Best Songs From the Album "The Music Never Stopped: Roots of the Grateful Dead"
"The Music Never Stopped" is a compilation album released on Grateful Dead Records that compiles the original versions of songs that the Grateful Dead covered in concert and in the studio. It's an interesting mixture of folk, bluegrass, country, blues, R&B, and early rock and roll. I'm self-moderating the list to make sure that spam items don't end up on the list; don't worry, I'll put all seventeen songs on the album here so you can vote. I also urge you to listen to all of the songs on the album; they're all worth listening to.One of Dylan's finest songs; it's a great way to say farewell to an era, as Dylan was in the process of becoming a full-fledged rock musician. The Dead covered a lot of Dylan songs in concert, and even once got to tour with Dylan in 1987.
One of Haggard's finest tunes; nobody could sing a song like this with as much conviction and realism as Merle. The Dead did this one quite a few times; one of the more notable performances was at Woodstock.
I love El Paso because it actually tells a story. Marty's voice is sublime, and so are the backing vocals. And at the end when he sings "One little kiss and Feleena goodbye"- I'm getting choked up just writing about it.
A traditional gospel blues song that goes way back. When I first heard Rev. Gary Davis do it, I understood immediately why the Dead liked it. It's a great blues tune with a lot of conviction.
Chuck Berry started writing this song while in prison. He was in the prison library, saw a road map, and immediately thought about writing a song about a guy taking a trip cross-country. It's one of my favorite Chuck songs from his post-prison era.
A rock and roll classic with a strong Bo Diddley beat. The Grateful Dead used to do this one in conjunction with "Going' Down the Road Feelin' Bad", which I'll put further down the list.
One of my favorite R&B songs from the Sixties; the horns here are fantastic. I do have to say that the Grateful Dead took this song to a whole new level; just listen to the version on Live/Dead and you'll understand.
This song is commonly interpreted as being about a young couple who go out after an atomic explosion to find that all of humanity has disappeared. The Grateful Dead did this one on their first album; it's one of my favorites from that album.
Cannon's Jug Stompers were one of the premier jug bands in the Southern United States. Three members of the Dead actually met each other in a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions.
Better known by many as "Little Red Rooster". It's one of my favorites from the Wolf, particularly because I love the main slide guitar hook.
