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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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  • Slow Dog Noodle
    Joined:
    Shipping Costs
    What's with all the international shipping cost gripe posts? Is anyone really surprised that it costs an arm and a leg to ship one of these things around the globe and none of these transactions are ever executed smoothly? Haven't you people read any Kafka? I'm willing to debate more topics than most on this board, but the peccadilloes of shipping firms international tax and fee policies is where I draw the line. Good day sirs.
  • boblopes
    Joined:
    Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
    Excellent Book, much better than the movie, though I like the grundgy movie and Daryl Hannah is hot as Pris and Rutger Hauer was an awesome villian... LedHed, never heard of the 3P's - Back in my college concert production days we used 7 P's: Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance Sorry to hear that you get to experience the "Stamp Tax". As the Bostonian in me that drives by the site of the Boston Massacre, the snarkiness in me says "payback' a bitch" - but only in jest... As KG pointed out, maybe worthy to get the digital medium. Just like last night's Family Guy, I am kidding, it's only a joke ;) I see the point of all people's comments (opinions/personal preferences) regarding era's, song evolution, jamming. I'm from the camp that wants the "creme de la creme" put out there regardless of era. I want the best recordings of the best shows no matter the lineup. I trust Dave in his deadication to putting out what's worthy while dealing with all the variables & requests he has to juggle while working a business model that will continue for years on end while letting some very worthy shows see the light of day. I forgot who mentioned the point of the Dead retiring after 1977. My Favorite JGB era is 1978 - I love Donna and Maria singing with Jerry. I wish more releases would see the light of day from that tour. The Capitol show someone mentioned a few years back was awesome. Seems like they're more into the artwork releases. I'd be psyched if they'd do another Pure Jerry run (re-release) so I could fill in the blanks of the shows I passed on at the time... I would love each and every show was given the plangent treatment. Still loving the new release but still stuck on repeat on the early shows, which is not a bad thing ;) Anyone make it to the hidden vault to get the golden key?
  • LedDed
    Joined:
    The three P's...
    Which are, of course, Purple, Priest, and priorities. Saw Purple and Priest last night with some band called, The Temperance Movement. Amazing, amazing singer like a young, snarly Chris Robinson. Decent band, could use better songs. Next was Priest. I say they are tighter without tired, old-ass Glenn Tipton. Richie Faulkner is a metal god. At 67, Rob Halford has lost absolutely nothing, and he stands as the finest metal singer of all-time. There is absolutely no arguing that point. At 73, Deep Purple's Ian Gillan has lost much of the power he commanded right on through the 1980s. He was a shrieker for the ages. However, he uses what voice he has left wisely and he delivered a fine performance. People say his voice is shot, well, no, that would be Ian Anderson and Don Dokken. I now accept Steve Morse into the band. The only knock being, he isn't Ritchie Blackmore. Ritchie can't play his way out a wet paper bag these days. He's even more faded than Ian Gillan. It has to be said, Ian Paice remains a monster. My God, how he still flies around the top of that Paiste kit is a thing to behold. Oh yeah, last, priorities: if your priority is to avoid endless postal/shipping hassles on official Dead releases, move to the United States.
  • simonrob
    Joined:
    Faulty translation...
    Indeed there are sometimes enormous differences between US English and EU English but no, this invoice was entirely in the Dutch language. It is apparent to me that something went catastrophically wrong during the development of the Dutch language, making it nigh on impossible to express things as one would like to. Even most Dutch people seem to have great difficulties with it. The grammar is mostly impossible for mere mortals to master. Hey, didja see that I slipped in a cool bit of alliteration there? And on a Monday, too.
  • MDJim
    Joined:
    Re: Worthless
    What a trip.. My guess is if we ever got to the bottom of it, the letter was generated by an eager, yet ill equipped person trying to work their up at UPS International, most certainly having the title Financial Analyst II. Their resume now reads, "Targeted and developed outreach program that identified for collection €13M from Import Duty avoiding hippies." Hopefully by the year they will reach their lifetime ambition of being a Financial Analyst III. We can only hope... ________________ Did someone mention Dicks Picks 8, Harpur College? Yes.. a worthy a show, incredible. I'd imagine it periodically floats to the top on lots of peoples favorite show list. It's currently half-played on my phone (which I use in my truck).. currently on pause in the middle of It's A Mans, Mans, Mans World. .but it wouldn't mean nothing, nothing, ..without a woman or a girl. Love that tune.. love that show. Explosive.
  • MDJim
    Joined:
    Palate Cleanser
    ..sort of. If you need a break from the box and want to try something different, this show's unique (oxymoron I know... but). It's a Charlie Miller, relatively recently seeded show (less than two years ago). There are two unknown guests sitting in, a sax player and a fiddle player. Listening to the interplay on Dark Star, they seem to have a deep understanding of the music. We wouldn't hear noises like this on Dark Star until the midi days 20 years later. As an added bonus, the sound is quite good for the era - definitely release worthy. David Gans brought it up on The Golden Road yesterday which piqued my interest. https://archive.org/details/gd1969-08-03.137365.sbd.miller.eaton.flac24… 08/03/69 Family Dog at The Great Highway - San Francisco, CA Set 1: Hard To Handle Beat It On Down The Line Hi Heeled Sneakers High Time Mama Tried Dark Star Alligator Drums Alligator Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) And We Bid You Goodnight ok.. back to our regularly scheduled 1973 and 1974 flavored programming.
  • gerhard
    Joined:
    UPS/worthless
    After paying $ 63.98 for shippimg and handling when ordering, I had to drive two hours to the next UPS depot and pay about $ 70 for tax and UPS fees to get my salmon box. That's really a lot, I think, for even this box. (And by the way: Though liking 73 and 74 a lot, but so many songs without vocals is no fun at all. Sorry.)So to those in command: please, please, please no UPS morning glory delivery no more, please never ever! Nevertheless looking forward to the next Dave's Picks, the 2019 subscription and the next 2019er big box.
  • Kayak Guy
    Joined:
    Worthless...
    could it be a faulty translation from US english to EU english?
  • simonrob
    Joined:
    Worthless...
    As I mentioned earlier, having paid UPS a ransom to get them to release my box, I subsequently received an invoice from them for the same amount in the post. Amongst other things it said that this amount should be paid immediately and threatened sanctions and surcharges if I failed to do so. Today I called UPS customer service to hear what they had to say about it. It only took 12 minutes on hold to get through to a human. The friendly woman on the other end of the line was quite happy to explain that I had indeed already paid and didn't have to pay a second time and that the invoice was purely for my personal bookkeeping. She also added that the wording on the invoice is "confusing". Right. Why send an invoice when a receipt would have been somewhat more appropriate?
  • Jason Wilder
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    Joined:
    Shows vs Mix
    In the never ending debate about the "best" era of Dead, I think it is fair to say to each his own. But I would push back strongly on the idea that post Keith & Donna Dead was mediocre. It certainly was MUCH better than that. Now, there were certainly some low points ('83, '84, '86, and the last couple of years in the '90s for certain). Even then, there was some spectacular moments (Unbroken, etc). I think the Songs vs. Jams camp is easier to see. Jams camp is gonna say '69 is tops. No later than '74. Songs camp will say later. Bobby thinks '89-'90 was tops for many the songs, and I tend to agree with him on a lot of tunes. Certainly, there was much better variety in the 80's with less repetition. Maybe lost some jamming, but anyone who listens to the Hornsby era and says no interesting jams is not paying attention. Ditto late Brent. I will say that the quality of the mixes declined a lot in the 80's. That is no in dispute. Get a good AUD tape (or a matrix) and you are better off than with a SDBD.
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6 years 9 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.

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7 years 9 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Most of these shows circulate.. you just gotta poke around.

Even though I gave up my iPhone and switched to a Galaxy I still use iTunes to manage my digital music. There is a gapless playback option.. and all my other devices including my phone play without that annoying gap.

Most of these shows circulate pretty freely.. you just gotta poke around. Find a show you like using the archive and built an inventory of the lossless digital files. Just say NO to MP3's.. Flac, Alac or Wav's... a 4TB external drive is like $89. That's enough space for a lossless copy of every dead show ever performed.. and then some.

I know.. sounds easy, but poke around a bit and if you are a digital novice.. it's not that hard, a little patience until you climb the learning curve and then it's easy.

Hey.. D&C are playing in Mexico tonight, I think.. mmmm

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17 years 6 months
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The individually numbered certificate is in the small wooden box.

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8 years 1 month

In reply to by Alain

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Thank You, Unfortunately the small wooden box was empty.

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7 years 9 months

In reply to by mmckenna

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Mine came packed with a small but potent bud and a little teeny tiny vial marked blue cheer. Wonder what that's all about?

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7 years 1 month

In reply to by MDJim

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Jim,

I would be happy to do an investigation for you. I think you have my address. Just forward the box and all contents my way. I will run tests and let you know what it is.

KCJ

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16 years 3 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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The small wooden box that came with this set has your limited edition number (my #: 11593) open it up and you've got some more artwork and a note from Roy Vickers. The box could be useful in several ways just as long as you keep it in the larger box: bud stash!
I like it.
All the music contained in this collection is fantastic. a great box and I am grateful for its release.

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10 years 5 months
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2,154 Left

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17 years 6 months

In reply to by Automaticslim

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You guys are Grammy winners in my book... no doubt! This Box is spectacular... I thank each and every one of you that had a hand in bringing this complete package to my doorstep. It is proudly displayed in MY house as if it were a Grammy! I look forward to your next creation.
iG

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6 years 7 months
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I still regard myself as a bit wet behind the ears when it comes to knowing about the best of anything but I would seriously die a happy man if the last piece of music I heard was the bridge between China/rider from Portland 5/19/74 . It gives me goosebumps just writing about it 🇨🇳😺🚴‍♂️

If you are a bit wet behind the ears, Perithecat, I wouldn't think of checking out just yet-you have a long and happy future ahead of you.

1. GD - DaP 29 Swing Aud.
2. Strawbs - 1st album to 'Nomadness' on shuffle
3. Caravan - In The Land Of Grey And Pink
4. GD - 2/21/71 Capitol Theatre/Port Chester, NY
5. Doc & Merle Watson - Never The Same Way Once (too many good shows to name just one!)

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13 years 6 months
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Good morning Heads! Not sure how many people are keeping up with this thread as there’s always something new to ponder and get geeked about!! First, I think this box is pure joy and delight and find something new everytime I pick a show to groove to and dissect. Has anyone else experienced the vocal track fading out/pretty much dropping beginning in Sugaree in disc 14 from Portland 5.19.74? Thanks for letting me know. I’m not sure if it is the system I am playing it through or fault with the recording. Your insight is most appreciated. Enjoy the day and weekend!

Sadly it’s in the recording , but don’t let that put you off it’s a truly wonderful show , I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again the bridge between China/rider gives me goosebumps just writing about it let alone listening to it 😸😸😸

Sadly it’s in the recording , but don’t let that put you off it’s a truly wonderful show , I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again the bridge between China/rider gives me goosebumps just writing about it let alone listening to it 😸😸😸

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13 years 6 months

In reply to by perithecat

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Thank you so much for your response. I’m kinda just a bit obsessive about sound, aren’t we all on these threads!, 😀 and glad to know it is not just me but the master tapes. It was your comments about the China—>Rider bridge that made me go back to this show to hear it again. Peace and thanks.

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9 years 2 months

In reply to by TLEO 77

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Got it on vinyl recently.
Sounds awesome!
And yes, the vocals drop out is there too.

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10 years 3 months
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Did anyone get the Playing in the Band from this show that came out on vinyl last year? I saw it on ebay in the early hours and had a poke round to see if there were any references to it. I couldn't find any, so I decided to take a punt anyway. It reminds me of the Dark Star from Paris 5/4/72 that came out on vinyl a while back, in that it is just that one track, split into two sides during drums. That works for me, so I have high hopes for this one.

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9 years 2 months

In reply to by daverock

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I got it, I think it was $20 or $22.
I don’t recall that the flip is during Drums, I think that it’s between a slow, low volume section.
I do recall that I enjoyed listening to it. :)

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10 years 3 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Yes, that makes sense - Playing doesn't normally feature drums anyway. I think you got a real bargain-I paid the equivalent of 26 dollars, which was still considerably cheaper than everyone else was selling it for.

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5 years 10 months
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6/24/73 is so smoking to me , this dark star into eyes is AMAZING! I’m surprised the dark star didn’t make the cut for the compilation but it’s still an amazing selection from these 6 shows to create the 3 cd compilation. Some incredible mind bending jams inside this treasure chest!;)

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10 years 11 months
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No vocals on "El Paso" some how they must of had Bob's mic off or way down May 17, 1974 – P.N.E. Coliseum, Vancouver, British Columbia Disc 14

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5 years 3 months
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Ordered this 12/2 for a Christmas present. Has not shipped yet! Keep getting useless auto replies. Very frustrating. Highly disappointed in the customer service and the experience

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4 years 11 months
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Waited over 2 months to get this and when I went to go listen I was missing disc #15. Have tried emailing costumer service and haven’t received any response. Please help! Would really like that disc.

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May the force be with you, brother, sorry about your missing disks. I have a couple of defective ones and 2 months later, no word of a replacement.
Theres an interesting article on the web about a company by the name of Direct Shot that most of the major labels have put in charge of all physical media distribution. About the same time this happened, Dead.net customer service went straight in the toilet and has not emerged - “warehouse consolidation” indeed. What is disappointing is that nobody at Dead.net has made a direct statement (at least that I have seen) that they are aware of the problem thats been allowed to drag on. The loyal Dead fanbase deserves a straight answer about the problem and when our outstanding issues will be rectified.
Jerry would be very unhappy about how we’ve been treated.

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9 years 2 months

In reply to by aardvark2300

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Here’s the statement that was emailed several weeks ago.

—————-
Cause when things go wrong, wrong with you, it hurts me too
It's been quite a year and we know how patient you have been, how patient you still are. It has always been, and will always be, our mission to provide the best service to you, the fans. As you are more than likely aware, a complex warehouse move resulted in a significant backlog of orders and while that warehouse is working as quickly as they can to deliver, we've turned 100% of our focus and dedication toward a new facility which promises to restore peace to the Dead.net community in the next few months. Trust us, this steam locomotive is rolling down the track!
————

You can try sending a PM to Marye now,.

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5 years

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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(I think) I have successfully sent a PM to MARYE kind of hard to tell, pretty strange PM system on this forum - thanks for the suggestion. We'll see what happens.

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4 years 11 months

In reply to by aardvark2300

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Yeah, this PM system is a little weird. I was able to message Marye and got the missing disc. Have really been enjoying these shows. Good luck resolving your issues!

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13 years 8 months
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I have had two Dave’s Picks go everywhere but to my address........which for some reason didn’t include my apartment # ............therefore no delivery..........One arrived months later.......and a second one #32 is in transit supposedly and maybe arriving shortly. I had to file with the Better Business Bureau over this foolishness. Which seemed to get a quicker response from The Dead Store......To which I say good luck to all whom have problems with The Dead Store Customer Service.......I have been through the phone calls .....the emails........and calling Warner’s main office to no avail.......it is a sad situation.........

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10 years 8 months
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Check out Rhino for sale through this weekend

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4 years 3 months
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Testing with Lossless Audio Checker shows the June 1976 FLAC download in 24/192 format ( https://store.dead.net/music/digital/june-1976-flac-192-24-1.html ) and the Pacific Northwest '73-'74- The Complete Recordings FLAC download in 24/192 ( https://store.dead.net/music/boxed-sets/pacific-northwest-73-74-the-com… ) to be "Upsampled." I have notified Jeffrey Norman and Rhino. I sent Jeffrey the logs of the LAC test results showing 80% of the June 76 files being upsampled. While he was very nice in his response, he had no explanation for the finding. Rhino has not responded to any e-mails. It is important to note that the files on both test “Clean” after downsampling to 24/96, which, likely, means the files, were originally digitized at 24/96 or digitized at 24/192 and downsampled to 24/96 for mastering. Whatever the case Rhino needs to disclose this fact on their web site or change the files for sale to 24/96.

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17 years 6 months
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The hour or so of music from He's Gone through the end of Wharf Rat is one of the top 5 hours of music the dead ever played.

There, I said it. This box is worth every penny for that hour of music alone.

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... just wanted to share how delighted I am with the music in this set, and encourage anyone who’s not taken the plunge to just go ahead and get it already.

There’s been some chatter in another thread about how long it’s taking to sell out this box, and all I can say is that, as much as I love ’73 and ’74, I didn’t order mine till Rhino put it on sale. Maybe some people are settling for the 3-disc version, which is understandable, given the difference in price and given that they did manage to include some very high highlights (including the 45 minute PITB!) in that set.

Also causing some hesitation for me was the packaging. Don’t get me wrong: it’s beautiful! The art work is amazing. But speaking as someone who already has problems finding shelf space for my CDs, I wasn’t sure where I’d put this giant box. (In case anybody upstairs is listening: I thought the June 1976 box really hit the sweet spot between packaging that was elaborate enough to make the box feel special but also small enough to not cause problems.)

Anyway, the music. The MUSIC. For me, this era was flat out the best the band ever sounded, and it’s an incredible joy to hear them in such fine audio. There are a few “surprises,” the kind of vocal drop outs and oddities in the mix that would’ve rated a “caveat” back in the Dick’s days. Mostly, these are very temporary, and in all cases the sound is really really good once everybody settles in. As usual, Jerry’s louder than Bob, but you can hear them both very distinctly, and they constantly (constantly!) are playing their asses off. Phil’s on fire throughout. And BK? He makes a solid case here that the Dead never needed another drummer. Keith comes through nicely, and plays well. I suppose we could say that the vocals were erratic during this period, and I would admit that’s true here. But the singing is mostly good to great, and man oh man, the band sounds fantastic!

I’ve only listened to each show once so far—given the complaints about missing discs and whatnot, I felt like I should make a point of listening all the way through to make sure nothing was amiss—so I’m not really ready to call out a favorite show, or even favorite tunes. But I will say that the PITBs, the Bird Songs, the Eyes, the China-Riders are all, for me, as good as they get. Their playing was so spontaneous, so open, so powerful, so much soul, so imperfectly perfect.

Yes, I suppose there are other, equally worthy eras. But man, ’73 and ’74 were beautiful.

I keep going back to this box - superb. Especially the 1974 shows. I went so far as to get 5/19/74 and the Playing in the Band from 5/21/74 on vinyl. There are a few problems with vocals on both, but this matters not a jot. The playing, as you say, from all band members, is absorbing. After 1970 they only needed Bill on drums.

I also agree with icecrmcnkd - a box of October 1974 with bells and whistles would make a great release.

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17 years 5 months
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I just received my edition of the Northwest Complete Recordings 73 74. Showed up without tracking or any email confirmations . So Glad You Made It. Can't Wait.

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3 years 5 months
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Is this box now sold out? They list it, but it seems like that is just some old data. Great set. I love it, but I don't have it physically. Not a huge deal, but it is very lovely.

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https://store.dead.net/pacific-northwest-73-74-the-complete-recordings-19-cd-boxed-set-1.html