Grateful Dead

My favourite show is the one from 1967. I have only played the 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71 and 1990 shows this year, and I have enjoyed all of them all. After 1967, I would say 1968 and 1969 are the next two favourites. Maybe 1970, too- brilliant Other One there. I am sure the 1972, 1973 and 1974 ones are exemplary, too, but I cannot honestly recollect what they are like at this moment in time.

Its also nice digging in the corners, as Jim suggests, and finding a shining star where you least expect it.

Is going to look great on the shelf, feel great in the hands, and sound AMAZING. I am Grateful.

LOVE the 1967 from TTATS--best show ever? The '68 is fantastic. And then I am grateful for all the later shows in that box, particularly '82-'84 and '93-'95. The 1969-1978 shows are good, but we have so much from those years that my ears are thankful for the opportunity to hear sweet shows from the years we haven't heard much from.

If I were a robot, couldn't I easily work around a basic CAPTCHA?

My favorites mirror some of those already mentioned.. especially 67, 70, 69 and (surprise) 74. 75 is very interesting also.

..but for me it's those shows that are off the beaten path that I sort of get the most mileage from.. 84 and 87 for example might just be the best shows played in their respective years and are super high energy. I could use a few less patches, but I enjoy the box very much.

As mentioned on the Dave's Picks 31 thread, it looks like Dead.net got hacked and had to pay £73.92 in ransomware COD to some UPS guy with a Russian accent. Strange days..

Have a great week all..

LMG, check your PM.

Oh, can't leave off 68, 76, 77, 78, 71, 72, 73.. Riverbend 85 is fun. 86 has a really sweet Comes a Time out of TOO. 91 with Branford.. 67 and 70 are my favorites though, if I had to pick.

11/10/67, 2/22/69, 4/25/77, 10/20/68, 4/15/70 mainly listen to the Drums> Soul Sacrificish Jam> The Other One, but great Man Man Man's World, too.

Hard for me to narrow to just 3 because they are all nice shows.

I pretty much listen to everything I have from the Dead at least once per year on or near anniversary dates (for the most part), but here's 3 I like...

9/10/91 MSG
10/26/89 Miami Arena
9/18/74 Dijon

...but I also like these 3...

2/22/69 Dream Bowl
10/20/68 Greek
10/27/79 Cape Cod

...and of course EVERYTHING else.

I couldn't see myself discounting any show from this set. All have plenty to like for me.

As someone who came onboard during the 3rd decade of the band's existence, my initial preferences were the Pigpen and Brent era's. As I've dug deeper, mainly thanks to these releases, I like it all. Every era.

Of the 50 shows I saw with Jerry, a few in '95 were kind of rough, especially the last two at Soldier Field. If released I'd still want them. Even the US Blues that Jerry pretty much gave up on at the second to last show.

At the time of going to shows, the only other time (besides a few in '95) I felt the show was subpar was 3/13/93. The follow-up to Rosemont which I would agree was a nice run. Upon further listening many years later I find that even this show was really good. Terrapin through the end was top notch, including one of the GREAT Stella Blue's.

My main hangup has always been lack of variety in official releases, and now that is no longer an issue. Love it all but my sweet spot is 65-95 with emphasis on '87-'91.

Budgetary constraints has limited my ability to be a completionist, and I'm quite a few behind, but at least try to keep up as best as possible as new things come out. Missed out on much of the Record Store Day releases.

I find myself playing 9/28/75 Lindley Meadows the most....probably 9/18/74 Dijon France and the 3/18/71 Fox Theatre a lot... hope that helps.... there are so many good choices... bob t

****First off--LMG, stay positive and get well soon****

Friends, looking for some feedback on the 30 Trips Box Set...in your opinion, what are your favorite 2-3 shows from the box. Appreciate your responses...

I got in the bus in mid 1992, and from then until 1995 I only had the exposure to the music from the few shows I attended, and the few live releases that were out, one and Two from the Vault, Bears Choice, Without a Net, Dick's Picks 1. I was also able to acquire some tapes. Basically I was taking it all in, loving all of it of course. Yet I do recall at my first show, when Bobby sang Lovelight i was little thrown off - yes I was used to hearing Pigpen on that tune. The result was that I just didn't have a good knowledge of shows or eras and was certainly lacking in the numbers tapes I had listened too.

So I did my Dead scholarly work after Jerry died, because I was compelled to get as many shows as I could. I sought out getting more tapes and thankfully Dick's Picks kept coming out. Now even then I knew that the shows from "back in the day" were more coveted, or at least that was what more experienced heads told me. I remember a dude from college who only listened to shows from 73-74... he was pretty obsessed with it, but I can see why. So I got every tape I could and listened to them all. Many of my tapes were from 69 -78 as it turned out. I became most familiar that time frame and over time I developed that as a preference. Of course I was exposed to many of the standout out shows: 3/1/69, 4/28/71, 5/8/77, 7/8/78...etc

However over time and especially in recent years I have been way more open to shows from all eras/years. I still feel like there are a few years that may not appeal to me, but I am open to anything. It doesn't matter where they played as long as the music is good, well I should say good for the time. For example, I will certainly judge show from 85 on its own merits and not compare it to a 77 show.

At this point I will buy any just about anything TPTB give us. Although I may have expanded my horizons over the years , still I feel the same as I did all those years ago in '95, when I valued every show because everything came to end. I still feel this way and now we have had many shows be given the official release. In terms of volume The Dead/Dave L./Rhino have not quite cuaght up with the tapers/archive.org obviously. Yet I am happy and appreciative of what Dave L and the crew have given us and I feel like they are doing a great job.

I’ve a similar view to Daverock on this. As a U.K. follower of the Dead I only saw them twice; the last two nights of the 1990 European Tour. Both shows were great, particularly the last night.

Without A Net had only been out a few weeks and I loved the wider sound palette they were using (midi I guess). There were also two or three incendiary performances on the album, albeit along with a few lacklustre ones, and I decided I really liked this modern Dead sound. Up until the I’d only listened to official releases. I had a few tapes, but I’d never really played them as I didn’t like cassettes.

One From The Vault came out in 1991. The sound palette was more limited but the performance was uniformly strong and Garcia’s voice sounded great. I stuck with the just official releases which became more plentiful as the years went on, covering most eras of the band. I yearned for more of the sparkling midi sound of WAN. I’ve already mentioned that I loved Terrapin Limited, but couldn’t find anything at all to enthuse about in Dozin’ At The Knick. Subsequent mid to late 80s and 90s shows continued to disappoint whereas I found several of the earlier releases, from the 70s, to exceptional.

The more I listened to release of all eras, the more it became apparent that, whilst you can find good things to listen to from all eras of the dead, the consistency of performance started to deteriorate in the late 70s and this only accelerated from the early 80s. This view is simply my own, not born out of the era I started listening to the band in or the shows I attended but out of what I hear in the Dead’s numerous official live releases.

So, whilst I loved the shows I saw in 1990, I’ve no desire to see these released. Having heard so many disappointing releases from the 80s and 90s, why should I believe these shows will stand up to the scrutiny of repeated listening any better than most of the others?

I am not sure its acceptable to answer your own question, but....
Of all the 1980s shows, I would be most interested in getting copies of the two I went to-or shows from the two tours they were a part-Europe March and October 1981, than any of the others.
Similarly, of all the Bruce and Vince shows I would be most interested in getting copies of the three I attended in October/November 1990 than any of the others.

But...and its a big but....I would prefer to get any unreleased show from the 1974 Europe tour than any of the five I went to. Or any show from 1974 and earlier, come to that. I just prefer the music played during those years.

I have this attitude for most of the rock/blues/pop.. whatever... music I listen to. I much prefer the era from 1965-1975 than what came after. There are exceptions of course-but I probably listen to more music from those years than any other.