The Album Cover
About The Album[]
Blues for Allah is the eighth studio album by the Grateful Dead. It was recorded between February 27 and May 7, 1975 and originally released on September 1, 1975. It was the third release under the band's own label, Grateful Dead Records, after fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros. Records.
It was the first album with Mickey Hart in over four years, and the band's first album since their short hiatus from touring in 1974. Possibly because of late arrival, Mickey Hart's picture does not appear on the back cover.
The album's title track was only performed a handful of times in 1975 and never played again after that, while several other tracks on the album were performed regularly for the rest of the Dead's career.
The album was released for the first time on CD in 1995 by Arista before being remastered, expanded, and released as part of the Beyond Description (1973-1989) 12-CD box set in October 2004. The remastered version was later released separately on CD on March 7, 2006 by Rhino Records.
3-23-75
2-7-75
Track listing[]
Help On The Way/Slipknot!
Franklin's Tower
Stronger Than Dirt Or Milkin' The Turkey/King Solomon's Marbles
9-28-75
The Music Never Stopped
Crazy Fingers
Sage & Spirit
Blues For Allah
Sand Castles And Glass Camels
Unusual Occurences In The Desert
Groove #1 (2-27-75 instrumental studio outtalke)
Groove #2 (2-27-75 instrumental studio outtake)
Distorto (2-28-75 instrumental studio outtake)
9-28-75
A To E Flat Jam (2-27-75 instrumental studio outtake)
Proto 18 Proper (2-27-75 instrumental studio outtake)
Hollywood Cantana (5-7-75 studio
9-28-75
9-28-75
outtake)
Personnel[]
- Jerry Garcia - guitar, vocals
- Bob Weir - guitar, vocals
- Keith Godchaux - keyboards, vocals
- Donna Jean Godchaux - vocals
- Phil Lesh - bass
- Bill Kreutzmann - drums
- Mickey Hart - drums
Additional performers:
Production:
- Philip Garris - Cover, illustrations
- Joe Gastwirt - remastering
- Dan Healy - engineer, mixing
- Robert Taylor - assistant engineer
Reissue production credits[]
- David Lemieux, James Austin - reissue producers
- Reggie Collins - annotation
- David Fricke - liner notes
- Sheryl Farber - editorial supervision
- Rob Zi Taylor - assistant engineer
- Cameron Sears - executive producer
- Jimmy Edwards, Robin Hurley, Hale Milfgrim, Scott Pascucci - associate producer
- Joe Gastwirt - mastering, production consultant
- Eileen Law - research
- Ed Perlstein, Richard McCaffrey - photography
- Hugh Brown, Steve Vance - design, reissue art directors
- Vanessa Atkins, Steven Brown, Betty Cantor, Steven Chean, Brett Cohen, Bill Inglot, Bob Matthews, Jeffrey Norman, Randy Perry - project assistants