Bare Bones: Volume 1 - Master Takes [Lavendar Eco Mix Vinyl] [Barnes & Noble Exclusive in Bloomington, MN

The musical comradery between
the Grateful Dead
's central member
Jerry Garcia
and mandolin master
David Grisman
resulted not just in some of
the Dead
's most lasting Americana tunes but also a wealth of bluegrass, folk, and country-adjacent tangents and side projects.
Garcia
and
Grisman
's early-'70s group
Old & In the Way
was a traditional bluegrass counterpoint to
's improvised rock style, and in subsequent decades, the friends recorded multiple duo albums of gentle acoustic folk.
Bare Bones
is a deep dive into
's extensive recording archives, collecting the basic tracks of vocals, guitar, and mandolin put to tape in laid-back sessions at his home studio.
is broken into three volumes: one that collects the raw master takes that were later fleshed out with additional overdubbed instrumentation on the pair's '90s albums (
Garcia/Grisman
,
Not for Kids Only
Shady Grove
, and
Been All Around This World
), one that focuses on unreleased songs, and a third volume with alternate takes. Throughout the majority of this lengthy collection, there's a strong sense of relaxed happiness, with the familiarity between
guiding the proceedings. The home studio setting also adds to the feeling of comfort in these takes. A slowed-down take on
Grateful Dead
classic "Friend of the Devil" is loose and meandering, almost like the two friends are just running through the tune for fun. Stripped-down versions of lighthearted kids songs like "A Horse Named Bill" and "There Ain't No Bugs on Me" from the pair's 1993 children's album
aren't all that much sillier in spirit and presentation than more adult-themed songs like "Little Glass of Wine" or the bluegrass standard "Man of Constant Sorrow." Lyrics are flubbed, studio chatter and jokes fly between takes, and more than anything else, two good friends pass the time playing the songs they love. This was true of most of
's collaborative output, but
offers an especially intimate look at their chemistry, both musical and personal. ~ Fred Thomas