It's Great to Be Alive! Release Date 10/30/2015

[LagoonField]

How many 3DD'ers can you count?

I am pretty sure I see myself--go straight out from Cooley and (*I think*) that's me at the right edge of the photo. Then again, it could be Bovine Knievel, hard to tell

LeBRod is standing out big time upfront, right there along with Bill, Cooley Girl, Uncle Rickey

Katie Eightyfive is the girl two rows back from Rod. John and Lorna from Scotland are to her left

I spy both Cactus Ken and LagoonField (arms raised) side by side, sporting classic DBT ball caps right in the middle of the picture. It may be good to have photo evidence that we were in the house for the legendary Drive By Truckers recording of "It's Great to Be Alive." Our memories may fade and blur as the years, alcohol, and DBT shows add up.

[Clams]

Our memories may fade and blur as the years, alcohol, and DBT shows add up.

Ain't that the truth

[one belt loop]

Any retailer with an electronic POS should be reporting to Neilsen/SoundScan. The ones that don't are the small mom and pop record shops that don't use barcodes at all and just use a calculator.

I can only go off what I know from the book business. Any store that scans merchandise can report to Bookscan, but not all do. Neilsen claims to count about 75% of the US book trade, and that percentage hasn't changed, to my knowledge, in at least 10 years. (Bookscan came into being in 2001.). Publishers' direct sales to the consumer are not counted. It's hard for me to imagine that Soundscan would run differently, but it certainly is possible.

[Zip City]

Don't they sometimes base "sales" on retailers orders from the distributor (vs. actual units being individually sold?)

[Flea]

Our memories may fade and blur as the years, alcohol, and DBT shows add up.

Ain't that the truth

Sometimes they fade as soon as the next morning.

[brett27295]

Sometimes they fade as soon as the next morning.

Let's test that theory...do you remember being at the NorVa last week? I saw you walk out and I'm not sure you do

[Flea]

Sometimes they fade as soon as the next morning.

Let's test that theory...do you remember being at the NorVa last week? I saw you walk out and I'm not sure you do

I absolutely remember being there. Up to the point where UR roofied me.

[ramonz]

Sometimes they fade as soon as the next morning.

Let's test that theory...do you remember being at the NorVa last week? I saw you walk out and I'm not sure you do

I absolutely remember being there. Up to the point where UR roofied me.

Reviewing my hilarious post-show text trail w/ Flea. Classic!

[beantownbubba]

Don't they sometimes base "sales" on retailers orders from the distributor (vs. actual units being individually sold?)

That was a central element of the old system but I believe it's been scrapped in favor of Soundscan and other more precise and less manipulable methods.

[Clams]

Shouldn't the record really be called "It's Fucking Great to Be Alive"?

I wonder if they kicked that around and rejected it for the safer title without the F-word.

[Eyes Above It]

Anyone listen to Birthday Boy yet? Hopefully its just an MP3 thing but the sound quality is less than overwhelming.

[Swamp]

Shouldn't the record really be called "It's Fucking Great to Be Alive"?

SSoA

[ilockyer]

After a long fight, Amazon now pays state taxes here (at least they charge me for them) so I would think foreign countries could enforce the same, though the VAT would surely complicate things.

More thinking about all the profits from the UK ending up in tax havens so they don't pay any corporation tax.

Yeah, I've not ordered anything from Amazon in over 2 years now for that very reason. Tax avoidance is one thing but they treat their workers pretty shoddily too.

Going to order from my local indie store, one nice deluxe box set. Just gonna need some time off to listen to it all!

[Kevidently]

Very excited. And $60 is a steal for this.

Someone talk me out of pre-ordering. I always do, and I'm always disappointed. But I've got the fever! Can't...help...myself...

Over $7 shipping and you have to pay tax as well. And you'll get it 3 months after release date. Take a deep breath, and wait for it to show up on amazon, or your local store.

I'm planning on pre-ordering on Amazon - it doesn't seem to be up yet. And if you get the deluxe vinyl, the CDs come with it?

[one belt loop]

Don't they sometimes base "sales" on retailers orders from the distributor (vs. actual units being individually sold?)

Not in books. Can't speak for music. Bookscan numbers are sales through the register.

[brett27295]

I'm planning on pre-ordering on Amazon - it doesn't seem to be up yet. And if you get the deluxe vinyl, the CDs come with it?

Yes

[Kevidently]

I'm planning on pre-ordering on Amazon - it doesn't seem to be up yet. And if you get the deluxe vinyl, the CDs come with it?

Yes

Oh man. Thanks. Now: do I order from the DBT website or wait for Amazon...

[Duke Silver]

Amazon if you want it on release day for minimal (if any) shipping, DBT site if you don't mind paying through the nose for shipping and getting it 2-3 weeks late.

[Zip City]

Mp3's for the win

[Iowan]

Mp3's for the win

Purist heads are exploding.

I'm glad I buy my stuff through Amazon. The next pre-order that gets people shit on time will be the first.

[LBRod]

Mp3's for the win

Purist heads are exploding.

I'm glad I buy my stuff through Amazon. The next pre-order that gets people shit on time will be the first.

My last pre order was from amazon and was about 5 days late, and a few weeks later that fact matters not a bit.
What is a week when you will have the rest of your life to enjoy the music?

[Zip City]

Mp3's for the win

Purist heads are exploding.

Ok

I don't buy physical media. I have no interest in vinyl and CD's are passe

[Tequila Cowboy]

Mp3's for the win

Purist heads are exploding.

Ok

I don't buy physical media. I have no interest in vinyl and CD's are passe

Serious question; when you really want to listen and analyze what you're listening to what do you do? Some albums are released in FLAC which is CD quality but most aren't. When I really want to dig deep into a record and I can't listen to vinyl, and I'm without quality speakers right now, I listen to CD's which aren't bad if the production isn't too compressed (Pretty much ever THS album I'm looking at you). A lot of times I might have listened to an Mp3 of an album 20 times and when I listen on vinyl, or sometimes CD, I hear parts I had never heard before.

[Zip City]

I listen to mp3's. Don't know what to tell you. I almost never listen to music at home (90% of my listening is while driving or while at work). Home is filled with too many other things that occupy my time.

[Tequila Cowboy]

I listen to mp3's. Don't know what to tell you. I almost never listen to music at home (90% of my listening is while driving or while at work). Home is filled with too many other things that occupy my time.

I get it, I have tine constraints too and a lot of my listening is digital but there's nothing like high quality sound. Sometimes for music I really like nothing else will do.

[Zip City]

I listen to mp3's. Don't know what to tell you. I almost never listen to music at home (90% of my listening is while driving or while at work). Home is filled with too many other things that occupy my time.

I get it, I have tine constraints too and a lot of my listening is digital but there's nothing like high quality sound. Sometimes for music I really like nothing else will do.

Don't doubt it. Still, vinyl, sound system, etc. is not a hobby I can afford nor have interest in

[jh13]

I listen to mp3's. Don't know what to tell you. I almost never listen to music at home (90% of my listening is while driving or while at work). Home is filled with too many other things that occupy my time.

I get it, I have tine constraints too and a lot of my listening is digital but there's nothing like high quality sound. Sometimes for music I really like nothing else will do.

Don't doubt it. Still, vinyl, sound system, etc. is not a hobby I can afford nor have interest in

#TeamMP34Life

I collect vinyl copies of the handful of albums I deem all-timers, but rarely listen to it. Mostly, they're just displayed around the house. It's just so much more convenient to keep everything on my iPod and listen through a nice Bose Sound Dock or stream it through my Apple TV to my home theater. A few years back I re-ripped my thousands of cd's as Apple Lossless and ditched them. These days I'll buy FLAC or Apple Lossless if it's an option, otherwise I'm perfectly happy with iTunes or Amazon quality mp3's. Keeping this semi on-topic, as someone who buys a lot of digital music, $14.99 for this set from DBT's site is a steal.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

This is ground that's been well covered here in the past but maybe it's a generational thing. Having grown up during the age of reel-to-reel, cassettes, 8-tracks and vinyl, the packaging is as essential to me as the music. Personally, I'm glad the Truckers take such stock in it as well. Perhaps the current popularity of vinyl will prove to be a fad and will eventually pass but in the meantime, some folks are learning that the listening experience can be a total immersion process. I know it was (and continues to be) for me. A huge part of the ritual with buying a new record was sitting down with the album art as soon as you got home while you gave the record its first spin. However, when it comes to the various ways I digest music, I don't discriminate. While I may not be a huge downloader, I do listen to mp3's both at home and on the go. I also listen to cassettes (though very rarely), vinyl and compact discs.

[jimmyjack]

Have never purchased / will never purchase an MP3. As Kudzu says, and I agree, an album is an immersive experience, and the MP3 is only finishing the job punk rock started in annihilating the sort of attention span that once upon a time actually allowed teenagers to listen to sidelong suites of music - sometimes even more than once! The rewards, to me, don't even compare. I have an iPod, but unless I'm getting on a plane, I don't even charge the damn thing. I'm certainly not criticizing the listening habits of anyone here, and I definitely think it can be advantageous to adapt to new technologies, but I just find MP3s to be such a superficial and unexciting way to interface with music.

If my all time favorite bands, in the future, end up only releasing digital product, I will say goodbye to those bands. Modern life is full of enough ones and zeros as it is.

Sorry to continue the derail.

Does Amazon have this up for pre-order yet??

[bovine knievel]

You can't roll a joint on a MP3.