• https://www.dead.net/features/news/europe-72-complete-recordings-all-music-edition
    Europe '72: The Complete Recordings - All The Music Edition

    Europe '72:
    The Complete Recordings -
    All The Music Edition

    Our Europe '72 boxed set is now officially sold out, with all 7,200 boxes now gone! We can't thank you enough for your support, for having faith in the project and taking the plunge to purchase this unprecedented release. Despite the fact that it's going to be a bit of a wait before it arrives on your door step, we are sure you'll be blown away with the results.

    We are now offering the All-The-Music edition of Europe '72, which includes all of the music recorded on the tour, with each show in its own individual package, complete with its own liner notes by Dead scholars such as David Gans, Blair Jackson, Steve Silberman, Gary Lambert and others, as well as by attendees of some of the shows. You'll get 73 CDs and over 70 hours of prime Grateful Dead.

    IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC...

    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 EUROPE ’72 MEGA-BOX SET containing ALL 22 SHOWS of what is arguably the greatest tour the Grateful Dead ever played, on a whopping and clearly cosmic 73 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 enormous 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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  • stone jack baller
    12 years 1 month ago
    To Deadicated and Ed
    To Deadicated and Ed Michaels: This notion has crossed my mind too. OK.....we got the travel trunk full of CD's.....Spring is coming......40 years later....maybe this was the whole idea after all. Take your trunk on a road trip/river cruise/couch tour.....whatever. Paris in the Spring! Mary.....should there be a new post subject.....On the road with E72 in the Spring ???????????????????????????
  • Mike Edwards
    12 years 1 month ago
    deja 4/08/72 vu
    April 8th is a Sunday...4/8/72 is my all-time favorite Dark Star...maybe we could web the world with an ad hoc listening party on the 40th anniversary of the show...
  • Deadicated
    12 years 1 month ago
    Anticipation.
    Two months from today, deja 4/08/72 vu - all over again. Holy Wembley!
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Europe '72:
The Complete Recordings -
All The Music Edition

Our Europe '72 boxed set is now officially sold out, with all 7,200 boxes now gone! We can't thank you enough for your support, for having faith in the project and taking the plunge to purchase this unprecedented release. Despite the fact that it's going to be a bit of a wait before it arrives on your door step, we are sure you'll be blown away with the results.

We are now offering the All-The-Music edition of Europe '72, which includes all of the music recorded on the tour, with each show in its own individual package, complete with its own liner notes by Dead scholars such as David Gans, Blair Jackson, Steve Silberman, Gary Lambert and others, as well as by attendees of some of the shows. You'll get 73 CDs and over 70 hours of prime Grateful Dead.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC...

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 EUROPE ’72 MEGA-BOX SET containing ALL 22 SHOWS of what is arguably the greatest tour the Grateful Dead ever played, on a whopping and clearly cosmic 73 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 enormous 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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The fan is the legendary "BERTHA" and it's also a windmill of Holland.First song played in the 1st set , Bertha.
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i enjoy the track times being right on the back covers of each show on some releases you have to dig into the booklet for track times, some dont have them printed anywhere physically now one aspect i used to think was cool about "bootleg" tapes was that they were free from any type of corporate or record company packaging frills, yada yada yada, it was just the musc man, straight and pure so now i think of having them so handy as sort of a guilty pleasure
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I could not be more disappointed with GD merchandise. First they advertise limited edition for the Europe 72 tour. Like many of you, I had already in my collection high quality recordings of most of these shows. I dropped $450 to acquire the few shows I didn’t have. Lo and behold, GD Merch started offering single shows, and now they are offering the “All the Music” edition. (whatever that means – you don’t get all the crappy schwag they hype?). Speaking of which, the hardcover book that was sent in my box set couldn’t be more poorly manufactured. Both the front and back cover were warped. I emailed customer service with my specific concern and got a bunch of automated responses, the latest of which (three weeks ago) said that a replacement item was sent. I’ve received nothing. GD Merch can’t be trusted – the “limited edition” has been subsequently released as single shows and as a box set without all the useless collateral material; all I really wanted was the music. I won’t be buying another single item from them due to Bait and Switch marketing tactics, poor product quality, and horrible customer service.

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Dunestunes,I hear you on the limited edition thing. Beg, borrow, or steal, we were told, the chance won't come again.... I absolutely wouldn't have bought the box if I'd have known individual releases were coming. Little shows like Beat Club, Lille, & Luxembourg were all the difference for me. And as it happens, it's a bigger financial hit now than I could've foreseen last winter. Whatever the case was ~ misrepresentation or change of plan ~ it just was not cool to go back on the original word. Even if I still believe the price is a bargain (trunk or music-only) for those who can afford it. It seems all you have to do around here is cry long and loudly enough (even while cursing the band & Rhino), and your wish will be granted, even if it throws those who faithfully ponied up under the bus. THAT SAID ~ I love my box, so I can't have it both ways. Now that I have it, I wouldn't trade it. And at the end of the day ~ whatever marketing I was fed ~ I decided it was worth purchasing. My book arrived in perfect condition, though, sorry to hear yours was warped. I think it's about the finest schwag item ever.
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Gotta agree, I am done too. In fact I am trying to get someone to answer the phone so I can return my box set. I may need to dispute the charge to get any action. Numbered, limited edition promised and still waiting on a so-called paper sticker with the number and name on it. I will find other ways to get the music but I am done being duped by these guys!!
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Thank you! I didn't think of the windmill connection at all. Duh!
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This was discussed quite a bit earlier, but it bears repeating. From the start, it was the steamer trunk and extras version that was offered as limited. Not the music. The Music-only edition went on sale almost immediately after the box set sold out. You've had months to change your order if all you wanted was the music. But either way, even if you didn't know about the music only edition, there was never anything said about the music being limited. Ever. I also don't think there's anything cheap about the book. In fact, most comments here, even by people with other genuine gripes, have commented on the quality of the book. Again, accusing Rhino of bait and switch really is people not paying attention to what it is they're buying. They offered a limited edition box set. If it was a bait and switch, they would have stated (as they did with the Fillmore Box Set) that the music would never be available again. They did no such thing. Be angry, disappointed, disgusted with other things Rhino may have done or not done, but I believe this particular argument is unwarranted and false. The Box Set is limited. There will be no more. Thankfully, the music itself will be able to go out to all of those people who were not able to get the limited edition box set. That's a GOOD thing, people. Spread the music, remember? You were not lied to or tricked. But something tells me saying this is going to make some people even more angry instead of less. But it is the truth of the situation. Again, the music being out there for everyone is an incredibly good thing.

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Hal, anyone who's read my posts knows how much I support Rhino, Road Trips, Road Trips artwork, and this Europe 72 box set ~ as well as how often I roll my eyes at alot of the negativity. However, it's not the truth of the situation that the exclusivity of the complete E72 music was not strongly implied. You don't ask heads to raid their grandmother's cookie jar to get the steamer trunk & books (much as I love them). No previous box of shows (Fillmore West, Winterland 73, Winterland 77, Hampton 89) has EVER been followed with individual show releases. Even the official blurb still on this site's homepage says the individual show offerings are the result of the mob AFTER THE FACT....and I quote: "You clamored. Your cried. You called so loudly for single shows....we had no choice but to listen." So please don't insult our intelligence by claiming the legal loophole that it was never explicitly stated that the music wouldn't be exclusive to the box. Everyone thought maybe the box would be followed by a comp (which it was ~ Europe 72 II) and/or perhaps a few hand-picked shows. Not that every show would be available. Whether intended as such or not (and I don't think it was), the original limited box set advert was most certainly false advertising.
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I guess they shouldn't have called themselves Rhino if they didn't have thick skin :-)
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I am in no way insulting your intelligence. The single shows were made available after the release of the box set, this is true. And was done due to demand. Also true. I actually think the timing was a little off on that as there were a lot of mistakes that needed taking care of before such an announcement, but that's a whole other issue. The Music-Only edition, again, was announced and available for pre-order immediately after the Box Set sold out. And the box set sold out in four days. So the Music-only edition has been available for pre-order, splashed across the Dead.net site and in email announcements since January. And there was never any limit announced for the number of Music-Only editions. I'm afraid I never assumed that the music would not be made available to others, just not the special Box Set. I'm sorry you made a different assumption or think of it as some kind of legal loophole to screw people over or get away with something. Again, it's just not the case. With all due respect, and I do respect you, the music without the "extras" has been available for many, many months. Just about as long as the box set itself. But even on that first day when ordering for the box set became available and I placed my order, I never thought that this would be my only chance to get the music, but simply to get it in a personalized steamer trunk with some very cool extras. Now if people are unhappy with the extras, that, again, is an entirely different issue. I, for one, am very satisfied with the product I purchased. And I'm happy others can enjoy the music. It should be available for as many people as there are out there who desire it and will enjoy it. The Box and extras, however, will not be reprinted. And if they were, THEN -and only then- would I call foul. The very page you're posting on is for the Music-Only edition and has been up all year. Now, I agree that charging $450 for the Music-only edition without the swag seemed a bit greedy, but again, another issue. Rhino s not without fault. But I stand behind my statement that you were not lied to, mislead or screwed here. I just don't see it.

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You're seriously misunderstanding me, man. For me, the 7200 trunks and Music-Only box sets are one and the same ~ except one is a deluxe edition. I've never had a problem with the music-only editions, I thought it was a great idea to make the music available to everyone in that way. My point is that many of us all but DID take a weekend job at Taco Bell to pay $ 450.00 for the complete Europe 72 tour thinking it was the only way we'd ever get the shows. If there was a plan to release them individually, it should've been stated from the outset. Of course, there wasn't such a plan, so I don't believe I was screwed or lied to intentionally, but I was most certainly misled. To my mind, that's not even opinion, it's just an unfortunate fact. But I'll say again ~ I love my box. I love being able to "pick a show, any show." So I can't be sorry it worked out the way it did. My buddy was down last weekend and marveling over the box ~ and sure I'm happy for him that he'll soon be able to order the show we listened to, which he loved. It's great everyone of every budget can now enjoy the music (ring around the sun). But it doesn't change the fact that some people shelled alot of dough ONLY because it was STRONGLY implied they'd need to in order to get the music.

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Because I read Dunestune's post, and I agreed with his main point. I'd been silent on this up to now, but since I felt as I did, thought I'd speak it because it WAS frustrating and now I've said my piece, and I think it's worth learning from for next time. That is, if Rhino isn't scared off of GD box sets forever after this one! I think Rhino puts out the best music releases of any company on the planet. I think we Deadheads are the most spoiled bunch of music fans in music history ~ decades of concerts to see, bless the bands' hearts (now in their 5th decade), more vault releases to buy than any other band of its vintage, and a website that allows more uncensored bitching than most official band sites would. And it's not lost on me that if I was able to scrape up $ 450.00 in any way, shape, or form for a box set of music, then I'm obviously RICH. Good night, Irene.
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Yep, I got my unique number today in the mail. Better late than never ever ... ;-) Micke Östlund, Växjö, Sweden
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I think it was clear to anyone who was paying attention that when the original 7,200 boxes were offered that they were NOT making the same mistake they made with the FW box. There is just no way they are going to make that mistake again with a major box. When five minutes after the 7,200 boxes were sold and they offered the Music Only box, well, you just HAD to know that was coming. I said then and will repeat now, that there is no way they are going to remaster 22 shows and then not try to market it as fully as they can. My only surprise was that they offered the individual shows as early on as they did. I thought they would give consumers every chance to buy the Music Only box, wait for sales to slow to a crawl, and THEN announce the individual shows. I imagine that lots of folks who were considering the Music Only option decided to pick out a few shows rather than plunk down $450. Especially if they already had HYH, Steppin' Out, etc. I can see that they aren't going to sell individual shows from a 3 or 4 show box ('69, '73, '77), but there is no way they are only going to sell 22 remastered shows with a $400+ price tag.

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But not all 22. Like I said, the ones I wanted most were the smaller ones: Beat Club, Luxembourg....there was no reason to think they'd release all those. If that WAS the plan from the beginning, shame on the powers for telling us to raid Grandma's cookie jar or take a second job to obtain this music. I don't want to keep posting, because it wasn't my intent to make a federal issue out of this (I tried PMing, but got an error for some reason). But I believe the gripe is legitimate, and no one's going to change my mind. I still think the trunk is the best release ever, and I even got my personalized Gentle Jack Jones sticker first time around, so I had none of the customer service issues others have had. Arriving home to the box on my doorstep was a magical moment. But I'd really had fought with myself over the gluttony factor, so I truly wouldn't have bought it had I known any show I wanted would be made available separately. Which I voiced very early on when people started clamoring for individual shows. Absolutely gorgeous Fall day here in Portland, OR, hope yours is the same! Peace, Tony
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Wow, I'm impressed, I received an email today from customer service stating that all my concerns are being addressed, including the ripped sleeves. Thank you customer service for stepping up and doing the right thing, my faith is restored and good vibes prevail. Now, follow thru and send me my replacements and I will be forever grateful. So, anyone and everyone, request replacement sleeves and hopefully your request will be honored as well as mine was. Be kind and all will be ok. "Without love in the dream, it will never come true"
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I do understand your disappointment, Tony. But I don't share it. When Rhino first announced it, they had no clue that the demand would be this big. They stated that if they couldn't get 3,000 pre-orders, the box wouldn't even be produced! And they needed to reach that number in 4 months. They reached it and surpassed it in 4 days! Extraordinary. Rhino learned something new about us that day. And about this music. I understand that there are those out there who could not afford the box. Or found a way to do so, but would have preferred to have bought individual shows. I agree that the announcement of individual shows was poorly timed --shockingly so-- but I agree with Syracuse78 that it seemed inevitable. Many people had discussed here on this site that the shows should and probably would be available in download form. I'm happy to know you liked the box. And I'm sorry you feel a bit misled. Buying this box was a crazy expense for me on my budget. But it was something I knew I wanted. In its steamer trunk form. So I found a way to make it possible, as so many Heads did. I'm just happy now that the folks who couldn't come up with that money, not then and not now, have a chance to get these shows slowly, as they release them individually. Remember, they haven't released them all for individual purchase yet. You still have something that is currently unavailable to anyone unwilling or incapable of purchasing the entire tour at once. Not to mention the incredible savings of buying them all at once. I understand you may have opted to buy one show at a time -and selective shows at that- had you known they would be made available. But Rhino was responding to a very real demand. And like Syracuse78 mentioned, they weren't about to make the same mistake they did with other limited editions they may now be regretting (and have gotten flack over). I, for one, would not be upset if they released those box sets one show at a time. But I would understand those that would be upset as it was clear in the literature that that would not happen. No such statement was made here. You have a right to be upset, I don't want to take that away from you. I just want to make sure that a voice is heard and represented here that may not share your grief or disappointment in that particular arena. Peace to you as well, Tony, Hal
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Everyone here can have their own spin on this embarrasing operation that's fine. You have some people here who defend them to the end well okay they need people like you. As for Rhino "no offense to Hal" They are not a company that just opened up this year, they are a well established outfit one of the biggest! Of course they didn't expect the demand for this but if that's the case wait until you can don't send out some boxes and not others, or half assed boxes with problems! There has been problem after problem i don't have to repost them, people who say they hate to read complaints well they have alot to complain about! This should not happen by a record company as big as rhino that's bullshit! Just because the people who luckily got theirs with no problems doesn't mean they should say their angry at negativity. I've been ordering rhino products for a long time now and in the last 5 years it's gone down hill cd's scratched brand new shit packaging and so on i love rhino but they slacked off a bit. The customer service at dead.net is the worst i try to be reasonable with everybody but you can't defend them when they have no info, no email response, messed up orders, i mean really it's a sad way to treat your customers all around. I'm sure someone will respond to this post as the spin doctor and defend their actions but proof is in the posts. Granted there's been some good things posted here but alot more bad if this were feedback for a restaurant would you eat there i don't think i would enough said!!
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I'm totally with you on this one. If you were one of the ones who got put through the ringer of course you are going to be soured. It is easy to be positive if you had no issues and the issues with this release are monumental from the minute it was released - the site crashing, the under-estimation of the demand, the over promise of the box contents and not listing out exactly everything included (I'm not much for surprises), running credit cards then saving that info for 9 months down the road and THEN trying to charge the card, no way to handle address and credit card changes until it was way too late, sending out boxes before getting the card issues straightened out so people could freak out as to why they had not received their box yet, customer service that was atrocious at best until marye kindly elevated it to someone who actually knew what they were doing to getting the box unpersonalized when it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be the first 3000 personalized then it turned to all 7200 and ended with if you got your tag you are lucky. In the big scheme that part is not a big deal but I don't want to give them a free pass - it's not what I ordered so why would I blow that off?? I am not even going to hit on the packaging issues. The wole thing was second rate hell even third or 4th rate which is astonshing from a company this big that has been putting out music for a long long time. The bottom line for me is that I don't like the business model of "as long as these dopes get their music, they won't care about anything else". That is the message I take home from all of this. It's sad, really sad.
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I will say that it's too easy to lump anyone who has something positive to say into the area of "those who didn't have problems." In every post I've made here, I've agreed wholeheartedly that Rhino made some big-ass mistakes here. If you go back and look at some of my earlier posts, I even spell many of them out and make some straight-forward suggestions to Rhino on how to handle it better next time around. But I don't fall into the "all or nothing" camp. So when I see people complaining about something that I don't personally see as Rhino's fault, I'll say so. And remember, in general, more people tend to take the time to post complaints than to post why they're satisfied. That said, I think 90% of the complaints on this site are justified. And Rhino knows it. It's that 10% that seem to just come from rage or from misunderstanding that I have felt compelled to comment on here. Again, if only to offer another voice. I have no stake in backing Rhino beyond the fact that I am really enjoying this music and am glad that they are out there making it available and do not want to see that stop. But I'm not going to let them off the hook for their mistakes and oversights and in not being prepared to handle the distribution of this box set. I've said it before and I hope it holds true that they have probably learned a great deal from their mistakes here and we will (hopefully) see the results of that next time. And while Rhino is a big company that has been around for a long time, this Box Set was, indeed, something a bit off the beaten track for them. That's not an excuse, just awareness. It doesn't mean people shouldn't be angry, aggravated, even bitter. But don't throw the baby out with the bathwater, as the old saying goes. All I'm trying to offer is a little perspective on those who tend to feel that Rhino is actively out to screw them over. Releasing the shows individually is just one of those topics that I personally don't feel Rhino deserves shit about (except for their bad-timing). I don't believe they broke any promises here. That does not mean I do not support and stand behind many (if not most) of the other gripes people have. I have always said as much. Again, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. This side or that side. I think I've said about all I need to say here. Have a great week everyone. And enjoy the music. Hal
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14 years 6 months
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I just wanted to tell you that i think you are a standup guy and i like you alot!! My post wasn't directed at you at all, you have alot of good points and i love your last post! Your response was honest and i love that!! Peace Hal!!!!
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16 years 8 months
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Thanks garseeya. Right back atcha! :)
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16 years 9 months
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Ever been fleeced?
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14 years 10 months
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It's been enlightening to read the thread since my original post. Good points made by all on both sides of the ledger; articulately conveyed without the meaningless barbs of many boards. Way back when, I didn't read the fine print, or certainly didn't read the original webpage advertising with the cautious eye that others did in light of the previous experience with the Fillmore boxset. I was unaware of that situation as I don't usually read this board and I certainly didn't think I needed to be checking back on the site to see if there was some slightly different offerings of the same music being made available. Nonetheless, I still have a warped book that hasn't been replaced, and several ripped sleeves that I had also asked to be replaced. I was properly reminded that Rhino is running the merchandise show. It appears from other posts that the squeeky wheel is necessary to get the proper customer service response from them. Thanks everyone for the info. Now I need to go check if I got this sticker thing with the number - whatever that is. It seems I've been too busy listening to the music. Which, btw, is freakin' awesome. In summary, music = *****, customer service = 0*. Peace...
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE reading the Europe '72 posts. It's become part of my daily ritual. I was so relieved when Rhino decided to release individual shows. I originally ordered a personalized set (St. Dilbert no less), but cancelled once I realized how crazy it was to spend that kind of "ching" at once. I am pretty poor. What I find so interesting in some of the threads is the prevailing "I thought I was gonna have this, and no one else was" mantra circling around. These must have been the same heads who hoarded their pristine boards of vintage shows and would never play them or tape them for anybody. Weird? Anyway, having the opportunity to pick and choose releases is great. I gladly snatched up the Newcastle show and 4/17/72 Tivoli. The Caution on that show is ferocious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I figure I'll pick up the rest of the shows with Caution (skipped the other Tivoli show because the Caution is on Europe 72 bonus cuts), and a few more that tickle my fancy. It was really nice to get ALL the music out to everybody. It's not meant to be hoarded by a greedy few. By the way, Europe 72 vol. 2 is outstanding. The Other One is epic and I love Pig's organ on it. In fact, one of the reasons I like this tour is being blessed with both Keith and Pigpen at the same time. Both are in fine form. Finally, if you haven't done it already, read "We're all Bozos on this Bus" in Living with the Dead. The text is taken right out of Rock Scully's journal from the tour. Did you know that Pigpen used an organ played by Bach at the Rotterdam show? Well, you do now. Anyway, be happy with what you have! Enjoy your steamer trunks (left on shelves collecting dust). I'll enjoy the music.
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What ever happened to this All Music Edition Thread? It started March, I think when this AME was announced. Over 1000 (including some of mine) are gone. Now it starts on 13 October, 2011. I liked reading some of the older posts to gain some more insight and also to see how off some people's thinking was at the time. I'll miss it, but get over it and move on. For some reason(s) unknown they're gone. I would be happy to see that part of the comments thread reappear. I will move on, with the *excitement* of the new release series coming up ... soon.
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that on October 13 the entire thread disappeared. It was partially reinstated on October 14 or 15. In the intervening period, 12 posts were placed on here, mostly asking what happened. These are now the first 12 posts of this thread. When it was partially reinstated, only the first 1122 posts were reinstated (from the first post on March 8 until a post on September 20). All posts from September 20 to October 13's disappearance have gone for good it would seem. All posts after the reinstatement begin with post 1136 from October 15 and come at the end here. It looks something like this now: Oct. 13 - Oct. 14 Posts 1 - 12 Mar. 8 - Sep. 20 Posts 13 - 1135 Oct. 15 - present Posts 1136 - last Sep. 20 - Oct. 13 Disappeared. Can you follow that?

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It is my understanding that the missing posts will be released as part of a multi-disc box set sometime in 2013. Each post will come with its own sleeve and cool cartoonish graphics that would make any five-year-old happy. When you try and remove the post, however, the sleeve will begin to liquify, becoming a puddle of something resembling maple syrup. Not sure if the posts will be personalized. Rumor has it that there will also be some rare post outtakes that were up for only a few hours but deemed inappropriate, including the now-infamous "Bickershaw Seduction" rant by KozmicCharlee.

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16 years 9 months
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Jes to reiterate,I was never one of those wanting something others didn't have. For some reason, the otherwise-estimable Hal M projected that onto me ("they're not all released yet, antonjo, so you still have shows others don't"). That was never my point, but I already made my point ad nauseum in three previous posts for those who were reading carefully (or even cared ; ) RE: Fillmore West '69 Here's my suggestion ~ if the shows will NOT be released, and no further money will ever be made on them..... Why don't the Powers That Be give official permission to those of us who have the box to proliferate the music? Burn away for all our fellow heads for the price of blank cd-rs? We could set up a sharing tree on these very boards. Honestly, this is what I thought the original intent was when the production run was limited to 10,000. Then everyone has the music in perfect quality and the collectors still have their limited boxes. Rhino, Phil, Bob, Billy, Mickey? Whaddya say?
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13 years 2 months
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You are freaking brilliant! I'd even donate some money to Rex or Unbroken Chain.
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13 years 2 months
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Can someone tell me where to order the Missing Posts Box Set. I've looked everywhere. Don't tell me that the order site is crashing already. I want in on this and don't want to go thru what I went thru on the E'72 Box. Any help would be appreciated.
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16 years 8 months
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Didn't mean to misrepresent you. I was responding to your comments: "However, it's not the truth of the situation that the exclusivity of the complete E72 music was not strongly implied. You don't ask heads to raid their grandmother's cookie jar to get the steamer trunk & books (much as I love them). No previous box of shows (Fillmore West, Winterland 73, Winterland 77, Hampton 89) has EVER been followed with individual show releases. Even the official blurb still on this site's homepage says the individual show offerings are the result of the mob AFTER THE FACT....and I quote: "You clamored. Your cried. You called so loudly for single shows....we had no choice but to listen." "So please don't insult our intelligence by claiming the legal loophole that it was never explicitly stated that the music wouldn't be exclusive to the box. Everyone thought maybe the box would be followed by a comp (which it was ~ Europe 72 II) and/or perhaps a few hand-picked shows. Not that every show would be available. "Whether intended as such or not (and I don't think it was), the original limited box set advert was most certainly false advertising." I know you are not one of those random complainers and I certainly do not want to take away your right to feel somewhat misled (which it seems is what you are feeling. I apologize in advance if I'm misinterpreting that). I had a different interpretation and expectation of what would or would not happen with this release. That's all. You claimed "Everyone thought maybe the box would be followed by a comp (which it was ~ Europe 72 II) and/or perhaps a few hand-picked shows. Not that every show would be available." But that was not my expectation. So it wasn't everyone. But I respect that you felt this way, and some others did as well. I was merely trying to point out that what was offered was still unique. Still "limited" and not currently available as individual releases of the whole tour. I know that does seem to matter to some. And I respect that. It wasn't meant as a slight against you, but simply a response to what you had said. Again, if I misunderstood or misrepresented your comments, my apologies. It simply never occurred to me that they might not eventually release these shows individually. They just did it sooner than I would have anticipated. But I always assumed it was an eventual natural progression based on demand and on the time and effort that went into remastering them. And the reality that so many people who would like to buy this music would not be able to afford it all at once. It's done with Blu-ray and DVD releases all the time, so I guess I'm used to that marketing strategy. And am usually thankful for it as I'm often not the guy who cares about the swag, but just wants the movie or music. So I usually wait for the "bare bones" editions to be announced. In this case, however, I wanted the whole shebang :)

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16 years 9 months
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Hal, I'm quite aware of what I said (paging up works just fine) ~ and it was about the perceived exclusivity (i.e., urgency) of the CHANCE for the music. Not the exclusive club of heads who have boxes vs. those with no stars on thars. And I stand by it. (Except for the word "everyone;" my apologies on that). I don't need it pointed out to me that I've got a unique item; I already know that, I've got box # 0155/7200. Irrelevant to my point. And you've stated yours. Our perceptions were different. Can we just agree to disagree? I think we've wasted enough ink on this. Thanks.
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I was one of the many who changed addresses in the nine months between ordering and shipping, thereby throwing the Rhino machine into complete disarray. After finally elevating my phone calls to the "DrRhino" level, and finally getting my boxes, I am still awaiting the personalization certificates that were to come with them. Five or six weeks ago, DrRhino suggested that they would be mailed in the next couple of weeks. As you might expect, I am still awaiting delivery. Anyone else awaiting personalization certs? I know, I know, I should just be happy that I got the boxes so soon (a month late). Curious to hear if others are still waiting for orders to be completed.
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I hope they don't announce the release of individual Missing Posts too soon after the multibox. A small box with highlights of the "Packaging Rant Conundrum" would be nice however. It's those nuggets I'm most interested in...
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This will be my last post as I'm starting to feel like I've gotten sucked into that difficult forum trap I've watched other people on other sites fall into. My reposting your comments was for the sake of anyone else reading and because it was much easier to show you what I was responding to. I simply did not want to twist or misrepresent your words. So please don't post that I had projected onto you that you wanted something you didn't, and then get upset and accuse me of belaboring the issue when I respond. That's not cool. And yes, we can most certainly agree to disagree. Though I think it's less disagreeing and more misunderstanding one another, as I'm feeling a bit misunderstood and misrepresented here myself. But I don't think we're ultimately on such different pages. However, I really wasn't looking for an argument, so I'll bow out here. Respectfully. All the best to you, Tony. I'm glad you're enjoying the music. I am as well. Peace to you. Hal
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13 years 2 months
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Thoroughly enjoyed your discourse. May have been a bit too civilized for my personal taste but enjoyable none the less! Really enjoying the music even more now. First time thru was mostly thru earbuds off my laptop of ipod. Without realizing there was this subtle pressure to get on to the next show and hear what it sounded like. Now I'm burning shows, at random, to cd and listening to them on the car stereo as I drive around during the day.I find myself going, "Wow, that was just excellent I got to listen to that again!" And I do. Concertgebouw, Olympia Theater 05-03, Dusseldorf, have had multiple listens over the last two weeks. It's great realizing that Pigpen is in the mix here and there with his flourishes on organ. Listening to Keith coming into his own. I think you can even see why they thought Donna would be a good addition to the mix ;-). So much great music to explore.
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14 years 10 months
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Yes, Yes, Yes! Pig rocks on these shows. I love his organ! Every time I hear a post Pig other one, I still wait for his little flourishes after Bobby sings "Spanish Lady comes to me...". E72 is unfreakingbelieveable! Wish they would have mixed up the setlists a little more, but you can tell they were going for a strong live album
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16 years 8 months
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about these shows is not the more-or-less predictably great Dark Stars, Morning Dews, Playin' in the Bands, etc. but how freakin' great the Sugarees and One More Saturday Nights are. I'm on my 3rd time through this set -- not doing this programatticaly or intentionally, just noticed, yeah, choosing something I wanted to listen to, I've somehow picked every show on this release at least twice -- I'm just stunned by how great the routine songs are. Take a show like Munich 5-18-72 that I'd never heard (or heard of) before. Knock-out versions of Playin', Dark Star AND Morning Dew -- SERIOUSLY?! As to the sound quality -- I have honestly never heard the nuance and subtlety in Jerry and Bob's voices on any recording the way I've heard them on this release. I'm sure that lends a lot to my positive response to my less-than-favorites like Sugaree and Saturday Night, but whatever -- I am just stunned at how great these shows sound! God bless the Grateful Dead!
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1) Congrats to both of you guys for keeping it civil and honest. Thank you. 2) I agree with both of you to an extent. I thought I was getting more "exclusivity" and "schwag" than I was when I coughed up for the box, but in retrospect, look at the phenomenal shows that got me...would I pay just to get access to this music, exclusivity aside? Absolutely!! The unfortunate fact is that Rhino now has us over a barrel in controlling the rights to the entire Vault...and there is a ton of great music in there that every one of us will be willing to sell our Grandmother's ashes to hear.
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or recommendation..."we're all bozos now" is a must. Thanks for the reminder!!
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13 years 4 months
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I had the nerve to request a Europe 72 set be sent to my P.O. Box, which appears to have brought the shipping process to a sceeching halt! I imagine that several executive meetings were called in order to find a way in which to solve this particularly complex shipping problem. Box recently arrived, sans personalized sticker. Yet I maintain hope, as I now know that Rhino has discovered how to access the US Postal Service! Sarcasm (mostly) in jest! Lovin' the shows! Peace
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Virtually NO mail order-based business has figured out how to deal with the vexing PO Box issue, and virtually all such businesses end up postponing delivery by a month or two if you try to CHANGE your address to a street address. It's just too hard to deal with, and what mail order business could even think they had to have a system in place for such an unlikely scenario? So, I'm guessing that you got charged an extra $9.06 per set as a "we won't ship to a PO Box, but if we did we would charge you a premium, so let's continue to charge you a PO Box delivery premium even though we (finally) shipped to a street address" penalty. Yup, on a scale of 1 to 10, its: Music: 10 Rhino service: 1 I'll be interested in whether my ill feelings towards Rhino fade as they (eventually) ship the personalizations and correct the overcharge, and as I continue to love the music, or whether Rhino has lost me as a customer despite my love for the Dead. It is hard to imagine a company fostering such ill will despite being associated with such a great release.
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13 years 2 months
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Syracuse, if you came online tomorrow and saw Rhino offering, "Europe '72 and Rhino,, the Inside Story!", "Including interviews and photos of all involved." Wouldn't you be tempted to purchase? As long they didn't offer lots of "ephermia, extraneous gafargas and personalization" I would! Europe '72,all 22 shows. What a vision. Who would of thought it would ever really come to pass? Hey, where's my Capcha
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16 years 6 months
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I just want to thank everyone who buys official releases, you guys should be highly commended. In this digital age nobody HAS to buy music, so I sincerely appreciate those who do.To that end I would like to thank and defend GDP and Rhino who allow Archive.org, bit torrent sites and the wide spread free access to all these shows. Happy Halloween!
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13 years 8 months
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So I finally get my two "personalizations" yesterday. I had changed one by phone about two months ago, and reminded Dr. Rhino in FIVE email correspondences about the changed personalization. Five! I felt like I was treating him like a child, but every time over the last month and a half that we corresponded about when Rhino might complete my order, I reminded him of what the personalizations should say. Needless to say, they came in wrong yesterday. And while I was somewhat expecting that, after everything else that has been screwed up, I wasn't expecting to get numbers in the 7,000s. HTF can you advertise that the first 3,000 will be personalized, and then take almost two extra months to send out the personalization, and then number it over 7,000? I am quite sure that, while I love GD music, I have spent my last dime with Rhino. Just when I think they have screwed up every last thing about this offering, they find new ways to screw up that I hadn't even considered. Did I mention that they charged a surcharge for me originally using a PO box for shipping, nevermind the fact that I changed it in July, and that they will not ship to PO boxes no matter what? I'm quite curious to see the ultimate resolution on my first ever credit card dispute.
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13 years 8 months
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If anyone happens to have a screenshot of the original Europe '72 box offer (showing the $450 price incl. shipping, and the fact that the first 3,000 will be personalized), please send me a private message. I tried using archive.org, but their January 2011 page didn't have the E72 box, and February already had the Music Only edition. Thanks very much!
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13 years 2 months
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Mr. Syracuse, my pm still doesn't seem to be working. That was a waste of time. Anyway, if you still have your announcement email from Jan., mine arrived 1/21. The last line is what you want. It also states in the second sentence of that paragraph, The limited edition, individually- numbered comprehensive collection.......". As in all 7200 will be numbered