Aoxomoxoa is a hit or miss album to me and I think this record in particular does fit the common critique that the Dead weren’t a good studio band. I think songs like St. Stephen and China Cat Sunflower are monumentally better live. That’s not to say there aren’t some solid cuts on the album. I’m a big fan of the studio Dupree’s and Mountains Of The Moon.
I’ve always been a bit entranced by Mountains Of The Moon, and I’m not sure why. It doesn’t surprise me that the song didn’t last long in the band’s live sets because of the direction they were going by 1970 or so, but this is one of those songs that always gets me really excited when it shows up on a release.
Similarly, I was thrilled when Phil dusted this tune off for Phil and Friends, and I know Furthur has played it in recent years as well.
Of course, the vibe of these shows, which I tend to refer to as “the Live/Dead sessions” is so great that pretty much anything they played at these shows was bound to be great. I’m just glad that Mountains of the Moon got a couple of workouts.
A chilly, dark vibe pervades the opening of this as TC sets up a gothic organ backing to the still predominately acoustic sound. This song is a great adjunct to the similarly-influenced “St. Stephen” and “The Eleven”. As the song proper winds down, Garcia plays a very unique acoustic guitar solo, well worth seeking out if you are in the market for treats. He strikes a final acoustic chord, and Weir picks up precisely where he left off. Before you know it, Jerry is back, this time on muted electric. He slowly works up the volume and so does the rest of the band. As the track clicks over, Weir is still riding that chord, not yet realizing that we are about to enter the first-heard, live, classic version of Dark Star.