EUROPE 72 - Grateful Dead

Grateful Dead: Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir (vocals, guitar); Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (vocals, harmonica, organ); Phil Lesh (vocals, bass instrument); Donna Jean Godchaux (vocals); Keith Godchaux (piano); Bill Kreutzmann (drums).Liner Note Author: Steve Silberman.Originally a three-LP set, this live document of the band at their largest (an octet if you count non-performing lyricist/official member Robert Hunter) is a well-recorded portrait of one of the Dead's finest eras. The Chick Corea-channeled-through-Floyd Cramer piano of Keith Godchaux had already begun to take the Dead to new improvisational heights, but diehard bluesman Pigpen was still representing the group's roots with his harmonica and gritty vocals.If you favor the jamming side of the Dead, EUROPE '72 offers a wealth of riches. "Morning Dew," "Truckin'" and other classics are presented in epic versions, spotlighting the musicians in all their free-form glory. But those who admire the band's excellent songcraft won't be disappoin