No matter if he was playing solo acoustic or with line-ups as diverse as the Grateful Dead, Old & In The Way, Legion of Mary or his long-running Jerry Garcia Band, many times there were old timey spirituals in the sets Jerry Garcia performed.
The May 2 edition of Greasy Tracks celebrated that oft-overlooked spiritual side of Garcia by featuring interviews with members of The Garcia Project as well as their recent release, Spirit: A Loving Tribute To Jerry Garcia And The Spiritual Songs He Performed.
Click here to listen to an archive of the show, while a playlist is here.
Guitarist Mik Bondy and vocalist Kat Walkerson of The Garcia Project provided insight on the recording of the 12-track album. There was an interview with Maria Muldaur who produced the project and contributed harmony vocals on most tracks and lead vocals on a version of Charles Johnson’s “Sisters And Brothers.” This was a familiar track for Muldaur who included it on her 1978 release Southern Winds. She toured and recorded with Garcia during the 1970s.
A number of individuals who played with Garcia were involved in the sessions, including drummer Buzz Buchanan and vocalist Jacklyn LaBranch.
In addition to tracks from Spirit, there were live 1970s nuggets from the Jerry Garcia Band.