GOOD OL' GRATEFUL DEADCAST
American Beauty 50, Episode 2: Friend of the Devil
Release Date: October 8, 2020
Episode Overview
This episode of the official Grateful Dead podcast, “The Good Ol’ Grateful Deadcast,” dives deep into the origins, evolution, and legacy of “Friend of the Devil”, arguably the Grateful Dead’s most recognized, beloved, and widely covered song. Hosts Rich Mahan and Jesse Jarnow, alongside special guests including Dead historians, biographers, archivists, and musicians such as David Grisman and David Nelson, peel back the layers of the song’s history, songwriting process, studio lore, and cultural afterlife, tracing its journey from an impromptu jam among friends to a folk-rock standard treasured by generations of fans and musicians.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
The Song’s Origin Story
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Conceived for the New Riders of the Purple Sage:
“Friend of the Devil” wasn’t initially a Dead song. Robert Hunter brought a nearly complete tune (written on bass) to a New Riders gathering. A quick home demo was recorded, with John “Marmaduke” Dawson contributing and Jerry Garcia later adding the distinctive bridge.- [07:21, Robert Hunter] “I was playing bass for the New Riders for a while. We sat down to write a song, and I came up with that.”
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Choosing the Iconic Chorus Line:
The song’s famous refrain, "A friend of the devil is a friend of mine", arose from group tinkering.- [08:23, John Dawson as quoted] “Dawson's eyes lit up and he crowed, 'How about A friend of the devil is a friend of mine.' Bingo. Not only the right line, but a memorable title as well.”
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Jerry Garcia’s Key Contribution:
Garcia wrote the song’s distinctive bridge after hearing the original tape at home, per Hunter and Nelson’s recollections.
Evolution and Recording
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First Live Demo and Early Dead Versions:
The band began performing the song live in Spring 1970, before Workman’s Dead was even finished. “Friend of the Devil” became American Beauty’s first recorded track and a showcase for the Dead’s ensemble interplay. -
Demo Rediscovered:
Lost demos for American Beauty were recently rediscovered in the Grateful Dead tape vault. Tape archivist Mike Johnson and engineer Brian Kehew describe the thrill and challenges of finding, cataloging, and restoring these fragile reels.- [15:45, Mike Johnson] “It does. It just looks like a gigantic airplane hangar… you just walk in and it does. It just looks like a gigantic airplane hangar…”
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Studio Process Unpacked:
Engineer Brian Kehew gives a track-by-track breakdown, revealing room leakage, vocal takes, and the role of overdubbing, providing rare insights into the session dynamics and technical artistry.- [38:30, Brian Kehew] “We can now go through Friend of the Devil track by track. It's actually a very simple recording, but there are some tracks that confuse things a bit…”
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David Grisman’s Mandolin Touch:
Mandolinist David Grisman recounts meeting Garcia on the bluegrass circuit and his session adding the mandolin lines that provided the song’s signature flavor.- [37:39, Grisman] “It went pretty quick, you know. I was already used to doing session work and overdubs. And it was mostly Jerry saying what he liked and or perhaps didn't like, you know…”
The Song’s Place in Dead Lore and Beyond
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An Evolving Performance Standard:
“Friend of the Devil” is the most-covered Dead song, a true bluegrass and folk standard.- [05:09, David Lemieux] “I recently heard that it is on YouTube, the most played song… it is one of the most widely recognized songs.”
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Changing Tempos:
After its initial brisk, bluegrass feel, it was radically slowed down live in the mid-1970s—a change inspired by Kenny Loggins’ ballad arrangement.- [48:57, Jerry Garcia] “He did it as a ballad instead of as an up tempo, bluegrassy feeling… And I heard a tape of that and it sort of stuck in my head.”
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A Song That Belongs to Everyone:
Garcia noted—proudly and with humility—how the song left the Dead’s orbit and entered the wider folk and bluegrass tradition:- [45:55, Jerry Garcia] “That's a song that's been absorbed into the bluegrass mainstream. It's gotten to be a kind of bluegrass standard...”
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Lyric Drafts and Extra Verses:
The episode closes with Hunter’s “lost” verse, which did not make it into the Grateful Dead’s performances but “ties the bow on the song in a certain direction.”- [58:36, Hunter] “You can borrow from the devil, you can borrow from a friend. The devil’ll give you twenty when your friend got only ten...”
Covers, Legacy, and More
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Covers by Notable Artists:
The song has been covered by Chris Smither, Lyle Lovett, Ministry, Bob Dylan, John Darnielle, Kenny Loggins, and many others.- [47:13, Chris Smither] “I thought I'd run it take my time When Friend of the devil is a friend of mine…”
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From Studio to Bluegrass Reunions:
The partnership between Garcia and Grisman was rekindled in the ’90s, leading to many acoustic and experimental takes, some released and some still in the vault.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
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On Writing the Song:
- [08:23, John Dawson] “Hunter wrote the first part… then Garcia came along and wrote the bridge.”
- [08:32, Hunter’s original chorus] “I set out running, but I take my time. It looks like water but it tastes like wine…”
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On Song Evolution:
- [48:57, Jerry Garcia] “All of a sudden it was somebody else's version of the song, which exposed a sense of a character thing to it that I had never noticed before.”
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On the Tape Vault:
- [15:45, Mike Johnson] “We would ride bikes… We would ride around the vault and get the tapes.”
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On Musical Friendship:
- [54:13, David Grisman] “We both, like, drank from a lot of traditional wells… and we just started, you know, it was very informal, but you know, it clicked.”
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On Grateful Dead’s Social Scene (and invention of musical “maps”):
- [35:14, David Grisman] “That was like our world. It was Berkeley and Philadelphia and New York and Cambridge…”
Timestamps for Major Segments
- 03:16 — Friend of the Devil’s birth; New Riders’ roots & first demos
- 05:09 — Legacy and coverage of the song; Grateful Dead archivist input
- 06:44 – 11:03 — Hunter, Dawson, and Garcia’s collaboration
- 14:47 – 19:53 — Rediscovery and restoration of American Beauty demos
- 23:13 – 24:53 — Tales from the tape vault and the Pacific High sessions
- 31:50 – 37:39 — David Grisman’s early bluegrass years and sessions
- 38:30 – 45:55 — Technical breakdown of the studio recording process
- 47:13 – 52:23 — Versions and covers: Smither, Jerry Garcia Band, Grateful Dead’s tempo changes
- 52:36 – 56:24 — Garcia & Grisman’s acoustic reunion and new takes
- 56:55 – 58:56 — The song as a living folk standard; Robert Hunter’s “lost” verse
Flow & Tone
The episode blends affectionate, informed storytelling with deep musical analysis, technical breakdowns, and candid reminiscence. The interplay between historians, musicians, and Dead family gives life to both the song’s genesis and broadening legacy, in a tone that’s welcoming for the new listener and richly satisfying for the seasoned Deadhead. Quotes pop with informality, inside jokes, and a genuine sense of creative community.
Conclusion
“Friend of the Devil” stands as a bridge—between genres, musicians, and generations. This Deadcast episode brilliantly documents how a song born of musical friendship and improvisation became a shared folk tradition, in constant evolution. The band’s story, the song’s many lives, and the joy of communal music-making are all celebrated, leaving listeners with a deeper appreciation for one of the Dead’s most enduring creations.
End of summary.