Grateful Dead guitarist and vocalist Bob Weir will follow in the peculiar footsteps of former OutKast rapper André 3000 with a new record on which he exclusively plays an assortment of exotic flutes. Weir’s unexpected foray into abstract instrumental jazz flute music follows his recent appearance at the Jazz Foundation of America‘s 2024 A Great Night in Harlem gala at New York’s Apollo Theater. The album, Old Blue Sun: A Tribute to André 3000, is out now via Blue Note Records.
Per a press release, “Until 2023, Weir had never been terribly familiar with André 3000’s celebrated work in the mid-1990s and early 2000s as one-half of Atlanta hip-hop duo OutKast. That changed when the rapper born André Lauren Benjamin released his first-ever solo album, an ambient instrumental collection featuring zero rap verses and a variety of flutes.”
The Grateful Dead guitarist discovered the album on Spotify when its title, New Blue Sun, caught his eye due to its similarity to a line in one of the Dead’s most famous songs, “Scarlet Begonias” (“The sky was yellow and the sun was blue”). Weir, a noted jazz aficionado who famously modeled his rhythm guitar style after notable accompanists like McCoy Tyner, instantly connected with the free-form jazz sound and structural openness of André 3000’s new chapter.
Related: The New André 3000 Album Is All Flutes & No Raps. That Shouldn’t Surprise You. [Listen]
The bravery of Three Stacks’ creative reinvention also had a profound effect on Bobby. As the press release notes, “Weir has repeatedly refreshed his pursuits in the years since the Grateful Dead’s dissolution in 1995, from his 2016 album of cowboy tunes to his work with various orchestras to his Custie Collection fashion line with Gucci to his turn as a personal trainer on his short-lived 2019 fitness app, Grateful Bod. He immediately felt a kinship to 3000’s story of executing a stylistic left turn in order to pursue the art that feels most urgent to him in this moment.”
André 3000 – “That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther And Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn’t Control … Sh¥t Was Wild” (Live) – The Late Show
Inspired by André’s embrace of exotic wind instruments, Weir hit the studio with his Wolf Bros bandmates—Don Was (bass), Jay Lane (drums), and Jeff Chimenti (keys)—and more than 20 different flutes from around the world. He called the resulting recordings Old Blue Sun, a name that both nods to 3K’s inspirational work and reminds listeners who was making music about blue suns first.
On New Blue Sun, André 3000 gave the instrumental tracks long, detailed titles to help set the scene for listeners. From “I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album but This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time” to “The Slang Word P(*)ssy Rolls Off the Tongue with Far Better Ease Than the Proper Word Vagina. Do You Agree?” to “That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther And Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn’t Control … Sh¥t Was Wild“, the track titles provide a rare peak into the enigmatic star’s creative process.
Weir took a similar approach to the titles on Old Blue Sun. Track names on the forthcoming LP range from “I Swear, I Really Thought it Was the ‘Final‘ Tour but Time is Spherical Sometimes” to “The Slang Word Critters Rolls Off The Tongues With Far Better Ease Than the Proper Word Wooks . Do You Agree?” to “That Night at Barton Hall When We Successfully Convinced Everyone They Weren’t Part of a Covert Mind Control Op … Sh¥t Was Wild”.
Below, view the full tracklist for then new Bob Weir flute album, Old Blue Sun: A Tribute to André 3000.
Bob Weir – Old Blue Sun: A Tribute to André 3000 – Album Tracklist
- I Swear, I Really Thought it Was the “Final” Tour but Time is Spherical Sometimes
- The Slang Word Critters Rolls Off The Tongue With Far Better Ease Than the Proper Word Wooks . Do You Agree?
- That Night at Barton Hall When We Successfully Convinced Everyone They Weren’t Part of a Covert Mind Control Op … Sh¥t Was Wild
- Chill Walton Wears a Stealie® Button Down Embroidered
- Seventy Two ‘Til Infinity And Donna Jean
- Peggy, Stella & Cassidy / Delilah, NOLA Cops, and a Bucket
- France to You, Dark Star to Who?
- Owsley Hidden Inside That One Flute Slowly Sprouts Into Grateful Gardens
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