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    heatherlew
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    RFK Stadium 1989 Box

    LESS THAN 5000 LEFT

    The Grateful Dead battled the elements in July 1989, enduring drenching rains and stifling humidity during back-to-back shows at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in the nation’s capital. In spite of the bleak weather, the band thrilled the massive crowds both nights with triumphant performances that rank among the very best of a busy year that included 74 shows and the release of the group’s final studio album, BUILT TO LAST.

    ROBERT F. KENNEDY STADIUM, WASHINGTON, D.C., JULY 12 & 13, 1989 includes two previously unreleased concerts taken from the band’s master 24-track analog recordings, which have been mixed by Jeffrey Norman at TRI Studios and mastered in HDCD by David Glasser. The collection’s colorful slip case features original artwork by Justin Helton and a perfect-bound book with in-depth liner notes written by Dean Budnick, editor-in-chief of Relix magazine. The set will also be available as a digital download in Apple Lossless and FLAC 192/24.

    When Jerry Garcia, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Brent Mydland, and Bob Weir rolled into D.C. in July 1989 for the Dead’s two-night stand at RFK, the band hit the stage running with a stellar rendition of “Touch Of Grey,” the group’s biggest hit from its only Top 10 album In The Dark, which was released in 1987. The following night, the band returned to its double-platinum commercial breakthrough when it opened the show with a fiery version of “Hell In A Bucket.”

    “RFK Stadium '89 fell right in the middle of one of the best tours of the last 15 years of Grateful Dead performances, with these shows being the sixth and seventh of an 11-show tour. This tour is widely considered the start of a nine month period of sustained excellence, which ran from Summer '89 through Spring '90. The RFK shows are as good as any of the more famous shows from this period, including July 4 in Buffalo, July 7 in Philadelphia, and the Alpine run,” says David Lemieux, Grateful Dead archivist and the set’s producer. “When Bob Weir has asked me to provide copies of Grateful Dead songs to give to his bandmates to learn and rehearse, he almost always requests Summer '89, and I've often drawn upon the RFK shows for this purpose. It's really that good!”

    Both shows feature standout moments, but the July 12 show is notable for a few reasons. Perhaps the biggest is that the first set featured at least one song sung by each of the band’s four lead singers – Garcia, Weir, Lesh and Mydland – something that rarely happened. Another surprise came when the band opened the second set with “Sugaree,” a song that almost always appeared during the first set.

    Pianist Bruce Hornsby — who briefly joined the band between 1990 and 1992 — is featured on both shows. He played accordion during “Sugaree” and “Man Smart (Woman Smarter),” with a touch of keyboard-tinkling, on July 12, and then played more accordion the following night for “Tennessee Jed” and “Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again.”

    For fans of Mydland’s tenure with the Dead – which began in 1979 and ended in 1990 with the keyboardist’s tragic death – these stellar shows capture that incarnation in peak form. Among the long list of highlights are performances of live staples such as “Eyes Of The World,” “Wharf Rat” and “I Need A Miracle,” along with rarities like “To Lay Me Down,” which was played only a few times in 1989. The July 13 show also features the band road-testing “I Will Take You Home,” a track Mydland wrote with Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow that would appear later that fall on Built To Last.

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  • #1221
    JimInMD
    Joined:
    8 Tracks
    My first GD exposure was 8 track. Ha.. that's one medium I wont miss. I guess I had a bad machine, it kept eating all my tapes. It was really a bad technology... Cassettes were much more reliable.. and contrary to popular belief, I do not see them making a robust comeback. My prized Nak died about ten years back.. the belts had all dry rotted and it started to play reeeeaaaaalllllyyyyyy sssslllllloooooowwwwwww. There is no advantage to cassettes over CD's as far as I can tell, and a lot of drawbacks. I do see the Vinyl appeal, but 8 tracks and cassettes, I just don't see this becoming a wave.
  • #1222
    alvarhanso
    Joined:
    Sittin' on a fence (not a pole)
    The limited announcement yesterday did what it was meant to do in piquing my interest, but I'm still on the fence. These could probably be broken down to 4-5 discs, and there probably won't be any filler, and once again I'll be miffed at short discs, though this time for 65 bucks for 2 shows. I think I'd find 5/8-9/77 as a 2 show box for 65 bucks to be pricey, so it has nothing to do with Brent or '80s hate. I actually like Summer '89-Summer '90 a lot, they were playing at the peak of that incarnation, as evidenced by how much of it's been released. (But feel free to throw this post back at me if they offer a 2 show box of RFK '73 for the same price and I buy it the minute it's announced, because that would likely be my reaction to that RFK box.) The book is probably nice, and I love the books in the boxes. The books are what I really miss about Spring '90 and Europe '72 (though I really love the idea of the steamer trunk). If it's around next year and I got the extra cash, I'll get it. If I miss out, I'll survive, and enjoy the subscription for Dave's 2018 and next year's big box.
  • #1223
    MinasMorgul
    Joined:
    Since 15K is the number
    5K will be added to the available quantity at some point. It's gone down exactly as I posted it would, although I'm surprised they're going with 15K. They still started with 10K and are now down to 3800 - 3900. Sales, Space Brother are at 6200 roughly, which leaves about 8800 left (5K which muse still be added). I'm not sure what numbers are "more or less brisk", but these are the facts. Brisk is relative I guess. Bottom line is that a good seller is great for us all.
  • #1224
    LedDed
    Joined:
    Eight-track Renaissance
    I hear eight-track is on the rebound. Might want to fish around the yard sales for one of those Panasonic boom boxes with 8-track, AM/FM and a cool shoulder strap for rocking the 'hood. At least they still make D-cells. Glad to see the RFK '89 box going limited. Why not? I like physical product. Blu-ray's, cd's, more than just download. That being said I fleshed out my missing Dick's Picks off iTunes for a fraction of the cost of what the cd's have gone up to now. There's something reassuring about the certainty of a tangible, physical product on my shelf, should (God forbid) my laptop get stolen/destroyed, hard drive crash, etc. I have so much music from so many sources - friends who have kindly loaned things, items from the public library, iTunes and other downloadable sources, etc. It would be impossible to remember it all, were it to be lost or corrupted, however I know those cd's sitting on the shelves aren't going anywhere and as much of a pain in the ass it is to burn them all in, it's a 100% backup. I have Carbonite cloud backup as well as a portable hard drive but I don't trust it. That pole freak on Veneta is the ultimate acid casualty. Most people made it through but some of them just fried. If that dude is still breathing, he's drooling right now.
  • #1225
    JimInMD
    Joined:
    Blue Ray, DVD, etc.
    I have two Blue Ray and a DVD in the living room.. I found myself nodding to what the Ice Cream Kid had to say.. mhammond too. Thin is clearly correct in what he wrote.. but I have one subtle comment to add. I got into a back and forth email chain with Lemieux a few years ago about DVD's, etc. I think it was when the other Alpine show came out, and I missed it due to work.. so there was a little bite in my initial outreach. He did reply.. at length. Keeping in mind.. he was hired as the video archivist as Dick was still alive and well back then. His comment was layered, he was clearly keeping certain things close to his chest, but it was revealing nonetheless. I think the issue with video in general is the market is more segmented and aggregate demand has not justified all the costs involved getting this to market (my words, not his..). The 16,500 number (soon to be higher) is a magic number for vault releases in 2017. Keep in mind Terrapin Limited is still for sale, I'm quite sure it is limited and it has been for sale since 1997. There are tons of deadheads but not everyone has to have the 150 or shows that have already been officially released (what is that number again?). At this point, it is a numbers game for them and contrary to popular believe, once everyone (including the band) gets their cut I doubt if there are mountains of money left over. So back to the video topic.. Dave is all in with video releases. The hesitancy is not on his part. Rhino sells CD's and records.. DVD and Blue Ray is more like an after dinner mint for them.. if they sell and they make a ton of money on them, they'd do more. Reading between the lines from the correspondence all those years ago, there simply is not a terrific demand for GD DVD's. I can't get enough myself, but I say the same thing about the official CD releases too. Another factor is very few were recorded on film, most (the 89 and go forward material) was recorded on the crappy 4" tape common at the time. Find your favorite 1989 sitcom, go to YouTube and watch it.. it's grainy and has the same limitations as the stuff directed (recorded) by Len Dell'Amico during the late 80's. The video will not get better regardless of the medium as the source tapes are subpar. The sound, on the other hand, can benefit from the better mediums... depending on a few things... But look at this another way.. they do have a good bit of video recorded, some of it is pretty damned good. Most of it does have those distracting special affects baked right in. It will get released one day, perhaps they are just keeping their powder dry for when demand picks up a bit. If there are still some SSDD left and I bet they have a ton of the Fare Thee Well left (back to the numbers thing...) my guess is they are just biding their time and will begin releasing them when demand exceeds their magic number. I do prefer Blue Ray, it could be a dying medium, probably because it costs more and people are streaming a lot these days. Us hard-core, especially the audiophiles, will want DVD or probably Blue Ray. I really don't see that changing, streaming is not going to take precedent over the physical product for the person that just shelled out $12,000 for their new surround sound system. ..but who knows for sure what the future will bring except that quack Ray Kurzweil (yes.. I said that). If you made it through this post.. congrats and accept my apologies.. dry stuff.. but we like the GOGD and there's nothing boring about being there, front row center in the comforts of your own living room.
  • #1226
    Cousins Of The…
    Joined:
    cassettes
    I was about to guess it's a hipster thing, but apparently Justin Bieber had something to do with it.Which doesn't make sense either way...
  • #1227
    Thin
    Joined:
    Space - you are correct
    Spacebro - You are correct, sir. I forgot there was a DVD/Blu-ray segmentation in the Veneta release. How many Blu-rays did they produce? I don't recall how fast the DVD's sold out. I guess I passed on that because I didn't have Blu-ray AND I'm not enthralled with DVD vid quality, which is like a 720 vs 1080 pixel format (if someones previous post was accurate). I didn't really want to see Polesitter dude in 1080 OR 720 pixels - LOL. As I said earlier, I hope for both our sakes that they continue with the '89 releases. There's a ton of great stuff from that era sitting in the vault. Once the video format gets sorted out, I think we'll see a LOT of '89-'90's releases. re: Cassettes - I've heard they ARE making a comeback. Martin Sexton was on "Above the Basement" recently (highly recommended Boston-area music podcast) and he mentioned that he recently issued his recent release "Mixtape from the Road" on cassette as a novelty item and said they sold out of 1,000 of these in just a week or two, to his amazement. I blame the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movie series for romanticizing the format. https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/above-the-basement-boston-music-and-co…
  • #1228
    Romberg
    Joined:
    Packaging Size
    Dead.net, please put the packaging dimensions in the description. I'd like to buy this but I need to know if it will fit on a CD shelf. I've been burned too many times on oversized packaging to blind buy a Grateful Dead box set ever again without knowing he packaging dimensions first. Thanks!
  • #1229
    FloridaBobalooToo
    Joined:
    Makes NO difference to me
    Numbered or Limited sets don't sound any different to me. Fact is that has nothing to do with my motivation on buying GD stuff. Actually I think I might offer a swap of my GSTL Limited box to someone who really must have it in exchange for a music only set.For the amount of bother to try and turn one of these things for the little profit, just wouldn't be worth my time. Yes I know some sets bring big pricing. Theres the moral thing as has been discussed too. All n All Im after the music. Weekend is HERE!!! 24th Anniversary is the biggie in my trailer park. Taking the wife out for Bar-B-Que and a night at the Shooting Range! Woo-Hoo!!! 9/3/93
  • #1230
    Thin
    Joined:
    Spacebro re: 8/27/72 - makes my Blu-ray point
    Spacebro - Thanks for helping make my Blu-ray point. 8/27/72 is indeed still available after 4 years sitting on the shelf despite only producing 12,500 copies, but I find your conclusion that this means 80's is more popular than '72 laughable (respectfully) - it is rather a reflection on Blu-ray, per my previous post. 8/27/72 was a single show plus Blu-ray for $55. That is the only release I have never purchased because I don't have Blu-ray and I didn't want to blow $55 + shipping for 3 CD's I already have (from my DAT days) in pretty darn good quality. (And Mr. Polesitter guy in hi-def NOT a draw) I also doubt they have sold as much of this '89 box as you think - when they plugged the initial number into "inventory" they hadn't yet decided the final production #. Probably input a nice round 10k, not the current 15k you are using in your math. But I could be wrong. We'll find out the next time they update the site. But going numbered/limited edition should boost sales of this box. So ALL the other releases/boxes have sold out or are close to it - most at 15k units or more - while the relatively low 12,500-unit EPIC Veneta show released 4 YEARS AGO on Blu-ray still sits on the shelf... this is why they aren't releasing more Blu-ray.... edit: icecrmkid I just saw your post. I'm not saying Blu-ray is going away forever (though Betamax, Laserdisc, Selectavision, and DIVX did), but the dream of Blu-ray becoming the universal video standard, like CD is for audio, is dead. Again, I think they are waiting for a ubiquitous video format relevant to ALL before releasing more video. Veneta teaches us that Blu-ray is not the answer.
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Submitted by heatherlew on
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RFK Stadium 1989 Box

LESS THAN 5000 LEFT

The Grateful Dead battled the elements in July 1989, enduring drenching rains and stifling humidity during back-to-back shows at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in the nation’s capital. In spite of the bleak weather, the band thrilled the massive crowds both nights with triumphant performances that rank among the very best of a busy year that included 74 shows and the release of the group’s final studio album, BUILT TO LAST.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY STADIUM, WASHINGTON, D.C., JULY 12 & 13, 1989 includes two previously unreleased concerts taken from the band’s master 24-track analog recordings, which have been mixed by Jeffrey Norman at TRI Studios and mastered in HDCD by David Glasser. The collection’s colorful slip case features original artwork by Justin Helton and a perfect-bound book with in-depth liner notes written by Dean Budnick, editor-in-chief of Relix magazine. The set will also be available as a digital download in Apple Lossless and FLAC 192/24.

When Jerry Garcia, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Brent Mydland, and Bob Weir rolled into D.C. in July 1989 for the Dead’s two-night stand at RFK, the band hit the stage running with a stellar rendition of “Touch Of Grey,” the group’s biggest hit from its only Top 10 album In The Dark, which was released in 1987. The following night, the band returned to its double-platinum commercial breakthrough when it opened the show with a fiery version of “Hell In A Bucket.”

“RFK Stadium '89 fell right in the middle of one of the best tours of the last 15 years of Grateful Dead performances, with these shows being the sixth and seventh of an 11-show tour. This tour is widely considered the start of a nine month period of sustained excellence, which ran from Summer '89 through Spring '90. The RFK shows are as good as any of the more famous shows from this period, including July 4 in Buffalo, July 7 in Philadelphia, and the Alpine run,” says David Lemieux, Grateful Dead archivist and the set’s producer. “When Bob Weir has asked me to provide copies of Grateful Dead songs to give to his bandmates to learn and rehearse, he almost always requests Summer '89, and I've often drawn upon the RFK shows for this purpose. It's really that good!”

Both shows feature standout moments, but the July 12 show is notable for a few reasons. Perhaps the biggest is that the first set featured at least one song sung by each of the band’s four lead singers – Garcia, Weir, Lesh and Mydland – something that rarely happened. Another surprise came when the band opened the second set with “Sugaree,” a song that almost always appeared during the first set.

Pianist Bruce Hornsby — who briefly joined the band between 1990 and 1992 — is featured on both shows. He played accordion during “Sugaree” and “Man Smart (Woman Smarter),” with a touch of keyboard-tinkling, on July 12, and then played more accordion the following night for “Tennessee Jed” and “Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again.”

For fans of Mydland’s tenure with the Dead – which began in 1979 and ended in 1990 with the keyboardist’s tragic death – these stellar shows capture that incarnation in peak form. Among the long list of highlights are performances of live staples such as “Eyes Of The World,” “Wharf Rat” and “I Need A Miracle,” along with rarities like “To Lay Me Down,” which was played only a few times in 1989. The July 13 show also features the band road-testing “I Will Take You Home,” a track Mydland wrote with Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow that would appear later that fall on Built To Last.

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Submitted by MLavallee on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 13:10

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Was a pretty good year for me too. Started off with three fun shows at The Forum in my hometown of Inglewood in February, nice To Lay Me Down and jammy Playin' on the first night, Eyes out of Space on the second then the just weird third night with Spencer Davis (I had no clue who he was, hey I was 16!) and then Dylan, Monkey And The Engineer? Sure, why not! Not the tightest show, but an awful lot of fun. Then the band swung around again at the end of April to Irvine Meadows, three very solid shows, the band was just on fire this year, whole run is really well played, last shows at Irvine. Riots in the parking lot so it's understandable... And to cap off the year, they returned to The Forum in December, opening night was real good, another solid show, Blow Away turned out to be a real nice addition to the repertoire. I for one was a fan of the MIDI but I seem to be in the minority. I like silly sounds, sue me! This show ended on a bad note with a police officer breaking my jaw with his baton (no arrest, ticket, nothing...), didn't deter me from going back the next two nights! Touch Of Grey was the perfect opener for the 9th, another solid show and then the 10th, best show of the 9 I caught by far, with the return of Spencer Davis (even better than in February) and Hornsby joining the band as well. This was a really solid run of shows that would make a nice mini box. Didn't realize how good we had it back then, 3 great runs of shows right in my backyard in one year. Great times.
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Submitted by boblopes on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 13:49

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These shows are like hitting the multi-bonus - shows with both Wolf and Tiger recorded on multi-track, throw in Hornsby with Brett, good times abound. I didn't see any shows this year - got a really cool tie dye (Love to Cook) from a girl I was dating from the Foxboro show - I was away visiting my brother in Paris that week. Been a great year of releases - hard to imagine next year topping this year, but if that's true time to do the happy dance.
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Submitted by bohlint on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 14:54

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This release got me thinking on how much good music there still is in the vault that needs to be given the royal treatment and released. Especially with the return of the Betty's! More boxes please, from the 60's to the 90's you can count me in on all of it. What should be next?......?.......? ARK BOX!!!!! So many of us missed out on the FW box, please, please please bring us an ARK box! I don't think these shows are limited, will probably run like the Warlocks box... available until it isn't.
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Submitted by Scott-O on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 15:02

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While I'm personally disappointed in this box, DL has said more than once they will follow the sound and only release the best quality sounding shows. I would gobble up any box from 1983 but the cassette recordings aren't worth it in comparison. Fortunately the found trove of Betty shows still has much left to mine.
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Submitted by Gary Farseer on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 15:12

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Got my first listen to DiP26 Labor Temple/Electic Theater. Man that is a beast mode Pick. Loved, can't wait to revisit soon. I also revisited D&C in Atlanta. Watched the entire show, it was very tasty. Forgot about the Days Between that Bobby ripped on. Great Job guys. It hit me like a ton of bricks that just stumbled across that during this years days between. Really made me feel the Karma. As soon as finished it, You Tube served up live Phish, #13 of the dozen. Not going to add my two cents worth on the multiple discussions on Phish. I like them, but to get served up a live freebie (well say 50 minutes) was a great way to close out the weekend before the big crash. Phish can still find those weird jams at will, good job to those guys. Keep up the good work. Also over the weekend got my 2nd listen to DaP23, close encounters. Loved it even more. GSTL has been played a couple times through as well. All in all, a great jamming weekend. Thanks to all involved, including the folks in Colorado that make it all extra special. G
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Submitted by MadDoc on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 19:21

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Couldn't agree more. I'd love to see an 83 box, or a box with a run anywhere 83-86. On the other hand I'm going to buy the flacs for these 89 shows. That was a special year. Always loved 04/19/86. One strange show where they tried something different. But as you said, the tape quality just isn't available. Still, if they could fix up what they have I'd be all over that. As far as Dave's goes and the recent boxes, I couldn't be happier with them. The sound quality is just jaw dropping. Betty is one amazing "taper". Before I had any tape resources back in the mid-70s I used to buy bootleg Dead LPs in the back room of a barber shop in Amherst, MA. I could never have imagined having what's available today.
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Submitted by Jason Wilder on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 19:38

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And I 100% agree that we should not get all pissy about someone elses favorite era. It's all Dead & it is all good. For me, I just think Dave gets too hung up on sound quality. I've always been a performance guy who preferred a good audience tape to a stale soundboard anytime (though the Betty's are the exception to that rule). For me, It hink 89-90 was a peak. Not necessarily THE peak ('72, '77, '69, '73), but a Brent era peak for me. I do not like the midi as much. '69 is peak trippy experimental Dead with TC on keys providing a layer of depth beyond what Pig alone could do, and we get the beginnings of the Hunter/Garcia tunes. '72 is best of both worlds. Keith's piano, Pigs vocals & harp &( some of the best playing ever. The Workingman's/Beauty/Garcia/Ace stuff is incorporated. Legendary. Billy manning the skins alone gave it some swing & subtlety. '77 forced them to practice more to reintegrate Mickey after '76 was kind of loose, and it showed. As tight as it ever got. Blistering often. The Terrapin/Shakedown/Blues for Allah stuff gets integrated fully. Help/Slip. Terrapin. Scarlet/Fire. Samson. Estimated. Shakedown. 'Nuff said. '73: height of the post Pig no Mickey era. After that, I put '89-'90 right up there in terms of a peak of an era (Brent). However, I can still see liking '70 (acoustic shows + Beauty/Workimgman's stuff debuts), '71 (Pigs last mostly full year with super peaks despite the lineup changes), '74 (Wall of Sound) or even '76/'78 (a little looser but also some great stuff if a little more inconsistent). Early Brenth ('79-'82) is fine. I listened to DiP#13 the other day & it is smokin'. Would love a full release of an '80 acoustic show, or the Anchorage. I like '85 for the 20th anniversary & the energy of '87 after the comeback. '67-'68 is great for a single show, but there isn't much variation night to night. '88 was a litte inconsistent. '91 was interesting with a lot of the Bruce influence and swing returning. Everyhing else is a steop down for me. '66 is cool for the start. '75 had only 4 shows. Nice little recovery in '93 for a while. '83, '84,'86, '92, '94, '95 have moments, but little sustained brilliance. A show here and there in '83 & '84. Just moments at the end. Still, the first Unbroken Chain in '95 still gives me goosebumps 20+ years later just thinking about it.
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Submitted by MinasMorgul on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 19:51

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That's a great one Gary Farseer. I may put it on next. Odd that they opened and closed with Lovelight. I would understand better if it was a big long "sandwich", but there is a break in there. Anyone have insight into that one. I put on DP 19's Dark Star. Yoww! First off, I'm doing headphones. Second off, there's an effect I have on my player that puts reverb on the music. Not so great for vocal parts (sounds like the heavy reverb on the May '77 vocals, but much more). But it's great for intrumentals like Dark Star. There is a huge Mind Left Body jam in the middle of Dark Star. Face melter. And Morning Dew & Eyes of the World are still coming. And then it is DP 26 for me. The Eleven is on my radar now.
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Submitted by muhlberg on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 21:37

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One of my favorite releases was Crimson, White & Indigo, also from July 89'. Both CD & DVD full performance, even took the cheesy effects off of the video for full viewing pleasure. Why not release with a DVD? Even if you don't have both shows complete, you atleast have the one that was just featured for Jerry Day. Good shows from a great tour, as DL says there's more "famous" shows. I'd pay lots for proshot release from Fall Tour 89' if exists. Miami, Philly, Meadowlands.... One wonders what they've actually got in the vault video wise from 89', an obviously heavily documented year, as they continue to release videos for the GD movie meetups. Yeah, good shows. I probably wont buy this time considering that i've got the boards already, and not being an audiophile like some ya'll fine folks, the nuances are lost on me. But yea, release with video, Please!!
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Submitted by Vguy72 on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 21:45

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....i hear ya muhlberg. Some people here must have canine hearing. Is that a blessing or a curse?....As long as the sound isn't too muddy, I'm all in....
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Submitted by Vguy72 on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 21:55

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....it appears Innerspace is on Netflix. Guilty pleasure ensuing....things seemed so much easier back then. Am I wrong?....
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10 years 6 months

Submitted by seabird17 on Mon, 08/07/2017 - 22:37

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Remember the traffic JamsMini 2 box that's all folks
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Submitted by MinasMorgul on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 05:40

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Very insightful post about the eras. I didn't see it last night somehow when I was on here. You mentioned 1972 as best of both worlds - I feel the same, although it's not my favorite year for Pigpen songs. Next Time You See Me, Mr. Charlie, Chinatown Shuffle, Good Lovin' all decent but overplayed on E72 I felt. I would like to have heard Smokestack Lightning, School Girl, and more of those '72 Lovelights. Maybe a few Alligators, maybe Empty Pages. Some talk about the audio quality. I get that the shows need to sound good to be released. I'm too picky, but some of those shows from 30 Trips were "emergency only", meaning, it's okay since the theme of the box is a concert per calendar year, but definitely too poor to represent a two show box set like RFK. Or imagine if we got two in a row from Dave's Picks that sounded so poor. There would be a lot of complaints I believe. Even DaP 22 from the Felt received a lot of negative feedback about the audio quality, and that was one I thought was way better than those few 30 Trips shows that I think everyone agreed were poor sounding. Just my 2 cents on why Dave puts so much emphasis on audio quality. What they could do, however, is make them available for download at a reduced price. Holy cow, this is a righteous Truckin' / The Other One on DaP 11. Doc, no '71 link? I actually listen to those.
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Submitted by LetsGoCaps on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 07:48

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Wow. Word for word I could not have said this better. Me and you sure think alike!
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Submitted by rhodymike on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 08:50

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What's with the price of $65 for six discs? That's almost $11 per disc? Is this about the music or the profit? As an observation prices seem to be creeping up and up - and as I read the product "colorful slip case", it will be a cardboard/paper box, but colorful.
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Submitted by Mr. Pete on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 10:49

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At my age, 70, I am not that picky about what decade show I listen too. I just pick a show...pop it on my cd player...get a cold St. Pauli's...fill my pipe up with a good "Latakia" blend tobacco...fire it up...and sit back and enjoy the show. It all sounds great to me and I hope to live long enough to listen to all my shows at least once more! Mr. Pete--------> aging hippie
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Submitted by JeffSmith on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 11:13

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I like you attitude! And once you've popped the disc in your CD player, I guess the only really difficult decision is which of your extremely cool, Turkish, hand-carved, Dave's-inspired meerschaums goes best with the show. . . Onward aging hippies everywhere!
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Submitted by Seth Hollander on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 11:14

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I ordered because I have been loudly and repeatedly calling for more 80s. These are not shows I really want and the price and slipcase are not what I want either. But I will put my money down to encourage an 80s-inclusive future release plan. I think the price is the result of a perception that this release risks being unprofitable. After years of comments here declaring a dislike of 80s Dead among the GDM audience, I think TPTB have good reason to worry that this will be a low-selling, slow-selling release. Their business model seems to rely on quick sell-outs to keep the release ball rolling. The higher product pricing here should translate into a higher profit-per-sale, potentially offsetting any costs that would result from slow sales (inventory storage, etc). That's my theory. Minas: I found your last two posts in this thread (and the recent ones in the DP23 thread) pleasant and easy to agree with. If you haven't heard the entire 4/26/69 show, seek it out. It runs 2 1/2 discs and is superlative, even for '69. I no longer remember were I found a lossless downloadable copy, but it is out there and can be combined with the 4/27 DP26 material to make a 4 disc home-brewed "Deluxe Edition" that is VERY satisfying.
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Submitted by _ on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 11:56

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Wow brother, that made my day.... Long may you run.... Still missin' Jerry here....
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Submitted by wadeocu on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 13:11

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Looks like sales are creeping along. I predict it will take a year or so to sell the last couple of thousand like the July 78 box.
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Submitted by Mr. Pete on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 14:05

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It my humble opinion one should just buy the box set and sit back and "enjoy" the music. I am VERY appreciative that I can buy the concerts and sit back and enjoy them since I was unable to attend either show. I doubt if one could find any better quality sound for these two shows.Regarding the comments about the cost just go out and price one truck tire. That will put things in perspective. Or, look at your cable bill. Now that is something to complain about. I do hope I live long enough to see a nice Greek Theater boxset come out. I was never able to go to any of those shows but from what people say/comment I am sure it would be wonderful to have them in a nice well recorded set. Mr. Pete-----------> aging hippie
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Submitted by wissinomingdeadhead on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 14:15

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Glen Campbell
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Submitted by LedDed on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 19:33

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As this theme continues to reoccur, my two cents... Dead.net and Rhino don't need the money. Yes, this is a "for profit" enterprise, but it has already proven itself over and over. The subscriptions continue to rise as do quick sellouts of so many releases. The fan base, even after all this time, is expanding - at least here. It's like the vinyl resurgence and not altogether different. In an ever more bullshit, digitized throwaway world, people are rediscovering the inherent value in things like Grateful Dead music and vinyl records. Some are over-thinking it. Sure, there may be bean counters somewhere monitoring this but the whole thing has been so splendidly done from the esteemed Mr. Latvala on through to Dave L., they are clearly motivated 100% by artistic reasons. Best sounding shows from any era. Some say the Dead died with Pigpen. I think not, I think they changed and adapted like any organism needs to, to survive across eras and personnel changes. The late 60s through 1978 are my favorite era, but I love Brent when he wasn't overbearing vocally and all through the 80s and 90s right up to the end. Old Jer spit out a pretty decent Black Muddy River there, eh? These folks have to tend to the greater good, and it's mostly gonna be 70s releases. It really was their golden era. Golden, not as in dollars, but as in musically.
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Submitted by MadDoc on Tue, 08/08/2017 - 20:30

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Plan to buy the flacs once they're available . I have enough stuff in my life but never enough Dead. Every era is a treasure. Listen to the music play.
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Submitted by Frankie Lee on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 00:50

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Ok Folks...There are many naysayers out here posting. I will share once again what I heard David L. say on last Sunday's special on this box set on SiriusXM. He said this set would be "extremely limited". He also said that it will for sure "Sell Out". David L. tends to know what he is talking about. Just because there is no mention of "limited edition" or "numbered edition" in the advertising thus far...does not mean it may not end up that way. I personally believe David when he shares insights...thats just me. Look at the track record of all of the releases over the last 10 years. The Road Trips series for example was slow to sell for a long time...now they sell for hundreds of dollars over original asking price and are very collectable. It could be that not listing this set as a "limited numbered edition" is a way to keep the scalpers at bay from snatching them all up for resell on Ebay...perhaps a way to give those who are truly interested in owning the music a better opportunity. Just look at the irate posts from the last Daves Pick that sold out in hours. "In the end it will all be okay...if its not okay now then it certainly is not the end"
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Submitted by jrf68@hotmail.com on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 01:24

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9-1-1974 Keystone Wondering Why... get some :)
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Submitted by cosmicbadger on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 06:38

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Looks like Neil Young is about to put his entire archive online.http://neilyoungarchives.com/index.html So if he can do it....... Now that would solve the constant bickering about eras and releases. Everything for everyone any time a la carte.
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Submitted by wadeocu on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 07:49

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That is very cool - kind of makes me wish that I was a bigger Neil Young fan. GD does indeed already have this in the form of the Interent Archive which was formerly the tol.etree.org collection. Made by fans for the fans, just the way it has always been!
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Submitted by MLavallee on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 08:21

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Don't get too excited. It's Neil Young, the novelty will wear off and he'll abandon it. How're those PONO adopters feeling right about now? How about the Archives 1 Blu-Ray buyers with their exclusive updates? Amounted to 3 songs which are no longer available. He flirted with DVD-audio, how'd that work out? Blu-Ray audio, lasted just about as long. Neil first mentioned releasing the archives in the mid-70s! He started seriously working on them in the mid-80s and it took until 2009 for the first box to come out!
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Submitted by SPACEBROTHER on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 11:02

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Your post reminded me that both Winterland boxes ('73 & '77) were never promoted as "limited edition" either and the W'77 box goes for about as much as the FW'69 box does in the secondary markets. No idea how many of those W'77 boxes were manufactured. If they put as much love and care into mixing the multi-track tapes for RFK'89 as they did S'90 (TOO) box, this will truly be a magical release with sonic perfection. For a little taste of what to expect, "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" from 7/12/89 can be heard on "Postcards of the Hanging" (track 3), and it's crisp, phat and a beautifully mixed recording. This has been the best year in GD releases since the 50th anniversary with Boxilla. Last year wasn't too shabby either with the July '78 box. The Red Rocks July run was always regarded highly among the tape trading community, plus Betty boards of shows that have never circulated. Still surprised that one's still available.
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Submitted by FloridaBobalooToo on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 11:43

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Don't confuse the man with his music! The guy has been a flake since day one! His music is one thing. His track record as a regular guy leaves a lot to be desired. You would not want him as a neighbor I assure you.
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Submitted by darkstartheoth… on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 19:06

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King Crimson have been putting up concerts for years on their site as downloads. In fact, 11-12-73 Turin, Italy was just put up for purchase today!
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Submitted by David Duryea on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 22:13

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themidnightcafe.org is a site I've used to download many GD shows that haven't been released officially. It is a labor of love that isn't ripping anybody off. Through it the spirit of Jerry lives. Many of the shows are from the archive and have been cleaned up and pitch corrected. These shows are from ALL the decades, kids, and many have undergone that Charlie Miller magic. There are also shows from many other bands. All downloads are through Amazon Drive. You can choose between FLAC and MP3s. Enjoy. https://themidnightcafe.org/?s=grateful+dead
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Submitted by Vguy72 on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 22:23

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....that is a goldmine Dave. Amazon has a drive? Am I getting too old, or is technology just buzzing by fast as lightning? I need to start doing some homework....
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Submitted by jrf68@hotmail.com on Wed, 08/09/2017 - 22:26

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Just downloaded a speaking engagement from Hunter S. Thompson in '77.goldmine indeed Thanks David! :)
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Submitted by jrf68@hotmail.com on Thu, 08/10/2017 - 00:57

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Yup. Eyes-> 16:07 Saint 7:32 Eye's starts off a little clunky but gets goin' real good pretty quick... get some :)
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Submitted by Roguedeadguy on Thu, 08/10/2017 - 04:39

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I see the fever is catching. I've been following him for awhile now, and filled up an entire 128GB memory card without really trying. In fact, I'm pretty sure I learned about it from one of these threads. "It was you, alright! I learned it by watching you!" (Free download at the midnight cafe for anyone who remembers that commerical.) One thing I will mention. Awhile ago he reluctantly set up a facility for donations on the page. Amazon recently jacked up their rates for cloud storage, and he has something like 4TB out on his drive. He was contemplating dropping some stuff to put him in a lower price tier, but got enough donations to keep it all for the time being. So consider that if you're enjoying the site amd using it a lot. Been on a Summer of 76 kick for most of this summer of 17. Starting with RT 4.5 from Boston, download series 4, a great run from Chicago at the end of June (all of them acquired from the midnight cafe), then I jumped ahead to the Orpheum run. Haven't gotten to 7-18 yet, but its locked amd loaded. I really like that easy, loping 76 vibe, it just says summertime to me.
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Submitted by MinasMorgul on Thu, 08/10/2017 - 06:26

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Also dig that '76 sound, although the official releases are real hit or miss for me. I love RT 4.5, Cow Palace, and DaP 18, but can't get into DaP 4, DP 20, or 30 Trips. DP 33, I really go for the 10/9 show with Franklin's Tower (one of the best), but not so much for the 10/10 show. DL Series is about halfway between, definitely some great moments on it (Crazy Fingers, U.S Blues, Mission in the Rain). I
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Submitted by bliss on Thu, 08/10/2017 - 07:42

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my guess is that it will be limited edition based on pre-orders and a bit of inventory upon the release date. with 2000 copies left of the 78 box (a great box!), they're aiming to avoid the costs of inventory sitting on the shelf. i think that 78 box faced a tough sell coming after the 50th - so much great music was released that there's a legit case for many to think, "well, how much more Dead do i need?"
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