"Aside from an extended 13-minute workout on the Grateful Dead's "Fire on the Mountain" and a gritty closing attack on the Stones' "Gimme Shelter," not much has changed from the studio-most of the album is represented here and while the guitar wrangling is a little flashier, these versions aren't appreciably different than those on the debut. A bunch of roots vets like these are always gonna sound better live-to quote both Obama and one of their tunes, they're more "fired up and ready to go," and they really tear the top off of "Mountain," seesawing back and forth from Garcia's gently cosmic wah to Duane Allman's beautiful shriek. But Songs from the Road, which not coincidentally comes with a DVD of the show, only makes sense if you missed them last time they came to town".
