Roots of Creation has been having a huge year thus far, with the band’s new Grateful Dub album making an impressive debut at the #1 spot on the Billboard Reggae Chart. Grateful Dub is a tribute to the iconic band, the Grateful Dead, reimagining songs from the Dead’s beloved catalog with a breezy, feel-good, and reggae-infused twist. The band’s new album was recorded, mixed, and co-produced by Errol Brown, an iconic producer who’s previously worked with Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Rebelution. With the project clearly in good hands, Roots of Creation also tapped Stephen Marley, G. Love, Melvin Seals, and more for the chart-topping album.
Today, Roots of Creation has shared with us a solo acoustic rendition of Grateful Dub‘s take on “Standing on the Moon”. For this solo version, Roots of Creation frontman, Brett Wilson, offers a soulful take on the classic off of 1989’s Built To Last. As he shared with Live For Live Music,
“Standing on the Moon” holds a special place in my heart. I always have to choke back tears when I perform it. If I close my eyes when I belt it out, I always envision Jerry Garcia standing on the moon looking down at humanity and smiling. If you look close at the album cover, you might find him doing just that. I hope you enjoy this rare glimpse into the recording process recorded straight from my iPhone to your eyes.
Wilson continued,
At a couple points during the ten to twelve-plus hour days, we hit some brick walls, and there were three songs that almost didn’t make the album. This was one. It just wasn’t working with the full band. We almost just put this as a raw solo acoustic version (that you hear in the video). Once Errol Brown told us the story of when he recorded Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song”, he was having the same issue, we were immediately inspired! We brainstormed and experimented with just having the band come in at the end. Melvin’s trademark soulful organ combined with Tal’s synth layers added a spacey element with the organic acoustic guitar and vocals that were cut at the same time in one take—old-school style!
Live for Live Music is proud to premiere this special behind-the-scene solo acoustic recording of the Grateful Dead’s “Standing on the Moon” by Brett Wilson below. As Roots of Creation’s manager, Jon Phillips of Silverback Music, noted, the song is “a classic Grateful Dead-Jerry Garcia composition with deeply sentimental lyrics and classic Jerry guitar stylings. Brett Wilson elegantly reproduces the song on Grateful Dub with a penchant for the nostalgic past but updates it with a unique modern soul, vocally and guitar-wise.” If you’d like to compare this solo acoustic rendition with the full-band product that Roots of Creation released on Grateful Dub, you can stream their new album in its entirety, including the final version of “Standing on the Moon”, below.
“Standing on the Moon” (solo acoustic, unreleased)
Roots of Creation – Grateful Dub: A Reggae-Infused Tribute to the Grateful Dead
For more information on Roots of Creation, head over to their website here. You can also check out a full list of their upcoming tour dates below or on their website.