Acoustic at the Denver Rainbow - JGJK, May 23, 1985 (late show)

LN jg1985-05-23.jgjk.late.aud.137966.flac1644

These shows have been very elusive, and the early show still has not made a digital appearance.

Standard "Rock Bottom Era" take: croaking vocals and very good (acoustic) guitar picking. The one plus of the acoustic setting is that he can sing quietly, which works well on a relative rarity like "She Belongs To Me". The first set might be incomplete, but either way this show is pretty well below the Minelli Line.

Jerry Garcia and John Kahn
Rainbow Music Hall
6358 East Evans Avenue
Denver, CO 80222
May 23, 1985 (Thursday) - late show (10 PM)
AF shnid-137966

--set I (4 tracks, 25:16)--
s1t01. /When I Paint My Masterpiece [#5:34] [0:08] (1)
s1t02. I've Been All Around this World
s1t03. Bird Song
s1t04. Run For The Roses [4:26] (2) [0:12] %

--set II (5 tracks, 32:01)--
s2t01. Simple Twist Of Fate
s2t02. Dire Wolf
s2t03. She Belongs To Me
s2t04. Goodnight Irene
s2t05. Ripple

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia and John Kahn
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - ac-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - ac-b.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [m:ss] = 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 [m:ss] 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/19850523-02

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/137966 (this fileset). Nothing in circulation before 2017, and still nothing circulating for the early show.

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

! JGBP: Rainbow Music Hall, East Evans Avenue and South Monaco Parkway, Denver, Colorado. Jerry's Brokendown Palaces, October 29, 2012, URL http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/10/rainbow-music-hall-east-evans-avenue.html, consulted 11/17/2014.

! P: overall: Jerry's voice is in pretty bad shape here. First set material clocks in at 25 minutes - we may be missing at least a song or two, otherwise (and perhaps in any case) this set falls *way* below the Minelli Line. See also set II, at just over a half hour one of the shortest sets on record.

! R: source: Unknown AUD kindly provided from the collection of DL.

! R: transfer: Maxell XLII > Nakamichi CR-5A > Edirol FA-66 > Wavelab 2448 > R8Brain > CD-Wave > TLH > FLAC 1644 tagged. Transfer by Andrew F. 03/2017.

! R: seeder Note: The tape was not marked "early" or "late", appears to be the 1030PM late show since there's an annouced set break after Run for the Roses. [JGMF: I agree with AF's judgment, though we can't be 100% sure.]

! R: s1t01 WIPMM enters in progress. Nice tape.

! P: s1t01 WIPMM Garcia's voice is nasal and scratchy right out of the gate.

! s1t01 (1) "Thank you."

! P: s1t04 RFTR Garcia's guitar work is crisp, and the recording is loving the sound of the acoustic instruments.

! P: s1t03 Bird Song - my goodness, he is *croaking*. This is a pretty grim listen. Around 3 minutes in Jerry takes a nice guitar departure, and Kahn makes himself heard (or, I hear him) for more or less the first time on a somewhat background  listen. Ain't nothing wrong with Garcia's guitar playing here.

! s1t04 (2) [excuse-me cough] "Thanks a lot. We're gonna take a little, short break, and we'll be back [inaudible].

! P: s2t01 STOF very nice, low-down feel to this

! P: s2t03 She Belongs To Me is a relative rarity, and this is a fragile, interesting take.

The Twin Keys Quintet: JGB, The Stone, February 23, 1981 (Monday)

LN 

jg1981-02-23.jgb.all.aud-CC.xxxxxx.flac2448

which became 

jg1981-02-23.jgb.s1s2p.aud-CC.138135.flac1644

Andrew F. is transcribing the Closet Call tapes. What follows is from my deprecated transfer, with some updated details about Andrew's shnid'd version mixed-in. Funny that I found this show so bland, because I loved 2/22/81 when it first hit the streets.

"I have absolutely nothing of note to say. Completely run-of-the-mill" pretty much says it all (on this listen, &c).

Weirdness: apparently George Thorougood was in the house, and the Garcia Band and crowd sang him happy birthday.

Jerry Garcia Band
The Stone
412 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94133
February 23, 1981 (Monday)
s1s2p CC shnid-138135

--set I (5 tracks, 56:35)--
s1t01. They Love Each Other [8:11] [0:12] %
s1t02. Knockin' On Heaven's Door [14:55] [0:04] %
s1t03. It's No Use [9:00] [0:08] %
s1t04. /Sitting Here In Limbo [13:07] ->
s1t05. Tangled Up In Blue [10:49] [0:07] %

--set II (3 tracks, 27:29)
s2t01. ... Let It Rock [6:#53] [0:07] %
s2txx. [MISSING Russian Lullaby]
s2txx. [MISSING Harder They Come]
s2t02. Dear Prudence// [12:31]
s2t03. //Midnight Moonlight [7:55] [0:01] %

! ACT1: JGB #12b (1/27/81-6/1/81)
! lineup: Jerry Garcia: el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn: el-b;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw: drums;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren: keyboards (Fender Rhodes);
! lineup: Melvin Seals: keyboards (Hammond B3).

JGMF:

! R: 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/19810223-01

! JGC: jerrygarcia.com/show/1981-02-23

! db: none in circulation as of these notes (3/12/2011, deprecated transfer); http://etreedb.org/shn/138135 (best xfer of same tape).

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

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/07/stone-mothers-412-broadway-san.html

! band: http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html. JGB #12b, this is the shortlived twin-keys-no-vocalists configuration, with Daoud Shaw drumming (one presumes).

! setlist: the missing songs indicated here are from TJS setlist. However, this tape and the TJS setlist have different order for set I. TJS has KOHD, INU, and then TLEO, while here it's TLEO then the other two. The ordering on this tape makes more sense to me than starting off with KOHD, though I haven't studied setlist orderings from this time frame enough to really know if that's true. It's just a hunch. **update: AF has put the shnid'd version

! R: Tape Specs: unknown gen audience cassette (Maxell XLII90 no Dolby) > Nakamichi BX-300 playback (no Dolby) > Pyle Pro cables > WaveTerminal 2496 > Samplitude 10.1 Download Version (record @ 24 bits/48kHz) > CDWave 1.9.8 (tracking) > Wavelab 5.0.1a (cross-fades, etc.) > shntool (stripped non-canonical headers) > Traders Little Helper 2.4.1 (FLAC encoding, level 8) > Foobar (tagging).

! R: s1t03 INU bad tape warbling

! R: s1t04 SIL clips in

! R: s1t05 TUIB some tape munching/panning @ 7-min

! R: s2t01 LIR enters in progress

! R: s2t02-t03 sounds like a missing guzinta.

! P: I have absolutely nothing of note to say. Completely run-of-the-mill.

! R: Disclaimer: This is part of a "Closet Call" project aimed at getting missing Garcia dates into the digital realm. These are "warts and all" ... straight transfers of the source cassettes with editing only of the most offensive tape transitions and such. If you don't like hiss, possible speed problems, etc., etc., then move along. And, to anticipate a FAQ: no, I don't plan on doing 16/44s of these. Thanks to wk for supplying these tapes!

During Gaylord's Second Stint: JGB at the Stone, October 14, 1985 (Monday)

These may be the shortest two JGB sets ever played. Gaylord Birch drumming.

See also "The December '85 Garcia Band Shows"

LN jg1985-10-14.jgb.all.aud.138028.flac1644

Jerry Garcia Band
The Stone
412 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94133
October 14, 1985 (Monday)
CC shnid-138028

--set I (4 tracks, 34:48)--
s1t01. Cats Under The Stars [7:12] %
s1t02. When I Paint My Masterpiece [8:45] %
s1t03. That's What Love Will Make You Do [8:31] [0:04] %
s1t04. Tangled Up In Blue [10:15] %

--set II ( 4 tracks, 31:22)--
s2t01. Run For The Roses [4:54] %
s2t02. [0:20] Love In The Afternoon [9:22] %
s2t03. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down [9:25] ->
s2t04. Midnight Moonlight [7:19] [0:02] %

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #22 (First show - October 7, 1985 Keystone Palo Alto; Last show - February 21, 1986)
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-guitar, vocals;
! lineup: Gloria Jones - vocals;
! lineup: Jacklyn LaBranch - vocals;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-bass;
! lineup: Gaylord Birch - drums.

JGMF:

! R: 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/19851014-01

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/138028 (this fileset).

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

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/07/stone-mothers-412-broadway-san.html

! band: http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html. This is ultrarare JGB #22, with Gaylord Birch drumming. This configuration debuted on a Monday-Tuesday, October 7th and 8th, 1985 in Palo Alto, then Sunday-Monday the next week in San Fran. Of those four shows, the last one, 10/14, is the only one to circulate as of March 2017. Four gigs in October, four in December (14-15 in SF, 21-22 in PA, weekend gigs, all in circulation), then one gig in February (2/21/86). These were the only JGB shows without stalwart drummer David Kemper between 7/20/83 and 11/19/93. We know so little about this period. Where was Kemper? Corry bands post: "I presume that Kemper had another commitment, and since Birch was an established quantity from his time in Reconstruction, he was a comfortable choice as a sub." Stylistically, I don't hear the kick bass as much with him, a lot more snare and high stuff. He remains probably the second snazziest drummer with whom Garcia ever played, after Paul Humphrey (1974).

! seealso: Arnold, Corry. 2012. Gaylord Birch – Drums. Hooterollin' Around, February 3, URL http://hooterollin.blogspot.com/2012/02/gaylord-birch-drums.html, consulted 11/15/2014.

! R: source: AUD (marked 2nd Gen) kindly provided by wk & http://jgmf.blogspot.com/

! R: transfer: Maxell XLII > Nakamichi CR-5A > Edirol FA-66 > Wavelab 2448 > R8Brain > CD-Wave > TLH > FLAC 1644 tagged. Transfer by Andrew F. 03/2017.

! R: "Very tight edits thru-out, most songs cut in and out abruptly with bits missing." The vocals are deeply buried, the bass isn't particularly audible, guitar is at least pretty upfront. As I am in s1t03, I'd say the guitar sounds great, drums are OK, everything else (e.g., bass and keys) is buried.

! historical: These tapes are tightly edited, but 35 minutes and 31 minutes for the two sets, respectively, is far below the Minelli Line, below which a good square effort for the fans becomes a Cabaret Economics ripoff.

! P: s1t01 CUTS is actually surprisingly together. The December 14-15 shows are the only other late '85 Jerry Band tapes in circulation as of this writing (3/24/17), and I had thought that at least one of them opened with some real timing misfires between drums and band. They manage to wrap CUTS up pretty tightly, not doing that thing of not knowing how to end it.

! R: s1t01 CUTS 34-seconds blank tape, cross-faded out at 4:52.

! P: s1t02 WIPMM Gaylord doesn't catch the ending, it sort of fizzles and fazzles to a close.

! P: s1t03 TWLWMYD Birch is great on this, right from the get-go. He has an extra beat going that really works well, and he nicely accents behind Jerry's chorus vocal. This is cookin'!

! P: s1t04 TUIB it's too bad the vocals are so buried, because they sound reasonably strong. compare with GD 9/3/85, or the September Red Rocks shows, and he sounds much better here.

! s2t02 LITA I may have to retract my statement about the voice - maybe sounding a little more ragged here later in the evening.

! P: s2t03 TNTDODD I have been wavering on the vocals, and here they are not terrible at first ... then they get pretty bad by 3 minutes into the song.

Da Weez

https://archive.org/details/gd1983-04-23.117598.Sennheiser421.daweez.d5scott.flac16

! db: shnid-117598
! R: field recording gear: 2x Sennheiser 421 microphones > Sony TC-D5M
! R: field recordist: Da Weez
! R: transfer: Sony TC-D5M (original record deck) > Pre Sonus Inspire GT > Sound Forge > .wav files > Trader's Little Helper > flac files, by D5scott.

I have no idea who these gentlemen are, but taper Da Weez never made a bad tape, and the good taste in gear suggested by D5scott's name is exceeded only by the straightforward beauty of his transfers of Da Weez's masters. They all come tagged "R.I.P. Sandy - aka 'Bigfoot'", which adds a sad human note to these revelatory sonic documents.

People sometimes imply that there are no more histories to write of the Grateful Dead and affiliated phenomena, but I totally disagree (beyond my own interest in asserting the contrary). There are tapers' histories to write for example, from socio-, Cleo-, musico-, and psychoacousticotechnicoothero-metric lenses. Just think of Flashback Charlie, that even hard-edged Brooklynite Jerry Moore might have recommended for a little meditation outside the Bottom Line, or finding a backdoor broom--closet way into the Academy of Music, just down the street from the Hells Angels' clubhouse in rough mid-70s NYC, or besuited east coaster Barry Glassberg. In the Bay Area, technical genius Jaime Poris, was were joined by James Olness (later a Bill Graham archivist and printer) in the 80s, joined later by Bu and the DAT Brats (working The Rail at the Warfield), then Chuck and Janet Vasseur with the four-digit, vintage Neumanns, a pierrine digital setup and upfront acumen. There's a book right there.

I just wanted to take a minute to give a thought to all involved. Da Weez went to the show and taped, not a cheap or trivial proposition. Sounds like Sandy (RIP) was around. At the very least, D5scott has taken the time, lending gear and skill to transfer the tapes. Tom Anderson's db.etree and Brewster Kahle's archive.org, helped along by casts of countless volunteers, help us fingerprint the fileset and hear it at any time from wherever you are. Deadlists keeps a canonical reference from The List of ca. early 2000s. The ArcHIVE, consisting of thousands of decentralized copies held by fans and collectors everywhere, relentlessly propagates itself, inter alia through "eternal flame reseeds at the torrent site Lossless Legs (shnflac.net). And, literally, on and on It goes: the parameter I'd use to state Its temporal limit asymptotically approaches the limit of humanity itself.

In other news, "Alabama Getaway" sprints out all flared nostrils and deep, grungy guitar from the first break, coked-out and scatterbrained. There's an "Funniculi Finnicula" tease before "Candyman", and Jerry sounds frisky.

Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You?

A little over a year ago, I found a review of a unique-sounding Garcia-Saunders gig, backing Maria Muldaur at the Berkeley Community Theatre on October 12, 1974.

While unique at the gig level, it turns out that JGMS backing John Kahn's then-"old lady" Maria Muldaur, still flying high from a hit record or two, was actually not unique. Indeed, we have known from tape that she fronted the band on a few numbers --along with a drummer identified as "Ringo"-- on 10/27/74b at the Golden Bear in Huntington Beach, doing Fats Wallers' "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You". update: written by Don Redman, but done by Fats Waller.

It turns out that the latter was a pretty strict reprise, since they all did the same tune at the BCT show and the night after the BCT show, 10/13/74 at the Santa Barbara County Bowl. S.B. reviewer David Rowell didn't find much to like about the Garcia-Saunders set --"What was coming from the stage was, at worst, disdain; at best, a 'stoned' lack of awareness"-- but he liked Maria (who also played some tambourine on the number before her star turn). In hitting the previous link, I see that the sit-in is documented at JGC, but I had been unaware of it.

In previewing the Legion at the Granada on 6/26/75, the Santa Barbara News-Review even published a picture of the event in question.

One last point: the same 6/26/75 preview says Maria also sat-in when the Legion played Venice on 6/14/75, so there's a fourth JG-HOST Shared Stage event with Maria (three in SoCal), before she joined the Jerry Garcia Band in its 1977-1978 configuration.

! seealso: http://jgmf.blogspot.com/2011/09/recently-added-to-tjs-saunders-images.html

! ref: Rowell, David B. 1974. Garcia and Saunders take the back seat. Santa Barbara News-Press, October 14, B2.
 

GD Portland 7/25/72

Man, that interlude in The Other One on 7/25/72 is the bee's knees. Jim Powell's analysis (at Deadlists) just refers to it as "mystery theme". LIA: "the Allmans-like Jam in the Other One of 7/25/72 ... sounds so composed it's hard to believe they only did it once."

It sounded a little Jeffersonian, a little Youngbloodsish, a little this and a little that, to me. Discuss.

update

LIA's maiden blog post was on this jam! Awesome.

GD Fillmore West April 9, 1970

https://archive.org/details/gd1970-04-09.137104.aud.cousinit.flac16/gd1970-04-09-d2t03.flac

What a hottie this Good Lovin' jam is!

These shows are only represented in imperfect audience tapes, but they are crucial documents from a period relatively underrepresented on soundboard tape. 7/12/70 at the Fillmore East is another one of these shows that has gotten too little attention because of soundboard snobbery. For this period, which rages, audience tapes are mostly all we have.

! R: Seeder cousinit provides these notes: "I believe this is a different AUD version compared to [Harry] Ely's master. An example is how Katie Mae differs (to me) in the way the guitar is captured. In the Ely version the guitar can barely be heard. This version has the guitar much more prominent."

! P: seeder notes: The Other One is a absolute monster ..."

This whole show just sizzles, and in all kinds of different ways. Pigpen shines, fronting one of the world's great electric backing band on "It's A Man's, Man's, Man's, Man's, Man's World," and feeling his solo acoustic country blues with "Katie Mae", who walks around "like she got oil wells in her back yard."

"Cowboy Song" is a true oddity. No-one seems entirely sure that it's David Bromberg, and perhaps feel it's not him at all? I wonder if this could have been not the folkie but that gentleman of the same name who wrote Guitar Player's Garcia feature in 1971? Often these music journalists did some picking (see the GPI Guitar Jam in whatever year that was). It might just be spurious, someone's wild guess.

Looking forward to hearing this Other One.

Bay Area Music Venues via deaddisc.com

http://www.deaddisc.com/GDFD_Venues.htm

This is the "Bay Area Music Venues" page at the amazing deaddisc. It complements JGBP nicely because presents a discographical view of the same spaces.