Lyrics: Robert Hunter
Music: Jerry Garcia
In "Box Of Rain" Robert Hunter notes:
"This lyric is a requiem for King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, a progressive and democratically inclined ruler (and, incidentally, a fan of the Grateful Dead) whose assassination in 1975 shocked us personally. The lyrics were printed in Arabic on the jacket of the Middle Eastern release of the album."Lyrics
Arabian windUnusual Occurrences In The Desert (note 2)
The Needle's Eye is thin
The Ships of State sail on mirage
And drown in sand
Out in no man's land
Where Allah does command
What good is spilling blood?
It will not grow a thing
"Taste Eternity", the swords sing
Blues for Allah, Insh'Allah
They lie where they fall
There's nothing more to say
The desert stars are bright tonight
Let's meet as friends
The flower of Islam
The fruit of Abraham
The thousand stories
Have come round to one again
Arabian Night
Our gods pursue their fight
What fatal flowers of darkness
Bloom from seeds of light (note 1)
Bird of Paradise
Fly in the white sky
Blues for Allah, Insh'Allah
Let's see with our heart
These things our eyes have seen
And know the truth must still
Lie somewhere in between
Under eternityNotes
Under eternity (note 3)
Under eternity blue (note 4)
Under eternity
Under eternity
Under eternity blue
[repeat]
Bird of Paradise
Fly in white sky
Blues for Allah, Insh'Allah
Grateful Dead Recordings | |||||
Date | Album | ||||
studio 1975 | Blues For Allah | ||||
23 Mar 1975 | Beyond Description: Bonus CD | ||||
13 Aug 1975 | One From The Vault | ||||
(Plus live recordings by Furthur not listed here. See Grateful Dead Family Discography for a full list.) | |||||
Other Recordings | |||||
Date | Album | Recorded By | |||
Oct 1990 | Eternity Blue | Henry Kaiser | |||
1996 | Blues For Allah | Joe Gallant and Illuminati | |||
2001 | Great Sky River | Jazz Is Dead | |||
2007 | Dead Symphony | Lee Johnson | |||
2009 | Henry Kaiser Plays Dead | Henry Kaiser Quartet |