Jerry Garcia

Jerry Garcia

All Good Things: Jerry Garcia Studio Sessions (Rhino) Some might think it curious that it's taken nine years after the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995 for his estate to dip into what one would assume to be a treasure trove of unreleased material. Sure, the Grateful Dead continue releasing live recordings from throughout the Garcia era, but that's just a continuation of an ongoing practice begun when he was still alive. Then there's the Garcia and David Grisman tapes, which offer the bluegrass side of the guitarist. The 6-CD All Good Things collects all five of Garcia's solo studio albums, remastered for the first time since their initial release, each with bonus tracks galore. There's also an extra disc, Outtakes, Jams & Alternates, which seems for the most part superfluous and for the hardcore only. In total, there are more than four hours of unreleased material here, but only a fraction of it is has any real value. A great deal of it shows Garcia's penchant for covering tunes from the likes of Dylan, the Beatles, the Stones, and Hank Williams, as well as chestnuts from Motown, New Orleans, and elsewhere, most of it better appreciated in a live setting. Concentrating on the original material, there are many tunes that ended up getting the extended treatment over the years – "Bird Song," "Sugaree," and "It Must Have Been the Roses" – that sound mighty fine in their newly remastered glory. Still, All Good Things demonstrates Garcia did his best work while still Grateful(ly) Dead.