Gallant recalls Dead with 'Terrapin Station'

More than 20 years later, Joe Gallant, acting as composer, director and arranger of Illuminati, has torn down the original Terrapin Station and in its place resurrected a modern masterpiece.

Unlike the usual album tributes, Gallant has created something unique from the original album.

The idea of the reworking was to transport the original "Terrapin Station" to midtown Manhattan on new years eve 1999.

"Terrapin" includes 71 contributing artists and hints at just about every genre imaginable with the major focus on big band jazz. Gallant masterfully directs the avant-garde group from symphonic graces to cacophonous meltdowns.

After a screaming invocation, the album opens with an electronically driven "Passenger," setting the dark mood of modernity on the verge of the millennium. "Dancin' in the Streets" begins with a low-fi instrumental reminiscent of the original Motown recording but soon breaks into a high paced funk/fusion powerhouse.

As a bonus, the album closes with a filler of two songs, the Dead's "China Doll" and Gallant's "Jerome John."

However, the album's heart lies in the title piece, "Terrapin Station Suite." "Lady with a Fan" maintains the big band style that the album has focused on throughout the first half, which produces a fantastic image in the listener's mind of a bourgeois millennial celebration.

While the big band style maintains the theme of the album, it loses some of the mystery and magic of Garcia's original music. This track explodes into a bluegrass version of "Terrapin Station" which is again missing some of the original majesty.

But as the suite continues into Gallant's four self-penned regions, a new mystery is created. In this portion of the suite Gallant creates a chaotic combination of the threatening modern industry and the prehistoric through his use of hand drums being played against dissonant squeals and moans.

Joe Gallant and Illuminati have done the unexpected by making a new legend out of an already legendary album.

"Terrapin" turns the original album upside down by rearranging each piece, and in doing so gives Terrapin Station meaning as an unknown answer that everyone must find for themselves.

With "Terrapin" Joe Gallant has meticulously studied the Grateful Dead and abstracted beauty from beauty thus firmly establishing himself as a compositional force.

11-09-99