• 3,948 replies
    clayv
    Default Avatar
    Joined:

    Pacific Northwest ’73-’74: The Complete Recordings Boxed Set

    WHAT'S INSIDE:
    6 Complete Shows On 19 Discs
    • 6/22/73 P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C.
    • 6/24/73 Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR
    • 6/26/73 Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, WA
    • 5/17/74 P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C.
    • 5/19/74 Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR
    • 5/21/74 Hec Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
    Mastered in HDCD from the original master tapes by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering
    Masters transferred and restored by Plangent Processes
    Original Art by First Nations Artist Roy Henry Vickers
    Photos by Richie Pechner
    Individually Numbered, Limited Edition of 15,000

    Includes an immediate digital download of "Eyes Of The World (P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, Canada 5/17/74)"

    "We were in the Pacific Northwest...between somewhere in Washington and some other where in Oregon. The road took us to the lip on a ridge, from where we could see around us for many miles in all directions … It was breathtaking to behold, but as we watched, we had a firm realization that we were witnessing something even more beautiful than our eyes could ever take in … Life causes life. Heaven and Earth dance in this way endlessly, and their child is the forest. And so there we were, epiphanously watching that grandest and most glorious dance of life—of which we are just a tiny part—awed by a magnificence without beginning, without end..."

    Bob Weir, “Sell Headwaters—Everyone Wins,” San Francisco Chronicle

    The Pacific Northwest offers up a rich feast of land, sky, and water. It is ripe with influences, abundant with symbols, deep and spirited. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that the Grateful Dead played some of their most inspired shows on these fertile grounds. It does, however, sometimes take a breath for the elements to re-align years later. It seems for us, they finally have and we are able to present not just a glimpse of the band's extraordinary exploratory tour through the region, but a two-tour bounty as the PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS.

    For PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS, we've paired two short runs made up of six previously unreleased shows - P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C. (6/22/73); Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR (6/24/73); Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, WA (6/26/73); P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, Canada (5/17/74); Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR (5/19/74); and Hec Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (5/21/74). Each show has been mastered in HDCD from the original master tapes by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering. The transfers from the masters were transferred and restored by Plangent Processes, further ensuring that this is the best, most authentic that these shows have ever sounded.

    PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS comes in an ornate box created by Canada’s preeminent First Nations artist Roy Henry Vickers (more on this tremendous artist soon). To complement the music, the set also includes a 64-page book with an in-depth essay by Grateful Dead scholar Nicholas G. Meriwether and photos by Richie Pechner.

    Due September 7th, this release is limited to 15,000 individually numbered copies and available exclusively from dead.net. You'll want to grab a copy while you can and sit back, relax, and enjoy all the exclusive content we'll be rolling out over the next few weeks.

    Looking for something a little more byte-sized? The collection will also be available for HD digital download in FLAC and ALAC, exclusively at dead.net, on release day. You can pre-order it now too.

    Get it while you can.

Comments

sort by
Recent
Reset
  • marye
    Joined:
    Tim and others with disc issues
    if you're still having trouble, send me a PM and I'll pass it to the Doc.
  • TimP
    Joined:
    I too have had 2 issues with…

    I too have had 2 issues with this box set. 1 - my booklet had been bent during packing and I have 1 defective disc Disc 17 (disc 1 of 5/21/73 Seatle. Big scuff mark and skips on track 9 and fails to pick up on track 10 /11 / 12 after skipping.)

    Got the standard response from Rhino - filled in the forms and nothing back from them yet. Both complaints now over 30 day s outstanding - any advice on how to proceed.

    BTW -- a lot of fantastic music on this set -- but also a lot of recordng issues -- most of which have been already mentioned. This too is making me question whether to buy complete boxes in future ??

  • Apemantus
    Default Avatar
    Joined:
    The Pacific Northwest ’73-’74 big box

    My big beautiful insane Pacific Northwest box arrived on Thursday afternoon, September 13. I opened it up, examined it for damage or weirdness. I found lots of weirdness, but no damage at all. It was (and is) perfect, but I was busy so I put it away on my living room bookshelf. Yesterday, November 4, I took the box into my office and started ripping and listening to the CDs. This is astonishingly beautiful music. The playing is intense, inspired, and precise, and the clarity and detail of the recordings (as rendered here) are breathtaking. There are some flaws scattered about – dropouts and balance issues – but for me these flaws do not detract at all from the immensity of the greatness of this box of beauty. These are among the greatest Grateful Dead recordings I’ve ever heard (and I have 288 hours of Grateful Dead recordings ripped so far). So thank you for this fantastic effort. A lot of work and care went into this, obviously. Similar to some of the Mosaic boxes of classic jazz recordings, this one is for people who want to hear all of it, not just curated highlights.

  • mbarilla
    Joined:
    MARYE - defective discs

    Hey I just saw your message in thread, I think I got it all sorted out with email to customer service. They replied with replacement disc on the way.

    I appreciate the speedy response and help.

    Time to rock out !!!

    Spinning some 1985 Grateful Dead

  • MDJim
    Joined:
    Re: Thinning Community

    I see this too, but there is a silver lining.. I am seeing lots of new folks step up and post positive comments, reviews and keep the vibe alive. The yang is there too.. a bit of complaining and the blem CDs and manufacturing error rate provides more than a valid reason to complain. I would consider providing CDs that play a core competency.

    Still we get some good with the bad and new inputs and perspective is a good thing. I hope we didn't lose more than we gained.. there are a few I have not seen in a while that consistently added to the mix.

  • Charlie3
    Joined:
    Thinning Community

    I would agree with the points below, but it may also be the fact that there are multiple recent release threads - e.g. this PNW box thread, the DaP 28 thread and the DaP 2019 Subscription threads. Who knows, hopefully it will pick up again.

  • MDJim
    Joined:
    True

    I think Reijo has a point.

    Drifters, I see your point too. But I like that show and am still glad it got released. The China>Rider, WRS and Jam after Truckin' are very nice and I really like the young Peggy-O's which are somewhat special and rare. The fade is on the source recording so the choice is whether to release the show or not.. all the remastering in the world is not going to bring the vocals up in the mix.

    Dicks Picks used to place a caveat emptor on the back of the jewel case regarding sonic anomalies and the ravages of time, etc. The other point to make about some of these box sets is the tendency to make something very good and slip in a show that might not have made it as a Dave's Picks. Sort of slip one in on is. I don't think this is the case for this box, but 30 Trips had a couple of these. For $30 a show, and being a bit of a completist myself I am ok with it.. but I see the other side of things. I am sympathetic but happy to see these old tapes get special treatment. I appreciate the efforts they went through making this sound as good as it can.. but that's just me. One opinion.

    Love the latest Dave's Picks.. but a topic for another thread. Talk about exceeding expectations...

  • reijo29
    Joined:
    hate to complain but...

    They should really put these chats right under the product page the way it was previously. There are now less and less posts cause it's simply a headache to find these threads. I think the community is thinning out because of this. Steve Hoffman Forums is a great alternative community for GD superfans who want to chat up these releases or anything else.

  • Drifter's Escape
    Joined:
    Mix issues

    I totally understand there may be sound issues with recording sources that are 30-50 years old. Recently we've had the heavy 'reverb' on the GSTL from '77, the splice in Dave's 27, Eyes of the World, which seemed to enrage so many, and now the various issues with PNW. Bill and Donna are high in the mix at times and some say Jerry is too low.
    My complaint is on disc 1 of Portland '74. From about halfway into Sugaree thru El Paso the vocals are practically inaudible. Like karaoke versions. Which admittedly is kinda fun in a weird sorta way. But c'mon.
    Maybe there should be a page or paragraph or Something in the already included literature by the producer/engineer where they could address and acknowledge some of the issues with a particular release.

    What's the old saying? "Don't piss on my leg and tell me it's raining". And don't say nothing and pretend that everything is just exactlty perfect. By saying Nothing it only makes people wonder if it's only their disc/equipment/ears/delusion.

  • MDJim
    Joined:
    Re: Unkle/Remix the Entire Box

    Perhaps I am behind in reading all these posts.. but the mix issues on my CDs seem to match up with the mix issues on the soundboards in the Archive. This means either the problems with the mix exist on the source master reels or all these sound engineers are hitting off the same crack pipe (which I guess is a possibility albeit a slim one). So remixing the entire box would likely yield the same result, but at great expense and causing much confusion for all.

    Just to make sure I was not seeing double (hey.. it happens), I took some time to compare the PNW box to my source soundboards that I pulled down from the archive long, long ago. The issues with the mix are consistent comparing one show to the next.

    Is this another poke to make sure we have maintained our sense of humor? ….remixing the entire box seems a bit silly perhaps, but not very much fun.

    Again, I could be missing something..

    One thing comparing my recordings to these did yield.. the PNW box sounds better than what I pulled down. Even the 73 shows sound quite good to me and my system with and without headphones.

user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

6 years 8 months

Pacific Northwest ’73-’74: The Complete Recordings Boxed Set

WHAT'S INSIDE:
6 Complete Shows On 19 Discs
• 6/22/73 P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C.
• 6/24/73 Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR
• 6/26/73 Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, WA
• 5/17/74 P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C.
• 5/19/74 Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR
• 5/21/74 Hec Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Mastered in HDCD from the original master tapes by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering
Masters transferred and restored by Plangent Processes
Original Art by First Nations Artist Roy Henry Vickers
Photos by Richie Pechner
Individually Numbered, Limited Edition of 15,000

Includes an immediate digital download of "Eyes Of The World (P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, Canada 5/17/74)"

"We were in the Pacific Northwest...between somewhere in Washington and some other where in Oregon. The road took us to the lip on a ridge, from where we could see around us for many miles in all directions … It was breathtaking to behold, but as we watched, we had a firm realization that we were witnessing something even more beautiful than our eyes could ever take in … Life causes life. Heaven and Earth dance in this way endlessly, and their child is the forest. And so there we were, epiphanously watching that grandest and most glorious dance of life—of which we are just a tiny part—awed by a magnificence without beginning, without end..."

Bob Weir, “Sell Headwaters—Everyone Wins,” San Francisco Chronicle

The Pacific Northwest offers up a rich feast of land, sky, and water. It is ripe with influences, abundant with symbols, deep and spirited. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that the Grateful Dead played some of their most inspired shows on these fertile grounds. It does, however, sometimes take a breath for the elements to re-align years later. It seems for us, they finally have and we are able to present not just a glimpse of the band's extraordinary exploratory tour through the region, but a two-tour bounty as the PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS.

For PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS, we've paired two short runs made up of six previously unreleased shows - P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C. (6/22/73); Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR (6/24/73); Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, WA (6/26/73); P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, Canada (5/17/74); Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR (5/19/74); and Hec Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (5/21/74). Each show has been mastered in HDCD from the original master tapes by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering. The transfers from the masters were transferred and restored by Plangent Processes, further ensuring that this is the best, most authentic that these shows have ever sounded.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST ’73-’74: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS comes in an ornate box created by Canada’s preeminent First Nations artist Roy Henry Vickers (more on this tremendous artist soon). To complement the music, the set also includes a 64-page book with an in-depth essay by Grateful Dead scholar Nicholas G. Meriwether and photos by Richie Pechner.

Due September 7th, this release is limited to 15,000 individually numbered copies and available exclusively from dead.net. You'll want to grab a copy while you can and sit back, relax, and enjoy all the exclusive content we'll be rolling out over the next few weeks.

Looking for something a little more byte-sized? The collection will also be available for HD digital download in FLAC and ALAC, exclusively at dead.net, on release day. You can pre-order it now too.

Get it while you can.

user picture

Member for

9 years 6 months
Permalink

Recorded live at the Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA on May 19, 1977 and at the Lakeland Civic Center Arena, Lakeland, FL on May 21, 1977 • Hidden tracks on discs 2 and 5 recorded live at Norman, OK on October 11, 1977
user picture

Member for

6 years 10 months
Permalink

This has been one of my favorite releases and regular plays every since it first came out. Both of these shows (5/19/77 & 5/21/77) sizzle. And the bonus tracks are the proverbial cherry on the sundae. I love how just before the 5/21 "Estimated" you can hear (with headphones on) Bobby breaking down the set all the way through to "One More Saturday Night", after which Jerry says with a chuckle "I hope they didn't hear that play". Good stuff.
user picture

Member for

6 years 3 months
Permalink

I hadn't noticed. Sounds good on the Weather Reports. Which tracks? Will keep an ear out. I don't listen to Skull and Roses on account of the overdubs. They pull me out of the mood, kind of like that wake up call you get when an AUD patch is weaved in. Distracting. But today I will listen. Dark-Star that was a hilarious joke about Donna sitting on the remote. I was thinking almost the same thing but it was something else causing her consternation. I agree, it's not what she's screaming so much as the volume she screaming it at. It mixes in well on the multitrack recordings from Europe 72 and Veneta. There's so many songs I think she sounds great on. Weather Report Suite wouldn't/ doesn't sound the same without her.
user picture

Member for

6 years 3 months
Permalink

Double post. I can no longer tell if the browser is thinking or if I didn't push the button hard enough.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 2 months
Permalink

I have had issues with a TON of dead box sets: Beyond Description, 30 Trips, Get Shown the Light, Scrapbook, RFK, and those are the ones just off the top of my head. The quality of the production and discs themselves is terrible. My 30 Trips is still effed up but I just gave up trying to get discs that didn't look like someone spilled maple syrup all over them. In terms of sound quality, there have been some drops, but nothing too unusual. The 5/19 vocals drop out on Sugaree, Jack Straw, Roses (I am listening now). Bobby mentions technical difficulties after Jack Straw. In terms of the board vs. the house mix, I cannot verify on Donna screams but I can testify to 80's house mixes sounding great and the boards not so much. So I believe that there is a difference. I have been in the good audience > soundboard camp for a long time because of that fact. EDIT: Vocal drops on 5/19: Sugaree, Jack Staw, Roses, El Paso. Is that what everyone else experienced?
user picture

Member for

7 years 9 months
Permalink

a·nal-re·ten·tivePSYCHOANALYSIS adjective 1. (of a person) excessively orderly and fussy (supposedly owing to conflict over toilet-training in infancy). noun 1. a person who is excessively orderly and fussy. It seems odd to have afflicted Dead fans more than, say, metal fans or just the general public on other message boards that I frequent. Which is weird since so many hippies are/were dirty and smelly, and Jerry reeked and was filthy for many years of his life; and, finally, that the music is so uneven in it's human-ness. It's what I love about this music... it was never just exactly perfect. So why should the product be? Beyond the cd's playing - that, I agree, is essential.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

..for the heads up about Dicks Picks 29. I'd never have guessed those bonus tracks came from October 11th. Wonder why they chose tracks from that tour? Also I agree with Skull Trip-certainly as regards 5/19/77-superb show. Maybe the best Ramble On Rose I have heard. Yet.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

Its on the uptempo numbers that he sounds a bit strained to me. So, on the last one I listened to-the 5/21/74 show that would include the Chuck Berry numbers and Sugar Magnolia. I would also like to add, that if you listen to those tracks to see for yourself if his vocals are a bit harsh, I sincerely hope that they don't sound that way to you, and that you come to the conclusion that I am speaking rubbish.
user picture

Member for

17 years
Permalink

Driving to a meeting yesterday the 12/30/82 Oakland show was on at noon eastern. Only caught the start of second set Touch of Grey.... Just listened to the rest on Archive from Charlie Miller set II... Wow.. Touch Throwing Stones> Franklin's Tower.. Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance>He's Gone> Drums/Space> Truckin> Stella Blue> GDTRFB> Johnny B Good... Encore Hard to Handle and Tell Mama with Etta James and Tower of Power... Been listening pretty much non stop to new box set.. somehow overlooked this show for 33 years. have a good day.. bob t
user picture

Member for

14 years 10 months
Permalink

vocal dropouts happen. it's no big deal. it's on the source tape. Donna...yes, it's known she was...overly enthusiastic at times. regardless: I don't listen to the GD for the vocals.
user picture

Member for

14 years 10 months
Permalink

i have an opportunity for a 6 hour road trip from Seattle to Portland and back. by myself. no non-Deadheads in the car. 5/21/74 second set 6/24/73 6/22/73 :)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
user picture

Member for

17 years 6 months
Permalink

Any links to HQ scans of the individual CD artwork? Acquired one of these nifty boxes and it really looks nice. So far have listened to the first show and sounds great. Looks like this will be one to sit down with and listen under minimal interuptions. The Here Comes Sunshine from 6/22/73 might be my new favorite version. Bob's semi-hollow body guitar and some sort of chorus processing kind of has a french horn or flugal quality to it. really cool. Based on art design, this one deserves a Grammy.
user picture

Member for

10 years 5 months
Permalink

Hi-res, color-corrected scans from my "chest":https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a513cb875hedpwc/AAD-YTpMLYXoC-W_U1FrqXJaa?dl… BTW: I think I'm about to get some sort of "survivors guilt complex" or something after reading all the bummers folks are having. There's no PB&J, fingerprints, scratches or smudges on the CD's I got – nuthin'. Even after a few extra stops en route out to the hinterland, the packing box and chest were fine. I am VERY sorry for all you heads that got gimped boxes and CD's. It sounds like you're in good hands with Dr. Rhino and/or MaryE. Best wishes. Hang in there! Onward. . .
user picture

Member for

17 years 6 months
Permalink

That was fast. Scans look nice. Thanks.
user picture

Member for

15 years 2 months
Permalink

Space. Glad to hear you got a box. Bob t. 12/30/82 is complete on YouTube. I think. Only going to need one replacement disc, which had popped off its spindle and appears to have been a crash test dummy disc on the way here.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

12 years 1 month
Permalink

Excellent Dark Star!!I'm digesting this box slowly and so far so good....wow!
user picture

Member for

8 years
Permalink

Ha yeah, took me 2 commutes but I just listened to that today too. Awesome
user picture

Member for

7 years 8 months
Permalink

Love those shows. 12/30/82 was a gem.. The three set 12/31 shines too, two great shows. 12/31/82 Oakland Auditorium Arena - Oakland, CA Set 1: Cold Rain And Snow C.C. Rider Cumberland Blues Far From Me Cassidy Ramble On Rose Looks Like Rain Day Job Set 2: Sugar Magnolia Sugaree Man Smart-Woman Smarter Ship Of Fools Playin' In The Band Drums Not Fade Away Deal Sunshine Daydream Set 3: Turn On Your Love Light Tell Mama Baby What You Want Me To Do Hard To Handle In The Midnight Hour Encore: Brokedown Palace Nice Midnight Hour too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etDyZj16jiM Johnny / Erik - I just finished the Dark Star show too. Looks like I'm not the only one turtling their way through the box. A great one, went to look for an audience to see if Keith didn't play or was just out of the mix but I didn't see one. One great Dark Star nonetheless.
user picture

Member for

10 years 10 months
Permalink

He's using a phaser pedal called a Foxx Foot Phaser. They were pretty new in 1973. At first i thought it was a MXR Phase 80, but they came out the next year. I had never noticed him using that before, but these are also the first summer '73 shows officially released in their entirety. He definitely isn't using it in '74, and I don't recall hearing it in Winterland '73, and I think that 35 min Dark Star would've been a great place to employ some phaser, but I didn't hear any the other day, when I listened to that second set and the 12/4/73 bonus disc. He plays it liberally throughout the 3 '73 shows in this box, sometimes it adds an astounding texture, like Sugaree. It really mixes that one up at a time where Sugaree was a good song, but not venturing out into the 15 min+ territory that it got to in 1977. Like, the Tennesee Jed from 5/21/77 DP 29 (see it was mentioned here for other reasons today, and you may wanna check the Jack Straw and Jed on 5/21 if you pull that one out because all of these other mentions, which I heartily endorse), Jerry uses his MuTron for the solo, a rarity that I think I heard only a couple other times. Pretty sure none of the other May '77 shows released have one. But don't think I've heard Jerry rip a better Jed than that one, and it follows on the heels of my favorite May '77 Jack Straw. But, I digress... Oh, and to jump into the Donna fray, something I wanted to avoid. But then the Scarlet Begonias from 5/19/74 came on and I was enjoying up until her remote control shock. And, as has been pointed out, there's some Bobby shouting going on as well, not much of it good shouting either. Wonder why the mics couldn't conveniently go out for those parts. Though, as some said, it's quite interesting hearing the music, I'm personally fascinated hearing what Jerry plays and doesn't play for those songs. Lastly, it is really nice to hear Keith quite prominently on a lot of songs, and to hear him taking solos is striking. If he took them regularly, the mix on most of the releases must really have him buried. His playing is fantastic on these shows.
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

Having just listened to the first cd of 5/21/77, I would agree with alvarhanso that these are great versions of Tennessee Jed and Jack Straw. In fact the whole cd is great-They Love Each Other, Cassidy, Jack-A-Row, Row Jimmy-all top notch. Its a lot more of a conventional mix than the 73-74 ones we have been listening to. Everything in its rightful place, no vocal howlers, Jerry at the helm-all good stuff. Not for a minute saying its better than 73-74, just very different and excellent in a totally different way. One thing that struck me as pleasingly unusual about 5/19/77 was its ending. Its very impressive the way the set quietly draws to a close with the last notes of the Playin' jam. I assumed that the few songs must have been excised, so I checked Deadbase. And that's the way it was on the night. Cool.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 10 months
Permalink

I think that is the way to go to get more 80s>90s shows released. Officially released matrix-matrices is a solution.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 10 months
Permalink

I think that is the way to go to get more 80s>90s shows released. Officially released matrix-matrices is a solution.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 10 months
Permalink

I think that is the way to go to get more 80s>90s shows released. Officially released matrix-matrices is a solution.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 10 months
Permalink

I think that is the way to go to get more 80s>90s shows released. Officially released matrix-matrices is a solution.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

7 years 6 months
Permalink

Since we got on this 77 tangent. I was wondering if anybody has a digital copy of May 77 box set they could copy for me? I already got the Get Shown The Light box but I missed out on May 77. Just message me, thanks.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

13 years 10 months
Permalink

But Dave I think you've got the message. As long as I'm here again . . .. Hey Dave please consider NYC's MSG September 1979 3 show run for a minibox set. These shows are very worthy of official release treatment.These shows are the new kid's, Brent, first MSG NYC shows. The Big League. I saw someone mention Winter 79? I could go for that.
user picture

Member for

7 years 1 month
Permalink

I jumped into the Donna fray a few days ago, trying to emphasize her professionalism, the difficulty of being in her position and leaping out in performance, and the fact that it seemed she did exactly what she was asked. That was before hearing unprecedentedly blood-curdling shrieks on the 17May74 PITB - they just about gave me a coronary while I was exercising a couple of days ago. If a wife had/used a voice like that, it would help the husband retain his sanity to be profoundly deaf (but since hers played in the Grateful Dead, that would have been another problem). Canine hearing being far more acute than that of humans, I'd be interested in seeing a typical dog react to that voice. I have visions of the animal depiction in the old RCA logo, and the animal running away from the grammophone, yelping and diving into the nearest shrubbery, putting its paws over its head. It would be entertaining to see Monsieur Lemieux have someone edit a track of nothing but Donna's vocalisms from the entirety of the archives - to see how long would it run, and how many disks it would fill or overflow, as well as how popularly it would sell (Dave's picks, anyone?). Nah, too cruel - I do call it an evil thought because Donna might be a terrific person to know - it's just a quality in the voice God gave her that's unpleasant to me, and the passage of time has probably mellowed that voice quite a bit.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

9 years 7 months
Permalink

Took a break from listening to the box set….to listen to more grateful dead. I dove into 11/17/72 (DaP 11). This has got to be a top 5 pick. One of the best bird song’s of all time, and perhaps the all-time He’s Gone>Truckin>TOO....wow this is a great one.
user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

When I was younger I usually liked the screaming, but have less and less tolerance for it as years go by.That being said, let us remeber ... - Bob can be just as bad on occasion - They are hearing themselves through completely different equipment in a completely different context. I guarantee if you heard much of this live it would not be as prominent and thus not as bad...especially since she was often turned way up to try and make her be heard, which does not translate well to direct recorded tape. Just listen to E72 shows for a better idea of a well balanced vocal mix including DG. - Women often don’t have the same power as men to sing or yell loudly enough so they, and sometimes Bob strain or extend themselves which doesn’t usually sound good, You can even find examples of ol Jer too. (This is not sexist. Some women have a thin or higher range that is harder to be LOUD is all I meant) obviouslly there are many great women singers that have super powerful voices, just not all) - DG obviously could sing or would not have gotten work as a studio singer. In fact most of the work she does with the dead in the studio was awesome. Some folks, and perhaps some women have a harder time singing live in really loud R&R bands. She as well as the rest have admitted as much. - Personally, I’ve rarely heard a female vocalist that meshed well with the dead. Even post dead etc. I did really like that Garcia gal that sang backups in Futhur. Something about the boys to me made it tough for women to mesh, any era...I’m sure there are occasional exceptions, but generally speaking.... - Donna imho was a way better when she was more of a secondary, back up singer (in the dead). I know many feel she was better in the post hiatus band, and in some ways she was. I believe they made monitor/gear and position changes that helped. I think time also helped her learn the material and mesh better. As some mention, the stuff she did that they learned after she joined is often better for her than the “old” stuff they learned before her. But to me, she like some of the other “non-core” dead members over the years were better as secondary players. I didnt always like when they start having these folks become full on participants. But that’s just my worthless OPINION. - Board Recordings. Yes there are some truly jarring instances on this box where it’s tough to take, but that’s more because of technical variables and the idiosyncrasies of SB recordings as much as DG herself. Unfortunately the human mind often focuses on very different, jarring, scary sounds more than soft or soothing. If all you listen for is the ugly stuff, yeah, your not going to like DG. But if you move past that stuff and concentrate on the other, perhaps less dramatic stuff she did, she can be indeed very sweet. - Intoxication;in fact, and as she herself has said, intoxication can often be very detrimental to singing. Hell all music can be sometimes be affected negatively, look what happened to Jer...... Finally, ive talked to a few people who have had a chance to meet her and all have said she is truly a very nice person. So before one is tempted to be negative and perhaps even say something hateful, consider the big picture and all that was involved......
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

I would agree that her greatest moments with the Dead were when she was singing back up. I am thinking particularly of the post retirement Looks Like Rains. Actually, all of the Dead were at their best when they were tightly enmeshed in the whole. Take any one member out of that whole and they always sounded-and probably still do-somewhat diminished.
user picture

Member for

11 years 3 months
Permalink

Finally got to the 46 min PITB. Holy crap! They just kept going and going and going! Whew!
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

14 years
Permalink

I appreciate the breakdown of all the factors that go to the Donna problem.If i may add: I went to many many 70's shows (and then some). Not once did she sound so off, or shrill, as the tapes make it appear nowadays. No one ever left a show criticizing Donna for her 'screams'. Maybe the live loudness of the auditoriums kept it at bay somewhat but nobody who was there was complaining at the time. And some of the best pure rock 'n roll girl screaming i've ever heard was on 'Round & 'Round !!
user picture

Member for

8 years 7 months
Permalink

https://shop.realgonemusic.com/products/grateful-dead-dicks-picks-34-6l… If the saga of the Grateful Dead is a long strange trip, then we’ve definitely been along for part of the ride! First, we brought you the entire Dick’s Picks series of live concerts on CD, all 36 volumes of it, many of them never before available at retail. Then we began putting out the Road Trips series, none of which has ever been in stores before. But now, dear Deadheads and Real Goners, the time has come to take the next step in our evolution as a key source for rare Grateful Dead recordings. It’s time to cross…the vinyl frontier. And we are hoping you will cross it with us, because we aren’t even offering this release to retail until you have had a chance—at a special low price—to snag all 1500 hand-numbered, limited editions of our new 6-LP set, Grateful Dead: Dick’s Picks Vol. 34—Rochester, NY 11/5/77! That’s right…we are finally putting Dick’s Picks on vinyl, and, boy, have we picked the right one. How do we know? You told us! This was by far the best-selling volume on CD from our reissue campaign. And no wonder, it’s from that magical year of 1977, with fiery performances of “Big River,” “Jack Straw,” “Deal,” and “Eyes of the World” powered by a particularly lively Phil Lesh. But for many the highlight will be one of the truly great performances of “The Other One” in the Grateful Dead catalog, 12 minutes of surging intensity and building crescendos. This Pick also included highlights from a 11/2/77 Toronto show, including a great medley of “Estimated Prophet”/”St. Stephen”/”Truckin’”/”Around and Around” (we’ve reconfigured the track listing to put all the bonus tracks at the end of the set for a seamless concert experience). Definitely a great place to begin our journey into the realm of Grateful Dead vinyl! Such a stellar performance deserves a great package with great sound. For this Real Gone release, we’ve enlisted David Glasser at Airshow Mastering to remaster the set for vinyl. David’s had a long association with the Dead; he mastered the soundtrack to last year’s Long Strange Trip documentary among many other projects. For lacquer cutting, we turned to John Golden at Golden Mastering. John has worked with artists as far-ranging as Jonathan Wilson, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, and Soundgarden among many others, and he is our go-to engineer for lacquer cutting. The test pressings were approved by David Glasser, the Grateful Dead’s resident audiovisual archivist David Lemieux, and Gordon Anderson from Real Gone. We’ve pressed the set up on 180-gram vinyl for maximum fidelity, too. And we even scrapped the first pressing because it wasn’t up to our quality standards. As for the packaging, we’ve placed all six LPs inside a hardshell box adorned with the original front cover and a custom back cover featuring a great shot of Jerry Garcia from the show. Inside, you’ll find a 4-page, LP-sized, full-color insert offering photos from the original package along with the original trippy graphics. And, as we mentioned before, each of these limited-edition sets is hand-numbered all the way up to 1500. This set will not be repressed once we run out of the 1500 limited edition copies.
user picture

Member for

17 years 5 months
Permalink

Thanks, it’s always nice when someone can relate, especially adding your live experiences. As great as these SB recordings are, I’ve never heard one that sounded like what the show sounded like live in the venue, (usually in front of the mixing board, or even in the front row).... Used to be a musician in a past life too, and though great recordings can be made, dry, direct only or close miked instruments do not sound quite the same as the live sound in the venue. Of course mic tapes can be adversely effected by your position and the venue, your gear, technique and of course your neighbors...... JJEEEEEEERRRRRRRYYYYYYYYYY DAAAAAAAARRRRRRKKKKKKKKK SSSSTTTTTTAAAARRRR LOL always durning the most subtle, quiet, emotional ballad ; ) A&A: yasss that could really be the best for the DG “treatment”. Everyone always thinks of the PITB or Scarlets, which sometimes work, but playing especially, like with this box, can sometimes be a bit too much re-entry shall we say. A&A is perfect for that type of enthusiasm! Makes we want to go Fire up a hot one....... SUGGESTIONS? What’s the hottest Pre-Brent/Vince Around and Around folks?
user picture

Member for

14 years 10 months
Permalink

well, Muscle Shoals, actually. Sex Pistols + Donna talk = the quips above. NMTBollocks = masterpiece
user picture

Member for

10 years 10 months
Permalink

The one on DaP 1 5/25/77 is 9 min or so. It just kept going around and around. But seriously, was on a road trip a couple weeks ago and was amazed at that version when it came on. Not my favorite song, so I skip it a lot of times, but was going straight through that Pick for the first time in a while, and that one stood out. DiP 18 also has a fiery one. Which reminds me to check out that Scarlet> Fire again...
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

14 years
Permalink

You said it best Oroborous - "A&A is perfect for that type of (Donna's)enthusiasm! Would love to hear everyone's favorite pre-Brent 'Around'. Mine are the 77-78's. 3-17-77 ~ Keith very prominent 10-16-77 ~ a spirited, but not loud, Donna 12-12-78 ~ a very energetic Donna Still looking for that one Bobby/Donna screamer, not sure of year. Just as Bobby sings '..rose out of my seat' Donna lets out a primal rock 'n roll scream, and it gets hotter and louder from there! It may be an official release but not too sure now.
user picture

Member for

7 years 9 months
Permalink

I forget which show came on. But Donna Jean's cover of Loretta Lynn, "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)," I thought was just wonderful. She sings in that sweet, sassy country voice. Hell, Donna Jean was from the South and really more at home singing backup on Elvis records and that kind of thing. Anyway, I love her rendition of that song. Good for her.
user picture

Member for

15 years 2 months
Permalink

May be The Closing Of Winterland 12/31/78
user picture

Member for

14 years
Permalink

I love Donna Jean's "Rain" from Cats Under the Stars. Great original song and performance by Donna.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

9 years 7 months
Permalink

5/14/78 (one of the 30 trips shows) She and bobby go totally nuts. It's a great one, as is the Samson they played that night too. Crazy amount of energy (ok and maybe drugs).
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

15 years 11 months
Permalink

Donna belts out a primal scream during NFA....so on the spot, in the moment.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

15 years 11 months
Permalink

Do the transitions stay intact? Or do you get that slight gap? I have the CD box set. With CDs going out of favor from the industry. Thinking about digital downloads. Hate to see my Cds move into the same realm as my analogs.
user picture

Member for

9 years 6 months
Permalink

with the return of the Captcha code to screen out the bots, i found this article interesting after having to look for bikes in fuzzy photos. <<<<<<<< from an MIT study on a single word Turing test >>>>>>>> The words human respondents used to prove their humanity included “love” (a massive 14 percent of responses), various answers relating to emotions, compassion, religion, and … “poop.” Because what are we as the planet’s current most intelligent beings if not for lovers of toilet humor? In fact, poop had a whole lot of significance for the project. After the answers had been collected, the researchers randomly formed pairs of words and then told another group of 2,405 participants to choose which word they thought was from a human and which one was from a robot — despite the fact that both were selected by humans. “Poop” was the one that most people thought had been picked by a human. The least successful, for obvious reasons, was “robot.” “Most of the words make sense once you see them, but they’re not necessarily what I would have predicted ahead of time,” Tomer Ullman, a postdoctoral associate in the Computational Cognitive Science group at MIT, told us. “Some of the words still have us scratching our heads. That the taboo category word beat out everything else isn’t something I would’ve bet a lot of money on before we ran the study, though it may seem obvious in retrospect.”
user picture

Member for

10 years 3 months
Permalink

This song really seemed to catch fire in 1977-78. What I like about it most is the double speed instrumental break in the middle. When I first heard it, I thought they were going into Johnny B. Goode, but they never do, on the versions I have heard. But Jerry really pulls out the stops on the old Chuck Berry licks during that mid song break. Definitely one of the songs that improved exponentially after the retirement break at the end of 1974.
user picture
Default Avatar

Member for

15 years 11 months
Permalink

just listen to Row Jimmy 6/24/73.....Donna seemed in fine form. Donna's harmony, is it a better fit with Jerry or Bobby? Don't forget the JGB shows. Can we see the DVD/CD combo of 6/17/91 soon?
user picture

Member for

10 years 10 months
Permalink

It should be seamless, but it may also depend on what you play it on. If you use VLC player it will be completely seamless. It's a free download, and a great media player.
product sku
081227931391
Product Magento URL
https://store.dead.net/pacific-northwest-73-74-the-complete-recordings-19-cd-boxed-set-1.html