The Grateful Dead - Best of the Grateful Dead: 1967-1977 (2 Lp's)

The Grateful Dead

The Best Of The Grateful Dead (1967–1977)

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  • Black Vinyl

The Grateful Dead's The Best Of The Grateful Dead (1967-1977) surveys the band's first decade, drawing from their formative studio albums and early singles. Released in 2015 by Rhino Records, this compilation captures the Dead at their most essential—spanning the psychedelic experiments of their debut through the country-rock maturity of American Beauty and into the improvisational depths of the mid-'70s. It's a focused entry point that prioritizes studio versions over the endless live recordings that define their legend, making it an effective primer on their compositional range and evolution.

The selection moves thoughtfully through their catalog's turning points. Early standouts like "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)" and "Cream Puff War" capture the acid-rock rush of their debut, while "Dark Star" (presented here as the single version) hints at the extended exploratory passages they'd become famous for. "St. Stephen" and "China Cat Sunflower" showcase their ability to build sophisticated arrangements around folk and blues foundations, and the Workingman's Dead and American Beauty tracks underscore how seamlessly they shifted toward Americana without losing their experimental edge. The arc is deliberate: you hear a band learning to balance structure with open-ended invention.

This two-LP pressing arrives in a gatefold jacket with a white paper inner sleeve and includes an insert documenting the source recordings and credits. It's a straightforward, well-organized presentation of material that deserves to be heard in sequence—an effective way to experience the Dead's studio work without the intimidation of a sprawling box set.


Title: The Best Of The Grateful Dead (1967-1977)
Artist: The Grateful Dead
Label: Rhino Records (2)
Style: Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Product Type: 2×Vinyl, LP, Compilation
Country: US
Release Year: 2015
Barcode: 081227954659

Tracklist:

A1. The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) (2:09)
A2. Cream Puff War (2:28)
A3. Born Cross-Eyed (2:04)
A4. Dark Star (Single Version) (2:41)
A5. St. Stephen (4:26)
A6. China Cat Sunflower (3:40)
B1. Uncle John's Band (4:42)
B2. Easy Wind (4:59)
B3. Casey Jones (4:24)
B4. Truckin' (5:03)
C1. Box Of Rain (5:17)
C2. Sugar Magnolia (3:17)
C3. Friend Of The Devil (3:21)
C4. Ripple (4:10)
C5. Eyes Of The World (5:16)
D1. Unbroken Chain (6:45)
D2. Scarlet Begonias (4:19)
D3. The Music Never Stopped (4:35)
D4. Estimated Prophet (5:35)

Factory sealed vinyl records are shipped exactly as received from distributors and are not opened prior to shipment. Because of this, seam splits or minor jacket wear may occasionally occur during transit.