I love the super slow "Eyes" on Dave's 33. Pretty great show all around but that "Eyes" is something else.

Really looking forward to Dave's 34, which is Miami '74 -- one of those "had it on CDR forever" shows...

Miami is wild! That jam into Ship of Fools...

I guess I need an education. I never liked the dick pics . Haha .

Who is Dave?

The Dave's Picks from Wichita, Kansas (Vol. 11, I think) is my favorite. Great performance and sound. And no Pigpen bullshit.

Haven't heard this one, WCT -- but they were definitely killing it in Fall '72, as evidenced by Dick's Picks 36 (Spectrum).

I'm not much a fan of Pigpen's individual contributions either, though I do love that feral, mercurial sound of the '68-'70 shows.

Dave Lemieux is the new Dick. In fact, I think over half of the actual Dick's Picks series was "picked" by Dave as well, as Dick died in 1999 and the series continued through 2005. I'm pretty sure he's the head curator of most of their commercial releases, box sets, etc. as well.

Dave honestly probably has a lot more influence than Dick ever did, as my understanding is that the first wave of Dick's Picks releases were heavily scrutinized by the band (primarily Phil Lesh) to the point where they didn't really represent his genuine preferences (not to say he didn't like the shows they released, but my understanding is that a lot of shows would get vetoed before landing on one they would acquiesce to, and often even then they were edited -- partial shows instead of full, pieces of songs edited out, etc.)

Seems that the band has backed off quite a bit in recent years, with Dave having license to more or less release what he likes.

That's interesting. I had no idea that the band had a say in any of the picks. It's funny that the dick picks or maybe their production, or just something about them...they were rarely my choice in what to listen to. In my opinion the shows were not that exciting compared to the other ones I had

"There's a sort of peak optimum, and right now we're at one of those peaks." Jerry Garcia - London 4/72

The extraordinary Dark Star, with its beautiful Mind Left Body Jam is among the very best ever performed from any era. Some of the Dark Stars performed on this tour are are celebrated for their pre-verse explorations. This one is special because of its post-verse thematic jamming. The segue into the gorgeous Sugar Magnolia is beautiful and sublime. In spite of the extraordinary Dark Star, the high point of the show just might be the smoking version of Caution, featuring some blistering Garcia leads, and a bit of slide work as well.

Today's Dark Star (4/8/72) might just be my favorite of all time.

https://archive.org/details/gd1972-04-0 ... eok.flac16

My preferred 2-CD set/playlist from 1969-1972:

101 Bertha (1972-04-14 Copenhagen)
102 Big River (1972-11-17 Wichita)
103 China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider (1972-03-27 Academy Of Music)
104 Loser (1972-04-24 Dusseldorf)
105 St. Stephen > The Eleven (1968-08-24 Shrine Auditorium)
106 Tennessee Jed (1971-12-07 (E) Felt Forum)
107 Cumberland Blues (1971-04-28 Fillmore East)
108 Box Of Rain (1972-11-17 Wichita)
109 Friend Of The Devil (1972-09-27 Jersey City)
110 Deal (1971-11-17 Albuquerque)
111 Sugaree (1972-05-03 Paris)
201 Dark Star (1970-02-13 Fillmore East)
202 Me And My Uncle (1972-05-11 Rotterdam)
203 Jack Straw (1971-12-07 (E) Felt Forum)
204 The Other One (1969-02-27 Fillmore West)
205 Mississippi Half-step Uptown Toodeloo (1972-09-21 Philadelphia)
206 Brokedown Palace (1971-08-06 Hollywood)
207 Casey Jones (1972-08-27 Veneta)

My preferred 2-CD set/playlist from 1969-1972:

101 Bertha (1972-04-14 Copenhagen)
102 Big River (1972-11-17 Wichita)
103 China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider (1972-03-27 Academy Of Music)
104 Loser (1972-04-24 Dusseldorf)
105 St. Stephen > The Eleven (1968-08-24 Shrine Auditorium)
106 Tennessee Jed (1971-12-07 (E) Felt Forum)
107 Cumberland Blues (1971-04-28 Fillmore East)
108 Box Of Rain (1972-11-17 Wichita)
109 Friend Of The Devil (1972-09-27 Jersey City)
110 Deal (1971-11-17 Albuquerque)
111 Sugaree (1972-05-03 Paris)
201 Dark Star (1970-02-13 Fillmore East)
202 Me And My Uncle (1972-05-11 Rotterdam)
203 Jack Straw (1971-12-07 (E) Felt Forum)
204 The Other One (1969-02-27 Fillmore West)
205 Mississippi Half-step Uptown Toodeloo (1972-09-21 Philadelphia)
206 Brokedown Palace (1971-08-06 Hollywood)
207 Casey Jones (1972-08-27 Veneta)

Any shot you can up this n send it to me??

Is this the one on "Steppin' Out?" Extraordinary, if so. The one from Dick's 36 is a favorite too.



I'm not familiar with every one of these versions but in general terms I approve of this list.

The final disc opens with 'Truckin'' which turns out to be not as note-worthy through the verses, followed with a bit of sloppiness afterwards. Considering they've played this every night of the tour, I would have expected some sort of larger fanfare or better synergy. The track quickly dissipates into a Phil-led jam with the balance of the band in tow. Immediately different than most post-'Truckin'' jams up to here, you can sense some real magic is about to unfold, and what happens next is what makes this show so special. Jerry hints at 'The Other One' for a moment, but pulls back….drums and keys disappear…..a simple pattern develops between Jerry, Bobby, and Phil….Billy chimes in very quietly, Keith begins to reintroduce himself as Billy adds more toms to the mix. Popping deep chords, Phil continues to lead the jam….Pig makes himself known on organ, and Jerry cues 'The Other One' for a second time quickly shelving the idea while moving into a new direction. Billy and Keith are excellent here as they add delicate color to what might be considered one of the first full-on Phil/Jerry space jams – as the intensity of the jam elevates, the band jumps in perfectly matching the sinister mood that Garcia and Lesh are portraying. Highs and lows are met ……again, Jerry concedes while playing an almost perfect note for note compliment to Phil who has now taken full ownership of this space. The unusual and welcomed bass rumblings dominate leaving Jer and Keith as the only ones left in the game. Phil digs deep to a monster level and Garcia is along for the ride - scary beautiful. Jerry's brighter tones contrast against Phil's spiraling madness as the notes must have been bouncing off the walls of the tiny venue like crazy. This passage sounds more like something from Summer 1974 – awesome musical foreshadowing. The last few minutes of this spontaneous and incredible burst transcend a 'Dark Star' or an 'Other One' - this is jam personified, and quite possibly the best improvisational piece of the entire Europe '72 tour - amazing and polarizing. I've listened to this section more than any other from the 'Euro Box'. Directly afterwards, we lose Jerry for about four minutes, as the band closes the show with a concise ‘The Other One > Me and My Uncle > The Other One > Not Fade Away > Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad > Not Fade Away’ suite. No encore this night - time to get back on the bus and head back to Copenhagen.