The song is the latest from the forthcoming 50th anniversary edition of From the Mars Hotel
Rhino shares “Ship Of Fools (Live at University of Nevada 5/12/74),” off the forthcoming 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of the Grateful Dead’s From The Mars Hotel. As the second preview of the remastered release, arriving in full on June 21st, “Ship of Fools (Live at University of Nevada 5/12/74)” offers listeners another taste of the newly unearthed, previously unheard recordings that make up its expanded tracklist.
Grateful Dead Legacy Manager and Audio Archivist, David Lemieux, writes, “Debuting at Winterland in San Francisco on February 22, 1974, less than three months before the Reno show, ‘Ship Of Fools’ was one Jerry’s two mellower-tempo’d songs on Mars Hotel along with ‘China Doll.’ It was a mainstay of Grateful Dead setlists from its debut right through 1995, although it was only played a half dozen times in 1994 and 1995 combined.”
Fifty years ago, the Grateful Dead were cooking with gas. It was spring 1974, the band had successfully emerged from a series of hectic, harrowing times, and would soon follow their transformative Wake Of The Flood with the second acclaimed album release on their very own Grateful Dead Records: From The Mars Hotel. During the mere eight months that had passed between those two beloved LPs, the group also played some of their most exploratory live music and largest venues to date, famously amplified by the homemade, 75-ton Wall of Sound that they debuted on March 23rd, 1974, at their hometown Cow Palace in Daly City, CA. Eternal staples such as “Scarlet Begonias,” “Ship Of Fools” and “U.S. Blues” would first be introduced into setlists along that season’s tour, before the Grateful Dead spent two months recording and honing them in the studio for From The Mars Hotel. Not to mention perennial classics like “China Doll” and “Loose Lucy,” or “Pride of Cucamonga” and “Unbroken Chain” – the final two tracks Phil Lesh would sing on a Grateful Dead studio album. Now, as Grateful Dead members and tributaries continue to celebrate and bring so many of these formative songs to the masses, From The Mars Hotel has been remastered and expanded with newly unearthed material and rarities, in honor of its 50th anniversary.
Out June 21st via Rhino, six days before the album’s original release on June 27, 1974, From The Mars Hotel (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) features remastered audio by Grammy Award-winning engineer David Glasser, with Plangent Processes tape restoration and speed correction. Produced for release by Grateful Dead Legacy Manager and Audio Archivist, David Lemieux, the deluxe edition also includes demos of “China Doll” and “Wave That Flag” – the song that became “U.S. Blues” – as well as a previously unreleased live performance of the Grateful Dead at University of Nevada-Reno on 5/12/1974. As the band filled an outdoor football stadium with epic highs like a huge “China Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider,” Mars Hotel cuts including “U.S. Blues” and classics such as “Brown-Eyed Women,” “Tennessee Jed,” “Mississippi Half-Step,” “Truckin'” and “Sugar Magnolia,” a massive wind storm was no match for the Wall of Sound. Designed to improve the listening and performance experience at what were becoming larger gigs and longer, more dynamic and varied sets, the Wall of Sound required 21 stagehands and underlined the resounding effect the Grateful Dead were having on American audiences and culture at the time, even as the entire operation remained homespun and humble.
In addition, From The Mars Hotel (50th Anniversary Remaster) will be released on June 21st as a single 180-gram black vinyl LP, limited edition Neon Pink vinyl, limited edition “Ugly Rumors” custom vinyl exclusive to Dead.net, and a specially-designed picture disc created in partnership with zoetrope pioneer Drew Tetz. When viewed with a camera or strobe, the zoetrope LP will appear to animate.
Recorded in San Francisco’s Coast Recorders studio, From The Mars Hotel finds Keith Godchaux particularly shining across a variety of keys, from the “China Doll” harpsichord to the pounding piano on Bob Weir’s “Money Money,” to the churchy organ that elevates “Ship Of Fools.” Lyricist Robert Hunter packs “U.S. Blues” with a barrage of imagery, pop-culture references and sardonic asides – as Canadian author Ray Robertson writes in the 50th Anniversary Edition’s liner notes, it “carries an undeniable whiff of late-capitalism ennui…it’s the most fun you’ll ever have dancing to the end of the American Empire.” Jerry Garcia’s jaunty lead guitar drives bouncing melodies across the LP, while guests include Ned Lagin’s unnerving synth effects on “Unbroken Chain,” Clover member John McFee’s country-rock pedal steel on “Pride Of Cucamonga,” and more.
From The Mars Hotel peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1974, contributing to the Grateful Dead’s historic achievement last month, when they broke the record for Most Top 40 albums on the Billboard 200.
Last month, The Grateful Dead opened their vaults with the surprise release of From The Mars Hotel: The Angel’s Share via Rhino. Featuring 16 newly unearthed session recordings, the digital collection brings listeners directly into San Francisco’s Coast Recorders during the spring of 1974, revealing the band’s real-time process as they crafted such eternal staples such as “Scarlet Begonias,” “Ship Of Fools,” “China Doll,” “U.S. Blues,” “Unbroken Chain” and more that would make up their classic From The Mars Hotel LP. From The Mars Hotel: The Angel’s Share brings together hours of expertly-curated outtakes, alternate versions, acoustic mixes, unexpected moments, and revelations that have never been heard or available on DSPs until now.
