into this but they all 3 really were at the top of their games and gave all the GD studio albums fair consideration and unbiased appraisals. 👍🏆 I was a really big fan in the Dead renaissance of the late 1980s when I was in college. I listened to their music frequently, saw them live 11 times and tripped for the first time a show in Saratoga NY which was a peak life experience. 🎶 I deeply love the albums Shakedown Street and Go To Heaven, and I was so glad to hear the even-handed takes on those albums. 🙂 Both the Top 10 Songs and Drugged-Out Side 3 episodes were excellent. Well done, guys! TLM 4ever 🎶🏆💜🌟

1. American Beauty - 4.75 2. Workingman's Dead - 4.25 3. Wake of the Flood - 4.25 4. Anthem of the Sun - 4 5. Blues for Allah - 4 6. Aoxomoxoa - 3.75 7. From Mars Hotel - 3.5 8. Grateful Dead - 3.5 9. Terrapin Station - 3.25 10. In The Dark - 3 11. Shakedown Street - 2.75 12 .Go To Heaven - 2.5 13. Built to Last - 2.25

Should be a good one. Got the popcorn ready

Really glad you guys covered them and came away with a new appreciation. My rankings: 1 = bad 1.5 = not good 2 = meh 2.5 = decent 3 = good 3.5 really good 4 = great 4.5 = excellent 5 = top tier 13. Built to last - 2 12. Go to Heaven - 2 11. Shakedown street - 2.5 10. In the dark - 2.5 9. Grateful Dead - 3 8. Anthem of the Sun - 3.5 7. Terrapin Station - 4 6. From the Mars hotel - 4 5. Aoxomoxoa - 4 4. Blues for Allah - 4.5 3. Workingman's Dead - 4.5 2. Wake of the flood - 5 1. American beauty - 5

I can't believe the guys all listened and commented on Mars Hotel and no one even mentioned Scarlet Begonias. Ditto for Shakedown Street and Fire on the Mountain. Very surprised...

when spring breaks, try some live stuff & pick a year that intrigues you

Do Little Feat!

i grew up around Deadheads, went to college surrounded by them, brought a couple of Dead Lps with me to college because, I think, it was in the orientation manual. I think Workingman's Dead and American Beauty are solid lps that I probably never need to listen to again. My brother and an ex-girlfriend dragged me to a Dead show, paid for my hotel room and gave me acid; they thought I would undergo some sort of religious conversion. I thought the music was ok, but I felt more like an anthropologist, learning about the bizarre subcultures, Wharf Rats, Spinners, etc, but that's all I got out of it. Glad I went, though. I do like Garcia's session work and some of the acoustic stuff, like his records with David Grisman. Gotta say the episode was pretty breezy considering my general middling feelings about the Dead. Good work.

Thanks for releasing this early for your Discord fans Jason!

You dudes should do ranking video of all the albums ruined by Steven Wilson

Don't forget to mention the sax! Lots of great sax including Weather Report Suite.

Aside from wanting to strangle Kramzer about saying there’s no emotion in the music and feeling he went a little over the top on Mydland, as a Deadhead, I thought this was mostly a fair discussion. Non Deadheads who I presume never saw them live and missed the whole thing listening to the studio albums is a recipe for bad reviews. Understandable. A lot of good points that a lot of Deadheads themselves over the decades would agree with, and in many cases, the band as well. The Mydland thing is a good case study - you’d never know how incredible he was in many areas (one of the all time B3 players ) based on studio album review in 2023 fresh off the street with no context.

I resisted the Dead for many, many years. In the small town I grew up in, there were all these preppy jocks that wore their tie-dye Dead shirts. It was weird. Finally gave in around 2005. And, yeah, Ryan Adams had a little bit to do with that. But others, too. My favorite Dead release: Europe ‘72 My favorite studio album: From the Mars Hotel (just realized this within the last 3-4 years - nice pick, Kram.) Also dig Wake of the Flood, American Beauty, Workingman’s. Garcia (1972) is 10 times better than any Dead studio album. Also… I prefer Grisman/Garcia over the Dead. And actually listened to those collaborations well before any Dead album. Cheers ✌🏻

I appreciate you guys doing a Grateful Dead ranking, but it's obvious you're not fans. With the Dead you either get it or you don't and I think you guys missed it. Admittedly their studio albums are tough to do, as they basically serve as templates for what they play live. I think a lot of Deadheads feel that the studio albums should be outlawed. The jams and interplay between the musicians, Garcia, Weir and Lesh are like 3 independent streams coming together at the appropriate times, and the fact that each song is different every time is where the attraction is. Even the official live albums don't do them justice. There are sooo many complete concerts available out there on the internet and some of the Dick's Picks are top notch. They are definitely different than any other band, even the ones that get lumped in together with them. I agree completely about Brent Mydland... absolutely horrible in every respect. But the long jams and "noodling" are where it's at! I'll admit that a little weed makes it better though. Best studio album... Wake Of The Flood... although the solo albums "Garcia" and "Ace" should be included since they all play on them and the songs are live staples. American Beauty is way over-produced and not representative of the way any of those songs sounded live.

My best to worest 1.american beuty 2.blues for Allah 3.workingmans dead 4.anthen of the sun 5.aoxomoaxa 6. Wake of the flood 7. Terrapin station 8.grateful dead 9.from mars hotel 10. In the dark 11.go to heaven 12.shakedown street 13.built to last

why did the video skip back to the beginning about half way through?

You can argue their two best albums are live: Europe ‘72 and Skull and Roses. That’s their appeal in a nutshell. The latter albums were terrible heard Garcia had a bad dope habit

Don’t get the hate for Bob “ Ace” Weir. He’s my preferred Dead singer. You can’t tell me he doesn’t sound great on “ one more Saturday night” or “ sugar magnolia “” playing in the band” and especially “ truckin “. Btw, only two great studio albums, both released in 1970, but 3 classic “ official” live albums in “ Live-Dead”, the self titled which is colloquially known as Skull and Roses and of course the impeccable Europe ‘72. Steal your Face is a bit lacking and I believe out of print, I stil have it on vinyl

I've been waiting for this. 17: In the Dark 16: Built to last 15: Go to Heaven 14: Shakedown Street 13: Aoxomoxoa 12: San Francisco's Grateful Dead 11: Europe 1972 10: Terrapin Station 9: From the Mars Hotel 8: Live/Dead 7: To Terrapin, Hartford (Completely forgot about this Album) 6: Grateful Dead 1971 5: Anthem of the Sun 4: American Beauty 3: Blues for Allah 2: Wake of the Flood 1: Workingman's Dead

You guys have to do Yo La Tengo.

Built to last gets a bad reputation. Standing on the moon and the title track are pure magic. The whole point of the dead is Live performance. They were first to admit they never made a studio recording they were happy with. That being said, American beauty is a masterpiece.

47:54: Surprise! He's back!

It’s interesting when talk about the sound of 1st lp, JA early stuff sounded same. Not very progressively recorded. Hasslinger…? Lots of noise and room sizes

Thank goodness that the Live albums were not covered. The ones I have herd are long long and a smattering of off key singing. I dont want to run them down- the albums I did prefer were the studio ones. Not that most of them were that great either.

You guys will feel much differently about these albums if you ever give their live stuff a chance. The studio recordings are simply a starting - and in some cases, midway - point of where the band is planning to take the songs before a life audience. I hope you give their live stuff a chance, particularly 1970-1983.

1. Crimson White & Indigo

After the two 1970 albums, the best studio album for me hands-down is "Built To Last." That stuff is SCULPTED. Incredible execution. "In The Dark" good. "Mars Hotel" pretty good. Never liked many of the others - seemed pointless. Not enough hours in the day. Need to listen to the live stuff every single day.

I think the Dead are a better live band for sure. Their studio albums leave a lot to be desired. American Beauty - 4.5 Workingman's Dead - 4.0 Aoxomoxoa - 3.5 From the Mars Hotel - 3.5 In the Dark - 3.0 Blues For Allah - 3.0 The Grateful Dead - 3.0 Terrapin Station - 3.0 Shakedown Street - 3.0 Anthem of Sun - 2.5 Go to Heaven - 2.5 Wake of the Flood - 2.5 Built to Last - 2.0 I definitely do not share the Wake of the Flood love, but I do agree that "Dancing in the Street" cover might be one of the worst covers I've ever heard. How no one questioned putting that on the album is one of life's great mysteries. Also, I believe it's pronounced OX-oh-MOX-oh-AH

Woof … this was a tough watch even when skimming

Wow, Jason said something I agree with!G D are an early example where scene associations and media hype promote a group way beyond their actual artistic worth. Acid Rock rebels? The real deal for that were The 13th Floor Elevators who were seriously persecuted for it. The Dead's lame attempts at Psyche "experimentation" were already played out much better by the time they got there (Floyd, Beatles, Hendrix etc). And though they at least had singers that could sing, I would extend Jason's description of "drab" to the Jefferson Airplane and Big Brother Holding Company too. I don't think the SF scene transcended the hype until the advent of Sly Stone and Santana., and LA was producing much better stuff (Love, Doors, Byrds) already.

That’s what makes the second album of the Grateful Dead fantastic !…because they’re cutting up tape from several shows and splicing and putting it together!?!? and for me….it works !…. and to this very day ….nobody else has done it ….because they can’t do it !.. it was so weird and inventive..: ahead of its time ….. my favorite GD album …. Many young fans have probably never heard it…,, but these tactics were way ahead of their time …,,at the time they done it! Dig

13. Shakedown Street (1978) 2.5/5 12. Built To Last (1989) 2.5/5 11. In The Dark (1987) 3/5 10. Go To Heaven (1980) 3/5 9. Terrapin Station (1977) 3/5 8. Grateful Dead (1967) 3.5/5 7. Blues For Allah (1975) 3.5/5 6. Aoxomoxoa (1969) 4/5 5. Anthem Of The Sun (1968) 4/5 4. From The Mars Hotel (1974) 4.5/5 3. Workingman's Dead (1970) 4.5/5 2. American Beauty (1970) 4.5/5 1. Wake Of The Flood (1973) 5/5

Not the biggest deadhead in Brazil, but... my choice would be certainly "Live/Dead", even though it's a live album...! As for the studio work: I truly disagree with you all concerning "Anthem of the Sun". I think it's their finest hour when it comes to originality, exploration of the studio as an instrument and recording process, songwriting marred with their adventurous live performances. Even with the fact that they haven't perfected their craft yet, The Grateful Dead made a genuinely exciting journey to my ears here. My second favorite (sometimes being the first) is "American Beauty" indeed. Their most touching record, awesome songs. And "Blues for Allah" would be my 3rd one.