New Riders of the Purple Sage (album)

New Riders of the Purple Sage
Studio album by New Riders of the Purple Sage
Released	August 1971 (1971-08)
Recorded	December 1970 – January 1971
Studio	Wally Heider Studios, San Francisco
Genre	Country rock
Length	40:15
Label	Columbia
Producer	New Riders of the Purple Sage
New Riders of the Purple Sage chronology
New Riders of the Purple Sage (1971) Powerglide (1972)
Jerry Garcia chronology
New Riders of the Purple Sage (1971) Hooteroll? (1971)
Singles from New Riders of the Purple Sage
""Louisiana Lady" / "Last Lonely Eagle"" ""I Don't Know You" / "Garden of Eden""

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Christgau's Record Guide	B+
The Music Box
The Village Voice	A−

New Riders of the Purple Sage is the debut album by the American country rock band the New Riders of the Purple Sage. It was released by Columbia Records in 1971, and reached number 39 on the Billboard charts.

New Riders of the Purple Sage is the only studio album by the New Riders to feature co-founder Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead on pedal steel guitar. He is also featured on the live albums Vintage NRPS and Bear's Sonic Journals: Dawn of the New Riders of the Purple Sage.

Mickey Hart and Commander Cody play drums and piano, respectively, on two tracks—"Dirty Business" and "Last Lonely Eagle".

Track listing

All songs written by John Dawson.

Side one

1. "I Don't Know You" – 2:26
2. "Whatcha Gonna Do" – 3:17
3. "Portland Woman" – 3:36
4. "Henry" – 2:36
5. "Dirty Business" – 7:56

Side two

1. "Glendale Train" – 3:00
2. "Garden of Eden" – 4:32
3. "All I Ever Wanted" – 4:37
4. "Last Lonely Eagle" – 5:12
5. "Louisiana Lady" – 3:03

Bonus tracks

These songs were recorded live at the Fillmore West and included in the 2003 CD reissue:

11. "Down in the Boondocks" (Joe South)
12. "The Weight" (Robbie Robertson)
13. "Superman" (Dawson)

Charts

Chart (1971)	Position
United States (Billboard 200)	39
Australia (Kent Music Report)	48

Personnel

New Riders of the Purple Sage

• John Dawson – acoustic guitar, vocals
• David Nelson – electric guitar, acoustic guitar, mandolin, vocals
• Dave Torbert – bass, acoustic guitar, vocals
• Jerry Garcia – pedal steel guitar, banjo
• Spencer Dryden – drums, percussion

Additional musicians

• Mickey Hart – drums, percussion on "Dirty Business", "Last Lonely Eagle"
• Commander Cody – piano on "Dirty Business", "Last Lonely Eagle"

Technical personnel

• New Riders of the Purple Sage – production
• Stephen Barncard – engineering, executive production
• Phil Lesh – executive production
• Ellen Burke – technician
• Michael Ferguson, Alton Kelly – cover art

References

• "Major Releases" partial discography on NRPS official website nrps.net
• New Riders of the Purple Sage on deaddisc.com
• McNally, Dennis (2002). A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead. New York: Broadway Books. p. 384. ISBN 0-7679-1186-5.
• Jackson, Blair (1999). Garcia: An American Life. New York: Penguin Books. pp. 211–212. ISBN 0-14-029199-7.
• Scott, John W.; Dolgushkin, Mike; Nixon, Stu (1999). DeadBase XI: The Complete Guide to Grateful Dead Song Lists. Cornish, New Hampshire: DeadBase. p. 119. ISBN 1-877657-22-0.