[UPDATE 10/17/24]: Following a limited initial release through Acoustic Disc, the Bare Bones series of archival recordings by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman will see a wide release through Rounder Records. Rounder previewed the December 13th release with a previously uncirculated recording of “There Ain’t No Bugs on Me”, available now.
The three-volume Bare Bones captures 51 duo recordings of Garcia and Grisman made at Dawg’s home studio. These songs would appear on the pair’s celebrated run of early 1990s releases Garcia/Grisman, Shady Grove, and Not For Kids Only in a much more refined state, but the new archival series presents them in their rawest forms. Volume one features master tracks that would run on the aforementioned albums, while the second hosts original recordings of songs that would become staples of the duo’s songbook including “Grateful Dawg”, “Dawg’s Waltz”, and “Arabia” along with duo versions of “Two Soldiers”, “Take Me”, and the Grateful Dead‘s “Friend of the Devil” (which Grisman provided mandolin for on the original 1970 recording for American Beauty).
Finally, volume three of Bare Bones includes 16 alternate duo takes of songs from Garcia/Grisman, Not For Kids Only, Shady Grove, and Bare Bones volume two. In contrast to the commercial behemoth that the Grateful Dead had become by the ’90s, Garcia and Grisman’s recording schedule was as relaxed as possible. The lifelong friends and collaborators experimented with multiple arrangements and recordings for the sheer enjoyment of it, knowing that only one version could make it onto the album. As Grisman writes in the closing liner notes “…these recordings can be heard from a more historical (or should I say hysterical) perspective.”
“There Ain’t No Bugs on Me” comes from the first volume of master takes and would appear on Garcia and Grisman’s 1993 children’s (and adult’s) album Not For Kids Only. While Jerry sings “There ain’t no bugs on me,” there may have been some in the recording sessions as a press release notes that these original recordings were punched-up with fiddle, autoharp, vocal harmonies, “and yes, even insects” while Garcia was on the road.
Jerry Garcia, David Grisman — “There Ain’t No Bugs On Me” (Fiddlin’ John Carson)
Rounder Records has a variety of physical releases planned for Bare Bones including a 3CD set containing all three volumes and individual 2LP pressings for each volume. The CD set and vinyl of the first volume will arrive online and in stores on December 13th, with a lavender-colored eco-mix vinyl for Barnes & Noble and a purple blast-colored vinyl for independent record stores. Stay tuned for more information on vinyl releases for volumes two and three and pre-order Bare Bones here.
Scroll down for further information from the original album announcement.
[8/1/24]: David Grisman celebrated the 82nd birthday of his late friend and collaborator Jerry Garcia by announcing a new archival series of duo recordings, Bare Bones. The three-volume series will mostly feature previously unreleased tracks, with the first installment arriving Saturday, August 3rd via Dawg’s Acoustic Discs.
“Today I’m thinking about my friend and musical sidekick, Jerry Garcia, on his birthday,” Grisman wrote on social media. “Jerry was a uniquely talented musician, artist and human being with a kind soul — and a great friend. We met 60 years ago this summer while attending a Bill Monroe show at a “country music” venue, Sunset Park, in West Grove, PA, where we both traveled many miles (much more for Jerry) to hear the Father of Bluegrass music. That day was the start of our friendship, both musical and personal.”
Grisman’s Bare Bones series will celebrate his and Garcia’s musical friendship. These recordings were made between 1990 and 1993 at Grisman’s Dawg Studios. Given the timeframe, these recordings were made during the same time as the sessions that birthed 1991’s Jerry Garcia/David Grisman. The nine-track collection paired the duo together for originals from the Grateful Dead, Dawgs’ own hand, traditional folk tunes, and more for a release that fetched a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Folk Album. Two years later, the two dropped a collection of children’s songs dubbed Not for Kids Only. Since Garcia’s death in 1995, Dawg has opened his vaults for archival releases like 1996’s celebrated Shady Grove.
These releases built upon a lifelong musical friendship and collaboration that stretched back to that day in the park, through fabled bluegrass project Old & In The Way in the early 1970s, and all the way until the end of Garcia’s life when bluegrass was a reprieve from the gargantuan stature to which the Grateful Dead had risen. Their musical kinship is on full display in the coming volumes of Bare Bones, as Grisman continues to celebrate his and Garcia’s friendship.
Related: From Old & In The Way To ‘The Pizza Tapes’ And More: The Best Of David Grisman
Find the new Jerry Garcia and David Grisman archival release Bare Bones, Volume 1 on August 3rd on Grisman’s Acoustic Discs.
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