• https://www.dead.net/features/europe-72/holy-s-it%E2%80%99s-complete-europe-%E2%80%9972-box-over-60-discs
    Holy S#%*! It’s the COMPLETE Europe ’72 Box! On Over 60 Discs!

    $450.00
    Europe '72:
    The Complete Recordings


    Hey now! Due to overwhelming demand, surprising even those of us with huge faith in the Europe '72 project, the entire limited edition run of 7,200 boxed sets has sold out in less than 4 days. We thank you beyond words for your support and belief in this unprecedented and wonderful release.

    After lengthy discussions, we've decided we don't want to deprive anyone of this music, some of the finest the Grateful Dead ever performed. Of course, we're keeping to our promise that the boxed set and all of its accouterments will not be made available beyond these 7,200 boxed sets (and wait until you see the case in which the music is housed, the hard-bound coffee-table book, plus all of the other cool surprises we've been unearthing!). But, we're going to offer just the music, all 22 shows, more than 60 CDs, more than 70 hours of music, each show housed in its own packaging, for the same price as the boxed set, $450 including domestic shipping. Although perhaps not as cool as the boxed set, the bottom line is that the most important aspect of Europe '72: The Complete Recordings is going to be made available to all, the music.


    - David Lemieux


    " class="border" style="border: 0pt none;" allowtransparency="true"> --> " class="border" style="border: 0pt none;" allowtransparency="true"> -->

    Because you dared dream this might happen one day… Because you went down to the Gypsy Woman and offered up your first-born to try to make it happen… Because there are enough passionate Dead Heads at Rhino/GD who thought it might be cool for this to happen… It’s happening! Coming in September is a gargantuan, beautifully designed EUROPE ’72 MEGA-BOX SET containing ALL 22 SHOWS of what is arguably the greatest tour the Grateful Dead ever played, on a whopping 60+ DISCS (over 70 hours of music!). Bet you didn’t see that comin’!

    Really, at this point we probably don’t need to lay on too much hype about how wonderful the music is: Chances are, if you’re even considering buying a copy of this stunning box, you already know how amazing the Dead’s tour of Europe in April and May of 1972 was. To review briefly, though, the Dead’s first tour outside of North America took them to all sorts of historic and unusual venues in England, Denmark, West Germany, France, Holland and even tiny Luxembourg. Many members of the Dead “family” came along on what was really an extended working vacation that was designed to both expose the Dead to new audiences and also reward the band for their unlikely conquest of America during the preceding two years. As a hedge against the costs of the nearly two-month trip, the Dead’s label, Warner Bros., paid for the band to lug around a 16-track recorder to capture the entire tour… and we’re glad they did!

    This was a band at the top of its game, still ascending in the wake of three straight hit albums — Workingman’s Dead, American Beauty and the live Grateful Dead (“Skull & Roses”). It had been a year since the lineup had gone to its single-drummer configuration, six months since Keith Godchaux had been broken in as the group’s exceptional pianist, and this marked the first tour to feature Donna Godchaux as a member of the touring band. There was a ton on new, unreleased material that came into the repertoire in the fall of ’71 (after “Skull & Roses” was out) and during the spring of ’72, including “Tennessee Jed,” “Jack Straw,” “Mexicali Blues,” “He’s Gone,” “Comes A Time,” “Ramble on Rose,” “One More Saturday Night,” “Black-Throated Wind,” “Looks Like Rain” and Pigpen’s “Chinatown Shuffle,” “The Stranger (Two Souls in Communion)” and “Mr. Charlie.” (Sadly, this was Pigpen’s final tour.) All those future classics were interspersed with songs from the aforementioned “hit” albums—such as “Uncle John’s Band,” “Brokedown Palace,” “Cumberland Blues,” “Casey Jones,” “Sugar Magnolia,” “Bertha,” “Not Fade Away,” et al — and then were topped off by loads of big jamming numbers — the Europe ’72 tour produced spectacular versions of “Dark Star,” “The Other One” “Playing in the Band,” “Truckin’,” “China Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider,” “Good Lovin’,” “Lovelight” and even the early Pig chestnut “Caution.” And that’s leaving out a truckload of other tunes, too! There wasn’t a clunker show in the bunch, and many are acknowledged today as classics. No doubt you already have some favorites.

    Through the years, there have been a few releases of material from the Europe tour—starting with the 3-album Europe ’72 which knocked our socks off in the fall of that year, and followed many years later by material from a pair of German shows and the fantastic 4-CD Stepping Out, culled from the group’s eight shows in England. Incredibly, though, only one full show from the tour has come out previously: the excellent 4/24 concert in Dusseldorf, Germany, released as Rockin’ the Rhein in 2004.

    Until now, that is. Jeffrey Norman, who has been the primary mixer of Dead archival multi-track material for the past 15 years (Fillmore West ’69, Ladies and Gentlemen…, Rockin’ the Rhein, Nightfall of Diamonds, etc.) has spent many months toiling over the 16-track masters from the tour, and will continue working on the mixes through the Winter and Spring, employing the high-tech Plangent Processes transfer and restoration tools, trying to get every show to sound “just exactly perfect” (as Bob Weir says) for this release. You might think you’ve heard that intense “Dark Star” > “Sugar Mag” > “Caution” from Copenhagen, but I guarantee you’ve never heard it sound this alive! Mastering to HDCD specs is two-time Grammy-winning engineer David Glasser of Airshow Mastering. Needless to say, all the songs that turned up on previous Europe compilations will be appear in their proper show contexts, and in the case of songs from the Europe ’72 album, without overdubs that were added later (where possible).

    The packaging is, as you might expect, first rate. Each show is its own Digipak, with its own liner notes by top Dead scholars (including David Gans, Steve Silberman, and Nicholas Meriwether) and attendees of some of the concerts, and many never-before-seen photos. Additionally, there is an enormous book worthy of coffee table treatment featuring hundreds more photos and a comprehensive essay by yours truly (Blair Jackson). The box will also contain other memorabilia and ephemera from the tour.

    A rough sketch of the potential packaging.
    Check back soon for more product images.

    At $450, this clearly will not be a box for everyone. In fact, this individually numbered boxed set will be limited to orders placed with a maximum of 7,200 boxes produced. As a special bonus, the first 3,000 orders will receive a personalized copy. Due to the huge manufacturing costs (wait 'til you see it! We're doing something unlike any other boxed set release ever! It's exceptional!!), we need to hit 3,000 sales before we even go into production. If we don't reach 3,000 by April 1st, the boxed set won't be able to happen. This isn't a gun-to-your-head sales pitch. Rather, we want to be open with you about the realities of this release's massive scope and ambition.

    -->

    So dig deep, raid the penny jar, take a weekend job at Jack-in-the-Box, beg your kindly ol’ grandma for some of your inheritance early… Yes, it’s an extravagance, but jeez, you (or your loved one) deserve it! This is way cool.

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  • I Woke Today
    5 years 8 months ago
    Is the "All the Music Edition" still available

    besides looking at the resale sites, are the All the music edition of Europe '72 still available on the Dead website for purchase?

  • Default Avatar
    Gergg
    5 years 11 months ago
    What to hear after this

    I've been neck deep in this box for a month and its awesome. I'm pretty close to hearing the whole tour but have lost track to be honest. If I wanted to dig this deep into another batch of Dead that would represent the band's next step in their development after the 72 tour what would it be?

  • marye
    6 years 4 months ago
    alas no
    these were all snapped up years ago, though you may find someone willing to part with theirs.
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$450.00
Europe '72:
The Complete Recordings


Hey now! Due to overwhelming demand, surprising even those of us with huge faith in the Europe '72 project, the entire limited edition run of 7,200 boxed sets has sold out in less than 4 days. We thank you beyond words for your support and belief in this unprecedented and wonderful release.

After lengthy discussions, we've decided we don't want to deprive anyone of this music, some of the finest the Grateful Dead ever performed. Of course, we're keeping to our promise that the boxed set and all of its accouterments will not be made available beyond these 7,200 boxed sets (and wait until you see the case in which the music is housed, the hard-bound coffee-table book, plus all of the other cool surprises we've been unearthing!). But, we're going to offer just the music, all 22 shows, more than 60 CDs, more than 70 hours of music, each show housed in its own packaging, for the same price as the boxed set, $450 including domestic shipping. Although perhaps not as cool as the boxed set, the bottom line is that the most important aspect of Europe '72: The Complete Recordings is going to be made available to all, the music.


- David Lemieux


Because you dared dream this might happen one day… Because you went down to the Gypsy Woman and offered up your first-born to try to make it happen… Because there are enough passionate Dead Heads at Rhino/GD who thought it might be cool for this to happen… It’s happening! Coming in September is a gargantuan, beautifully designed EUROPE ’72 MEGA-BOX SET containing ALL 22 SHOWS of what is arguably the greatest tour the Grateful Dead ever played, on a whopping 60+ DISCS (over 70 hours of music!). Bet you didn’t see that comin’!

Really, at this point we probably don’t need to lay on too much hype about how wonderful the music is: Chances are, if you’re even considering buying a copy of this stunning box, you already know how amazing the Dead’s tour of Europe in April and May of 1972 was. To review briefly, though, the Dead’s first tour outside of North America took them to all sorts of historic and unusual venues in England, Denmark, West Germany, France, Holland and even tiny Luxembourg. Many members of the Dead “family” came along on what was really an extended working vacation that was designed to both expose the Dead to new audiences and also reward the band for their unlikely conquest of America during the preceding two years. As a hedge against the costs of the nearly two-month trip, the Dead’s label, Warner Bros., paid for the band to lug around a 16-track recorder to capture the entire tour… and we’re glad they did!

This was a band at the top of its game, still ascending in the wake of three straight hit albums — Workingman’s Dead, American Beauty and the live Grateful Dead (“Skull & Roses”). It had been a year since the lineup had gone to its single-drummer configuration, six months since Keith Godchaux had been broken in as the group’s exceptional pianist, and this marked the first tour to feature Donna Godchaux as a member of the touring band. There was a ton on new, unreleased material that came into the repertoire in the fall of ’71 (after “Skull & Roses” was out) and during the spring of ’72, including “Tennessee Jed,” “Jack Straw,” “Mexicali Blues,” “He’s Gone,” “Comes A Time,” “Ramble on Rose,” “One More Saturday Night,” “Black-Throated Wind,” “Looks Like Rain” and Pigpen’s “Chinatown Shuffle,” “The Stranger (Two Souls in Communion)” and “Mr. Charlie.” (Sadly, this was Pigpen’s final tour.) All those future classics were interspersed with songs from the aforementioned “hit” albums—such as “Uncle John’s Band,” “Brokedown Palace,” “Cumberland Blues,” “Casey Jones,” “Sugar Magnolia,” “Bertha,” “Not Fade Away,” et al — and then were topped off by loads of big jamming numbers — the Europe ’72 tour produced spectacular versions of “Dark Star,” “The Other One” “Playing in the Band,” “Truckin’,” “China Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider,” “Good Lovin’,” “Lovelight” and even the early Pig chestnut “Caution.” And that’s leaving out a truckload of other tunes, too! There wasn’t a clunker show in the bunch, and many are acknowledged today as classics. No doubt you already have some favorites.

Through the years, there have been a few releases of material from the Europe tour—starting with the 3-album Europe ’72 which knocked our socks off in the fall of that year, and followed many years later by material from a pair of German shows and the fantastic 4-CD Stepping Out, culled from the group’s eight shows in England. Incredibly, though, only one full show from the tour has come out previously: the excellent 4/24 concert in Dusseldorf, Germany, released as Rockin’ the Rhein in 2004.

Until now, that is. Jeffrey Norman, who has been the primary mixer of Dead archival multi-track material for the past 15 years (Fillmore West ’69, Ladies and Gentlemen…, Rockin’ the Rhein, Nightfall of Diamonds, etc.) has spent many months toiling over the 16-track masters from the tour, and will continue working on the mixes through the Winter and Spring, employing the high-tech Plangent Processes transfer and restoration tools, trying to get every show to sound “just exactly perfect” (as Bob Weir says) for this release. You might think you’ve heard that intense “Dark Star” > “Sugar Mag” > “Caution” from Copenhagen, but I guarantee you’ve never heard it sound this alive! Mastering to HDCD specs is two-time Grammy-winning engineer David Glasser of Airshow Mastering. Needless to say, all the songs that turned up on previous Europe compilations will be appear in their proper show contexts, and in the case of songs from the Europe ’72 album, without overdubs that were added later (where possible).

So dig deep, raid the penny jar, take a weekend job at Jack-in-the-Box, beg your kindly ol’ grandma for some of your inheritance early… Yes, it’s an extravagance, but jeez, you (or your loved one) deserve it! This is way cool.

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Any ideas as far as how the personalization will look, and how much space is available? I have many ideas for short personalizations - but what will fit?? By the way, I did get a confirmation Email on 1/21 at 1:25am. It's all part of the journey, right?! :)

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Chkj11, how long ago did you reserve? My confirmation e-mail took a few hours yesterday, and only just got a 2nd "stand by for secret code" e-mail a few hours ago. I'm guessing you're ok. Just a thought on supply and demand ~ assuming the reserve or order option will return after some site tweaking, make no mistake, this thing is going to sell out fast. 7200 is a very small theater's worth of heads, and 2800 less pressings than the Fillmore box. I'm not a paid advertiser for the Dead nor Rhino, I've simply been here before (with said Fillmore box). This one's more expensive, but do the math ~ this won't last long. Just want to urge those who've decided they want this not to delay. (And I can already hear the whiners. Why couldn't we have till April to decide? Why can't we download the individual shows? Why can't money be free, and printed on orange paper instead of green? Why can't there be eight days in a week?) Maybe mp51 is right and they'll increase the run (don't know why they wouldn't, really), but I wouldn't bank on it.
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I sent my reply as soon as I saw the email yesterday and have still not gotten a response or a code. Very disappointed. I called Deadnet merchandising. The middle eastern tele-rep was barely understandable,and basically worthless with info. I hope this isn't another Rhino cluster F***. I've been on the bus since 72 and would hate to miss out on this. Anyone have any worthwhile suggestions?
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15 years 6 months
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Come on guys really 60 Discs? Put it online and let us buy it & download. You should pay us for the time to input 60 frigging discs into a computer only to import the tracks to iTunes, et al. The music is cool your packaging choice isn't. It's 2011 not 1972.
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Come on guys really 60 Discs? Put it online and let us buy it & download. You should pay us for the time to input 60 frigging discs into a computer only to import the tracks to iTunes, et al. The music is cool your packaging choice isn't. It's 2011 not 1972.
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I have gotten NOTHING NOTHING NOTHING in response to my multiple attempts to reserve a copy. If you tell me I missed out after following your rules precisely, I am going to be... well, never mind. WHERE IS MY CONFIRMATION E-MAIL?????????????????????????????????????
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First off, $450 for 22 complete shows plus a boxful of cool stuff to go along with it is an EXCELLENT value. The current price for a new 3-disc Road Trips CD set is $23.98 plus shipping, and those are only STARTING to include full shows--most are 2 CD compilations that only hit 3 CDs with a limited-availability compilation bonus disc. At that price, 22 shows would run $572.56, with no book, no doo-dads, and no custom-fitted protective carrying case. As for the minimum 3,000 set orders before production can commence, I think that Dead.net's worries about that are ancient history by now. However, my e-mail notice was time stamped 10:00 PM (PST) on 1/21/2011 (Friday), and I didn't see it until around 10 AM today (Saturday). I took about 3 minutes to mull over the idea and then sent in a reservation. Ten hours later, I still don't know if I'm number 7,201 (which would mega-suck unless they build a waiting list in the order that reservations were sent in, since probably a minimum of 100 - 200 reservations will be voided due to declined credit cards and canceled orders). Therefore, I'm worried. One thing, though--the 7,200 production number is much better than it might have been. Imagine if, instead, they limited it to 1,972 sets, at a cost of $1,650 (the approximate price needed to equal the dollar sales of 7,200 sets). Even if you lower that price by the smaller cost of producing approximately 1/3 as many boxes, books, and doo-dads, it would still come out around $1,500 in order to cover studio time, design time, mastering, and so on, while still making it worthwhile for both Rhino and Dead.net. A friend of mine (and fellow deadhead) recently paid $271 LIST PRICE for ONE TICKET to see Roger Waters performing The Wall Live. That was a single performance, only a bit over 2 hours long, and the ticket price did not include a souvenir program, or a t-shirt, or parking, or even a half liter bottle of drinking water. By comparison, this box set is almost free. THAT was what made up my mind that I should take the plunge.
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The updated blurb page for the box set states that all 7200 copies have sold out, but apparently the music itself will be released in unlimited numbers...although still as the entire tour at once, and still at the $450 price. I won't copy and paste the whole update here, but at least the music will be available beyond the 7200 copy limit. I had better be getting one of those code numbers though, and it better be for a personalized set like my confirmation email says. I JUMPED on that damn button (and the button after that, and the button after that) and was ready to shell out the bucks LMAO.
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I am so upset at this. I received the email notification only on the 22nd at 6pm, which would have been the 22nd in California at 2 am. I saw it this morning and of course it was already sold out. But it said sold out in 4 days, and I see comments from the 19th. Did anyone else not get an email about this until the 22nd?
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Chinacat Steve looks like others got the email much later than some. pretty unfair, and extremely frustrating. Would have been much fairer to do a lottery, especially as some of these will be sold on secondary market very soon at $1,000+.
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16 years 6 months
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Wait - can it really be? I followed the instructions, put in my name for a reservation, then never heard anything back. So I just popped on to see what's up, and it is sold out? Are you kidding me? A few hours away from my computer and I missed it? Nah - really? Say it ain't so!
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Well, with the potential out there for people who want the deluxe boxes for re-selling rather than for personal enjoyment, I would hope that Dead.net decides that it would only be fair to limit the deluxe versions to 1 set per mailing address, and that they give those individuals who order more than 1 the option of either reducing their order total to 1 or receiving "music-only" versions for the sets ordered in excess of 1. Let's face it: more than just a couple of orders HAD to have been placed by buyers who expected to pay for the one they keep with the profits from the one or two they sell at auction. If that is done, there WON'T be a problem with high-priced eBay auctions, because only a very small number of buyers would even consider parting with their one-and-only chance at this set. Wow... when I placed my reservation this morning (1 set), I don't recall having seen the "music only" header in the reservation form. I wonder if it was there? Or if the reservations had already passed 7,200 without shutting off the reservation link? At the same time, I think that we need to know if there will be a total sets production limit, or a last-day-to-order "music only" sets. It does seem silly to charge the same money for the set without all the bells and whistles, however, since production costs per unit will go down as production quantity goes up. The one GOOD thing about the "music only" offering is that it pretty well guarantees that there will be plenty of replacement CDs available in case any discs arrive damaged, scratched, or unplayable.
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Even if they limited it to a single address, people can always find another address. And if they did not limit from the beginning (which they should have) they won't do it now. I still don't get how some people got the email several days ago and I only got mine after the set was sold out. Seroiusly sucks!
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Even if they limited it to a single address, people can always find another address. And if they did not limit from the beginning (which they should have) they won't do it now. I still don't get how some people got the email several days ago and I only got mine after the set was sold out. Seroiusly sucks!
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chinacat steve, it might not make any difference, but we're always free to whine about how things work. 12+ hours since I sent my reservation (within minutes of reading the e-mail that went out to me last night at 10:00 PM California time, when I was already in bed, sleeping), well before the notice of sell-out was posted, and I'm still wondering if I was in time. I have, in the past, ordered duplicate copies of Road Trips sets with bonus discs in hopes of recouping my expenses later on (for some stupid reason, I've still not tried selling any of them, even though I know that they're already selling for as much as they're ever likely to), but with those, the production limits on bonus discs were determined by how many orders were placed prior to a cutoff date. Same thing went for the two Winterland boxes (I didn't order extras of those, just one each, both pre-ordered with bonus discs). Since the limits on this set were numerical rather than calendar-based, I would think that a retroactive limit on orders would be both reasonable and feasible (since nobody, yet, has actually paid out a single dime for this set). And, since the order limit has already been achieved on the 7,200 boxed sets, with plenty of demand still likely for "music only" sets (my guess is that the "music only" sets will be somewhat less popular, perhaps only 3,000 - 6,000 total, since their resale value will be, at best, half that of the complete boxes while still costing exactly the same), multiple address orders for a single buyer are not a problem.
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I put in a reservation for what I -thought- was the limited box set edition of this the other day. I know when I put the reservation in that the notice about it being sold out was not on the page...but I also haven't gotten a confirmation e-mail or any e-mail of any kind from Dead.net regarding the reservation. Little confused here, and I'm not sure the music only set is worth it at the same price...particularly since I thought I was paying for the whole kit and caboodle :S
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Never complained before about anything. Bought (amost) every release and supported every limited edition, glued up Road Trips, wrong delivery, the works, without much of a grumble or tantrum.... I was one of those guys who told others never to whinge and complain ... so strike me down cause I'm a friggin hypocrite right now ... BUT I just don't get this!! I registered right away, never got an email, got nada, now it's sold out. I kinda thought you'd just release this and if there's a big enough demand, then doesn't that say something about the Dead market? Limited box sets - this isn't a masonic lodge manual, it's the GD catalogue! Sorry, but secret log-ins and and the like - this ain't the da Vinci Code, is it? Yes, I can still get the Euro 72 apparently, but this whole operation makes the planning for the Iraq war look like a master stroke. Are you sure Donald Rumsfeld isn't working at the Store???
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Got my e-mail stating I would receive another e-mail with a link to my unique code. Kind of a fakakta way, but none the less!! Woooooo to the Mother-F*#@*ing Hooooooo!!!!!
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When they said this was going to be an Epic release they were not kidding** Sold Out! wow I'm stunned. This the Jaw Dropper Box Set of All Time for sure!! And hey they took a cue from how the Band itself used to try to work out a fair solution back in the day to keep all parties from being too butthurt when problems arose. as an old friend used to say" "Far Out man".
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were sent to Road Trip subscribers I do believe Rolling Stone Magazine also made some kind of announcement, so i have read fortunately for me I have been logging in quite regularly lately (multiple times a day).
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I can't believe what has happened here. I receive an email a few days ago to preorder this box set. I immediately go to this site and submit my info to reserve a copy. I never received a response. Now I check back here to discover the box set is sold out. Is this really the right way to treat your fans? With all of the screw ups that took place with this release, the one thing you will make absolutely sure is done right, is to stick to the limited edition number. Now after lengthy discussions you are going to do me the favor of offering the music for the same exact price. How long did that discussion last? You guys make the same amount of money but I lose out on the box set. Do you really think this is some kind of compensation?
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i'm a bit stunned myself. i was thinking of what they can do next time. i understand the minimum thing, but after they reach that, maybe keep it out there a week, and then cut off the limited by how many were ordered, 7000, 10,000, 20,000, whatever. i dont think 'collectability' should be a factor, personally. i'd also do one per shipping/credit card address. (if its kind of unlimited, maybe not) after that, do a music only or something that does keep the music available. like i've stated before, at smithsonian/folkways, nothing they have ever put out is ever out of print...ever. now they may be non-profit, or subsidized, i dont know. i just think our stuff is just as historically valuable...
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I knew right from the get-go that the limited box would sell out instantly. Wisely, they are now offering the whole set to anybody and everybody willing to pay the $450 price tag sans box, which will put the kabosh on those who bought up a bunch of copies of the box with the intent to resell at an overly inflated cost. I think that is an awesome move. Now I can purchase at my own leisure and silently laugh at those who bought up the lot in hopes to make a huge profit that now won't happen. After the FW '69 Box situation, it's nice to know that eventually anybody and everybody who desires this release can get one. The extra goodies will be awesome for those who get them and will actually appreciate them as fans.
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spacebrother... you're good! i didn't think they'd go this fast. and they way they put this out, with needing a min of 3000, you just know that there was some suit in this meeting saying 'ain't gonna happen' and the heads in the meeting were like 'you're wrong dude' let us show ya...ie, the minimum. anyway, it didn't go down as well and nice as it could have, but your right, bottom line, the music will be available to all.
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My email FIRST ANNOUNCING the release arrived in my inbox on 1/21 at 9 PM Pacific Time.From what I understand after reading previous posts, the box set was sold out before the announcement was sent. Good going Rhino. Your site crashes (not the first time after a release is announced), the coding for placing an order is broken and crashes, the email system set up for confirmation of orders seems to be totally random with it's responses AND you've managed to make a lot of people very unhappy. Then you ask that we pay the same price for a stripped down product. What a way to run a business.
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I'm thinking about how the process of these releases, in particular limited edition ones, could be improved. Clearly there were system issues here with a new shopping cart and unexpected volumes and that needs to be covered but I think further improvements could be made. The main issues seem to be around people getting information in a timely manner so they have a chance to buy a release (I'm seeing a few comments indicating that people found out about the release after it had sold out) , and the concerns people have with a release being limited to a certain number, people missing out, people buying multiple copies to sell etc. I think a consistent process so people know what to expect could be a fairer approach: - Announce an upcoming release a month prior so everyone knows they have a reasonable period to check email, Dead.net, other websites. - On the specified date open up ordering, or use the email reservation system. - If an item is limited then customers can only purchase one. - If the item has not sold out after a certain period of time then the one item per customer limit could be removed for those who wish to purchase additional copies. A compromise with the limited edition saga would be to have different versions of a release catering for different financial situations and levels of interest or collector obsession. I appreciate that there are business realities and logistics involved here but I think this approach could have a positive effect on sales. The shows could be released inidvidually, all together in a no-frills set, in an unlimited deluxe edition, and in a limited super deluxe edition. Each would be priced appropriately. For example the Europe '72 Complete set could be offered in the limited super deluxe personalized trunk version for a premium price, an unlimited non-personalized trunk version for less, a standard non-boxed version with all the shows at a reasonable cost , as well as the shows being sold individually.
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17 years 4 months
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Wow, I seriously didn't expect this to sell out so quickly. I honestly didn't expect it to sell out at all, given the price. I'm glad I got an order in and confirmed, and, frankly, I seem to have lucked out, because my order slipped in during a brief window on Thursday morning European time. However, since, at the time, it hadn't been confirmed, I went and put my name in for a reservation, and got an e-mail today saying I'd be getting a code within 48 hours. So while they say sold out, I think they mean they have all the reservations and will be making the actual orders soon. This also means that there may be some who made reservations and who don't go ahead with their orders, so there may be a few sets left. In any case, I'm wondering now if I should grab a second set...
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17 years 4 months
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well I would have bought just the music for $450 if they had sold it that way first, so I figure I am one of the lucky ones who gets all the other bits and pieces for free. One more thing..in all the chaos of trying to order and before I got a confirmation of anything I managed to make a successful full pre-order AND get a reserved copy too, and I am sure I am not the only one. I will now be cancelling my reserved copy, so it is likely that a bunch more of the whole boxed sets could come back on the market.
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13 years 9 months
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Chinacat Steve If any of you get the chance for an unintended second set, please please take it and I will happily take it off your hands. It was sold out for me before I even had a chance to order!
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17 years 4 months
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I am one of the lucky ones who got a reserved copy but in truth no thanks to Dead.net despite being a Road Trips subscriber; I found out about this release from the Zappateers forum who had a posting relating to this release. I received the e-mail days after I reserved. I have a very good mate in Australia who is caught up in the floods and no doubt won't know about this release until he has communications restored and it's too late. I know he'll be right royally pissed off at missing out but he will at least still be able get the music. I am surprised at Rhino limiting to 7,200 units of the box; given that number has been easily exceeded they should have done to box to order as originally stated so if it's 10,000 15,000 or whatever then everybody who wants all the fancy stuff can get it. More units produced would mean better unit cost for Rhino and therefore more margin. By all means number 7,200 units and leave the rest un numbered. It's great that the music will be available to those that sadly missed out and those who don't want the fancy stuff but since it's the same price tag as the box I can't see too many boxes being freed up as a result. I also wonder how long Rhino will keep the 22 shows on catalogue, there comes a point when deletion is a fanacial decision for record companies. This could and should be handled much better. I am sure the "old" Dead.net would have done this better. Beatle Bones 'n' Smokin' Stones
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17 years 3 months
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... when it sells out anyway? As I posted elsewhere: "cdbaby, County Records, Arhoolie, cdconnection, Amazon, Worlds Records, Archeophone, sometimes Mosaic - places I buy from that don't have 'issues'." It's disgraceful and shameful and UNGRATEFUL DEAD that Rhino/whoever is playing on and abusing the diehard loyalty of DeadHeads by treating them as the contents of this thread illustrate.. If that makes me less of a DeadHead ... fine.
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17 years 4 months
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Regarding the limited number - I think there are possible legal issues if they announce a limited edition, start selling it, then move the goalposts. I'm pretty sure that's what happened with the 69 Fillmore box set; if they were to have pressed more, they could probably have been sued. Given the experience with both the Fillmore box and this one, we can hope they won't make the same mistake. They've just got $3.24 million on the 7,200 sets (gross, of course), so maybe they'll be more liable to take "risks" announcing non-limited sets. I think they felt that calling the set limited got people to order right away, rather than put it off. And, frankly, I think that worked. If they had not announced it as limited, there wouldn't have been the same rush. But they clearly underestimated the disposable income of aging Deadheads... In any case, this bodes well for future releases of this type.
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17 years 4 months
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I just placed my order for a deluxe edition! Placed it that is after a bit of trepidation with my credit card's expiration date. See, I'm traveling this weekend and I only brought my card that expires 7/2011. In my excitement to order immediately upon receipt of my Golden Ticket (confimation code), I almost submitted the card number info. for that card. However, I was nervous to submit that one even though I do plan to renew it. So I didn't. Should I have tempted fate on this deal? I think not.Alas, after an early morning call (5:45 am) to my main squeeze I procured a credit card number with an expiration that is sure to be valid. I thought twice about waking her up and even considered other options, but I think I chose correctly. Thanks honey; go back to bed...I love you dear. Mwa! Thank God the site didn't time out on me as you can only use the confirmation code once! I had left the card that expires in July's number and code in the credit card field for a good 20 minutes while I took a shower and made coffee! Once I realized, I hopped out without even drying off or taking nary a sip. Well, it seems all has worked like dusty clockwork should. Thanks Rhino! and me! So, until September, color me Homer Simpson in his Candyland of dreams. That's where I'll be until this baby comes...
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17 years 4 months
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At the speed the limited edition delux box set sold out, they could have made it a 72,000 run instead of just 7200. Next year we will see this monster go on Ebay for several thousand dollars for sure. On the BUS since 12-29-1968, and I'm never getting off. "When I die bury me deep, put two speakers at my feet, pair of ear phones on my head, and always play The Grateful Dead."
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16 years 8 months
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..of this corporate greed killing "Dead- ism" I don't know if it's funny or just ludicrous dangling the carrot in front of junkies all in line in a dark back alley
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17 years 4 months
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On January 21st, 2011 D-Rae said: Is anyone else looking forward to finally hearing a clean board of 4/7/72, after years of having to endure a dreadful audience tape? // To which I replied - hold on there, that's was done by a mate of mine, on a hand held cassette recorder. Summat like this, I would imagine http://thumbs2.ebaystatic.com/m/mhBFKiBbk-QSwmFnioRmxLQ/140.jpg But yes - completely with you. I was 3rd row centre that night, and the acid hit hard as Phil dropped his TOO bomb. Cue surfing coloured music, plus confirmation that all the shit we had heard about the Dead, and all the chaos they had caused in our tiny little minds as myself and my contemporaries sailed into late 60s psychedelia was true. Nothing like the Dead.
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15 years 10 months
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To stopping by dead.net ALL the time. It makes logical sense if you log on here every day you will be first in line for releases like Europe 72. "It's got no signs or dividing line and very few rules to guide"
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16 years 11 months
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Hey Now this is the sort of release we all have been longing for BUT will piece-meal purchasing be allowed after the sets are sold? Some of us cannot or do not want to spend $450 for 60 cds. I wanted to buy some of those shows but not all. ALSO, I would love to see the following boxed sets released in the near future_ October 1980, Fall 1977, Spring 1977, Winter/spring 1978, Fall 1979, Spring 1981 ,Fal l1983 spring, summer, fall 1985 Summer 1986 Fall 1987 fall 1989 spring 1990 summer 1990 Fall 1990.. Take your pick and please make individual shows available after the sets are out. peace, augustwest14
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16 years
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looks like I am one of the lucky ones, got a confirmation email saying I will get a code in 48 hours to order my "personalized" 60 disc set. I hit the button on order when it first came on the site, put in my personalization and hit submit, the site crashed and didn't know if it had gone thru or not, turns out it did and all the rest of the buttons I pushed didn't, which is good, I got 1 copy, but the way I see it, if you didn't see this right away, you missed out. I am so glad they will keep the music alive with furthur releases of this epic set, they did the kind thing, now, the wait.
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15 years
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Sold out in limited, and now we see that the righteous instant response by Dead.net, to offer the whole musical shebang unlimited...also isn't good enough for a lot us. Big surprise there!! Some heads prematurely thought "well at least this'll stop the scalpers," but others still clearly toss and turn at night over those lousy eBay greedheads. Dead.net will have surely learned at least one thing from this debacle --> They're Damned if they do and Damned if they don't!
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14 years 4 months
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As a FREQUENT buyer from the dead.net site I was surprised that so many folks received email notifications as early as 1/19 to pre-order the set since I didn't receive the notice until 1/21 @ 7pm. Despite responding to the email reservation link immediately upon receipt, I appear to have been shut out. It appears that I am not the only LOYAL customer to feel somewhat disabused by the process. That said, I still want the BOX set.
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13 years 9 months
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I think I got it.You guys dose in the mornings when you come into work and then sit around and figure out how many peoples minds you can f with. Right? Thats got to be it. Cuz there is just no way anyone could have handled this so incompetently with out having done it deliberately. Received my email notice inviting me to reserve at 7pm the 21st. Saw it 6am the 22nd and reserved immediately. Later heard they were having problems and reserved again at 9am. They were still sending out invitations to reserve later in the day I understand. it's 23.5 hrs later. I haven't heard anything official on my status. Do I have a reservation? Do I have multiple reservations? Do I automatically have a reservation for the new offering? Is there anyone in this so called business operation that isn't high and can tell me what is really going on? Oh yeah. Really funny.
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17 years 4 months
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Wow, I'm really bummed. I tried to buy a set when the boxed set went on sale, but of course the check out went down. Later, the site let me reserve a personalized copy. I've been waiting for an remail confirmation. I looked at the site today to see what's going on and I see the whole set is sold out!! What a way to find out!!
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13 years 9 months
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David says it sold out in four days. Can someone tell me when that four day count started?I could be and probably am wrong, but by my counting I reserved in the four day window.
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16 years 1 month
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David,Thank all of you for what you do and how well you do it. This release is something I've hoped for for many years. One thought though. Might you not come up with some rationalization by which you could sell the material that will not be provided to those of us that didn't learn of the release untill the orders exceeded the magic number? Perhaps make us pay a late fee or penalty - well, you know. Or perhaps a suitable contribution to a charity of your choice. Thanks again. pete in s.f.
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16 years 3 months
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I reserved my copy on the 21st and got the e-mail saying "in 48 hours we'll send you a confirmation code". How do I know I actually got the Box Set and not just the music?
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15 years 8 months
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This is ridiculous. I have an e-mail in my inbox stating "This email confirms that we have reserved 1 copy(copies) for you.". I got it 2 days ago. But afterwards, NOTHING! And now they say it's sold out, but they expect me to pay the same amount for just the music, despite the fact that they confirmed my reservation for the complete Box Set!
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14 years 8 months
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I doubt this post will have any impact, but PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, I implore you folks, since you are taking further orders, please give people the chance of ordering individual shows. I was on this site SECONDS after the news hit to order the complete box, and am happy to scrape the entire amount together for this, but for the other folks who just can't afford the whole damn shebang, please extend your extention to offer individual shows. It makes good business sense, since you can print to order and maximize your profits, and will make more fans really happy. And isn't that the ultimate business plan for the Dead in their ideal; viable offers, astounding music, and flexing with the needs of the people who value their work? PLEASE consider this.