Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead
January 01, 1970
Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead is the first compilation album from rock band the Grateful Dead. It was originally released in February 1974. As with other such packages, the album was a way for Warner Bros. Records to capitalize on the Dead's back catalog, after the band had left the label. It was followed three years later by a second compilation, What a Long Strange Trip It's Been.[3]
Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead
Upon fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros. Records, the Grateful Dead left the label and started their own production and publishing arm for the release of their albums and other projects. After Wake of the Flood was successfully released on the independent Grateful Dead Records, Warner Bros. compiled Skeletons from the Closet as a "best-of" package, with tracks representing six of the band's nine albums on their label (along with a track from Bob Weir's solo album, Ace).[4]
Eight of the tracks are from Dead studio recordings, and two are from live albums. However "Turn On Your Love Light" is an edited version, that first appeared on the Warner/Reprise Loss Leaders album The Big Ball, rather than the complete version from Live/Dead. "One More Saturday Night" is a live version from Europe '72. Though "Mexicali Blues" is from Weir's solo album, he is backed by the Grateful Dead. Nothing is presented from previous albums Anthem of the Sun, Grateful Dead or Bear's Choice, nor versions from singles.
Title, cover art & releaseedit
The album title is a pun, referring both to the idiom and to the fact that these are Grateful Dead tracks from Warner Bros.' "closet" (and skeletons being iconography associated with the band). The artwork for the front and back covers of the album was created by John Van Hamersveld. With no input from the band, it only vaguely represents the imagery associated with the Grateful Dead, and is not in keeping with the tone of previous releases.
The front cover shows a somewhat demonic, red-toned man (with flames reflected in his sunglasses), Botticelli's Venus holding a rose (presumably a reference to American Beauty, the album most-heavily represented), and a smoking skeleton spindling a prescient gold record on its extended middle finger. The stem of the rose touches the record, as a stylus. The back cover depicts three men seated around a diner table playing cards, with a globe trophy in the center. A book of matches bears the ecology symbol. Outside in the background, a flying saucer (from The Day the Earth Stood Still) hovers over a futuristic Dymaxion car whose designer, Buckminster Fuller, sits in the driver's seat. The structure in the distance depicts the Johnson Wax Administration Building, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The three men depict Marlon Brando from The Wild One, a portrayal of Jesus in academic dress, and Cesar Romero as The Cisco Kid.[5]
Skeletons from the Closet was certified as a Gold Album in 1980, thereafter becoming the best-selling release by the band. It remains so despite the abrupt mix of styles presented (due to the band's stylistic evolution while signed with Warner Bros.), and despite a paucity of live performances, for which the band was more highly regarded by fans and critics.[6]
Mickey Hart – drums, percussion on "Truckin'", "Sugar Magnolia", "St. Stephen", "Uncle John's Band", "Casey Jones", "Turn On Your Love Light", "Friend of the Devil"
Alembic – engineering, mixing on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"
Stephen Barncard – compilation production; production on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Dick Bogert – engineering on "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)"
Betty Cantor – production, engineering on "Casey Jones", "Rosemary", "St. Stephen", "Turn On Your Love Light", and "Uncle John's Band"
Bob Cassidy – engineering on "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)"
Dave Collins – digital remastering assistance; pre-mastering assistance on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Tom Flye – engineering, mixing on "Casey Jones", "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", "Truckin'", and "Uncle John's Band"; mastering supervision on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Joe Gastwirt – remixing, production; pre-mastering assistance on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
David Hassinger – compilation production; production on "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)"
Dan Healy – consulting engineering on "Rosemary" and "St. Stephen"
Scott Heard – equipment technician on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"
Robin Hurley – audio production on "Casey Jones", "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", "Truckin'", and "Uncle John's Band"
Bob Matthews – production, engineering on "Casey Jones", "Rosemary", "St. Stephen", "Turn On Your Love Light", and "Uncle John's Band"
Andrew McPherson – authoring on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"
David McLees – executive production on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Jeffrey Norman – engineering, mixing on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"; engineering on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Fred Ordower – engineering on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Ramrod – equipment technician on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"
Bob Seidemann – art direction
Rudson Shurtliff – engineering, mixing on "Casey Jones" and "Uncle John's Band"; engineering on "Friend of the Devil", "Sugar Magnolia", and "Truckin'"
Owsley Stanley – consulting engineering on "Rosemary" and "St. Stephen"
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Referencesedit
^Lankford, Ronnie D. Jr. "Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead". AllMusic. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
^Scoppa, Bud (April 25, 1974). Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead, Rolling Stone
^Woodward, Jake; et al. (2003). Grateful Dead: The Illustrated Trip. Dorling Kindersley, ltd. p. 165.
^"Grateful Dead Discography". Dead Disc. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
^Hamersveld, John. "Question About Grateful Dead Album Cover". Google Answers. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
^"RIAA Gold & Platinum database-Skeletons from the Closet". Retrieved February 28, 2009.
^"Grateful Dead - Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
^"American single certifications – Grateful Dead – Skeletons from the Closet: The Best of Grateful Dead". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
January 01, 1970
skeletons, from, closet, best, grateful, dead, first, compilation, album, from, rock, band, grateful, dead, originally, released, february, 1974, with, other, such, packages, album, warner, bros, records, capitalize, dead, back, catalog, after, band, left, lab. Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead is the first compilation album from rock band the Grateful Dead It was originally released in February 1974 As with other such packages the album was a way for Warner Bros Records to capitalize on the Dead s back catalog after the band had left the label It was followed three years later by a second compilation What a Long Strange Trip It s Been 3 Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful DeadCover art by John Van HamersveldGreatest hits album by Grateful DeadReleasedFebruary 1974 1974 02 LP October 1988 1988 10 CD Recorded1967 1972GenreRoots rock jam rockLength44 53LabelWarner Bros WS 2764ProducerStephen Barncard Betty Cantor David Hassinger Grateful Dead Bob MatthewsGrateful Dead chronologyWake of the Flood 1973 Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead 1974 From the Mars Hotel 1974 Professional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllmusic 1 Rolling StoneMixed 2 Contents 1 Content 2 Title cover art amp release 3 Track listing 4 Personnel 5 Charts 6 Certifications 7 ReferencesContent editUpon fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros Records the Grateful Dead left the label and started their own production and publishing arm for the release of their albums and other projects After Wake of the Flood was successfully released on the independent Grateful Dead Records Warner Bros compiled Skeletons from the Closet as a best of package with tracks representing six of the band s nine albums on their label along with a track from Bob Weir s solo album Ace 4 Eight of the tracks are from Dead studio recordings and two are from live albums However Turn On Your Love Light is an edited version that first appeared on the Warner Reprise Loss Leaders album The Big Ball rather than the complete version from Live Dead One More Saturday Night is a live version from Europe 72 Though Mexicali Blues is from Weir s solo album he is backed by the Grateful Dead Nothing is presented from previous albums Anthem of the Sun Grateful Dead or Bear s Choice nor versions from singles Title cover art amp release editThe album title is a pun referring both to the idiom and to the fact that these are Grateful Dead tracks from Warner Bros closet and skeletons being iconography associated with the band The artwork for the front and back covers of the album was created by John Van Hamersveld With no input from the band it only vaguely represents the imagery associated with the Grateful Dead and is not in keeping with the tone of previous releases The front cover shows a somewhat demonic red toned man with flames reflected in his sunglasses Botticelli s Venus holding a rose presumably a reference to American Beauty the album most heavily represented and a smoking skeleton spindling a prescient gold record on its extended middle finger The stem of the rose touches the record as a stylus The back cover depicts three men seated around a diner table playing cards with a globe trophy in the center A book of matches bears the ecology symbol Outside in the background a flying saucer from The Day the Earth Stood Still hovers over a futuristic Dymaxion car whose designer Buckminster Fuller sits in the driver s seat The structure in the distance depicts the Johnson Wax Administration Building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright The three men depict Marlon Brando from The Wild One a portrayal of Jesus in academic dress and Cesar Romero as The Cisco Kid 5 Skeletons from the Closet was certified as a Gold Album in 1980 thereafter becoming the best selling release by the band It remains so despite the abrupt mix of styles presented due to the band s stylistic evolution while signed with Warner Bros and despite a paucity of live performances for which the band was more highly regarded by fans and critics 6 The album was first released on CD in 1988 Track listing editSide oneNo TitleWriter s Original AlbumLength1 The Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion Jerry Garcia Bill Kreutzmann Phil Lesh Ron Pigpen McKernan Bob WeirThe Grateful Dead2 072 Truckin Garcia Lesh Weir Robert HunterAmerican Beauty5 093 Rosemary Garcia HunterAoxomoxoa1 584 Sugar Magnolia Weir HunterAmerican Beauty3 155 St Stephen Garcia Lesh HunterAoxomoxoa4 266 Uncle John s Band Garcia HunterWorkingman s Dead4 42 Side twoNo TitleWriter s Original AlbumLength1 Casey Jones Garcia HunterWorkingman s Dead4 242 Mexicali Blues Weir John Perry BarlowAce by Bob Weir3 243 Turn On Your Love Light live January 26 1969 at Avalon Ballroom Deadric Malone Joseph ScottThe Big Ball compilation6 304 One More Saturday Night live May 26 1972 at Lyceum Theatre London WeirEurope 724 455 Friend of the Devil Garcia John Dawson HunterAmerican Beauty3 20Personnel editGrateful Dead Jerry Garcia lead guitar vocals pedal steel guitar on Sugar Magnolia Bob Weir rhythm guitar vocals lead vocals on Truckin Sugar Magnolia Mexicali Blues Ron Pigpen McKernan organ harmonica vocals lead vocals and conga on Turn On Your Love Light Phil Lesh bass guitar vocals backup vocals on Mexicali Blues Bill Kreutzmann drums percussion except Rosemary Mickey Hart drums percussion on Truckin Sugar Magnolia St Stephen Uncle John s Band Casey Jones Turn On Your Love Light Friend of the Devil Tom Constanten keyboards on Rosemary St Stephen Turn On Your Love Light Keith Godchaux piano on Mexicali Blues One More Saturday Night Donna Jean Godchaux backing vocals on One More Saturday Night Additional performers John Marmaduke Dawson Debbie Peter Grant Mouse David Nelson Wendy on Rosemary and St Stephen David Grisman mandolin on Friend of the Devil Howard Wales organ on Truckin Snooky Flowers horns on Mexicali Blues Luis Gasca horns on Mexicali Blues The Space Rangers horns on Mexicali Blues Technical personnel Alembic engineering mixing on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band Stephen Barncard compilation production production on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Dick Bogert engineering on The Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion Betty Cantor production engineering on Casey Jones Rosemary St Stephen Turn On Your Love Light and Uncle John s Band Bob Cassidy engineering on The Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion Dave Collins digital remastering assistance pre mastering assistance on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Tom Flye engineering mixing on Casey Jones Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia Truckin and Uncle John s Band mastering supervision on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Joe Gastwirt remixing production pre mastering assistance on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin David Hassinger compilation production production on The Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion Dan Healy consulting engineering on Rosemary and St Stephen Scott Heard equipment technician on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band Robin Hurley audio production on Casey Jones Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia Truckin and Uncle John s Band Bob Matthews production engineering on Casey Jones Rosemary St Stephen Turn On Your Love Light and Uncle John s Band Andrew McPherson authoring on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band David McLees executive production on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Jeffrey Norman engineering mixing on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band engineering on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Fred Ordower engineering on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Ramrod equipment technician on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band Bob Seidemann art direction Rudson Shurtliff engineering mixing on Casey Jones and Uncle John s Band engineering on Friend of the Devil Sugar Magnolia and Truckin Owsley Stanley consulting engineering on Rosemary and St Stephen John Van Hamersveld artwork Ron Wickersham consulting engineering on Rosemary and St Stephen Bill Wolf editingCharts editBillboard Chart Position Pop Albums 75 7 Certifications editRegion Certification Certified units sales United States RIAA 8 4 Platinum 4 000 000 Sales streaming figures based on certification alone References edit Lankford Ronnie D Jr Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead AllMusic Retrieved September 28 2018 Scoppa Bud April 25 1974 Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead Rolling Stone Woodward Jake et al 2003 Grateful Dead The Illustrated Trip Dorling Kindersley ltd p 165 Grateful Dead Discography Dead Disc Retrieved 2017 01 18 Hamersveld John Question About Grateful Dead Album Cover Google Answers Retrieved 2017 01 18 RIAA Gold amp Platinum database Skeletons from the Closet Retrieved February 28 2009 Grateful Dead Awards AllMusic AllMusic Retrieved 12 April 2018 American single certifications Grateful Dead Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead Recording Industry Association of America Retrieved December 14 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Skeletons from the Closet The Best of Grateful Dead amp oldid 1224659404, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
