The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics

If you are a fan of the Grateful Dead, this book is a must. If you are not that familiar with the Grateful Dead, I recommend any of the following books about them to give you some background: "This is All A Dream We Dreamed: An Oral History of the Grateful Dead" by Blair Jackson and David Gans; No Simple Highway: A Cultural History of the Grateful Dead by Peter Richardson; "A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead by Dennis McNally.

"The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics, 50th Anniversary Edition" is a well organized and very attractive book. All of the original songs by the Grateful Dead are presented chronologically. The complete lyrics are provided as well as commentary about the lyrics that include: references to factors influencing the lyrics and what certain words in the lyrics refer to. The foreword to this book is written by Robert Hunter who wrote the lyrics to most of their songs.

If you don't know, the Grateful Dead is the most iconic of American rock bands and one of the top earning bands in our music history. They are a true American rock band and their song lyrics typically tell a story.

The approach to the book that I took is this. I would read the lyrics and commentary of three to four songs each day. Then I would sit down at my work station and play the songs I just read about with the book open so I could follow the lyrics and see how the lyrics related to the music. I found this to be a very interesting and education approach to the book. When you hear the songs and follow the written lyrics, it all makes sense and demonstrates how versatile the Grateful Dead were.

Five stars for this beautifully put together book. It is a real collector's piece that should be in any library of American Rock & Roll Music.

I love the content of this book but the quality of the one I received is poor. Entire sections of the book are coming unglued from the binding. Now the are falling out. Very disappointed in a product I was really enjoying. I searched thru Amazon for ways to exchange this product but couldn't figure it out. It would appear I have no recourse after 30 days.

This is a fantastic compilation for all of those who appreciate the genius of the Grateful Dead. The lyrics are brilliant, poetic, and often profound. One of my favorites:

Once in a while you get shown the light,
In the strangest of places,
If you look at it right.
- Scarlet Begonias

Very pretty and presentable - a coffee table book for DeadHeads I suppose. I got it hoping it went into depth on the meanings behind the lyrics. It offers some references, e.g., biography of St Stephen and what it means when saints are depicted with roses, but not what Hunter was trying to say in this song. Of course, there isn't always a meaning for a song but if so, say this. The perfect book about GD song lyrics probably doesn't exist, so this will have to make do.

I'm pretty sure that when I was in college in the early 1990s David Dodd was posting his annotated lyrics. I would download them, print them out and put them in a binder I kept. I loved having these during GD listening/trading parties. I'm glad to see them all put together in a beautifully bound book. The paper is high quality. The drawings are fantastic, the annotations are very interesting and informative and considering that cheap paperbacks often sell for $13, this is an amazing bargain. I would recommend this book without reservation.

My husband bought this for his deadhead heart surgeon who saved his life. The doc called him the next day to thank him. Must be a great book since you can never got a doctor on the phone!

A REALLY 'GRATEFUL' FORWARD BY R. HUNTER - starts this 'must' for all of us whom have been 'furthur' and transcended the artistic realm that still occurres in all 'the [jams] between'. For it's one thing to know that special place where heart and mind meld into soul, and the processes of this group of individual artists coalesce, forming something far more profound "...than word's can tell..." !!!
With that being said, the word's between the bindings of this book bring us all, once again, to 'all the year's combined' and complete the story in a uniquely gifted format. It becomes it's own show, to be added to any "taper's" collection. Another one of those that are as "unlike any other", as all the other's before it ...★★★★★
Garrick III (c) -2016

Love this book but it came in damaged. A little disappointed as it is a Christmas gift and have no time to return and order another one. Shipping box was in perfect condition so it was shipped already damaged.

This book was advertised as used – good. This book was in deplorable condition.

This is awesome, a must have for any GD fan. It appears this is the 50th anniversary edition.