Laura Veirs recently took a Grateful Dead classic for a spin and decided she liked it so much it should be on her new album. On The Lookout, Veirs actually taps LIVE fave Jim James (My Morning Jacket) to record the track with her.
I caught wind of this one through the blog Cover Me…
For her arrangement, Veirs drives the sound with a blend of acoustic and pedal steel guitar, adding in small sections of electric harpsichord. She sings it in an echoey, ethereal tone, reminiscent of Suzanne Vega’s’ work on her 1987 album Solitude Standing. James joins in half-way through, adding a layer of harmony to the background vocals that the Dead never achieved either live or in the studio. While she does not reinvent the tune, Veirs gives new life to a song long-neglected by its creators. [Cover Me]
And wow, it’s really a doozy. Not only is this one of my favorite Grateful Dead tunes, this version seems to bring a female vibe that is sorely lacking in some of the Dead repertoire. (Sorry, Donna Jean fans… that isn’t what I mean).
Check it out below…
