Did You Ever Notice the 9/18/81 JGB Rehearsal Has Jerry Playing Acoustic?

The spine of Betty's 9/18/81 JGB rehearsal tape box

A beautiful piece of tape: Betty's reel from the 9/18/81 JGB rehearsal

I just revisited this little 20+ minute rehearsal fragment. Thank you Betty! This is the latest piece of Betty Board of interest to me: some of the abortive Brent solo album material came from later in '81 and into '82, but this is the last scrap of tape with ol' Jer on it.

 A few things to note.

First, Jerry is playing acoustic throughout, and doing so tastily.

Second, this is Ron Tutt drumming. Right before "Dear Prudence", as the reel winds up, Jerry comes in with a "hello?" while beautifully strumming Prudence on his acoustic. Tutt asks "Is that the right tempo, or should that be a little slower than the other'n?" Jerry replies "it should be a little slower than the other one."

Third, Melvin Seals sounds simply wonderful here. 

That's all I've got.

Jerry Garcia Band - Studio Rehearsal

Club Front

20 Front Street

San Rafael, CA 94901

September 18, 1981 (Friday)

MSR -> P -> D shnid-13881 shn2flac

--partial rehearsal (3 tracks, 21:38)--

t01. Tangled Up In Blue [7:36]

t02. Dear Prudence (1) [6:28] (2) [0:49] %

t03. //Tangled Up In Blue// [#6:45#]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band

! lineup: Jerry Garcia – acoustic guitar, vocals;

! lineup: John Kahn – electric bass;

! lineup: Jimmy Warren – electric piano;

! lineup: Melvin Seals – organ;

! lineup: Ron Tutt – drums.

The New Alphabet: ABCD GD

Here is a list of the Betty/Rex Grateful Dead recordings gathered together and returned to the Grateful Dead Vault in November 2016 by the ABCD group.

1971 – 35 REELS*- 1 REEL 10-19-71; + 1 REEL 12-2-71*= 35 REELS DELIVERED*

 

• 02-18-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-19-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-20-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-21-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-23-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-24-71 Portchester NY, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-05-71 NYC, 3 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-06-71 NYC, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-07-71 Boston MA, 1 x 7” REEL ¼ trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 04-08-71 Boston MA, 2 x 7” REELS ¼ trk 7.5ips Complete

• *10-19-71 Minneapolis MN, 1 x 7” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2 = *MISSING -1 REEL ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 11-15-71 Austin TX, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 11-17-71 Albuquerque NM, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

12-2-71 Boston MA, 1 x 10" REEL = + 1 REEL NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 12-04-71 NYC, 1 X 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #1

• 12-06-71 NYC, 3 X 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5 ips Complete

• 12-07-71 NYC, 1 X 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 12-10-71 St. Louis, MO, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #1

• 12-14-71 Ann Arbor MI, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2 trk 7.5ips Complete

• 12-15-71 Ann Arbor MI, 1 x 7” REEL ¼ trk 7.5ips Reel #1

• 12-15-71 Ann Arbor MI, 1 x 10” REEL ¼ trk 7.5ips Set #2

 
1972 – 47 REELS *+ 1 REEL 4-8-72; - 1 REEL 4-14-72; -1 REEL 4-16-72; + 1 REEL 8-25-72; + 1 REEL 9-9-72 = 48 REELS DELIVERED*

 

• 03-21-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-22-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-23-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-25-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-26-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-27-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-28-72 NYC, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• *04-08-72 London UK, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete =*+1 REEL NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 04-11-72 New Castle UK, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #3

• *04-14-72 Tivoli DK, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete * = MISSING -1 REEL ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• *04-16-72 Tivoli DK, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete * = MISSING -1 REEL ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 04-17-72 Tivoli DK, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #2, #3

• 05-03-72 Paris FN, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 05-04-72 Paris FR, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 05-07-72 Bickershaw Fest UK, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #2

• 05-24-72 London UK, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 05-25-72 London UK, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #3

• 08-21-72 Berkeley CA, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 08-22-72 Berkeley CA, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #2

• *08-25-72 Berkeley CA, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #2 * = + 1 REEL NOT ON INVENTORY*

• 08-27-72 Veneta OR, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #2

09-9-72 Hollywood CA 1 x 10" REEL = + 1 REEL NOT ON INVENTORY*

 

1973 - 35 REELS

 

• 03-15-73 Uniondale NY, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #3

• 03-16-73 Uniondale NY, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #3

• 03-21-73 Utica NY, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 03-22-73 Utica NY, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #1, #3

• 03-24-73 Philadelphia PA, 2 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Reels #2, #3

• 03-28-73 Springfield MA, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #3

• 03-30-73 Rochester NY, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 03-31-73 Buffalo NY, 1 x 10” REEL 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 04-02-73 Boston MA, 3 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 05-26-73 Kezar Stadium SF CA, 6 x 7” REELS 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-22-73 Vancouver BC, 5 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 15ips Reels #1, #2, #3, #4, #5

• 06-24-73 Coliseum, Portland OR, 4 X10” REELS 1/2trk 15ips Reels #1, #3, #4, #5

• 07-01-73 Universal Amphitheater, LA CA, 4 x 10” REELS 1/2trk 15ips Complete

 

1975 – 5 REELS

 

• 06-17-75 SF CA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 15ips Complete

 

1976 - 57 REELS

 

• 06-10-76 Boston MA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• *06-11-76 Boston MA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete *= + 1 REEL NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 06-14-76 NYC, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-15-76 NYC, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-17-76 Passaic NJ, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-18-76 Passaic NJ, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-19-76 Passaic NJ, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-21-76 Philadelphia PA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-22-76 Philadelphia PA, 5 X 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-23-76 Philadelphia PA, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #1

• 06-26-76 Chicago IL, 5 X 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-28-76 Chicago IL, 1 X 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #2

• 06-29-76 Chicago IL, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

 

1977 - 75 REELS

 

• 02-26-77 San Bernandino CA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 02-27-77 Santa Barbara CA, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #4

• 05-05-77 New Haven CT, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 05-07-77 Boston MA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 05-08-77 Ithaca NY, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 05-09-77 Buffalo NY, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 09-03-77 Raceway Park, Englishtown NJ, 9 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 15 ips

• 09-28-77 Seattle WA, 3 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 09-29-77 Seattle WA, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-01-77 Portland OR, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-02-77 Portland OR, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-28-77 Kansas City KS, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-29-77 DeKalb IL, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-30-77 Bloomington IN, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 11-01-77 Detroit MI, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 11-04-77 Hamilton NY, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #4

• 11-05-77 Rochester NY, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Reel #5

• 11-06-77 Binghampton NY, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

 

1978 - 85 REELS * = + 1 REEL 1-10-78 = 86 REELS DELIVERED*

 

• 01-06-78 Swing Aud, San Bernadino CA, 4 x 7” REELS 1/2 trk 7.5ips Nagra Complete

• *01-10-78 Shrine Aud, LA CA, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2 trk 7.5ips Complete *+1 REEL NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

• 01-22-78 McArthur Court, Eugene OR, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2 trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-06-78 Tampa FL, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-07-78 Hollywood FL, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-08-78 Jacksonville FL, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-10-78 Atlanta GA, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-11-78 Atlanta GA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-12-78 Durham NC, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-14-78 Blacksburg VA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-15-78 Williamsburg VA, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 04-16-78 Wheeling WV, 4 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 06-04-78 Santa Barbara CA, 2 x 10” REELS Nagra 1/2 trk 15ips Reels #3, #4

• 10-18-78 SF CA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-20-78 SF CA, 5 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 10-21-78 SF CA, 6 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6

• 10-22-78 SF CA, 7 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Complete

• 12-31-78 SF CA, 6 x 10” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 15ips Complete

 

1979 - 11 REELS

 

• 02-17-79 Oakland CA, 9 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2 trk15ips Complete

• 04-22-79 San Jose CA, 2 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 15ips Reel #7,#8

 
1980 - 11 REELS

 

• 09-27-80 SF CA, 2 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-04-80 SF CA, 2 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-06-80 SF CA, 2 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-09-80 SF CA, 2 x 7” REELS Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-10-80 SF CA, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-11-80 SF CA, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

• 10-13-80 SF CA, 1 x 7” REEL Nagra 1/2trk 7.5ips Acoustic

 

CASSETTES

 

1. 10/25/69 Winterland = 1 *MISSING = - 1 CASSETTE*

2. 2/24/71 Capital Theater = 1

3. 4/1172 Newcastle = 3

4. 4/14/72 Tivoli = 3

5. 4/16/72 Aharus = 3

6. 4/17/72 Tivoli = 3

7. 4/21/72 Bremen = 2

8. 4/24/72 Frankfurt = 3

9. 4/26/72 Hamburg = 3

4/29/72 Hamburg *= +3 CASSETTES NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

10. 5/7/72 Wigan = 2 [*NOTE – LABELED AS 5/4/72*]

11. 5/11/72 Rotterdam = 1

12. 5/26/72 London = 1

13. 0/00/76 Studio = 1 *MISSING = - 1 CASSETTE*

14. 5/9/76 Rehearsal = 1

15. 6/11/76 Boston = 3

16. 7/18/76 Orpheum = 1

17. 12/31/76 Cow Palace = 2

18. 0/00/77 Studio = 1 [*NOTE LABELED “21APR”*]

19. 3/18/77 Winterland = 2

20. 3/19/77 Winterland = 3 *= +1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 4 CASSETTES FOR 3-19-77*

21. 3/20/77 Winterland = 3

4/23/77 Springfield *= +1 CASSETTE NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY*

22. 5/19/77 Atlanta = 3

23. 6/7/77 Winterland = 3

24. 6/8/77 Winterland = 3* = - 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 2 CASSETTES FOR 6-8-77*

25. 6/9/77 Winterland = 3 * = - 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 2 CASSETTES FOR 6-9-77*

26. 10/6/77 Tempe = 2 [*NOTE TAPE 2 MISLABELED AS 10-2-77*]

27. 10/9/77 Denver = 2

28. 10/11/77 Norman = 2

29. 10/12/77 Austin = 2

30. 10/14/77 Houston = 2

31. 10/15/77 Dallas = 2

32. 12/30/77 Winterland = 1

33. 1/6/78 San Bernardino = 2

34. 1/7/78 San Diego = 2

35. 1/8/78 San Diego = 2

36. 1/10/78 Shrine = 2

37. 1/14/78 Bakersfield = 2

38. 1/17/78 Sacramento = 1

39. 1/31/78 Chicago = 2

40. 4/6/78 Tampa = 3

41. 4/10/78 Atlanta = 2

42. 4/11/78 Atlanta = 3

43. 4/12/78 Duke = 3

44. 4/14/78 Virginia Poly = 3

45. 4/15/78 Williamsburg = 1

46. 4/19/78 Columbus = 3

47. 4/21/78 Lexington = 2

48. 4/22/78 Nashville = 1 * = + 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 2 CASSETTES FOR 4-22-78*

49. 5/9//78 Syracuse = 2

50. 5/13/78 Philly = 2

6/3/78 Santa Barbara Sound Check *= +1 CASSETTE NOT ON ORIGINAL INVENTORY* 51. 6/4/78 Santa Barbara = 2

52. 7/31/78 Studio = 1

53. 8/25/78 Studio = 1

54. 9/2/78 Giants Stadium = 2 *= + 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 3 CASSETTES FOR 9-2-78*

55. 9/16/78 Egypt = 1

56. 10/17/78 Winterland = 3

57. 10/20/78 Winterland = 3

58. 10/21/78 Winterland = 2

59. *10/22/78 Winterland = 3 * = + 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 4 CASSETTES FOR 10-22-78*

60. 10/22/78 Studio = 1

61. 12/17/78 Atlanta = 2

62. 12/21/78 Houston = 2

63. 12/31/78 Winterland = 1

64. 2/17/79 Oakland = 3

65. 6/21/79 Studio = 1

66. 6/28/79 Sacramento = 3

67. *8/4/79 Oakland = 2 *= + 2 CASSETTES = TOTAL 4 CASSETTES FOR 8-4-79*

68. 8/5/79 Oakland = 2

69. 10/18/79 Studio = 1

70. 11/23/79 San Diego = 2

71. 11/24/79 San Diego = 1

72. 11/25/79 UCLA = 1

73. *12/8/79 Studio = 1 * = + 1 CASSETTE = 2 TOTAL FOR 12-8-79*

74. *12/26/79 Oakland = 2 * = + 1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 2 CASSETTES FOR 12-26-79*

75. 12/27/79 Oakland = 1

76. 12/28/79 Oakland = 3

77. *12/30/79 Oakland = 1 * = +1 CASSETTE = TOTAL 2 CASSETTES FOR 12-30-79*

78. 12/31/79 Oakland = 3

79. 0/00/80 Studio = 1

80. 1/24/80 Studio = 1

81. 2/00/80 Studio = 1

82. 9/25/80 Warfield = 1

83. 10/9/80 Warfield = 3 [NOTE *LABELED AS 10-7-80*]

84. 10/13/80 Warfield = 3

85. 10/14/80 Warfield = 4

86. *10/31/80 Radio City = 3 *= - 3 CASSETTES MISSING*

87. 5/6/81 Nassau = 1

Twin Wonder Powers, Activate? JGMS, October 11-12, 1973 at Keystone Berkeley

Tape Archaeology

What used to be known by some of us as the Third Batch of Betty Cantor-Jackson tapes proved the most grudging of all the batches in terms of finding broad circulation. This especially vexed Garcia freaks, because it contained a number of drool-inspiring Garcia-Saunders sets. You might imagine where the mind would go, seeing entries like these in 1996, a world in which very few had heard any Garcia-Saunders shows that had happened between July 1973 and January 1974:

JGMS 10/11/73 notes from Rob Eaton's mid-1990s work on the Third Batch of Betty Boards

JGMS 10/12/73 notes from Rob Eaton's mid-1990s work on the Third Batch of Betty Boards

Purchased in a storage auction in May 1986 along with the rest of the Betties, but lost to broader reckoning for around a decade before they became available to Rob Eaton for preservation in 1995-1996, some of these tapes still do not circulate. Fall '73 Garcia-Saunders tapes came into the world relatively late: the Winterland Legal Aid Benefit from 10/2/73 (etreedb | JGMF) in 2007 via Alligator, 11/3/73 (etreedb | JGMF) on NYE 2012-2013, and these October 11-12 shows only in 2016, almost twenty years after they were first digitized. Remarkably enough, all of these tapes are now home where they belong, having been gathered together by the ABCD crew and returned to their owners at no profit (in the case of the GD tapes) and at no cost (in the case of the Jerry stuff) - that is, effectively, pro bono. Will Wonders never cease?

Stevie Wonder in the Garciaverse

Speaking of which, let me use the occasion of twin Stevie Wonder tunes on October 11, 1973 to pin down Garcia's engagements with that legend's compositions, all of which occurred in the company of Merl Saunders. Alphabetically, I identify the following, all of which except "Reggae Woman" were done as instrumentals in the Garciaverse.

"Another Star" (Allan | deaddisc | wikipedia)
A hotty from 1976's double-sized Songs in the Key of Life, Garcia played it, hotly, with Reconstruction throughout that band's eight-month run in 1979.

"Boogie On Reggae Woman" (Allan | deaddisc | wikipedia)
From Fulfillingness’ First Finale (1974), Merl sang this one very effectively starting on 11/2/74, on current reckoning (with Paul Humphrey drumming), appearing regularly until the demise of the Legion of Mary in summer 1975.

"Creepin'" (Allan | deaddisc | wikipedia)
Also from FFF, this one never lit me up during its 1975 Garciaverse appearances.

"I Was Made To Love Her" (Allan | deaddisc | wikipedia)
This 1967 title track, by contrast, almost always lit me up. It seems to have been one of the first songs in the Garcia-Saunders repertoire, showing up in setlists as early as Fall 1971, but also, regrettably, left relatively early, not making it past 1973. Indeed, the version I discuss below seems to represent its last known appearance in a Garcia setlist.

"Love Having You Around"
Garcia played this one, the first track from Stevie's 1972 Music of my Mind, with Aunt Monk at a San Francisco bar called the Generosity on May 9, 1975. There is rumor of at least one other Garciaverse performance, but details remain hazy.

You Are The Sunshine Of My Life (Allan | wikipedia)

The second single released from Talking Book (Tamla T 319 L, October 27, 1972), this one reached the top of the charts and won Stevie a Grammy.

Of course, please let me know if I am missing anything!

As a final note, the 10/11 show here features two of these numbers, and it looks to me like, besides this night, Merl and Jer and others played two Stevie tunes three other times, on 2/14/75, 3/1/75 and 4/10/75a. Every one of those occasions paired "Creepin'" and "Boogie On Reggae Woman" (and Creepin' only appeared once w/o BORW, 5/21/75).

This night, by contrast, we get the final JGMS version of "I Was Made To Love Her", played more slowly than any other Garciaverse version, and the singleton "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", given a pretty spare and off-feeling 15-minute treatment.

What does this mean? Hell if I know. I am just pattern-matching.

On To The Music

The October 11-12, 1973 Garcia-Saunders performances at the Keystone strike me as, respectively, lackluster and about average. The first night proves especially disappointing, because look at that setlist, but boy is it low energy.

JGMS 10/11/73 reel #2, scan provided courtesy of ABCD. The handwriting is Rex Jackson's, and the information is very typical for how he labeled the tapes, with personnel characteristically listed (Merle [sic], "Kawn" [a joke]), date, DOW, venue on the left, and, on the right, we have reel #, speed and recording info, including "Revox", indicating that this was made on Rex's deck rather than Betty's Nagra. Oh yeah, one final note: those are mold stains along the bottom of the box. The Third Batch of Betties spent a long time in some pretty horrifying conditions, and Eaton worked heroically to preserve them.

"I Was Made To Love Her" - one of the great, poppin' vehicles for this band, is played too slowly and never really gets going. It would be permanently shelved after this performance.

"When I Paint My Masterpiece" - not a favorite of mine, but it was rare and Dylan is always interesting. Not much of note happens here, quite subdued, and ol' Jer puts it on the shelf until 1/20/80.

"One Kind Favor" - one of my very favorites, the version from the Cap in Passaic a month earlier, in the band's first out-of-state show, absolutely slays me. This one, again, never reaches any kind of boil.

"You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" - John is totally on this, but Garcia doesn't really know how it goes, maybe not in the right key? This sounds kind of like piano lounge stuff.

Even the "Harder They Come" from the 11th holds lots of flubbing and falling apart.

An off night, I guess. Probably the dullest '73 Garcia-Saunders show in circulation, despite the sexy setlist. What are you gonna do?

The next night comes out with more juice and sounds stronger overall to my ears on this listen, but After Midnight quickly returns things to the languid pace of the previous evening. "Train To Cry", very much not a favorite of mine, has perhaps never been played more slowly by anyone, ever. "My Funny Valentine" sounds great to my ears, and Jerry really lets it melt for awhile - probably the highlight to my ears. But, overall, and of course IMO (YMMV), 10/12/73 pales in comparison to every other show in circulation from the year, except the night before. Two weeks later, on 11/3/73, the band sets my hair on fire. Here? Well, not so much. And, somehow, the first 40 minutes of reel #1 turn up blank. Hm. Every night can't be amazing, I guess.

All of that said, and perhaps especially because it doesn't knock me out, I am inexpressibly grateful to all involved in getting these recordings into our ears: Betty and Rex, RE, Alligator and the rest, and to ABCD for doing the right thing by these precious artifacts.

Listening notes below the fold.

ABCD and the Betty Boards

https://denisonmagazine.com/feature/spring-2019-raising-the-dead/

Do you want to know how the Betty Boards got home? This is the true story. Want to know how the May '77 (including 5/8/77) and January '78 and Felt Forum '71 and 2/26/77 and so many other Dead tapes ended up being released from fresh transfers of the master reels, rather than old DAT transfers? Did you know that Betty now has possession of all of the Garcia Betty Boards?

It's all there. These guys took the big financial risk of bringing the three main batches back together and sending them home. And they did it not for money, but for love of the music and the community and to do right by Betty Cantor-Jackson.

Thank you, ABCD!!

! seealso: https://www.cooley.edu/news/soifer-lecture-features-quest-recover-lost-grateful-dead-recordings

From the Picky Deadhead Department

Nice to see people reading around some old posts. My writing is so tortured, but I do still love some of the ground we have covered together. Thanks for your support.


From the Picky Deadhead Department

I happily bought 7/5/73 (Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders, GarciaLive 6: July 5th 1973, Lion's Share [Round Records, JGFRR1009, 2016]), knowing more or less exactly what I was getting. I love the aesthetics, I will give the much-appreciated liner notes a good, close read, and the music is well-chosen and sounds nice.

Two complaints.

First, the CDs fit too snugly on the plastic center rings - 2 of 3 cracked when I lifted out the discs. Yes, I am hard on things, but they're too tight.

Second, more delicate, but said with love and admiration for the social compact that has always bound the Dead and its fans, and in the hope that the Garcias might honor it, too. Here's a little "open letter" for your consideration.

Thanks for the music, Round Records. Now, let's talk about your promise that "every effort was made to prepare this performance for release in a manner that honors the spirit of its creation."

GarciaLive 6 is lovely in many ways, but let's recognize that you have repackaged and sold to your customers what we already had - copies of Rob Eaton's 1996 DAT transcriptions of Betty's master reels. Yet, as the Dead have shown with the smash hit July 1978 box set, arrangements truer to the spirit of things were available, and we might have heard fresh transcriptions from those beautiful master reels.

Please consider, in the future, that your fans support you carrying forward Jerry's musical legacy - which, let's face it, is really the heart of the matter. I will buy the musical product that you put on sale, conditional only on not being ripped off.

I don't think Round has crossed the line -- this isn't Steal Your Face, after all, heh heh --  but it's actually pretty close. When Fantasy resold me the same July 10-11, 1973 Keystone material for the fourth time -- vinyl, cassette, CDs, CD boxset -- I confess to having felt a little burned, a case where the Saunders folks advertised wrinkles as creases [Barlow]. I have only myself to blame, I guess I knew, but it was still pretty unfortunate.

I know you aren't getting rich on any of this. I am happy to pay a fair price for a fair product. If that means I pay a little more because the miraculous market demands a little price for those original reels, from my perspective, so be it. I am no audiophile, but I appreciate the beautiful sound of beautiful music, well -recorded and optimally-preserved and -presented.


Thanks, overall, for good product. Again, I love the look, feel, sound, substantiveness of the Round Records releases. I remain a loyal customer. Let's take it to the next level of openness and respect. Use the jazz model for dating - I want every information on every fragment. Don't use a picture of 11/26/77 in a release of 3/22/78 without making a note of it. Tell us about the tape diameter (e.g., 10"), stock (e.g., Scotch ?207?), the speed at which it was recorded (e.g., 15 ips), the record deck (e.g., Betty's Nagra, serial number SL11183), etc. Include it all, make it correct, please & thank you.

Looking forward to 11/8/76, and to more to come.

Sincerely Yours,

JGMF

Garcia and Saunders at the Lion's Share

I see that 7/5/73 is slated for official release as (per B&N) Garcialive 6: July 5 1973 Lion's Share (Jerry Garcia / Merl Saunders).

• http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/garcialive-6-july-5-1973-lions-share/29919624;jsessionid=D74E41C2738E4500EC4D90119172BE33.prodny_store01-atgap05?ean=0880882255220 
• http://www.amazon.com/Garcialive-July-1973-Lions-Share/dp/B01F73YZZ0

See my post now titled "Garcia and Saunders at the Lion's Share" if you want to learn more about the very interesting songs, the great performance, the mysterious trumpet player.

This is a nice pick. I hope The Powers That Be consider trying to license use of the original reels or buying them, as the Dead should have done for 3/26/72 and did for the July '78 boxset, rather than using Rob Eaton's best-possible-at-the-time 1996 DAT transcriptions.

JGB at Freeborn Hall, November 12, 1976

Sometime in the afternoon or thereabouts of Friday, November 12, 1976, Garcia, John Kahn, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux, probably Richard Loren hopped into sedans being driven by monitor mixer Harry Popick and roadie Bill 'Kidd' Candelario to Davis, California, about a hundred miles east of San Francisco on I-80. Thus began a little weekend jaunt that strikes me as more pleasant than one they'd do in August '81 (billed as the "1^st Northern California Tour"), if only because the latter passed through Stockton in August, while this one offers foggier temperatures and a cooler implicit psychology.

It had already been a busy week, Sunday-Monday for Freddie Herrera in Berkeley and Palo Alto (I don't think a note of these shows circulates among collectors), then Tuesday through Thursday at Elliot Mazer's His Master's Wheels studio, in the space formerly operated by, variously, Pacific High Recorders and Alembic. The band gives every appearance of trying to use these sessions to work up some old favorites, sort of like a second version of Compliments, a few more fonky gospel numbers, maybe a few not so fonky, but a nice eclectic mix, for some ready-to-sell vinyl. This is the...

 ... Abortive 1976 Garcia Band album

At His Master's Wheels (HMW) Elliot Mazer had put together a space that Garcia really liked, singling it out when asked about the tastiest rooms in the Bay Area in June of 1974, right after recording Compliments (mostly at Columbia) and using it for Reflections, recorded second half 1975 and released early 1976, itself involving some abortive components (see Corry). That involved the payoff of the summer 1975 United Artists bailout. In late 76, Jerry played for Clive, and Arista paid the HMW studio time, as Davis, Garcia, Weir and the Grateful Dead (the latter three not at all the same thing as these men make their respective journeys) enter into a deal to further find fates. It’s impossible to say whether Davis fronted the studio time as an act of good faith, or whether, more likely, the time would eventually come out of Garcia’s advance. Despite its aesthetic promise, I can't say why this project gwas shelved. Eventually, after long battles with demons in the studio --recorded in earnest August-November 1977 and released around April 1, 1978-- Cats Under The Stars replaced it as the first, and in many ways the only, Jerry Garcia Band studio album.

The Abortive 1976 Jerry Garcia Band Album would differ from its predecessors, not a Jerry Garcia record, but a Jerry Garcia Band one, a false step in the institutionalization of Jerry Garcia. Bringing Nicky on board in summer 1975 was certainly a touring proposition - Nicky is contractually obligated to mention his 1975 Mercury record No More Changes (see my WIP "Hiatus Garcianomics"), and the band took xx tours (involving out of town flights) in its three-and-a-half months together. But having the Session Man in the house was almost certainly also a recording proposition: the timing with the recording Compliments is too strong suggestive. But it fell apart, for reasons unknown, and became a little bit of a Garcia-GD Frankenstein, incoherent even if it has its moments.

After August 1976 sessions paid by Round Records - perhaps the last good checks that outfit ever wrote, if they didn't bounce, October and November found Arista paying the bills, leaked to the cognoscenti no later than November 20^th.[i] Conceptually, take 2 of the first JGB album resonated with the "Americana Jerry likes" feel of Compliments, but with the band of Garcia-Kahn-Tutt-Godchaux (Keith) and at least some of the material drawing from cooler, stiller depths. Garcia tried Elizabeth Cotten's "Freight Train" and "Oh Babe It Ain't No Lie" on for size for the project, about which I wrote at some length, noting that the ancient songstress found pulp-and-glue permanence in the New Lost City Ramblers Songbook (1964), through which, I surmise, Garcia might have learned the tunes. An undated OBIANL features on All Good Things, disc 3, track 11.

The Band also drew heavily from the gospel well with which Jerry, Keith, Donna and the rest had spent so much time in the Godchaux's living room in 1975 (for Keith and Donna), sometimes quite literally accompanied by a Samarian woman and a "Strange Man".  telling her every sinful thing she'd done, and setting her free. After a shambolic January, the bicentennial live act came to feature more upbeat gospel, as well, from the celestial choir of  “My Sisters And Brothers” to the hot-to-trot show closer “Ride Mighty High”. (Another angelic boogie, “Magnificent Sanctuary Band” [released on the 2004 box set All Good Things] never made it out of Stinson.)

Beyond gospel we find a Dylan (“Visions Of Johanna”, on the bonus disc All Good Things Redux), some black--and-white rockers “Bo Diddley” and “Not Fade Away” (11/9/76), a little R&B on November 10th (“Don’t Let Go”, “The Way You Do The Things You Do”), "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise" (11/10/76), “Matilda” (calypso on both 11/10/76 and 11/11/76!) and the pure train “Streamlined Cannonball” (11/11/76). To travel to the places to which these various tunes were established, among the people who established them, would drive across every route and byway east of the Mississippi, lots of cities and hollers and plains, and a few on the other side; to do so by the means that conveyed them would bring you to ambient voice, boat, ship, raft, rail and automobile. Aesthetically, the collection would make a fine record.

The Weekend "Tour"

After laying down some tracks, the tour looks take draw a long, deep, weekend breath through some gigging and green spaces, the late Friday night show in Davis, it culminated in a pair of Saturday night shows at verdant Humboldt State.

Table xxx.

I have notes from the front end below. In terms of the back end of the "tour", Jerry has some land up in Mendocino, that Laird Grant lives on - maybe Garcia checked in, said hello and stocked up on the local fare --still autumn, harvest season-- for the rides back home.

Garcia at Freeborn

Depending on where they were coming from, this crew crossed a bridge (Richmond-San Rafael from Marin, or the Bay Bridge from the City), hooked up with I-80 east bound, crossed another bridge (over the Carquinez Strait), went up over the coastal ridge and dropped into the Great Central Valley. "Jerry Garcia has always liked this town," wrote the California Aggie reviewer about Davis. Campus gym Freeborn Hall would have been a drafty, smelly basketball arena at this time, all echo, but the college kids, many of them from the Bay Area, were enthusiastic, and the show shimmered. "Never before," wrote his seasoned reviewer, "have I seen Garcia dance, nor have I ever seen him smile so much".

Table xxx.

So nice to hear. In terms not of the visuals of Jerry (and Donna) swaying in a sweet groove, but of the audio, we are blessed to have Betty Cantor Jackson's 4^th reel of the night (reels 1-3 are AWOL, and may have returned do dust), and it holds just a 30 minute "Don't Let Go" and a show-closing "Might High", the crème de la crème of 1976 JGB repertoire, just about (LAALWFH wants a word with me).

LN jg1976-11-12.jgb.s2p-end.sbd-wise.132401.flac1648

A few highlights of the Davis show, based on the tape evidence.

John Kahn does a bass feature in DLG, which is actually interesting, not his usual feathery fluttery tickling thing – actual bass playing. He could do this in earlier years, and occasionally later on, but to hear John Kahn play with some power in November 1976 is a revelation.

Keith is noodling around some classical tunes after DLG.

"Mighty High" is nothing short of amazing. I love Donna Jean Godchaux.

Jerry Garcia Band

Freeborn Hall, University of California

Davis, CA 95616

November 12, 1976 (Friday) - 8 PM

BCJ reel #4 wise DAT flac1648 shnid-132401

--end of show (3 tracks, 2 songs, 38:17)--

reel04-t01. crowd and tuning [0:19]

reel04-t02. Don't Let Go [28:53] (1) [2:46]

reel04-t03. Mighty High// [6:19#]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #3

! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-guitar, vocals;

! lineup: John Kahn - el-bass;

! lineup: Keith Godchaux - piano, vocals;

! lineup: Donna Jean Godchaux - vocals;

! lineup: Ron Tutt - drums, vocals.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [ ] = recorded event time. The recorded event time immediately after the song or item name is an attempt at getting the "real" time of the event. So, a timing of [x:xx] right after a song title is an attempt to say how long the song really was, as represented on this recording.

! Jerrybase: https://jerrybase.com/events/19761112-03

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/15850 (same source reel, probably different source DAT and definitely more primitive DAT > CD transfer - deprecated); http://etreedb.org/shn/132401 (this fileset - best source).

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/wuV67V7hENM2

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2011/12/freeborn-hall-uc-davis-104-freeborn.html

! band: http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html

! review: Krane, Matt. 1976. Garcia & Company: Phenomenal Crowd Pleasers. California Aggie, November 15, 1976, p. 3. positive review of 11/12/76. Under subtitle "Fabulous Crowd Pleasers" starts by getting out his Webster's: "mellifluous (me-lif-loo-es, adj. (L. /mellifluus: mel, mellis-honey, fluete-to flow), flowing sweetly and smoothly; honeyed; said of words, sounds, etc. … Jerry Garcia has always liked this town, Davis", gave a memorable performance. Not's the JGB has played Crabshaw Corner in Sacto. Freeborn  Freeborn usually sounds like ass, but the reviewer says the band's gear sounded great." Kane praises "Garcia's magnificently mellow, fluid blues progressions". "Never before have I seen Garcia dance, nor have I ever seen him smile so much. But he had a lot to smile about, and so did a crowded Freeborn." "He appeared very warm and comfortable. His music was doubly so."

! R: recordist: Betty Cantor-Jackson

! R: media: 7" reel master @ 7.5ips 1/2 track (reel #4 only). As far as I know, reels 1-3 are not in the Garcia Vault, which might mean they are still out in the world somewhere. They are known not to be among the Betty Boards (TM). Given the water damage to this reel, though, it's strongly possible that the first three reels were among the miles of rotted spaghetti and distingrated vinyl and oxide, silt and pulp and goat piss. As of this writing (3/24/2016), my best sense is that they are gone forever, but that could be wrong.

! R: gear: Betty's Nagra reel to reel deck (serial #SL11183)

! R: lineage: Playback on Otari MX5050-Meyer VX-1 signal processor-Sony PCM R-700 DAT @ 48KHz (circa 1999). Original zero gen DAT played back on a Sony PCM R-500-Digital Audio Labs Card deluxe-16 bit 48KHz. Editing (Adobe Audition CC) - Mastering & Processing (iZotope Ozone 6) - FLAC encoding (dBpoweramp) - Tagging (Tag & Re-name - Digital Transfer, Editing & Processing By JW:February 2015.

! R: note: 16 bit 48Khz file set formatted for music servers"

! R: note: "This reel was old & brittle and there is some tape squeal present."

! R: reel04-t02 DLG @ 15:43 ran past a place where the oxide wasn't, some squeal. Again late 22, ca. 22:50.

! P: reel-04-t02 DLG 12ff John Kahn is taking a bass solo, and for 20 seconds he's on it, a little too fluttery at 12:20, some great bass soloing by John Kahn -- yeah, I said it. @ 14:43 the band comes back, John gets a nice round of applause from the crowd. This is building to a very nice crescendo, all involved, Garcia high up 15:18, all the rest is percussion, now he puts some blue on it 15:39. Garcia in a very interesting space 16:13, a little more speed. 25ff is Garcia's vocale-guitar duetting, some good moaning and scowling. Jerry gets real strong wid it to come to an end, everyone lands right.

! reel04-t02 (1) Keith is playing a classical piece late 29. 29:49 - sounds like something definable. 30:20 for sure, that Parisian Waltz. more at 30:35. another quote 30:53, more than a quote. He wants to play it. Garcia strums for Mighty High @ 31:04.

! P: reel04-t03 Mighty High is incredible. Donna is bringing it early 5ff, everyone singing hard, she is belting! You guy, girl! Even Keith is yelling, in his nasally way, making the tape squeal. Man, that is some good time music for the Aggies!

! R: reel04-t03 squeal somewhere in 4. 5:38 squeal. Reel ends, maybe 30 seconds of music missing.

---

[i] McDonough 1976 11/20/76.