I think there's an argument to be made that if you only own one Grateful Dead album, you should make it Europe '72.

Traditionally, Europe '72 seems to have occupied a weird place in the hearts of Deadheads. On one hand, it's been decried for making extensive use of studio overdubs, for editing out virtually all audience noise and concert ambience, and for having a track listing that bears little resemblance to the actual structure of early '70s Grateful Dead set-lists. On the other hand, it saw the first (and, for many years, only) releases of many well-loved classic songs and, regardless of how it was achieved, the sound is that of a band at the height of its powers.

In fact, maybe the Dead should have made all their records this way. Apparently, careful note was made of the concert stage set-up during the European tour from which the basic tracks were drawn, and the same set-up was reproduced back home in the US-of-A to ensure that all overdubs matched the live sound as closely as possible. Purists may howl, but the result fuses the volcanic energy of the band's psychedelic '60s explorations with the polished sound and very much ahead-of-its-time Americana/Alt-Country song-writing on their 1970 American Beauty and Workingman's Dead studio albums. Perhaps this is most perfectly showcased in Europe '72's "China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider" suite, which I think is one of the finest musical moments ever recorded. The first part is a lyrically spaced-out hippy bop from 1969's Aoxomoxoa, the second a "Trad. Arr." country-blues piece, and both are excellent performances -- but the real magic happens in the segue jam. You just have to hear it. The whole band, every member, is just completely in The Zone, and you know that obviously it has to sound like this. Astounding. (And Garcia's shimmering lead break in "I Know You Rider" doesn't hurt either.) But there you have it in a nutshell: psychedelic exploration, hippified hillbilly rock, and sublimely inspired musical teamwork. What more can one ask of the Dead ... or of any band?

Well, if you want some top-notch original compositions, they're here too. Since 1970, singer/keysman Pigpen's failing health had distracted the Dead from the business of getting on with studio follow-ups to American Beauty and Workingman's Dead, but they had a great raft of compositions meant for that never-to-happen album. It's much to Europe '72's benefit that they finally alighted upon it. Just as the musicians were firing on all cylinders, lyricist Robert Hunter was writing up a storm of vaguely hallucinogenic, slightly Zen, countrified neo-folklore. The results are found in such iconic Garcia/Hunter compositions like "Tennesee Jed" and "Ramble On Rose", and Weir/Hunter gems such as "Jack Straw" and "Sugar Magnolia". And these pieces' live (or largely live) setting makes for a marked sonic contrast with the the studio-crafted acousticity of their 1970 forebears. The closest studio-based point of reference has to be the 1972 "Bob Weir solo album" Ace (where, incidentally and somewhat ironically, the Dead provide perhaps their finest in-studio moment on "Playing in the Band" ... but I digress!).

Essentially, Europe '72 successfully covers what the Grateful Dead were all about and what they did best (not always the same thing ;) Although lacking the feel of a genuine concert experience, the album successfully showcases a tight blend of snappy originals, a few traditionals and covers, and even a monster jam exploration ("Truckin' > Epilogue > Prelude > Morning Dew"). The album's best edition is certainly the remastered 2CD version from Rhino, notable primarily for adding a lot of Pigpen-oriented blues material -- and, though I've never been a raging Pigpen fan, these inclusions are worthy stuff that further solidifies Europe '72's role as both weld and bridge between the Dead's '60s and '70s incarnations.

Europe '72 is classic jammin' rock -- go get it :)