2013 live album by Grateful Dead
May 1977 is a live album by the rock band the Grateful Dead. It contains five complete concerts, on 14 CDs. It was recorded at five consecutive shows, from May 11–17, 1977. Packaged as a box set, it includes a booklet with a historical essay and photos from the concerts, along with individual liner notes for each show. Produced as a limited edition of 15,000 numbered copies, it was released on June 11, 2013.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
Concerts
The concerts included in May 1977 are:
- May 11, 1977 – St. Paul Civic Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
- May 12, 1977 – Auditorium Theatre, Chicago
- May 13, 1977 – Auditorium Theatre, Chicago
- May 15, 1977 – St. Louis Arena, St. Louis
- May 17, 1977 – University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Critical reception
On Allmusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote, "The Dead were a couple months away from releasing Terrapin Station, an album that isn't particularly beloved, but the slickness that subsumed the studio record is a plus on-stage, as they're tighter than ever before. This is a Grateful Dead that is less about sonic exploration than it is about grooving, letting slow, easy rhythms ride out for as long as they can. At times, this does mean that "Fire on the Mountain" goes on for a very long time, taking detours into drum solos, but the comfort and ease here are appealing, along with a precision in the rhythms and solos. What impresses most is the consistency: perhaps there are slight lags in momentum along the way, but each of the five concerts is wonderfully entertaining, the sound of the Dead at something of a laid-back peak."[8]
In Rolling Stone, Will Hermes said, "The Grateful Dead's May 8th, 1977 gig at Cornell University is widely considered the ne plus ultra of Dead bootlegs. This 14-disc set, packed in a psychedelic sarcophagus, documents five gigs from later that month. It puts the consensus-maker in perspective, occasionally rivals it and, flaws notwithstanding, shows a band on a hell of a hot streak. Compared to the hard-tripping Sixties edition, this is comfort-food Dead, long on unhurried jams and raggedy country harmonies sweetened by their only-ever female band member, Donna Jean Godchaux."[9]
