When Robert Hunter died - one year ago today, I looked at some of his collaborations with artists other than Jerry Garcia.  He wrote over an album's worth of material with Bob Dylan. He contributed to two albums by Bill the Drummer, including the 7 Walkers, a song for Bruce Hornsby, and the lion's share of the material on recent Little Feat and New Riders of the Purple Sage albums.  By far, his major collaborator was Jim Lauderdale. They wrote four full albums and over an albums worth of other songs covering country, alt-country, bluegrass, roots rock - just what you'd expect. When I learned of his death, I had been enthralled with the first part of the Terrapin Station Suite - the Lady With the Fan. I'm not sure what led me there. I think I had heard he was doing poorly. I remember being struck by the line about the storyteller and about how we'd soon "not hear his voice".  Maybe that's why I lingered. Below are the songs that strike me as being, um,...

On this day in 1972, the Grateful Dead were between shows (the Hamburg and Paris) on their European tour, the tour that would produce the Europe '72 album. The band had a lot of new Garcia-Hunter compositions to record. The plan was for the resulting live album to pay for the tour...at least that's what they told their record company. It was my introduction to the band and remains my favorite Dead album because of the songs and the stories they tell rather than the jams. What does that make me? A fan? Certainly. A Deadhead? Who knows? Most of the songs on the original were altered in some way. Some had the tempo altered. Others received vocal or instrumental overdubs to cover blown notes or stray harmonies. Steven Seachrist researched and documented the alterations and overdubs done to prepare it and its sequel,  Europe '72 Vol. 2 ,  and you can read about them  here . This week's concert is not really a concert. Rather, it is the source songs that make up the a...