Infrared Roses Explained
Infrared Roses is a live compilation album by the Grateful Dead. It is a conglomeration of their famous improvisational segments "Drums" and "Space".
Somewhere in the middle of the second set of a Grateful Dead concert came a period of musical improvisation, usually 5 to 15 minutes, sometimes longer. This part of the concert is commonly referred to as "Space," and came right after a drum solo or duet. Infrared Roses is a compilation of these performances. There are no recognizable songs from the band's repertoire on this release (although a theme from "Uncle John's Band" appears at the start of "Riverside Rhapsody," "Infrared Roses" finishes with the band starting to play "I Need a Miracle," and "Magnesium Night Light" includes a quote of the opening theme of "Dark Star"). Robert Hunter, lyricist with the Grateful Dead, created the names of the tracks for the album. The album cover is by Jerry Garcia, who at the time was creating digital art.
Music from Infrared Roses was used as the soundtrack for the 18-minute Grateful Dead video Infrared Sightings.
Track listing
Musicians listed in order of appearance on each track.
- "Crowd Sculpture" (Bralove) – 2:21
- "Parallelogram" (Hart, Kreutzmann) – 5:06
- Bill Kreutzmann - Trap Drums Left, Mickey Hart - Trap Drums Right
- Mickey Hart - Beast (Large Drums) and Beam
- Bill Kreutzmann - Timbales
- "Little Nemo in Nightland" (Bralove, Garcia, Lesh, Weir) – 6:16
- Bob Weir - Guitar
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar
- Phil Lesh - Bass
- "Riverside Rhapsody" (Garcia, Hart, Kreutzmann, Lesh, Mydland, Weir) – 3:55
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar
- Bob Weir - Guitar
- Phil Lesh - Bass
- Brent Mydland - Keyboards
- Bill Kreutzmann - Drums
- Mickey Hart - Drums and Electronic Percussion
- "Post-Modern Highrise Table Top Stomp" (Garcia, Green, Hart, Kreutzmann, Lesh, Mydland, Weir) – 4:23
- Stereo Left ← Stereo Center ↓ Stereo Right→
- Willie Green III - Kick Snare Hat ↓
- Bill Kreutzmann - Roto Toms ←
- Mickey Hart - Talking Drums →
- Jerry Garcia - Electronic Percussion (Cow Bells, Shakers, Drums) ↓,→
- Bob Weir - Midi Guitar: Marimba ←,↓
- Phil Lesh - Bass ↓
- Brent Mydland - Midi Keyboard (Rattles, Shakers, Toms) ↓
- "Infrared Roses" (Bralove, Garcia, Lesh, Mydland, Weir) – 5:36
- Brent Mydland - Keys and Synth ("Outerspace FX", Voices, Piano)
- Phil Lesh - Bass and Synth (Trombone, FilterSweeps, French horn, Strings, Bells)
- Bob Weir - Guitar and Synths (Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibes)
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar and Synths (Trumpet, Mandolin, Voices, Strings)
- "Silver Apples of the Moon" (Hornsby, Welnick) – 5:41
- Bruce Hornsby - Piano and Synths (Strings, Vibes)
- Vince Welnick - Synths (Voices, Strings, Rattles, Organ, Bells)
- "Speaking in Swords" (Bralove, Hart, Kreutzmann) – 3:29
- Mickey Hart - Beam and Electronic Percussion
- Bill Kreutzmann - Electronic Percussion
- "Magnesium Night Light" (Garcia, Lesh, Mydland, Weir) – 5:28
- Jerry Garcia - Guitars and Synths (Trumpet, Strings)
- Bob Weir - Guitar and Synths (Bells, Marimbas, Vibes)
- Phil Lesh - Bass and Synths (Bass Fuzz, Filter Sweep, Bells)
- Brent Mydland - Keys and Synths (FX, Piano, Electric Piano)
- "Sparrow Hawk Row" (Bralove, Garcia, Healy, Hart, Kreutzmann, Lesh, Mydland, Weir) – 3:23
- Dan Healy - Processing
and in no particular order
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar
- Bob Weir - Guitar
- Phil Lesh - Bass
- Brent Mydland - Keys
- Mickey Hart & Bill Kreutzmann - Drums
- "River of Nine Sorrows" (Bralove, Hart, Kreutzmann) – 4:25
- Mickey Hart - Electronic Percussion, Synths (Bird Whistles, Woodblocks, Log Drum)
- Bill Kreutzmann - Drums, Electronic Percussion, Synths (Gongs, Congas, Woodblocks, Electronic Toms)
- Bob Bralove - Drum Machine Sequencing
- "Apollo at the Ritz" (Garcia, Hart, Kreutzmann, Lesh, Marsalis, Mydland, Weir) – 8:15
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar and Synths (Church Bell, Flute, Double Reed and lots more)
- Phil Lesh - Bass and Synths (Bass Flute)
- Branford Marsalis - Tenor and Soprano Sax
- Bob Weir - Guitar and Synths (Trumpet Section)
- Brent Mydland - Keys
- Mickey Hart & Bill Kreutzmann - Drums
Personnel
Grateful Dead
Additional musicians
- Deadheads on "Crowd Sculpture"
- Willie Green III – kick, snare, hat on "Post-Modern Highrise Table Top Stomp"
- Dan Healy – processing on "Sparrow Hawk Row"
- Bob Bralove – drum machine on "River of Nine Sorrows"
- Branford Marsalis – saxophone on "Apollo At The Ritz"
Production
- Produced by Bob Bralove
- Mixing engineer: Jeffrey Norman
- Multi-track recording engineer: John Cutler
- 2-track recording: Dan Healy, Bob Bralove
- Digital mastering: Joe Gastwirt
- Synthesizer programming: Bob Bralove
- Cover art: Jerry Garcia
- Art direction: Amy F.
Recording dates
Although the editing techniques used for this album make it nearly impossible to identify all of the concerts used, some dates are identifiable. Some tracks may include material from other concerts in addition to those listed.
- "Parallelogram" recorded at JFK Stadium on July 7, 1989 (complete show later released on Crimson White & Indigo)
- "Riverside Rhapsody" recorded at Giants Stadium on July 10, 1989 (complete show later released on Giants Stadium 1987, 1989, 1991)
- "Post-Modern Highrise Table Top Stomp" recorded at Oakland Coliseum on December 28, 1989
- "Infrared Roses" recorded at Nassau Coliseum on March 30, 1990 (complete show later released on Spring 1990)
- "Magnesium Night Light" recorded at Hampton Coliseum on October 9, 1989 (complete show later released on Formerly the Warlocks. Also used for the video Backstage Pass)
- "River of Nine Sorrows" and "Apollo at the Ritz" recorded at Nassau Coliseum on March 29, 1990 (complete show later released on Wake Up to Find Out)
