Grateful Dead Details Massive ‘Friend Of The Devils: April 1978’ Box Set Featuring 8 Unreleased Shows

Complete recordings of eight previously unreleased Grateful Dead concerts from April 1978 make up a newly announced 19CD box set. Friend Of The Devils: April 1978 will be available via Rhino on September 20.

Originally recorded by former Grateful Dead sound engineer Betty Cantor-Jackson, Friend Of The Devils: April 1978 was remastered by Jeffrey Norman who utilized the Plangent Processes for tape restoration and speed correction.

Included in the box set are complete recordings of eight of the Grateful Dead’s 1978 concerts beginning with three shows in Florida on April 6 at Curtis Hixon Convention Hall in Tampa, followed by April 7 at the Sportatorium in Pembroke Pines and April 8 at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Jacksonville.

The box set also includes recordings of the Grateful Dead’s concerts at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre on April 10 and April 11, the April 12 show at Duke University’s Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina, the April 14 show at Virginia Polytechnic Institute’s Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia and the April 16 show at the Huntington Civic Center in Huntington, West Virginia.

“These eight shows tell the story of a band that was engaged, inspired, and focused on bringing their A-game every single night,” Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux said. “If there was ever a tour on which the Dead deliver every single moment, it’s this one.”

The April 1978 run of shows was notable for introducing the second set “Drums” and “Space” sequence. Initially called “Rhythm Devils” by drummer Mickey Hart, the nightly excursion with fellow drummer Bill Kreutzmann persisted through the rest of the band’s career. The April 12 “Drums” at Duke University’s Cameron Indoor Stadium was particularly noteworthy. Author and JamBase contributor Steve Silberman wrote about that “Drums” in his liner notes accompanying the box set:

“[It] began with Billy thrashing on his kit and using his elbow to change its pitch, making it sound like a talking drum. Mickey, equally engaged, was wearing a Jerry T-shirt. Then the road crew joined the party. What’s that? Steve Parish is playing a cowbell! Finally, the big man himself comes out, strokes his beard, sits down, maybe takes a puff or a toke, and picks up a pair of sticks. Mother of God, Garcia is playing steel drums – and loving it!”

Limited to 10,000 individually numbered copies, the 19CD Friend Of The Devils: April 1978 box set is available to pre-order via Dead.net. The April 12, 1978 Grateful Dead concert at Duke University will be released separately in 3CD, 4LP, and digital formats.

Listen to “U.S. Blues” from the April 12 concert and hear David Lemieux discuss the pending box set below: