Expressway Day: Garcia-Saunders at the Golden Bear, Huntington Beach, December 29, 1974

I woke up this morning with "Expressway (To Your Heart)" playing in my head.

Not just any Expressway, mind you. But the one played by Jerry and Merl and crew (possibly calling themselves Legion of Mary backstage and such) at the Golden Bear in Huntington Beach on December 29, 1974, to end (or just about) the late show. And not just any generic representation of it, but the one  captured by "Flashback" Charlie DiSalvo using 2x Shure Unidyne IVs (spaced ca. 15') > into his Uher 4400, little 5" reels @ 3.75ips.

You see, way back when my digital home was DeadNetCentral (DNC), and especially the Garcia folder there (shocker). And someone with whom I have just been reconnected, but whose name is eluding my brain right now, either encouraged or brought over legendary East Coast taper Jerry Moore, who brought over his ol show-going pal Flashback Charlie. Or something like that. We also had the great Jimmy Warburton over there at times as I recall, Harvey Lubar maybe on occasion, and other folks. Again, I am foggy on the details, but somehow I got connected with all of those guys. Jerry and I got quite close, and I was lucky to work up the info files for the systematic state-of-the-art digital transfers a group was doing under the "Moore's Masters" moniker.

Charlie had made a tape that made a huge impact on me, and that was this 12/29/74b. Someone, maybe Jerry but not sure, had transferred the tape to DAT, from there it went to CD, from there it came to me, maybe via Sean Cribbs. (At some point Charlie sent me a sweet print of Bob Minkin's pic of the Jerry Band at the Cap, 11/26/77, and a print of his picture of Jerry Garcia and Friends from the Music Hall, 3/25/72, which IIRC Charlie got into by climbing up a fire escape), and I extracted the audio (using EAC with offsets corrected, etc., natch), tracked it using WavMerge and CDWav (guaranteed to cut on sector boundaries, important to us back then), and losslessly compressed it to .shn format using mkwACT. Looks like I forget to make the shn files seekable, which is a major blunder, and someone came along and re-encoded them to make them more usable. I submitted the fileset to the etree database on May 7, 2002 (I presume semester had just ended), where it still lives today as shnid-8643. I assume I circulated it in various ways, and certainly at some point uploaded it to the tol.etree.org FTP server, from where it became forever part of the arcHIVE, the brilliant, massively redundant decentralized repository of bit-perfect clones comprised by all of our collections.

Charlie became unwell, and as far as I know he is still alive, but is not reachable for me. I hope he is OK, because he was a sweet wonderful guy in my experience with him. Jimmy has told me that Charlie's tapes ended up with an ex in a divorce, may still exist, but it's not known how to get a hold of them. If anyone here has any notion of that, please drop me a line!

Charlie said this about taping these shows (DNC Garcia folder post by Sean Cribbs, April 3, 2002):

That machine was a bitch to run! ... I placed one mic in front of Jerry and the other one was passed down to total strangers in front of Martin Fierro. The stereo effect was amazing, almost like setting up in a studio. You can hear the drums go from the left to the right.

Anyway, that tape BLEW MY MIND. It is burned into my DNA. Especially the 16+ minute version of "Expressway (To Your Heart)", which is a great Philly soul number in its own right, but which Garcia and Saunders made into a soul-jazz-funk extravagaganza (typo, but I'll keep the extra syllable in there for fun) that burns, drives, hops and grooves, and makes me want to boogie. I had listened to it a few more times over the years, then in January 2021 the GEMS crew polished it up a little bit, put it together with the early show, and circulated it anew as shnid-151373. This invited --no, practically obligated-- me to revisit the ol' favorite and I did so over a few different sessions earlier this year. 

And man does it stand up.

I lack the understanding and vocabulary to do it justice, beyond "jeepers, mister, this is really strong" and whatnot. Here are my real-time listening notes:

I really hear the bassist SHREDDING, e.g., in the 4-minute range and I ask myself if this is really John. Not that he couldn't shred in this period - he could. But man is he on fire here. Martin has been laying pretty low this version so far. There he is, stepping up at 6:25. Tutt is hammering, BTW. Man, this is so good. Revisiting some months later: 4:39 it's just hot hot hot, and this is John all right. Man is this hot. 4:57 inpsired little slide. Hangs a big pull 5:18. John is *feelin' it* to 5:29!!! Listen to Tutt in the 9 min mark! MAN. Martin doing "Red Clay" 10:56, Kahn giant response 11:10, Tutt KILLING, all behind Garcia absolutely tearing it up. Down low and quiet 12:37, such a nice contrast with the preceding insanity. More "Red Clay" over 15.

Anyway, here on the show's 47th anniversary, I invite you to get a killer audio setup to enjoy the big stereo separation from the spread mics, settle in with your cuppa coffee or whatever, listen to Jerry and Merl and KAHN and TUTT and Martin absolutely tear it up. Kahn is especially unbelievable here, but I also find Tutt just slaying over and over again. I am not saying this would be the first 16 minutes of Jerry and Merl I would bring to the proverbial desert island, but if I got 5 such chunks it'd be in the running. Two big snaps up.

Let's all give a big shoutout to Flashback Charlie for pulling a masterpiece out of the fog. As self-appointed mayor of my imaginary Garciaville, I hereby decree December 29th to be Expressway Day in his honor. Turn it up!

Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders
Golden Bear
306 Ocean Avenue
Huntingon Beach, CA 90740
December 29, 1974 (Sunday) Early and Late Shows
shnid-151373 GEMS Remaster and Packaging of SHNIDs 8643 and 93978

 --early show (7 tracks, 5 tunes, 83:41)--
e-t01. [0:03] That's A Touch I Like [10:54] [0:07] % [0:16]
e-t02. Favela [16:22] [0:22]
e-t03. ambience [1:35]
e-t04. You Can Leave Your Hat On [16:58] [0:35]
e-t05. Sitting In Limbo [16:26] [0:14] %
e-t06. ambience [1:07]
e-t07. I Second That Emotion [18:32] (1)

--late show (9 tracks, 6 tunes, 93:54)--
l-t08. Mystery Train [14:20] %
l-t09. ambience [1:14]
l-t10. La-La [16:47] ->
l-t11. People Make The World Go Round [428] [0:10] %
l-t12. (I'm A) Roadrunner [15:14] [0:11] %
l-t13. ambience [1:17]
l-t14. Going, Going, Gone [22:07] [0:20] %
l-t15. ambience (2) [1:15]
l-t16. Expressway (To Your Heart)// [16:32#]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - electric guitar, vocals;
! lineup: Merl Saunders - keyboards, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - electric bass;
! lineup: Martin Fierro - saxophone, flute, percussion;
! lineup: Ron Tutt - drums;
! guest: Maria Muldaur - vocals (e-t05).

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [x:xx] = 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/19741229-01 (early); https://jerrybase.com/events/19741229-02 (late)

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/8643 (late show, same source tape, shnf); http://etreedb.org/shn/17019 (same as shnid-8643, seekable shn); http://etreedb.org/shn/93978 (early show, same source tape, but via taperpat's 1st gen reel); http://etreedb.org/shn/151373 (this fileset).

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/1bJXKA6b1Kv

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2011/12/golden-bear-306-ocean-avenue-huntington.html

! listing: Los Angeles Free Press, December 20, 1974, p. 19;

! personnel: the female singer was long identified (e.g., in "Odds and Ends," Dead Relix 2, 1 [January-February 1975], p. 21) as Donna Jean Godchaux, but in seeding this years back I thought it sounded more like Maria. Listening to this again, definitely Maria.

! R: field recordist: [early show] Charlie Disalvo

! R: field recording gear: [early show] 2x Shure Unidyne IVs (spaced ca. 15') > Uher 4400, 3.75ips master reels

! R: source tape: [early show] taperpat's 3.75ips 1st gen reel

! R: transfer: [early show] A > D by Matt Smith: Akai GX 625 playback > Apogee Mini ME (@24/96) > Apogee Mini DAC (monitoring) > Wavelab 5.0 (dithered to 20/44) > CD

! R: lineage 1 (ca. 2003): [early show] Track & FLAC (jj): EAC > CD Wave > Sony Sound Forge Studio 7.0 (d1t01 fade-in, d2t01-d2t02 fade-out/in, d2t03 fade-out) > Trader's Little Helper (FLAC8 encoding).

! R: lineage 2 (2020): [early show] speed corrections by Jason Chastain per request of JGMF. Mastering by Jamie Waddell. Track FLAC and Pack by Steve Gravel. Note - Multiple moments of digistatic repaired, most are undetectable but a few major spots were damaged beyond invisible repair, but are much more listenable now. seeded to www.shnflac.net January 4, 2021 16 bit 44.1 kHz FLAC8

! R: recollex: Taper "Flashback" Charlie Disalvo says this about taping these shows (DNC Garcia folder post by Sean Cribbs, April 3, 2002): "That machine was a bitch to run! ... I placed one mic in front of Jerry and the other one was passed down to total strangers in front of Martin Fierro. The stereo effect was amazing, almost like setting up in a studio. You can hear the drums go from the left to the right."

! P: e-t02 Favela Martin takes the first feature, good. Jerry steps in around 6:15 and it's his turn, Martin now shaking some percussion. JG only goes three minutes, now Merl 9:15ff. Merl didn't really do much with his turn. 11:46 some muddle as to who's doing what.

! P: e-t05 SIL Garcia plucks ethereally 10.

! P: e-t07 ISTE I am not a big fan of this tune, and this version captures why, at least up to the 11 minute mark. Garcia just doesn't have much place to go with it. Martin quotes "The Entertainer" at 11:10, a second time. Silly.

! e-t07 (1) JG: "Thanks a lot. See y'all later on."

! metadata: Late show was previously believed to be set II of a two set show, but the taper confirms that this is the late show.

! R: field recordist: [late show] Charlie Disalvo

! R: field recording gear: [late show] 2x Shure Unidyne IVs (spaced ca. 15') > Uher 4400, 3.75ips master reels

! lineage 1 (ca. 2003): [late show] MAR > ? > D > CD. Extraction using EAC, slight re-tracking using WavMerge and CD Wave, and .shn compression using mkwACT.  Proper sector boundaries verified using shntool. Seeded by jjoops@attbi.com.

! R: lineage 2 (2020): [late show] speed corrections by Jason Chastain per request of JGMF. Mastering by Jamie Waddell. Track FLAC and Pack by Steve Gravel. Note - Multiple moments of digistatic repaired, most are undetectable but a few major spots were damaged beyond invisible repair, but are much more listenable now. seeded to www.shnflac.net January 4, 2021 16 bit 44.1 kHz FLAC8

! R: The late show tape sounds much smoother than the early show.

! P: l-t10 La-La JG steps up 6:40 or so.

! l-t15 (2) Member of the crowd is asking "Who's on the bass?" And at least a few people recognize Expressway as it starts.

! P: l-t16 ETYH of course, having been primed by the question in note #2, I really hear the bassist SHREDDING, e.g., in the 4-minute range and I ask myself if this is really John. Not that he couldn't shred in this period - he could. But man is he on fire here. Martin has been laying pretty low this version so far. There he is, stepping up at 6:25. Tutt is hammering, BTW. Man, this is so good. Revisiting some months later: 4:39 it's just hot hot hot, and this is John all right. Man is this hot. 4:57 inpsired little slide. Hangs a big pull 5:18. John is *feelin' it* to 5:29!!! Listen to Tutt in the 9 min mark! MAN. Martin doing "Red Clay" 10:56, Kahn giant response 11:10, Tutt KILLING, all behind Garcia absolutely tearing it up. Down low and quiet 12:37, such a nice contrary with the preceding insanity. More "Red Clay" over 15.

! R: l-t16 ETYH cuts out, probably not too much missing, though knowing Jerry I might imagine it dropping into a sweet little How Sweet to wrap up the evening's proceedings.

The WSJ piece

It's interesting how a thing in such a high profile place generates so much feedback, and a much wider range of feedback than I am used to from here or the Dead blogosphere/Twittersphere. I just want to sit at my desk and listen to tunes and parse data and think and write.

Let me just bullet a few things.

A lot of this was just off hand shit I say in conversation. Like, I don't think I am some kind of Einstein or anything. I certainly didn't lead with Steve by saying I was the world's greatest expert. I led by introducing myself, telling him I was working on a book about Garcia beyond the GD, and expressing interest in talking to him. In terms of being the "world's greatest expert", I would first qualify myself as an external expert, and even then, of course, there's Blair and Dennis and Gans and lots of other people in that mix. The big point is that such a claim is not meant seriously. I am known to quip that anyone who does a PhD becomes the world's greatest expert in a piece of a slice of a fraction of next-to-nothing. All of the professional incentives, or most of them, drive us to this kind of specialization, which to outsiders can look like -- maybe rightly!-- obscurantism, emphasis on the trivial, and so forth. What's more, I am a huge believer in Popper's notion that "in our infinite ignorance, we are all equal". I could get all metphysical and whatnot about that, but I'll just cop right now to the fact that the depth of my ignorance, even around stuff like the EU or Garcia On The Side (GOTS), is no less than the depth of anyone else's ignorance on these or any other topic. So it's all off-hand, and falsely immodest to try to sharpen the very real (often self-deprecating) circumspection I bring to my own ability to understand anything.

In the same vein, the fancy words like "cliometrics" are just offhand things that live in my brain. In engaging any Garcia event, I first want to pin down the who, the where, and the what. So I want the sociometric, geometric, and the chronometric particulars. (I prefer chrono- to clio-, truthfully.) If I can pin down those three pieces about any given event with reasonable certainty, I feel like it "exists" in a way I can work with. This is not some kind of fancy scientism. It's certainly not an ontological position. It's just what my brain needs to know so it can settle in to try to understand at a deeper level, in a more humanistic, qualitative, Verstehen kind of way, and also more broadly, trying to figure out implications for how Jerry (and, generalizing, all of us) try to manage our creative drives, marry passion and practicality, pursue a meaningful life within the constraints of late modern America, and so forth.

I also joke self-deprecatingly about being obsessive with this stuff, and this one is a little trickier. I almost certainly qualify as such on any reasonable denotation of the word. But beyond joking about it, the word "obsessive" holds a  negative connotation which I don't feel necessarily applies to my experience with this kind of intellectual / creative urge or drive. I prefer the word "passionate", which of course has positive connotations. But I challenge anyone to offer definitions of these words that differ denotatively, rather than merely insofar as one is negative or problematic or pitiable and the other is positive or productive or laudable. I think the best attempt would equate obsession with some kind of other pathology, or bad outcomes. As they say with addiction, if the thing starts getting in the way of other things in your life.

So then we get into whether my "passion" has been negative or positive. One guy on Facebook, projecting all kinds of his own issues it seems to me, seemed to think that I was wasting my life, that I had destroyed my personal relationships, that my kids would be scarred for life. On the first point, I consider myself to be living my life, and quite fully at that. I don't even know what someone would mean by "wasting" your life. It's just your life, you are living it. We have so many breaths, we take them, and we're done. I have an amazing day job, an amazing hobby, I meditate and exercise and try to be a good person and listen to lots of tunes and read good books and all of that. Could I have gotten more political science research done if I had spent these hours doing that? Maybe, but probably not as meaningfully. I like to work deeply, not churn stuff out. I think honesty does require that I acknowledge the possibility, though.

In terms of my personal relationships, I concede that the one alluded to in the piece probably suffered for my passion for researching GOTS. But, conversely, my passion for GOTS was partly product of avoidance of interpersonal unpleasantness. That's not a good thing, but it does reverse the causal arrow. In any case, 29 years is a good long run, and it wasn't going to last much longer, Jerry or no Jerry. In terms of my kiddos, you'd have to ask them, of course. But I can say that the EU and GOTS are only in second place (2A and 2B, if you'd like) in my hierarchy of passions. My children are #1 by a country mile. And I think they'd report that their dad is wildly in love with them, wildly devoted to them, has modeled for them how to live a life full of joy and enthusiasm, how to trust and follow one's own lights, and that the Garcia stuff was a quirky, fun, weird, interesting, unique thing about him that was a net positive. Again, though, one would have to ask them.

Some people think it's crazy, insane, pointless, a waste, stupid to do this work trying to figure out, e.g., who the Garcia Band backing vocalists were from October 24, 1982 to November 15, 1982. I get it. It's not gonna end world hunger. But art, literature, poetry, love, dance, music itself, birding, icthyology, space exploration, learning a dead language, and infinite numbers of other pursuits could be subject to the same evaluation. My question is - so what? Who cares what someone's passion is? Who cares if it "matters" in some broader sense? I always say that I make a difference in the world in the classroom and at the dinner table. That's where I create the kinds of positive externalities, certainly endeavor to, that will leave the world better off than I found it. So who cares if my 11 year old mind liked sorting baseball cards by number, then by team, then by position, then alphabetical by last name, only to do it over again the next day? Who cares if my teenaged self pored over Deadbase and tried to collect a tape of every single Dead show? Who cares if my adult self likes to read about how the EU legislative sausage gets made, or how cognition is classification, or how institutions form our puny attempts at forming outposts of local order to move forward through time and cirumstances which churn at a much higher rate around them, buffeted by the most fundamental "force" in the universe, entropy? And, similarly, who cares if I want to spend my leisure hours making spreadsheets about Jerry? No-one is hurt in the making of this work. It's a hobby, it keeps me off the streets, and it's good clean fun.

I guess I'll pause there for now. Hope you and yours are all well and that your lives can be full of joy and curiosities indulged.

At Camp Loma Mar [At Camp Loma Mar] | kids can swim [kids can swim] | all the way to China [all the way to China] | Ha ha ha [ha ha ha] | Ho ho ho [ho ho ho]

As a sixth grader at Burton Valley Elementary School in Lafayette California in the spring of 1982 I got to go to sixth grade camp. This seems like a thing that still happens for kids --at least certain kinds of kids from certain kinds of schools-- in their terminal year of elementary school. Where I am now, and so for my kids, it's CalWood west of Boulder. In my case, we went to Camp Loma Mar, in the coastal forest east of Pescadero, California.

This is not the kind of thing I normally remember. But we had an ancient ranger, like in his 90s at this point, whose name I can't remember, but who, among other things, did a sing-along containing the titular line, and this imprinted on me. Maybe it's also that sixth grade was a big year for me, immersed as I was with two of my greatest influences- - my school teacher James A. Barry, and my Little League coach Jack Gordon (USMC ret.). I could write thousands of words about each of these men and his impact on me, but I won't do so here. I'll just say it was a huge year in my life, and to the extent that I have discipline and confidence and strength and success, they deserve a lof of the credit.

In light of this deep personal connection to Camp Loma Mar, and in light of my love of discovering possible Garciavents that Corry hasn't already written 10,000 words about (for a palate cleanser, mind you), I was stoked to stumble across a possible new-to-The-List Grateful Dead gig at Camp Loma Mar, Sunday, May 14, 1967. Now, LIA, another act always hard to follow, had gotten wind of this:

In mid-May 1967, [Richard] Brautigan took part in a San Francisco State Writer's Conference, a three-day event at Camp Loma Mar in Pescadero, a small seaside town twenty miles north of Santa Cruz. Over fifty local writers had been invited to participate... After three days of sunshine, readings, workshops, and literary chit-chat, the conference ended with a 'Festival of Feeling' for which the Grateful Dead provided music (William Hjortsberg, Jubilee Hitchhiker: the Life & Times of Richard Brautigan, p.308)

He went on to say that "I don’t think the Dead played any such event, as there’s no other trace of this, but it’s fun to contemplate." (He took an even stronger stance on this being a false sighting in comments chez Corry.)

I have now found a new ex ante trace, in the San Francisco State University Daily Gater, dated May 12, 1967, available through the school library's digital repository.

"Writers convene to rock out with literary eccentrics, etc.," Daily Gater, May 12, 1967, p. 6.

The operative part reads "a rock dance with the Grateful Dead and the Lighthouse for the Blind is tentatively scheduled for Sunday."

Now, I note the word "tentatively", and I certainly don't consider this proof that the Dead played. But this, combined with Hjortsberg's reference to the event as one that happened, does increase my estimate of the probability that the gig did happen. And, of course, given my connection to the place, the possibility makes me feel like I might be able to swim ... all the way to China ... ha ha ha.

Slowly Unraveled Over You: JGB 3c at Keystone Palo Alto, April 9, 1977

Obviously I am catching up on posting some listening notes. Quality will be even more variable than usual.

LN jg1977-04-09.jgb.all.aud-bunjes.13361.shn2flac

Some tapes travel unlikely paths to our ears. Here's an unattributed aud tape, the only one circulating, which went to Germany before coming out into the broader world. I really love the feel of it. It's not amazing, but it's got character.

The show features what I presently list as JGB 3c. JGB 3 is the basic Keith and Donna version with Tutt, starting in '76. Not least because the JGB was relatively uninstitutionalized at this point, many variations popped up around the invariant Jerry, John and Keith core. I have proposed cataloguing them as follows:

3b: #3 + Maria - e.g., 9/12/76

3c: #3 + second guitarist - e.g., 11/20/76

3d: #3 + John Rich - e.g., 12/21/76

3e: #3 + Maria + second guitarist - e.g., 2/5/77

3f: #3 - Tutt + Errico - e.g., 6/23/77

3g: #3 - Donna + Maria (e.g., 7/3/77)

3h: #3 - Donna (e.g., 7/8/77)

3i: #3 - Tutt + Kreutzmann - e.g., 8/12/77

I know that's a little bit ridiculous, but it has the nice taxonomic quality of the categories being mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive.

So, I say I say I say, 4/9/77 features variant 3c, the basic group plus the second guitarist. He is pretty far in the background most of the night, as he was on every night he played. He plays tastefully throughout, though, seems to eschew a feature opportunity in "Stir It Up" and steps forward a little more, seemingly because everyone else in the band was insisting that he take the space that they were giving him, during "Tore Up". This is his last known appearance with Jerry, though we can't really be sure. At the setbreak announcement, Jerry says something about getting things straightened out, which might be nothing, might be equipment related, or might indeed be about attempting to find alignment with the visitor.

The post title speaks to this version of "Tore Up Over You", which doesn't involve Hank Ballard's sudden rending so much as a soft disentegument. Clocking in at almost 20 minutes (!), this has to be the longest version of this tune ever played by anyone. It finds some nice quiet and open spaces, and Jerry even bends some strings for a bit, but to me it stands as a cautionary tale and monument to the excesses of JGB #3 - whatever the suffix.

Set II is short for the period, 3 songs and 47 minutes (heh heh). I wouldn't be surprised if a tune or two preceded Midnight Moonlight, or happened in between the songs presented here. We can't tell, since there are tape discontinuities after every song. We do know that Tangled Up bumped up against closing time in Palo Alto. (No, not 9 PM, you Weisenheimers.)

All told, very glad this tape made its way into the world, though it does nothing to dissuade me from the view that JGB #3 was most often kind of a snooze.

Jerry Garcia Band

Keystone Palo Alto

260 S. California Avenue

Palo Alto, CA 94306 

April 9, 1977 (Saturday)

aud shnid-13361 shn2flac

--set I (6 tracks, 72:43)--

s1t01. They Love Each Other [8:08] % [0:11]

s1t02. That's What Love Will Make You Do [11:06] [0:05] %

s1t03. Stir It Up [15:40] [0:06] %

s1t04. [0:05] Simple Twist Of Fate [14:02][0:09] %

s1t05. [0:06] Mystery Train [10:22] [0:03] % [0:05]

s1t06. The Way You Do The Things You Do [12:13] (1) [0:20]

--set II (3 tracks, possibly incomplete, 47:17)--

s2t01. [0:08] Midnight Moonlight [14:59] [0:02] %

s2t02. [0:16] Tore Up Over You [19:48] [0:08] %

s2t03. Tangled Up In Blue [11:30] (2) [0:13] % dead air [0:11]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #3c

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

! lineup: Keith Godchaux - keyboards, vocals;

! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;

! lineup: Ron Tutt - drums, vocals;

! lineup: Donna Jean Godchaux - vocals;

! guest: [redacted] - el-g.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [x:xx] = 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/19770409-01

! db: shnid-13361 (this fileset)

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/6U9QR2V8UV4YwBDh9

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/11/keystone-sophies-260-s-california-ave.html

! band: JGB #3c (http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html). This band features second guitarist XXX, who was also around on 1/29-30, 2/5-6, and 4/10, at least. This might even be considered a separate band, since that's most of the shows from the first part of '77, and possibly some in late '76 as well.

! setlist: Jerrybase lists starting time, presumably from the contract, as 9:30. If we allow for starting very late and for a very long setbreak, and in view of that fact that TUIB definitely lands on closing time, it's possible this set II is complete. But in the absence of other information, we can't really know. I would not be shocked if another song or two preceded Mid Moon.

! historical: Keystone $750 contract

! ad: San Francisco Sunday Examiner and Chronicle Datebook, April 3, 1977, p. 43

! R: MAC (unknown taper, equipment, location) > reel > playback on Uher reel-to-reel machine > Marantz standalone CD recorder master CD > Plextor CD extraction using EAC (high, secure, offset-corrected) > .shn encoding using mkwACT. Reel > CD by Thomas Donhauser, EAC > SHN and seeding by Hanno.

! R: s1t01-02 needs retracking

! P: s1t02 TWLWMYD I hear the second guitar now, hadn't heard it in TLEO

! P: s1t03 SIU Keith on electric keys. Second guitarist some very gentle stuff 12ish, as if it were his feature.

! s1t06 (1) JG: "We're gonna take a break for a little while. We'll be back a little bit -- later, see if we can get things straight."

! P: s2t01 Mid Moon should have ended it around 13, Jerry was sort of trying to, but it just kept choogling, so he took another spin with it.

! P: s2t02 TUOY guest takes a feature late 11 over 12. He sounds pretty good! The tune enters an extremely quiet section in 16. I can't believe they will end up playing this song for almost 20 minutes? Jerry bending some strings 17:20.

! s2t03 (2) Emcee: "Thank you, thank you very much. Folks, it's 2 o'clock. [inaudible, maybe 'we've got to go']"

! s1t06 (1) JG: "We'll take a break for a little while. We'll be back a little ... later ... soon as we can get things straight."

Chatty Cathy in the House: JGB at the Stone, December 18, 1981

LN jg1981-12-18.jgb.all.aud-martin.16379.shn2flac

I recently learned the term "chompers" to describe people who talk through shows. Well, this phenomenon is as old as time, with the triad of the drum, the chomper and the shusher perhaps very nearly co-constituting each other In The Beginning.

Bill Kreutzmann drums, the chomper talks all show long, and I don't really hear a shusher on the in-your-face ambient recording pulled by taper Steven Martin through modified Nak 700s at the Stone on December 18, 1981. A Whistling Wally appears briefly, but thankfully he rethinks or otherwise abandons his accompaniment. Nothing in the show draws particular comment. This one is all about the tape, which totally puts you there.

I still don't understand how Kreutzmann came to be in the JGB in 1981-1982. What sequence of events and decisions produced this outcome? I dunno.

Some stuff I have been going through recently really lays bare just how impossibly intermingled were the finances of the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia (an sich) in this period. Money big and small is moving on the regular, especially in the GD -> JG direction, partly through the practice of the O/A - an "on account" withdrawal that facilitated Jerry getting lots of cash, very frequently, in the days before widespread ATMs. But there were also much bigger loans, often in the low five figures. After every Garcia Band tour, there's a reckoning of income and expenses --we are moderns, after all, and must genuflect before Double Entry Bookkeeping--, and big chunks of what's left go to such things as paying Jerry's back taxes and paying back the GD. Ownership of assets such as the Neve console or the rest of the Front Street studio setup, which Jerry respectively bought and paid for with his Cats Under the Stars advance from Arista in 1977, was murky. Despite the heroic efforts of Bonnie Simmons and Sue Stephens and many other office folks, for many, many years it seems like Garcia just kept burning through wads of cash while Phil, inter alia, seethed. It's hard to blame the rest of the guys for worrying about all of this, though of course there would have been no "this" without Jerry, so they were in a little bit of a bind, limited in what they could do.

I know these thoughts are inchoate. I will say a lot more, and presumably more coherently, in Fate Music. But I do think that the story of 81-82 Jerry Band clearly expresses the mess of the man's life, financially and otherwise, in this period of time. They'd take in $107k on a tour like JGB in February 1981, and see $112k soaked up immediately, to say nothing of ongoing, longterm, lingering giant debts or everyday petty and not so petty cash needs. And I wonder if Billy being onboard after business was settled with Ronnie Tutt was related to all of this. Of course, it could just be that Rock had his number. Again: I dunno.

In the meantime, the band played on, and the people drank, danced, chatted, and taped, and it was kind of a hoot, all things considered.

Jerry Garcia Band
The Stone
412 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94133
December 18, 1981 (Friday)
Martin MAC shnid-16379 shn2flac

--set I (6 tracks, 5 tunes, 46:33)--
s1t01. ambience [0:22]
s1t02. The Way You Do The Things You Do [7:42] [0:12] % [0:05]
s1t03. Sitting In Limbo [11:53] [0:09] %
s1t04. /Mystery Train [8:36] [0:08] %
s1t05. /Mississippi Moon [9:58] [0:08] %
s1t06. /Deal [7:22] (1) [0:04]

--set II (5 tracks, 4 tunes, 49:36)--
s2t01. ambience [0:32]
s2t02. Sugaree [10:31] [0:20]
s2t03. I'll Take A Melody [15:14] [0:13] %
s2t04. Russian Lullaby [12:47] ->
s2t05. Tangled Up In Blue [9:53] [0:03]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #14a
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - electric keyboards;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: Bill Kreutzmann - drums;
! lineup: Julie Stafford - vocals;
! lineup: Liz Stires - vocals.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [x:xx] = 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/19811218-01

! db: https://etreedb.org/shn/16379 (this fileset); https://etreedb.org/shn/135462 (Ohr Weinberg MAC).

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

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

! band: JGB #14a (http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html). We used to call this 14c, but it was born before b then came back, and we use the order in which they appeared to identify.

! R: such a fun tape! Jerry's vocals are low, but there's great ambience (including very chatty chomper nearby - it's not a new thing, folks!), and the backing vocalists are coming through strong, especially one of them. Chatty Cathy does keep distracting me, e.g., in Sugaree. Shush!

! R: field recordist: Steven Martin

! R: field recording gear: 2x modified Nakamichi CM-700 mics > Sony TC-D5 cassette deck

! R: field recording media: 2x Maxell XLII

! R: transfer: Nakamichi Dragon playback > Cardas audiophile cables > HHB CDR 800 master CD > Microboards QD2 CD clone > HP 9350i extraction (EAC v0.9 beta 4) > tracking (CD Wave v1.6) > patching (SF Studio 6.0) > sector boundary verification (shntool v1.01) > .shn encoding (mkwACT v0.97 beta 1). CD > SHN by Joe Jupille (jjoops@attbi.com). shn2flac jgmf 12/18/2021.

! R: seeder comments: This is a nice recording with lots of crowd ambience and energy, and most tunes barely clipping in.  In both respects it strongly resembles a different master of the same show made by Ohr Weinberg (Senn 421s > Sony TC-D5M Dolby B MAC, transfer by Jim Wise via Nakamichi Dragon > Sony PCM-R500 > HHB-800).  They are indeed different masters, though. Weinberg's master has a tape flip at the transition between Russian Lullaby and Tangled Up in Blue at the end of set II, while Martin's flips @ 7:24 of Tangled Up.  So I could have used Martin's to patch Weinberg's or Weinberg's to patch Martin's.  I chose the latter, and I think it was the right choice based on the 7:24-8:16 piece in Tangled Up. Besides the clipped starts of songs, no other flaws were noted. A MisSHN in the Rain Installment of the Music Never Stopped Project.

! R: s1t04 Mystery Train clips in

! R: s1t05 Miss Moon clips in

! R: s1t06 Deal clips in

! R: s2t03 ITAM @ 5:47 a guy whistled a measure, and I thought Whistling Wally was gonna join Chatty Cathy on this tape. But it appears to have been a momentary burst of enthusiasm.

! P: s2t03 RussLull John steps forward 5:48. The crowd seems to support and encourage this, for reasons that must forever remain mysterious. It's a full blown solo for quite awhile. Ends at 9, crowd gives John a nice round of applause. Note they have been drinking for hours by this time. (I keed, of course.)

! P: s2t05 TUIB gets nice and loud

! s1t06 (1) JG: inaudible set break announcement

Little Legal Matters: JGB #1 at Keystone, November 8, 1975

LN jg1975-11-08.jgb.all.aud-castelli-motb-0151.109001.flac1644

ad for JGB 11/8/75 at Keystone, SFSECDB-19751102-p31

Not going to do long listening notes, so a few random bits from this one.

First, "Micky" [sic] Hopkins. Heh heh. We are easily amused here. Also @Corry: the ad says advance tickets at BASS, but that was absolutely not the case for any Jerry show at the Keystone in this period that I can recall - no stubs at all. Did they just not have room to say "except for Jerry" in the BASS notice at the bottom? :) (I suspect the absence of tickets relates to the little legal matter referenced in point 3 below.) Also again, who the heck is opener Bobbie Kosser (billed on the monthly Keystone calendar)?

Second, in early CD trading days I had gotten a copy of this show listed as "sbd", and it took me a minute to figure out it was an aud. When I mentioned it to Bob Menke one time, inquiring whether it was his, he said he didn't tape it but knew who did. Then, some years later, the Robert Castelli aud comes out via Menke and the MOTB crew. I haven't cross-checked them, but I'd be shocked if they weren't the very same tape. How a copy ended up on CD before the MOTB release is not clear to me.

Third, the first set ends earlier than expected as the fire marshal stops by. Jerry is "more grin than beard", as Weir once said, in bemusedly noting the issue, which I am sure Corry will recognize is flowing from the material facts of the Keystone Berkeley's commercial strategy:

Seems the fire marshal is outside, so we have to take a break while everything cools out before we all get busted. Sorry, that's the way it goes. We'll be back in a few minutes, no sweat. Y'know, it's just one of those little legal matters.

Fourth, in a burst of enthusiasm, Nicky riffs like this is a BBC Live presentation, doing a little piano thing that I imagine was theme music, though it might be something else. Anita O'Day features in this little scenario. I looked her up, and she sounds incredible! As ever, I am grateful to Jerry and Co. for broadening my cultural horizons, because I was quite unaware of her. Sounds like she had a few "little legal matters" of her own, to deal with, and did so with panache and without regret.

Fifth, Nicky sounds pretty together this night and plays some wonderful, beautiful stuff.

Sixth, fast FOTD FTW. Don't @ me.

Seventh, how about the big beautiful showstopper of LSTNT -> Edward, the greatest setpiece of any Jerry Band, which shows what JGB #1 with Nicky might have been, in conception if not always in execution? This one is good, not amazing. For my taste it hews a little too closely to the root songs to be an all-timer. Jerry returns a few times to LSTNT instead of taking it out, and Edward, too, keeps close to  home. There's some really interesting stuff, no doubt, including a little theme around 15 minute mark of LSTNT that might have a name, but it's not the version I'd play for a novitiate to show off what this band could do. I think the version on Let It Rock (LSTNT from 11/17/75, Edward from 11/18/75) is really good, but I also absolutely love the monster version from 12/20/75, which offers up top-shelf, grade A JGB #1.

Listening notes after the jump.

The December '85 Garcia Band Shows

LN jg1985-12-14.jgb.all.aud-CC.137723.flac1644

LN jg1985-12-15.jgb.all-1.aud-CC.137724.flac1644

LN jg1985-12-21.jgb.all.aud-gale.14980.shn2flac

LN jg1985-12-22.jgb.all.aud-gale.14981.shn2flac

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

Earlier this year I posted listening notes on four JGB shows from August 1985, and here I do the same for December of the same year. It's relatively feasible to do this for Rock Bottom shows because they are fun sized, with sets regularly clocking in below 45 minutes.

The shows make for nice comparison pieces in this regard.

Recall these set lengths from August:

DATE      s1      s2           TT      
8/4/85    46:03   31:04      77:07
8/5/85    49:31   48:37      88:08
8/9/85    42:26   38:32      80:58
8/10/85  37:08   34:14      81:22

Here are the December equivalents:

DATE         s1        s2            TT      
12/14/85    47:22   39:24       86:46
12/15/85    42:31   29:02*     71:33 *missing Cats, probably about 8-9 minutes
12/21/85    50:11   34:09       84:20
12/22/85    40:03   44:03       84:06

So, things are not very much different four months on. More than half the sets fit on a tape side (5 of 8 and 6 of 8, respectively). In the case of the December tapes, this is not due to tape discontinuities: Jerry runs from one song to the next with very little time between, and the taper kept things rolling. That sub-35 minute 12/21 II, looks mighty short, but it probably doesn't enter the bottom five for shortest electric sets.

The big difference, then, is in personnel: the August shows involve THE Jerry Garcia Band, #21b, which ran with only a single interruption from ca. July 10, 1984 to November 19, 1993, Jerry's longest-running aggregation. The interruption happened October 1985 - February 1986 when, for reasons unknown, David Kemper was not drumming, replaced by the legendary Oakland funk master Gaylord Birch. Clean inference would really require blind listening, of course. Here I know Gaylord is in the the house, I am listening for distinctive style, and boy do I hear it. Lots more snare and hi-hat, generally busier, not as much in either respect as Kool-Aid Chemist Paul Humphrey, who played with Jerry and Merl in '74, but closer in style to him than, say, the 50-caliber Greg Errico.

This is Birch's third Garciaverse appearance. He played a few gigs in early '75 (January 21-22) with the Saunders-Garcia aggregation, certainly the funkiest and some of the most challenging gigs Garcia ever did. He next manned the chair from January-September 1979 with Reconstruction, again, an outfit that pushed Garcia out of his comfort zone, the last "challenge band" outside the Dead he ever regulalrly played with. (Not coincidentally, also the last band he'd regularly play with that didn't bear his name.) Finally, we find this little interregnum, nine gigs in six months subbing for David Kemper in the Garcia Band.

Table xxx. Gaylord Birch in the Garcia Band, 1985-1986

(Hopefully that gets a little bigger if you click on it! Otherwise, just click the link above the table.)

(Note that Mid Moon ended every show except the first one. The great Walter Keenan has pointed this regularity out to me before, and here we see it plain as day. The Jerry Band setlists never varied as much as GD setlists did, but this is ... striking even for JGB.)

Anyway, Birch simply amazes me at ever turn here. He had played four gigs in October (7th-8th not in circulation, 13th and 14th), then nothing for two months, then returns for these four in December. I doubt there was an awful lot of practicting going on in the interim, though I don't know anything about that for certain. And, yeah, some of these tunes, like "How Sweet It Is", are going to be straightforward enough, even as the Garcia Band's loose-to-unraveling arrangements, gas-brake tempo fluctuations, and general approach to things would have defied a lesser drummer. But then there are the Garcia originals and tunes played in so many different genres that it's hard to imagine Gaylord had thought much about over the years, less still played. Maybe they threw some charts at him or something, but whatever the preparation they provided him, the '85 Garcia Band would certainly have been pretty darn hard to drum for, I'd imagine. Yet Birch seems to have no trouble at all, with anything. He plays most every tune like he's been playing it for years. It's not perfect, but man is it great, and man oh man is it impressive.

I will paste listening notes below the fold. Nothing will really surprise you here, so let me just sketch some moments I dug. Thanks to the legendary Erik VanO for the ticket stub scans!

12/14

s1t01-GOOMLW great way to kick things off. Melvin sounds great, Jerry finds some liquidy goodness midway through.

s1t02-Garcia steps in the Mutron with a big click and a wahh and the crowd hoots appreciatively, knowing that Catfish John is about to happen.

s1t04-Love In The Afternoon, a song he would never have played outside the GD, Gaylord just shines. He does some stuff 6:50-7 that knocks me out.

s1t06-Deal: there will be no surprises here. "The voice during Deal is horrifying. Big scrubba dubba doo later on 6:49, though. Yow! Go to 7 and hear the Great Barcia wail."

Overall, I had more to say about set I than about set II.

12/15

It's getting toward the holidays, and the crowd sounds drunk and ready to party. Elmer Fudd is definitely in the house vocally. But one of the things to note is that Garcia is figuring out, on the fly, how to sing with his now powerfully limited vocal range. He can't just numb up and try to power through. He has to dial back the force and dial in a little bit of singing nuance. This is really the beginning of the rounding, softening of his style over all. In '83-'84, he'd just BLAST. Here, we see the start of a little more circumspection, more befitting a man of his age.

s1t03 my love of pre-coma 80s JGB Knockin's is well known (to myself). This one is just wonderful. From the notes: "Right at 4:01 or so he hits a terrific guitar combo, and a crowd member yelps at it. 4:45 I love the feel of this - it's like the sound of recovery. Oh my, at 8:35 you hear a thing only Gaylord Birch could ever have done with JGB. Trust me, and check it out. What a drummer."

s1t04 a characteristically shreddy balls-to-the-wall wailing guitar Deal

s2t04 I find him doing some interesting picking in Midnight Moonlight, which is really uncommon at this stage.

12/21

Looks like the weakest show of the run on this set of listens - almost no notes.

Interesting to note the following recollection at Jerrybase: "I stood five feet from him the whole night. He didn't open his eyes once. He also stood at the mike, or one step back or at his amp. Not much movement. The show was great." Those observations and that assessment are, of course, not mutually exlcusive when it comes to Rock Bottom Jerry.

12/22

s1t01 CUTS man, yeah, listen to Gaylord! Yowwww!!! And they don't circle aroud too much at the end. Nice.

s1t04 after a nice salty Think (s1t03), Deal is big, as it was wont to be in this period. Gaylord double-timing some 6:15, crazy high-neck Jerry tone 6:30, even higher 6:49, doesn't sound possible. Big raging Deal here for sure. I can't imagine how loud this must have been in situ.

s2t01 Kahn does some neat stuff in HTC. Attaboy, John. Chin up.

s2t05 somehow my silly mind coins another silly acronym: MAMMM: a mile-a-minute Midnight Moonlight. Gaylord's going to need a cortisone shot after this one.

In Sum

All in all, I don't really have many complaints about these. There's lots of good stuff happening. If you need a haircut, go to Deal on any given night. But, generally, I do think there's something to be said for the effect of fresh blood on ol Jer. Looking back at my August notes, I summarized "Overall, I guess I'd say totally characteristic. Some really good guitar work, some lyrical fumbles, vocals getting rougher by the minute." I think these shows are stronger. I would certainly not play these for the unitiated - the vocals are still pretty terrible. (The tapes have the featurebug that the vocals are buried.) But I hear many interesting moments, and a higher average level, here than I did in August. Some of the credit, I think, has to go to Gaylord. This is no knock on Kemper, whom I love. But it's the same way that people sometimes let themselves go after marriage - no need to impress. But if you are looking to get with someone new, or with someone new, you want to sharpen up a little bit. So you're maybe a little more together ex ante. And, then, the new person brings new stuff - surprises. So you need to listen a little more carefully, and you  have some new stuff to respond to. That's all to the good.

This could all, of course, reflect the narrative fallacy. I know Gaylord is here, and I dream up some story that could plausibly flow from that kind of situation. You should certainly go back and check my work, if you are so inclined. But this idea that the fresh blood brought forth better from our guy is my story here, and for now I am sticking to it.

Listening notes below.

Late '78 Kahn (JGB at Paramount Theatre, Portland, OR, October 26, 1978)

LN jg1978-10-26.jgb.all.aud-severson.148655.flac2496

Not a ton to report. Kahn sounded absolutely amazing on this tour. Really, all through 1978. I don't know if he changed something, if the sound people just dialed him in especially well, or something else, but the bass was big and fat. Great recording by Mark Severson, full of ambience. Garcia strong.

Apparently young Buzzy had let his union membership lapse, because the Portland Musician's Mutual Association, A.F. of M Local number 99 sent a "Dear Sir and Brother" letter, fraternally hoping that notice of Buzzy's delinquency would give everyone "sufficient opportunity to avoid a repetition of this occurrence in any A.F.M. Local's jurisdiction, which could result in files being filed against" ol' Jer.

Jerry Garcia Band

Paramount Theatre

1037 S.W. Broadway

Portland, OR 97205

October 26, 1978 (Thursday)

Severson shnid-148655 flac2496

--set I (7 tracks, 6 tunes, 64:14)--

s1t01. ambience [1:16]

s1t02. Harder They Come [10:53] [1:57]

s1t03. Mission In The Rain [10:11] [0:16] % [0:49]

s1t04. Simple Twist Of Fate [10:38] [2:04]

s1t05. They Love Each Other [7:08] [1:56]

s1t06. It Ain't No Use [7:58] [0:19] % [0:17]

s1t07. Mystery Train [8:18] (1) [0:14]

--set II (7 tracks, 6 tunes, 64:20)--

s2t01. ambience [0:43]

s2t02. Love In The Afternoon [10:26] [1:46]

s2t03. Reuben And Cherise [5:37] [1:33]

s2t04. Tore Up Over You [7:50] [1:33]

s2t05. Gomorrah [5:56] [0:08] %

s2t06. /I'll Be With Thee [#5:09] [1:32]

s2t07. Lonesome And A Long Way From Home [21:45] [0:14] % dead air [0:04]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #4a

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

! lineup: John Kahn - el-bass;

! lineup: Buzz Buchanan - drums;

! lineup: Keith Godchaux - keyboards, harmony vocals;

! lineup: Donna Jean Godchaux - backing vocals;

! lineup: Maria Muldaur - backing vocals.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; # = truncated timing; {x:xx} = time as tracked on this recording; [x:xx] = recorded even 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/19781026-03

! db: 

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/BNUjS75ANNs

! JGBP: URL https://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/08/paramount-theatre-paramount-northwest.html

! ad: Sunday Oregonian, October 8, 1978, p. 16

! ad: Capital-Journal (Salem, OR), October 13, 1978, p. 14-A

! seealso: Nick, "10/24/78: floundering in the snow," URL http://deadthinking.blogspot.com/2017/11/102478-floundering-in-snow.html

! seealso: Corry, "October 26, 1978 Paramount Theater, Portland, OR: Jerry Garcia Band/Bob Weir Band," URL http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2011/02/october-26-1978-paramount-theater.html. Corry suggests that Garcia found himself increasingly socially isolated in this period, couldn't go out to see other bands gig, and so was scouting talent from bands that opened for the GD or the JGB, noting "Garcia's primary keyboard players from 1979 to 1990 were all in bands that opened for him in 1978".

! historical: Bob Weir Band opened. Western flight #215 from SFO, landing PDX 5:09 PM: R. Taylor, Garcia, Kahn, 2x Godchaux, Muldaur, Buchanan, Healy, Loren, and GUITAR all ticketed. GUITAR doesn't get its own ticket on other flights of the tour until the end.

! R: field recordist: Mark Severson

! R: field recording gear: 2x Sony ECM 270 mics > Sony TC-158

! R: Transfer Info: Master Cassette (Nakamichi CR-7A) > Tascam DA-3000 (DSF 1-bit/5.6 MHz)> dBpoweramp (24/96) > Adobe Audition CC 2019 > TLH flac2496

! R: Notes: - Thanks to Mark Severson for the master cassette recording - Thanks to Charlie Miller for the transfer and coordinating this effort - Thanks to Pat Lee and Matt Smith for the Sony 18n source which supplies the first 5:05 of "Love In The Afternoon" - Thanks to Joe B. Jones for verifying the pitch. Mastered by Scott Clugston December 2019.

! P: s1t02 HTC @ 4:25 KG plays a terrific first lead, while Kahn is rumble-shredding beneath him. This band was so good, and sounded so good, on this tour. Hard to believe they'd only play a couple more shows.

! P: s1t03 MITR @ 3:40 Garcia decides he wants to play loudly, and does so.

! P: s1t04 STOF I have been repeatedly struck by how great Garcia's guitar work is. Late 6 here I especially note it again. Brimming over with stuff to say. No JK solo in this STOF.

! s1t07 (1) JG: "We're gonna take a break for a little while, we'll be back in a few minutes."

! R: s2t06 IBWT clips in

! P: s2t07 LAALWFH JG takes it out right over 6, and it comes back to the tune at 18:15. 12 pretty good, noodly minutes. And then they really stretch out the post-return piece - more than I ever recall in any other version. Donna moaning, Maria harmonizing nicely - lovely!

Kemper's Last: JGB at Hampton Coliseum, November 19, 1993

The great drummer David Kemper joined the JGB on Wednesday, July 20, 1983, at the Keystone Palo Alto, probably for a few hundred beer drinkers at a show with gross potential of something like $5 grand. He played his last gig with the band at the legendary Hampton Coliseum on November 19, 1993, before a sellout crowd of just about 14,000, a show of gross potential of $291,000 (net of taxes, so "net gross potential").

One of the big personnel mysteries of the Garciaverse is why Kemper was let go after over a decade of stalwart service, keeping one foot on the gas and one foot on the brakes for the highly variable Jerry Band. Talking to Barry Smolin a few years later, the drummer himself seemed unclear on this.

We did that tour in '93. It was financially our most successful tour. We played big venues and sold out a large portion of them. But the success didn't translate into the music. It wasn't any different musically from the ones before. But everything else felt different somehow. I felt that Jerry was starting to change in some way that I don't really understand to this day. Maybe he was tired of me.

[Smolin: How were you informed of your termination?] 

I got a call from [Big Steve] Parish in January of '94, saying, 'Well, here's that phone call you've been expecting for ten years. Where do you want us to send your drums?' I said, 'Well, Steve, why don't you send them here to my house. ' And he said, 'Don't you want them sent to your cartage company?' I said, 'No, have them sent here to the house. ' And he said, 'Oh, by the way, we have a new drummer already. ' I said, 'Oh, okay. ' And he said, 'Well, I don't know what else to say but good-bye.' I said, 'Well, Steve, you know, you always had a way with words.' And that was it. No explanation, nothing (Smolin 1997, 21).

When the JGB next materialized at the Warfield, on February 4-6, 1994, former Starship drummer Donny Baldwin was in the chair, where he'd remain until the end.

Deadheads gossip like suburban Karens. In this case, word on the street was that someone else in the band wanted more money, and Kemper was traded out for a cheaper model. Unless Big Steve dishes, it seems unlikely that we will ever know the reasons for the change. 

update: David K has finally dished, and Big Steve was the one who wanted more money. So the gossip was half right (I had heard it was Kahn).

What I feel pretty certain about is that having Big Steve do your dirty work, canning a guy who had played well over 300 gigs with the Jerry Garcia Band, speaks to Our Hero's well-worn instinct to avoid interpersonal conflict. At least have the courtesy to call the guy yourself, Jer! But that was not his way.

Anyway, I wanted to love this last show, also the Jerry Band's final show in the eastern time zone. And it was fine, the way the fall '93 shows generally are. The voice is a little frail. The guitar playing offers more pluck than power, though it has its charms. The 84 minute second set speaks to a guy still wanting to play. And, I gather from eyewitness testimony that anyone who was present for this 25+ minute "Shining Star", with extended band-audience singalong, remembers it fondly. I have no complaints at all. It feels just like any other show, and I wonder if it felt that way to David Kemper, too.

Jerry Garcia Band
Hampton Coliseum
1000 Coliseum Drive
Hampton, VA 23666
November 19, 1993 (Friday)
Schoeps Miller shnid-77281 rename to sets

--set I (6 tracks, 54:26)--
s1t01. [0:06] How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) [7:27] [0:57]
s1t02. Stop That Train [10:18] [1:18]
s1t03. Money Honey [7:54] [0:16]
s1t04. Lay Down Sally [11:16] [0:04]
s1t05. My Sisters And Brothers [3:51] ->
s1t06. Everybody Needs Somebody To Love [10:57] (1) [0:07]

--set II (6 tracks, 84:04)--
s2t01. Shining Star [25:10] [0:08] %
s2t02. [0:25] Struggling Man [10:42] [0:04]
s2t03. The Maker [12:30] [0:08]
s2t04. Don't Let Go [17:47] ->
s2t05. That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day) [10:05] ->
s2t06. Midnight Moonlight [6:59] (2) [0:06]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #21b
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - keyboards;
! lineup: David Kemper - drums;
! lineup: Gloria Jones - vocals;
! lineup: Jacklyn LaBranch - vocals.

JGMF:

! R: 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/19931119-01

! db:

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/xGt3Bg1Hekzt9Quj8

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/01/hampton-coliseum-1000-coliseum-drive.html

! band: THE Jerry Garcia Band, JGB #21b (http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html)

! historical: final show for David Kemper. Final east coast Garcia gig.

! data: Contract dated 10/20/93 (unsigned by JGB): $75k guarantee vs 80% of net box office receipts after taxes and employer's reasonable and actual direct concert expenses as approved by artist whichever is greater, plus $21,250 estimated for artist-supplied production. Capacity 13,800, net gross potential (NGP) after 5% tax of $291,428.57.

! R: field recordist: unidentified

! R: field recording gear: Schoeps MK4 -> Dat (48k)

! R: field recording location: FOB

! R: Transfer Info: Dat (Sony R500) -> Samplitude Professional v7.02 -> FLAC (2 Discs Audio / 2 Discs FLAC). All Transfers and Mastering By Charlie Miller charliemiller87@earthlink.net September 2, 2006

! R: Notes: -- Fixed drop-out in How sweet It Is -- The audience sings backup vocals during last half of Shining Star -- Thanks to Ryan Shriver for the Dats -- This has the fixed Shining Star

! P: s1t01 HSII Jerry's guitar playing sounds wonderful. His voice sounds thin, but not uncharacteristically for the period.

! P: s1t02 STT Melvin does some lovely piano work late 6. Jerry playing beautifully layered stuff.

! R: s1t01 HSII drop/gap at 0:29

! P: s1t03 MH has the extra arrangement on the ending

! s1t06 (1) JG: "Thanks a lot. We'll be back in a few minutes."

! P: s2t01 Shining Star big pitch-bending in 10. Jerry much softer vocalizing late 18. Now around 21 ladies and crowd singing, Jerry picking some in response. I know everyone who was there remembers the singalong fondly.

! R: s2t02 not sure why there's a tape discontinuity, and sounds like a short repeated section from end of s2t01 and start of s2t02.

! P: s2t04 DLG fragile voice. Mumbly lyric @ 2:57. Kind of a weird drop to the guitar/vocal comping, very low but also sooner than I expected. I like the doubling late 3 over 4. Nice and low and easy. He drops the vocals @ 4:30 to modal tone. Pretty nice dangerous, urgent feel to this DLG.

! s2t06 (2) JG: "Thanks a lot. See y'all later."

Reuben's Electric Return: JGB at Portland Civic Auditorium, January 14, 1984

LN jg1984-01-14.jgb.all.aud-faintych.32333.flac1644

"Reuben And Cherise" (s2t06): first electric performance since 1978! Jerry had brought a bunch of the Cats stuff back in '83. This was the last to re-appear. (Gomorrah: 5/21/83 [electric]; Rhapsody In Red: 5/26/83; Cats: 6/3/83).

Jerry sounds good throughout, as, especially, does Kemper.

These pre-coma 80s JGB Knockin's are so sweet and lilting.

Rhapsody In Red? Yes, please.

A F pulled a killer balcony tape this night. Nice and full.

JERRY GARCIA BAND
Civic Auditorium
222 SW Clay Street
Portland, OR 97201
January 14, 1984 (Saturday)
Faintych balcony MAC shnid-32333

--set I (6 tracks, 5 tunes, 48:05)--
s1t01. ambience (1) [0:35]
s1t02. I'll Take A Melody [13:31] [0:05] %
s1t03. [0:09] The Way You Do The Things You Do [8:45] [0:06] %
s1t04. /When I Paint My Masterpiece [#9:01] [0:09] %
s1t05. Run For The Roses [5:11] [0:11]
s1t06. Deal [10:13] (2) [0:09]

--set II + encore (6 tracks, 62:59)--
--set II (5 tracks, 56:00)--
s2t01. [0:05] Harder They Come [12:20] [0:06] %
s2t02. [0:08] Mission In The Rain [11:30] [0:07] %
s2t03. [0:09] Cats Under The Stars [9:00] [0:06] %
s2t04. Knockin' On Heaven's Door [11:18] [0:02] %
s2t05. Rhapsody In Red [10:57] (3) [0:10] %
--encore (1 track, 6:59)--
s2t06. [0:05] Reuben And Cherise [6:47] [0:06]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #21a
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - guitar, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - bass;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - keyboards;
! lineup: Jacklyn LaBranch - backing vocals;
! lineup: DeeDee Dickerson - backing vocals;
! lineup: David Kemper - drums.

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [x:xx] = 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/19840114-01

! db: https://etreedb.org/shn/16710 (AUD, shnf); https://etreedb.org/shn/28905 (Otto Rice MAC); https://etreedb.org/shn/32333 (this fileset); https://etreedb.org/shn/101128 (sbd); https://etreedb.org/shn/151289 (Severson 1648); https://etreedb.org/shn/151327 (Severson 2496).

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/cwYVm4iqi6R2

! JGBP: https://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2011/09/civic-auditorium-222-southwest-clay-st.html

! R: field recordist: Andrew Faintych

! R: field recording gear: Sony ECM-99A stereo mic > Marantz PMD-340

! R: field recording media: 2x Maxell XL-II 90

! R: field recording location: Center Box 9, mic on the balcony rail just left of center

! R: transfer: MAC > Sony TC-D5M > Soundblaster > WAV > Soundforge > CD-Wave > TLH v.1.0.0.72 (SBE-OK, Flac compression, checksums) > bt.etree Jan 2006.

! R: taper/seeder notes: There was a tape flip at 9:39 near the end of Deal. This was patched using nine seconds from shn-id source 16710. I also used seven seconds from that source to cover the beginning of Harder They Come, which was missing. Masterpiece and Run for the Roses have clipped beginnings; these were also clipped on 16710, so no new material could be added. Also, Rhapsody in Red is missing the opening notes due to a tape flip after Heaven's Door. I used Soundforge to match levels and pitch on the patched-in bits. On the master, I used Soundforge to make fades, edit out blurry pause-button moments, and to even-out the levels where needed. This venue has since been renamed the Keller Auditorium, and has a seating capacity of 2992. This was the only GD related event held at this venue. Taped and transferred by Andrew F. ENJOY!

! P: overall: super high energy performance throughout. Jerry sounds rarin' to go! Kemper is a beast, and even Kahn sounds strong this night. It could all be this cool balcony tape, but that's how it feels.

! s1t01 (1) taper's neighbor: "Is this a microphone? Are you makin' a tape?"

! R: s1t04 WIPMM clips in

! P: s1t04 WIPMM Jerry sounds engaged

! P: s1t06 Deal Kemper banging, Jerry wailing, John hitting some big notes 7:30-8.

! s1t06 (2) JG: "We're gonna take a break for a few minutes. We'll be back [inaudible]"

! P: s2t01 Kemper does a thing at 9:15 that just slays me

! P: s2t03 CUTS good. I really like the guitar work 6ish.

! P: s2t04 KOHD early 80s versions of this tune were just picture-perfect. Melvin makes them great, loping and lilting. On this version, Kahn also sounds outstanding. The tape really gets him pretty well. Some vocal roughness, but he never totally loses it.

! P: s2t05 RIR great energy. Just because: https://whitegum.com/~acsa/songfile/RHAPSODY.HTM. Hugely layered guitar work in 6, big rock and roll. Huge fanning passages 9:30.

! s2t05 (3) JG: "Thanks a lot. See ya later."

! song: "Reuben And Cherise" (s2t06): first electric performance since 1978! Jerry had brought a bunch of the Cats stuff back in '83. This was the last to re-appear. (Gomorrah: 5/21/83; Rhapsody In Red: 5/26/83; Cats: 6/3/83).

! R: s2t06 for some reason a little more muffled for this tune.