New Riders Of The Purple Sage: “Thanksgiving In New York City” (2019) CD Review

New Riders Of The Purple Sage is a band I got into because of Jerry Garcia’s involvement early in their history. There was a Grateful Dead radio program I listened to when I was in my early teens, and one week that show’s host played a New Riders tune. I was immediately taken with the song, with its sound, that great psychedelic country feel, and based on that one song purchased The Best Of New Riders Of The Purple Sage, as well as the band’s first album (the one that features Jerry Garcia on pedal steel). New Riders and the Dead shared a lot of bills, especially in 1970, 1971. Jerry was what initially drew me to the band, but their music and their vocals – with or without Garcia – kept me interested. Now we get a chance to hear a concert performance from the early 1970s. Thanksgiving In New York City contains the complete late show the band performed at the Academy of Music on November 23, 1972. The band at that point consisted of John Dawson, David Nelson, Dave Torbert, Buddy Cage (who took over for Jerry on pedal steel) and Spencer Dryden (after he left Jefferson Airplane). The two discs of this set contain a lot of great music, including several songs that would end up on that Best Of compilation.

Disc One

After a brief introduction, the show opens with “Leaving On Her Mind,” a decent country number written by Jack Clement, and featuring some nice stuff on pedal steel. They follow that with “Portland Woman,” an original song written by Jack Dawson, first appearing on the band’s self-titled debut. When they start this one, it sounds like it’s going to be a good jam, but it quickly becomes a sweet tune. John Dawson’s vocals are so effective on songs like this one. “I want to get me a Portland woman/I don’t want to be alone tonight/I want to get me a Portland woman/Portland women treat you right/Portland’s gonna be mine tonight.” This song reminds me of the Portland women I’ve dated. And, yes, the band does jam on this one in the second half. They then give us a cover of “Hello Mary Lou,” which is such a fun song and works so well in this country setting. The New Riders included this song on Powerglide, one of two LPs they released in 1972. It also got a spot on the Best Of record. And it sounds great here.

There is a bit of stage banter at the beginning of “Sutter’s Mill,” a song from Gypsy Cowboy, the other LP the band released in 1972. This song has such a sweet vibe, and is quite pretty. It’s one of my favorite tracks on this first disc. That’s followed by a cover of “She’s No Angel,” which features some really nice harmonies. David Nelson sings lead on this one. There is a bit of stage banter at the beginning of “Henry” too, and it’s fun to hear them rap about the laws against pot, and interesting to hear the optimism about the laws being overturned, with even a nod to the power of the vote. I always figured a time traveler from the 1960s and 1970s would be surprised to find pot legal now, but maybe not. Anyway, it’s a totally enjoyable and playful song, written by John Dawson. This is another that would end up on that Best Of album. That’s followed by “Contract,” a song written by Dave Torbert, and featuring some nice work by him on bass, and then “Linda,” another sweet tune written by John Dawson and including a bit of yodeling.

Am I crazy, or does the band’s cover of R.B. Greaves’ “Take A Letter Maria” sound a bit like “Bertha”? At the start, anyway. This is a fun and catchy tune, and New Riders do a good job with it. That’s followed by “I Don’t Know You,” one of my favorite New Riders songs. It was written by John Dawson, and was included on that 1976 Best Of record. “I don’t know you/You’ve been lately on my mind/Well, you came into my world/And you took it by surprise.” We then get a really nice rendition of “All I Ever Wanted,” a mellow and pretty tune written by John Dawson. This version is a couple of minutes longer than the studio version from the band’s debut LP. They then take things up a few notches with “Groupie,” a country rock song that has plenty of energy. It was written by Dave Torbert, and was included on Gypsy Cowboy. The first disc concludes with another song from Gypsy Cowboy, “Whiskey,” and it includes a bit of stage banter at the beginning. This is a fun tune written by John Dawson.

Disc Two

The second disc opens with another song that included on Gypsy Cowboy, a cover of “Long Black Veil.” In fact, they joke about the song’s inclusion on the album at the beginning of this track: “This one ended up on the album after somebody insisted that we just fuck around with it a little bit.” I love the band’s original music, but some of their best recordings are songs written by other artists. Such is the case with “Long Black Veil.” These guys do such a great job with it, really nailing that deliciously sad tone. “She walks these hills in a long black veil/She visits my grave when the night winds wail/Nobody knows/Nobody sees/Nobody knows but me.” That’s followed by  “Lochinvar,” an original tune by John Dawson that was included on Powerglide. I love these lines: “Well, now we’re farther down the line/And dreams should not be left behind/So now I’m asking you one more time/To ride away with me.”

The New Riders deliver a fun cover of “Truck Drivin’ Man,” a song written by Terry Fell and recorded by a large number of artists, including Buck Owens, Leon Russell and J. Geils Band. New Riders also included this one on their 1974 live album, Home, Home On The Road. Here there seems to be a momentary loss of the song’s lyrics, resulting in a funny moment. That’s followed by “Rainbow,” an interesting love song written by John Dawson, and originally included on Powerglide. “Well, when I was living, I felt so ashamed/Well, now I’ve been giving and feeling less pain/Honey, sing me a rainbow, shine me a dime/Drop in and see me any old time, honey/And if you love me, tell me you do/The reason I’m asking is I love you.”  “I Don’t Need No Doctor” is one of those covers the band handles so well. The New Riders released it as a single in 1972, and it was included on that Best Of compilation. Here the band jams on it, turning in a rendition that is nearly seven minutes long.  There is some really good stuff on guitar here, especially by special guest David Rea, who joins them on this one.

One of my absolute favorite New Riders songs is “Louisiana Lady,” written by John Dawson (yeah, he wrote about a Portland woman and a Louisiana lady, both songs appearing on that first record). This is a seriously good version. Check out that guitar. “Well, six more hours ‘til I make New Orleans/But I’ve been doin' too much speed and feelin' downright mean/And I think that I can cut an hour off the time/If I keep lady on my mind.” That’s followed by a somewhat playful cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Honky Tonk Women,” which ended the band’s set that night. “We got to get the fuck out of here. Thank you. We’ll see you later.” Well, it wasn’t much later, because the band came back for a two-song encore. The first of those songs is “Last Lonely Eagle,” another the band’s excellent original songs, written by John Dawson. This is a gorgeous song, featuring some nice vocal work. It was included on the band’s debut LP, and also included on the Best Of album. The concert then concludes with a wild and totally fun rendition of “Willie And The Hand Jive,” with that great beat, another highlight of this two-disc set. At nearly twelve minutes, it includes plenty of good jamming, including a lot of great work on guitar. David Rea joins the band on guitar again for this track.

CD Track List

Disc One

1. Leaving On Her Mind
2. Portland Woman
3. Hello Mary Lou
4. Sutter’s Mill
5. She’s No Angel
6. Henry
7. Contract
8. Linda
9. Take A Letter Maria
10. I Don’t Know You
11. All I Ever Wanted
12. Groupie
13. Whiskey 

Disc Two

1. Long Black Veil
2. Lochinvar
3. Truck Drivin’ Man
4. Rainbow
5. I Don’t Need No Doctor
6. Louisiana Lady
7. Honky Tonk Women
8. Last Lonely Eagle
9. Willie And The Hand Jive 

Thanksgiving In New York City was released on vinyl on November 29, 2019 (the day after Thanksgiving), as part of the Black Friday Record Store Day celebration (a triple LP limited to only 1,800 copies), and on CD on December 6, 2019.