Grateful Dead - Europe '72: The Complete Recordings [Limited Edition Box Set] (2011)

Europe '72: The Complete Recordings is a box set of live recordings by the rock band the Grateful Dead. Billed as a "mega box set", it contains all of the band's spring 1972 concert tour of Europe — 22 complete shows,[1][2][3][4][5] on 73 CDs.[6] It was released on September 1, 2011.[7]

All 22 concerts from Europe '72: The Complete Recordings were also produced as individual albums, most of them on three or four CDs. They were released in chronological order, in four batches, from October to December 2011.[4][8][9] Each of the individual album covers features artwork by Scott McDougall, inspired by the front and back cover art that was created by Stanley Mouse and Alton Kelley for the original Europe '72 album.

The CDs for the album were created by remixing the original 16-track analog tapes. The set was mastered in HDCD format. This provides enhanced sound quality when played on CD players with HDCD capability, but is fully compatible with conventional CD players.[11]

The collection was first announced on January 19, 2011 and was described as consisting of "over 60" CDs; the final CD count was 73.[6] Initially, the set was offered only as an exclusive limited edition of 7,200 copies, each of which is encased in a box that looks like a steamer trunk, and includes an illustrated hardcover book and other bonus material. The first 3,000 of these sets are personalized with a name of the buyer's choice.[12] The demand was much greater than anticipated, and all 7,200 sets were sold online within four days. In response to the ongoing demand, subsequent copies of the set were released, dubbed Europe '72: The Complete Recordings — All the Music Edition, which have individual packaging for each concert, with liner notes, but which do not include the steamer trunk case, the book, or the other extras

Four previous live albums were taken from the band's 1972 European tour. Europe '72 was released in 1972 as a triple LP, and later rereleased as double CD, and has vocal tracks that were overdubbed in the recording studio. Hundred Year Hall is a two-disc CD taken from the April 26 concert in Frankfurt. Steppin' Out with the Grateful Dead: England '72 is a four-disc CD of selections from various concerts in England. And Rockin' the Rhein with the Grateful Dead, on three discs, contains the complete concert from April 24 in Düsseldorf.[14]

In addition, a new collection, Europe '72 Volume 2, released in September 2011, features two CDs of performances culled from the Complete Recordings. None of the songs on this album were also included in Europe '72.