I just listened to the first 3:00 of Bertha from Vancouver '73 and no static for me (and no Jerry vocals for the most part). Billy is riding the hi-hat pretty good in the right speaker for the first 2:06 and then that disappears (not uncommon in this set for cymbals to come and go in the mix). Are you sure it's not that?
Yes, the disc is definitely defective... as is disc 4 for that show. But I got a pretty clean copy of it with a slow burn on a different CD drive, so I'm good.
I have bought every single archival Dead release since Dick's Picks 1 and I have never had an issue like this. That's an awful lot of discs over a very long period of time, it was bound to happen eventually. And even after all of that, I have a listenable copy of it. I have reached out to see if they can be replaced. We'll see what happens!
Guys: Just some friendly advise: Rip everything to your hard disc. I don't know if made by the same people who made this set but ALL of my E72 discs have disc rot. Even shows I never played. And I have the trunk which you would think would help protect the discs from environmental factors. Also lost quite a few Road Trips to disc rot. Those I could not play or rip anymore. Yet all of my Dick's Pics (bought at the time of their individual releases) are fine. I won't be buying this set, if you catch my meaning.
Sadly no win 66. Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION (LOCKED N' LOADED BOX) Arian Buhler, Charles Dooher, Jeff Fura, Scott Sandler & Matt Taylor, art directors (Guns N' Roses) I'LL BE YOUR GIRL Carson Ellis, Jeri Heiden & Glen Nakasako, art directors (The Decemberists) PACIFIC NORTHWEST '73-74': THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS Lisa Glines, Doran Tyson & Roy Henry Vickers, art directors (Grateful Dead) SQUEEZE BOX: THE COMPLETE WORKS OF "WEIRD AL" YANKOVIC - WINNER Meghan Foley, Annie Stoll & Al Yankovic, art directors ("Weird Al" Yankovic) TOO MANY BAD HABITS Sarah Dodds & Shauna Dodds, art directors (Johnny Nicholas)
I don't have a huge CD collection or anything, but pretty much the only discs I have with disc rot are GD discs - Dicks Picks 5 disc 3 is a particularly bad example, but it's also some that are 90s Warners releases, one that's Arista, and also One from the vault which was GDP (though I guess Arista made those for them.) Mine is weird, it's like strange fractal pattern etched into the labeling, but you can see clear through it. Some play and some skip. I've posted about it before on this forum, it doesn't sound like what disc rot is supposed to be, but evidently there' s some kind of fungus that can do it: Disc Rot: A Ticking Clock for Disc Preservation - Video Game Preservation Collective
I live in the desert. Dry as a bone. No disc rot 'round here. My guitars are a bit parched, admittedly (too lazy to put humidifiers in the cases).
If there has to be a fade out, I don't mind a fade out at the end of one disc that is followed by a fade up from exactly the same place in the dead air but having the same bit of music at the end of one disc and the beginning of the next is silly. Like you, I would love it if, where the end of any disc comes in the middle of a set or jam, the sound just cut, then recommenced with the next disc. Sounds like the static I get on the beginning and ending tracks on Dave's Picks, Vol. 2. I've never had it before on any disc and it didn't used to be there on my disc but suddenly started a few months ago. It's there when I rip it. Make sure you hassle them for replacements!
that's cool. how about the second set? im looking for like the one if you had been to everyone of these shows trippin balls and later on down the line came across a time machine, which one would you bring your best friend back too because you had already used the time machine to go back to the early 60's where lab grade lsd was legal and you had picked up a couple g's for like $100/US..?? that's what i'm trying to figure out. still haven't decided but 6/22 getting a lot of votes.
your post about 5*21 got a couple likes too, tho.. looking for that psychedelic masterpiece. if this box has one? worries me they only release a cd of tracks from different shows, instead of releasing a full show??? then everyone bitching about the only show from the box that was pressed to vinyl was missing vocals on like 3 trax??! that's crazy. was that show maybe worth it for second set or something?
5-21 is that for me. It has the sequence of WRS>China doll, followed by Playin in the Band, that is a monster. 6-22 has a long intense jam too, I prefer 74 to 73 most of the time. 73 is kind of more comforting and down home is that's the vibe you want though.
As a side note, the compilation is very good. I hadn’t really thought about my favorite before but my first reaction is 6/22/73. But one reason this box is so excellent is all the shows have something to offer and they go together nicely, even covering two different years.
I only bought the sampler, but seeing some individual shows on eBay a few days ago, decided on 6/24/73 because it's almost entirely unrepresented on the sampler (6/22's big jam is the cream of that one) AND being a Portlander it's great having a '73 show from Memorial Coliseum. And a previously unheard one at that. Jumped straight to disc 3, it was a Dark Star kind of afternoon. LOVE the Dark Star, the first half is wonderfully jazzy & creative, still pumping some '72-ish energy unlike the '74 versions (which really begin with Dec '73 to my ear). Prefer this one to any of those (yes, even 2/24) but really not just compared to those but on its own merits. The core four are just bursting with conversation, though Keith is mysteriously awol. Then a hot little Drums before the boys crash back into the song for the first verse, then head into deep feedback. After a satisfying foray here, Billy leads the charge into a short but wonderful fast jazz segment where Keith finally appears, on electric piano, and sounds fantastic. For a brief, brilliant moment, Jerry's slow pick-dragging up and down the frets (he alone remained in deep space) is a wild counterpart to the gestalt of festivities. Sadly, perhaps inevitably, the others bow back to Jerry and the uprising is at an end. A little more space, and then a lovely intro into Eyes, which satisfies in every way a '73 version should. A fun moment after the first verse where the band is vamping only on the E (a la post-third-verse on post-hiatus versions) and Jerry slams in the Bm chord (right where it should be) as a demo, then immediately starts soloing over the restored progression : ) The whole finale section, or section(s), really, is masterfully navigated, sounding new and vital with really tight communication ~ the big riff appears with little cue, and everyone's on it. After a full exploration, China Doll. China Doll is another perfectly satisfying '73 rendition. An occasional clam note (either Bob or Phil, I think) can't disturb the beauty of this version, full of little subtleties, Keith's piano not the least. Jerry skips to the third verse after the first, but effortlessly returns to the second after the solo, so all verses are present. The finale la's, both the initial set and the triple set to close the song, are lovingly rendered. Magical. Hot Sugar Mag and super-hot (for a post-72) Saturday night to rock out the disc. So happy I chose this show, this disc is an instant classic and a superb companion to the sampler.....without yet hearing a lick of the others, apart from Box of Rain. Are additional PNW individuals in my future? Not immediately....but only the Shadow knows....
Massive official GoGD collector for years. My first defective disc was CD1 of Dave's 29. Got a replacement in 2 weeks. No "disc rot" on any CDs in my collection. Maybe one person's "Disc Rot" is another person's leaving CDs out of their jewel cases on the car dash board all Summer? Who knows? But i do reckon the more you care for your CDs, the less likely they will suffer from "disc rot." I await the day "disc rot" is universally seen as just another Urban Myth.
