Grateful Dead 'Betty Boards' box set detailed

A series of classic 1978 Grateful Dead live performances is to be released in May.

The 12-CD Grateful Dead July 1978: The Complete Recordings box set captures live shows from a busy month in a year in which the band played more than 80 shows.

It features five previously unreleased gigs from July 1978, including the first official release from the long lost ‘Betty Boards’ – three soundboard recordings from July 1, 3, and 5 that have never been in circulation.

The five shows included in the set are Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, St Paul Civic Center, Omaha Civic Auditorium and two appearances at Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

And on the same day the box set is released on May 13, the Red Rocks set will also be issued in a separate 3CD package and in a digital format.

Grateful Dead archivist and box set producer David Lemieux says: “As an archivist and Dead Head, this box set is about as exciting as it gets.

“Musically, it features five exhilarating, dynamic nights in the summer of 1978. The sound quality is impeccable, as would be expected from Betty Cantor-Jackson’s always-pristine recordings.

“The rarity of the first three nights, and the hall-of-fame pedigree of the last two, makes this one of the most astonishing Grateful Dead releases ever. Collaborating with the owners of these tapes, we are very pleased to see these important historical documents returned home and now shared with the world.”

Grateful Dead Red Rocks 1978 Tracklist

Disc 1

1. Bertha
2. Good Lovin’
3. Dire Wolf
4. El Pas
5. It Must Have Been The Roses
6. New Minglewood Blues
7. Ramble on Rose
8. Promised Land
9. Deal

Disc 2

1. Samson and Delilah
2. Ship of Fools
3. Estimated Prophet
4. The Other One
5. Eyes of the World
6. Rhythm Devils

Disc 3

1. Space
2. Wharf Rat
3. Franklin’s Tower
4. Sugar Magnolia
5. Terrapin Station
6. One More Saturday Night
7. Werewolves of London