Released November 1970 Writer(s) Robert Hunter | Label Warner Bros. | |
Genre Folk rock, progressive bluegrass Composer(s) Jerry Garcia and John Dawson Producer(s) Grateful Dead, Steve Barncard | ||
"Friend of the Devil" is a song recorded by the Grateful Dead. The music was written by Jerry Garcia and John Dawson and the lyrics are by Robert Hunter. It is the second track of the Dead's 1970 album American Beauty.
"Friend of the Devil" is about an outlaw, on the run from the police. His crime is never explicitly stated. The Devil helps him escape, but winds up chasing him just as the law does; several lines of the song are ambiguous, and could refer to either law enforcement or servants of Satan, such as "I was trailed by twenty hounds", which could refer to either police dogs sniffing his trail, or mythical hellhounds.
The song is acoustic, like most of American Beauty. It is known for the guitar riff Garcia plays in the bass register, which is a descending G major scale (G F# E D C B A G). The song is among the most covered songs written by the Grateful Dead; Hunter later stated, "that was the closest we've come to what may be a classic song."
The song was introduced in concert on March 20th, 1970 at the Capital Theatre in Port Chester, NY. Later in the band's history, the song slowed down significantly in live performances. Loggins and Messina, whose version of the song was slowed down, might have inspired the Dead to do the same. In more recent history, Phil Lesh and Friends do a more up-tempo version similar to the original.
Hunter plays a slightly different version on his album (released only in LP format) Jack O'Roses. He adds a final verse:
"You can borrow from the Devil/ You can borrow from a friend/ But the Devil'll give you twenty/ When your friend got only ten"