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Grateful Dead to Release Spring 1990 Box Set

Continuing with the celebration of what would have been Jerry Garcia’s 70th birthday, Dead.net has just announced the release a new box set focusing on the Dead’s Spring 1990 tour. Titled Grateful Dead: Spring 1990, the box set offers six complete shows from the spring ’90 tour, selected by Dead achivist David Lemieux. The recordings were made by longtime Grateful Dead recordist and producer John Cutler and mastered by Jeffrey Norman in HDCD.

Featured in the set are the shows from March 16 at the Capitol Center in Landover, MD; March 19 at the Hartford Civic Center; March 22 at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario; March 26 at Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, NY; March 30 1990 at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, NY; and April 2 from The Omni in Atlanta, GA.

Lemieux, who attended the first 10 shows on the tour, states, “To my ears this was the last tour that was consistently great, where every show is excellent, not a dud in the bunch.” In addition, Dennis McNally offers a comprehensive and informative insider’s essay in the box titled “The Last Great Dead Tour.”

Besides the discs themselves, Grateful Dead: Spring 1990 also includes a 60-page hardcover book containing copious color photos by Jim Anderson and Michael Laurentus, unique artwork by Brooklyn-based fine artist Wes Lang, fascinating business letters and communications related to the tour, a detailed historical essay by Dennis McNally, a Producer’s Note by David Lemieux and individual show descriptions by Blair Jackson; a reproduction of the Dead’s 1990 tour program (printed and sold later in ’90, for the fall and Europe ’90 tours); tickets and backstage passes of all six shows; a band publicity photo from 1990 by Ken Friedman; Dennis McNally’s tour laminate; and reproductions of the colored 8×10 sheets GDTS sent out with hotel, food and other information for each city on the tour.

The box is limited to just 9,000 numbered copies and will ship out August 31. Also, a smaller release from this period Spring 1990: So Glad You Made It, a 2-CD set featuring a handful of favorites, will be released on September 18.