Grateful Dead

Carlo13, I think JiminMD is right, the price of the July '78 box will only go up once it is sold out. What that means is that you just saved yourself some cash with your responsible spending decision and the only responsible thing to do is keep going and invest your savings in more dead...

Right-o. P.S. once you start with buying boxes it seems you can't stop. It's funny that I already have the giants box and I keep trying not to buy another giants box for some reason before selling out. "It's like eating eating noodles dorf. Once you start, you can't stop."

Deadheadbrewer - I also get much more from the Fall 1973 shows than the ones from the first half of the year - in which I would include the epic summer shows.
I have just had a look at the 1973 Daves Picks so far released, and it seems we have already had two from Spring of the year, with one to follow shortly. And both those shows already released are bogged down with short songs.
We also had three shows in last years box from summer 73. Seems odd that this great era for Dead shows, Fall 73, has been overlooked for so long.

It wasn't that long ago we were complaining about the 8 month gap in releases between February and October 1973 (DP 28 => DP 19). Now the gaps been filled and we're complaining there's not enough from original overstacked period. First world problems lol.

I jest Dave Rock. It has been a while since we've seen something from the autumn and winter, but we did complain about that gap for a long time.

I think the quality of the shows from the Spring Dicks and Daves Picks are really really good. There's a couple of really good Dark Stars and Playing in the Bands. Several of those great Loose Lucies, where the Autumn and Winter only have one. I would argue that the Eyes of the Worlds are better on those Spring releases than the two we got on the Winterland box set. The big missing thing in the spring releases is the full Weather Report Suite. But hey it wasn't ready what can you do.

Those PNW 1973 shows don't sound too good to me. I don't know if it was the person recording the shows or what but they just don't sound as good and I find them hard to listen to so I agree with you there. The first one is decent and has that great Bird Song.

But have you listened to The White Album lately? Tell me that doesn't just get better every year.

I get what you are saying Daverock.. the first sets in '73 are ginormous and seem to be used as testing grounds for their newer material. But I still dig it. 4/2 has risen to one of my favorites.

If you look at most years, or more specifically the years when they were creating new songs and rehearsing. They seemed to take some time off usually big periods between January and April.. They seemed to use it to rehearse and work out the arrangements of new songs, and often to begin cutting studio tracks or at least finalize the arrangements and get the new songs ready for the road. Not a perfect rule, but I believe it's mostly true. So the spring of '73 got all the new material they were keeping from Warner Brothers. So there is a ton of new material and some of it (e.g. Wave That Flag) was not as fully developed as one would like.

Still, it's a creative peak of sorts and I enjoy it because underneath it all, it's still really good but more importantly it lets us take a look under the hood at their creative process as it was evolving.

Just my opinion, I could be wrong. I do like '73 though. There's some great stuff there.

Never saw it.

Oro - Not sure if it was the robot or the girl that appealed to you. If it was the latter, check out Something Wild. Cool Melanie Griffith movie.

.... haven't seen that gem in quite a while. Last time I saw it, my then six year old son walked into the middle of it and asked, "why is she wearing all that black stuff? Looks uncomfortable."
PNW '73. They sound just fine to me. Thankful I'm not cursed with the audiophile ear. Otherwise, I'd never be satisfied with 45 year old recordings.

I was checking out 7/78 box comments and David was as interesting as he is annoying. We need you back on the next box set.

Too many songs? I don't know. I never went to a show and thought man, I wish they played less. We always wanted more and in 73 they gave you way more. And I agree Jim, the Boston Garden show is one of the best. Let's hope The Spectrum tops it.

Both! Lol I’ve always liked M. Griffin, and I’ve seen Sonething Wild, I recall it wasnt awesome, but pretty good, but I was referring to the Actress Pamela Gibley, who also stared in twin peaks. But since you’ve made me think about it, I guess the whole idea of the domestic robot, or like the main protagonist, specifically, the cherry 2000 model of domestic robot! Which is the premise for why he goes to such lengths to fix/replace her. Here’s the trailer....
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vBOiZ-ukS7Q

Several of you had interesting, diverse comments on....I can also understand Daverocks POV and I even feel that a bit for 72 also. But I don’t need to always hear whole shows, and the meat & potatoes stuff in the second sets for me is so strong that I don’t get hung up on the 1st sets. Huge Dark Stars, great HCS, those awesome Eyes with the cool jazz jams etc. Anyone who knows me, knows the weirder the better for me, and the Jazzy Dead is tops.
Spring 73 I pretty much knew nothing about until 4/2 came out. At first I was disappointed only because it was something at the time that wasn’t on my short list. But like any release now I got past that closed minded horse shit once I “listened to the music play”.....then I scored the Scooby Doo house which so far, if pressed, I’d prolly call my favorite Dave’s, but I still haven’t heard them all yet,....I guess what I’m trying to say is the more I am familiar with spring 73, the more I dig it, so I’m really stoked for 32....Summer 73 I’m still pretty ignorant about. I have PNW, but haven’t really had a chance to get down and dirty with yet, and I’ve heard 6/10/73 off the archive, in the background while working one day, and though I liked it, it didn’t blow me away like the fall/winter 73 shows do. That tour has always been perhaps my favorite, if I really, really was forced to pick only one. So yeah, count me as one who’d love more from late 73...but I’m good with pretty much any 73 that kicks ass, hell I’ll take any show that has the golden yummies!

Deadvikes - how about if they had played more and sang less? I never saw them in 73, I should say, I am just going off the live cds and tapes I have heard.

Curiously, 1969 shows work in the opposite way. They started off by refining the music played during 1968, and in the process created some of the most sublime music ever to come out of an amplifier. From June onwards, though, they start moving away from the jams towards more song based sets.

Typically, the Dave's Picks released from 1969, like the ones from 1973, have been from the weaker half of the year. In fact there have been literally no releases on Dave's Picks from this first golden age of Dead shows, which for me ran from about Fall 1967 until approximately May 1969. Maybe Dave prefers the songs to the jams.

This was available, as a pre-order on Ebay, with the existing cover, on 10/17. It took a few more days for that information to be released "officially" on Dead.net. Might explain why so many copies of Dave's 31 went missing from the warehouse and a bunch that do not have serial numbers on them were shipped instead.

DaP 32 was announced, with the cover picture, on 10/8 in the GD Bulletin. The cover picture on eBay probably was copied and pasted from the Bulletin.

No arguing with your thought process DR, I love the way you think.

I don't know why more of 1969 has not been released. There seems to be plenty of masters in the vault and you are correct, there is some good shit to be had, extend that back into '68 - the more the merrier. I have read (I think) comments from both Dave and Dick that 1969 is not quite as commercially appealing as say 72 forward. I suspect that's the case but am not sure. Perhaps they are not 100% happy with the sound quality (4/18/70 comes to mind??)? I of course love Winterland 69, but also DP 16, Fillmore Auditorium, Big Rock Pow Wow.. and all of the 68 releases to date are outstanding in my humble opinion.

73 is a different beast. I think we have to write-off most of the September horns tour, the 9/11/73 William and Mary show might be the best (and I think Bruce Hornsby's first show), but for the most part they don't seem to find their groove and the horns can be a bit distracting. A lot of the other fall shows have been released. If we consider 10/19/73 to be the start of the fall / winter tour, there were 27 shows, 11 of which have been released as either DP, Box Sets (Winterland and 30 Trips) and DaP's. The Spring Tour has 20 shows (Maples through Boston), five of which have been released.

I think all this ties into Dave spreading out the shows so we have quality shows released each year until they run out or decide to pull the plug. 12/18/73 is big on my wish list, and why haven't the April 69 Ark shows been released? So while I completely agree with you, there might be more to this and I fully suspect we will get more spring 69 and fall 73 in the months and years to come.

..but come on Lemieux, Ark Ark (who's there).. Boston 69.

Best Melanie Griffith scene ever was in the small movie with Paul Newman called Nobody's Fool - based on a Richard Russo book. Good flick. The great scene is when she flips up her sweatshirt and flashes a group of guys. Might even top Phoebe Cates from Fast times...

Your not wrong about that scene, but I actually really liked how she played that character in general. The playfall energy between her Newman and the dynamic between them and Bruce Willis was great. I’m a huge Russo fan, and that is a favorite. The movie is great also, partly because it stays mostly faithful to the book, unlike so many other movies based on great books. How many times have you been psyched to see a movie based on a favorite book and after felt like WTF? We’ve had the pleasure of seeing Russo and he’s almost as interesting as some of his great characters in his books. (I say that in a good way) I identify with his characters similarly to how I relate to deadheads.
He was most gracious about our goofy requests to personalize book signings too. Great Author for those unfamiliar!

...I concur Jimbo - I heard one of the Ark Shows for the first time over the weekend on Sirius - and it was literally jam packed with almost no fluff. The sound was impeccable. This should come out - I know the bark for an Ark Box has been loud in the lurking corners here....it would be a welcome addition.

This was the show I heard the other day, the first of the 3 nights in Boston for this run. They hit all the highs. And, apparently, the only time they ever played any Hendrix - well, at least a little snippet of 'Foxy Lady' at the second set commencement:
https://archive.org/details/gd1969-04-21.sbd.miller.88465.sbeok.flac16

Sixtus

No link to Melanie huh? Fine, I'll Google it ;-)

I like the released Spring and Fall '73 equally. I do agree with Daverock about the sound on the Pacific Northwest '73 stuff. Jerry often low / Billy's symbols often high. Makes it a little less easy on my ears. Wish it all sounded the same to me like it does Vguy. I also personally find the 2nd and 3rd PNW 1973 shows a little less awesome than DP 28 and DaP 16 & 21.

I was listening to Download Series 1973 over the weekend. The sound there isn't great. Lotta tape hiss. Like back in the 80s when you asked a buddy to make a tape for you - could be anything, AC DC Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap - and a week later they hand you over a copy recorded on a normal bias tape.

I thought I remember reading on the notes inside the '69 show from boxzilla that Dave stated that there are not that many '69 shows available in good quality. I may be wrong (I usually am). Now that I think about it, he may have said that about '68 shows. My brain only functions properly about 2 hours a week. In any case, they have received a lot more tapes since then, so who really knows for sure, besides Dave.
I will never complain about ANY release, but pre-'72 shows......gimme all you got!! Thanks Dave (for everything!!).

Jim-interesting that you have read that 1969 may not be as commercially appealing as post 72 shows. I wonder if this is partly due to the fact that the set lists are more limited than in the later years. They do look similar on paper...but to me they are all unique and worthy of a listen.

I also agree that those Ark shows from April 69 are incredible. I was lucky enough to have tapes of those back in the early 90s. Variable sound quality, I have to say, and the one with the Hendrix snippet was the worst in that respect. But great music. Crazy version of Viola Lee Blues from that show, if I remember rightly.

Treat - DaP 32 starts arriving on Thursday or Friday

Trick - “Sorry about your order, but the new warehouse lost it. Fill out this form, and then we’ll ignore it and keep your money”

My incredible clairvoyant abilities sez:

no one will have any problems with DaP32. None.

No shipping blues.

Please!!! Ship my Giants Box set I bought 2 months ago!! Please

I'm currently spinning that 6/26/73 Vancouver show from the PNW box after reading the references on this thread. I haven't listened in a while and wanted to see if the sound issues and deficiencies noted here proved to be distracting to my enjoyment. Thing is, I keep losing track and enjoying the music, so apparently I don't find the sound issue too distracting. It may help that I am a fiend for just about everything from the dead or Jerry from '73, so there's that.

I recieved two copies today. Opened one and powered up my amps nice and warm and pushed play on my personal system. Oh my! pRIMO isn’t even close to explaining this new mix, just gratefuly beautiful , well worth the 41 years of waiting for this release! I’m all ears my Grateful Dead Fans, I’m pretty sure everyone is going to agree the sound of Daves Pick 32 is top-notch my brothers & sisters! Peace be with you all, have a grateful week and an even an equally gratefully where’s Bruce Lenny when you need him ...🤡holoween 2019 🙏❤️😎💀🌹💀🌹

Can you please tell me how many minutes and seconds the Jam and the Dark Star are? I'm curious where they divided it up, since they run into each other.

Sure, right.

https://giphy.com/gifs/opinion-the-big-lebowski-well-thats-just-like-yo…

I found Dp 1 online for $25 it's got a pic. Of the liner notes and it showed 198? Or 1990. It was hard to read but was wondering what price it would go for if it is real? It's probably a copy with orig. Liner notes mabey.

Yeah that's a great question. How long did they actually make the Dark Star and how long do they make the Jam?

I just had an opportunity to listen to part of that 10/12/68 show at the Avalon you mentioned the other day. You have to understand, I've been on the hunt for years, searching for an Eleven that comes even close to Two From The Vault. A lot of people on the message boards and that Heady Version site say the previous night at the Shrine is top dog (i.e. 8/23/68), but I don't hear it. I picked that one up a couple of years ago, and while it's good, it's not, IMHO, in the same ballpark as TFTV. This guy's close.

I'm also reminded how impactful a mix can be. I think a lot of what we consider the good the bad and the ugly is rooted in the recording itself. In this case, I hear the power coming not just from the band as a whole, which of course it largely is - they just smoke; but Billy and Mickey are also way up in the mix - maybe louder than I've ever heard them. That's always going to give a show some cowbell. Oh hey, I made the cowbell joke and we're actually talking about drummers, one of whom uses a lot of cowbell. How bout that. See what happens when you don't get enough sleep? Babble city.

Now what should I name this sucker? October At The Avalon? Avalon Electric? Primal Dead '68? Exceeds Expectations? (wait, wait, no, that one's taken already :D The Dead Strike Eleven? Powerful Show Was This....Powerful Show....

Great recommendation, thanks Sixtus.

Don’t forget what/where your listening on will influence the sound too!

.... the ‘Jam’really starts/begins with ‘Trucking’ 🙏😎💀🌹

Very powerful show-it came out on cd recently. With no keyboard textures from Pigpen, who didn't play at this gig, or TC , who hadn't joined yet, it a hot guitar, bass and double drum explosion.

Daverock, where can I get 10/12/68 on CD? I wasn't aware.

What's the minutes and seconds for Jam and Dark Star? It's on the CD.

MLB-I just got it from Amazon. UK that is. Its one of the multitude of FM releases that have come out over the last few years from sources unknown. Maybe they aren't available in the US.

I've got a lossless copy of the Charlie Miller transfer. If anyone would like it.. PM me and I will get it to you.

I'm sure it's as good as the bootleg CD version floating around, maybe even better.

How October 12, 1968 has eluded release for as long as it has. Dave's Picks 6 already shows us that they're willing to put two shows on one 3-disc Dave's Picks. I'm more amped about this show than I was for the Greek Theater 30 Trips release. Mind blown.

Daverock , I noticed Pigpen's distinctive organ melody was missing from Dark Star. But then I thought it was him playing the washboard, maybe due to some organ problem, abd Mickey on the maracas. Then later you can hear someone say I thought we were doing alligator, but it ended up being death has no mercy. He must have been off playing grab-ass with Janis.

Confucius say: He who takes all shrimps commits shellfish act.

...I mean, you KNOW when you HEAR IT!

As noted this is one of those.

It just SMOKES.

Take Jimmy up on his delivery, the Charlie Miller is absolutely fantastic.
Even as a solo disc release, this would knock anyone's psychedelic socks right off their toes.

Glad to make the recommendation and happier for the enthusiastic uptake.
Sixtus

P.S. SUBCRIBE! 2020 sign up has landed

https://store.dead.net/dave-s-picks-2020-subscription.html?eml=2019Octo…

Dave’s 33 🧐

You're not going to get that information today because he doesn't have it. He's already thrown in one nonsense reply to a simple question.

Is "Butch" for Butch Trucks?

Are about to be announced. The page doesn't open but there it is in the Dave's Picks store and $75 😲 listed price. Hmmm.

Definitely onboard again. Subscribing is the way to go.

Smokin hot show from start to finish

10.29.77

St. Stephen

FINALLY. Been saying this is a top-3 '77 show for a long time. Eyes rivals 9/3 and 5/22. Slow and jazzy. Sick sick show.

According to Deadbase 10, this show occurred in the middle of the Mickey and the Hartbeats shows, when Bob Weir and Pigpen were unceremoniously "kicked out of the band". Whether this accounts for Pig's absence seems unclear. They played Lovelight on 10/20/68, according to the good book, and certainly it wasn't long before both the injured parties were back in their rightful places. Not the best of decisions the band ever made, it has to be said. Getting rid of them I mean.

Ah, that explains it, thanks.

Am I missing something or did they not announce the first pick for 2020? I thought that happened the day subscriptions went up for sale.

I really loved this year's picks, cheers Dave and all involved, looking forward to another great year. The first one is 10-29-77