Dick's Picks Vol. 18-Dane County Coliseum, Madison, WI 2/3/78 Uni-Dome, University of N. Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 2/5/78 (3-CD Set)

Grateful Dead fans are by a nature an enthusiastic lot, but their reactions to the original release back in 2000 of this Dick s Pick, the first to feature music from a 1978 show, were ecstatic even by their standards, with some long-time Deadheads labeling it the best concert in their collection (and that designation included both official and unofficial recordings)! Sparking the critical hosannas was the truly revelatory Scarlet Begonias / Fire on the Mountain pairing from the Cedar Falls show (this 3-CD set actually contains excerpts from three shows: the 2/3/78 Madison show, an uncredited 2/4/78 Milwaukee show and the 2/5/78 Cedar Falls date), but The Other One from Cedar Rapids is easily one of the most intense versions extant, and the Estimated Prophet / Eyes of the World / Playing in the Band / The Wheel / Playing in the Band medley from Madison presents the band at their seamless, exploratory best. Out of print for years and a good place to start for the newly initiated.