Grateful Dead's 50th anniversary reissue program is truckin' on with the September 12 reissue of the band's Blues for Allah, originally released on September 1, 1975.  A deluxe, expanded 3CD edition will arrive alongside a digital version and a 1LP remaster of the original album available in black vinyl, picture disc, and Dead.net-exclusive colored vinyl pressings.  In addition, a Blu-ray will premiere surround, Dolby Atmos, stereo, and instrumental mixes by the prolific Steven Wilson.

Blues for Allah came on the heels of the Dead's self-imposed (and ultimately) brief hiatus which began in October 1974 following a run of five shows at San Francisco's Winterland.  After recharging in November and December, the band began thinking about a new album in January.  Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Donna Jean Godchaux, and Keith Godchaux would set up camp at Weir's home studio in Mill Valley, California.  Rather than perfecting songs in the studio which had been worked out onstage, they began organically writing together in the studio setting, with Robert Hunter on hand as co-writer with Garcia of multiple songs.  Blues for Allah would embrace an experimental sound with Eastern scales and atypical time signatures as an outgrowth of the jazz modes the band had already been exploring.  Steven Schuster guested on flute and woodwinds, while Mickey Hart incorporated samples of field recordings.  The result was a Dead album unlike any other, simultaneously both intimate and wide-ranging.

Upon the album's initial release, critics were divided, but record buyers had few such reservations. It became the Dead's third consecutive top 20 album and peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard 200 during its 13-week run on the chart.  Two singles were issued, "The Music Never Stopped" and "Franklin's Tower," and the former even cracked the Hot 100.

In keeping with the format of this series, the studio bonus tracks that had been appended to Rhino's 2006 expanded reissue have been dropped in favor of live tracks.  The 3CD set adds the August 12, 1975 soundcheck from San Francisco's Great American Music Hall on CD2 alongside the full Blues for Allah suite from the Kezar Stadium show (also in San Fran) from March 23 which was a benefit for Bill Graham's SNACK (Students Need Athletics, Culture, and Kicks) charity.  This show, the Dead's first of the year, featured one of just three known performances of "King Solomon's Marbles."  The third disc has eight songs from the Tower Theater outside of Philadelphia from the concerts of June 21 and 22, 1976 including renditions of both "Franklin's Tower" and "The Music Never Stopped."

Various vinyl editions will be released of the original album as remastered by David Glasser from the original tapes, using the Plangent Processes for speed correction and tape restoration.  Joining the standard black vinyl and picture disc releases will be a Dead.net-exclusive "Midnight Fire" LP, including a replica lyric sheet in English and Arabic (in the tradition of the original 1975 release).  The Blu-ray Audio release is exclusive to Rhino.com.  Glasser's stereo remaster of "The Music Never Stopped" is streaming now.

Nicholas G. Meriwether has written the liner notes for the 3CD package.  "Blues for Allah is the Dead's unique vision, a deeply humane parable that framed their own artistic renewal in the most inclusive, expansive terms," he writes.  "Fifty years later, it remains one of their most musically successful and resolutely experimental albums."  It returns in various formats on September 12 from Rhino.  You'll find -pre-order links and the full track listing below.  As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Grateful Dead, Blues for Allah: 50th Anniversary Edition (Grateful Dead GD-LA-494-G, 1975 - reissued Grateful Dead/Rhino, 2025)

1LP Picture Disc: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Links TBD / Dead.net
1LP Black Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Links TBD
1LP Midnight Fire Vinyl: Dead.net
3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
Blu-Ray Audio: Rhino.com

CD 1

2025 Remaster

1. "Help On The Way" / "Slipknot!"
2. "Franklin's Tower"
3. "King Solomon's Marbles"

Part I: "Stronger Than Dirt"

Part II: "Milkin' The Turkey"

4. "The Music Never Stopped"
5. "Crazy Fingers"
6. "Sage & Spirit"
7. "Blues For Allah"
8. "Sand Castles & Glass Camels"
9. "Unusual Occurrences In The Desert"

CD 2

Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA Soundcheck/Rehearsal (8/12/75)

1. "Help On The Way" >
2. "Slipknot!"
3. "Franklin's Tower"
4. "Help On The Way" >
5. "Slipknot!"
6. "Franklin's Tower"
7. "King Solomon's Marbles"
8. "Crazy Fingers"
9. "Sage And Spirit"

Kezar Stadium, San Francisco, CA (3/23/75)

10. "Blues For Allah"
11. "Stronger Than Dirt (Or Milkin' The Turkey)"
12. "Drums"
13. "Stronger Than Dirt (Or Milkin' The Turkey)"
14. "Blues For Allah"

CD 3

Tower Theater, Upper Darby, PA (6/21/76 and 6/22/76)

1. "The Music Never Stopped"
2. "Help On The Way" >
3. "Slipknot!" >
4. "Franklin's Tower"
5. "Crazy Fingers"
6. "Comes A Time"
7. "Eyes Of The World" >
8. "Dancing In The Street"​