In celebration of the 25th anniversary of this ultimate sonic convergence, The Closing Of Winterland is available as both a four-disc CD collection and a separate double-DVD set. The audio discs capture every note that the Grateful Dead played, direct from the original 24-track analog tapes, while the DVDs expand significantly the contents with a virtual time capsule of video captured by local San Francisco public television station, KQED.

While the main event centers on the Grateful Dead's four-plus hours on stage — which the DVDs present in Dolby? and DTS? 5.1 surround sound mixes, as well as in a standard 2.0 stereo mix — there are substantial supplementary materials as well. These include the half-hour long Winterland: A Million Memories documentary, examining the Grateful Dead, their audience, and the unrivalled relationship that both shared with Winterland. Plus, interviews with Bill Graham as he feverishly prepares for the festivities, words with author, Merry Prankster, and long time Deadhead Ken Kesey, and an interview with bandmembers Mickey Hart (percussion) and Bob Weir (guitar/vocals) during a "pause for the cause" between the first and second sets.

Not enough? The DVDs also include footage of the Blues Brothers performing "Soul Man" and "B Movie," a video/still photo montage of the NRPS doing "Glendale Train", and the "Making Of The DVD" featurette that examines the technical aspect of preparing this epic project. Keen consumers can also take advantage of alternate camera angles during the Dead's performances of "Wharf Rat," "St. Stephen," and "Good Lovin'."

It is with extreme pride and pleasure that CrutchfieldAdvisor goes behind the scenes with the creative team that made the DVD release of The Closing Of Winterland possible. First up is an in-depth conversation with Jeffrey Norman, the Grateful Dead's long time archival audio engineer. This will be followed with the publication next week of our interview with David Lemieux, the video producer of the project.

Jeffrey Norman.

Before becoming every Deadhead's best friend, Norman was a staff engineer for Wally Heider's Filmways Recording studios in San Francisco between 1976 and 1980. His luminous work at The Plant Studios in the early 1980s yielded highly regarded sessions with Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band, Carlos Santana, the Rubinoos, former 13th Floor Elevator's leader Roky Erickson and his group the Aliens, Metallica, and Jessie Colin Young. By 1984, Norman had garnered a well-deserved reputation as one of the Bay Area's pre-eminent studio engineers and worked with John Fogerty, Huey Lewis & the News, and Bruce Hornsby. After years of freelance work, he joined the Grateful Dead's studio staff in 1994. We sat down with Norman at the Grateful Dead's studio on November 18th, which just so happens to be the release date for both the four-CD as well as the two-DVD incarnations of The Closing Of Winterland.