GOOD OL' GRATEFUL DEADCAST

Wake Of The Flood 50: Row Jimmy

Date: September 21, 2023
Hosts: Rich Mahan & Jesse Jarnow
Guests: Robert Hunter (archival), David Lemieux, Donna Jean Godchaux-McKay, Brian Kehew, Sean O’Donnell, Scott Metzger, David Gans (archival interviews)

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into “Row Jimmy,” a staple from the Grateful Dead’s seminal 1973 album Wake of the Flood. Commemorating its 50th anniversary, hosts Rich Mahan and Jesse Jarnow explore the song’s musical evolution, lyrical ambiguity, mythic origins, and enduring live legacy. They unravel its rhythmic quirks, connection (or not) to reggae, and dissect Robert Hunter’s dreamlike lyrics, drawing on Hunter’s own words. The episode features first-hand band accounts, archival interviews with Hunter, insights from Dead scholars, and discussions of the song’s evolution onstage and in the studio.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction & Song Overview

• “Row Jimmy” Legacy
  • Played 273 times by the Dead from its 1973 debut ([03:55]).
  • Often beloved for Jerry Garcia’s rare slide guitar and Robert Hunter’s evocative lyrics.
  • Song’s elusive meaning and groove, even for longtime fans.
  • Garcia once remarked: “I really loved Ro Jimmy Row. That was one of my favorite songs... Nobody else really liked it very much… It’s like the musical version of one of those magic eye optical illusions.” ([06:47])

2. Song Origins: Writing & Early Demos

• Composed During a Garcia “Spasm”
  • Garcia wrote multiple songs in a burst, describing it as a “spasm” to Cameron Crowe ([08:24]).
  • The home demo reel (found by Mountain Girl in 2016) captured Garcia playing nearly all parts ([09:39]).
  • Early lyrics included “glass shack” instead of “grass shack,” as noted in ICE9 archives ([13:23]).
  • The demo and early live takes were notably faster than later versions ([15:14]).

3. Reggae Influence – Or Not?

• Reggae Association and Grooves
  • Scott Metzger: “To me, Row Jimmy is like a reggae feel… but nobody is back there doing the upbeat chicka chickas…” ([11:40]).
  • The link to reggae star Jimmy Cliff is speculated but unconfirmed.
  • Jesse Jarnow suggests that reggae sensibility came after the song was written; early live versions were more a unique Grateful Dead groove, not reggae ([13:06], [15:43]).
  • Drummer Bill Kreutzmann (via memoir) describes the song’s rhythmic challenge: “You have to play the song in half time with the double time bounce on top. It’s trickier than it sounds.” ([15:43])
  • Musicologist Sean O’Donnell: “It seems to be moving in multiple temporal realms… it’s moving in slow motion, but also has a quicker lilt…” ([18:32])

4. Musical Construction & Rhythmic Oddities

• Form and Complexity
  • Solo form: mixture of bars in 2s, 3s, and 4s; “very crooked” timing ([20:11]).
  • By spring ’73, versions slowed down, and reggae feel grew subtly ([21:55]).
  • “It’s them hitting their stride as a chamber music group… it's the composite that really holds it together.” (O’Donnell, [47:51])

5. Lyrical Analysis & Robert Hunter’s Perspective

• Hunter’s Stories and Shifting Meanings
  • Interviewed by David Gans in 1977, Hunter links “Row Jimmy” to a personal cross-country journey after leaving New Mexico in 1967 ([26:08]).
  • The narrative twists: Hunter realizes mid-explanation he was mixing up stories between “Row Jimmy” and “Mississippi Half-Step,” both written at the same time ([32:21]).
  • Hunter admits much of his lyricism is about evoca­tion, not literal translation: “If there were a more definite way to say things than with the symbols, then you’d say it that way.” ([72:20])

Memorable Quotes — Lyrical Section

• Robert Hunter:
  “Some of them are trying to make sense and others of them are just dreams, you know…” ([25:30])
• Robert Hunter:
  “I had 20 bucks, a copy of Don Quixote and my black Stewart scarf… Walked the wrong way all day…” ([27:29])
• Robert Hunter:
  “Row Jimmy, row | Gonna get there, I don’t know” ([34:04])
• Hunter on imagery:
  “Here’s Julie doing this. Can you double twist when you hit the air? … What do you do when you face the void?” ([36:56])

6. Recording Wake of the Flood’s Studio Version

• Studio Work & Instrumentation
  • Tracked August 10, 1973; Garcia stopped the first take for no obvious reason ([41:55]).
  • Keith Godchaux played a combination of Farfisa and Clavinet on the studio cut ([43:12]).
  • Brian Kehew discusses the challenge of playing organ as a pianist: “For [Keith], it must have been weird to have a synthesizer show up… it does add a new color…” ([44:54])
  • Take three became the album version ([46:36]).

7. Vocals & Group Harmonies

• Working Out Ensemble Vocals
  • Donna Jean Godchaux McKay: “So much of the vocals… it’s not background vocals, it’s ensemble singing… We would have to work on the harmonies... taking it into a group format and knowing where the tone of your voice is going to fit... That’s fun. Figuring that stuff out.” ([50:29], [52:15])
  • Describes the joy and laughter, especially with Jerry and Bobby around the studio mic.

8. Live Evolution and Legacy

• Changing Grooves, Expanding Instrumentation

  • The arrangement continued to change over the Dead’s career: Jerry’s slide guitar in 1973–74; Brent Mydland and later Bruce Hornsby adding their textures in the ‘80s/’90s ([54:49], [57:23], [60:21]).
  • David Lemieux: “Brent did some beautiful things on it… there was a lot of space in that song… When it was Brent’s turn to fill some of those spaces, I loved it.” ([57:23])
  • Weir’s unique rhythm guitar: “He’d hold his guitar like he was rowing during the quiet part at the end…” ([58:20])

• Signature Versions

  • A supercut features snippets from demo to late-era Dead versions; tracklist with years and venues at dead.net ([69:11]).
  • After the Dead, the song remained notable—covered by reggae artist Judy Mowatt in 1996, Trey Anastasio, and the Decemberists ([70:54], [71:16]).

9. Closing Reflections

• On Meaning and Ambiguity
  • Hunter’s legacy is to keep the song’s symbolism open: “You know, I really would prefer not to get into tearing apart the symbology of my own songs... If there were a more definite way to say things than with the symbols, then you'd say it that way.” ([72:20])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• David Lemieux on experiencing the song live:
  “That was the moment… I just was so enveloped by the sound and being in there with 15,000 people at the Hartford Civic Center that it made sense to me.” ([05:23])

• Scott Metzger on Ro Jimmy’s “reggae” feel:
  “It’s like a reggae feel to it, but it’s not like anybody is back there doing the upbeat chicka chickas on the guitar… to make it overly reggae.” ([11:40])

• Robert Hunter on imaginative interpretation:
  “I can even interpret Robert Hunter lyrics. Throw me another.” ([33:32])

• Donna Jean Godchaux-McKay, on session joy:
  “Every time we encircled that microphone, it dissolved into a comedy routine… we had the best time around the microphones in the studio.” ([52:15])

Timestamps to Key Segments

• 04:33 — David Lemieux on Row Jimmy as a first-set highlight.
• 06:47 — Garcia’s “magic eye optical illusion” quote about Row Jimmy.
• 08:24 — The song’s writing “spasm” and Garcia’s home studio.
• 13:06 — Jesse Jarnow interrogates the reggae connection.
• 15:43 — Bill Kreutzmann on the song’s rhythmic trickiness.
• 18:32 — Sean O’Donnell elaborates on the tune’s “multiple temporal realms.”
• 25:30 — Robert Hunter on songwriting and dreamlike lyrics.
• 26:08–32:41 — Hunter recounts his 1967 journey; revelation about “Mississippi Half-Step.”
• 34:04 — Early version of the “Row Jimmy” chorus from alternate lyrics.
• 43:12 — Studio keyboard choices and their effect on the vibe.
• 50:29 — Donna Jean Godchaux-McKay on creating vocal harmonies with the Dead.
• 54:49 — Garcia describes his rarely-used slide guitar, especially on Row Jimmy.
• 57:23 — David Lemieux talks about Brent Mydland’s contributions.
• 60:56–69:11 — “Supercut” montage of Row Jimmy over the decades.
• 70:54 — Post-Dead covers and adaptations.
• 72:20 — Final Robert Hunter quote on the evocative power of symbols over direct meanings.

Conclusion

This episode of the Good Ol’ Grateful Deadcast encapsulates why “Row Jimmy” persists in the Dead’s canon: it’s at once slippery, dreamy, un-pin-downable, and yet deeply evocative. The gentle rhythmic complexity, impressionist lyrics, and singular atmosphere become a symbol for the Dead’s own evolution. Through deep dives—musical, historical, and personal—the episode celebrates “Row Jimmy” as a unique portal into the Grateful Dead’s ongoing creative journey.

For full audio and further links, visit dead.net/deadcast.