Grateful Dead

My asian friend Wun Hung Loh thinks someone is taking the piss here.

It went on sale ... and it sold out.

One should hang lower than the other.A psychologist I know claims that the side that hangs lower indicates that the opposite sided brain lobe is the dominant lobe. Quackery? Sounds like it to me. But what do I know, I rub ice cream on my forehead. On the other hand (nut), you’d be amazed at the clairvoyance one can obtain by rubbing ice cream on one’s head.

I have two balls and since I'm left handed I guess I'm a bit more partial to my left nut...Makes sense doesn't it?

First off, I could not agree with KeithFan2112 any more: The Waterbury, CT 9/24/72 gig from the 30 Trips Boxset is an absolute gem and Garcia throws down some of the most explosive leads of his career! I believe that show is SO unbelievably mind blowing that I seriously consider the price of the WHOLE boxset worth it just for that show (of course thankfully it's filled with many other killer shows as well, especially the always classic Cape Cod gig from 10/27/79). The "Dark Star" from 9/24/72 is simply astounding and the show as a whole rivals ANY previously released show from the amazing month of September '72 (in my humble opinion). It is a show I did NOT have prior to 30 Trips and I am still in awe that a show of that level had previously existed in relative obscurity. However, the main thing I wanted to bring up is how fortunate the accidents of history can some times be. This pertains to the fact that until recently the soon to arrive Dave's Picks 25, the absolute monster rock-a-thon that is Binghamton, NY 11/6/77, was NOT in the vault. I am a rabid fan of 11/6/77 and I remember when Dick's Picks Vol. 34 was released (featuring the gig from the night before in Rochester, NY 11/5/77) I was truly kind of pissed off! It was like what the fuck? Why was this Rochester show chosen over Binghamton? Being much younger I was unaware that the masters for the 11/6 Binghamton show I'd loved so much (via my CDRs) was NOT in the Vault. In the end however, this was a HUGE stroke of luck for me, as HAD 11/6 been available and released as Dick's Vol. 34, I may have (though I doubt it, but one never knows for sure) somehow overlooked 11/5/77 in Rochester, a gig which over the years I've grown to greatly cherish (to basically an equal extent as 11/6 in Binghamton). Both shows are simply phenomenal! Like Dave brought up in his video intro for Dave's Vol. 25, had 11/6 been in the Vault years ago, there would have been all the makings for quite a ferocious boxset! Personally I'd start it with 11/1 at Cobo Hall in Detroit (just a fantastic gig and start to Nov. '77), then include the 11/2 Seneca College gig in Toronto (which is nearly complete if you own Dick's 34 and Dave's 12), and the already released 11/4 Colgate University-Hamilton, NY (Dave's 12), 11/5 Rochester, NY (Dicks Vol. 34), and the soon to be released Dave's Picks 25 featuring the blisteringly beautiful performance in Binghamton, NY from 11/6/77. Wow, what a boxset those 5 shows would've made!!!! I look forward to this November and listening to each show on the appropriate date! But again I go back to the bizarre vagaries of history. The quite well-known 11/6 Binghamton tapes weren't in the Vault, so the folks in charge wisely chose the slightly lesser known gig from the night before in Rochester (and tossed in a nice chunk of the 11/2 show from Toronto). Dick's Picks 34 is probably second ONLY to Dick's Picks Vol. 10 (one of my Top 10 favorite shows of all-time: the lysergic, powder-power that is "The Nine", 12/29/77 at Winterland) as my favorite Dick's Pick from 1977 (which is saying a lot when one considers the majesty present on Dick's Picks 29 particularly, but also found on Dick's Volumes 3 and 15). So the lack of tapes for 11/6 allowed me to be introduced to 11/5 in Rochester, a different (but in many great ways VERY similar) show which I at the time did not have a copy of. A show which I absolutely adore and listen to EVERY 11/5, just as I do with 11/6 in Binghamton. It's great that the imaginary boxset discussed above will now (with the exception of 11/1/77 in Detroit, a show which is certainly available with a bit of exploration or through the kind favor of a friend) be virtually complete (with the upcoming release of Dave's Picks Vol. 25, of course). It was well worth the wait and I'm glad that Binghamton's unavailability at the time may have played a role in introducing me (and likely many others) to another show that exhibits its own similar brand of magic sparks: 11/5 in Rochester (aka Dick's Picks 34)! Keep up the GREAT work Mr. Lemieux and Co., I'm super excited to retire my 11/6 Binghamton CDRs in favor of what I'm sure will be (as always) a major league upgrade! Thanks for bringing these amazing recordings back to life and to all who have a hand in making them available! Also for presenting them in the respectful manner they deserve... I am an obsessive heavy metal and hardcore punk (of the 70's-80's), as well as prog/post-psych/Krautrock/acid jazz (of the late-60's & 70's) collector who just happens to believe the Grateful Dead were the single greatest vessels of rock 'n' roll expression the human species has yet produced. I am not deifying them as individuals but rather crediting them for their efforts in their particular corner of time and space. They are the one rock 'n' roll group whom I feel transcend all genres, as their "genre" is the sound of their (and our) existence in all its emotive range. From a historical perspective they entered their time and fulfilled a tremendous task simply by a constant yearning for experience, a sufficient degree of musical skill and just enough ambition to steadily improve and grow, and a intense desire to be themselves and have fun while avoiding (to the extent reasonably possible) the pitfalls of ego caused by success. For me, and many others, they shall forever remain the most fascinating musical (or if you wish to be broad: artistic) phenomena of 20th Century American culture. P.S.: IF you're ever running short on ideas for DP releases (haha), it'd be amazing to have 7/18/72 restored, the intensity of 8/12/72 from Sacramento, 10/25/73 in Madison, WI, 6/23/74-Miami, 7/25/74-Chicago (a endlessly fascinating gig which has flown far too long beneath the average fan's radar), and the epic 9/11/74 final London Alexandra Palace gig in its entirety. A collection dealing strictly with Ned Lagin and "Seastones" would also be rad! Just a few suggestions, lord knows you don't get enough already I'm sure! Best of luck and best wishes...

I'm not an Irish bug...

Um -- hello? McFly?

Damn! That is a hard stop. I rarely listen past '78 myself, except for the occasional '89 or '90 show (Sorry, gang -- Brent still hurts my ears even after all these years). But drawing the line at the end of the E72 tour? 'Tis a bit flummoxing.

I can't wait to hear Dave's Picks 25...when is this gonna go on sale?

"Evilyn" has a right nut??? OK... So this is THAT kind of board! First I'm talking to a Deadhead who doesn't listen to '73-'95 AT ALL, then its Evilyn with a right nut... it's the island of misfit deadheads! I love the passion - Peachy-esque. Yah, after 5/26/72 he probably thought "it ain't gonna get better than THAT!" I'd introduce you, but honestly many of the people he meets can't say a single nice thing about him....