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    clayv
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    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.

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  • Vguy72
    Joined:
    Hold on hendrixfreak....
    ....I need to make some more popcorn and mescaline.
  • hendrixfreak
    Joined:
    Noon-ish is not the best time to catch a full-blown show.....
    My memory has clearly telescoped events, because I almost think I remember rolling over in my sleeping bag and, for breakfast, snorting a pile of 'chocolate' mescaline off one of those mini-cereal boxes. I definitely took some blotter. But even if we'd 'slept in,' it must of been 10-ish or something. Surely we'd had some water and a snack, probably provided by a merciful neighbor. We were still 15 and we looked like what we were: goddamm-near children! Ah, so I was saying, we dropped acid and snorted mescaline and fired up the pipe with Numero Uno and, hey, is that freakin' Jerry on stage? Wait, Bobby. Phil. Bill. The piano guy. Jer kept dipping his cigarette into a brass ashtray and, when he re-lit it, it flared up. I didn't hit the blow til '75 but later, I thought, freebase. I hope someone can clarify this, but I think I recall the band starting just a bit after NOON(!). As far as I was concerned at the time, they fucking rocked the place for hours. I do recall, as I often feel, feeling goofy about a camera while tripping. But I managed to snap off three shots, of which two survive, which catch the three guitarists blasting away on Playing in the Band, then turning towards each other to converse more intimately, finally arriving in a tight circle and sending tides of sound across the crowd. I think this was the time I experienced Phil's bass as physical, purple pulses in my chest and the realization that vibrations, rather than corporeal reality, were at the heart of existence. I clearly remember the gospel treatment at the end of He's Gone and at the end of Sugar Mag, Weir thrust his arm skyward for stop time, ran back to his amps, downed the rest of a Heineken and raced back to the mic for the coda. Still, I was 15, down front at one of the biggest gatherings of humans in history. I did look back over the crowd, but, as usual, there wasn't much profit in looking back. Not with the Grateful Dead killing it in front of me.
  • hendrixfreak
    Joined:
    The Soundcheck
    The Allmans rocked big time. They'd slayed us at RFK after the Dead when, exhausted and dehydrated, we had retreated to the shaded overhang of RFK and been simply psychedelically rolled over by the ABB. They smoked the Dead that day. Back to the Soundcheck. I got up and hiked around the scene while it was still afternoon. A very loose scene with lots of elbow room, cool air, breathing. I returned to our space, easily located, for The Band. It was nearly sunset when the Grateful Dead took the stage. We had all the room we needed. I started the soundcheck boogie-ing upright, shakin it to the rock 'n roll. I had snorted some mescaline and taken maybe a half tab of the blotter. Everyone knew this was unprecedented in GD history. Here we were, groovin' on a cool pine forest evening, high but not pressed and our favorite band was blasting away on the finest sound system we'd ever heard. I do not recall individual songs, just the transition between comprehensible songs and jams that had us smiling for reasons we knew not. [Beautiful Jam from So Many Roads is blasting in the background as I write these words.] I do clearly recall the feeling of complete ease as I nestled down into my sleeping bag, head on cool gallon jug, looking up at the band just jamming away. We rode it out after the band departed and the next thing we knew, it was morning and the crowd was bustling, hustling, and by noon it was show time all over again.
  • icecrmcnkd
    Joined:
    Hendrixfreak
    I hope you are writing these in a word processing program and saving them.You probably should combine your memories and pictures and put it out on the internets where it will hopefully be forever preserved. Maybe upload the final version to the archive someday.
  • Trainwrecked
    Joined:
    5/9/77
    Any headphone listeners out there? Or maybe you don't need them. I find the bass on this GSTL recording overwhelming. Bertha and Help On the Way are good places to start. I don't get the same thing with the SB I have if this show. I think Jeff Norman boosted it somehow. Anyone else notice it? Garyfarseer - what kind of medicine?
  • hendrixfreak
    Joined:
    The greatest missed show on Earth
    Long story shrunk to size... We had to get home on 10 June 1973 because we were exhausted, dehydrated, broke, without tickets, food, water, anything, so we thumbed back and tried to blend into humanity. I was 15. I lived with my parents, of course, and they needed to see some evidence that I was alive. They never even said a word about my setting out for a multi=day excursion in jeans and a t-shirt. We just did it. We heard the 10 June show was smokin' and we were pissed. We were NOT going to be caught short like that again. No effin' way. So when the news broke of a show with all three of the greatest rock bands of that time -- the Grateful Dead, the Allman Brothers and The Band -- we were on it like white on rice. Tickets cost $10.50? We had 'em. And we'd just seen the Allmans at Madison Square Garden in, May? I smuggled in a bong. A young cop caught me. An older cop said, "Let him go. It's a bong. Don't worry about it." Jesus, this whole law enforcement thing was confusing! But my view was broadening... Late July 1973. The older brother of a hot schoolmate of ours was driving to Watkins Glen. We signed on. Me, Mark L, David W, and a few others. We brought our backpacks. We had a little food. A shit-ton of Numero Uno. No alcohol. I had a sheet of blotter. Someone's adept use of the map enabled us to skirt around the worst of the traffic and we actually accessed the grounds in fine fashion, probably 12 hrs ahead of the hoo-ska-boo that eventually developed. The van's inhabitants split into units and we never saw our driver-host again, until a week later, just before the 31 July - 1 August shows back at Roosevelt Stadium. (Biggies, waiting for release...) So we hike over to the "gate," passing food trucks that specialized in big scoops of weed. We snickered, fully equipped. We were still 15. We entered the gates around midday and for some reason no one took my ticket, so I immediately doubled back to the chain link fence and passed my whole ticket to a have-not. Instinct, communal instinct. Later, my parents said that friends of theirs in Europe had seen footage that included my entrance into the concert site. The stage was perhaps 2/3 of a mile away. As we walked down the gently sloping hill towards the stage it was obvious we were a bit early. In earlier shows we were leery of getting too close because of the physical crush, the volume and the collective high that sometimes ... got a bit hairy. But fresh off missing 10 June, we marched down and claimed a beautiful space about 20 yards from the stage, just a bit left of center. On our way, we'd grabbed a few one-gallon water jugs that were set out free by Bill Graham in response to the scene at RFK in DC 6 weeks earlier. I found myself high on mescaline, laying on my sleeping bag with my head resting on a cool one-gallon jug of potable water and passing a doobie when the crowd sputtered and roared. It was late afternoon and the Allman Brothers had just taken the stage.
  • hendrixfreak
    Joined:
    RFK, June 1973
    Throughout the fall of 1972 and through the winter-spring of 1973 I had ingested numerous psychedelics, including the wonderful agent known as mescaline and naturally a few substantial doses of the Lady Herself. At one point, with my buddy Moose, we were sitting atop a van-sized boulder in a 2,000 acre wooded preserve near home and we focused on the visual margin between the rock beneath us and the ground in the background and felt that we had lifted the boulder upon which we sat perhaps several inches into the air, then lowered it again to its natural resting place. But I digress... June 1973 and me and David W are hitching to RFK in DC about 200 miles away for the 9-10 June 1973 shows. It's summer. So obviously we go in t-shirts, jeans, sneakers, with a ticket and few single dollars/dead presidents in my pocket. Next to the sheet of oval 4-way blotter. A little smokum in the sock, in case we got stopped. Look, we're 15, okay? 16 was months away. We were just up for adventure, loud rock 'n roll and, um, a closer look at the scene. I remember that some of the serious traveling hippies with LSD-dead eyes were there selling pipes, but also passing them around. We had long hair but we were little kids! These folks looked 50 but were probably 20, i.e., impossibly old, grizzled and of unknown origin. But no one actually bothered us, nor was there any attention. Everyone treated us as adults. So we slept on the ground on the grassy parts outside the stadium that night. No water, no food, no equipment. The next day, temperatures climbed towards 100. We were smoking a joint by the grate that blocked one entrance and a black cop motioned us over. We approached cautiously. "Hand me some of that, will you?" he asked. "WHAAAT???" was our initial reaction, having already experienced the pleasure of being cuffed and harassed by the cops for having a beer in the park. Turned out, cops can be cool, too. We burned two with the cat and we bid each other a good day. He was clearly amused by the scene, but in a groovy way. This was 1973 and racism and violence over the Vietnam War made longhairs outcasts, just like minorities of every stripe, then and now. Short story long, me and David split a 4-way and the Dead played that afternoon, opening for the ABB that night. The lines for water were long. We survived on The Lady, a little water and some "Numero Uno" substance we thought was hash but turned out to be opium. Worked for us that day, though, the heat was excruciating and I'm sure a lot of folks needed help in the heat. I got up close for Chinacat at the end of the first set. I was mesmerized. Bobby played a Gibson SG, which in my mind meant "bass guitar." Phil was playing a big possibly semi-hollowbody bass that said to my untutored eyes, "rhythm guitar." But I was already a huge Phil fan (being a Jer fan was too obvious) and this had me confused. At some point some idiot hurled a lit M-80 onto the stage (June 9, right? obviously in close proximity to July 4??) and it rolled up to Jer. In that day, he had a stage mannerism of sort of shuffling in place and I saw him move his right foot forward in perfect time and using the tip of his cowboy boot sent the live M-80 back out over the crowd. I don't even recall hearing it explode. The music was pretty loud.
  • icecrmcnkd
    Joined:
    Nice warmup HF
    Patiently waiting for the grand finale....
  • hendrixfreak
    Joined:
    Backstory and launch....
    The briefest of backstories: Six years old in 1964, persuaded my mom to buy me a Beatles LP at the checkout counter of the local discount store. Played it on monaural phonograph with one 12" speaker output. Rocked as child. 13 years old in 1970, convince mom to drive me and a friend to a Chambers Bros concert. We dug the music but were too young for 'action.' 15 years old, summer of '72, catch The Byrds and New York Rock 'n Roll Ensemble at college outside Saugerties NY where The Band rec'd Big Pink five years earlier. We drove by Big Pink. (Still Pink.) We were 15. (An older brother was actually driving...) Since 1971, been spinning American Beauty and Skull & Roses LPs on the same phonograph as in 1964, only now it's in the basement where our ping-pong table and hang-out couch are located. 19 Sept 1972, I jump in a car full of older heads with an ounce of hash in my pocket, 33 days after my 15th birthday, and we proceed to the Roosevelt Stadium in lovely Jersey City, New Jersey, and catch my first Grateful Dead show. I had already been 'experienced,' but did not drop at this show; too chaotic, large crowd, determined to survive and catch my ride home. I listened for familiar songs, jams, anything -- nothing! Everything was different. Records, shme-cords. This scene was crazy. Maybe 10,000 people screamin' high groovin', freakin', dancin', gyratin', handing you things you knew best to pass along... I was alone in the giant crowd with the music louder but sweeter than anything I'd ever heard before. The music rocked, I just couldn't grab onto a big Jerry jabbin' guitar riff that would remind me of Skull & Roses. Obviously, this was no American Beauty. As Jer once said, recording in a studio is like building a ship in a bottle. Playing live is like being on the ocean in an open rowboat. And that's kinda how I felt -- out there, surfin', knew I'd have to get home ... 3 hours into the show, I do remember saying to myself, "Well, all righty then, damn good show, YOU CAN STOP PLAYING ANYTIME, I'M GOOD. GOTTA GET SOME REST... MUST SNAG RIDE HOME..." Part II, coming ...
  • icecrmcnkd
    Joined:
    Thanks dmcvt
    The photos of the stage show how high it was. Need safety railings to keep the musicians from falling off.
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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.

I agree that listening to this release on headphones is a joy. The nuance in sound is amazing, I got used to the louder drum kit and yes who ever mentioned this was a philfest, I agree. Have not had a chance to crank it on the big boy stereo yet,

disc skips 6.26.73 damn it. That sunshine Daydream Sugar Mag was rockin just a few minutes ago !!!!

I gotta make that dreaded call to customers services line. F%!Ck need replacement disc

On to the Wall of Sound shows finally ! Slowly marinating in this box set. The 1973 shows each had their own flavor and something to offer.

Box of Rain Bird Song

Looks Like Rain Box of Rain

Jack Straw Box of Rain

The next session begins with beat it on down the line. Dire Wolf ~ 5.17.74 ! Super treat !!!!!!

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send me a PM with the details and I'll pass them to the Doc.
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13 years 10 months
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Get 'em while they're hot! This new site, for whatever it is worth, made the process quick and easy!

I was guessing either 10/18/72 Fox Theatre (an all timer!) or the Swing.. solely based on Lemieux's SiriusXM roll-out hype for Dave's Picks 28 when he eluded that #29 was one of the all time great shows and will likely be viewed as the best of the series so far.

But I was not the only one calling for the Swing, I think Keithfan was plugging it not too long ago among others.. It is an all-time great show and one of my favorites from all of 1977.

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In reply to by MDJim

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Alright, goddammit. I'm back but only because this is one of my top three.

I'm not taking any credit, but I did enjoin a very polite refrain requesting 2/26/77 very, very recently. Right around the time they would have been making the final call. Bless 'em!

Deepest, sincerest "Thank you!!!" to Dave, Mac, and TPTB.

God Bless the GOGD!

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I consider myself an expert on the live performances of Money Money. I have listened to every version repeatedly. I am confident in saying the 5/19/74 Money Money is the greatest ever. At the very least it's in the top three.

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I've been marveling at the Grammy-worthy box packaging for weeks now, and have not had one spare minute to digest the music. I see some comments regarding the mix. I'll reach my own conclusions of course. I'm hoping it's not all that bad, just spotty like so many ancient tapes.

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In reply to by One Man

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Gathers what another man spills.
Good to see you, sir!

The mix is spotty, that is all. You will be blown away by the sound stage and presence of these Plangent-processed SBD tapes. Truly magnificent what has been done with these ancient dusty reels!!

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In reply to by Guss West

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Glad to hear that Guss. Kinda weird navigating this new site. Where is my IN box?

Hi Unkle, Thanks for your response! I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who was having trouble hearing Garcia's guitar. There's been some more comments about this issue, and Marye even posted that Dr. Rhino's looking into it, so we''l see what happens. I agree that McIntosh is the way to go when listening to the Dead--especially since it's Owsley-approved, and Garcia always had the glow of blue meters in his rack until very late in his career. I like to think it gets you a little closer to the original sound. It sounds like you have a nice setup, too. Good ol'-fashioned, two-channel systems beat the hell out of a cell phone, crappy earbuds, and lossy mp3s.

Hi MDJim, Thanks for your response! I also thought that if I was getting sound at all, it had to be a problem with the mix. There have been some other recent posts that mention the same Garcia guitar issues, and Marye said that Dr. Rhino is looking into it, so we'll see what happens. While the Dead is truly a group effort whose sum is greater than its parts, and while Garcia was a reluctant leader, without his guitar at least a little bit out front driving and steering the band, some of the magic is inevitably lost.

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Please send me a replacement disc for disc 5 of the boxed set. Mine is defective during China Cat - Rider.

When I say defective, I'm not talking about the mix or missing vocals. The CD skips, gets hung up repeating, stops playing.

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Yes, particularly earlier in the box, the 1973 shows are plagued in spots with strange mixing issues. Whatever is printed on the cd is not "defective," in the disc itself; they chose to burn these shows which undoubtedly had recording issues at the source - loose cable jack into the board/recorder, maybe someone inattentively bumping the faders up and down on the board... at one point, for a few seconds all you hear during one of the "Promised Lands," is Billy's drum track. The vocals and guitar fade in and out and some times the rhythm section is prominent, other times tinny. There is a there there, but I wouldn't allow it to detract from a great box. It's interesting to listen to it like that as much as it is annoying.

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Klay Thompson set the record for most 3-pointers in a game tonight.

Post-game attire? Green sweatshirt with a tasteful Stealie! No doubt influenced by his previous coach, Luke Walton.

Represent!

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What can be done? What will be done? Will they remaster the entire box? Will they send us an "update" that adds Jerry's contribution to the sound? I think not. Nice thought tho, but I highly doubt that anything will be done, take it as it is, or leave it if you dare. I will hold on with my final review until next year, if they haven't done anything by then, nothing will be done. Sad really, no more preorders for me on box sets, listen first, then purchase will be my new coda.

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if you have them, send me a PM with the details and I'll pass them to the Doc. Posting about it in the thread may be suboptimal as there are a lot of posts and it could get lost. Thanks.

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.

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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.

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12 years 3 months

In reply to by Drifter's Escape

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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.

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...

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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.

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In reply to by Charlie3

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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.

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In reply to by marye

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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

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11 years 3 months
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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.

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14 years 11 months
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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 ??

If you need replacements just reply to the email you received with your shipping tracking number.
Within a few hours you will get an automated response (from a robot) and within about 2 days you will get an email telling you that it will take at least 2 weeks due to the high volume of replacements that they have to send out.
That email comes from Eric, who may be a robot, I don’t know because I wasn’t able to see the results of his reCAPTCHA exam.

Speaking of which......

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9 years
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Just to give credit where credit is due, I had a defective disc in this PNW box and have received a replacement without any real hassle after contacting Dr. Rhino via email. If you got a defective disc, I can reassure you that they seem to be making it right. Had defective discs on DaP 28 as well and for that they emailed back an automated form to fill out after I sent Dr. Rhino my initial email. It took about a month for me to receive the PNW replacement disc.

This box is well worth any hassle of replacing defective discs, there is really not a weak show in the box from my point of view. Currently spinning the Portland '73 show and it really hits the spot for me.

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15 years 9 months
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I have now purchased 2 box sets in hopes on having one be completed. I have been in contact with Doc Rhino and now with Daniel, been since September, now I'm told it could be another 2 to 4 weeks... One box is being returned and now I have to submit a form to replace 2 discs on the second box.
So not happy with all the hoops I have had to jump through.

Yes I am still waiting on replacements. Quite frankly, I needed a break for this hassle. I volunteer, with the rehab of injured Dolphins and have not had the time, due to a current visitor.
Maybe people are also strugglin' with new web site.

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by jaydoublu

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Sorry you are having trouble.. nobody likes a hassle. Check your PM.

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12 years 11 months
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So Im finally getting around to listening to and burning these discs and have found at least one defective one. Disc 1 from 6/22/73 skips on jack straw...

Is Rhino issuing replacements for these?

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10 years 10 months
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If anyone is looking for this boxset, shoot me a PM. Mine is mint and I'm selling it for $125 plus shipping and insurance.

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17 years 3 months
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Hello Glocke12

In my box, disc 2 of 6/22/73 is defective. I wrote to Rhino on October 17th. I received an e-mail on November 8th informing me of the shipment of the replacement disk. Today, November 20, I still have not received it.

I am very disappointed.

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17 years 3 months
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I purchased the digital download. After successfully solving an initial issue with the PITB download, I’m now noticing the complete loss of vocal tracks, specifically on Sugaree, Jack Straw and IMHBTR on 5/19. There could be others. Is this normal or a digital glitch?

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by Sinc6

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Hey Sincie.. you are not hallucinating, the vocal dropouts you mention exist on the source master reels.. there are a few more on the first couple songs of a few shows.

Since they exist on the source tapes, there is nothing the digital wizards can do to correct it, short of bringing Jerry back from the dead and have him do a few vocal overdubs.

Happy Thanksgiving all.. I'm thankful someone remember to hit the Record button all those years ago.

I think it was 80sfan that was hyping the China Riders on this box.. Just listened to the PNE 74 version. Wow, smokin'..

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by Charlie3

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One of my more liked bumper stickers back in the day, "At Least I'm Enjoying The Kind"

Yes.. be thankful, be grateful, be kind. Happy Thanksgiving all.

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16 years 4 months
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Finally listening to 6/22/73 from the Northwest box set. Disc 2 has flaw. I notice there are other comments to the same. Is anyone getting replacement discs?? I remember back when that happened to a Dick’s Picks and a replacement disc was sent out without asking.

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9 years
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It took awhile, but I did get a replacement for a defective disc in this box. Probably worth giving the whole box a listen before contacting customer service or Dr. Rhino, as different people seemed to have different defective discs, and sometimes more than one.

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5 years 9 months
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This might be a dumb question but do I get an actual box set by the artist even though I got the digital download?

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by Charlie3

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ahh, yes. 74 Eyes of the World are one of the first things that really got me hooked. It was an early boot I had (Louisville '74) and it has never gotten old.

I keep trying to move on from this box.. (ok, not trying all that hard to do this..), but the way my life is, I have all these little digital compartments to listen to music on. ..and they are all currently loaded with some portion of this box. So without thinking I the handy device I reached for (tonight) happened to have Portland loaded and I listened to the China Rider through WRS>Let It Grow.

Sometimes I think we live in the Garden of Eden.. what a great era, warts and all.

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by MDJim

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..really digging the Weather Report Suites too.. they were only around for something like 13 months.

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7 years 7 months
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The enthusiasm you all have for this music is awesome. May you never lose it. I found an incredible 1976 box with 5 shows on 12 discs for a great price and the sound is excellent. I'm totally digging in.

Got my Rolling Stones tickets. Taking our sons, it will be their first concert. And Grandma is going, too, so there will be three generations there.

I would like it to be the Dead, as well, but the boys are always telling me to turn it off - that and jazz. Their little ears haven't quite gotten wrapped around it all yet, but, Jumpin' Jack Flash gets them going every time.

Hey, it could be worse. At least no one listens to rap in my house.

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11 years 5 months
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I've noticed that the first set of 5/19/74 Portland, that's disk 14 in the Pacific Northwest Box, has three or four songs in which it's very hard to hear the vocals, especially Jack Straw and the next three or four songs. Anybody else notice this? I've tested the disk on different devices so I don't think it's my devices that are causing the problem. Disk 15 is okay, so I think the problem is not with the original recording, it's with the mixing on Disk 14 ?????

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