I’ve never heard the Keith and Donna solo material, but they did have Jerry playing guitar on it. Showboat was one of the songs to appear on their Keith & Donna album, released in 1975. Apparently the Dead rehearsed the song as well, which is presumably where this version originates, but they never played it live.

This is only the second song that I’ve ever heard Keith Godchaux sing, the first being Let Me Sing Your Blues Away from the Wake of the Flood album. He’s actually got a pretty decent voice and I think that he would have been better at the higher harmonies that Phil attempted in the early 70s than Phil. I presume that his shyness got in the way of his willingness to sing live. Pity.

Anyway, this track is from the bonus disc that came with the Beyond Description box set, so it’s likely very hard to track down. It’s a shame that the Dead camp won’t re-release all the bonus discs they’ve done over the years in a big box set, or at least as lossless downloads. C’est la vie.

A few glass-like guitar lines, and drums that sound like old cardboard boxes (in a good way!) get things moving here. A shuffle feel quickly develops and there’s a bit of funk too. Keith’s singing is quite nice. He’s got a higher tenor voice (if I understand those designations correctly?) and hearing him here makes one wonder why he didn’t sing with the Dead, at least back up. Donna comes in and she sounds great in the studio environment, no surprises there. The R&B feel here is great and there are a few starts and stops. Garcia lays down a tasty guitar line that isn’t too fancy, but has the perfect feel for the song. After another verse there’s a quick shift to cut time and Donna ushers the song to its peaceful conclusion.

[AMAZONPRODUCTS asin=”B00HSNXBGM” features=”0″ locale=”com” listprice=”0″]

[youtube=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6U23iOzRUc”]