Standing on the Moon
| "Standing on the Moon" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Grateful Dead | |
| from the album Built to Last | |
| Released | October 31, 1989 |
| Length | 5:20 |
| Label | Arista |
| Composer | Jerry Garcia |
| Lyricist | Robert Hunter |
| Producers |
|
"Standing on the Moon" is a song by the American rock band Grateful Dead, released as the seventh track on their thirteenth studio album Built to Last (1989). It is a political love song, and one of three songs on Built to Last credited to Garcia–Hunter, a composer/lyricist duo consisting of Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter.[1]
Background and composition
[edit]"Standing on the Moon"was written by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter, with the lyrics being a love song with references to various historical moments. AllMusic critic Lindsay Planer notes that during the chorus, Hunter's lyrics "quickly [do] a 180 by turning the subject matter inward with the resolving couplets".[2] Many critics, as well as Garcia and Hunter themselves have called it their favorite, and one of the best songs on Built to Last.[2] Hunter said of "Standing on the Moon" to Blair Jackson: "'Standing on the Moon' was one of those neat, sweet quick things, like 'It Must Have Been the Roses,' where the whole picture just came to me, and I grabbed a piece of paper and got it down. No changes, no nothin'."[3] Garcia also told Jackson that "I thought it would be really nice to do a song that you only have to hear one time and you'll get it. You don’t have to listen to it hundreds of times or wonder what it’s about... . There’s something I like about it very much. It’s an emotional reality; it isn’t linguistics. It’s something about that moment of the soul. To have those words coming out of my mouth puts me in a very specific place, and there’s a certain authenticity there that I didn’t want to disturb."[3]
Release and reception
[edit]In a ranking of Garcia's 50 best songs, Rolling Stone placed it at number 45, noting that it features "perhaps Garcia’s finest latter-day vocal", adding that "But Garcia, working from a sensitive Hunter lyric about a homesick space traveler, transcended — or utilized — those troubles to sing with heartbreaking poignancy."[4] Garcia called it "one of those perfect songs.", noting that "I wanted to keep it just as close to the bone as possible, I didn’t want to hear any solo voices in it, I didn’t want to hear any suspended chords, I only wanted to hear pure triads; 1 wanted to hear the emotion just as pure as it could be."[5] "Standing on the Moon" was included on the 2015 compilation The Best of the Grateful Dead, and was included as the last track on the compilation.[6]
Cover versions
[edit]The music group Phosphorescent & Friends performed a cover version of "Standing on the Moon" for the 2016 Day of the Dead Grateful Dead tribute album.[7]
References
[edit]- ↑ Trager, Oliver (December 4, 1997). The American Book of the Dead. Simon and Schuster. pp. 353–54. ISBN 978-0-684-81402-5.
- 1 2 Planer, Lindsay. "Standing on the Moon". AllMusic. Retrieved July 13, 2026.
- 1 2 Jackson, Blair (August 1, 2000). Garcia: An American Life. Penguin. p. 382. ISBN 978-0-14-029199-5.
- ↑ Browne, David; Cummings, Corinne; Grow, Kory; Hermes, Will; Marchese, David; Sheffield, Rob; Wolk, Douglas (August 5, 2020). "Jerry Garcia's 50 Greatest Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
- ↑ Jackson, Blair; Gans, David (2015). This Is All a Dream We Dreamed: An Oral History of the Grateful Dead. Flatiron Books. p. 356. ISBN 978-1-250-05858-4.
- ↑ Giles, Jeff (January 15, 2015). "Grateful Dead Announce 50th Anniversary Compilation and New Archival Live Set". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 13, 2026.
- ↑ Monroe, Jazz (March 24, 2016). "The National, Courtney Barnett, the War on Drugs, More Cover the Grateful Dead: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 13, 2026.
