Bob Weir’s “Ace” Gets 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition

Bob Weir’s debut solo album, Ace, has been re-released for its 50th anniversary in a Deluxe edition. The 1972 album has been remastered and packaged as a double CD in addition to digital streaming formats and a limited edition vinyl set.

Weir’s first solo album, in truth, became more or less a Grateful Dead project in everything but name. It spawned songs like “Playing in the Band,” “Mexicali Blues,” and “One More Saturday Night” that would become staples of the band’s repertoire. The album was also recorded by the rest of the iconic jam band’s members, including Jerry Garcia, Keith Godchaux, Bill Kreutzmann, and bassist Phil Lesh, although Weir hadn’t planned it that way.

“One by one, we sidled into the studio, saying things like ‘Bob, I really like that tune – got a bass player for it yet?’ or ‘Hey Bob, need some keyboards on that ballad?’” Lesh wrote in his 2005 book Searching For The Sound. “Drawn in by the new songs, we eventually assembled the whole band (minus Pig, who was still trying to regain his health) at Wally Heider’s [studio] and finished the album in a burst of enthusiasm. Bob’s songwriting had taken a great leap forward.”

The original recording also features Dave Torbert playing bass on “Greatest Story Ever Told.” For the 50th Anniversary Edition, Weir added a live set of his current band Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros, performing the record in its entirety. That group is anchored by Don Was on the double bass.

Check out the Wolf Bros performing “Greatest Story Ever Told” with a little help from Tyler Childers:

Ace: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition is out now in CD, cassette, vinyl, and as a digital download (iTunes and Amazon MP3).

Ace: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition Track List:

Disc One: Original Album (2023 Remaster)

1. Greatest Story Ever Told
2. Black-Throated Wind
3. Walk In The Sunshine
4. Playing In The Band
5. Looks Like Rain
6. Mexicali Blues
7. One More Saturday Night
8. Cassidy

Disc Two: Live at Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY (4/3/22)

1. Greatest Story Ever Told (featuring Tyler Childers)
2. Black-Throated Wind
3. Walk In The Sunshine (featuring Brittney Spencer)
4. Playing In The Band
5. Looks Like Rain (featuring Brittney Spencer)
6. Mexicali Blues – Intro
7. Mexicali Blues
8. One More Saturday Night
9. Cassidy