That Grateful Dead tour in the spring of 1978

The 1978 Spring Tour of the Grateful Dead is being commemorated with a series of releases. “Friend Of The Devils: April 1978,” a 19-CD box set, is available exclusively from Dead.net. The pressing is limited to 10,000 individually numbered copies and features eight previously unreleased concerts. Additionally, a concert from April 12, 1978 at Duke University is available on 3 CDs or 4 LPs.

Here’s what the press release says: “The Grateful Dead’s 1978 spring tour was more than just a post-hiatus highlight, it forever redefined the band’s concert experience. Betty Cantor-Jackson recorded these shows, which engineer Jeffrey Norman mastered. The deluxe release also includes a 48-page book with original liner notes by author Steve Silberman and photos by James Anderson, Bob Minkin and more.”

Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux said: “These eight shows tell the story of a band that was committed, inspired and focused on giving it their all every single night… If ever there was a tour where the Dead gave it their all every single moment, this is it.”

“Friend Of The Devils: April 1978” includes complete concerts at Curtis Hixon Convention Hall, Tampa, FL (4/6/78); Sportatorium, Pembroke Pines, FL (4/7/78); Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Jacksonville, FL (8/4/78); Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA (10/4/78 & 11/4/78); Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke University, Durham, NC (12/4/78); Cassell Coliseum, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg, VA (4/14/78); and Huntington Civic Center, Huntington, WV (4/16/78).

Dubbed ‘Rhythm Devils’ by Mickey Hart, the “Drums” segments of the 1978 spring tour were one-off events. Band members and crew would join Hart and Billy Kreutzmann on stage for extended rhythmic explorations that often lasted more than 15 minutes. On “Friend Of The Devils: April 1978,” the “Drums” and “Space” combination emerged as a permanent part of the Dead’s concerts that would continue for the next 17 years.

The Duke University performance of “Drums” was particularly intense, lasting over 20 minutes. In the liner notes, Steve Silberman describes it this way: “It started with Billy banging on his kit, using his elbow to change the pitch, making it sound like a talking drum. Mickey, equally into it, was wearing a Jerry T-shirt. Then the crew joins the party. What is that? Steve Parish plays a cowbell! Finally, the big man himself comes out, strokes his beard, sits down, takes a drag, and grabs a pair of drumsticks. God damn, Garcia plays steel drums, and he loves it!”