7/29/2019 Grateful Dead: Vault 1977

1/2

ABOUT 20 SHOWS THAT WOULD BE BETTER RELEASES THAN 5/8/77, FROM THEYEAR OF 1977.

1) 2/26 &2/27- The first 2 shows of the year, and together would makea much better and way more fulfilling listening experience thanIthaca.

2)3/18->20/77- Winterland (although none stands alone completely,together a 3-4 cd release seems an obvious choice.)

3) I have to pass on the Palladium,NYC shows, since I have never heardthem. They need to be baked and dbx decoded and we haven't got to awhole slew of tapes in similar condition.

4) Both the night before and the night after (5/7 & 5/9) would be morepleasing as releases.

5) I haven't heard the Chicago shows, but I have heard from friendsthat something happened at one of them anyway.

6) The shows on 5/15, 5/17, 5/18 and 5/21 are each deserving notation,and although they don't match up with 5/22, they are each moresatisfying than 5/8.

7) From what I hear from others (and what I saw myself, i.e., 5/28),the final 3 shows from this amazing month of performances are eachworthy of many listenings.

8) Unfortunately, the 6/4 show in Los Angeles is missing from thevault and from anyone's tape collection, as far as I know. Otherwise Iwould toss this one in the pile of special shows.

9) The run of 3 at Winterland on 6/7->9, has some exceptional playing,but not within a songle night, so this should probably be acompilation of the 3 shows, with most of the emphasis on the first 2nights.

10) Englishtown (9/3) needs no mention!

11) October is another of those months where there seems to be adisproportionate number of excellent performances. The downside isthat the quality of the recordings leaves something to be desired. Inthe first tour during this month, the standouts are 10/11, 10/12,10/14 and 10/16. I think all three at the end of the month arequalifiers (10/28, 10/29 and 10/30).

12) Each of the next 5 nights rips Ithaca. But the 11/4->6 shows aredifficult to choose between. If I had to pick one of the three, Iwould have to go with 11/6, although Rob Bertrando's choice of 11/4 ispretty hard to pass up.

13) I think that many have overlooked the last 2 shows of the year,since 12/29 was so startling. Neither approaches the completeness of12/29, but I remember some fine playing during the 2nd set jams fromboth nights.

So maybe this doesn't total 20 shows, but it gives a pretty clear ideaof where I place 5/8/77 amongst the meat from this year. I don't feelit's necessary to point out what is specifically lacking on the 5/8show, since this would only further distance it from the shows listed

7/29/2019 Grateful Dead: Vault 1977

2/2

above.