It's hard to imagine the Grateful Dead performing a song by a classic country artist. But it happened. The band covered a song by Merle Haggard called "Mama Tried." That seems as incongruous as Carrie Underwood singing the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter." You might assume that the Dead's results with the tune were not up to par. But that wasn't the case. They certainly brought something new and unexpected to the song while preserving its country pedigree. That's what music should be all about anyway.
Videos by Wide Open Country
'Mama Tried' Is An Autobiographical Song
It Describes Merle Haggard's Brushes With The Law, Among Other Things
To say that Haggard was a wayward youth would be pretty true. Per Blue Railroad, Haggard said, "I remember writing the first line - 'First thing I remember knowing' — and then it all came fast. Almost wrote itself. It was so well describing my life that I felt maybe I was too close to it to realize it was good. It sounded too easy. I wrote it on the bottom bunk of a bus."
In this interview, Haggard mentions that he was a bit of a precocious, incorrigible wiseguy who landed in San Quentin at the age of 20. His mom was evidently "an excellent mother." She was a church-going, God-fearing woman. Her husband, Merle's father, died when the boy was just 9.
Merle's Mother Tried Hard To Be A Positive Influence On Him
It seems as if Haggard wrote "Mama Tried" as a tribute to his mother's efforts to get him back on the straight and arrow. "I wrote 'Mama Tried' after I got out. It wasn't Mama's fault that I went to prison. She did everything right. She was a wonderful mother. Didn't drink, didn't smoke. You could depend on her. If you'd been gone three weeks and you showed up, she'd fix you the greatest breakfast you ever had."
Haggard Talked About The Recording Session
Everything Went Smoothly And A Classic Song Was Born
Haggard recalled, "We recorded it in 1968 at Capitol in Hollywood. Ken Nelson and Fuzzy Owen produced. We did a good job; that record still sounds unique...I was trying to land somewhere in between Peter, Paul & Mary and Johnny Cash...Glen [Campbell] played rhythm guitar and sang a tenor harmony."
The Grateful Dead Version Has An Interesting Back Story
They Performed It At Woodstock In 1969
Per Whisky Riff, Jerry Garcia recalled the soggy conditions when he was interviewed by David Bromberg. "There were about a hundred people on stage with us, and everyone was scared that it was gonna collapse. On top of that, it was raining or wet, so that every time we touched our guitars, we'd get these electrical shocks. Blue sparks were flying out of our guitars."
The outlet weighed in on the results. "The band actually covered the song quite frequently, playing it live a grand total of more than 300 times, and they even recorded it for their 1971 live album, Skull & Roses. Despite everything possible going completely wrong, they still managed to put together a stellar performance of an iconic hit."
Listen to the Dead's interpretation. I think you will like it. Or at least appreciate it.
