Grateful Dead Channel Launches Exclusively on Sirius

Highly anticipated channel will feature original radio shows hosted by members of the band, rare concert performances and insider interviews.

NEW YORK – August 29, 2007 – SIRIUS Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) today announced the launch of the highly anticipated Grateful Dead Channel. Heard exclusively on SIRIUS, the channel will feature music spanning the Grateful Dead’s long and celebrated history. The channel will include rare and unreleased performances, original shows hosted by Grateful Dead founders Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann, as well as rare archival interviews with Jerry Garcia.

The Grateful Dead Channel will make its debut on September 7 at 12 pm ET on SIRIUS channel 32 with an extremely rare concert broadcast of the band’s 1974 performance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California. This performance will be followed by a special show hosted by Bob Weir, the first by a member of the Grateful Dead on the new channel. The channel will also feature contributions from Grateful Dead expert David Gans, as well as Dead archivist David Lemieux, who will provide a unique look into the Dead’s lush past with daily insights.

"Since we announced the launch of the Grateful Dead Channel, it has become one of the most anticipated music channel launches in our history.” said Scott Greenstein, President, Entertainment and Sports, SIRIUS. “The loyalty and passion of Grateful Dead fans are the truest testament to the band’s legacy. Sirius is thrilled to bring exclusive content to this community and welcomes their continued participation as Sirius becomes part of the Grateful Dead family.”

“This is gonna be one fun channel,” said the Dead’s Bob Weir. “We, the guys in the band, get to be involved as much as we can and we'll make sure it's fun. We want the fans to be involved as well.”

The Grateful Dead formed in mid 1960’s San Francisco’s psychedelia and quickly became a staple in the local music scene. The historic summer of 1967, known as ‘The Summer of Love,’ is when the band first found world wide recognition as thousands of young people from around-the-world made their way to San Francisco’s Haight and Ashbury district to find a new social experience. The Dead, well-known for constantly touring, kept the experience alive for another three decades with a devoted community of fans, many of whom traveled the country with them.

The Grateful Dead Channel joins an exclusive line up of 24-hour, commercial-free music channels dedicated entirely to some of the world's greatest recording artists including Elvis Radio, the world's only official, all-Elvis Presley radio channel broadcasting live from Graceland; and Siriusly Sinatra, devoted to the music and legacy of Frank Sinatra. SIRIUS has previously dedicated channels exclusively to the music of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, The Rolling Stones, David Gilmour and Pink Floyd, George Strait, and most recently, The Who. SIRIUS is also the exclusive radio home of Shade 45, the uncut hip-hop channel co-created with Eminem, "Little Steven" Van Zandt's Underground Garage, channel 25, and Jimmy Buffett's Radio Margaritaville, channel 31.

To learn more about SIRIUS, please visit www.sirius.com or www.sirius.com/gratefuldead.

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jealous

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Sounds good..hope you enjoy it. Those with good recording equipment PLEASE put some of the new shows or those with improved sound quality into circulation!

Sad to say its about as much use as a chocolate teapot over here in Europe..no Sirius and $12.95 a month for 128kbps on the internet....oh well

Don't shake the tree when

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Don't shake the tree when the fruit ain't ripe

i'm not sirius

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No opposition to this idea or a monthly charge, but I have enough "stuff" in my life to do and pay attention to and pay a bill for. I would much rather pop on a Rhino release at my convenience than be glued to another teet. And where are those releases?
Don't shake the tree when the fruit ain't ripe

A Zappa channel!!!

That would be great!

I have Sirius and will never listen to regular radio again, it is terrific! The point of the Grateful Dead channel is to promote the Grateful Dead. For me it will be like the Who Channel was. I have every Who release there is, but when I'm driving in my car and don't want to suddenly have to start flipping through my ipod I could just turn on the Who station and hear the Who. I wish they still had the Who station. But I think the Grateful Dead channel will be fantastic.

Deadheads are always sour about something. Alot of em, like a lot of people, have some weird sense of entitlement.

If you expect nothing, everything is a gift.

GDC/SIRIUS

Bout time something positive is happenin here-i purchased my sirius 14 months ago hoplng for this to happen. Now, after reading all these comments from other people-too bad-either get sirius now or wait for the merger-you too had the option at buying time-quit whining and get ready for dancin in the street!

Good News re Sirius & XM Programming

A few weeks back, I heard a news item where it was reported that the FTC would not permit the merger of Sirius and XM and that, to end run this ruling, the companies were considering offering packages allowing users to bundle channels from each provider selected by the subscriber (allowing an XM subscriber to access Sirius channels). Only downside is that it would require a new receiver.

Cautiously pessimistic.

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I would welcome a bundle package if I didn't have to buy a new receiver. Unfortunately for we XM subscribers, The Dead were an added bonus to other channels we still enjoy. (IE: Air America Radio, Deep Tracks, Top Tracks, Blues Radio, Bob Dylan's show, Real Jazz with Winton Marsallis, etc.) I hope some folks will be posting some nuggets from time to time so the rest of us can fell like we are still part of the family.

Peace -

David

Dump XM and get Sirius

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Have been waiting all my life for this. Went out and subscribed to Sirius a couple of months ago when I heard about a 24-7 Dead station. Touring since 4/7/85. Hope this will fill the void. Jam on has been hot too. Love it, Love it, Love it. Gotta love the Elvis station too!!!

You said it Muzzard67

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I've never heard so many people whine about so many things as some of these "Dead Heads" do. Whine, whine, whine, bitch, bitch, bitch. Just turn on the radio and shut up. This is a 24-7 Greatful Dead channel we're getting people. Think about all of the $$ you've blown for other crap. 12 bucks is a steel. Now I don't have to pay $20 + for Cd's any more. Zippydoooooo

Fool me twice

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Here are a few reasons we are pessimistic. Many of us went with XM years ago so we could hear the GD hour. Many of us believed that if the GD hour was on XM, a Dead Channel would follow. Then one week, they just announced that "due to contractural obligations, they would be pulling the Dead Hour off XM. An XM receiver costs aprox.$50 to purchase + the monthly fee. If we ditch XM and switch to Sirious, we will have to purchase a seperate receiver to listen to Sirious. Then, in a few months, IF the companies murge as rumored this will have been for nothing.

It is just hard to get the warm and fuzzies off of a commercial station while Rhino continues to limit access to all free sources at the same time. For instance:

- Soundboards were pulled off of archive.org site After much hell raising, Phil finally had them add audience recordings back to the site.
- dead.net will no longer allow you to download Dead Hours or Tapers Section posts which are transferable to Ipods and other devices so you have to be tied to your machine to listen.
- How many releases has Rhino released? The Cow Palace - New Years '76 - A good show but it is far from a rare release.

It would be nice to be able to just shut up and turn on the radio, but if we did that there is no telling what the next direction would be. I would be interested to hear your opinion if one day you tuned in and they announced "Due to contractual conflicts, this station is switching to all Polka all the time. Those Polka guys really know how to bitch and we are listening to what our audience wants." :-)

Peace, and may your children not be drafted to invade Iran. That's what happens when you just shut up.

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