The choruses, with Garcia joining in on vocal, release the tension of the music a bit even as the travelogue they detail yields endless problems. ![]() It’s also interesting that a band known as leaders of the drug culture unflinchingly shows the seedier side of that lifestyle with the cautionary tale of Sweet Jane: “Living on reds, vitamin C and cocaine/All a friend can say is ‘Ain’t it a shame.’” And they don’t shy away from discussing their own travails with the law: “Got a tip they’re gonna kick down the door again/I’d like to get some sleep before I travel/But if you got a warrant, I guess you’re gonna come in.” “Arrows of neon and flashing marquees out on Main Street,” he sings, following that up with the world-weary ennui of the long-distance traveler: “Chicago, New York, Detroit it’s all on the same street.” Weir sounds frazzled on the lead vocal, a performance full of itchy energy that suits the lyrics. Yet the song is successful because it not only captures the revelry of life on the road but also its lonely flip side. All of this is absolutely autobiographical, all the stuff in ‘Truckin.’” With “Truckin,” Hunter channeled the Dead’s life on the road with eerie accuracy, as Weir told VH1 in 1997: “We left some smoking craters of some Holiday Inns, I’ll say that, and there are a lot of places that wouldn’t have us back. ![]() Part of the reason for the band’s improved studio work at this time was that Hunter was becoming more incorporated into their never-ending tour, allowing for songs that reflected on the band’s lifestyle and music that was more organically in tune with the lyrics.
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