HOW DOES THE SONG GO?

Let’s Ride Out to Fennario

Welcome to “How Does the Song Go?” A column dedicated to taking you deeper into the realms of the Grateful Dead’s music than ever before. For our last time together this season, I’d like to keep things light. Touring around over the weekend in a van, the other musicians and I had some discussions about the right format for “Peggy-O.” Where to put the solo section? When to extend the time between lines within the verse? The answers aren’t always obvious and I think that’s ok. Let me explain.

We listened to three versions of “Peggy-O” spanning from 1978, 1988, and 1990. Each version was a different tempo, had the solos in different sections, and even had the verses in different orders. The latter, a mere mistake. The formers, just experimentation by a band that made a career out of experimentation. How do you know if you want one or two solo sections unless you try both? How do you determine the favored tempo without changing tempos?

For you today, I’ve listened to and included links to 9/3/77 Englishtown and 5/15/80 Nassau. Aside from both being correct in their verse order and very clean in their arrangements, they are also relatively close to one another, occurring just under three years apart. 

9/3/77 Englishtown is an epic show. If you’ve not listened to it yet, it’s available as Dick’s Picks vol. 15. The “Peggy-O” is exceptionally performed with dynamics, emotion, and melodic development in the improvised sections. The form goes:

V1
V2
V3
solo – 2 choruses
V4
V5
solo – 3 choruses
V6
V7
V1

Many Dead versions of the folktale included only one solo section as you’ll see in the 1980 version and also the 1988 bootleg we heard while driving through Sonoma County three days ago. This 1977 version has two sections for improvisation, the preferred approach by this author due to the depth of melodic possibility the chord structure offers the improviser. I also believe the 3-2-3 verse pattern presents the storyline nicely. Jerry’s solo in the second solo section is soaring, one of his best, in my humble opinion. Note, he chose to sing “people” instead of “ladies” during the last line of verse five. The song sits at 72bpm and clocks in at 8:27.

Englishtown 77

In comparison, the 5/15/80 version is up to 79bpm and just barely hits seven minutes in length. With the increased tempo and fewer choruses for improvisation, this 1:30 difference is explained.  In addition, the form is altered to be:

V1
V2
V3
V4
solo – 4 choruses
V5
V6
V7
V1

Making for a 4-4 verse pattern. A well-played version with correct verse order and good dynamics, yet lacking the epic feel achieved on 9/3/77.

Nassau 80

As we head to Ventura next week, we are likely going to hear a large portion of the Grateful Dead’s catalogue presented in ways we haven’t heard it before. The multiple differences in “Peggy-O’s” over a three-year span tell me that it’s all going to be ok, that the reason we can do five days in a dust bowl is because this music is about experimentation, it’s about adventure, it’s about doing it wrong so that maybe someday you can do it right. Let’s ride out to the Ventura County Fairgrounds and make the most of every chance we get. See you in Fennario.