9 best dicks picks

"Dick's Picks" is a series of live concert recordings by the Grateful Dead, a legendary American rock band known for their improvisational and psychedelic music. These recordings are highly regarded among fans and collectors and are related to the Classic Rock genre, typically released in CD and vinyl formats. Here are some key details about "Dick's Picks":

  1. Origin:

    • "Dick's Picks" gets its name from Dick Latvala, the band's tape archivist and a dedicated Grateful Dead fan. He curated and produced this series of live recordings.

  2. Live Performances:

    • Each installment in the "Dick's Picks" series captures a specific live performance by the Grateful Dead. These concerts were recorded during various periods of the band's extensive touring history.

  3. Diversity of Music:

    • The series covers a wide range of the Grateful Dead's live repertoire, featuring both well-known classics and more obscure tracks.This diversity allows fans to explore the band's evolving sound over the years.

  4. Sound Quality:

    • Efforts were made to ensure high-quality audio recordings, making "Dick's Picks" a valuable resource for fans seeking authentic and well-recorded live Grateful Dead performances.

  5. Limited Edition:

    • Many of the "Dick's Picks" releases are limited editions, which adds to their collectible appeal. These limited runs make the recordings sought-after items for Grateful Dead enthusiasts.

  6. Historical Significance:

    • The series is seen as an important archive of the Grateful Dead's live shows and their improvisational prowess. It offers fans a glimpse into the band's live experience and the unique energy of their performances.

  7. Album Artwork:

    • Each "Dick's Picks" release typically features distinctive artwork, often with a tie-dye aesthetic or psychedelic imagery, reflecting the band's iconic visual style.

  8. Legacy:

    • "Dick's Picks" has left a lasting legacy and is considered an essential part of the Grateful Dead's discography. It continues to be celebrated by both die-hard fans and music collectors.

In summary, "Dick's Picks" is a celebrated series of live concert recordings by the Grateful Dead, offering fans and collectors the opportunity to experience the band's performances and explore their musical evolution. These recordings are an important part of the Classic Rock genre and continue to be cherished by fans of the band and live music enthusiasts.

Below you can find our editor's choice of the best dicks picks on the market
  

Dick's Picks Vol. 29: 5/19/77 (Fox Theater, Atlanta, GA) & 5/21/77 (Lakeland Civic Center Arena, Lakeland, FL)

The Mountain

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Product description

GRATEFUL DEAD: Dick's Picks Vol. 29 5/19/77 Fox Theatre Atlanta, GA 5/21/77 Lakeland Civic Center Arena Lakeland, FL (6-CD Set):



Start talking tours to any Deadhead you know and just say "Spring '77" chances are a big smile will steal across his or her face. That's because of all the road trips in the Dead's long history, arguably the one that saw the most consistently high level of playing was the Spring '77 tour the band undertook in support of its forthcoming Terrapin Station album. And that's why, out of the 36 volumes in the Dick's Picks series, only one, this one, is a 6-CD set (there isn't even a 5-CD set)! Inside are two complete shows minus one encore (from the Florida show), plus some equally fantastic, unlisted bonus tracks from a 10/11/77 show in Norman,Oklahoma, all impeccably recorded by Betty Cantor-Jackson. Highest among the many highlights from the Fox Theatre show are the version of Sugaree and the incredible segue from Playing in the Band to Uncle John's Band (also don't miss the unbilled, primal version of Not Fade Away). But the Lakeland show just may take the cake two medleys, a breathtaking Scarlet Begonias/Fire on the Mountain and a jaw-dropping Estimated Prophet/He's Gone/Drums/The Other One/Comes a Time/St. Stephen/Not Fade Away/St. Stephen/One More Saturday Night, are the icing. Comes with original slipcased packaging never before available in stores!

Dick's Picks Vol. 36-The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA 9/21/72 (4-CD Set)

Real Gone Music

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Product description

This 1972 performance comes with a very good pedigree, as Dick Latvala had this show on his short list of candidates for the very first release in his Dick's Picks series! Includes the complete Philadelphia concert (check out the Dark Star/Morning Dew transition) plus some bonuses from a 9/3/72 show at Folsom Field in Boulder, CO. This four-CD show (mastered in HDCD) is now available at retail for the first time!

Songs include DISC ONE (Set One): Promised Land; Bird Song; El Paso; China Cat Sunflower/I Know You Rider; Black-Throated Wind; Big Railroad Blues; Jack Straw; Loser; Big River DISC TWO (Set One Cont.): Ramble On Rose; Cumberland Blues; Playing in the Band (Set Two): He s Gone/Truckin ; Black Peter; Mexicali Blues DISC THREE (Set Two Cont.): Dark Star/Morning Dew; Beat It On down the Line; Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo; Sugar Magnolia; Friend of the Devil DISC FOUR (Set Two Cont.): Not Fade Away/Goin' down the Road Feeling Bad/Not Fade Away; One More Saturday Night BONUS TRACKS: He's Gone/The Other One/Wharf Rat

Dick's Picks Vol. 25-May 10, 1978 New Haven May 11, 1978 Springfield, MA (4-CD Set)

Real Gone Music

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This pair of Grateful Dead shows, taken from an extended East Coast run in the Spring of 1978, not only were among the best of the year, but with the loving touch of Bear and Betty Cantor-Jackson at the controls rank as one of the most beautifully recorded entries in the Dick's Picks series. Both concerts which appear here minus just two and three songs, respectively find the group in exceptionally lyrical form on ballads like "Loser," "Stella Blue," "Looks Like Rain" and "They Love Each Other." Also not to be missed is a superlative, slowed-down version of "Friend of the Devil" and the rare performance of Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" as an encore (the band only played it about a dozen times live). Full of diamonds for Deadheads.

Dicks Picks Vol. 36 - The Spectrum, Philadelphia PA 9/21/72

Real Gone Music

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Dick's Picks 26: Electric Theater Chicago, IL 4/26/69 / Labor Temple Minneapolis, MN 4/27/69

Real Gone Music

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Recorded but a few months after the shows that formed Live Dead, and featuring a spellbinding version of the Dark Star/St. Stephen/The Eleven medley that was that album's centerpiece, this Dick's Picks stands as a worthy counterpoint to what is one of the greatest live albums in rock 'n' roll history. Add in the fact it also captures the band working on material for the forthcoming album Aoxomoxoa including an incredible version of Mountains of the Moon and serves up a real live Dead rarity with Pigpen's rendition of Jimmy Reed's I Know It's a Sin, and it's little wonder that copies of this long out-of-print 2-CD set trade for astronomical sums. Disc one presents excerpts from the Chicago show, leading off with four straight songs from Aoxomoxoa before diving deep into an epic Cryptical Envelopment/The Other One and concluding with the first three songs from the Minneapolis show, which appears here in its entirety. Disc two features the aforementioned Dark Star/St. Stephen/The Eleven medley and winds up with the always stirring Morning Dew. Never before available at music retail!

Dick's Picks Vol. 22—Kings Beach Bowl, Kings Beach Lake Tahoe, CA 2/23-2/24/68

Real Gone Music

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Product description

elatively few concert recordings exist of the Dead at this early stage of their career, which is reason enough to add this Pick to your collection, but when you consider that these two nights of shows include the ENTIRE set of songs from the as-yet-unreleased album Anthem of the Sun (with several of the tunes appearing in an incredible, never to be duplicated medley of "Alligator" /"China Cat Sunflower" /"The Eleven"/"Caution"/"Feedback") and an early version of the classic "Dark Star" medley (with "China Cat Sunflower" replacing "St. Stephen" as the song between "Dark Star" and "The Eleven"), Vol. 22 rises into the indispensable category. A 19-minute "Viola Lee Blues" just adds to the appeal for those who favor the raw, bluesy, experimental edition of the group this 2-CD set skewers those Dead detractors who dismiss the band as purveyors of pretty hippie music (and if it's pretty hippie music you're after, you've been warned!). Out of print for years, finally available at retail again.

Dick's Picks Vol. 17-Boston Garden 9/25/91 (3-CD Set)

Real Gone Music

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This Pick was, at the time it was released, chronologically the latest live show in the Grateful Dead discography, and it s still the second latest concert to be officially released in their vast library. And it chronicles a very special period in Dead history, when Bruce Hornsby sat in with the band to form, along with former Tube Vince Welnick, a formidable, two-pronged keyboard attack. This particular volume culled from a complete 9/25/91 show at the Boston Garden (a consistently good stadium venue for the band) and a bonus half hour from a 3/31/91 show in Greensboro, NC is also notable for including the first-ever performance of Paul McCartney s That Would Be Something and the first-ever appearance of Dylan s The Mighty Quinn on a Dead album. Add to that the stunning, 23-minute version of Eyes of the World that caps off the third disc and Dick s Picks Vol. 17 is a exemplary document of late-period Dead. Out of print for years!

Dick's Picks Vol. 20-Capital Centre, Landover, MD 9/25/76 Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse, NY 9/28/76 (4-CD Set)

Real Gone Music

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At a mere two songs short of two complete shows and those two songs, Bertha and It s All Over Now, were played at both shows, so they appear on the set at least once Dick s Picks Vol. 20 is one of the more jam-packed (or is that packed with jams?) entries in the series. But this volume has a lot more going for it than just five hours-plus of music 1976 marked the return of the band to the road after a 20-month hiatus with Mickey Hart back in tow for the first time in five years, and it is a newly rejuvenated outfit we hear playing a mix of the new (Lazy Lightnin , Supplication) and old (St. Stephen and the rare Cosmic Charlie, which appears on the Landover show s set list for the last time ever). Perhaps the most sublime moment is the transition from Comes a Time to Eyes of the World (and then to the out-of-nowhere Orange Tango Jam) during the second set of the Syracuse show, but both shows are full of sparkling performances propelled by the newly reunited Rhythm Devils. Another keeper from the vaults.

Dave's Picks, Volume 37: College of William & Mary, Williamsburg VA 4/15/78

Dead.net/Rhino

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Another fine late 70's appearance here from the legendary Betty Tapes of once thought to be lost performance recordings. Fine versions of Frend of the Devil and Morning Dew topline a stellar set spread over two discs. A third disc adds music from a gig in Pittsburgh that followed the Williamsburg show. Limited edition, numbered.

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