Six tracks (specifically those coauthored by lyricist Robert Hunter) eventually became standards in the Grateful Dead concert repertoire, especially "The Wheel", which was performed over 250 times.

[4][5] As music journalist Andy Childs explains: "Garcia is very nearly a true solo album as Jerry plays all the instruments except drums, which Bill Kreutzmann handles.

[7] David Browne notes that the record showcases Garcia's electric and pedal steel guitar skills, while the "sound-effect collages", such as "Eep Hour", exhibit the Grateful Dead's "oddball tendencies".

[8] Side two is more experimental,[10] beginning with two musique concrète pieces–"Late for Supper" and "Spidergawd"–that combine gongs, jabbering voices and a collage of found sounds.

[9] Together, "Late for Supper", "Spidergawd" and "Eep Hour" form a trippy medley,[10] returning to the studio experimentation that typified the Grateful Dead's Anthem of the Sun (1968) and Aoxomoxoa.

[8] In biographer Tony Sclafani's opinion, "Late for Supper" and "Spidergawd" mark Garcia's forays into "atonal avant garde piano music", while on the third, "Eep Hour", he showcases his synthesizer skills.

[4] "To Lay Me Down" is a love song in a straightforward gospel/country arrangement,[1][9] while the psychedelic closer "The Wheel" exhibits Garcia's short-lived infatuation with pedal steel guitar.

"[9] Writing for The Village Voice, Christgau contended that side one was "almost too pleasant and catchy", believing that Hunter and Garcia, despite being "the most consistent songwriters of the past few years," had become too content with their sound.

[17] Reviewing the album retrospectively for AllMusic, Planer dismissed Garcia's description of it as "overindulgent", praising the record as "a full-bodied artistic expression from one of rock & roll's most multi-faceted musicians."

He wrote that both Deadheads and "enthusiasts of the burgeoning early-'70s singer/songwriter movement" would enjoy the album, as the musician "redefines his immense talents and seemingly undiluted musical potential.

[20] The album was reissued in the All Good Things: Jerry Garcia Studio Sessions box set with the following bonus tracks: A vinyl pressing (GDV 4003) was made in West Germany for Grateful Dead Records (48-50 Steele Road, London NW10 7AS) and released in 1988.

Inexplicably, the labels on the vinyl record itself read "Grateful Dead - The Wheel" at the top, with "Jerry Garcia" appearing as a subheading at the bottom, below the track lists.