Grateful Dead* – Steal Your Face

No reviews on this? Is it better than the pretty awful original recording?

Fantastic fucking record!! Jerry’s guitar cuts like a knife. Nice separation and dynamics to me. Beautiful high gloss 1976 version spinning right now. I’m happy!

I own every Grateful Dead record on vinyl from 1967’s self-titled through 1991’s Built to Last, except for Steal Your Face. I saw them play Black Throated Wind at the Capital Center in 1989.

Purchased/Played new in 10/2020:
The vinyl itself is fairly quiet, flat, minor surface distortion noise... but the mastering or maybe the recording or pressing quality seem awful.

Something is off. Actually thought it might be my ears but a quick A/B with another live Dead release makes it clear - sonically, this is very lo-fi. Same result on a subsequent night of listening. It has an in/out of muffled sound, vocals occasionally come into sharp focus (Weir's mic sounds harsh at times) then back to muffled, and instruments are undefined, compressed. It's unengaging to me. Too bad. I believe these songs are from the same sets as The Grateful Dead Movie, and the tracks on the DVD are far superior in sound quality.

The gatefold jacket is a good sturdy printed boardstock (best part, lol), rich color front, and good photos inside panels, and nice poly-paper sleeves.

Best U.S. Blues and Ship of Fools and possibly one of the best 'Promised Land'

My version has so much static. Even after cleaning and brushing. Is that an issue with this recording?

Although heads at the time mockingly called this 'Steal Your Money', over time this is a good record and is worthy of your collection. Digitizing to even the volume of the sides, which are inconsistent, improves the overall listen. The sound quality will never be their best on this, as its a hodgepodge of board recordings done circa 1974, but the song selection is great and the playing is excellent, and Jerry's songs shine of course.