Grateful Dead

Funny enough, partly was a reference to things could be worse, as I was playing Here Comes Sunshine, while seeing the wake of the flood in VT, though nowhere near bad floods, this was on 4 outside Woodstock. And the places where so much devastation has occurred: Ludlow, Barre, Okemo, Londonderry, Montpelier I was at just a week before the floods taking pictures of the beauty. So, by comparison a box set with over half the discs scratched before I got them is small potatoes, and the music, when ripped carefully at 1x if need be, is glorious. Also, String Cheese was playing their song Lost as I typed. And my wife and I were supposed to be there, but now that we're two weeks from closing and moving from Boston to VT, we couldn't make (excepting the wonders of livestreaming) an epic night with John Fogerty and Cheese crushing the second set and encore at Red Rocks. The Lost reference is an added bonus

....I caught that reference sir.

For sure, the scratched discs is a bummer, and one I'm finding bothersome as I listen, finding skips in what seemed like good rips. Luckily just a handful of tracks after spending time extracting carefully the first time around in Windows Media Player, though not checking ones I had to re-rip. Had to download Exact Audio Copy, which I hadn't used in over a decade, but it took care of the problems I've found thus far. The funny thing is even some of the discs in better shape had skips, and some of the most scratched had no problems ripping, and no skips in the playback. Life is just full of little ironies like that.

But the great aspect of this box is the music. Wonderful, vibrant, adventurous music being played by wonderfully vibrant and adventurous young men that were also haunted by the spectre of their fallen former leader just weeks before these shows. One of the great joys of this box is finally a set of releases that really lets Keith shine in the mix. His work on Loser is fantastic, little nuances one never hears on other releases, even multitracks, even Europe '72 Complete. Here, he is fully engaged in the musical conversation. Not really driving it like Jerry, Phil, and Bob, but much more emphatic and colorful in what he does add in these shows. And it sounds even better and more prominent than the three shows that follow that were released in PacNW. I'll be the brave one to test that statement following this listen and re-rip. Since somebody mentioned now 4/2 through 6/26 was all released now, figured I'd load up a USB with that plus DaP 16 3/26/73 (Somebody's gotta listen to that WRS Prelude> Dark Star> Eyes>Playing, and DaP 32 3/24/73 with its own He's Gone> Truckin> 20 min Jam> 4 min Dark Star> Sing Me Back Home to slog through as well. But with DaP 4/2/73, we do get to check yet another recordist: Rex Jackson. (*whispers* this tape may be the best of them all soundwise, if not even close to my favorite playing wise)

Also, Kezar sounds soooo much better than the tape I had 25 years ago, which was one of my first 3 Dead tapes (just sets 1 and 2, I think), and that I think was a KSAN broadcast, so not Betty's wonderful work. Digging 6/9, and for the first time in the box, Phil has that richer sound, and that's because it's Bear recording now. This is such a fascinating box.

From Des Moines...Holy Mamma Daddy! That's one for the books. I love the way the band was really starting to stretch out the transitions. Sounded way better than when I caught the Eyes/China in the car the other night. I will use this one to turn others into our way of thinking, if you know what I mean, and I think you do. On to Santa Barbara...Hey, that's my home town. The weather is really nice here.

Y'all be cool.

RIP, my good sir.

Guess that’s the upswing of terrible disasters: the best part of the human spirit comes alive!
Hang in there amigo, this darkness gotta give…

Very intense line of Tstorms went through last night, flash flood alerts of course, high wind forecast, up to 1" hail. Two funnel clouds seen but no touchdowns. Thousands of people lost power, Burlington area was spared, it was not big bad here but the thunder and lightning was wild. Major crop damage for flooded farmers near rivers which is most in this hilly place. One death from drowning now confirmed. Still lots of roads closed, some bridges out, people stranded but a wonderful outpouring of volunteers, people helping people in most affected towns like Montpelier, Barre, Ludlow.

I was fortunate enough to have met Sam at Lockn Music Festival when I purchased his book. He took the time to discuss a few things, tell me some stories and take a picture with me, which of course he insisted it be taken with the two of us inside a large picture frame so he said "you've got to have a picture frame if we're going to take a picture!" I will have to dig up that picture from my digital storage and properly frame it. RIP Sam. You lived quite a life! Thanks for doing all you did in your time. Peace

Levee gonna break. Yeeshk DMCVT, still raining?

Sam the Man!
His book is a trip if you haven’t read it…
Yep, thanks for all ya did “mate”, so much that most folks don’t even know.
May the four winds blow you safely home!

Your solution worked quite well. I used CVS Brand isopropyl alcohol 91% and CVS cotton balls and that removed the glue. It saves me time so I don't have to wait 5 to 6 weeks or more for replacement discs from WEA/Rhino/Dr. Rhino. The affected track was Playing In The Band - it would skip at about 15:00 and then stop. It plays well now.
Thank you.