Dylan & the Dead

Dylan & the Dead is a collaborative live album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead, released on February 6, 1989, by Columbia Records. The album consists of seven songs written and sung by Dylan, with the Grateful Dead providing accompaniment. The album was produced by Jerry Garcia and John Cutler.

Dylan & the Dead
Live album by Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead
Released	February 6, 1989 (1989-02-06)
Recorded	July 1987
Genre	Rock gospel
Length	43:23
Label	Columbia
Producer	John Cutler Jerry Garcia
Bob Dylan chronology
Down in the Groove (1988) Dylan & the Dead (1989) Oh Mercy (1989)
Grateful Dead chronology
Dead Zone: The Grateful Dead CD Collection (1977–1987) (1987) Dylan & the Dead (1989) Built to Last (1989)

Dylan & the Dead was recorded during a successful stadium tour known as the Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead 1987 Tour, featuring the two artists performing separately and together. Songs from two of the Grateful Dead's performances from the tour are documented on the album and video View from the Vault, Volume Four, and one of the tour-rehearsal songs is on the album Postcards of the Hanging.

Though ultimately poorly received, the album initially sold well, reaching No. 37 on the Billboard charts in the U.S., No. 38 in the UK, and earning a Gold certification in the U.S.

In 1992, a bootleg of the first concert of the tour was released under the title "Orbiting Uvula". It includes the first live performance of "Queen Jane Approximately", the first live performance of "John Brown" since 1963, and the first live performance of "Chimes of Freedom" since 1964.^[1]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Robert Christgau	C−[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[4]
MusicHound	[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]

Despite strong initial sales, the album was poorly received by critics. Rolling Stone stated that the record "makes you wonder what the fuss [over the tour] was about", although they did have some kind words for several of the tracks.^[7] Writing for The Village Voice, music critic Robert Christgau said that what Dylan "makes of his catalogue here is exactly what he's been making of it for years—money".^[8] Stephen Thomas Erlewine's review for AllMusic was particularly harsh, giving it one star out of a possible five, and calling it "quite possibly the worst album by either Bob Dylan or the Grateful Dead" and "a sad, disheartening document".^[9]

Track listing

All songs written by Bob Dylan except where noted.

Side one

No.	Title	Recording venue and date	Length
1.	"Slow Train"	Sullivan Stadium on July 4, 1987	4:54
2.	"I Want You"	Oakland Coliseum on July 24, 1987	3:59
3.	"Gotta Serve Somebody"	Anaheim Stadium on July 26, 1987	5:42
4.	"Queen Jane Approximately"	Autzen Stadium on July 19, 1987	6:30
Total length:			21:05

Side two

No.	Title	Recorded	Length
1.	"Joey" (Dylan, Jacques Levy)	Sullivan Stadium on July 4, 1987	9:10
2.	"All Along the Watchtower"	Anaheim Stadium on July 26, 1987	6:17
3.	"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"	Anaheim Stadium on July 26, 1987	6:51
Total length:			22:18

Personnel

Musicians

• Bob Dylan – guitar, vocals

Grateful Dead

• Jerry Garcia – guitar, vocals, production
• Mickey Hart – drums
• Bill Kreutzmann – drums
• Phil Lesh – bass guitar
• Brent Mydland – keyboards, vocals
• Bob Weir – guitar, vocals

Production

• Guy Charbonneau – engineering
• John Cutler – production, engineering
• Joe Gastwirt – mastering
• Herb Greene – photography
• Rick Griffin – art direction
• Gary Hedden – engineering
• Peter Miller – engineering
• David Roberts – engineering
• Billy Rothschild – engineering
• Chris Wiskes – engineering

Charts

Chart performance for Dylan & the Dead

Chart (1989)	Peak position
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[10]	72
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[11]	55
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[12]	16
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[13]	33
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[14]	29
UK Albums (OCC)[15]	38
US Billboard 200[16]	37

See also

• List of Grateful Dead covers