Grateful Dead

Shipping notice just received. DAVE'S PICKS VOLUME 25 (wrapped in a Rosy View of the Harvest Moon Rising over Binghamton as seen from inside a Cornucopia as Two Souls in Communion sashay over a Golden Road reflected off of the confluence of the of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers with a serenade of Leaping Smallmouth arching past plus the Washington Street Bridge, Roses and token Ears of Corn thrown in for good measure) IS ON THE WAY! (Nice job Tim!)

DiP12 (June '74 with the amazing Chinacat pre-jam) is absolutely on my desert island 5, along with 2/27/69, 11/7/71, 5/10/72, 10/19/73, 10/9/76, 10/29/77, 11/29/80, 10/9/89, and 3/22/90. That's my 5 ;) I generally prefer complete shows, but partials make a TON of sense in many situations: - Some shows have a weak first set, but set 2 shines - rarely is an entire show "must-hear", especially in later years. - Some reels didn't fully survive - i.e.: Didn't one of the Utica NY March '73 shows have a 1st set that was too damaged to save, but both 2nd sets survived? - Many shows (see 1973) can handle a little fat-trimming, esp. first set. My fav partials combine 2 shows into one release, i.e.: Road Trips '88: disc 1 = first set highlights, discs 2 & 3 = second sets. I could see some show pairs getting similar treatment, maybe 9/7 & 9/8/73, 10/1 & 10/2/77, or 10/29 & 10/30/73.... But the "Fall '77 Road Trips" is so Frankenstein-fragmented that you lose the context, and it likely precludes those shows from full release. Note that they're not releasing unrelated filler anymore as they use bonus discs to complete full shows. The longer they focus on complete shows, the more partials they have with with no outlet.

How about a big ass Box of partial shows? Jim, good luck this spring hunting for morels, hope you have a big harvest. Would hate to have to say that Row Jimmy in MD has no morels. :) Maybe you can get a dog to sniff them out. I say, my dog has no nose. No nose? How does he smell morels? Jealous of the fun Evilyn had last night......

So it was the 40th Anniversary of McArthur Court-University Of Oregon-Eugene, OR 1/22/78 last night. Close encounters...indeed. So I figured I'd do it up right and pop a blot about 8PM. I started the show (listening to the Dave's Picks 23 version of course) bout an hour later and what a blast!!! Man, from Cobo Hall on 11/1/77 all the way into May of '78 the Dead were in seriously ferocious rockin' territory....Garcia just shreds and the solo jam in "Jack Straw" got so freakin' muscular it's almost to the level of full-blown hard rock at times. The energy level of gigs like 11/5 and 6/77, 12/27 and 12/29 and 12/31/77, 1/11 and 1/12/78, 1/17/78, 1/22/78, 2/3/78, 2/5/78, 4/16/78, 4/22/78, 4/24/78, 5/7/78, 5/10 and 11/78, and of course the magic of July '78 (and the insanity of 12/30 and 12/31/78) is simply out of sight!!! I just love the go for broke, sometimes raucous to the point of over the top vibe of this period. So I was pretty spaced by half way through Set 1 of 1/22/78 last night and by the time I hit "Jack Straw" I was up and dancing around my apt. The way they all just shout "Jack Straw from Wichita cut his buddy down" after Jerry's raging strumming seriously brought tears of joy to my eyes. I'll admit I love everything about 1/22/78, have since the first time I heard it years ago. But being in that special state of mind can really turn things up to 11 (as the Spinal Tap boys would say). By Set 2 I was just enough in the void to really let the band take over and just lead the way. One of my favorite single sets of Dead music, as always I heard many new things (at least I think I did), and by the end of the show I mentally felt wiped out, in a good way. Not that beginning to come down introspective melancholy I and many others have so often experienced. After Disc 3 stopped I just sat and "recovered" in total silence for about 20 minutes. The sheer reverence and love I have for the Grateful Dead keeps my faith in humanity alive. They weren't afraid of the darkness and were always shooting for the light. 40 years later 1/22/78 has lost NONE of its power regardless of what state of mind you're in. But oh man, what a blast!!! Now it's gettin' on crash out time. Just hope I can be awake enough to listen to 1/23/70 (Dave's 19) later on tonight. It isn't going to involve the additional cosmic power boost of last night's trip, but then again one can't go exploring that way EVERY day... But I know personally I did justice and paid the proper homage to the 40th Anniversary of 1/22/78 last night and it was damn fine. Thanks for puttin' on one helluva show guys!!!!

Nugs.net has just about every show Dead & Co have ever played available in MP3, lossless, or physical CD. I'm sure the Riviera Run will be available also. They might even have a pre-order deal going (but I haven't looked)

So then, it follows logically that pulling up a 90s show and jumping straight to I Will Take You Home is like skipping the foreplay and the sex and jumping straight to the awkward "Yea . . . I'm not really looking for a relationship right now."

I like your idea of having the two series running concurrently. Exactly as you describe really,-Daves Picks as is, with Road Trips being subscription only, featuring partial shows or less well recorded ones for those who want to hear them. Seems like an everyone wins situation to me, too.

Does anyone know if Dead & Company are going to make these shows available? Thanks! Mr. Pete---------> aging hippie

Me? I only ever listen to complete shows. From start to finish. Every note, every drumbeat, every flubbed lyric, and every soaring solo. Unless, of course, I'm in the mood for some killer second sets. Then I'll just hopscotch from set to set in whatever order my mood dictates. Then again, I might start running a train of "Brown Eyed Women" through the decades from Newcastle '72 to Normal '78 (and possibly beyond!) just so I can experience its evolution in every subtle nuance. Or, after a few hits of Purple Contemplation and a glass or two of Buffalo Trace, I might decide to play a game of jukebox and simply let my whole Dead archive (studio and live) play on random for a few hours of "Wonder What's Next" bliss. But only from '68 through '78. Never anything past that. Okay, well -- except for some occasional '89 or '90. But that's my absolute hard stop. Not counting 10/19/94, which was my last ever Jerry show. GD at MSG, bitches!

Full shows Grate!! No wonder the Dave's Picks series is so successful.