In addition to all of the great originals the Grateful Dead were known for such as “Touch of Grey,” “Sugar Magnolia,” “Casey Jones” and countless other classics, the band always covered an eclectic variety of songs. Many of those covers are songs from the 50’s or 60’s – or even older. Some of the covers are standards by well-known artists such as Buddy Holly or Johnny Cash while others were new to their fans such as Reverend Gary Davis or Bill Browning. Despite the differences in classic versus obscurity, one thing was certain – The Grateful Dead promised to make the cover into something the fans loved through their creativity and improvisational skills. The songs below are a solid list of some of their best-known covers.
“Mama Tried” – Merle Haggard
“Death Don’t Have No Mercy” – Reverend Gary Davis
“Me and My Uncle” – John Phillips
“Big Boss Man” – Jimmy Reed
“Johnny B. Goode” – Chuck Berry
“Not Fade Away” – Buddy Holly
“Me and Bobby McGee” – Kris Kristofferson
“Good Lovin'” – Young Rascals
“Sing Me Back Home” – Merle Haggard
“You Win Again” – Hank Williams
“Smokestack Lightning” – Howlin Wolf
“Big River” – Johnny Cash
“Promised Land” – Chuck Berry
“El Paso” – Marty Robbins
“Dancin’ in the Streets” – Martha and the Vandellas
