2-CD/1-DVD Collection Rocking The Cradle: Egypt 1978 Celebrates The 30th Anniversary of the Band’s Historic Concerts at Giza With Previously Unreleased Audio and Video
Fans Who Pre-Order on Dead.net Will Receive an Exclusive Bonus Disc Containing Additional Egypt Performances
Available September 30 from Grateful Dead Productions and Rhino
I thought Conventional Wisdom said these shows were pretty awful. Seem to remember Phil saying so in his book, even.
I think it’s a baffling choice from an aesthetic stanpoint, but understandable due to the shows being multitracked.
I pulled out my cassettes of the 16th that I got a long while ago to give them another listen, and they’re still pretty underwhelming. The Fire and the Shakedown are pretty good, but overall it’s pretty sluggish. Haven’t checked out the 14th yet, and don’t have the 15th, so I can’t say if there’s anything else in there worth spending time on.
I’m intersted to see the dvd footage and will probably get this, although I doubt I’ll pre-order for a bonus disc of more the of the same stuff.
I hope these performances aren’t being released just to fund retirements.
These performances were recorded anticipating production of a live album documenting the trip. Numerous sources cite Jerry’s refusal to ever consider releasing them due to poor quality audio and video, lackluster musicianship by all, especially Keith’s bad timing and out of tune keyboards, etc. The band ended up eating the entire $400,000 cost of the trip. All the band members, except Jerry, were beginning to live like millionaires and Jerry was the only one earning significant income from other sources. They were still pissed off he spent so much money on the Grateful Dead Movie and this pissed them off even more.
Hopefully advanced digital technology, modern editing techniques and remastering will result in a quality release, but I’ll wait for some positive feedback before shelling out for them.