• 1,587 replies
    Srinivasan.Mut…
    Joined:

    What's Inside:
    7 Previously Unreleased Complete Shows On 20 Discs
    Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 12/09/71
    Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 12/10/71
    Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/17/72
    Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/18/72
    Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/19/72
    Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, MO 10/29/73
    Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, MO 10/30/73
    Sourced from tapes recorded by Rex Jackson, Owsley "Bear" Stanley, and Kidd Candelario
    Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman
    Restoration and Speed Correction by Plangent Processes
     
    Individually Numbered, Limited Edition of 13,000

    Steamboats and BBQ, ice cream cones and Mardi Gras - are you ready to laissez les bons temps rouler with the "gateway" to the Grateful Dead? Meet us, won't you, in St. Louis for seven complete and previously unreleased Dead concerts that capture the heart of the band's affinity for the River City.
     
    LISTEN TO THE RIVER: ST. LOUIS ’71 ’72 ’73 is a 20CD set featuring five shows from the Fox Theatre - December 9 and 10, 1971; October 17-19, 1972; and two from the Kiel Auditorium - October 29 and 30, 1973. 
     
    The seven shows in the collection span slightly less than two years, but they represent some of the best shows the Grateful Dead played during some of its peak tours. The music tells the story of a band evolving, changing from one sound to another seamlessly, precipitated – in large part – by significant personnel changes in the Dead’s lineup.
     
    The two 1971 shows feature the original Grateful Dead lineup plus newcomer Keith Godchaux on piano. This version of the band would hold together for the next six months as the Dead embarked upon its Europe ’72 tour. By the time the Dead returned to the Fox Theatre less than a year later, they were without Pigpen, who’d played his final show with the Dead at the Hollywood Bowl on June 17, 1972. A year after the exceptional Fox 1972 shows, the Dead came back to St. Louis, but played the much larger Kiel Auditorium, touring behind the release of WAKE OF THE FLOOD, which came out just two weeks before.
     
    All told, the band played 60 different songs during these shows highlighted by blazing romps through “Beat It On Down The Line” and “One More Saturday Night” and wistful takes on “Row Jimmy” and “Brokedown Palace” (whose lyrics give the collection its name). Meanwhile, the copious jamming ebbed and flowed like the mighty Mississippi River on multiple voyages through “The Other One” and “Dark Star.” Naturally, the band paid tribute to one of its favorite rock and rollers and one of St. Louis’ biggest stars by playing Chuck Berry songs at every show in the collection, including Pigpen galloping through “Run Rudolph Run.”  
     
    Each show has been restored and speed corrected using Plangent Processes with mastering by Jeffrey Norman. The collection comes in a slipcase with artwork by Liane Plant and features an 84-page hardbound book as well as other Dead surprises. To set the stage for the music, the liner notes provide several essays about the shows, including one by Sam Cutler, the band’s tour manager during that era, and another by Grateful Dead scholar Nicholas G. Meriwether, among others. 
     
    Due October 1st, LISTEN TO THE RIVER: ST. LOUIS ’71 ’72 ’73, is limited to 13,000 individually numbered copies and available exclusively from Dead.net.

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  • DeadVikes
    Joined:
    Adedhed68

    Hey, we are hoping..... Needs to happen at some point...

  • adedhed68
    Joined:
    Boxset 2022

    Deadvikes, is that a definite on the next boxset? Wow that would be something

  • DeadVikes
    Joined:
    Box Set

    We will resuscitate him after he hears the news of the 2022 box set:

    Alpine Valley, East Troy Wisconsin
    Three shows from 1987
    Four shows from 1988
    Three shows from 1989
    Video to boot.

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    Interesting

    Well, interesting, but it puts a damper on the fall 72 box. Hopefully HF isn't on suicide watch. Quick.. take some anti-depressant fungal cure caps.

  • KeithFan2112
    Joined:
    One More Comment on Audio

    I found this article on dead essays blog spot a while back. It talks about Bear's recording history with the Dead, with quotes from the man himself from his site:

    Regarding post-jail-time:

    "I came back to a crew that was totally different when I left, and the job that I had been doing was split up amongst three other people, none of whom were willing to yield the territory. I met a lot of resistance in the scene, and after you spend a couple of years locked up, your social adaptability is not very good."
    And another comment on '72 in his site:
    "I was having some problems with the crew, many of whom had come to work after I had gone, and resented my drive to improve things onstage and with the equipment, which I decided was obsolete for the most part. They preferred to let things stay the same - an attitude I thought was due to simple laziness. The various problems, particularly the one of getting those who did my job while I was away to back off and allow me to return to my work, eventually inspired me to design the Wall of Sound... "

    *****************
    Also he said about late '72:

    Bear recounts a mishap at the Vanderbilt University show on 10/21/72, when Bob Matthews didn't show up: "I had to recruit some of the kids from this college to carry the stuff back. Two of them took half our PA and split. At the next show, there's no PA. I said, 'I sent it to the truck.' A roadie picked me up and threw me into a water cooler."
    Apparently some recording equipment was stolen as well, which may account for the rather poor mixes of many of the shows from 10/21 to the rest of the fall tour - either that, or personal squabbles & disputes at the board! (Did anybody listen to the 11/12 mix?) Some shows have missing or incomplete SBDs (from 10/21 to 11/13, though not everything could be in circulation). There are several shows where Bear actually resorted to "audience-taping", making nice room recordings of 10/27, 10/30, and 11/13.

    None of our tapes from '73/74 seem to be Bear's work - apparently after the hassles of fall '72, Bear became more a 'behind-the-scenes' equipment tech rather than the on-site sound mixer.

  • Oroborous
    Joined:
    Jim’s correct,

    But the mastering process can also change the overall sound.
    This is why so many of the original CDs released after that format came out sound terrible.
    It’s a stigma that has unfortunately continued even though they’ve made incredible advances in digital conversion, and stricter coherence to using original master tapes.
    They were mastered poorly, especially the A/D conversion, which coupled often with not using the original master tapes, made them sound horrible. Not just CDs, DVDs etc also can be all over the place depending on transfer and what source was used. I’ve seen DVDs that looked better than Blu-ray’s because of this.

    There’s a lot you can’t mess with in mastering, but there’s much that can be done too.
    I think that’s a lot of why some of the newer releases sound better: Mr Jeffery has had significant time to adjust and perfect the mastering of the recordings. Like Jim says, you can’t re-eq or re-attenuate individual instruments etc on a 2 track, but you can adjust the overall eq, so perhaps that’s why one show from the same run for instance can have different “flavor” like your describing.

    Multitracks, besides allowing for individual tweaks: (think Donna turned down to a normal volume with some auto tune) usually do have much more openness or spaciousness. Check out the 71 Capitol shows to see how big a difference there can be!
    Oh, tape size and speed make a big difference too. The faster the speed and/or the fatter the tape, the better the frequency response and spaciousness.

  • 1stshow70878
    Joined:
    Thanks Jim

    I thought it might be something like that. That may also explain why folks are discussing a re-release of Europe '72 or a box with some of the other shows from that tour. I've got Rockin' the Rhine and Hundred Year Hall but only on tape, so I'm all for that. I need to revisit some of my old vinyl now that I have improved my main system. I don't ever remember Europe '72 sounding this good through my old amp.
    Cheers and thank you.

  • JimInMD
    Joined:
    E72 vs. 10/18/72

    The obvious answer is E72 was recorded using a 16-track professional recording system inside a truck they carried with them from venue to venue and 10/18 was recorded to stereo via two-track reel to reels. So starting with a 16-track professional master tape allows one to change the mix vs. a stereo master where the mix was already condensed to stereo at the time the recording was made (so you can't change the output of the bass or any other instruments/vocals). You can't really alter anything on the two track masters except the volume and some wizardry like compression. With a multi-track you can completely change the mix and the output / location of every instrument, panning the sound, etc. The sky's the limit with a multi-track master.

    There's a good bit of low-level hiss on the 10/18 recording. This was recorded by Bear. I have a sneaking suspicion these master reels were played a few times over the years. They just have this flavor of being used a bit which weakens the quality of the master. I'm speculating, I am certainly not in the know here. To me, it still sounds very good and the performance so strong, I am not complaining. I will take the win.

    Sorry for the detail, I bet you already knew most of this and to be honest.. I am not a recording aficionado, so I reserve the right to be fall on my face wrong. But this is all I have. Where is One Man when you need him?

  • 1stshow70878
    Joined:
    Europe '72 vs. Light Into Ashes

    Listened to these two on vinyl today and the sound is very different. The LIA is way more bass and mid focused and noticeably a bit lacking in treble. The LIA thread talks about the sound quality at more length. Hadn't listened to Europe '72 in many years and the sound was startlingly good on my copy from around 1975. The high end was so spacious, clear, and well defined it really surprised me. Lacking in bass by comparison but I hope they reissue that vinyl this year and balance that out. Maybe some of the recording aficionados here can clue me in as to why the totally different sound from these recordings from the same era.
    Cheers!

  • bigbrownie
    Joined:
    Three is the Charm

    I've just completed my third go-round of this box set: once on the big JBLs, once on the house system with the HDCD player, and once with headphones on the Marantz player...a unique experience each time. Two thumbs up! For all those responsible for making "Listen to the River" happen, I say "Way to go"!
    And, yes, I can't believe this is not sold put.

    BTW, inside my 30 Trips book I found:
    ticket: 10/27/91 Oakland
    backstage pass: 6/16/93 Louisville

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Member for

5 years 8 months

What's Inside:
7 Previously Unreleased Complete Shows On 20 Discs
Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 12/09/71
Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 12/10/71
Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/17/72
Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/18/72
Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10/19/72
Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, MO 10/29/73
Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, MO 10/30/73
Sourced from tapes recorded by Rex Jackson, Owsley "Bear" Stanley, and Kidd Candelario
Mastered in HDCD by Jeffrey Norman
Restoration and Speed Correction by Plangent Processes
 
Individually Numbered, Limited Edition of 13,000

Steamboats and BBQ, ice cream cones and Mardi Gras - are you ready to laissez les bons temps rouler with the "gateway" to the Grateful Dead? Meet us, won't you, in St. Louis for seven complete and previously unreleased Dead concerts that capture the heart of the band's affinity for the River City.
 
LISTEN TO THE RIVER: ST. LOUIS ’71 ’72 ’73 is a 20CD set featuring five shows from the Fox Theatre - December 9 and 10, 1971; October 17-19, 1972; and two from the Kiel Auditorium - October 29 and 30, 1973. 
 
The seven shows in the collection span slightly less than two years, but they represent some of the best shows the Grateful Dead played during some of its peak tours. The music tells the story of a band evolving, changing from one sound to another seamlessly, precipitated – in large part – by significant personnel changes in the Dead’s lineup.
 
The two 1971 shows feature the original Grateful Dead lineup plus newcomer Keith Godchaux on piano. This version of the band would hold together for the next six months as the Dead embarked upon its Europe ’72 tour. By the time the Dead returned to the Fox Theatre less than a year later, they were without Pigpen, who’d played his final show with the Dead at the Hollywood Bowl on June 17, 1972. A year after the exceptional Fox 1972 shows, the Dead came back to St. Louis, but played the much larger Kiel Auditorium, touring behind the release of WAKE OF THE FLOOD, which came out just two weeks before.
 
All told, the band played 60 different songs during these shows highlighted by blazing romps through “Beat It On Down The Line” and “One More Saturday Night” and wistful takes on “Row Jimmy” and “Brokedown Palace” (whose lyrics give the collection its name). Meanwhile, the copious jamming ebbed and flowed like the mighty Mississippi River on multiple voyages through “The Other One” and “Dark Star.” Naturally, the band paid tribute to one of its favorite rock and rollers and one of St. Louis’ biggest stars by playing Chuck Berry songs at every show in the collection, including Pigpen galloping through “Run Rudolph Run.”  
 
Each show has been restored and speed corrected using Plangent Processes with mastering by Jeffrey Norman. The collection comes in a slipcase with artwork by Liane Plant and features an 84-page hardbound book as well as other Dead surprises. To set the stage for the music, the liner notes provide several essays about the shows, including one by Sam Cutler, the band’s tour manager during that era, and another by Grateful Dead scholar Nicholas G. Meriwether, among others. 
 
Due October 1st, LISTEN TO THE RIVER: ST. LOUIS ’71 ’72 ’73, is limited to 13,000 individually numbered copies and available exclusively from Dead.net.

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Sorry to have made this such a production. Here's the lynx (always wanted your very own lynx, now didn't you?)

dropbox 'dot' com/sh/siivwfne253pnoe/AABnWrebbBjST_vIrXpKDucka?dl=0

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6 years 4 months
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So just digesting some of these and noticing somewhat odd transition, like a small cut, on this one and possibly 10/19 as well. Anyone else?

Admittedly I had a bitch of a time ripping these discs with iTunes to get on my phone, though this would not seem consistent with that problem as it is not likely only a few seconds off the end of China Cat would just vanish.

Also suppose that perhaps there is just an awkward transition in the way it was played, just need some confirmation from fellow experts. Much thanks.

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9 years 7 months
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If I didn't have River Fever I would seconded the emotion on Doc's 10/24/71 comments. I have this show courtesy of Uncle Gary on a near pristine CD version manufactured by Cellar Dwellar; I simply call it Motor City Madness, and the Dark Star IS that good (but there was little not to like about '71 Dark Stars, except they didn't play it enough, so booo). I don't know if there's a Charlie Miller available on archive, but I'll forward what I have to anyone who needs it. I'm going to stick my neck out and say it's better than either of the '71 LTTR shows.

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7 years 5 months

In reply to by tony57

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What a dream Farseer. What have you been thinking about lately?

I agree Tony, the 73 shows in this box are head scratchers. Can't believe we haven't heard more about it.

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7 years 6 months

In reply to by DeadVikes

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hi DEADVIKES, it is especially annoying as Dave in his seaside reveal of the boxset was saying the sound was great. I think he need to be totally open and call out bad sound.

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50 years ago today…..

October 29, 1971
Allen Theater, Cleveland, Ohio

Set 1: Truckin'-Sugaree-El Paso-Loser-Playing In The Band-Brown Eyed Women-Beat It On Down The Line-Brokedown Palace-Jack Straw-Tennessee Jed-Mexicali Blues-Big Railroad Blues-Casey Jones

Set 2: Cryptical Envelopment>drums>The Other One>Me And My Uncle>The Other One> Cryptical Envelopment>Deal-Sugar Magnolia-Ramble On Rose-Not Fade Away>Goin' Down The Road Feeling Bad>Not Fade Away-One More Saturday Night

Deadicated to rivrain, direwulf, helena buckett, hockey_john, 101874winterland, rdevil, samthardman, wjonjd, and wharfratwhitey, because the past……

No rough road here, this is a wonderful combination of smooth, rockin’, country/western, and Bakersfield. Fellow rockers, I have to admit I love this show!! It’s one of my great guilty pleasures from late 71, although nobody should feel guilty about liking a show as fine as this!!

Really fine Truckin’ to open the very Bakersfieldish first set. The Dead come charging right out in the second set with a great big jam, and wrap things up nicely with a solid NFA suite followed by Bobby’s new-at-the time rocker One More Saturday Night.

Possibly the best of the October shows, and worthy of official release!!!

Rock on!!

Doc
The test of greatness is the page of history…..

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8 years 5 months

In reply to by tony57

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They sound better than the CD-R copies I already had.
I listened to 10-30 last night and it sounded really good.
Yeah, there are a few AUD splices, but they amount to probably less than 5% of the total time.

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In reply to by tony57

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Hi Tony and Happy Will,
I phoned UPS yesterday, and after taking down all the details of my delivery, the advisor asked me to put the same information in an email to her. I did this, and got a reply this morning, thanking me etc etc, and telling me that my observation had been passed on to someone called " post clearance directly". She suggested I keep an eye on my emails for further information.

The email she sent also came with a highlighted red message, saying "Caution! This email originated outside the organisation." and went on to advise me not to open ones with like this with attachments etc. Crikey.

Regarding the sound of tne 1973 shows, I am personally quite happy, as the drop outs only occer on a couple of songs. They don't really affect my enjoyment of the whole. I do agree, though, that Dave could be a bit more open in his talks about these releases. They are not all pristine recordings of perfectly played shows, and Dave's presentation of them as though they are, robs what he says of all credibility. A little sincerity goes a long way. Loving everything is the same as loving nothing.

If you are in the UK contact ukpostclear@ups.com to dispute the charges and include the Dead.net invoice in the e-mail.

An acquaintance did this and got the following response from UPS (although it took about 3 weeks):

"The shipper has declared an incorrect commodity code on the commercial invoice resulting in duty being applied at 12% to your goods. I will arrange for a reclaim of the duty and partial VAT as our broker should have checked this since the description of the goods did not match the code declared."

If you are outside the UK then I guess you would need to contact your local UPS national charging centre to get it sorted out.

Interestingly, mine arrived in the UK with no charges at all!!

Correct charge should be 20% VAT (around UKP30) plus the unavoidable 11.50 UPS charge for collecting the cash.

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In reply to by tony57

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For me expectations are always high for 73, because almost all of the other 73 shows released to date have been really good, maybe even some of the best releases to date.
So when you have these shows mastered and Plangent is used you would expect them to sound similar to other 73 box sets or Dick's and Dave's from 73. They don't. Not talking about splices, or patches. I would call these recordings decent. Just listen to these two shows and than pick any November show as a comparison. I listened to 11/14/73 yesterday and it is still top notch.
Anyway, just my opinion.

Looking forward to a multi track box release for 2022.

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In reply to by DeadVikes

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Compare them to 10-19-73 Dick’s Picks 19.
Same tour, don’t know if the same person recorded them as I’m at work and don’t have them with me.
Also, compare them to the Winterland 73 Box.

I might try to do some comparisons this weekend, but may not have time for 73 if DaP 40 arrives today as tracking suggests it might.

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8 years 5 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Daverock, in what way do feel that Dave has been ‘deceptive’?

Pretty much everything that has been released so far, other than Warlocks 89, sounds better than what is freely available.
Most shows are freely available to listen to, so listen to a show for free first, then decide if you want to buy it. That way you will know if the performance meets your expectations. That is definitely something that you could do for 5-26-77, since you said the other day that you didn’t think that it was worth buying.

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In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Conekid, you lucky guy with Dave's #40. I haven't even received a shipping notification yet.
Winterland 73 and PNW 73 shows are A+.

I haven't gotten to '73 yet, still on 10/18/72 but I hear what everyone is writing.

The good, the bad and the ugly regarding releases the last 6+ years and I think this is what we will see going forward especially in box sets seems to be; when a stunning piece of music is considered it's not off limits to toss in a show or two with patches or periods where the sound is subpar. Thinking Portland 74 in the PNW Box, several shows from Boxzilla and the audience heavy matrix Dave's Picks that was Hartford '87. It seems they have a tentpole tolerance where if they toss in this killer quality tentpole segment we might be seeing another really good show with something that's not exactly perfect (cuts/patches/vocal dropouts/etc.).

I have an opinion similar to DaveRocks on this. It more or less is what it is and I tend to get consumed by the good more than the bad or the ugly. 11/10/67 and similar shows carry the big box, the '74 China Riders alone carry the PNW box, etc. They keep the prices reasonable enough to make it justifiable, if they get the customer service and defect rates a little better under control it would synch the deal.

My two cents, certainly subjective and open to interpretation. BTW, love the big box, PNW and St. Louis.. great investments in my current and future retirement mental health.

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8 years 5 months

In reply to by DeadVikes

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Fingers crossed but not holding my breath.

UPS tracking says “on the way” and “expected Friday 10/29” but there is no indication that it has been handed off to USPS yet, and the postal carrier for my neighborhood is already out doing the route.

Maybe Saturday…..

I think that UPS and USPS may be giving me more of a trick than a treat.

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9 years 6 months

In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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Cnkd - for me , Dave's talks would be more acceptible-nay, listenable - if he pointed out problems with recordings or performances, rather than go on about them as though they were all the equivalent of the second coming. Why not mention if a show has drop outs, or uses audience recordings at certain points? The only reason I can think of is that he fears some people wouldn't buy them if they knew what they were buying. Which is no basis for selling anything. Not mentioning problems leads to some people feeling they have been ripped off - as can be seen on this board.

I feel the same way about discussing shows. I'm not really too keen on indiscriminate adulation - in any field by any person. I can't help it. I was dragged up. My favourite parks are car parks. Grass is something you smoke. Birds are something you shag. Take your "Year in Provence" and shove it up your ass. -That's the lyric to a song, incidentally - not a message to Cnkd!

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I didn't purchase the new box because of just that reason, the PNW box had some subpar moments and if I had known that they were going to rough patch portions of jams and add audience I would not have purchased it. Same with this box or any future box, if there is a patch or a not up to par recording, tell me, let me make an informed decision, not blow pretty colors up my butt and tell me that it's up there with GOAT. They can't all be GOAT, as the 30 trips box showed us. Someone asked for a multi track box, I'm down with that.
Would love to get that 72 vinyl, anything Bear recorded is gonna be just exactly perfect and well worth the investment. Might just have to treat myself, after all, it is Halloween.

Recall that Dick’s Picks had a disclaimer.
Even though Dave doesn’t give one you should know and expect that to be the case.
Multi-tracks were made in an attempt to get commercially releasable material. Everything else is just a bonus that I am Grateful to be able to listen to.

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In reply to by icecrmcnkd

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I haven't missed a release yet, and I don't plan to start now. Still digging St. Louis.

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In reply to by JimInMD

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NOT something you always get with the GD, either performance-wise or recording-wise

"I think that any Dead is good Dead
so I take what I can get
yes I take what I can get"

why would someone skip a trip to heaven because of a hiccup here or there? and _I_ have OCD.

just my opinion

caaaarry on, Daaaaave's is coming
Daaave's is coming in the maaaaiiillllllll.......

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In reply to by proudfoot

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My god what a bunch of whiners.
You get mostly great shows and the years YOU want, then complain that a fifty year old recording made unprofessionally, and not intended for release, that has a few idiosyncrasies, is a rip off?
It’s not like their packaging really poor sounding aud tapes some stoned nut in the last row tried to record on his boom box, and then promoting it as professional, thaaaat! would be a rip off.
FFS! How bout they stop releasing anything, would that be better?

Yes Dave drinks a little too much koolaid, but he also usually mentions that these are fifty year old non professional recordings etc…is that really ripping you off? Anyone who KNOWS the dead knows every silver lining has a touch of gray! They know that there’s always something you COULD bitch about, but most folks are so glad to get all we get worts and all. If you want sterile perfection, there’s plenty of new stuff out there drenched with auto tune and other electronic wizardry that has no splices and is note perfect!
So I could go on about what I don’t like about this box for instance, like how I’m sick of Bobby playing the same five songs over and over etc, but big picture, I don’t because;
A) its a buzz kill for someone who thinks it’s the shit. So what what you think, their happy!! What’s so bad about that?
B) I don’t care because I get big weird Other ones and sweet playing sandwiches and awesome Dark Stars etc.
I would of bought this box just for disc 10 and 20. The rest I like is gravy, the stuff I don’t I can skip!
Would you have preferred that the box didn’t include the 73s instead?

If you expect the Grateful Dead to EVER produce a show that is completely perfect your in the wrong place my friend!
As some have mentioned, the trick is to concentrate on the good stuff, and there’s ALWAYS some good stuff, and forget the rest. Take what you need and leave the rest!
Like Eecktar’s rule of relativity: a little bit of somethin is better than all of nothing.

Oh, used to be folks realized that what made the Dead so special was because they weren’t perfect.
Ya know, like us: misfit power, dead freaks unite etc.
It was just part of the fun: ooopps Jerry missed that chord lol, or Bob forgot the lyrics again, or ha ha, Beatty must been burning a fat one and missed the real flip etc. This is all supposed to just be fun and entertainment!

Enough already, yer bumming us out.

I saw you comment about Bear recordings.

JUST, JUST got in the Johnny Cash at the Carousel from Owsley.

I would have thought it be TOP shelf,,, this recording is less than stellar. I've only hit a couple of tracks. But most of the sound is left channel, drums solidly in the right, Johnny behind a wall of muffle.

Glad I got for the what it is, but the recording is not what I expected.

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In reply to by Oroborous

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And if it’s such a rip off, sell it.
What other music, especially a rip off, could you sell a year later for more than you bought it for?
Sorry, rant over, just sick of all the negativity.

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I agree that it's maybe not the best practice to describe the audio as "pristine," since that seems to imply a flawless squeaky clean perfection that you're not going to get with live concert recordings, especially when they're 50 years old. It would make for a really tedious (even more tedious?) seaside chat to have to listen to Dave list out all the anomalies and audience patches and whatnot, especially with a 20-CD set, but I suppose maybe the Powers That Be might consider listing all of that online somewhere for those who might feel that a minute or two of poor sound ruins the overall experience of 7 full concerts rendered in audio that is on the whole Pretty Darned Good.

But that's just me. I grew up listening to music on a transistor radio with one speaker that was about an inch and a half across. Then on a crappy record player where I had to put on a nickel top of the cartridge to keep it from skipping. I generally dislike any rock and roll that can be described as being in any sense "pristine" anyway. Always feels like a pair of jeans with no holes in 'em. Gimme the "warts and all" presentation every time. I doubt I would be a fan of the GOGD if I thought otherwise.

Now, I AM sorta kinda miffed that Dave doesn't give us the full poop on the new subscription series. He mentioned that 41 and 42 are already in the works, so why not tell us what they are? Some of us are not independently wealthy, and since I absolutely HAD to plop down for the vinyl Mosque thing, I'm not sure I can spend another $100+ any time soon on yet more Dead. It sure would be a lot cooler to know what I was paying more.

Perfect circle of acquaintances and friends. Drink another, coin a phrase.

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What was the point of that little box full of small print on the back of Dick's Picks releases? Some may think it was to warn potential purchasers that the sound quality may be less than pristine, thereby giving one the option not to purchase it. Unfortunately it doesn't work like that for products purchased online. You buy it, it arrives in your post box, you open it and read that it may not meet your expectations. What to do? Send it back? Certainly not if you live outside the US and have paid serious shipping costs, waited weeks for it to be delivered and paid various taxes and duties. If it is sourced from two track tapes there is a good chance that there will be "anomalies" here and there and if it is sourced from a cassette master it is likely to have a somewhat muddy sound lacking in top end. We all know this and accept it, otherwise we wouldn't unhesitatingly buy each release. Even so, there is a certain sense of disappointment when one encounters a jarring aud patch. That is natural. For some, this is not acceptable and they do not blindly purchase each release. Each to his own and everyone has the right to air their views on here. Complaining about perceived whiners is a futile exercise and adds nothing to the discussion.

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In reply to by simonrob

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Any song that is not complete and pristine sounding could not be included in these releases, but then some people would complain about the chop job.

If you want every 73 and 74 show to be released then you should expect that they don’t all sound the same. And if there is an audio drop out that occurred at the show, you can’t blame Dave or Norman.

Most Boxes don’t sell out immediately. So if you think that Dave is scamming you, then don’t buy the Box until you read what people say about the sound quality.

I just did a China Cat -> I Know You Rider sound quality check from 3 shows, playing ALAC files from an iBasso DX120 that is connected to my stereo, and the best sound quality by far is 10-30-73, followed by 11-9-73, and then 10-19-73.

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50 years ago today……

October 30, 1971
Taft Theater, Cincinnati, Ohio

Set 1: Bertha-Me & My Uncle-Sugaree-Beat It On Down The Line-Loser-Playing In The Band-Tennessee Jed-Jack Straw-Big Railroad Blues-Me And Bobby McGee-Brown Eyed Women-One More Saturday Night

Set 2: Casey Jones-Mexicali Blues-Comes A Time-El Paso-Ramble On Rose-Sugar Magnolia-Truckin'-Not Fade Away>Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad>Not Fade Away

Deadicated to floridabobaloo, thursday's child, gdhead77, mbarilla, Zuckfun, brokedowndude, wissinomingdeadhead, LoveJerry, jrf68, and wilfredtjones, because 210………

Oh, to be caught between Cleveland and Columbus. Perhaps that’s a cosmic joke, in an Ohio sort of way, but it’s really no laughing matter……

There was some sweet jamming during the Fall & Winter tours of 1971, with Other Ones and Dark Stars becoming more common than in the first half of the year. What to make of the six shows without a “big jam sequence” (10/23, 27, 30; 11/11; 12/2, 7, 9) ?? They range from “somewhat average” to “pretty damn good”.

There was almost always something good played at every 1971 Dead show, but sometimes you have to dig around to find it. This show is no different, so enjoy digging around!

Rock on!!

Doc
The person who can bring the spirit of laughter into a room is indeed blessed…...

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too bad oro, didn't know you was the dead cop on this site, I will keep my opinions to my self for a while until you calm down. lol
But don't expect me to shut up, I will voice my opinion when I see fit and if you don't like it, too bad and stop bumming us all out lol

I agree with Simonrob and Unkle Sam - everyone has the right to air their views on the Dead and Dead releases on here. It isn't acceptable to criticise somone for expressing a point of view. To disgree with that point of view-of course -- but to object to someone expressing it - no.

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A blind vampire walked into a bar.
And into a chair and a table..

For those interested into a deep dive in the San Francisco sound of the 60s, a comprehensive box set of virtually everything the Beau Brummels recorded has been released. Never a fan myself, but it's out there for those that are.

A witch walks into a bar. The bartender says "What's your poison?"

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I think the folks who post on these boards are among the most informed DeadHeads out there. I don't understand how someone who is not new to the Vault release scene could be in the dark (heh) about the relative sound quality of the different years, or the fact that shows are often patched here and there. I know when I buy any show, it's as likely as not that there is going to be an issue with levels or dropouts on the first song, as the sound crew makes adjustments. As Icecrmcnkd said, it's not as though a significant amount of the entire package is affected. What's the point of complaining about something you know is part of the deal (heh). Sure, it's anyone's right to state an opinion, but there is no point complaining about something you can expect on any given release. I would bet your Dave's Picks 1 that you own at least one other show that contains one kind of audio anomaly or another. Magnetic audio tape wasn't built to last (heh). It would be a somewhat different story if you're new to the scene, don't own any Dead but just got hooked at the local Dead & Co show, and thought wow, I'm going all-in on this new box set they just released with 7 shows from a prime period in their playing career. But I don't believe that's the story on this message board.

Oroborous - yes, Keith used a stand-up piano in '71. You can catch him playing the occasional Hammond on some of the October shows too.

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Hi All - so I see both sides of the discussion regarding the patches on this box. The audience patches are not unprecedented, but at the same time, not entirely expected per say. To me I was a little surprised by them, but overall I still love this box set. I think these shows are great and the audience patches to me are just a minor issue. I have been working my way through the 73 shows. Oddly enough I encountered an anomaly where Stella Blue on disc 20 was skipping in my CD player, and only when I play it on the CD player. This did not happen when I ripped it to a computer. Interestingly there are no discernable scratchs or marks to the CD so I am guessing it is just the CD player's issue. If i would have had a similar experience with this box like the PNW box where I had about 5 CDs that needed replaced, that would have changed my mind.

A note on tapes: as I got on the bus at almost the 11th hour much of my early Grateful Dead experience was with listening to tapes. Right after Jerry died, I went on a massive tape trading run. I got so many great shows back then, which to Dick L and Dave L's credit, just about all of those shows have been released. Still I have so many found memories of my tapes.

I hope everyone stays well- i will be checking in here when I can. My work has been crazy, as some things on the home front. Plus I am training for, and competing in a Masters Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournament in VGuy's hometown in a couple of weeks. Assuming I am in one piece after that, I will be looking forward to the reviews of DaP 40.

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In reply to by Gratefulhan

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Good luck on the upcoming tournament! That is a serious workout! I took Goju Ryu for a few years, for exercise, and went to a few Black Belt exams to watch the action, but after watching my head roll across the Dojo floor after sparring courtesy of a kid half my age, I decided to just stick to the gym for exercise. But huge respect to you, and good luck!

A Zombie walks into a bar, and steps up to the bar. The bartender says, “Let me guess. You’ll have a Zombie…”

PS - Great discussion on the sound on the releases, everyone has an opinion, important to respect that right. Shoutout to DaveRock, and my pal Oro in the high Rockies. You’re both right, as I see it! As the English say, “End of”!

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In reply to by That Mike

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Skip to the next track if you don’t like them.

They’re better than a studio overdub or complete removal of the song.

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……I was going to express an opinion, but y’all have already covered every base. JININMD, DAVEROCK, SIMONROB & KEITHFAN as per usual, have stated well thought out, logical and unassailable points of view.
Actually, I was thinking while listening to the box(I have 1 show left), that IN GENERAL, the shows were a little disappointing, not from a quality of sound standpoint, but just from a lack of exceptional performance point of view.
That would not have prevented me buying the box, I was just ever so slightly surprised. I firmly believe, that if there were no bad shows, we wouldn’t be able to truly appreciate a good show. And after all……

MUSIC IS THE BEST!!

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37 years ago today, I was at the B.C.T. having a blast with the the good ole Grateful Dead, stopped at Everett & Jones B.BQ down on San Pablo Ave after the show for some killer B.BQ. Great big fun!

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Dave's Picks 1 ... my copy's disc 1 is degrading ... Promised Land will not play ... so I'm looking for any kind soul who might be able to help with such a problem ... just a clean copy of the music would be phenomenal if no one wants to part with the actual officially released Disc 1 ... thank you

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16 years 9 months

In reply to by That Mike

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Thank you! This is my third tournament of the year. I lost 30lbs for the last one. I managed to keep the weight off, but BJJ training is tough. I am 2 weeks shy of 48, I think overall I am in good shape. I have some injuries ailments that come up, but overall I love training and competing. Good times!

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In reply to by Gratefulhan

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I have it on good authority, Senator VGuy loves a good sip of tequila or two. :D I hear he is in Phish heaven at the moment.

Congrats on getting in or staying in shape. It's an age defying adventure for the good of all of us.

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In reply to by Mr. Ones

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are like assholes, everybody has one.
But that doesn’t make you right!

I’ve never said that someone shouldn’t state an opinion, what I’ve always said, and usually tried to convey in my posts, even critical ones, is that there are different ways to do so, and that you don’t have to be so negative, disrespectful, or insulting about it.
I intentionally made that post to illustrate how a small but vocal contingency here make some of us feel, over and over ad nauseam, about the same shit. BAD!
Go back ten pages and reread. These people say little to nothing positive, it’s always just bitch, bitch, bitch, and heaven forbid you have a differing “opinion” because then they insult you.
I’m not sure what I ever did to you Simon, but for years you have consistently insulted me damn near every time I have an “opinion”? Maybe that’s how you get off? So be it, whatever. You can shit on me all you like, it’s all good!
Just like songs, there are so many awesome folks here who get it, that it’s easy to just skip the rest.

I’m truly sorry if MY “opinion” differs from “yours” (no one in particular) and/or makes you uncomfortable.
But fair is fair, if “you” (meaning no one in particular) can come on here damn near every day and post mostly negative “opinions”, well then I can come on here and say shitty stuff too!
But is that what this place is for, about? Is that what we really want to come here for? Is everybody’s “opinion” really that important? The beauty of this little oasis we’ve created is to get away from all the ceaseless bitching and fighting and name calling of the “real” world. At least that’s my “opinion”!

But since it seams that my “opinions” are so horrible and misunderstood, I must apologize for doing such a poor job, and thank those who stated basically the same thing I did, but in a acceptable way. Please find and read the following posts to (hopefully) understand what I was trying to say:

Jiminmd: 10/29 7:34am
Gratefulhan 10/29 7:22 (good luck by the way!)
Crowtoldme 10/29 1:31pm (dug the old radio sound comment)
Proudfoot 10/29 11:18am
Conekid Always the voice of reason around here! Thank goodness for Conekid!
10/29 6:27am, 6:36am, 10:52am, 3:24pm,
10/30 8:20am
And perhaps best of all,
Kiethfan on 10/30 7:02am

My understanding of what these, knowledgeable regular posters meant is that:
It is what it is, and anyone who’s been an informed DH for more then ten minutes knows, and thus excepts, and understands caveat emptor etc, and that you are buying these for the music, not the technology. Though anyone who actually knows anything about the technology, knows these recordings are actually quite good all things considered, but are going to have flaws, patches etc,
If that’s unacceptable, no problem, don’t buy it! And as far as the shows themselves, as Conekid correctly states, you can preview any show before hand.
But that doesn’t mean you have to come on here and bitch about it, and ruin it for the majority of folks who are happy, or tolerable of the inherent flaws of the medium! Notice I didn’t say you couldn’t, just why bother?

But please, take a few minutes and read what these folks say, which is generally what I was trying to say, but nobody insulted them?
So could it be HOW I stated my “opinion”,?
THAT is the point I’m trying to make, say what you want, but perhaps don’t be so caustic, and don’t be personal!
And perhaps some of you could follow one of those rules we were taught as a youngster: if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.
I’m not promoting non critical cheerleader, everything is the goat bs. Hell that’s one of the things “I” don’t like about this place.
I’m just SUGGESTING that if the only thing you come here to do is complain, perhaps take a deep breath and do something else.
Or I guess more of us can just lurk, and eventually only a handful of people will participate, which will make this place pretty dull? Kinda like the “real” world where the same squeaky wheels never shut up and the rest just give up.
Ok, go ahead and gang up on me and insult me some more for stating my “opinion”
Kinda hypocritical eh?

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In reply to by Oroborous

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about JG after he passed, he always ended on that little up note.
So Big Kudos as always to Mr Smith, and hope you really enjoyed the shows!
How bout some stories!

And Kiethfan, agree on the rut roh post, that 10/24/71 is a real bobbie dazzler fo sho!
And Thanks for the upright answer. I thought that was the case but being senile I was a bit fuzzy!

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38 years ago today, I was at the tiny Marin Veterans Auditorium and having an absolute blast with the good old Grateful Dead. Before the show, we were all drinking beer and throwing a football around out in the parking lot, having a blast. We all dosed and went inside and it was fun city! We ran into a guy who was dressed like Ben Franklin, man that guy was funny, he had us busting our guts laughing. The Marin Vets only held about about 2000 people . The Dead played some really great places in 1983 and I saw them do a lot of great shows that year. Fun times, I miss them.

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were my own fault! When I started collecting the Dick's picks series I had replaced the torn (cat!) woofers in my speakers with some killer subs from Eminence without realizing I had messed up using the wrong impedance which also messed with the crossover point. So I had killer bass but no midrange. At that time I kept blaming Mickey for mixing those early Dick's with way too much drum as I heard he was involved. No idea if that was true. Did fix that with some real woofers from Misco (Minneapolis made) a couple years ago. So in the words of Miss Emily Latela (the great Gilda Radner), "What's all this I hear about too much violins on television? Oh, violence? Never mind". It's all entertaining. You guys are the best!
Cheers all!

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In reply to by Oroborous

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He played Seattle in 86, I believe.

The person I went with (guessss) wanted to leave early, though. And who pussed out and left early, too?

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