Listen To The River: St. Louis '71 '72 '73 (20-CD)

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July 21, 2021 - 6:32am

1,587 replies

Srinivasan.Mut…

Joined:
July 2, 2018

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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March 4, 2022 - 10:18pm

#61

DeadVikes

Joined:
October 26, 2016

Adedhed68

Hey, we are hoping..... Needs to happen at some point...
March 4, 2022 - 9:00pm

#62

adedhed68

Joined:
August 13, 2007

Boxset 2022

Deadvikes, is that a definite on the next boxset? Wow that would be something
March 4, 2022 - 7:04pm

#63

DeadVikes

Joined:
October 26, 2016

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.
March 4, 2022 - 6:40pm

#64

JimInMD

Joined:
June 27, 2011

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.
March 4, 2022 - 5:50am

#65

KeithFan2112

Joined:
August 6, 2014

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.
March 3, 2022 - 9:56am

#66

Oroborous

Joined:
June 19, 2007

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.
March 2, 2022 - 5:29am

#67

1stshow70878

Joined:
September 11, 2014

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.
March 1, 2022 - 8:17pm

#68

JimInMD

Joined:
June 27, 2011

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?
March 1, 2022 - 9:09am

#69

1stshow70878

Joined:
September 11, 2014

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!
February 22, 2022 - 7:45am

#70

bigbrownie

Joined:
November 9, 2010

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

John Perry Barlow

John Perry Barlow

Forums

Dead Store Products

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.

Re: Sasquatch Plural

Duck I says

Drunk Sasquatch

I wonder if they are happy drunks or ahole drunks? Is Big Bird a drunk Sasquatch in disguise? I mean.. he's an 8'2" tall talking, clumsy, flightless bird who would never pass a field sobriety test. Just asking.

Are Sasquatch adept at stealing catalytic converters?

Back to your regularly scheduled The Other One > Morning Dew.

Angry Drunks

The angry drunken ones are called Assquatch:

Ass.quatch
/ˌassˈkwaCH,ˈasskwäːCH/
Noun
1. a drunken, belligerent Bigfoot.
2. anyone with an abrasive, off-putting personality.
"That guy is a raging Assquatch!"

The Duke of Death

Duck I says

Class Clown?

We are both Rhode Scholars.. but many thanks for the compliment.

Ein prosit, ein prosit

Mein bruder!

BW und AL

Henry Louis Gates Jr. needs to profile us, 7878.

"You both share a significant strand of DNA with Jerry Garcia!"

PF: It's Getting Spooky!

I was going to post the exact same idea about Dr. Gates. Less the Jerry part but still, great minds think alike. Or we are joined like all Deadheads through the cosmic connection of the dosed mind. Either way I'm good with that.

Had this thought, almost dream, while going to sleep last night. It's this coming July at Red Rocks and I'm strolling in and go down to the first row and beg everyone's attention with, "Hello all you Dead net posters! Is Hendrixfreak here? Oroborous? How about you Vguy? Shout out your usernames and raise your hand!". And then practically the whole place raises their hands and responds and we all give a good hoot and applause.
I guess it just helps to feel a part of something positive these days.
Thanks, and prost!

assquatch

love it

So, did they shut down the DP 40 site because

I said "fuck" or "morphine"??

Let's find out. Oh, wait!!

1stshow

Right On!

He's Gone

Dap40 is gone but at least they fixed the black friday sale. Trade 'ya back?

well now

I had posted on #40 about the Target website sale...go to the page and enter Grateful Dead and you'll see some Dick's Picks, Road trips & Vinyl pop up (all Real Gone Label)...best part is buy two get one free sale going on...

Was it something I said??

Nah, it's always about the money. They cleaned up the site, getting rid of anything that's not for sale. Because, you know, "Black Friday," etc.

Happy Holiday$

Can't post a photo

But wanted to show you all the red-coded terminal of my car battery. With all the bad things on social media these days, I thought it would be nice to see a positive post for once.

Have a Grateful Thanksgiving, all!

Nyuk nyuk DHBrewer

Glad youre in _charge_ of todayz pun

10 30 73

:)))

Re: 10 30 73

I know right?

Positive post....

....took me a minute. Good one.

Still listening to the river...

The pair of '71 shows was delicious. Tons of songs, and a real nice two-night evolution to the sets. Just listened to the first of three '72 nights and, again, the band manages to make old favorites sound new as they take different angles on the jams and the feel of jammy tunes.

Waiting in the wings: Neil Young/Carnegie Hall, Coltrane/Seattle, Los Lobos/Gates of Gold, Pharoah Sanders/Live, Gov't Mule/Heavy Load, Dylan/1970, and more.

Happy Indigenous People Sorrow Day to all.....

10-18-72

There is a digi click between China and Rider.
I just confirmed on my copy.
On the STL Box download page KF says that it’s on 10-19 too.

Nappy's Right

There's more music on that Target sale than d-net's black friday sale. The buy 2 get one free will help but some items were considerably higher priced than RGM's recent sale prices where you didn't have to buy 3.
Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving!

Art is not what you see, but what you make others see………

Fifty years ago today…………

It was a day between, a travel day, now, fifty years later, giving us time to ponder the deeper mysteries of music, because there is geometry in the humming of the strings, there is music in the spacing of the spheres…..

I have been asked by a fellow traveler in 1971 Grateful Deadness to post a comparative analysis of two December 1971 Dead shows. I won’t tell you where his own tastes lead…….

Monet or Renoir? Joyce or Dostoevsky? Ellington or Mingus? Whitman or Frost? Wells or Bradbury? Rubies or emeralds?

Second Felt Forum or Second Fox Theater????

Every precious gem radiates and luxuriates in its own unique brilliance. One mustn’t necessarily outshine the other. Must we be forced to choose that single one that touches our hearts, and ears, most deeply?

The "1971 challenge" is a lot more challenging than I thought it would be. I generated a single page/single post rough draft early, and while it's nice, I'm not totally satisfied with it. After all, 12/5 vs 12/10 is serious 1971 Grateful Deadness. LOL it's like Ali vs. Frazier, Cowboys vs. Steelers, chocolate chip cookie dough vs. pistachio.

The analysis itself isn't that hard, as long as you try to apply uniform criteria to both shows. And in attempting to be "objective" (always an issue while trying to analyze/criticize any art form), one has to try to put aside personal, subjective feelings and opinions. Which in this case, is truly difficult. I'm very familiar with both shows, but 12/5 has been a favorite of mine for a long long time.

When comparing different years, one comparative factor is "style". Here, that's not an issue since the shows are only 5 days apart. Which is actually good, because that factor is quickly eliminated and therefore one can concentrate exclusively on "content". Which means things like lengths of first and second sets, characteristics of the big jams, encores, etc. Naturally, the two shows have a lot in common, but there also have some very important differences as well.

For any and all who wish to weigh in, vote early, and often!!

Tomorrow: Felt Forum---how much does weirdness count?

Rock on!!!

Doc
What art offers is space - a certain breathing room for the spirit…..

11/27th heaven

Billie, Peggy Lee, Bird, Jimmy Forrest , Ya Ya's, Roy Buchanon "Livestock" or the expanded version w/ HF liners.
Weird's gotta count for something!

Where's your will to be weird?

Felt Forum December 5 1971

Set 1: 15 songs. Opener: Bertha. Closer: One More Saturday Night. 7 Garcia, 5 Weir, 3 Pigpen.

Substantial, top notch first set. Perhaps the greatest one-off ever, revealing Garcia’s old soul. Muddy Water sounds so well rehearsed, as if it had been in the repertoire forever. Garcia’s picking is so so sweet. Solid Weir and Pigpen material. Excellent first set.

Set 2: 15 songs, plus one ‘loose jam”. Opener: Truckin’. Closer: NFA reprise. 5 Weir, 7 Garcia, 1 Pigpen, 2 “group” (NFA, NFA reprise). Encore: Johnny B Goode. Big jam: Dark Star.

A Truckin’ for the ages. A nonverbal—but certainly not silent---version of their signature psychedelic opus. Fine jamming in the NFA suite. Really fine second set.

We should revel in the gooey exotic weirdness of the Felt Forum show. Twists and turns, peaks and valleys, Pigpen and Bakersfield, rock and roll, Grateful Dead. In December 1971, did it get any better than this???

Overall rating: classic of the first rank.

Tomorrow: Second St Louis, Rodney Dangerfield’s favorite December 1971 show…..

Rock on!!

Doc
Embrace your weirdness!

Grateful whine

12 5 71 should have been the one released, not what was released.

I respect music, I do, I love it…………..

Fox Theater December 10 1971

Set 1: 12 songs. Opener: Bertha. Closer: Casey Jones. 6 Garcia (including two back-to back), 4 Weir, 2 Pigpen.

Well played, somewhat Garcia-centric first set. No major surprises or weirdness. Appears “typical” for late 1971, which still means “excellent”. Even so, clearly, on this evening the goodies were delivered in the second set.

Set 2: 14 songs. Opener: Good Lovin’. Closer: NFA reprise. 5 Garcia, 5 Weir, 1 Pigpen, 2 “group” (NFA, NFA reprise), 1 loose jam (sometimes labelled “China Cat” jam”, which lasts perhaps one minute, does that count as a song?).

Encore: One More Saturday Night. Big jam: The Other One.

Really fine Good Lovin’ to open, here Pigpen reveals his old soul, the only time it was played this month. Excellent big jam, as the Other One bobs and weaves along, seamlessly transitioning into and out of Sitting On Top Of The World. Typical fine late 71 jamming in the NFA suite. Rockin’ Saturday Night to close the show.

Now, after all these decades, we are treated to the full sonic majesty of the second Fox Theater. Now, without doubt, it shall get its due respect………..

Overall rating: Excellent!!

Rock on!!!

Doc
To the living we owe respect, but to the dead we owe only the truth……

Never cut what you can untie……

I’m not big into analyzing—or choosing--one show over another. I like what I like, but I am interested in what criteria folks use to judge what is “best”. The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual's own reason and critical analysis.

Style? Content? Quantity over quality? What is the value, if any, of weirdness? Whose tunes are “better”? Decisions, decisions, decisions, every song is like a painting. Speaking of which, Renoir-Dostoevsky-Mingus-Frost-Bradbury-Rubies. Just for the record….

Honestly, I love BOTH shows. One is “merely excellent”, while the other is “quirkily classic”. Which one is which? The only difference between a rut and a grave are the dimensions. By constant contemplation of excellence, we clear our selfhood of all dross and impurities. Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing…..

This may surprise no one, but if I had to choose a “desert island show”, it would not be either of these shows, although clearly, both are exceptionally fine, and worthy!!! Music is the best means we have of digesting time…..

Tomorrow brings December, be prepared! He who marvels at the beauty of the world in summer will find equal cause for wonder and admiration in winter……

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you'd have preferred to talk. Sorrow is knowledge, those that know the most must mourn the deepest, the tree of knowledge is not the tree of life……

Rock on!!

Doc
Truly fertile music, the only kind that will move us, that we shall truly appreciate, will be a music conducive to dream, which banishes all reason and analysis. One must not wish first to understand and then to feel. Art does not tolerate reason.

So that we might have roses in December……

Yo! Rockers!!!

We’re in the home stretch. Cold winter beckons, warming music arrives……..

This is not the winter of our discontent. The anniversaries of eleven fine shows await. Two bona fide classics, maybe more, all worthwhile. October good, November better, December best. Be prepared!

Rock on!!

Doc
A man's work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened…..

The Earth is like a child that knows poems…..

50 years ago today……

December 1, 1971
Boston Music Hall, Boston, Massachusetts

Set 1: Truckin'-Sugaree-Mr. Charlie-Beat It On Down The Line-Comes A Time-Jack Straw-The Rub-Tennessee Jed-El Paso-Big Railroad Blues-Casey Jones-One More Saturday Night

Set 2: Ramble On Rose-Me And Bobby McGee-Big Boss Man-Cryptical Envelopment>drums>The Other One>Me And My Uncle>The Other One-Not Fade Away>Goin' Down The Road Feeling Bad>Not Fade Away

Deadicated to Albert, where ever he may be. Don’t go all existential on me…..

There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered. After an absence of eighteen shows, Pigpen returns, albeit in a slightly subdued mode. But it’s good to have some grease back………..

This was the first show with both Pigpen and Keith Godchaux. It includes the final performance of The Rub, which is actually a pretty decent, hard rocking version. The Other One reprise has some nice, energetic “interior jamming” before they return to the Other One theme and the second verse, after which they fairly abruptly stop. This is followed by extended tuning prior to the start of Not Fade Away.

Hard to assess the first set due to “suboptimal sound quality” of the first set audience recording, but it seems well played and well received. The second set is very fine, highly recommended!

Rock on!!

Doc
I have just returned from Boston. It is the only thing to do if you find yourself up there……

12 1 71

I heard that one a few months back...nice and happenin'.

Re: China Rider 10/19/72

Just to clarify, what I hear is a distinct increase in volume from China Cat to Rider.

The Doc knows his stuff....

....good to know you're still healing Forensic.

Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs……

50 years ago today…..

December 2, 1971
Boston Music Hall, Boston, Massachusetts

Set 1: Bertha-Playing In The Band-Mr. Charlie-Sugaree-Beat It On Down The Line-Black Peter-Next Time You See Me-Jack Straw-Tennessee Jed-Mexicali Blues-Smokestack Lightning-Big Railroad Blues-Casey Jones-One More Saturday Night

Set 2: Sugar Magnolia-Deal-El Paso-Brokedown Palace-Uncle John's Band-Not Fade Away>Turn On Your Love Light>Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad>Not Fade Away-Johnny B. Goode

Deadicated to Ken Kirk and Joe Lydon, for all the shows we shared together……

Maybe not a top-tier classic, but it has its own quirky gooey goodness. One of only two 1971 shows with both Black Peter and Brokedown Palace, and the only 1971 show with both Smokestack Lightning and Turn On Your Lovelight.

Back in the very early years of my crazy tape trading daze this was one of the first “local Dead show recordings” I had, so it has a special place in my Grateful Dead heart of hearts. It never seemed like the greatest Dead show ever, yet I still treasured it then---AND now.

Definitely worth a listen…………

Rock on!!

Doc
There may be a great fire in our hearts, yet no one ever comes to warm himself at it, and the passers-by see only a wisp of smoke…..

Man is a messenger who forgot the message......

Yo! Rockers!!

Speaking of messages, does anybody check PMs any more? Hint hint................

As they say at my office, "Sure is dead around here......"

Rock on rockers!

Doc, paperwork day
You die, but most of what you have accumulated will not be lost; you are leaving a message in a bottle.....

Forensic '71s

Yes I'm onboard with Vguy: Doc's reviews are great reading, especially if I catch them in the morning with that cup if French Roast. And it's not just the show reviews - you also get some pearls of wisdom to stimulate thy waking brain. Heh. I said "thy". Been reading a lot of Tolkien lately.

Sure get stoned at night Big Boss Man. Just tuning into 12/9 the past couple of days after reading about the predicament Doc found himself in, with the 12/9 vs 12/10 comparison request (kk

I hope it wasn't me). Comparing Dead shows on back-to-back nights is especially difficult. Assuming the audio quality is the same, it's almost down to the set list.....almost. I don't think I've heard a "bad" show from '67 to '77. The factors that influence my replay likelihood are:

Recording Quality - this affects me more than I like to admit, and sometimes my tolerance grows over time. As a headphone listener, an undercurrent of buzzing, drones, excessive tape hiss, or other anomalies will definitely impact the frequency that I play a show.

Mix - If I can't hear Jerry, I'm not going to be happy, whatever else is going on. Sometimes it happens - not much you can do except move the balance a little bit to the left. The opposite is true for me too. If Jerry is high in the mix I'm going to listen a lot more (examples of hHigh Jerry: DP 23 from '72, DaP from Nassau 9/7/73, Road Trips '74, DaP from the Orpheum '76, DaP from Swing Aud 2/26/77, and pretty much most multi-track releases, to name a few).

Performance / Energy - did they play well?/ I think pretty much every night before 1978 was at least an A- on the grading scale right? But most nights I think they had some extra rocket sauce and played extremely well - an A night. And then there were some nights where they had "the stuff". You know "the stuff". FW 2/2/69, 5/2/70, 4/29/71, 5/3/72, 11/11/73, 2/24/74, eckcetra, eckcetra). Sometimes there's this vibe that even the tapes catch. 12/10/71 feels like lightning in a bottle to me.

Setlist - it somehow factors in sometimes, I suppose. If the tape quality and performance are top notch though, the setlist almost doesn't matter. What's that? Yes you in the back. What if it's Dark Star night? Well perhaps, yes, that can be special - but a Dark Star does not an A+ concert make.

Thanks for all of the great insight Doc. It's only rock 'n roll but I like it.

Bad - no. Bumpy - yes

It isnt all plain sailing for me between 1969 and 1972. Not by any means. How could it be-given the nature og what they did? For me, the first half of 1969 is stellar - a real peak in terms of material and performance. But things ran less smoothly from about June onwards when the "Working Mans" and country songs started getting introduced. To me, these early versions sound a bit awkward, and the energy of the first half of the year gets dissipated a bit. Plus, the "Lovelight's " get tediously extended. Typically, these are the only shows from 1969 represented in Dave's Picks.

In 1970, its more of the same-interstellar jams, awkward short songs and interminable "Lovelight's". I should say though that I do like the acoustic sets from this period.

1971 seems to be a complete reverse - they are now spot on with the country style-but what's happened to the jams? Look no further of course - in October, with Keith onboard they return, and the Dead became lords of all they survey. Every type of song they play they take ownership of. And the "Lovelight's" get shorter.

That's a ridiculosly truncated summary of course-just a general impression I have this morning in repsonse to Keithfans post. I wouldn't descibe The Dead as rock n' roll, either. They sometimes played it , but only in the context of a greater whole.

I am a magpie. My eye collects details............

Yo! Rockers! And especially Keithfan...............

If I recall correctly, the comparison was 12/5 vs 12/10. I know, just a small detail, but still.................it's probably because you listen to too many Dark Stars...................

To me, 12/9 has always been an anomaly. For years it's been postulated that there was a missing reel. My guess is they were running late. I know, shocking for a professional band....................

Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.................

Rock on!

Doc
Once you hear the details of victory, it is hard to distinguish it from a defeat......

Mark the calender

I actually agree with everything DR said except about the R&R part lol
with much of what is now in the R&R hall of fame, I don’t think there’s any debate about the Dead being a R&R band, unique yes.

DOC: we’re in the final stretch. Have hit all the Capital run and everything since Winterland 3/24/71, (plus the boxilla show!) Keep ‘em coming and thanks for all the informative/entertaining posts!
Some real Bobbie Dazzlers coming up! Looking forward to 12/15 and New Years as I’ve never heard those
Guess you have to add 1/2/72 as another I’ve not heard but folks seem to go on about?

R&R Hall of Fame?

I'm not sure I like the sound of that very much! No...in England rock n' roll is now a distinct culture - very different from rock music. Near where I live, they have rock n' roll weekends - or they did before Covid, and it was a sight for sore eyes. Incredible cars would turn up, and the patrons modelled themsleves in hybrid 1950s style. They looked great, some of them.
I've only attended as an outpatient - I don't dress up to suit the band I'm going to see. But I did feel a bit out of place. There was a sign on one wall saying "hippies not allowed"!
I like listening to The Dead and rock n' roll-but they both seem very different- no, they are very different.

Lovelight

never a major fan

although I will tolerate them when in the right mood

I have always said, I don't need to know about Pigpen's action.

Oops Wrong Shows

That's pretty funny Doc, considering I've been playing the daylights out of 12/9 and 12/10 the past couple of days (including the past 2 hours). Heh. I suspect you're right about the shortened 12/9 show. Probably swung into town late and didn't get to the gig from the diner fast enough.

Daverock, agree on those half hour Lovelights - most of them throw me off the scent for a bit, but I just FF >> to the last 5 minutes or so and keep on Truckin'. I imagine the live experience was much more exciting - Pigpen up there engaging the crowd in those tiny venues (if Reverend Grease helped close the deal for even one pocket-ball player, I'd say his work was complete :D

I do love the 2nd half of '69, probably as much as 1st half, but for different reasons. 1st half I'm into for same reasons you mentioned. 2nd half '69 brought us the first UJB, Feeling Groovey, and Tighten Up jams. I hear what you're saying on them getting their legs on some of the new tunes (1st Cumberland Blues rough, but didn't bring down DP 16 for me). There aren't a whole of official releases, but what we have is pretty good stuff (sans the half hour Lovelights). Thelma has some great stuff with Bonus Disc (including a singularly unique UJB with an incredible gooey intro). Some great soundboards: 8/30, 10/25 partial (fantastic Dark Star => St. Stephen => The Eleven), 11/2, and the whole last week of December (Dallas 12/26 + Boston Tea Party shows). New Speedway Boogie. Mason's Children. Easy Wind.

And in the words of one drunken man who has crashed more cars than most of us have owned in a lifetime: next phase, new wave, dance craze, anyways -
It's still rock and roll to me....

The busy have no time for tears…..

50 years ago today…..

December 4, 1971
Felt Forum, New York City, New York

Set 1: Truckin'-Sugaree-Mr. Charlie-Beat It On Down The Line-Tennessee Jed-Jack Straw-Run Rudolph Run-You Win Again-Me And Bobby McGee-Comes A Time-El Paso-Smokestack Lightning-Cumberland Blues-One More Saturday Night

Set 2: Ramble On Rose-Me & My Uncle>The Other One>Mexicali Blues>The Other One>Wharf Rat-Casey Jones

Encore: Johnny B Goode

Deadicated to evilyn2003, Mr.Dc, dissident1980, Maine Dave, Across the Rio, cosmicdavid, Lost Dantian Tapes, Dantian's Wei Lu, Heart of Dantian, Sydney Prentice, and Grayteful, because how cruelly sweet are the echoes that start, when memory plays an old tune on the heart…….

The food that feeds us all, the Grateful Dead………

We shouldn’t let the intense cosmic quality of December 5 overwhelm the other shows from this fine run. Here is a solid, well played show that you almost never hear about. The first set is long, well played, and has some nice, slightly oddball tunes like Run Rudolph Run, You Win Again, Comes A Time, and Smokestack Lightning. Equipment difficulties appear to be at a minimum. Admittedly, the second set is short, but does have the quirky, heavily Weirish jam sequence. Maybe not a top tier show, but certainly worth a listen…………

Rock on!!

Doc
To have no time for philosophy is to be a true philosopher…..

Long strange trip and all that

Keithfan-yes, there have been some good recordings from late 1969 - throughout the year, in fact, taking into account releases outside of Dave's Picks. And they are all fascinating and worth hearing ( again and again) in my humble estimation.

Part of the attraction for me with these shows, is that the band actually evolved on stage for all to hear not closeted away in rehearsal - so we can all recognise from whence they came, where they were, and sense where they were going. Much more interesting than if they had simply stopped touring for 6 months - say from May to December 69, and reappeared as a new model.The develpoment happened in public, over a period of time, for all to hear. To me, this meant that some shows featured somewhat tentaive playing as they evolved-but that's not a problem. It's a quality, in fact.

I've pigeon holed 1969-but this on stage development obviously started in 1966 and continued spiralling on into the 1970s.

1969

You've inspired me Daverock, to revisit the latter half of 1969. Up to my usual tricks, I've taken some editorial initiative to combine the Thelma 12/12/69 show with the bonus disc from the previous night, as well as drop Lovelight Feedback and drums. I popped Bonus Disc tracks Dark Star => St. Steven => The Eleven in the space between discs 2 & 3. It works nicely..
Then disc 3 plays like normal with that miraculous UJB; and then I placed the remaining Bonus Disc tracks Cumberland Blues => The Other One and Cosmic Charlie to just before the closing And We Bid You Goodnight. Without drums and Feedback in that ending sequence, stuff just flows better. Great Caution btw. What a show, and barely longer than the original. I hadn't listened to this one in a good 6 months, and this re-ordering of tracks really optimized the lozenges I recovered (long story).

Hey Stoltzie, regarding Pigpen's action:
she got her leg up against the wall.....nuck nuck nuck

12/4/65, An important date in Grateful Dead history

56 years ago today the Dead played their first public gig as the Grateful Dead, at the San Jose Acid Test. For a very cool story about a 16 year old who went to the party with his brother, type in "jerry's brokedown palaces big nigs house". The 16 year old kid meets Pig Pen and Garcia that might and gets quite a different reception from both of them. His story is toward the end of the article and an absolute must read. The Rolling Stones were playing the same night at the San Jose Civic Auditorium, and Keith Richards and Brian Jones showed up at the Acid Test when the Stones gig was done.

Shout out to dr. rhino, dead…

Shout out to dr. rhino, dead.net and whoever had their hand in expeditiously replacing the 6 discs from my St. Louis box that had a lot of scratches on them! Keep up the great customer service, and keep bringing it, DL and team!

Daves 10

Keithfan - that's a good idea. I too brought that one down this morning, and just had time to play the Drak Star from 12/11/69 before going out for my booster jab. I might follow suit, and start again from cd1 in the order you suggest. There do look to be an awful lot of songs played at 12/12!

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