Cassidy (song)

Last updated
"Cassidy"
Song by Bob Weir
from the album Ace
ReleasedMay 1972
RecordedJanuary–March 1972
Genre Folk rock, Country rock
Length3:41
Label Warner Bros. Records
Composer Bob Weir
Lyricist John Perry Barlow

"Cassidy" is a song written by John Barlow and Bob Weir [1] and performed by the Grateful Dead, Ratdog, and Phil Lesh & Friends. [2] The song appeared on Bob Weir's Ace , and the Grateful Dead's Reckoning and Without a Net albums. [3]

The song was named after Cassidy Law, who was born in 1970 and was the daughter of Grateful Dead crew member Rex Jackson and Weir's former housemate Eileen Law. [1] The lyrics also allude to Neal Cassady, who was associated with the Beats in the 1950s [4] and the Acid Test scene that spawned the Grateful Dead in the 1960s. Some of the lyrics in the song were also inspired by the death of Barlow's father. [5]

The song was quoted in the admiring and admirable obituary of Barlow in The Economist .

The song was first performed on March 23, 1974 at the Cow Palace in Daly City, California. [3]

It is usually sung in two part harmony. On the Ace studio album version, Donna Jean Godchaux joins Weir on vocals. On the Reckoning and Without a Net versions, Weir sings with Brent Mydland.

Cover versions

In 1991, Suzanne Vega recorded a version of this song on the album Deadicated . [2]

The Grateful Dead released a live version on their 1981 album Reckoning , and another live version on their 1990 album Without a Net

References

  1. 1 2 Brightman, Carol (1998). Sweet Chaos: The Grateful Dead's American Adventure. New York: Pocket Books. pp. 175–176. ISBN   0-671-01117-0 . Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Grateful Dead Lyric and Song Finder: Cassidy". Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  3. 1 2 Dodd, David. "The Annotated 'Cassidy'". The Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics. University of California at Santa Cruz . Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  4. ↑ Dodd, David. "Greatest Stories Ever Told : Cassidy". Dead.net. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  5. ↑ Barlow, John Perry. "Cassidy's Tale", Literary Kicks
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