Grateful Dead

it has eh-nur-gee music, set list, performance, time period, setting...all combine for being deserving of "ootbse". :)))

Well said :) Can't wait to get this in my HDCD player. Found one in a pawn shop. YES, you can clearly hear the difference with HDCD.

Amazon sent me an email yesterday, this release was included, and I checked it out (they're selling it for $24) and they have an image of the back cover. Looks like there will be no filler unless it's hidden. Was on the fence about buying this, now I'll just stick with the box set. If it had filler that wasn't from the box, I'd get it, but a 23 minute disc? I think the box will be sufficient for me, and I'll just load up the disc with filler when I burn them.

ok .... i'll give you that ...would be in the top 300 .... i'm more inclined to say 'good show in an amazing venue ' ...that said, to each his/her own, which is cool ...

You hit it on the head, IMO, with "top 300".I can't believe that anyone here could make a heartfelt list of top Deadshows that fit this one in the top 100...There's too much 69-77 love to fit in! On the other hand, top 300 out of almost 3000 COULD be called "one of the best ever". I have the Silver Rarities brand bootleg CD pressing of this show and it is a wonderful listen. Estimated>Other One is a great combo and the sound quality throughout is superb. I hope DP19 is equally "best ever": say 4/19/82 or 4/23/83 or 6/28/88...

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Too expensive.

I just ordered my copy from reliable vender for $16.90!!

My bootleg CD of 7/8/78 is called Grateful Dead: The Great Red Rocks. No bootleg label name but the discs were pressed in Taiwan. It's in a thick jewel case like most of the Dick's Picks 3 & 4 disc sets were. There is a catalog number, DB020/21/21. They are plain silver discs labeled in black ink WEREWOLVES DISC 1 / DISC 2 / DISC 3. I won't bother with the matrix numbers near the center, but W-453 is one of the common numbers of it. The inlay card cover art has a picture of Garcia probably from the late 80's or early 90's on the left and in red ink on black background GRATEFUL DEAD in a narrow font and in white THE GREAT RED ROCKS with red roses on the bottom of the black vertical banner. The back had a picture of Garcia probably from 1995 on the right and a black banner with GRATEFUL DEAD Live At Red Rocks in red ink and the date in blue. The are white disc names and red song titles. Terrapin is misspelled "Tarapin" There are no track numbers. A 4 page "booklet" is included which has a picture of Brent, who didn't join the band until spring of 79. The overall sound quality is great, but Bertha > Good Lovin' is all one track. Sugar Magnolia is on disc 2, but Sunshine Daydeam is on disc 3. If I recall correctly, I bought this disc set in the Spring of 1996 at an independent record / CD store in New Hope PA. I think the store is out of business. Great show, very nice boot CD, but I'd rather have the official release.

https://www.discogs.com/Grateful-Dead-Werewolves-Of-Red-Rocks/release/5… Sound, clean artwork. Silver Rarities also did the 5/8/77 show in all it's sonic glory. My 5/8 is sourced from their release. And yes, still looking forward to the official release (I ordered the box).

BornCrossEyed, I am very familiar with the old head shop of which you speak in New Hope, PA - I believe it was the Now and Then shop - and yes, it closed down probably a decade or so ago, maybe more. My parents live in new hope so I used to frequent that store in college when home on breaks and would also mine the stacks for the elusive bootleg GD CDs. and you never knew what you were going to end up with in terms of sound quality - but several I picked up there were actually close-to-pristine boards (at high prices but it was really the only place I knew to get my hands on this stuff back then). a few were pretty poor quality too, but such was the risk a head needed to take. I think both me and my brother picked up 'Dead at Cornell' (3 disc sets, great sound) and I also found the buffalo show from the next night - but that ended up getting stolen at some point. I find it cool how many of us are likely familiar with some of these now-long-gone haunts and oases. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to the big July Box hitting my mailbox soon. Sixtus

some monty python humor there. this show is worth the bucks.

Bring on the pummeling folks... Three discs for $30 (20% less at other vendors) is really not that outrageous. I know one disc is short. Back in the dawn of CD's most original recordings were 40 minutes max and cost at least $15. Double CD's that could have fit on on disc cost $30 (calling you out Basement Tapes). This was nearly 30 years ago. Are the boys trying to cash in? Sure-the archive is theirs to market and sell as they see fit. Is this the last rodeo for the Rhino partnership? Maybe. Is all of this available in multiple formats for free all over the Internet? Absolutely. The Rhino relationship has resulted in a consistent and well presented stream of releases. This is a free market situation. None of us are forced to purchase any of this stuff.

I wonder if this may be a test run for a May '77 The Other One, with the obvious 5/8/77 standalone release as well. That's a really good idea if this box set does bring forth more of the Bettys. If they did that 5/26/77 could be a Dave's Pick to round out May '77 being fully released (or at least every show represented, unless they complete 5/22 as filler). Also wonder how many copies of Wake Up to Find Out 3/29/90 they sold...

I used to go to that record store in New Hope. I remember driving up there one Sunday Afternoon to buy "Wake Of the Flood",with my wife.

You can buy this CD on Amazon for 17.45 + 3.99 shipping, they have lots of sellers selling it, from that price up.

There was an idea many years ago of having a museum called "Terrapin Station", where you could order any show they had in the vault, and there would be a concert hall there too. This never materialized. So, now, they will be selling shows for years to come. Can you imagine the money they are making. I don't like that you have to buy a contract of 4 shows, without knowing what they are.

nice Avartar Genie Pro Review

Just got the 7-8-78 Red Rocks show and am amazed at the quality - I was at the show and wore out my audience tape before I abandoned the cassette player altogether. What a great show and great CD (and I don't buy many of these at all). What's bizarre is Lemieux's liner notes (I've never seen any of his others so maybe they're all like this). He talks about how he got Betty Boards in the late 80s, and how great they were, and lists great shows including this one. He does talk about how great the performance was but mostly dwells on the recording quality and provenance. It seems more about Lemieux himself. How about mentioning where the dead were at this point in their careers, how they were already planning their Egypt trip that was just two months away, how Lesh in particular wanted to play places of natural and spiritual power like Red Rocks and Egypt. How about the actual location of Red Rocks? He doesn't even begin to touch on that. How this was the beginning of a run of awesome locations getting away from the big arenas: soon to come Ventura, Berkeley Greek Theater, a high school in Alaska, the legendary Warfield run. The Dead were learning to seek out powerful locations and they often played their best in them (except Egypt!). Maybe somebody else should do liner notes that do justice to the shows themselves!

So, it's as good as it's supposed to be. The versions in the archives are not that great, but they did not have a Betty Board there.

Thanks for the heads up. Looks like you can even buy individual songs for iTunes prices too.

Thanks for the heads up. Looks like you can even buy individual songs for iTunes prices too.

Thanks for the heads up on Amazon. Looks like you can even buy individual songs for iTunes prices too.

Here is my recollection for my version of 'liner notes' for this 78 run.... They played the Omaha Civic Auditorium, (where the Dead played once before in 1973).. We got there and the venue was half full (about 4,000?) but everyone was chomping at the bit in anticipation to hear them live. I took my Nak 550 into the venue and there was no hassle getting the deck in this time, but remember these were the days before ‘tapers sections’. And each venue or even staff may present a different challenge. But not here, thank goodness. Out in the hallway, the Hell’s Angels wandered about sporting full colors and big grins. They may have been transporting ‘party favors’ and decided to take in a show. Or maybe the Angels were just road tripping with the band (although I didn't see them at the next few shows). My buddy even brought his 68 year old mother to the show. She sat up in the stands “It is just too loud down there!” Anyway, I headed down to the floor with my Nak 550 to set up in front of the soundboard. When I started to get my gear set up and saw this guy beside me with a great rig. Luckily this kind stranger (I have since discovered he was famous taper Bob Wagner) then let me patch out of the back of his deck, which was wonderful as he had a great 8 ft. tall mike stand set-up. He had a Sony deck and mics, but with that high stand his mic’s were well above the crowd noise. We were about 15 to 20 feet in FOB. So Garcia treated us to a blistering Sugaree opener, the kind that drove the crowd wild. His leads mounted into a wave that crests, recedes, regroups, and comes back rolling in with such power and delight that adds a synergistic effect to our frenzied response as his rolling/soaring guitar work lift and subside with the band. Then Beat In on Down the Line, TLEO and now it was Bob’s turn in the spotlight with a Look’s like Rain. About halfway through the song, I suddenly noticed something shimmering in the air between the band and me. I thought “what a fantastic light show! Or have I have shifted into fifth gear just a little early that I scheduled?” I staggered towards that disturbance in front of me to investigate. People were dancing wildly in the middle of the floor as a waterfall played over them. It was about 25 feet in circumference. I put my hand in, water…hand out, no rain..I am standing in front of an indoor waterfall. what to do? I jumped into pouring rain that was INSIDE the middle of the auditorium! Then I stepped back and was out of it. I shook my head and then lunged back into the deluge and danced through Looks Like Rain & then during Direwolf as well and a delightful All Over now. (Complete with Donna in perfect pitch!) Then Candyman and Lazy>Supplication before Bobby informed us “We’re going to take a short break”. I staggered back to reload a new tape and then I did look for some validation of my experience. And I asked my friends if I was not in fact ‘soaking wet’ as I patted my soaked shirt. They grinned knowingly and affirmed that, yes, in fact I was “all wet”. And then this unique show continued, (nice indoor water-feature, boys !) with a killer second set complete with a transportive Estimated> Eyes> drums> Wharf Rat> Truckin> Iko Iko> Around. And then after a lengthy absence from the stage the boys returned to play us ‘Promised Land” as an encore. As I left the auditorium I noticed the water standing on the ground outside, a summer storm? Was this a case of a leaky roof or didn't the Dead just conjure up the forces of nature as they were so prone to do? But back to the important stuff, what were the Dead going to do next? Would Phil rev up his reverse gravity machine and pummel us with Phil-bombs at the next show? Would they levitate the crowd, and have us all dance while floating in the 'cool Colorado range'? I HAD to follow them to those Red Rocks shows in 1978. So a road-trip to Colorado it was. This was the Dead’s first Red Rocks jaunt (and my first as well, although my girlfriend (now wife) had seen Joni Mitchell there previously and raved about the venue) so my anticipation was so ‘high’. (In many ways.) So I packed my taping and camping gear and off we went. When we walked up to the Rocks entrance, the Feyline security crew (or were they the John Scher guys?) were stopping people and inspecting any 'carry in' bags. A security behemoth that I will call “BigBoy’ stopped me at the entrance to look through my Boy Scout backpack. He hefted my NAK 550 out of the pack and held it aloft with one beefy paw, exclaiming “Hey, you can’t take this in!” I gave him my best perplexed look and said “What? It’s just a tape player.” (first lie) Then the giant BigBoy instructs me to “take that back to your car”. I retorted “I can’t, I hitchhiked to the show” (second lie). Beefy Bruiser BigBoy points to my ticket and says “the ticket says no recorders on it, you can't take it in” and I tell him “look, I don’t have any microphones” (third lie) and hold up my arms to be searched (of course my comrades had the mics with them). Then I sighed loudly and popped open the back of the Nak deck and let eight D cell batteries drop onto the ground. “Look, I dumped out the batteries, it can't record”. (lie number four) BigBoy stood there with his arms crossed in front of me, but I could see a small crack in his resolve. So I pulled that thread “Look, I hitchhiked all the way here from Nebraska to see this show, would you hold onto this deck for me? It cost me $600 (which in ’78 was a lot of dough) but if you just hold it for me, and then I will find you after the show. You look like an honest guy.” (fifth lie, this guy didn't look trustworthy). I push the Nak towards him, and this deck is huge and weighs a ton, (a goddamn boat anchor). I really played my trump card here and was trying to hold my ‘gameface’, Suddenly all the heads waiting in line behind (and all my friends) erupt with yells at the BigBoy to 'hurry up' and started chanting “let us in”. BigBoy gives his mullet a shake and then he points into the venue and looks at me and exclaims “Go on, get out of here” and I dive headlong into my first Red Rocks show with a grin a mile wide(high)! Followed by Mary with my mics and my buddies with my fresh batteries (re: lie number four) and my blank tapes. The batteries that I dumped out for BigBoy were already ‘dead’ (pun intended). I again ran into that ‘kind stranger’ (Dr. Bob Wagner, FOB right side)) to plug out of his Sony again. Those two shows were stupefying, and the band obviously enjoyed playing there. Bobby's deer joke, and I remember Phil leading the boys through “Cold Rain & Snow” with his bass punching that tune into a triumphant ‘strut’ that evening.I recall Jerry broke a string during the Scarlet>Fire, which really didn't slow the pace of that perfect evening. On into Dancin' >NFA > Black Peter > Around & Around and then a dual encore of US Blues & Johnny B Goode. The next night was much the same. Each night we would watch the clouds chase each other in the sky as the band serenaded us. Until it became dark and then we looked out ‘over’ the Dead to see the distant lights of Denver sparking in the background. Second night second half, we were treated to a tremendous Estimated > Other One> Eyes of the World > drums> Wharf Rat > Franklin's Tower > Sugar Mag. The crowd was especially raucous as Wharf Rat wound to that tender quiet point and Phil (or was it Bobby) gave a "shhhhh" to quiet us in preparation for the wonderful 'launching' platform/crescendo that night. Those evenings the Dead's aural wonders were matched with the Red Rocks astounding visuals as we were perched in between those massive stony slabs jutting into the sky (and the Dead had a good view as well looking back at us from the stage). As the Dead those two evenings took us all on an astounding journey of Americana, myth, rock and roll, country, space, jam, fable, fun, roller coaster, and turn on a dime delights, it all 'rolled into one'. And then as the Dead finished us all off with “Werewolves of London” we were all crooning back to the dead with our own howl of “Aoooooo”. And Garcia was grinning ear to ear as he bid us all a “good night”. Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.

To anyone ordering now, do yourself a favor and pay even more for shipping. So jealous reading all these comments about the shows, but thanks to FexEx/USPS shipping, my discs (shipped from an adjoining state) aren't even due to reach me for another two days. That's a week to cross one state border. I could have walked there and back by now. Oh well, the wait sounds like it will be worth it.

Agree, this shipping option always sucks. Useless to provide tracking information for only part of a shipment. It does, however, show when a pennypacking vendor ships a package, it arrives 25 miles away, and they then send to postal facility 100 miles away. Oh yeah, when it gets there then it cant be tracked further. So lame and a seemingly unnecessary disservice to your customers.

Mr. Oroboros, This is my first dive into these shows. I ordered the box CD package, but downloaded the FLAC yesterday and today, as I could not bear to not have the highest resolution available, especially for this most heralded release. I rarely post to any thread on dead.net, but read each one carefully almost daily. You inspired me to post for a couple of reasons. The first one is because you went out there and captured history. At the time, perhaps not knowing how important audio recordings would become for such a (search for a word... epic, iconic, life changing) group of musicians affectionately known as The Grateful Dead. I belong to a huge growing group of humans that are indebted to you and Mr. Wagner et al. The audience recordings of Grateful Dead shows hold such a special place in my heart. Teleporting me to another place and space in time where my soul lives can not always be done with the crispy soundboards. Betty Cantor is an anomoly. Her recordings speak to me the way that yours and others that have taped speak to me. Every personally taped show is a time capsule that I hold in my heart as a treasure regardless of what many may deem high / low quality. It's a fossil. Perhaps that's the History major in me. Truth be told I teach special education high school science and math. But on to my the second reason of you inspiring me to post on this grand evening. This one speaks to the historical nature in me. Nothing beats first hand accounts of history. You were there; you got the Nak in! The way in which you got your gear in is as entertaining as the way you penned your liner notes. I'm grateful to have people like you that enrich the listening experience tenfold. Thank you for sharing. Sincerely. It means more than I know how to scribe in this box. Reading first hand accounts of deadheads at all the various shows paints the picture brighter in my mind, and I thank you once again. Teachers open the door but you must enter by yourself. Cheers, Drew

Really great observations about how the Dead approached their music and the settings for their performances at this time in 78. I especially appreciated your connection to their forthcoming Egyptian trip. Well-done!

I echo DP36's sentiments thanking Oroboros and all tapers for their efforts. 11/29/80 was one of my first boots - I can't imagine not having that and so many other great auds over the years. 8/6/71 is another - Best Hard to Handle ever, and the aud is more enjoyable than the SBD. That's a feat. Hat's off to all the taper's out there who kept us sane before the boys finally started releasing all this stuff.

Guit 30 - It's very easy to calculate the money they are making! Just multiply units by unit cost. Then do the math and net out things like song rights, MASSIVE design/packaging/printing/CD pressing costs, Rhino's cut (huge), Dave's and others' salaries and general GDM salaries/lawyers/overhead (huge), THEN divide the result by 6~ band members! Start filling in even conservative estimates for those items, and it really nets out to NOT a lot of money at all. It's about extending the legacy and sharing the vault, not the money. Just pulling a profit on these releases is impressive. I find it unfortunate when people portray this (not that you did this...) as a massive money making scheme, or assume everyone is buying BMW's with "all the money they're making". No one is getting rich on these releases, except our ears. That's probably why other bands don't release their archival live releases. It's an extremely complicated process, and why go through all the work when the band members who would authorize release net almost no profit? High risk/low or no reward. Only those who are truly passionate about their music and their fans bother with that hassle.

I got mine in the mail yesterday. 78 has never been a year I delved into too much, as 77 was always the year that offered more in terms of consistent playing. That being said I had bootlegs of these shows (7/7/78 as well) and I always liked these shows. Having the Betty Board back in the vault and then giving this a proper release is awesome. In my opinion, DL and Rhino have been nothing short of absolute Jedi Masters when it comes to releasing shows. I used argue rather passionately and in hindsight unnecessarily, about the need to release complete shows over compilations. I further argued that the best shows should be released. Well, DL and the crew at Rhino have done just that. Ever since the RT series ended, they have been putting out everything I could every dream of. All of the Europe 72 shows, the May 77 box, Veneta 72, Formerly the Warlocks box, Spring 90, and all of Dave's Picks. Of course there is more, but my point is that 7/8/78 is show is a good show that falls into the category of one that should have been released. The best of all of this, is that many of us have had the bootlegs from the past or have heard many shows in other formats prior to the release. So we really have the power to pick and choose which shows to get, and sometimes yes, what we can afford. I feel very spoiled yet also very thankful for what DL and Rhino have released. Can't wait for more.

I was all excited to see that mine was just 30 miles away on Monday buy now the tracking is showing it 500 miles away in another state - it does appear to be heading back in my direction though - can't wait to hear it.

Thanks for your story Oroborus! Takes me back . . . I graduated high school in Philly in the spring of '78. I had seen some shows, one in '74 at the Spectrum, a few of the '76 theater shows, and then '77 (including Englishtown) and spring of '78 and was completely and utterly on the bus. Two days after graduation, I headed to Boulder with a friend, to spend some time on my way to college in Berkeley in the fall. When we arrived our Boulder friends were brimming with excitement - after years of seeing concerts at Red Rocks and thinking how awesome it would be if the Dead would play there - they were! The shows were just a couple of weeks away and they had tickets for us! Wow - I had never seen Red Rocks but had heard all about it. Expectations were running high. We headed down on the 7th and I was awestruck at the beauty of the venue. Towering walls of rock, with super steep rows of seating rising up between the rocks, it was all perched on the edge of the front range with a view forever out over the plains to the East, over Denver and on to Kansas. We were there in the afternoon and a deadhead was sitting down in front of the stage softly playing a guitar, and as we climbed high to the top of the seats we could hear him as though he was right next to us, due to the amazing acoustics of the rocks. Then a friend went down and spoke quietly, and we could also hear him all the way up top. We managed to get seats both nights about tenth row center and the shows speak for themselves. Friday was oh so fun and the crowd was oh so into it. But Saturday - that was one of those truly special nights where the band was clearly in another zone, where everything they played was beyond description and every song was a version for the ages! I remember Bill Walton on crutches dancing next to the stage . . . and I remember as it got dark how the lights from Denver and the plains to the east twinkled above the band and the rock immediately behind them And that was my welcome to the West, Philly boy. And what we didn't appreciate at the time was the beautiful weather - sure there was some typical front range lightening at times, but nothing like some of the subsequent years (read on). Side note: I took the Grey Rabbit hippie bus from Berkeley to Red Rocks the next year, in August of '79. Well due to the bus we missed the first show when my friend had gotten me a backstage pass - argh! The next two nights were rained out and held at McNichols arena, which pretty much sucks when you came for Red Rocks and have an unused backstage laminate in your pocket. I still have it too - with a Shakedown Street logo on it. However, I met a lot of great deadhead friends on that bus and have lots of photos in my album. It was a great trip with great stories, and many new friends that I would see at shows and at homes over the next ten or more years. Another side note - I went back in '83, I think, when it rained and they played every song with "rain" lyrics (including of course "I'd shine my light through the cool Colorado rain . . .") We called that year "Wet Rocks." They sold cheap yellow ponchos at the event and many people were wearing them. Later the fall I was ushering a Peter Tosh show in San Francisco (Bill graham's Kabuki nightclub). Bob and Bill and Mickey were there in a box seat, so i chatted with them between the early and late show as we smoked a joint together. I mentioned to Billy the pouring rain at Red Rocks and he commented on how weird it was to look out at that steep wall of people in the tiers of seats, seemingly all wearing yellow ponchos!

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Peter Tosh and multiple trips to Red Rocks, sounds like a blast hey I am not sure if you have this or not - Peter Tosh Live & Dangerous: Boston 1976 - it is awesome !!!!! 5 stars

I've always frowned on throat tats but the skull on the packaging is well worth consideration.anybody have problems with importing disc 1 7-1-78?

I ordered the Show thru Amazon and it should be here anyday. Can't Wait. Nothing like a Betty Board. I have been listening to Betty Boards on the internet archive, there are like 34 Betty Boards on the archive.

Just got my Red Rocks 7/8/78 today. It is as promised, awesome. I really like the first disc, I'm listening to the second disc now thru my headphones. Great version of The Other One. I have good Headphones, but today, Disc one seemed to sound better on my stereo speakers. Garcia is playing some awesome guitar,very creative . Lovin' this Eyes Of the World. Well, let me groove.Jim

Popmarket, a site that sells discount newly released vinyl, is having a one day sale preorder for Truckin' Up to Buffalo on vinyl. It's $40 off today: https://www.popmarket.com/products/grateful-dead-truckin-up-to-buffalo-… The foul: email announcement has a photo of the band with Vince.

Just heard the second set yesterday. It actually starts with Samson and Delilah on Disc 1. This has got to be one of the best sets I have heard in a long, long time. This is a fabulous.

I agree with your theme, but the details do matter. I think each band member rec's at least $50,000-$70,000/yr from the DaP alone, not counting box sets. And that's the way it should be: they make the music available, beautifully packaged, at an affordable price and make a little money for their efforts. Here's the math: each DaP = 16,500 copies at $30 each = $495,000.00 gross, each release. Multiplied by 4x/yr = ~$2 million. Subtract $100,000/yr for DL, $100,000/yr for JN and $100,000/yr total for all other persons' salaries (artwork, admin). That leaves $1.7 mn. Subtract total production output of 200,000 CDs (3x 16,500 x 4x/yr), each costing ~$2/each. (Oh,add 16,500 for the bonus disc = 216,500 discs @ $2 each = ~$433,000. That leaves $1.27 mn. Songwriting credits cost another $0.3 mn, leaving $1 mn for Rhino and band to split. Say 7 band members/estates split $0.5 mn = ~$70,000/yr. Now, to the point about whether they should, if they're deserving, etc. They're pulling in $70k/yr for the work they did over the past 50 yrs? That's barely a pension. Meanwhile, the vault series would not exist if they didn't turn a profit. And part of the reason I buy DaP, GarciaLive, etc. is to support the success of the vault release program, which means it will continue. Just suggesting a) the boys should make $$ on this series, b) that they do make $$ on this series, and c) that the series needs to make money to continue. An hour+ (one disc) of killer rock 'n roll for ~$9-10? I'll take it. And would be thrilled to learn that the boys make $$ off me. Since I bought my first GD ticket for like $3.50 (fall '72), I've always felt I got more than my money's worth. As well as more than I bargained for!

Have a couple cassette tapes from this show . Amazing (~);}. Ordered the CD'S this morning. P&L

GDTRFB => Cold Rain & Snow from April '71 at the Fillmore. Best Wheel => Dick's Picks 18 Garcia's official C.O.D. => Having a real good time :)

...considering ALL the releases they have put out, the selling out of DPs, the high prices charged on vinyl releases, especially the record store day release that came with zero literature, artwork etc, the MASSIVE backlog, monies from merchandise etc... The band members are making out very well indeed. If they are not, they have the wrong people handling their finances. Personally, I'm not a complainer of their high pricing, knowing full well that everything they put out for sale is easily obtainable for free and with their blessing (still?). However, lets not pretend that the band members pull in a measly 70k a year, that the entity and business of the Gratefull Dead doesn't make a good profit and that some of their products don't have a higher price point than other bands. With respects to everyone having a BMW, well I would expect all the band members have very nice collections of automobiles that include BMWs. These guys are no longer poor, traveling musicians hoping for to make a living for a few years. They make a very nice living indeed. Of course they earned it, but let's not be naive to think they are not pulling in more money than most and that the company does not pull in a good profit.

Just the mention of the MaticPress would have been more than enough, since we all know what those are, but to post a link where we can actually buy one is going above and beyond. Some days, dreams really do come true.

ikoiko1010 - Their prices are not higher than anyone else's, in particular, their vinyl. Not sure where this is coming from. Thin - I agree with just about your entire comment - well stated. The only thing I would add, is that most bands from the 70s couldn't pull this off, even if they wanted to, because they don't have the amount of material in the vault to do so. The Grateful Dead was almost uniquely foresighted in this respect. guit30 - as Thin stated, it's not the CDs that made these guys rich. What makes musicians rich is the touring (especially from the mid 80s forward). Few musicians make large gobs of money off of album sales alone, and the ones who do are generally the songwriters.

Personally, I don't find archive releases greedy or inappropriate. I do believe they've tried to strike a balance between filling a need and fair profit. They earned any profit living on the road months at a time. Life on the road isn't glamorous or easy. Not now and not then. I do have a problem w/ the red rocks '78 release. I think the standard the band uses is $10 a disk. Again, no problems with that, it is a pretty fair price point. Check the song count and length of music on the 3rd disk. I do have a problem calling 3 songs with 25 minutes of music a complete CD. No where near enough content to justify charging for it in my mind. Again, everyone has to value things on their own. I am - very sadly - passing on this one.

Tough call on the disc 3 topic. I guess they could have thrown some filler from some other non-July show on there. I wouldn't miss out on this mammoth 7/8 show over 50 minutes of non-existant music. If you're going to do that, you may as well boycott the 50 CDs worth of drums and space that have been released. And if I'm going to talk about boycotting "the man" about something, there are probably a million other things that are non-Dead relate that you're getting screwed on worse in life, so...just enjoy it.

* yikes * Boycott is a strong word. I don't recall using it and I am steadfastly not calling for a boycott of this or any other product the band sells. I do believe the 3rd disk is short. If it was one song/4 minutes, people'd be howling about having to pay. I repeat it is a personal decision about how much music is enough music for the price being charged. There is a lot of music on the other disks, and I may yet change my mind. I do think $10 a disk and an hour of music a disk (give or take) is a fair price point. Caveat Emptor. Agreed! It is a tough call and life is full of unfair.

was all that was promised. Your gripe boils down to the 7/8 red rocks show being too short. Take it or leave it. Dave's picks are always chock full enough. But if you are doing a commemorative/historical set of actual shows, those should not be tampered with. first people complain that there are no complete shows (DP and Road Trips), then when they get complete shows, they complain about incomplete disks, lol.