30 Days of Dead

30-days-of-dead-2024

It's a Dead Head's most wonderful time of the year! Welcome to another 30 days of unreleased Grateful Dead tracks from the vault, one for every day of the month, selected by archivist and producer David Lemieux. The tracks are yours, 100% free gua-ran-teed, but the real fun is taking part in the challenge for the chance to win some sweet swag from the Dead.

Those of you who know what to do, feel free to skip right on ahead. For those of you who need a refresher, here's the drill:

You know your Ables from your Bakers from your C's, but can your finely tuned ears differentiate the cosmic "comeback" tour from a spacey 70s show? Each day we'll post a song from one of the Dead's coveted shows. Will it be from that magical night at Madison Square Garden in '93 or from way back when they were just starting to warm it up at Winterland? Is that Pigpen's harmonica we hear? Brent on keys? If you think you know, lob your answer in and you just might find yourself taking home our daily prize of a 2025 Grateful Dead wall calendar or the grand prize – a copy of limited, numbered, FRIEND OF THE DEVILS: APRIL '78 boxed set!

Hint:
A couple of songs from two consecutive early 1970s albums, with both songs being a big part of the repertoire from their debuts onward
day23_wmzXRhGHGOXeCRc_ramble_grow.mp3
838 comments

  • Default Avatar
    ColoradoJay
    16 hours 49 minutes ago
    My favorite year

    This is a perfect example of why I love this year so much. Fairly quick search - setlist is standard for the era, but another great show.

    Right there with you Mudlovebuddy!

  • Default Avatar
    mudlovebuddy
    17 hours ago
    Favorite Era

    The sound from this particular tour is unmistakable IMO. These are by far my favorite shows to listen to. There's about a 3-4 month stretch where I feel like there wasn't a single clunker! Just magic from start to finish, with unreal second set jam suites.

  • opeelipsky
    17 hours 20 minutes ago
    Look for a while for this China-Rider

    I was fairly proud when I walked into this jingle.
    Took me quite a bit of searching and listening, but I could not take my rest until I nailed it.
    Now I get to ring that silent bell having finally found it.
    Guessing many may bow out on this test.
    David goes from putting the ball on a tee for us, to throwing a curve ball that goes in all sorts of directions.
    I'm going to miss these 30 Days when they're gone.

  • Default Avatar
    jwelsh8
    17 hours 21 minutes ago
    Found it. Didn't take *that*…

    Found it. Didn't take *that* long, lol. I am quite intrigued by those two or three versions that I listened to this morning that feel like they are being played on warp speed. They don't seem to coincide with any particular runs -- just pop up randomly. But man, they are flying through these songs. Enhancement? ;)

  • Default Avatar
    D-Rae
    17 hours 23 minutes ago
    Major Phil bombs

    What a grate way to start the day. All those years of research and timings led me straight to this magnificent show. Going to sit back and listen to the whole thang! Thanks, Dave!

Yesterday's answer...
Indianapolis, IN, State Fair Coliseum
China Cat Sunflower and I Know You Rider were joined together in September 1969, and from their first time together it sounded like a natural fit. As the years went on, the Dead developed an intricate, composed jam to join the two, as heard here
Yesterday's Winner...
Howard
Tuxedo
NY

Past Dates

Missed a day? You can go back and grab downloads here.

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