Reading Notes
Troy, Sandy. 1994. Captain Trips: A Biography of Jerry Garcia.
New York: Thunder's Mouth Press.
JG devoted to music Troy 1994, xiii
JG was into all kinds of music: folk, bluegrass, country, acid rock,
R&B, gospel, jazz. But he never dabbled,
he always “plunged in” Troy 1994, xiii
Jose Ramon Garcia emigrated from La Coruna, Spain in 1919 Troy 1994, 1
Ruth Marie Clifford - married 1934
-- 121 Amazon Avenue, San Francisco, in the Excelsior District -- Ca.
1937 Jose’s music career came to an end -- 1937 Jose bought a tavern Four
Hundred Club at 400 First Street, corner of Harrison near Bay Bridge (Troy
1994, 2).
8/1/42 JG born at SF Children’s Hospital (Troy 1994, 3)
surrounded by music. Father played clarinet. Mother listened to opera.
Maternal grandmother loved country music. Troy 1994, 3
Ruth played piano, JG took piano lessons Troy 1994, 3
87 Harrington Street with grandparents for five years. William and
Tillie Troy 1994, 5
Tillie listened to the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday nights. Carter
Family, Bill Monroe, Flatt and Scruggs Troy 1994, 6
Ruth marries Wally Matusiewicz 1952. Family moved to Menlo Park, 286
Santa Monica Avenue. Troy 1994, 6:: lived in Menlo Park for three years. Troy
1994, 10
aged 13, move back to SF, attend Denman Junior High School Troy 1994,
10-11
Balboa High School Troy 1994, 11
Turned on to MJ at age 15, with a friend Troy 1994, 11
Attending Saturday classes and summer sessions at the California School
of Fine Arts in North Beach (beatniks!) Troy 1994, 11-13
heard and liked Big Bill Broonzy. Troy 1994, 13
JG’s first guitar idol was Chuck Berry Troy 1994, 15
Ca. age 15, moved to Cazadero, attended Analy HS in Sebastopol. Played
a gig: piano, two saxes, a bass, and his guitar. Won a contest and got to
record a song. Did Bill Doggett’s “Raunchy”. Troy 1994, 15
age 17, enlisted in military. Basic at Fort Ord, then stationed at Fort
Winfield Scott in the Presidio. Lasted nine months, discharged 1960. Troy 1994,
16
while at Presidio, met a country guitar player who got him into
finger-picking. Troy 1994, 17
“it was not in his nature to have several girlfriends at one time.” ST
says this lasted until present. “This is a trait that he seems to have
maintained to the present … he has been married three times and has had a number
of affairs, but when the relationship has been right, he has stuck with it.” Troy
1994, 25
early girlfriend Charlotte Daigle. Her girlfriend Chris Mann dated
Hunter. Troy 1994, 25
Charlotte Daigle: “he really did things on his own terms, the way he wanted
to, without a lot of concern about what he should do or what people wanted him
to do. He listened to his inner voice.” Troy 1994, 26
February 1961 Paul Speegle death. Studebaker Golden Hawk. Jerry had
switched places with Paul just before the accident. P. 27: JG: “That’s where my
life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was
idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second
chance. Then I got serious.” And he got serious about music, giving up art. Troy
1994, 26-27 #1961
“He chose music because he liked the interaction with other people that it provided.” Music had
other players and an audience. Later on, Garcia would say that “the symbiotic
relationship of band and audience was integral to his musical experience, what
made it come alive for him” (Troy 1994, 27).
Marshall Leicester got him back into bluegrass. Introduced him to the
New Lost City Ramblers. Troy 1994, 28
NLCR. Early influence on Jerry. Troy 1994, 28 Also influenced by Joan
Baez (Troy 1994, 29). Summer 1961 Garcia went to see Joan Baez at Palo Alto HS.
Troy 1994, 29: Watching her, Garcia noted that he could play better guitar than
her. (Corry: The girlfriend in question is probably Phoebe Graubard.
http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2011/03/december-12-1981-fiesta-hall-san-mateo.html?showComment=1300209441338#c4828597825817592833;
this in response to ““A friend of mine, who was Garcia’s girlfriend in 1961,
recalls sitting with him in the front row of Joan Baez’s concert at Palo Alto
High that summer. He watched Baez intently, saying ‘I can do that! I can beat her
technique.’” Kahn, Alice. 1984. Jerry Garcia and the Call of the Weird.
West
(SJ Mercury News) (December 30), pp. 14-17, 20-22. reprinted in Dodd and
Spaulding 2000, pp. 196-203), quote from p. 202 of the reprint. Dodd, David G.,
and Diana Spaulding. 2000.
The Grateful Dead Reader. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.)
http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2011/03/december-12-1981-fiesta-hall-san-mateo.html?showComment=1300209154277#c7489269821427829383
summer 1961, Garcia met David Nelson at Kepler’s. Troy 1994, 30
September 1961 JG goes to see Monterey Jazz Festival. NB 9/22-23-24/61.
JG went two days with Charlotte Daigle. Troy 1994, 34
summer 1962, Jorma meets him at a place called the Folk Theatre, on
First Street in San Jose (became the Offstage). Troy 1994, 38
Hart Valley Drifters Troy 1994, 41
another girlfriend, Diane Huntsberger, classmate of Daigle’s. Then Sara
Ruppenthal, also Paly HS. Troy 1994, 46
Heather born 12/8/63. Troy 1994, 48
GD split into two camps: Gar and Lesh more improvisational, Weir and
Pigpen on the other side, more structured and song oriented. Troy 1994, 119
“to play the music that he had decided on, Garcia formed the group
Mickey Hart and the Hartbeats”. Troy 1994, 120
TC: “Mickey Hart and the Hartbeats was a period of time when Garcia and
Lesh were into a more extended improvisation trip, which was exactly what Weir
and Pigpen were less into.” Troy 1994, 121
“The Hartbeats was an interesting side trip for Garcia, but it wasn’t
enough by itself to hold his attention.” Liked the GD dynamics. “However, the
short break opened his eyes to the advantages of playing with other musicians
when his schedule would allow it, and in 1969 he began doing more of that. This
extracurricular performing allowed Garcia to scratch his musical itches in a
way – he could play music he liked that the Dead didn’t ordinarily do, and he
could try out new instruments and new techniques.” Troy 1994, 121
TC was brought in as part of the GD’s move toward more experimentation.
Troy 1994, 122
LAG strike, 8/1/69. Garcia couldn’t cross the picket line because of
his union sympathies, inherited from his grandmother. When asked why he didn’t
cross, he told McNally: “My grandmother.” Troy 1994, 126
JG credited CSN with helping the GD’s vocal harmonies. Troy 1994, 133
JG: “I play music because I love music, … and all my life I’ve loved
music.” Troy 1994, 135
“one of his joys was simply putting together an impromptu group,
finding a willing watering hole, and filling the space with music. He explained
‘I’m a total junkie when it comes to
playing. I just have to play. And when we’re off the road I get itchy, and a
bar’s just like the perfect opportunity to get loose and play all night.” Troy
1994, 141
“he clearly preferred playing with other
musicians in front of an audience.
‘Rather than sit home and practice, scales and stuff, which I do when I’m
together enough to do it, I go out and play because playing music is more
enjoyable to me than sitting home and playing scales.” Troy 1994, 142
Merl signed with Fantasy Records in 1965. Troy 1994, 143
PERRO as cross-pollination. Troy 1994, 145
“Another reason for Jerry to spend time away from the Grateful Dead was
that he could work out his own personal musical dreams that the other members
of the band might have stunted.” Togotigi. Troy 1994, 146
JG got $10k advance for the Stinson Beach house, paid by the solo
album. Troy 1994, 147
6/30/72 was Fred Herrera’s swan song at Keystone Korner. Troy 1994, 153
9/22/72: “Playing with Saunders meant so much to Garcia that he even
flew back from New York in the middle of a GD tour to play a benefit concert
with him at BCT on September 22 [1972].” Troy 1994, 153
Rakow’s plan in So What papers approved on 4/19/73. “In April 1973
Grateful Dead Records was set up, co-owned by all the voting members of the
organization, with Rakow as president and general manager. A second label,
Round Records, owned fifty-fifty by Garcia and Rakow, was set up to [156]
handle solo projects” (Troy 1994, 155-156)
OAITW Troy 1994, 158
JG quotes (maybe from splendor in the bluegrass or something) early
1973 re OAITW: “we got together a little over a month ago, started playing, and
then decided, ‘Shit, why don’t we play a few bars and see what happens?’ We’re
thinking about finding a fiddle player and then doing some of the bluegrass
festivals this summer. … That’d be a lot of fun.” NB the “Bluegrass at
Grisman’s” thing confirms that this is more or less exactly how it happened! Troy
1994, 158
“In 1972 and 1973, the Garcia and Saunders Band did three albums for
Fantasy Records –Heavy Turbulence, Fire Up, and Live at Keystone.” Troy 1994, 159
JG is the one who pushed Merl to sing! Merl: “He also got me singing.
We’d come off a tour and he’d say, ‘Man, you gotta help me out singing.’ I
didn’t think I could sing, but I figured if Jerry could sing, I could sing. …
That’s how I started singing.” Troy 1994, 160
re GD hiatus. JG: “It had turned into a thing that was out of our
control, and nobody was really doing it because they liked it. We were doing it
because we had to.” NB solo stuff
would always more or less be in his control. Troy 1994, 167
airport porter: “Oh my God, what kind of band is this? You’ve got a
hippie [Garcia], a black guy [Saunders], a white guy [Kahn], an Indian [Fierro]
and a Super Fly [Humphrey, who dressed in sharp flashy colors].” JGMS Mention
of Golden Bear shows, October 1974: “sold-out house” Troy 1994, 168
The “Imagine” story, per Merl: Fall 1971, “I was at Fantasy Records
that fall with Garcia, Tom Fogerty, John Kahn and Bill Vitt to record my album.
This guy at the studio had a promotional copy of the record.” This is consistent
with them playing it September 1971. Troy 1994, 169
no details on end of LOM: “in the summer of 1975 the two musicians
decided to go their own way.” Troy 1994, 169
Deborah Koons. JG had met her in Cincinnati during a tour (December
1973?). Troy 1994, 170
“The majority of Garcia’s third solo LP, Reflections, was also recorded at Weir’s studio in 1975.” I don’t
think so – His Master’s Wheels. Troy 1994, 173
Jerry Garcia Band. Troy 1994, 175
Keith and Donna join JGB. Kahn: “Keith lived over on Paradise Drive [in
Corte Madera], and we used to play over there all the time. He had a room
downstairs that was set up so we could just go in and play … we’d get together
just about every night and [176] play. … We had Dylan songbooks and we’d do
stuff like play everything from Blonde on
Blonde. Then we’d do all sorts of Beatles songs. It was great.” Troy 1994,
175: 1975,
“Playing with this group [JGB] was like sitting in a favorite old easy
chair for Garcia. He claimed, ‘I haven’t been as happy with any little performing
group since Old and In the Way in terms of feeling this is really harmonious.” Comfort, JGB as harmonious. Contrast with GD: challenge, dissonance. Troy 1994, 176
late 1978, Jerry’s voice ragged, “a condition exacerbated by the three
packs of unfiltered Camels he smoked every day and by his chronic use of central
nervous system stimulants.” Troy 1994, 190
Reconstruction “played primarily black music – funk, jazz, soul, blues
and reggae. … But Garcia’s desire to have his own band as a creative outlet was
strong”, so we got the Ozzie JGB. Troy 1994, 193
Seals “was suggested to Garcia by Kahn, who had met Melvin through
Maria Muldaur. A Bay Area native, Seals had spent much of his life involved
with the music of the black Baptist church. … his roots were firmly in gospel
music, and he found inspiration in the music of the church. The gospel
influence that Seals brought to the Garcia Band was very much to Garcia’s
liking” Troy 1994, 199
“Soon after Garcia completed the drug diversion program”, the GD had
their 20th anniversary stuff. Troy 1994, 205
GD played 71 shows, sold out all but six, and grossed $11.5 million in
1985. Troy 1994, 205
Merl says that he was on a beach in the Caribbean, and suffered some
kind of heat stroke at precisely the same moment that Jerry was short
circuiting (July 10, 1986). Troy 1994, 207-208
more on friends and the coma. David Nelson. Merl: “I started walking
with him every day from the house out to the road and back to the house. [211]
We started practicing five minutes a day.” Troy 1994, 210
Graham on Garcia wanting to play Broadway: “One month prior [Garcia
was] playing five sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden … that’s 100,000
people. For the lead guitarist of that same group to play eighteen shows at a
1,400 seat theater, obviously there’s a desire to do this, not a need to do
this. Since the very first day I met him, he has not changed his seemingly unquenchable thirst to just play.”
Troy 1994, 223
Blues from the Rainforest
began recording March 1989. Troy 1994, 231
Midland “had been fighting a drug problem for more than a year and had
been rushed to the hospital when he almost overdosed the prior December
[1989].” Troy 1994, 233
Garcia/Grisman earned a
Grammy nomination and sold more than 100,000 copies. Troy 1994, 239
JG, ca. 1992: “Ideally I’d have the Dead play two nights a week, play
bluegrass two nights a week, and play with my band two nights, and on the other
day go to a movie.” That doesn’t seem like too much to ask for! Such simple
tastes! Troy 1994, 239
1991, GD grossed $34.7 million. Troy 1994, 245
“for a couple of months in early 1993 Garcia was seeing Barbara Meier …
but in the spring he reconnected with Deborah Koons.” Troy 1994, 250.
