When Grateful Dead released Blues For Allah, the band were still in full force as far as their studio recordings go, now, that seminal album from 1975 is set to get a 50th anniversary edition set to be released on September 12, 2025, just days after the album’s original 1975 release.
It will be available as a 3-CD set and on vinyl, including one in translucent green. They’re available for pre-order in the U.S. here and in the U.K. here and here. It features a newly remastered version of the original album by GRAMMY® Award-winning engineer David Glasser, sourced from the original analog tapes with speed correction and tape restoration by Plangent Processes.
The press release notes: When the Grateful Dead took a self-imposed hiatus in 1974 after their farewell run at Winterland, they left the road with no clear sense of when—or if—they’d return. A year later, the band surprised everyone when they reemerged with Blues for Allah, one of the most forward-thinking, sonically adventurous albums of their career.
The set also features almost two hours of unreleased recordings. Among the highlights are rehearsals from the band’s August 12, 1975, soundcheck at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall, including the album tracks “Sage & Spirit,” “Help On The Way,” “Slipknot!,” and “Franklin’s Tower.” The collection continues with performances from the June 21, 1976, show at the Tower Theatre in Pennsylvania, spotlighting five Blues for Allah songs alongside favorites like “Eyes Of The World.” Rounding out the set are selections from Bill Graham’s SNACK (Students Need Athletics, Culture, and Kicks) Benefit at Kezar Stadium on March 23, 1975. Previously only available on the 2004 Beyond Description box set’s bonus disc, the recordings include one of only three known performances of “King Solomon’s Marbles.”
A Blu-ray edition will also be available exclusively at Rhino.com, featuring four new mixes of the album by acclaimed producer Steven Wilson: Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround, hi-resolution stereo, and an instrumental mix.
