Description: Do you know the way to Fennario? Or wonder where the Nuthatch winters? What is the "Buck Dancer's Choice?" And where do the four winds dwell? If these are questions that leave you wondering then David Dodd's The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics may just be the skeleton key you've been looking for. Every Deadhead knows there is something profound hidden within their lyrics, even if most of the nuances go by unnoticed. Why are the obscure tales of their characters' (Jack Straw, Black Peter, August West, et al) trials and tribulations on the psychedelic Americana landscape so intriguing? What is the deal with the reoccurring imagery that popped in and out of their songs for decades (the crows, light and darkness, rolling rivers, gambling, playing cards, space, and, of course, roses)? It is clear the Grateful Dead's lyricists Robert Hunter and John Barlow tapped into the well of the collective subconscious for material, but rarely were any explanations provided. Fans were basically on their own to put the pieces together themselves, until now.
The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics began as a research project for David Dodd while he was working at the University of Colorado. Like many fans before him, Dodd spent hours passionately trying to find the deeper meanings in the Dead's songs. In 1994 the Internet may have been in its infancy, but Dodd knew the Web was the perfect to tool to help him annotate the entire Dead catalog. So began the building of his incredibly popular Web site. The fruits of his labors lie within the pages of this encyclopedic book. Where Robert Hunter's A Box of Rain only includes his lyrical contributions to the Dead's catalog, Dodd's book is expanded to include John Barlow's songs, as well as tunes the Dead covered so many times they became their own. It is worth mentioning, this book should not be viewed as a cheat sheet, but a tool giving lots of background and cross-references. The interpretations are still up to you. Be forewarned, this book can be extremely habit forming. --Rob Bracco
Details: This is the perfect gift for the deadhead in your life!! Very informative, and neat pictures as well. You will love this book.
Review Summary: Bought as gift and made son very happy.
Date: 2009-01-06
Details: I bought this set as a Christmas gift for my son. He was very happy with me and the set.
Review Summary: Great book!
Date: 2008-10-16
Details: This was an excellent gift for a Grateful Dead fanatic. He loved it and uses it all the time!
Review Summary: An amazing work...
Date: 2008-08-01
Details: It's very easy to get lost in this book, if you care about Grateful Dead lyrics. Steve Urbauer Stephen Urbauer
Review Summary: I have to agree with Kirk McElhearn's review
Date: 2008-06-12
Details: I was a little disappointed to find that some of the songs that were not written by the dead but clearly made famous by them were not in the book. How can you not have song's like dark hollow in the book. Who is the original writer of that? I have no idea but the dead made that song. I feel it is one of there best and to not include that one and others was for me personally a bit of a let down.
out of 26 Reviews
