In 1970 the Grateful Dead released their fifth album, American Beauty.
The front cover art was done by Kelly-Mouse Studios and shows a blossoming rose and the title American Beauty, which can also be read as American Reality, on top of a piece of wooden veneer.
Known for their long jams and extended solos, there is not one to be found on this album. No single musician stands out on American Beauty. Together, The Dead created one special piece of music that is still meaningful 37 years later.
I always imagined the band inviting you to an old house by the countryside as they play their songs, complete with a stream, a meadow and tall green and tan grass.
The first track is “Box of Rain” and the soft strumming of the acoustic guitar creates the effect of raindrops tapping outside of a windowpane. Somewhat of a somber song, the band does their best to relate to a saddened listener. “What do you want me to do to see you through? A box of rain will ease your pain and love will see you through.”
After the clouds have disappeared and the sun has peaked, The Dead take you outside for the next two songs “Friend of the Devil” and “Sugar Magnolia.” These two songs are opposite of “Box of Rain.” Listen to the lyrics and decide for yourself what they are talking about. The music itself on these tracks creates a feeling of hillsides and mountaintops, or perhaps rolling in the grass.
As the evening comes, the band plays “Operator” in what feels like the living room of the house. Feeling low and wondering how The Dead search for a lost telephone number that belongs to a chosen woman. A very steady song that in style and lyrics sounds a lot like singer/songwriter Jim Croce’s “Operator, (That’s not how it feels.)” Though, The Dead’s “Operator” was released two years before Croce’s.
The songs leading up to “Candyman” make the album good, but not great. The songs that followed express the haunting beauty of the Grateful Dead.
“Candyman”, “Ripple”, “Brokedown Palace”, “Till the Morning Comes”, and “Attics of My Life,” feel like they are being played around a bonfire beneath the glow of the night’s shining moon. “Candyman” has a very haunting sound. The Dead re-create the eerie beauty of nightfall. I think I even heard an owl or two. They talk of the “Candyman” coming into town and lifting up the sad people and they also advise to watch out for him.
“Ripple” and “Brokedown Palace” are two tracks but they mesh well and flow into each other. “Ripple” is a big sing-a-long. I am reminded of why hippies sway the way they do.
“Brokedown Palace.” Wow. How can this song be described? This one here digs right into the chest, searches around for the soul and then proceeds to place it next to everyone else’s beside the fire. Magic, that’s what it is. “Till the Morning Comes” is a sweet little song, a little cheesy but it still adds a nice touch to what they were trying to do with the album.
“Attics of My Life” is like the ending song of the night, the last one they play before the new day comes. It is a cool song about dreams, thoughts and bonds and reprises that eerie, beautiful feeling of night that they produced on “Candyman.” “Where the secrets all are told and the petals all unfold.”
The last song is “Truckin.” Going along with thoughts of spending the weekend at their old country home, this is like the leaving song. Out on the road going back to wherever it is that you came from. “What a loooong strange trip it’s been.”
This album is just special. There is a certain, indescribable feeling that resounds inside with each listen. Let this one play the whole way through. Don’t skip tracks and let this album touch you deep, because it will.