Very Best of the Relix Years
Encyclopedia
Very Best of the Relix Years is an album
by the country rock
band the New Riders of the Purple Sage
. It was released in England
on the Retro World label on June 2, 2009. It contains previously released songs from five Relix Records albums.
Very Best of the Relix Years includes the complete contents of Live on Stage
, an album that was recorded live in 1975 and released in 1993, and Keep On Keepin' On
, a studio album released in 1989. It also includes selected songs from Before Time Began
that were recorded in the studio in 1969 and released in 1986, as well as selections from Midnight Moonlight
, a studio album released in 1992, and Live in Japan
, a live album recorded in 1993 and released in 1994.
Confusingly, the front cover of Very Best of the Relix Years is the same as the front cover of another New Riders compilation album, Relix's Best of the New New Riders of the Purple Sage
.
Keep On Keepin' On, part one:
Selections from Before Time Began:
Selections from Midnight Moonlight:
Selections from Live in Japan:
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by the country rock
Country rock
Country rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...
band the New Riders of the Purple Sage
New Riders of the Purple Sage
New Riders of the Purple Sage is an American country rock band. The group emerged from the psychedelic rock scene in San Francisco, California in 1969, and its original lineup included several members of the Grateful Dead. Their best known song is "Panama Red"...
. It was released in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on the Retro World label on June 2, 2009. It contains previously released songs from five Relix Records albums.
Very Best of the Relix Years includes the complete contents of Live on Stage
Live on Stage (New Riders of the Purple Sage album)
Live on Stage is an album by the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was recorded live in 1975 at the Beacon Theatre in New York City and at the Keystone in Berkeley, California. It was released by Relix Records in 1993....
, an album that was recorded live in 1975 and released in 1993, and Keep On Keepin' On
Keep On Keepin' On
Keep On Keepin' On is the twelfth studio album by the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was released in 1989 by Mu Records, and subsequently re-released by Relix Records....
, a studio album released in 1989. It also includes selected songs from Before Time Began
Before Time Began
Before Time Began is the eleventh studio album and thirteenth album overall by the country rock group the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was released in 1986 on the Relix Records label....
that were recorded in the studio in 1969 and released in 1986, as well as selections from Midnight Moonlight
Midnight Moonlight
Midnight Moonlight is the thirteenth studio album by the New Riders of the Purple Sage, released in 1992 on the Relix Records label.Midnight Moonlight features studio recordings of original and cover songs, performed in a style heavily influenced by bluegrass and American folk music. The...
, a studio album released in 1992, and Live in Japan
Live in Japan (New Riders of the Purple Sage album)
Live in Japan is an album by the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was recorded from August 25 to August 29, 1993 at Club Citta in Kawasaki, the Bottom Line in Nagoya, and Banana Hall in Osaka...
, a live album recorded in 1993 and released in 1994.
Confusingly, the front cover of Very Best of the Relix Years is the same as the front cover of another New Riders compilation album, Relix's Best of the New New Riders of the Purple Sage
Relix's Best of the New New Riders of the Purple Sage
Relix's Best of the New New Riders of the Purple Sage is an album by the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was released on March 11, 1997. It contains previously released songs that were recorded between 1989 and 1993 and that were selected from three albums on the Relix...
.
Disc one
Live on Stage:- "Panama Red" (Peter Rowan) – 3:17
- "Little Old Lady" (Richard Wilbur) – 3:16
- "Instant Armadillo Blues" (John DawsonJohn Dawson (musician)John Collins Dawson IV, nicknamed "Marmaduke" , was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was best known as the leader and co-founder of the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage.-Musical career:...
) – 5:18 - "Henry" (Dawson) – 5:00
- "Glendale Train" (Dawson) – 5:31
- "Nadine" (Chuck BerryChuck BerryCharles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
) – 6:39 - "Singing Cowboy" (Skip BattinSkip BattinClyde "Skip" Battin was an American singer–songwriter, performer and recording artist. He is best remembered as a member of The Byrds, the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and the Flying Burrito Brothers...
) – 4:39 - "Take a Letter MariaTake A Letter Maria"Take a Letter Maria" is a song written and recorded by R. B. Greaves, an American soul singer. The song has a Latin music flavor, complete with a mariachi-style horn section. It tells of a man who learns of his wife's infidelity the night before and dictates a letter of separation to "Maria", his...
" (R. B. GreavesR. B. GreavesRonald Bertram Aloysius "R. B." Greaves III is a singer who had chart success in 1969 with the pop single "Take a Letter Maria". A #2 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, this single sold one million copies and earned a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America...
) – 5:14 - "I Will Never Make You Blue" (C. Cline, R. Cline) – 4:03
- "La BambaLa Bamba (song)"La Bamba" is a Mexican folk song, originally from the state of Veracruz, best known from a 1958 adaptation by Ritchie Valens, a top 40 hit in the U.S. charts and one of early rock and roll's best-known songs...
" (Ritchie ValensRitchie ValensRitchie Valens was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter and guitarist....
) – 4:52
Keep On Keepin' On, part one:
- "Keep On Keepin' On" (Dawson) – 3:33
- "Now I Call It Love" (Dawson) – 2:46
- "It's O.K. to Cry" (Val FuentesVal FuentesVal Fuentes is the original and current drummer for the psychedic folk-rock band It's a Beautiful Day...
, Rusty Gauthier, Lina Valentino) – 3:18 - "Bounty Hunter" (Fuentes, Gauthier, Valentino) – 4:01
- "Barbaric Splendor" (Joe New) – 3:19
Disc two
Keep On Keepin' On, part two:- "Señorita" (Dawson) – 3:00
- "Night of the Living Lonely" (Johnson, New) – 2:58
- "Rancher's Daughter" (Dawson) – 3:02
- "Big Ed" (Gauthier) – 3:17
- "Friend of the DevilFriend of the Devil"Friend of the Devil" is a song recorded by the Grateful Dead. The music was written by Jerry Garcia and John Dawson and the lyrics are by Robert Hunter. It is the second track of the Dead's 1970 album American Beauty....
" (Dawson, Jerry GarciaJerry GarciaJerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
, Robert HunterRobert Hunter (lyricist)Robert C. Hunter is an American lyricist, singer-songwriter, translator, and poet, best known for his association with Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead.-Biography:He was born Robert Burns in San Luis Obispo, California...
) – 3:36
Selections from Before Time Began:
- "Henry" (Dawson) – 3:39
- "All I Ever Wanted" (Dawson) – 4:28
- "Last Lonely Eagle" (Dawson) – 4:47
- "Cecilia" (Dawson) – 4:06
- "Garden of Eden" (Dawson) – 3:09
- "Superman" (Dawson) – 2:19
Selections from Midnight Moonlight:
- "Charlie's Garden" (Dawson) – (3:23)
- "Ballad of the DeporteesDeportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)"Deportee " is a protest song with lyrics by Woody Guthrie detailing the January 28, 1948 crash of a plane near Los Gatos Canyon, 20 miles west of Coalinga in Fresno County, California, United States. The crash occurred in Los Gatos Canyon and not in the town of Los Gatos itself, which is in Santa...
" (Woody GuthrieWoody GuthrieWoodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
) – (3:23) - "Taking It Hard" (New) – (4:26)
- "Change in the Weather" (Dawson) – (4:09)
- "Diesel on My Tail" (Jim Fagan) – (3:05)
Selections from Live in Japan:
- "Early in the Morning" (traditional) – 9:50
- "RippleRipple (song)Ripple is the sixth song on the Grateful Dead album American Beauty. It was released as the B-side to the single "Truckin'".-Background:...
" (Garcia, Hunter) – 6:20
Personnel
- John DawsonJohn Dawson (musician)John Collins Dawson IV, nicknamed "Marmaduke" , was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was best known as the leader and co-founder of the country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage.-Musical career:...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
on Before Time Began, Live on Stage, Keep On Keepin' On, Midnight Moonlight, and Live in Japan - David NelsonDavid Nelson (musician)David Nelson is an American guitarist and musician.Although he started his musical career playing folk and bluegrass music Nelson is probably best known as one of the original members of psychedelic country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage...
– guitar, vocals on Before Time Began and Live on Stage - Rusty Gauthier – guitar, dobroDobroDobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
, lap steel guitarLap steel guitarThe lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
, fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, vocals on Keep On Keepin' On, Midnight Moonlight, and Live in Japan - Gary Vogensen – guitar, vocals on Keep On Keepin' On, Midnight Moonlight, and Live in Japan
- Jerry GarciaJerry GarciaJerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
– pedal steel guitarPedal steel guitarThe pedal steel guitar is a type of electric guitar that uses a metal bar to "fret" or shorten the length of the strings, rather than fingers on strings as with a conventional guitar. Unlike other types of steel guitar, it also uses pedals and knee levers to affect the pitch, hence the name "pedal"...
, vocals on Before Time Began - Buddy CageBuddy CageBuddy Cage is an American pedal steel guitarist, best known as a longtime member of the New Riders of the Purple Sage....
– pedal steel guitar on Live on Stage - Phil LeshPhil LeshPhillip Chapman Lesh is a musician and a founding member of the Grateful Dead, with whom he played bass guitar throughout their 30-year career....
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
on Before Time Began - Skip BattinSkip BattinClyde "Skip" Battin was an American singer–songwriter, performer and recording artist. He is best remembered as a member of The Byrds, the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and the Flying Burrito Brothers...
– bass, vocals on Live on Stage - Michael White – bass on Keep On Keepin' On
- Fred Campbell – bass on Midnight Moonlight
- Mickey HartMickey HartMickey Hart is an American percussionist and musicologist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band the Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 to February 1971, and from October 1974 to August 1995...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
on Before Time Began - Spencer DrydenSpencer DrydenSpencer Dryden was an American musician best known as the longest-serving drummer for Jefferson Airplane. He also played with New Riders of the Purple Sage, The Dinosaurs, and The Peanut Butter Conspiracy.-Early life:...
– drums on Live on Stage - Greg Lagardo – drums on Keep On Keepin' On