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    lilgoldie
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    Joined:

    What's Inside:
    • Five Complete Shows
    • 5/11/77 St. Paul Civic Center Arena, St. Paul, MN
    • 5/12/77 Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL
    • 5/13/77 Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL
    • 5/15/77 St. Louis Arena, St. Louis MO
    • 5/17/77 University Of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
    •14 Discs, 111 tracks
    •Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman, Plangent Processes playback system for maximum sonic accuracy
    •Artwork by Grammy Award-winning graphic artist Masaki Koike
    •Period Photos by James R Anderson
    •Historical Essay by Steve Silberman
    •Individual show liner notes

    MAGICAL, MYTHICAL MAY 1977!

    If you're a Dead Head, chances are you've spent many an hour expounding upon the distinction of May 8, 1977, Cornell University, Barton Hall. Well, at the risk of preaching to the choir, we'd like to reintroduce you to a series of shows that matches said greatness from that same gloriously fertile season. While Barton Hall is well known, the astounding tour that surrounded it has occasionally flown under the radar due to the uneven quality of tapes in circulation. May 1977 is set to change all of that with a boxed set that zeroes in on this high-water mark in the Grateful Dead's long strange trip.

    For a band resurrecting itself after a 20-month hiatus, there was a great frenzy of expectancy that surrounded the Spring of 1977. We anticipate a grand reoccurrence of this fervor with the release of May 1977, a 14-disc boxed set featuring five complete shows from consecutive stops on that magical tour. Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering, the "psychoacoustic phenomena" as Jerry once put it, of St. Paul Civic Center Arena, St. Paul, MN (5/11) Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL (5/12, 5/13), St. Louis Arena, St. Louis MO (5/15) and Coliseum at the University Of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (5/17) can now finally be appreciated. Each of these shows finds the Dead delivering punchier, more focused sets, tightening up the framework; each night turning out first-ever renditions ("Passenger,""Iko Iko,""Jack-A-Roe"), unloading potent new pairings ("Scarlet Begonias">"Fire On The Mountain", "Estimated Prophet">"Eyes Of The World"), classic covers ("Dancing In The Street") and soon-to-be staples ("Estimated Prophet," "Samson and Delilah"), and ultimately rising up to paradise.

    And now for the nitty-gritty...

    Due June 11, May 1977 is limited to 15,000 individually numbered copies. Presented in a psychedelic box that boasts an intricate die-cut design created by Grammy®-winning graphic artist Masaki Koike, the set also includes a book filled with stories about each show, as well as an in-depth essay by Dead historian Steve Silberman, who delves deep into the history behind the tour and the band’s return from its extended hiatus.

    Once these 15,000 boxes are gone, May 1977 and its shows will never be available again on CD. However, the 111 tracks will be made available on release date as FLAC and Apple lossless full-set-only downloads for $99.98.

    Like its predecessors Europe '72: The Complete Recordings and Spring 1990, we expect May 1977 to sell out. Your best bet is to pre-order it now, then sit back, relax, and enjoy all the exclusive content we'll be rolling out over the next few weeks right here and on Facebook.com/GratefulDead and Youtube.com/gratefuldead.

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  • #691
    deadegad
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    Joined:
    Soulless downloading?
    Downloading has been great for taking a ton of music with you every where. Ah the convenience! It is, however, when compared with holding a physical product with artwork, lyrics, credits, etc., a bit soulless. Album/cd releases were glorious times. Ah the experience!. I just can't wait to hold May 77 and explore it while listening. There was time when someone might have had the latest release before everyone else. You would gather together and 'check it out!' It was a communal, almost, ritualistic, experience. Who amongst us, rings up some friends and says "come on over I got the latest Good Ole' GD download?" Heck this started out a with a bit of sarcastic humor but I have just convinced myself that we have indeed lost a bit of our humanity with downloading. We have certainly have lost a good deal of our shared sense of community or communal experience. Haven't we? Shit! I am heading to the kitchen to drink the cooking sherry.
  • #692
    Oroboros
    Joined:
    I am with you 100 %, mustin321
    the physical holding of the music itselfand then putting it into the player is engrained from my days with 45s and LPs. Er... those are like bigger CDs, everybody. I do love the art & documentation on them as well. But I sure need to wear my Walgreen readers nowadays, to see on those teeny tiny cases. The days of those big album covers is lonnggg gone. You see the hut, yet you ask, "where should I go for shelter".
  • #693
    mustin321
    Joined:
    CD's vs. Digital Media
    Sometimes I feel like I am one of the few on here that still collects CD's but obviously, someone is buying them.I can't stand not having something physical to hold on to.
  • #694
    chiclet
    Joined:
    Profit Margin
    Not at all sure what it costs in time and materials to put a set like this together, but the gross sales will only amount to about $2.1 million. Of course the downloads will sell for a long time, but the initial net profit on a limited edition boxed set can't be all that much. I'm just glad to have these things. I have gotten rid of most of my physical media, but these new sets from the vault are just irresistible. I feel like a kid in the record shop again, which is good.
  • #695
    Star Dark
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    Joined:
    Best of '85
    Deadegad - I've been pulling for a "Best of '85" set for years, too. But The Powers would have to be very selective - probably no complete shows - which would throw a good percentage of fans into a tizzy. I also have a feeling that certain members of the band aren't particularly fond of that period (despite flurries of sheer brilliance), so final approval might be difficult. Too bad...
  • #696
    pghas1
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    future releases drying up -not
    I woudn't be at all concerned with the fan base drying up -clearly the demand for the limited editions exceeds the supply and that is one reason they keep increasing the numbers available. There is no shortage of material in the vault, and they can easily sell 10,000 of anything obviously and when they do its a few million bucks in the bank account. What makes it so impressive that these all sell out, to me, is that just about everything is available for free in a nearly flawless version. I have downloaded versions of 5/19 and 5/21 that I think sound better than the official releases, and all of these shows are on my hard drive as sbd's except 5/12. But like most, I buy these anyway because I believe in the process and I trust the organization to make incredible sounding mixes of everything, plus I love css - much better for the car!! I think they actually have ffnally figured it out - we didnt buy the downlaods all that much, we weren't crazy about partial shows. Deadheads are completists and all about going the whole hog. We want entire shows, entire tours, we want memorabilia that reminds us of when we went, and we love cool artwork and rich, artistic collections of our stuff. My guess would be that with the subscription basis (right up our alley - from who knows hat they'll play or how they'll play it, sign me up to find out, to who knows what they'll release), bonus discs and fantastic boxed sets they have been putting out they have fellt pressure to release more, not less. My only regret is that in 2005 when the Fillmore box was released I was not paying attention and missed it. And even though I have gotten all of theose shows, I'd still love the box.
  • #697
    thismikebenz
    Joined:
    "Selections from Summer '85" or other partial show compilations
    Deadegad, THere are some Road Trips series releases that started to follow that pattern. I wonder if Dave's Picks series could do that as well, or are they going to stick to only whole show releases? If they did whole show releases only, then they will probably skip much of the mid to late 80's or I would find myself fast forwarding through some CDs or maybe just popping disc 2 of 3 in a lot and skipping the weaker sets
  • #698
    deadegad
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    RFK 73 Bootleg "The Longest Day."
    There is a multi disc bootleg from this show with the GD and the Allmans sets called The Longest Day. Just google the key words and you will find it. I saw it in a bootleg shop in NYC with cool packaging and artwork -- but the $$$ price!!! OMG!!! These boot leg shops charge exorbitant prices. Who want to support that king of artist-ripoff and price gouging anyway?!?! It would be cool to get an official release of those shows and Watkins Glen. They are historic. Regarding the mid to later 80's and perhaps not as many great shows form start to finish? Maybe they could do a say 'Selections form Summer 85?" Or a 1987 Box with the best shows, full or partial, from that year if there is not an outstanding run from a given venue or month. Just a thought. Bottom line; Keep'em coming.
  • #699
    The Weve
    Joined:
    RFK 6/09&10/73
    RFK 6/09&10/73.... this too would make another great box. With 2 days of stellar performances from both the Dead & the ABB. Always enjoyed the Dead 06/10 and both days of the Bros, think I'll break these out for a listen.
  • #700
    PalmerEldritch
    Joined:
    Summer 1973
    Man, I love that RFK 6/10/73 Dark Star! I'll always remember flipping out on that Dark Star on an airplane flight a few years ago. After years, heck decades, of listening to it, and loving, it- I just really "flipped out" on it on that flight. Can't explain it-except it just really rubbed me the right way! Arguably the greatest Dark Star ever (as are so many others!)
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Submitted by lilgoldie on
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Dead Store Products

What's Inside:
• Five Complete Shows
• 5/11/77 St. Paul Civic Center Arena, St. Paul, MN
• 5/12/77 Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL
• 5/13/77 Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL
• 5/15/77 St. Louis Arena, St. Louis MO
• 5/17/77 University Of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
•14 Discs, 111 tracks
•Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman, Plangent Processes playback system for maximum sonic accuracy
•Artwork by Grammy Award-winning graphic artist Masaki Koike
•Period Photos by James R Anderson
•Historical Essay by Steve Silberman
•Individual show liner notes

MAGICAL, MYTHICAL MAY 1977!

If you're a Dead Head, chances are you've spent many an hour expounding upon the distinction of May 8, 1977, Cornell University, Barton Hall. Well, at the risk of preaching to the choir, we'd like to reintroduce you to a series of shows that matches said greatness from that same gloriously fertile season. While Barton Hall is well known, the astounding tour that surrounded it has occasionally flown under the radar due to the uneven quality of tapes in circulation. May 1977 is set to change all of that with a boxed set that zeroes in on this high-water mark in the Grateful Dead's long strange trip.

For a band resurrecting itself after a 20-month hiatus, there was a great frenzy of expectancy that surrounded the Spring of 1977. We anticipate a grand reoccurrence of this fervor with the release of May 1977, a 14-disc boxed set featuring five complete shows from consecutive stops on that magical tour. Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering, the "psychoacoustic phenomena" as Jerry once put it, of St. Paul Civic Center Arena, St. Paul, MN (5/11) Auditorium Theatre, Chicago, IL (5/12, 5/13), St. Louis Arena, St. Louis MO (5/15) and Coliseum at the University Of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (5/17) can now finally be appreciated. Each of these shows finds the Dead delivering punchier, more focused sets, tightening up the framework; each night turning out first-ever renditions ("Passenger,""Iko Iko,""Jack-A-Roe"), unloading potent new pairings ("Scarlet Begonias">"Fire On The Mountain", "Estimated Prophet">"Eyes Of The World"), classic covers ("Dancing In The Street") and soon-to-be staples ("Estimated Prophet," "Samson and Delilah"), and ultimately rising up to paradise.

And now for the nitty-gritty...

Due June 11, May 1977 is limited to 15,000 individually numbered copies. Presented in a psychedelic box that boasts an intricate die-cut design created by Grammy®-winning graphic artist Masaki Koike, the set also includes a book filled with stories about each show, as well as an in-depth essay by Dead historian Steve Silberman, who delves deep into the history behind the tour and the band’s return from its extended hiatus.

Once these 15,000 boxes are gone, May 1977 and its shows will never be available again on CD. However, the 111 tracks will be made available on release date as FLAC and Apple lossless full-set-only downloads for $99.98.

Like its predecessors Europe '72: The Complete Recordings and Spring 1990, we expect May 1977 to sell out. Your best bet is to pre-order it now, then sit back, relax, and enjoy all the exclusive content we'll be rolling out over the next few weeks right here and on Facebook.com/GratefulDead and Youtube.com/gratefuldead.

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Submitted by icenine2 on Wed, 01/31/2018 - 14:07

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When will this be available as downloads again? I own the high-res digital download of Get Shown the Light and it is spectacular.
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7 years 9 months

Submitted by Sawwwn on Thu, 07/12/2018 - 07:03

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Oh man! Still waiting for these (May 77 and July 78) to be available for download! Please open this up or at least stop listing them as available. Killing me.
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7 years 9 months

Submitted by Sawwwn on Thu, 07/12/2018 - 07:04

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Oh man! Still waiting for these (May 77 and July 78) to be available for download! Please open this up or at least stop listing them as available. Killing me.
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6 years 3 months

Submitted by DanielSpace on Mon, 08/13/2018 - 13:02

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I think a fundraiser for the tapes is the dumbest idea Ive ever heard.
product sku
081227965365