The Dead's sixth live album was released in April 1981 and contains live material recorded from between September and October 1980 at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco and Radio City Music Hall in New York. Reckoning is essentially an acoustic companion release to Dead Set, a 1981 live album of electric material — both albums were recorded at the same run of concerts.

The material recorded in 1980 was originally intended for release on one double LP set, but the format of the music subsequently steered the Grateful Dead towards the release of two double albums, Reckoning and Dead Set.

"We really ended with so much good material that it was a struggle," said Jerry Garcia. "The idea of just one acoustic and one electric record was sort of pathetic, since our electric tunes are seldom less than eight minutes long. And that meant our fat electric album would have two songs on a side. It was kind of silly."

The Grateful Dead live and acoustic on double LP!