• 3,418 replies
    heatherlew
    Default Avatar
    Joined:

    "We left with our minds sufficiently blown and still peaking..."

    We're headed back to that peak with the newly returned tapes from Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena, Binghamton, 11/6/77. The Grateful Dead's last touring show of 1977 finds them going for broke, taking chances on fan favorites like "Jack Straw," "Friend Of The Devil," and "The Music Never Stopped," carving out righteous grooves on a one-of-kind "Scarlet>Fire" and a tremendous "Truckin'." An ultra high energy show, with a first set that rivals the second? Not unheard of, but definitely rare. Hear for yourself...

    DAVE'S PICKS VOLUME 25 features liner notes by Rob Bleetstein, photos by Bob Minkin, and original art by our 2018 Dave's Picks Artist-In-Residence Tim McDonagh. As always, it has been mastered to HDCD specs by Jeffrey Norman and it is limited to 18,000 individually numbered copies*.

    *Limited to 2 per order. Very limited quantity available.

    Get one before they are gone, gone, gone.

Comments

sort by
Recent
Reset
  • David Duryea
    Joined:
    Grateful Dead of the Day
    Dead of the Day: February 4, 1969The Music Box Omaha, Nebraska Over the years, February 4th has seen some wicked Dead shows, but the 1969 concert at the Music Box in Omaha, Nebraska is our Dead of the Day. There really are no highlights to the show because the entire show is off the hook. While the boys had not yet hit the apogee of their psychedelic sound – that would come later in 1969 – they still wail on this show. The Caution has to be one of the best ever with the vocal and instrumental vamping resonating the sound of a funky, hallucinogenic train rolling by on the tracks. Further, the Dark Star> Stephen> Eleven is on par with just about any other example of that classic trifecta. http://gratefuldeadoftheday.com/02-04-1969
  • SkullTrip
    Joined:
    Speaking of '77
    That 4/25 Capitol Theatre show really is a sweet little gem. Tickles my ear-sockets every time.
  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    Photos
    Shirdeep.. that first pic of Garcia has got to be from the 84 Augusta show.. either that or Quasimodo somehow got a hold of Tiger and played us a tune. I find myself liking many songs throughout the years, I appreciate many of the changes in playing and orchestration and I miss some aspects that were dropped or were lost due to age and the ravages of time. Take Jack Straw.. there was an innocence and purity to the 72 versions - the song stood on it's own that year and was perhaps the strongest story-telling year for the song, but I feel parts were not fully developed.. 73/74 gave it a whimsical expressive quality, especially in Jerry's leads. The late 70's saw it take on some edge.. "we used to play for acid, now we play for Clive" and the instrumental pieces were amped up a good bit. Some of the 80's versions were explosive and feature some of Jerry's more energetic leads and in the 90's we get Bruce's influence, etc. It's like asking a parent which kid they like most and they honestly answer they love all their children the same.. There are good and bad aspects throughout.. I am more captivated and happy when I consider the finer points.. We could write a book on the changes of tunes like Dark Star and Eyes of the World.. There might be definitive versions of any song, but ignoring or dissing other versions is not what it's all about. Did someone mention 6/30/85?
  • Trainwrecked
    Joined:
    @Seth
    I introduced the word troll to this discussion. Lambasting people for not buying an 80s release , or for offering critical music analysis about any Era IS trolling. This is exactly what happened here not too long ago, which is the event I was referring to. Just because somebody offers legitimate enthusiasm for the 80s does not mean they're not also a troll when they cross the line.
  • luis
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    Groundhog Day (the movie)
    Era debate or era wars it's always the same like Groundhog Day. But if someone is interested in my opinion, I like all eras. Until 77, maybe it was their classic era and the playing was better. Later tbey were increasing the repertoire. In fact, I think that the Shakedowns and others sounded better on the eighties than on the seventies. So, basically I agree with Daverock that most of the seventies songs sounded better on the seventies, but on the eighties we have a few new songs that I really like. I think this year Punxsutawney Phil has predicted 6 more weeks of winter. Good photo AJS.
  • shirdeep
    Joined:
    93 love
    06 15 93 freedom hall Feels Like a Stranger Althea Wang Dang Doodle Friend of the Devil Desolation Row Don't Ease Me In Victim or the Crime -> Crazy Fingers -> Estimated Prophet -> Spoonful -> He's Gone -> Drums -> Space -> The Last Time -> Morning Dew Gloria https://archive.org/details/gd93-06-15.brennecke-young.georges.18984.sb…
  • shirdeep
    Joined:
    more 80s an 90s
  • daverock
    Joined:
    80s releases-Seth
    That's a pretty good assessment of the situation, as I understand it. I can't think of any versions of classic Dead songs, from the 1968-1978 period, that sounded better when played from 1980 onwards. It was interesting how the band responded to the changing times, though. Shows with guests, particularly Branford Marsalis, always seem worth hearing in the later period. It might be presumptious to say so, but I would guess that everyone who loves the 1980s and 1990s Dead also loves the 1968-1978 versions of the band. But the reverse is less likely to be true. I wouldn't think as many people who love the earlier periods also love the later ones. If this is true, and it might not be, then maybe it would be best if the Daves Picks series continued to focus on 68-78, and that 1980 onwards releases were put out separately, so those who didn't want them didn't have to get them. I can remember feeling a bit cheated when it was announced that a 1981 show was going to be the next Daves Picks-but as I had (and have) paid for a subscription, I was stuck with having purchased something I didn't particularly want. Actually, I am not that crazy about another 1977 show being released, either. To me the classic period was late 1967-1974, although there are some great shows between 1976 and 1978. Maybe I will change my mind when I get to hear the new release.
  • Seth Hollander
    Joined:
    Pushing for 80s releases on
    Pushing for 80s releases on this site isn't trolling. This isn't The 70-s Only Dead Page, this is The 65-95 Dead page. Pushing for the release of Dead shows here ain't "trolling", it's devotion. The "Era Debate" has gotten hateful in the past (If Brent was alive, he would kill himself after reading some comment threads). This morning I thought "I hope Thin's posts haven't gotten Space triggered. Thin's factually correct and his statements are rationally reasoned, but he is kinda harping on the trope overmuch." Sure enough, the build-up to hostilities is underway... It has been a nice while since our last Era Wars outbreak and there are new voices here. For those seeing this for the first time: The Era Wars are essentially about the desire by a sizeable portion of our community to see most or all GDM releases be from their Dead sweetspot, generally 68-78. The "war" is fraught with tension as the are real stakes: the potential impact of statements on the content of future releases. The overly committed voices on each side are concerned about getting what they want from GDM. Both sides have insatiable appetites and GDM has a limited number of release slots to fill each year. This situation can create some very heated hyperbole and vitriol. This place is much more pleasant between wars. My personal opinions are that 80s Dead IS weaker than 70s Dead but that a regular rotation of all time periods in the release schedules would better represent the band and serve all corners of the fanbase. (just got 30T84 and 30T85. [The Dave L. essays within make Space look like an 80's-hater. And the essays are pretty much "pure hooey".] Compare 84's UJB/Playing/Dew to a 73/74 equivilant or 85's That's It For The Other One sandwich to any 68-71 TIFTO1 and it is clear that the Pre-80s Dead was much more EVERYTHING than the post-80 band... On the other hand, I really like how in the 80s Bobby and Mickey developed to cover the shrinkage of Jerry and Phil's territories in the sonic tapestry. Sorry to those who truly are hearing it differently, but that is how I hear it. I also don't enjoy post-86 Dylan, post-88 Springsteen, or post-82 Stones...)
  • SkullTrip
    Joined:
    "Jelly-Troll"
    Laughed so hard after I read that I think I cracked a rib. Brilliant.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

8 years

"We left with our minds sufficiently blown and still peaking..."

We're headed back to that peak with the newly returned tapes from Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena, Binghamton, 11/6/77. The Grateful Dead's last touring show of 1977 finds them going for broke, taking chances on fan favorites like "Jack Straw," "Friend Of The Devil," and "The Music Never Stopped," carving out righteous grooves on a one-of-kind "Scarlet>Fire" and a tremendous "Truckin'." An ultra high energy show, with a first set that rivals the second? Not unheard of, but definitely rare. Hear for yourself...

DAVE'S PICKS VOLUME 25 features liner notes by Rob Bleetstein, photos by Bob Minkin, and original art by our 2018 Dave's Picks Artist-In-Residence Tim McDonagh. As always, it has been mastered to HDCD specs by Jeffrey Norman and it is limited to 18,000 individually numbered copies*.

*Limited to 2 per order. Very limited quantity available.

Get one before they are gone, gone, gone.

user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

One would think, but who knows for sure... Announcement in the Spring, delivery in the Fall?? They get cash up front and it doesn't trip all over the holidays, etc. The one thing that makes me think yes.. is seven, no fourteen and the appearance and disappearance of our favorite clown operative Bolo. I have no idea what his clues mean though... 14? Vermont was the fourteenth state: 05/06/78- Patrick Field House (University Of Vermont) - Burlington, VT 04/13/83- Patrick Field House (University Of Vermont) - Burlington, VT 07/13/94- Franklin County Airport - Highgate, VT 06/15/95- Franklin Field - Highgate, VT But I don't see them tossing us another 1978 now.. although Highgate, combined with the venues starting with B (Boreal Ridge) might make me a little nauseous.
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....before the Dead, before The Doors, before The Who, before The Floyd, in my life, The Beatles popped my musical appreciation cherry. Twelve year old me would drool over this back in 1980https://youtu.be/iVkUC5yURjI Woodchuck, woodchuck, woodchuck....
user picture

Member for

6 years 6 months
Permalink

so were people losing their minds n shit over One From the Vault when it came out cuz it was a whole show?
user picture

Member for

16 years 2 months
Permalink

I like the Summer '73 box 100%. That includes 6/9-10 and much more. Expensive. My current personal pick would be "The Ark, Boston Massachusetts, April 1969 - The Complete Recordings" box. Not quite as expensive, probably about 1/2 to 2/3 the amount that the Summer '73 box would be. Who knows what's about to happen, but I'd be and very grateful for almost anything. -------------- "The Reveal: Not too long ago, Dave Lemieux, Mark Pinkus, Steve Vance, ______________ (Bolo24), and myself were in the lobby of 3400 W. Olive Avenue chatting about frivolous matters and then Bolo24 let some flatulence out and we all coughed and gagged, then Mr. Pinkus exclaimed, That's it! That's our Grateful Dead box set offering for 2018! Thank you, _____________ for the great idea!" "14"
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

There was lots of chatter once the CD format came to be that the Dead would begin releasing shows from the vault. ..but nothing seemed to be happening quickly. Then one day it happened, One From the Vault was released and it was wonderful. Like Christmas. I think Dan Healy either did an interview or wrote the liner notes.. something to the effect of where to start? We know this circulates widely so why did we pick this show? Because it kicks ass.. (or something like that). Then soon after the Dicks Picks serious started.. although it got off to a wobbly start, it kicked ass too. To me it was more reminiscent of a kid in a candy store.. They could not come fast enough. In the beginning, before you had a hundred or two hundred Normanized shows to chose from.. I wore those CDs out with repeated listens. Then came Charlie Miller and the Archive and oh boy... then the FW and E72 boxes.. oh mama.
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....but Two From The Vault? I understood then, that things were getting serious. Where are we now? A Hundred and Fourteenth from the Vault? Because 14.
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....has anyone heard from Rich Gergelis lately? Starting to get concerned. He hooked me up with a lot of pristine Dead & Co soundboards last year. Texting him getting no responses.
user picture

Member for

10 years 2 months
Permalink

..the tapes were a revelation. I came across them about 1987-first of all in a shop in Manchester, where someone was selling hundreds of live shows on tape from so many bands-including The Dead. Shortly after that, I think through a fanzine called Spiral Light, I came across someone who was running a tape library. Steve Green, his name was. He had a list of shows, and he would record them for you if you sent him the blanks and postage. Brilliant-it was how I first heard Binghampton May 1970, February 11th, 13th and 14th 1970 and April 28th and 29th 1971 shows-quite a few actually. Up until then it had just been the official albums for me. I often wonder what happened to him-and all the other people who contributed to Spiral Light. They really did turn me on to a deeper sense of who The Dead were.
user picture

Member for

7 years
Permalink

Dancing In The Street got me dancin' in the livin' room.....My 1st Listen to this one, Great Show!!!!
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

Sacred ground VGuy. The original recordings were once thought to be subpar, not worthy of release.. Along came the late, great sound Warlock Don Pearson (RIP) and the rest is history. ______________________ Per Wikipedia: The concert was recorded on a then-state-of-the-art, one-inch 8-track tape machine that was supplied by the band's record label, Warner Bros. The record company also insisted on supplying engineers who turned out to be unfamiliar with the close miking technique involved in recording rock music. Consequently, each of the eight tracks contained significant leakage from all of the other instruments in the band, resulting in severe phase cancellation problems. Almost twenty-four years later, Don Pearson and producer Dan Healy solved this problem by employing a B&K 2032 Fast Fourier transform (FFT) digital spectrum analyzer to measure the delay in time between the different microphones, using the track of bassist Phil Lesh as the time centerpiece. The delay times were fed into a TC1280 stereo digital delay, which, along with careful mixing, resulted in a nearly perfect stereo image. ______________________ And VGuy.. Rich is likely spending his days doing covert ops in Eastern Europe searching for the remaining missing reels.. but you mentioned his name likely blowing his cover. I hope Bolo, aka the fixer, isn't reading these boards. I suggest you lay low for a while, take some much needed time off. Stay away from the internet, phones, electricity and don't turn on the lights. Do you best to explain this to Mrs. VGuy and VGuy Jr. I'm sure this will all just blow over. BEWARE of people in clown costumes, however.. I cannot emphasize this enough. STAY AWAY FROM CLOWNS. Over and out.. Seriously, Two From the Vault gospel music for the soul, a short-cut to divinity. Edit: KC Jones.. 1970 Dancin' in the Streets speaks to me. And that Man's World.. If you play it loud enough the bones of James Brown himself can be heard grooving to the beat six feet under.
user picture

Member for

16 years 11 months
Permalink

So i just found my old copy of this CD. Not with all my other Dead releases... I know a lot of the songs have been released now on other full shows, but man the Midnight Hour, (31 minutes long) from Rio Nido, 9/3/67 is just awesome in so many ways!!! If you are a pig pen fan and never have listened, you will love it... I always wonder if the woman Pigpen tries so hard to get to dance, knows that she is on an album!!! bob t
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

That is the best Midnight Hour to bounce into my ears..The whole CD is pretty damned good.
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....Fallout From The Phil Zone? My jewel case for that release broke a long time ago. Best Jack A Roe and Visions if I recall correctly. The ptb screwed up royally by not calling it Phallout From The Phil Zone if you ask me. No one asked me....
user picture

Member for

16 years 11 months
Permalink

Jim i also had the Hard to Handle audience tape, but when they put it on Fall out from the Phil Zone it was amazing!!! The Vision of Johanna is great also!! VGuy my case broke also that is why i didn't see it
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....and I'll go out and say a prayer for him. Thank you Dylan for being a muse for Jerry. Then Box Of Rain from '95 Soldier Field comes on and I get all melancholy. Highs and lows....
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

I was fortunate to catch the break out of this tune at Hampton in 86.. At the time in all honestly, I had no idea the significance. I did not know it was the first time played of eight and besides the BCT version a month later that it wouldn't be played again for another nine years. My memory was just that it seemed a good show and we had a great time. Still.. the March 95 version from the Spectrum is the best and to this day makes the hair stand up on my neck and arms and gives me goosebumps whenever I listen to it. Phil knew his music and knew how to pick em. Who said they had no fire left in their bellies in 95, aged and frail as they were? Those late era songs, including So Many Roads culled from 93-95 appearing on the So Many Roads box set are gems indeed. I wonder what things would have been like if Jerry had stayed clean post his '86 health meltdown? wack fall the daddy-o..there's whiskey in the jar. Probably not worth thinking about.. coulda, woulda, shoulda. I'm happy for the shows I saw, the recordings left behind and the legacy that still burns bright. Thank god for incredible psychedelic music and the many friends and experiences we all absorbed along the way. Edit: Reeling in on the memories and playing this now.. What a great song.
user picture

Member for

16 years 11 months
Permalink

Well after not listening to Fall out from the Phil Zone for about 10 years, just listened to Visions of Johanna 3 times. Just listen to Jerry "ooh" before "The harmonicas play the skeleton keys and the rain" makes my hair stand up!!
user picture

Member for

17 years 4 months
Permalink

....Jerry bends his strings oh so eliquently throughout. Angels on a pin.
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

Perhaps one of the last truly great moments... from our frail yet fearless leader. So I ask.. who is Gus West?
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

I believe that only includes sober, fully clothed views. I suggest you review the dead.net and YouTube user agreement license and web cam agreement language. Of the half million views.. I expect between 30 and 1,978 are from me, the variance due to the fact I cannot remember stuff when my mind is noodling. To your benefit.. I expect as a Senator, those details might have eluded you. Not to worry, VGuy in 2018.. you have my vote and likely anyone else that has read this far into this thread.
user picture

Member for

6 years 6 months
Permalink

tomorrows the big day. all I have to say is if you aren't too much into the release right now, listen to some of what is on the archive then play the official. the one on the archive is dog doo doo
user picture

Member for

12 years 1 month
Permalink

Without question, the last great moment. I was lucky enoughy to catch it. Still not sure how he pulled that one off. I'll take it over the Unbroken breakout all day long. Just a beautiful song. Visions and She Belongs to Me are by far the two ballads that standout over all my years of seeing shows.
user picture

Member for

10 years 2 months
Permalink

What an unexpected treat, seeing a clip of Ozric Tentacles on here. They were far and away the best British band of the 90s. They seem to have been inspired by the aforementioned Hawkwind, although they are a bit more sophisticated musically, and are almost entirely instrumental. Still going-still making great music. They were probably inspired also by Gong and Steve Hillage, who are definitely worth checking out by anyone who likes this clip. But if I knew how to enclose video clips on here, the one I would chose would have to be the one of Hawkwind from 1972 doing Silver Machine. Be afraid, be very afraid...
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

12 years 10 months
Permalink

How long will it take for volume 26 to sell out, I say under 2 hours. April 16th, 1979 a real JAM session. It's Manic Monday DeadLand PLAY DEAD!!!!!!
user picture

Member for

10 years 2 months
Permalink

My favourite was Lazy River Road, which I don't think has ever been on an official release. Its years since I have heard it, so I don't know if I would still be as impressed as I was. I was disappointed that it wasn't included in any of the 30 Trips shows. Maybe no one else liked it!
user picture

Member for

13 years 2 months
Permalink

I love Lazy River Road as well. I too was a little bummed it didn't make it into the 30 Trips box, since that was the best chance of seeing that one. But Dave has said they just don't pick shows based on the songs they played. It's not over yet though...maybe it'll show up one day.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

It's the anniversary of a Grateful Dead Europe '72 show that came highly regarded by the author of this Rolling Stone article: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/20-essential-grateful-dead-show… The Dead in Denmark. I usually delve into Europe 72 extra heavy this time of year. It's always a pleasure listening to these multi-tracks.
user picture

Member for

17 years
Permalink

This is one of my favorites of the later Jerry/Hunter compositions too. It saw an official release in the So Many Roads Box Set as a studio rehearsal/outtake from the unfinished last album with Days between and Eternity supposed to be on there as well.
user picture

Member for

13 years 4 months
Permalink

I'm happy to see some love for Lazy River Road.. it has special meaning to me as my front yard is a river so the road leading my home is Lazy River Road to me. So Many Roads has meaning too. Someone put together this nice montage on YouTube. Fitting. oh.. DaveRock.. it's not hard to post videos from youtube here, but I don't think it works well using Microsoft Edge. If you are using Internet Explorer, from youtube click on the button that says Share and an option Embed appears. Click on that and it will create a little text statement. Just copy and paste that into the comment section of the post and viola.. a properly formatted clip appears like the one above. AJS, She Belongs To Me is another gem of a song. Jerry had a knack for covering Dylan Songs. They became his own, so much emotional content. She Belongs To Me was only played ten times. Such a beautiful song.. I caught the third to the last one played, very memorable.
user picture

Member for

16 years
Permalink

So many roads to ease my soul all I want is one to take me home... All I'm looking for is those hot air balloons. Thanks.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

16 years 7 months
Permalink

What a special song and so well suited for Garcia's style. It occurred to me a while back that Jerry broke this one out when he was exhausted and, frankly, on the brink of death - both times. Played in March and April before his July collapse in 86 and then from February to July before his August death. I think that this was no coincidence and demonstrates just what the song meant to him and how he felt when he was inspired to perform it.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

9 years 6 months
Permalink

Loved a lot of them...so many roads, lazy river road, days between were all beautiful and I was happy to hear them whenever played. Towards the end, Bobby started doing Take Me to the River which I saw live once. I think that was well received enough where it could have been a mainstay had the band continued to tour past 95...
user picture

Member for

12 years
Permalink

I read once "somewhere", Dylan said Jerry did the best covers of his songs.
user picture

Member for

6 years 9 months
Permalink

My 30th birthday, the Dead's 30th year. Their last show, my last show. So Many Roads, so bittersweet...
user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

I attended the two in Auurn Hills, the night that wasn't cancelled at Deer Creek (very weird and frieghtening experience) and the last two at Soldier Field. The Palace shows weren't too bad. The most passable of the final five I saw. The circumstances at Deer Creek overshadowed the gig itself, and the cancellation of the second night (because of so-called fans) really soured the vibe and scene in a way where I was convinced that the Dead needed to take a break to regroup. I recall the two shows at Soldier Field being dismal, with that Visions of Johanna from the first night being the only moment where Jerry showed passion and delivered a solid effort. The rest of that weekend, Jerry looked like he didn't even want to be there. Not even a shell of what he was just a few short years prior. In hindsight, it was painful to see Jerry go from a few of his last best years ('87-'91) to his deterioration to the end. Of course they still had some good shows left in them from '92 onward, but that was mostly the rest of the band stepping up to cover for him. '93 did have it's share of good shows though. The drpoff from '94 onward was drastic though. I was fortunate enough to see them grow from being the best kept secret in '84 through their true final peak of consistency, but after Brent died, in hindsight, Jerry seemed to lose the spark. Bruce helped bring some of that back, but after he left, it was a steady decline. Ironically, at the time I thought Vince was just finally coming into his own with the band at the very end. All in all, he did better than I gave him credit for, considering the shoes he had to fill. We'll never know now, had the band had taken a break prior to his second collapse in '92, whether Jerry would have bounced back. In some ways it's like he became a prisoner in his own career, which ultimately killed him in the long run. His continued addictions and stress of being "the man" at the center of a massive touring operation became too much of a burdon, as I see it. Jerry did manage to outlive many of his contemporaries though (Jimi, Janice, Morrison, Pigpen ect) and still have a 30 year profesional touring career, going out at the peak of popularity, which itself was no small fete. I'm also reminded of Johnny Winter, who also survived the '60's, and like Jerry, continued to peak, up through the '80's, only to gradually wither away once the '90's came to be. Very sad watching our heroes fall.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

9 years 4 months
Permalink

got to click on daves picks drop down in music store to find it
user picture

Member for

6 years 6 months
Permalink

I dunno man. I think Vince was doing great work as early as summer '92. especially on Picasso Moon. i'll probly take a lot of flack for saying so but, Picasso Moon got better with Vince. it always came off sounding thin during brent's years to me. not sure why that would be. case in point: 6/20/92 Knickerbocker Arena.
user picture

Member for

9 years
Permalink

Worth the price of admission on 7-8-95 to get a Visions. Got a Take Me To The River in Memphis 95 (the Pyramid is next to the MS River). Caught the same 95 summer shows as SpaceBro. My first time to Deer Creek....and my last.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

Uh huh, blast blast blast Time to shut this thread down....
product sku
081227931742