And I sorta hated some, too, but I loved the album, anyway.
GRANT MCLENNAN WATERSHED RAR SERIES
And I realized, as I watched it (that's right, I saw the series finale on TV in real time), that I sorta loved some of the songs on this album. I don't want to spoil anything about this show that went off the air 10 years ago in an unceremonious episode dump, but I will say that this album plays a large part in the series finale. And then there was this show, Freaks and Geeks, which nobody but my wife and I watched at the time, but now is rightly considered a cult classic. My uncle gave me a copy when I was 13 or so, so I had quite an attachment to this album from an early age.
I bought this long after I'd decided that I never would listen to the Dead again, spurred by an unexpected nostalgia. Perennial fan-favorites "Sugar Magnolia" and "Truckin'?" Awful.
Specifically: "Box of Rain," "Friend of the Devil," "Ripple," and "Attics of My Life": great songs. But the songs are actually reaching towards greatness, and the simplicity is appealing. Sure, the drums and guitars are still far too busy and the whole thing is strangely lacking in a bass register. But I'm not here to bury the Dead, but to praise this album: this one is the only Dead album I feel. Outside the stadium: human beings fucking around on strings and wood, sometimes actually sounding good. Inside the stadium: unfocused noodling, overbusy drums, a weird wash of sound with all edges sandpapered off (I mean, Garcia's pedals were autowah, phaser, and mild distortion, right? No edges). People of all ages would get together to jam on acoustic instruments, usually playing older folk songs, but too often someone would throw in an all-too-reverent Dead cover, as well. I realized - too slowly, but I was young! - that there was just as much selfishness in that group as there is any community created by human beings, although I will admit that I saw some rather amazing moments of selflessness, too.
But I never felt connected to the larger Deadhead community. I was pretty young, and I wanted to feel like I was a part of something larger. There was a time when I spent a lot of effort attending Grateful Dead shows.