Grateful Dead

....that the new series would be video/film. What about DL's Deals for a title?

There has to be a better way, but in fairness I can see GDP's side as well. They cannot commit to an unlimited production run in what might be becoming what we sometimes call a niche market. Wouldn't it be great if they would consider opening up orders for a couple of months for guaranteed delivery, then set the ceiling? We too are a commodity that is becoming rare. A little preventive maintenance and TLC is not inappropriate. It is harder and harder to buy what we want when the things we really need are becoming more expensive and more ubiquitous.

As CBS73 has catalogued there are a number of dates that scroll before giving way to the Dave's Picks logo. The 5/25/77 show is not one of them so not sure what that animation is supposed to represent. The only thing I know is that the majority of those dates circulate in super high quality SBDs and therefore from my viewpoint are not the best choices for future release if Rhino is actually trying to make some coin. It is not that hard to ping a few people and find out what is or is not already out there. I don't understand why they don't just put a survey on the Dave's Picks page with 5 show choices and see what the masses choose. I don't care what they call the releases and don't know why the name keeps changing (other than moving from Dick's Picks)... Just keep the music coming. It is appreciated.

Yet another series. Still waiting for Bear's choice vol 2 :-) But yes, good idea. Need a more original name though. When will we get 5-8-77? Your going to start off with another May 77, when will you give us the crown jewel?!?!?!

Love this new series - - really a return to the DP releases. I remember the first DP and just freaking out . . . found it at a record store that was charging, like, $30. Anyway, huge success that in many ways paved the way for all the treasures that followed. I was hoping GDP would name the new series "DL2", since DIck Latavala, David Lemieux . . . you get it. Anyway, this is pretty neat and a WELL deserved honor for the current Vaultmeister. I also remember getting a postcard during the DP series asking us to list five shows we wanted out. That led pretty directly (along with volume posts on the old Deadnet Central) to the release of DP16, 11.8.69 - - David's first release I think after Dick's passing (Englishtown, I recall, was already in production). That release was Dick's favorite show and was dedicated to him. A really big deal I recall. Anyway, maybe TPTB can do a similar survey . . . though DL2 plainly said in his video that he reads all suggestions sent to him via email. I have no dount he does. I also like the Mosque show. A great one. You know, in a few years, they may end up releasing the entire May '77 segment of the spring tour via individual releases. THis is SWEET. By the way, E72 is amazing. I just saw sunlight for this first time in weeks. DCHOF aka The Wharf Rat Cyclone

After watching David's video, I'm thrilled. If you haven't watched it, check it out. And the name is fitting. Including the word "picks" in the new name is cool, IMO. It makes the whole thing feel more like "Dick's Picks". But in the end, does the title really matter? A rose, by any other name...

Yeah more picks just kind of gets my nose bent out of shape---loved Latvala's DVDs and love whole shows at reasonable prices but agree limited stuff is so hooky--i mean its not a lithograph and the subscribe before you know you are into the show?I will buy them as they come out and they should let you hear samples of the show like on iTunes-not saying to sell songs--that would be Jobsian and no offense Steveo but no fan of the Dead would ever say sell their tunes one at a time...or fan of album concepts as well...alas....can we get these in vinyl or will that make em cost about 100 bucks? Just got myself an old vinyl player to play my gramps (Broadway composer) old records from Bassie and others and while many scratches that old vinyl analog warmth is unmistakeable...somebody needs to upgrade the sampling methods in digital so that it slices and digitizes but does not cut of peaks and valleys--but that may be being done better now but I swear I have never heard a CD or DVD that sounds as good as the vinyl version side by side...except of course when made off far better master..

I am SOOOOO glad that I checked my e-mail this weekend, and even more so that I left the e-mail application open while I did other things on the computer... the e-mail chime notified me that I had a new e-mail, which I checked and found to be the 2011 GD Almanac. Out of a sense of perverse curiosity, I clicked on the "music" link when I accessed the Almanac home page, and there it was--the Dave's Picks announcement, which was, at that time, not yet posted on dead.net. Got mine. Of course, with SO many '77 shows already released, I would have hoped that they would have gone with a different year to start, but I'll be content to see what comes out each year. I would like to put in a nudge of a request that consideration be given to the Dead's final (1980) show at the San Bernardino Swing Auditorium, just a few days after John Lennon's death. It is one of my favorites, played and sung with emotion (easily my favorite "He's Gone"), and it's a mostly under-represented year among live releases.

I'm all in, what can I say other than the "limited run of 12,000 cds" and a bonus disc to subscribers only reeled me in - good dangling carrot. I also don't understand how it can be limited to 12,000 cds but have a pre-order time frame of Dec. 15; if their are 12,000 orders before Dec. 15 will the pre-order savings deal end?

Did anybody get the link for SIRIUSXM SPECIAL OFFER FOR DAVE’S PICKS SUBSCRIBERS - LISTEN FREE* FOR 30 DAYS Chuck

Dude, sorry but I guess I can't speak normally! I ordered Sirius XM 30 day trial online for my Mac and the bastards kept billing me even though I cancelled -well could not cancel as I did not have a RADIO Transmitter/receiver ID! Hello- a net subscriber does not have a radio! Anyway, they billed me and I bitched to AMEX and got them to cancel billing and so I thought the Sirius I never asked to order-since no place to cancel online. So I notice my poor wife thought I was ordering Sirius and paying 12,95 as I perused my Oct. AMEX Bill, fortunately AMEX puts the phone number of customer service and due to ripping off complaints from many people (not just online talked to many other and this problem is rampant) Sirius customer service finally refunded my 50 bucks and restored my sanity. Never use auto-billed scams--if they won't paper bill or just let you pay monthly with your card an e-bill you forget them....aint worth it. And Sirius may be great for some folks but I found it not enough with me already being a Coast insider for my UFO and Ghost topics and for Dead stuff well there is plenty of free stuff but not saying Sirius content is bad just not for me-but co. is bunch of crooks in billing....be warned---safer to just buy them once you hear one---IMHO lest you like to wait on cost svc. lines with menus of buttons layers 3 deep...Good luck...

I wonder if this new series will be available outside of dead.net. Dick's Picks was available in various outlets. Maybe Road Trips was retired to make way for something more accessible. The "limited to 12,000 individually numbered copies" will only be sold here. The rest will be unnumbered but available elsewhere. Just a thought.....

David, In case you're listening 9/11/73 or 9/12/13 at William & Mary would be a terrific pick for later in 2012. Keep 'em comin'... Shane

I am wondering if the wall of sound being up made the tracks from 76 77 so great as if Keith was playing so great in spite of his drunken episodes they might have kept him no? I mean he sounds awesome in DP 25-best pick show ever...but man Dick was obsessed with that year and I got on bus in 79 when Brent took over and love the dude and don't get why so many fans snub him...maybe not so many but the old timers have a vocal minority that I have heard anyway---sure they were maybe the Renaissance for that set of members but the Dead had 2 or 3 mini-renaissances after 77, being IMHO Red Rocks Aug, 12, 1979 and shows that run from 79-90 are a solid run with Jer showing weakness in about 86 pre-diabetic coma and then his amazing smiling come back with Touch of Grey openings in Hartford-I know DP covered a few albums that are in these times so not saying its closed out but find it odd once again they keep going to the pre-1978 well when the board tapes should be better since new tech kept coming along. Of course all this was once free but tapes were always only as good as the taper in spite of loving that vibe-I am of camp don't mind paying guys who worked hard to play best music ever made live to produce a good recording that would otherwise have hissing etc. even in the VAULT--but I mean it is well known you can get all these shows for free hey? Sure not remastered but I mean---well now I will probably get filtered--nah-yeah its not Hunter doing the webmaster gig (Thank god for him--glad he is prolifically writing and loves blurb in Almanac on his great new burst of creativity-yeah HUNTER you da man!)...but I digress, Rhinofart records well now guaranteed to be deleted-but one can hope its up for a day hey? I mean freedom of speech---alas, Dave L is good sound guy and I respect what he puts out will be good but Dave-did you maybe not notice that all the great shows prior to 1978 have been well covered-I know there were tons but just to remind you Radio City was not covered properly on that album-love to hear some of those great shows remastered---I mean the show I was at on Oct. 28, 1980 with Little Red Rooster and the Wheel and Tenessee Jed (Think it was 28 could have been 27 or 29 but it was my birthday money for 20th birthday got me 13th row next to Peter Paul and Mary)....so anyway, just to point out that look for some great Brent shows too, and I highly also recommend looking at June 21, 1990-my last week in NY and saw the show night before but radio broadcast of that show I recorded was wicked-Brent sang on Red Rooster- "You aint sh-t to me-think your a stud boy, well I doubt you'll ever....." he was on fire....a rarity for quiet man...No gripes overall, just will be buying when they come out and if they are all gone alas Rhino you under guessed....then it won't be limited....pretentious sounding IMHO even if its cost effective-last thing you expect from Dead so you know a suit was involved! Jerry HATED SUITS! Its what made him check out early man--McNally's books sure shows the corporation vs. the old Dead.....yeah maybe that is why they like the pre-1978 shows but it did not get out of control til after Touch of Grey with stadiums..and even those were good GIANTS STADIUM 1989 was awesome!

Your positive points reminded me that after 50 I am getting a bit snarky--yeah it is appreciated that they are taking feedback--just will be waiting til the ones that got voted one are out....i am assuming these were requested to Dick etc. but I am still hoping for some later shows...looks like the first batch are going to go sequentially to 78? so next ones will be 79-90? what ever...happy new old music is coming, happier I am seeing Further next week though..

Why don't we turn tables on this type of offer: You give me four shows I actually want, NOW, and in a year I'll send you a sum of money I'll decide upon in February. Doesn't sound all that fair when you switch positions, does it?

I signed up before I even saw the William and Mary flash on the screen. I'll take either 9/11 or 9/12 from Williamsburg. I have part of a SBD from 9/12/73. Finally my wish for this release may come true. This has one of the few "Let Me Sing Your Blues Away" and a few other tunes with horns. The non-horns tunes are just great also and they were really sounding great on this tour. Can't wait.

This is awesome! Dave's Pick's is going to ROCK! Exactly perfect. Even though it's already been happening for years now, it's differently new! LIstening to the Taper's Section now and am happy as ever! This news is splendid! Thanks in advance for all you do! Love and light @DL@ ---------------(----@ @@@@@@@@@@@

Glad to see I'm not the only one. I've been trying to get a response from them about why my set isn't here yet, even though my credit card has been charged months ago. No e-mail responses other than "we've sent your request upwards", and I've been promised on the phone "I'll get back to you within the day" (one week, three weeks, and one month ago). Hell, they've taken my money already, they just can't seem to ship a box.

I wonder if anything over the past year of Tapers Section will make a Dave's Picks? Hmmm maybe now that David L has his own series, they will stop the Tapers Section? I like the jam of the week though. More along the lines of Road Trips. They should do away with Tapers Section and keep Jam of the Week. And please, release something from 1967-1970. Jesus.

Well, the free shipping snafu is a bad omen. This isn't rocket science, and if they haven't learned after E72, will they ever? The show dates that appear when you click on Dave's Picks are intriguing, but why does it have to be a mystery? If I want a William and Mary 1973 show remastered, will I get it if I sign up? There are only four releases a year, so conceivably I would have to wait for three years and eleven releases to get the one I wanted? That seems a bit much. Blair Jackson and the gang are always gushing about every release, so every release must be great, right? So why not just list in order what people will receive? Is that a crazy thought? Is this like a scratch-off lottery ticket, where they tell me I can "Win Up To Eight Times!" but end up striking out completely? At any rate, I feel vindicated, as several folks have made it clear that E72 was the last straw. Tell us what shows are going to be in the first year of releases, and we'll make an informed choice. What are you hiding?

A lot of people were OVERBOARD exuberant about the E72 release, so if I worked for Rhino/GDP, I'd say fuck it, they got the mother load- who cares what comes next? haha

Keep the music flowing......but please, please, please, let us see some glorious packaging for this series. The Dead scene has the most far-out artists at their fingertips, let's tap into that for the covers. Since it is a limited pressing, wouldn't it make sense to use some archival or at least durable materials? Then, let's house the discs in proper casing, with protective sleeves to keep the discs pristine (limited edition right?). We know the sound will be euphoric. The Europe '72 sets were disappointing, by that I mean, music = A+, materials = D, disgraceful. Let's do this right from now on people.... I♡GD

Dude! I just sent David Lemieux an email requesting that he revisit this show!!!!!!!! It is so amazing right? From the first note through the last note! Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Just watched Dave's video. I like Dave. I wrote to him not long after he took the job, and he sent me a nice personal reply. However, if he is the front-man on this, wouldn't it have been nice if he had said something like, "I know there were some issues with the E72 release, and if you had any problems, hang tight--don't give up on us--cause we're gonna make it right and we've learned from our mistakes." That would have gone a LONGGGGG way. Whenever I hear from someone who is still having E72 issues, I am reminded of those poor souls stranded on the rooftops after Katrina. Is anyone at Rhino going to help them? Does Rhino care? We'll see.

Commenting on some of the posts: I agree Dave's Fav's would be better than Dave's Picks. What were they thinking? Dick's Picks was picked for a reason - it rhymes! Download series? Nah. I like the CD's Artwork - yes, change it up! Skull & Roses is great but it's old and tired. Something new please! Capitalism? If you don't like it, how about giving away your income, eh? This series is specifically going to be full shows so that's different. Bravo! I signed up but I'm a bit nervous not knowing what shows are going to be sent to me. I just hope they minimize the crappy later shows. I know many will disagree, and that's fine, but 80's shows are pretty lazy and 90's have a decent one here and there but mostly pretty thin. But that's just me - I'm a late 60's through 77 man. Limited edition - if they "cheat" and print more copies beyond 12K and just don't number them I'll be pissed and they may lose me as a customer.

Lets go the extra mile Dave (DL2) and Mark Pinkus (RHINO/Dead.Net Veep) and put this new release series in Digi Packs like; From The Vaults, Fillmore West Box, Cow Palace and the Pure Jerrys. You'll make everyone very HAPPY if you do.Thank you in advance !

This is in reference to hot cider sams aka lemon zigger gal aka whole kernal corn aka BD : ) I definately agree w/ your comment of the unfotunate few who seem as though their orders are all but forgotten about. I had dealt w/ my share of issues w/ the e72 boxset, its rather shocking they havent straightened that out yet and is completly unexceptable. I really hope that the several well documented issues get dealt w/ before the release of this next series as they have plenty of time. heres the thing though being a very opinionated person as you have over the last month, I find it hard to believe that you can compare people who were fighting for their lives and more than giving my opinion for those who died on those roof tops to something a material object in the big picture it doesnt even bare repeating. that is insensitive and unfair to those who lost there lives and others who will be scarred for the rest of their lives by being basically left to die by our government. a bad reference wouldnt you say.

I just ordered my set and clicked on standard shipping (which was crossed out and FREE was in it's place) and actually got FREE SHIPPING!!! I do have to say that limiting them to 12,000 may be short sighted, but then again, I don't know how many of each Road Trips was being sold...I guess they will know if this sells out in four days, or even a week... I vote for digi packs too! Stay in Touch! Steven Marcus you should all go out and buy the new book Dead Letters, it's great!

Haven't they learned yet? That the limited edition schtick is more trouble than it's worth? It's not getting people to buy any quicker - I would have ordered anyway. And, after all, when there's none left, people will just get them from their friendly, neighborhood torrent tracker, rather than pay for them, because they have no choice. And Dave's Picks? They couldn't do better than that? What's next? Phil's Picks?

How about putting out 10/5/94? First set was a Jam Of The Week a while back and it was better than I remembered. And I certainly remember the second set being even better than that. VERY strong Midnight Hour.

I really think Rhino and the GD folk deserve to be thanked for all that they have given us these past few years. Sure, there are mailing problems and yep, I've experienced the glue issue too ... but here I am with 22 of the best shows ever to play from '72 and I can't figure out whether to go back and play Wembley 4/8 one more time just becuase it sounds so good or Aarhous 4/16 as it's so damn classical, and there's all the German stuff yet to be conquored ... and I've still got that choice '76 RT to look forward to. And now comes Dave's Picks. I know folk complain and the issue of money and limited numbers and all that are valid and real and I also suffer anxiety attacks when the parcel seems late ... but all up, the riches keep flowing and that is something to thank the hard working people here for. Imagine being a Led Zep fan and having to dine out on the overdubs on Song Remains the Same for a decade before How the West Was Won came out .. and that's all you get? All i got to say is thanks making all this available.

My order is placed. I like the subscription because I'm going to buy it anyway and this way the shipping is free. One day I go to my mailbox and what do you know? A GD show! I've had nothing but positive experiences buying from this site (knock on wood) with the exception of the initial fiasco ordering the E72 box. Looking forward to it!

We like your competitive spirit Dave. Very La Russa of you. Though I confess to '77 fatigue (I prefer the '78 ensemble playing and Garcia's tone much more), everyone who is in a position to challenge the deserved, exalted status of 4-23 and 5-08 and all other cult picks from Spring '77 should grab some wood and step into the box. I look forward to your series!

Man, I'm digging it! This is great news, I'm looking forward to this new collection. David sure has earned this, he will not let us down. I had no problem with the RT series, great music. Already paid for my subscription, amazing deal really, free shipping too! David made references to other releases in his video clip. 2012 is going to be a great year for us. Thanks David and congratulations, what an honor. I'm sure the limited edition thing will generate a lot of negative vibes on down the road. Early bird gets the worm. Our planet will continue to jam. Coconut Phil

Still don't like the limited edition aspect, nor the "early bird gets the worm" attitude of some heartless heads, but if the shows hold up, then not a bad deal. The bonus disc is the prize in the Cracker Jack box. Upload it, sell it on eBay in a few years for $40, and you have quite the bargain (with free shipping discount). Do we get one of those snazzy Steal Your Face coffee mugs, Dave? Is this NPR? Tote bag?

patchmydead wrote "And please, release something from 1967-1970" I replied - why not EVERYTHING from 1967 - 1970? !!! Damn, they could do a '67 box set, like E72, for starters.

Can Rhino confirm that there will be no further charges on top of the extra we are paying. I.E. Just to get it clear, the extra $$$$ we overseas heads are paying is to cover P&P, yes?

I thought that RT should have had a TRUE Road Trip as a release: selections from the January/February 1968 tour - Quick and the Dead. Hopefully this run gets the E72 treatment. Who cares if it's not going to be complete. It would be nice to own officially!

I'm concerned about the subscription aspect without knowing at least what era, if any, will be considered. Encouraging is that the "floating" dates appear to be from the '70's. Personally, anything beyond 1980 I'm not that interested in, which is not to say that it's unworthy. Just not for me. At least I have a few weeks to decide. No complaint about the 5-25-77. An excellent choice and one of my favorites. I'd still like to see 11-7-71 (6th too) and 12-31-71 (1-2-72 too) get released. Better hurry. We're getting old and running out of time.

It is against my best judgment, but I went ahead and signed up for this subscription despite the fact that I never did receive the Philly 82 discs, and didn't get much concern from the folks at customer service, either. But that Mosque Show is just too deliscious, and the thought of being shut out because it is sold out is horrific. The other three selections had better be stella(r) as well, and I damn well better get them in a timely fashion!

how about something creative. dick + road = Road Head

Ah, now I like the sounds of this. Yeah, I'm one of those positive people that just gets all amped up when their co-favorite band(with the ABB) keeps putting out incredible music. Congrats to DL2, you deserve to have your name on the project, with all of the excellent work you do and have done. This is an excellent show to start with, and yes I do have the CM copy, but the Normanized version, I'm sure, will be out of this world. To respond to a few of the posts: On the name, I could care less. As long as they are putting out the tunes, you could call it...and I'd still buy it. On the selections. I, like most here, appreciate all eras of the Dead. That is what makes them so great. Each period has such a unique sound, and to listen and see how they evolved over time is pretty damn cool. Now, I do like some eras much more than others (ahh say anything from 71-79), but I'll gladly buy and listen to anything put out. Now to those clamoring for more 80's, I'm with you in that I'd like to see more from there put out. Right before the Warlock's box came out, I emailed DL2 with some ideas, Greek 85, Uptown Theater 81, etc. He said these are all great shows, but to remember that they were recorded by Healy off of the PA mix to cassettes, unlike what they did in the 70's having a R to R mixed by Betty, etc. for listening purposes. If you listen to the releases from the early 80's, while they still sound great, it is not as good as the stuff recorded in the 70's, late 80's, or 90's. I'm sure we'll see some stuff from this era, but just not as much. I also saw someone mentioned 5-8-77, and yes, I'd love a pristine release of this, but unless something has changed, I don't think they have the master reels of this show in the vault. All the shows listed on the intro on the front page sound good to me. I'll take them all. As DL2 says, the great thing about this series is they will not be limited to having 3 CD releases. We may get 1, 2, 3, or as he says, maybe even a 6er like DP29. So for the subscription cost, who knows how many total CD's you will get for the year. As for the limited edition, I doubt this will be all that limited. My guess, and I have zero insider info, is the limited edition will be for the cd's. I am one of those people that still likes have a nice hard copy of the original, so I like cd's. Back on topic, I would bet that all of these releases will be put out there in download form, so it will be available to all who want it, when they want it. For Rhino and GDP, it makes sense to do this, since, as others have mentioned, they will not have to deal with all of the cost of having a bunch of inventory sitting in a warehouse waiting to be bought. My guess is after the initial rush after the show is released, sales dwindle down significantly. I saw someone mentioned the lack of video releases, well, if you watched the DL2 video attached to this, you will see he mentions that it is probably time to revisit the view from the vault series. Now, offtopic, Big Donnie, Col. Corn, Lemon Zinger Gal, Hot Cider Sam, etc. is a troll that does not really like the Grateful Dead (if you've read his posts on the other threads, which I unfortunately have, you'll see that). He just likes to stir crap up among the faithful between his torrid Dungeons and Dragons sessions. Now, back on topic, I understand the trepidation by those that had major issues with getting E72. I, like many of you, had major problems because my bank card got cancelled due to a security breach at a merchant. But once I got the music, and it is incredible music, it makes one realize that it is all about the music. I, like all of you, hope that Rhino, and most importantly Rhino CS will learn from their mistakes. As a huge ABB, fan, I cannot tell you how lucky we are as GD fans to have this incredible stream of great music coming to us all year long. They put out more high quality music than any other artist. Thank you, thank you for recording all of this from almost day 1. It is the real treasure here. So, please, keep them coming! P.S. DL2, not a vote for the Dave's Picks, but for the 2012 bigger box, since we've alreay had Winterland 73 and Winterland 77, why not Winterland 74? I would love a big release with 2/22,23,24/74. Who's with me!?

Although that was a helluva long post, I am with you on a Winterland 2/74 box. How did all those Dead cds get in my collection if I don't like them? Whatever.

They should be called "Dave's Faves"

After seeing "Dick's Picks" for the last 17 years, it is going to be hard to get used to seeing "Dave's Picks"! So now DP1 can mean 12/19/73 OR 5/25/77, but I suppose with the D(ave)P series being "limited" people will be buying D(ick)P1 long after D(ave)P1 is only available as a torrent. Still I'm excited to get D(ave)P1 and the others next year and I haven't even got the last RT yet!

Oh and another vote for a Winterland 74 box set! :)

Love it and have to have it ~ there is also no possible way I can get the approval from my other, so I will have to take alternate measures to secure, yes sorry I might as well say it and apologize ~ open a secret GD credit card, pay it off and cancel the thing straight away with cash undetected., easy and out. I simply can't miss this.

This was very welcome news and as the post title says there will be some Good 'Ole GD in my mail box 4 X per year to make me smile, smile, smile! I do wonder what the next 'box set' will be . . ..

As much as I loved the tasteful compilation concept, I know that I am in a small minority--thus, Dave's Picks (yes, new name, please) is returning to the complete-show-only format (as did the RT series), is my guess. (I would still love to see the less-than-stellar eras get their due in compilation format, e.g., a three-disc "Spring '87"-type release) Rhino saw sales decrease when they moved away from the complete-show format, so now that's likely all they'll do. Likewise, sales of any show that was performed post-1978 must have been quite low (somewhat understandably), thus the supposed concept of releasing mostly 70's shows for this next incarnation. And people previously must have ponied up to have pristine copies of classic shows, regardless of whether folks already had a decent bootleg copy, so now they'll focus more on the classics. Once they dropped the bonus disc, sales likely diminished, thus, the bonus disc returns. And the subscription idea must have helped Rhino, so that sticks around. I purchase everything, so I'm not a good test case, but I don't know why there would be speculation and discouragement about the new series and the choices being made. The Head community has spoken with their dollars, and now Rhino is responding to our preferences. Bottom line--fifteen years ago we got almost nothing, and now we can pay a minimal fee to glean wonderful copies of our favorite music, selected by folks who practically LIVE in the Vault. Hoorah!