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Rating: 
Summary: Scholarly, with plenty of heart.
Review: A really fine history book combines the elements of research, perspective and heart. With that in mind, the Taping Compendium (both Vols. 1 and 2) qualify as fine history. Although the ostensible reason behind the book is a review of Dead tapes, it's more of a diary of a rock band. Getz and Dwork are both scholarly and honest--telling us when they were good, and when they weren't very good. It's well worth reading, even if you aren't a Deadhead. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Rating: 
Summary: Not bad if used properly
Review: As someone who wrote reviews for this (and the forthcoming) volume, I certainly enjoy the book. The criticisms of "a reader" above are certainly valid, which is why this book should not be billed or used as a reference book. Without question, there are many errors, but I use the book primarily as an enjoyable way to check out other people's opinions of shows I attended or have on tape. For that, it's unsurpassed.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not great
Review: I agree with the reader from Australia - there is a great deal of baloney in this book. Being an old head from the years within volume II I guess I am a little surprised at the flaws. Here are my nitpicks. First, the 77 Spring Tour is shown as being (rightly) possibly the best ever, but the majority of the reviews are based on younger heads' impressions of the tapes, not on people who may have actually been there. In particular, we have to endure yet another canonization of the highly overrated Cornell show (which the book fails to mention is consistently rated so high because during the crucial "In The Dark" years the tape was as widely available as patchouli oil at any Dead gathering). Yet the following night, Buffalo, is given but a paragraph (albeit a good review) while it remains one of the better performances of the entire year. Secondly, much of the Weir-bashing previously mentioned seems to float along unedited, while Garcia's heavy heroin years are treated almost as a musical inspiration in some parts. (Read the section from 1979 and the stuff about partaking in the Persian delights... uh huh.) Thirdly, I simply cannot appreciate the endless comparisons to other shows on the same tour (i.e., "they were better this night than the night before"). I have strongly resisted comparative show reviews. Simply put, it's nearly impossible to compare the quality of performances across several shows instead of taking them in isolation and commenting on their positives and negatives, and here it seems like an easy way out for some of the reviewers who, having nothing to go on but a tape, can seemingly do nothing but say "this Estimated is good, but it's not better than such-and-such a show or such-and-such a tour." Reviews like these are what I guess we have come to now that the music is all we have left: this book is by the people who sat there at shows with their pads of paper, heard the first notes of "Terrapin", wrote "TER" on their pad and ran to the restroom waiting for the next song to start. I always preferred to let the music do the talking.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute must for tapeheads
Review: If you enjoy collecting Dead tapes, don't go another day without this one. Wondering if you should pick up 11/29/80? If you owned this book you would know that the answer is a definite..YES!
Rating:
Summary: They've done it again!
Review: Michael Goetz and company have done it again! This book has more in-depth, historical interviews with tapers from the Deadhead community, more information on soundboard releases, and another batch of incredible photos from people's collections. Sure, there are some errors in song titles and some missing shows, but there are a number of fine reviews by a number of contributors. If you enjoyed Volume I and enjoy Deadbase, go get Volume II of The Compendium as well. You'll be glad you did...I am!
Rating:
Summary: Serious flaws marr this book's usefulness
Review: One would like not to be a spoilsport where the Deadhead's Taping Compendium is concerned. After all, the work put into it is simply amazing; and I enjoy reading show and tape reviews as much as anyone. However, any serious Deadhead will find several flaws that spoil the book's usefulness. Firstly is the severe lack of subediting the second volume seems to have received. One can put up with an 'It's All Over Now, Baby Blue' instead of 'It's All Over Now' (a completely different song) in one setlist or even a few. It's listed here in just about every setlist -- even in the 'hot versions' section at the back of the book. Another example: in a review of a Letterman appearance in 1982, the Dead were apparently pushing 'the forthcoming' Go To Heaven LP -- which was released two years earlier. These are just two examples of hundreds and they spoil my enjoyment and trust of the book. Secondly, the standard of reviews swings wildly. Some of the reviewers (Bob Clinton, Adrian Pide) are simply inept and should not have been published. Others, like John Dwork himself, I admire; I almost always agree with their thoughts on the music. But when they gush about close encounters with the Dead, the book becomes embarrassing. Dwork's starry-eyed account of how he blocked Garcia's entry into a hotel is a perfect example of the blind worship that drove the Dead to despair. These should certainly have been edited. Thirdly, there is a spectacular amount of Weir-bashing in this book. Given Garcia's erratic playing in the years 1978-1985, Bob Weir took up much of the slack and saved many a show from disaster. Yet again and again one finds reviewers treating him like he was an unattractive kid brother (this attitude towards a man older than most of the reviewers' fathers mimics the perceived [not entirely real] Garcia/Weir relationship). I don't want to sound too harsh; this book is an important and enjoyable publication. Still, I'd recommend Eric Wybenga's Dead to the Core before this volume. There's a definitive book to be written on the music of the Dead in these years; this isn't it.
Rating:
Summary: Great, in-depth book, A must have for dead fans!
Review: This book has all you could want to know about the shows and songs from 1975-1985. If you favor the dead in those years, GET THIS BOOK!! It tells you highlights of the shows, highlight shows per year, etc.. Simply amazing.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing journey thru the tapes & music of the GD. A must!
Review: This is a great book. If it's possible to surpass the original, they have done it. There is an astounding interview with Betty Cantor-Jackson, and a huge part of the beginning is devoted to the rapidly advancing technology of tapes, recorders, mikes, and taping in general (remember, this is 1975). Rob Eaton is amongst the many experts interviewed in this guide.I only had time for a quick glance through it last night, but I can see I have many nights of reading ahead of me :). For just one example, in flipping around, I came across John Dwork's review of the first night at RCMH/NYC in 1980. A fantastic narrative, that brought a smile to my heart. This is a must buy for any serious, or not so serious, tapehead.
Rating:
Summary: Impossible to put down!
Review: You just can not say enough about this book. It picks up right where Vol 1 left off. The only problem is that once you pick it up, dont make any plans because it is impossible to put down!
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