Grateful Dead: Spring 1990 Box Set

THE ESSENTIAL SPRING 1990 EXPERIENCE

Dead.net announced plans to release Grateful Dead: Spring 1990 – a new box set showcasing six complete shows from the spring ’90 tour, one concert from each city the band played, personally selected by Dead vaultmeister and archival release producer David Lemieux. The sizzling six are: 3/16/90 Capital Centre (Landover , MD), 3/19/90 Hartford Civic Center, 3/22/90 Copps Coliseum (Hamilton, Ontario), 3/26/90 Knickerbocker Arena (Albany, NY), 3/30/90 Nassau Coliseum (Uniondale, NY) and 4/2/90 The Omni (Atlanta, GA).

In his “Producer’s Note” in the book that is part of the box, 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.” Grateful Dead historian Dennis McNally‘s comprehensive insider’s essay in the box is titled “The Last Great Dead Tour.”

In addition to the shows themselves, the new box set will also include 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.

This box is limited to just 9,000 numbered copies and is due to ship out on August 31. This is the only time these shows will ever be officially available on CD. There will not be an All Music Edition and single shows will not be available physically.

Spring 1990: So Glad You Made It, a 2-CD set featuring a handful of favorites, will also be in stores on September 18. You can also pre-order it here.