Peppy: JGB at the Stone, May 31, 1981 (and contemporary data missingess)

LN jg1981-05-31.jgb.s1s2p.aud.137952.flac1644

More spare listening notes, more JGB #12b. I actually like TLEO here (rare), find characteristically strong-for-the-period versions of Sugaree and Tangled Up, enjoy a melodious Simple Twist, pick up some rock-n-roll goodness in Let It Rock, and totally dig the litling beauty of an early Melvin-era Knockin'. Early 80s Knockin's are the best, IMO. Oh yeah, an extremely brisk TWYDTTYD, "about as uptempo as it was ever done", I imagine.

So that's every tune on this truncated recording getting a mention, except for Prudence. In sum, a nice little gig, a random Sunday at the Stone.

Weird how little JGB circulates from this window:

Date	Venue	Notes
1981-05-23 [Sat]	Keystone Berkeley, Berkeley, CA	complete setlist, no circulation
1981-05-24 [Sun]	Keystone Berkeley, Berkeley, CA	complete setlist, no circulation
1981-05-27 [Wed]	Keystone Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA	complete setlist, no circulation
1981-05-28 [Thu]	Keystone Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA	complete setlist, s2 circulates
1981-05-30 [Sat]	Phoenix Theatre, Petaluma, CA	complete setlist from aud
1981-05-31 [Sun]	Stone, San Francisco, CA	s1s2p setlist from aud [jgmf]
1981-06-01 [Mon]	Stone, San Francisco, CA	no setlist, no circ

So, ask your old analog friends if they have tapes of the missing material. The presence of setlists certainly does not guarantee that tapes were made, but it is suggestive. Please and thank you.

update: AF has supplied images of complete cassettes copies of 5/27-28/81 which went up for sale on Ebay but were won by unknown buyers. Here are analog tapes that have never made the jump to 0s and 1s. Let's get tapes like these digitized and circulating!

Jerry Garcia Band

The Stone

412 Broadway

San Francisco, CA 94133

May 31, 1981 (Sunday)

s1s2p aud via AF flac1644 shnid-137952

--set I (5 tracks, 57:29)--

s1t01. //Sugaree [#11:22] [0:03] %

s1t02. /They Love Each Other [#8:08] [0:10] %

s1t03. [0:14] That's What Love Will Make You Do :15-10:38 -10:41 %

s1t04. /Simple Twist Of Fate [#16:25] [0:02] %

s1t05. Tangled Up In Blue [10:37] %

--set II (3 tracks, incomplete, 38:04)--

s2t01. /Knockin' On Heaven's Door [#16:41] [0:03] %

s2t02. /Let It Rock [#9:30] [0:03]

s2t03. [0:15] Dear Prudence [11:30] [0:02] %

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #12b

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

! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;

! lineup: Jimmy Warren - el-piano;

! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;

! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums.

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/19810531-01

! JGC: jerrygarcia.com/show/1981-05-31

! db: etreedb.org/shn/137952 (this fileset).

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/Vr6EBXU6KvA2

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

! band: JGB #12b, http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html

! R: source: AUD (1st Gen) 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: "Lo-Fi mono recording of a really hot show. Taper and equipment are unknown, a note on the label says: "First show I taped, well it sure was fun." A big chunk is missing from start of Sugaree, maybe three minutes? Several other songs clip in/out abruptly as the deck was turned off & on. It's likely that one or two songs are missing from end of the Second Set." I'd add that vocals are super back, organ buried, as well.

! R: s1t01 Sugaree clips in

! P: s1t01 Sugaree has great energy.

! R: s1t02 clips in.

! P: s1t02 TLEO I am not usually a big fan of this one, but it's working for me. The twin keyboards sound good, e.g., 4-minute range.

! P: s1t03 TWLWMYD is about as uptempo as it was ever done. Speedy. Jerry's guitar work is outstanding. Melvin's feature work in 6 is also really strong. 

! R: s1t04 STOF clips in

! P: s1t04 STOF some very melodious picking 12:15.

! P: s1t05 TUIB typically hot '81 version, espec. ca. late 9 to early 10.

! R: s2t01 KOHD clips in

! P: s2t01 KOHD I love the pluck Garcia gives it in the 3 minute mark - it's like the perfect slice of JGB's KOHD, with the reggae lilt.

! R: s2t02 LIR clips in

! P: s2t02 LIR not moving me. Melvin's solo 4 min mark is hard to hear, nothing particularly interesting that I could identify. That said, the shit Garcia does all through the 7 minute mark is some absolutely incredible big chord work.

! R: s2t03 DP ca. 2:30 lots of tape drag and warble. Sounds like batteries are struggling?

Calderone Valentine: JGB in Hempstead, NY, February 14, 1981

LN jg1981-02-14.jgb.all.aud-hance.155565.flac2496

Just did the previous night, and I had just listened to this one to get a load of the fresh transfer from John Jay Hance's master. I hear plenty of stuff to like, don't go into much detail. The "Like A Road" feels really sweet.

Quicky listening notes.

Jerry Garcia Band

Calderone Concert Hall

145 N. Franklin Street

Hempstead, NY 11550

February 14, 1981

Hance MAC shnid-155565

--set I (5 tracks, 53:33)--

s1t01. [0:37] Sugaree [14:38] % [0:09]

s1t02. They Love Each Other [8:14] [0:03] % [1:13]

s1t03. When I Paint My Masterpiece [9:26] % [0:41]

s1t04. Love In The Afternoon [7:44] [0:05] % [0:16]

s1t05. Tangled up in Blue [10:20] (1) [0:04]

--set II (5 tracks, 62:05)--

s2t01. Tore Up Over You [9:10] % [0:03]

s2t02. Like A Road Leading Home [13:31] % [0:44]

s2t03. Harder They Come [15:46] % [1:21]

s2t04. Dear Prudence [13:19] ->

s2t05. Midnight Moonlight [8:11] (2) [0:03]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #12b
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - el-piano;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums.

JGMF:

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

! Jerrybase: https://jerrybase.com/events/19810214-01

! db: https://etreedb.org/shn/14079 (Ohr 2x Sony ECM-23f + 1x Nakamichi DM-500, shnf); https://etreedb.org/shn/24070 (same specs as Hance, possibly his, shnf); https://etreedb.org/shn/155565 (this fileset).

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2011/09/calderone-music-hall-145-n-franklin-st.html

! historical: Sue: capacity 2,800. $10k guarantee plus 90% gross receipts over $26,499 after taxes plus 100% difference between estimated non-variable expenses and $24,090 and actual expenses, plus $4,000 production fee and $1,000 hospitality.

! R: field recordist: John Hay Hance

! R: field recording gear: 2x Sennheiser 421 > Sony D5M (no Dolby) > Technics 686

! R: field recording location: balcony rail, 6' spread

! R: field recording media: 2x Maxell UDXLII-C90

! R: Transfer: Nakamichi 582Z > Korg MR2000S (DFF@5.6) Audiogate > 24/96 Wave > Wavelab6 > Ozone Rx7A > Ozone 5 Advance > Ozone Rx7A > CDwave > Flac24

! P: s1t01 Sugaree Jerry digs in at like 4:15 for something, and it just sounds so great.

! P: s1t05 TUIB I love how Shaw drums them into the groove to start this tune. He sounds perfectly awesome.

! R: s1t05 TUIB cut end, patched with shnid-14079 (Taped by Ohr Weinberg, Sony ECM 23-f's w/Nak DM-500 blend > Nak 550)

! s1t05 (1) JG: "We're gonna take a break for a little while. We'll back [a little bit later]."

! P: s2t02 LARLH is really sweet.

 

! P: s2t04 DP KILLER sustain waily tone late 6. Yeah!!! Feedback, great work. Burning metallic. Which brings us to tin foil.

! R: s2t05 Mid Moon glitch @ 5:42

! s2t05 (2) JG: "Thanks a lot. See ya later on."

DOWN in South Jersey? JGB at Glassboro State College, February 15, 1981

LN jg1981-02-15.jgb.all.aud.137422.flac1644

Rock Scully's book Living with the Dead (1996) gets mixed reviews for all kinds of reasons, among them that he presents lots of factually inaccurate information. But, on another intepretation --and, I think, relaying something Corry has expressed-- the book may not be right, but it contains lots of truth. Here is some of his narrative around early '81:

We use the airlines to ship dope. I have somebody run it out to the airport in an envelope, put it on a plane, and it gets there like clockwork until some weird hippie at TWA recognizes Jerry's name on the package and takes it. The first time it happens, we're in Philadelphia. I'm jonesing in the Philadelphia Arport waiting for the shit to arrive and it never shows up. I know it got onto the plane, but somewhere along the line somebody stole it. This little glitch leads to a day and a half of the shakes. Garcia is too junk sick to perform the following night. Prescriptions from the hotel doctor help, but we use up all the pills the first night to get rid of the shakes.

In Washington, a desperate Garcia decides to do a radio interview in the middle of the night and "put the code out." Garcia's nodding into the mike during the interview. On air he asks fans — in code — to bring their stashes down to the station and he will sign albums for them. He says, "Uh, anybody down with Garcia out there tonight? You wanna come down to the station? I'll come down from up here and sign autographs, but bring me some down." Thirty kids show up at the station reception with grass, 'ludes, uppers. Uh oh, the wrong drugs! Oh God, now he wants to get more specific on the air, spell out what precisely he needs. We send kids out to get downers and tranks to get us through the night (Scully 1996, 314).

I relay this here because seeder extraordinaire AF has relayed the following in connection with a recording of JGB in Esby Gym, Glassboro State College, February 15, 1981:

Before the show, Jerry went on the radio [campus radio WGLS] to invite people DOWN and if you were DOWN with it, then come on DOWN to the show. The story goes that they were at the end of the tour, way down in the boonies of South Jersey, and the stash was dry. Jerry had to put out the call for someone from Philly or nearby to drive over with a fix for him and Kahn.

Naturally, this sounds like the second part of Rock's little vignette above. I trust AF to have the date, time, and specifics more accurate than Scully. As for our jonesing hereo, maybe the trip into Glassboro, a charter flight from E. Farmingdale (Republic Airport) to Philly on an 8-passenger twin-engine King Air 200, had him just a little jumpy. (Take that, Rock!)

Plea: does anyone know of tape of that particular interview, 2/15/81 from campus radio WGLS? I will inquire with the school, though odds are strongly against there being a copy there.

What about the rest of Rock's narrative? It kind of fits Corry's characterization. First, I think he swaps Philly (end of the tour) and DC (start of the tour), with the package of drugs not making it to them in Washington. Second --and, yes, I see how petty this is-- they didn't fly TWA, but United (#58, since you asked). Third, there is no canceled show anywhere in the tour. Fourth, the interview was apparently before the show, not in the middle of the night.

Some of this other stuff might have happened on Dead tour, or on a different Jerry tour. He doesn't explicitly say this is the Feb. 81 JGB jaunt - I am just making the connection because of the radio interview, which it seems safe to say can only have happened once. Overall, all of this stuff probably sort of happened, and so Rock's account is true ("truthy," you might say), if not exactly right.

One of the great benefits to me of doing these listening notes, and trying to integrate them into the broader fabric of the Garciaverse, is how LITTLE the drug stories tell us about the music. Here we have relatively firm evidence that Garcia was jonesing hard for the show, specifically needing stuff to take the edge off, and that he got some stuff to get him DOWN to some level of comfort. Yet the show sounds peppy. I don't make a lot of notes, but they all point in the same direction: torrid scrubby goodness in "Catfish John", punch great energy in "Tangled Up In Blue", Gar sounding enthused on "Tore Up Over You". All of this speaks, as Twitterato and all-around great guy Mr. Completely might say, to the limits of drug determinism.

Ticket for JGB 2/15/81 at Glassboro State College, courtesy of gdsets.com.

Sounds like the place was packed, sweltering hot (Chambers 1981), and ol Jer, jonesing or not, put on a good strong show to end the tour. (Since you were wondering, fly home next day, 10:15 AM departure on United #719 through Denver to land at SFO by  2:30 PM, or TWA #31, out at 3:30 PM to hit tierra santa at 6:30 PM. I leave it to you to imagine which flight Jerry caught, and why.)

Listening notes below the fold.

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!

August 9th

This August 9th finds me thinking more about 70 years since Nagasaki than 20 years since Jerry Garcia, though that, too, is on my mind.

Might as well go straight for the cream: cue this one up from about 5:40 to hear Garcia wail. In the alternative check out the whole smokin' hot, first-night-of-tour set I closer, Wednesday night, February 4, 1981 at the Warner in Washington, DC:

"Tangled Up In Blue"

Thanks to taper Dave Redman, who also seems to have shepherded the tape to the DAT kingdom and from there, through the agency of unidentifed but much-appreciated agents, to the lossless realm (shnid-30859).

Turn it up!

p.s. Jim Vita also taped this hottie of a show (shnid-83742), and it's worth hunting down.

p.p.s. my notes for the Redman fileset below the fold.

Jerry Garcia Band
Warner Theater
513 13th Street NW
Washington, DC
February 4, 1981 (Wednesday)
Redman MAC flac1644 shnid-30859

--set I (7 tracks, 62:36)--
s1t01. ambience [0:04]
s1t02. I'll Take a Melody [13:16]
s1t03. //That's What //Love Will Make You Do [#6:#32]
s1t04. Mississippi Moon [11:06]
s1t05. Sitting In //Limbo [13:#04] [0:14]
s1t06. How Sweet It Is [8:54] ->
s1t07. Tangled Up In Blue// [9:23#]

--set II (8 tracks, 74:06)--
s2t01. ambience [0:09]
s2t02. Harder They Come [14:13] [0:03]
s2t03. /Mission In The Rain [10:46]
s2t04. //They Love Each Other [#8:10] [0:02]
s2t05. //Russian Lullaby/ [#12:36]
s2t06. Dear Prudence [12:25] (1) ->
s2t07. Deal [7:39] ->
s2t08. Midnight Moonlight [8:00]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #12b
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - el-piano;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums.

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/19810204-01

! JGC: http://jerrygarcia.com/show/1981-02-04-warner-theater-washington-dc/

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/30859 (this fileset); http://etreedb.org/shn/83742 (Vita MAC all-1)

! map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Washington,+DC+20004/@38.8961209,-77.0296101,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x89b7b7976efcc7c5:0xb764664d930ed128

! venue: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/07/warner-theatre-513-13th-e-streets-nw.html

! review: [mixed] Lindsay, Dave. 1981. Garcia’s Solo Jamming. Eagle (American University), February 13, 1981, p. 7.

! R: field recordist: Dave Redman

! R: field recording gear: xx Nakamichi 300 > Sony TC-D5M

! R: lineage: cassette master > DAT > CD > EAC > FLAC.

! R: seeder: misSHN, 9/2005

! R: seeder notes: "Where it's good, it's quite a good recording. It may run a touch fast, but I am not really capable of judging that. There are also numerous patches of oversaturation, a good number of  cuts (and in general very tight editing), and a very chatty crowd. Beyond those presumed attributes of the master, there are a great many warts on this particular copy which would make a new transfer most welcomed.  I will try to list some of those warts below, but I am sure that I have not noted all of them.  Caveat auditor."

! P: seeder notes: "The show itself is extremely hot, IMO a contender for hottest show of the great month of 2/81.  Of note: a sweet version of Sitting in Limbo, a second solo in TUIB (around 8:40) that is absolutely filthy (watch your speakers!), and a pretty nicely executed transition from Deal into Midnight Moonlight.  A really fun show"

LN jg1981-02-11.jgb.s1.aud-stankiewicz.127292.flac2496

Nice tape, nice show. Bob Minkin took some nice photos this night, a bunch of tapers nailed it, the band sounds strong. This must have been a great, weird old room.

Jerry Garcia Band
The Palladium
126 E 14th St
New York, NY 10003
February 11, 1981 (Wednesday) - 8 PM
Stanki s1s2p flac2496 shnid-127292

--set I (7 tracks, 60:44)--
s1t01. tuning [1:06]
s1t02. [0:08] How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) [6:58] [0:13] % [0:13]
s1t03. [0:14] Catfish John [10:12] [0:08] % [0:13]
s1t04. That's What Love Will Make You Do [9:39] [0:15] % [0:03]
s1t05. Mississippi Moon [12:07] [0:02] %% [0:22]
s1t06. [0:08] Tore Up Over You [9:21] ->
s1t07. Tangled Up In Blue [9:07] (1) [0:14] %

--set II (1 track, 15:25, first song only)
s2t01. [0:42] I'll Take A Melody [14:39] [0:03] %

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #12b
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-guitar, vocals;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - electric piano;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-bass;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums.

JGMF:

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

! Jerrybase: https://jerrybase.com/events/19810211-01

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/127292 (Stanki s1s2p flac2496, this fileset); http://etreedb.org/shn/76341 (Jim Vita flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/120256 (David Dyche flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/19439 (Beyer M160, probably this source tape, shnf; probably deprecated); http://etreedb.org/shn/33741 (Jim Wise flac1644).

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

! venue: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2011/09/academy-of-music-126-e-14th-street-new.html. It had never really crossed my radar that The Palladium was the same as the Academy of Music, but here we are. Fascinating. Wiki gives capacity 3,000.

! band: JGB #12b (http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html)

! R: field recordist: Richie Stankiewicz

! R: field recording location: 1st row balcony center

! R: field recording gear: 2x Beyer M-160 -> Sony TCD-5M

! R: Transfer: Sony TCKA-3es -> USBPre2, transferred by Richie Stankiewicz.

! R: Nice recording. Very full and nice.

! P: s1t04 TWLWMYD Jerry's guitar in the first half of 5-minute mark is very good. Jimmy Warren solos next and he is not terrible.

! P: s1t05 MissMoon they miss the 1 to start, but it's a nice version.

! P: s1t06 TUOY has some terrific guitar playing

! P: s1t07 TUIB the segue is really smooth, and TUIB starts with good energy.

! s1t07 (1) JG: "Thanks. We're gonna take a break for a little while [inaudible]."

! P s2t01 ITAM Jerry great feeling! He is singing with enthusiasm, "what I'm gonna do" with a growl around 4:40 ish. Articulating his consonants ... "feel brand new abouT iT."

Two Keyboards on Tour: JGB, Orpheum Theatre, Boston, February 7, 1981

LN jg1981-02-07.jgb.early-late.aud-streeter.123543.flac1644

I have some pretty bland listening notes to catch up with posting. Might try to plant a few this weekend.

Jerry Garcia Band
Orpheum Theatre
1 Hamilton Place
Boston, MA 02108
February 7, 1981 (Saturday)
Streeter early and late complete MAC Miller flac1644 shnid-123543 JGMF retrack

--early show (8 tracks,73:36)--
a-t01. tuning [1:54]
a-t02. How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) [8:45] [0:05] % [0:02]
a-t03. Catfish John [11:11] [0:06] % [0:10]
a-t04. That's What Love Will Make You Do [9:12] [0:07] % [0:14]
a-t05. Like A Road [11:44] [0:33]
a-t06. Love In The Afternoon [10:44] [0:05] % [0:03]
a-t07. Sugaree [9:55] [0:07]
a-t08. [0:07] Tangled Up In Blue [8:12] (1) [0:18]

--late show (10 tracks, 94:42)--
--late show, set I (5 tracks, 42:18-0:04)--
b-s1t01. tuning [1:17]
b-s1t02. The Harder They Come [11:54] [0:02] % [0:02]
b-s1t03. They Love Each Other [8:37] [0:04] %  [0:08]
b-s1t04. Tore Up Over You [9:43] [0:05] %
b-s1t05. Mission In The Rain [10:13] (2) [0:09] % pre-set II [0:04]

--late show, set II (5 tracks, 52:24+0:04)--
b-s2t01. I'll Take A Melody [13:29] [0:03] %
b-s2t02. Mississippi Moon [11:14] ->
b-s2t03. Dear Prudence [11:26] [0:05] % [0:06]
b-s2t04. Deal [7:29] ->
b-s2t05. Midnight Moonlight [8:16] (3) [0:16]

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band #12b
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-b;
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - el-piano;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - organ;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums.

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/19810207-01 (A); https://jerrybase.com/events/19810207-02 (B)

! db: http://etreedb.org/shn/8648 (early and late Steve Rolfe, shn); http://etreedb.org/shn/88820 (late show, Jim Vita, flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/88927 (early and late John Levene, flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/102007 (early and late Bob Morris flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/107333 (early and late shows, pitch/speed correction of Levene source shnid-88927, flac1644); http://etreedb.org/shn/123543 (early and late Streeter, this fileset).

! map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Orpheum+Theatre/@42.3563142,-71.0610765,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x89e3709cb51cffcf:0x6575ac76b6bcc90f

! venue: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/09/orpheum-theatre-1-hamilton-place-boston.html

! band: JGB #12b (http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/2012/01/jerry-garcia-band-personnel-1975-1995.html).

! R: field recordist: Frank Streeter

! R: field recording location: unknown

! R: field recording gear: ?2x? AKG D330BT mic(s) > Sony TC-D5M

! R: field recording media: Maxell MX90

! R: Transfer Info: Cassette Master (Sony TC-K677ES) -> Sound Devices 744T (24bit/48k) ->
Adobe Audition v3.0 -> Samplitude Professional v11.2.1 -> FLAC/16 (3 Discs Audio / 1 DVD FLAC). All Transfers and Mastering By Charlie Miller, charliemiller87@earthlink.net, January 20, 2013.

! R: seeder notes: "Late show is seamless. There were a ton of snaps and 'thud' sounds I cleaned up (some remain). Thanks to Frank Streeter for lending me his masters. Thanks to Joe B. Jones for his help with the pitch correction."

! R: JGMF rename for sets 2/23/2014.

! context: A quartet version of this band debuted January 22-23. That was JGB #12a. The second keyboardist (Jimmy Warren on electric piano), arrived for five more local shows in two weeks, and then the band took off on tour. Garcia was nothing if not insistent that his players jump in with both feet, deep end. Three consecutive nights (Warner in DC on the 4th, Lehigh University on the 5th, the Tower in Philly on the 6th, now two shows in Boston. It's not surprising that I don't feel boatloads of energy (which could also reflect my own state of mind, as much as the players'). Note that at least five tapers walked home with recordings this night. I have not A-B'd them, and don't expect to have time to do so, but one never knows.

! P: On this listen (2/23/2014), the shows don't do much for me.

! P: a-t03 CJ some very interesting guitar work. Fanning over 9-min mark. Nice.

! P: a-t05 LAR at end a woman gives a great big "Thank you, Jerry!" This song always had a nice feel of connection Jerry and the audience, as in that early '89 show (1/28/89).

! a-t08 (1) JG: "Thanks a lot. See ya later."

! P: a-t08 TUIB PA screech late 4-min mark.

! b1-t05 (2) JG: "We're gonna take a break for a little while, we'll be back in a coupla minutes."

! b2-t05 (3) JG: "Thanks a lot. See ya."

'Yayyyyy, Jerry!'

LN jg1981-04-18.jgb.all-1.aud-jaret.107843.flac1644

Looks like I hear a mixed bag - HSII and CJ strong to start, but on STOF I call him zonked - "Sounds like he's learning how to sing on smack", and there are various clusterfucks. Little kid in the crowd gives a "Yayyyyy, Jerry!" as Our Hero steps up for "Let It Rock", but the band fails to rise to the occasion.

Jerry Garcia Band
Phoenix Theatre
201 Washington Street
Petaluma, CA 94952
April 18, 1981 (Saturday), 9 pm
all-1 Phil Jaret Minches xfer MAC shnid-107843

--set I (7 tracks, 64:33)--
s1t01. tuning [0:12]
s1t02. How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You) [7:24] %% [1:49]
s1t03. Catfish John [10:00] [0:03] % [0:36]
s1t04. Simple Twist Of Fate [15:02] % [0:03]
s1t05. Let It Rock [9:04] [0:06] %
s1t06. Sitting In Limbo [11:03] ->
s1t07. Tangled Up In Blue [10:01] (1) [0:08]

--set II (6 tracks, 59:17)--
s2t01. tuning [0:34]
s2t02. I'll Take A Melody [13:27] [0:02] % [0:16]
s2t03. That's What Love Will Make You Do [9:43] [0:04] %
s2t04. /Russian Lullaby [11:37] [0:03] %
s2t05. Dear Prudence [12:56] [0:03] ->
s2t06. Midnight Moonlight [10:18] [0:05] % [0:06]

[MISSING --encore-- The Harder They Come]

! 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/19810418-01

! JGC: jerrygarcia.com/show/1981-04-18

! db: shnid 107843 (this source); shnid 93183 (same master, earlier transfer, deprecated except contains the encore, Harder They Come). Not sure why the later Minches transfer lacks that song.

! map: https://goo.gl/maps/3FytTvSsaf72

! JGBP: http://jerrygarciasbrokendownpalaces.blogspot.com/2012/08/phoenix-theatre-201-washington-street.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). I have called this "the twin keys quintet." Earlier note: Garcia-Kahn-Seals-Warren-Shaw quintet version of the Jerry Garcia Band. A weird little period in this configuration, starting ca. 1/27/81 and ending ca. 6/1/81. After that, ca. 6/24/81, backing vocalists Essra Mohawk and Liz Stires come in.

! R: field recordist: Phil Jaret

! R: field recording equipment: JVC M-201 Stereo Microphone > Teac PC-10

! R: transfer and FLAC encoding by David Minches: Master played back on Nakamichi Dragon > Grace Lunatec V3 (24/96) > Digital Audio Labs Card Deluxe > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Ozone 4.0 > FLAC encoding, pitch correction by Joe B. Jones. This is the 16/44.1 version.

! R: s1t02 HSII @ 1:05 big level jump. A couple of tape discontinuities @ 7:41-7:59

! P: HSII: Jerry is fired up! Check out his singing in the "Open my eyes at night" (2nd) verse starting @ 1:37.

! P: CJ @ 5:25 Jerry just tears it up with some fast strumming to catch up to the one ... awesome!

! P: STOF is kind of a clusterfuck. Jerry is zonked, just cannot get the vocals together. Sounds like he's learning how to sing on smack. I know this doesn't seem consistent with the note above about HSII, but anyway.

! s1t04 STOF bass feature for about two minutes from 6:46ff.

! P: Jerry tried to end the song @ 14-min mark, but the drummer just keeps playing.

! Historical: Classic. At the start of Let It Rock you can hear a little kid, maybe 3-5 years old, yelling "Yayyyyy, Jerry!"

! P: s1t05 Let It Rock really isn't happening. This band is not clicking. Jerry comes in with some fanning @ 7:15, some nice fanning over key changes and running around a little. He is bringing it here, but the band overall is pretty uneven.

! R: s1t06 SIL levels are very low.

! s1t07 (1) JG: "We're gonna take a short break. We'll be back in a few minutes."

! R: s2t02 ITAM levels up @ 3:42

! P: d2t02 ITAM nice fanning in 11:30 range

! P: d2t03 TWLWMYD love the guitar tone JG is getting in the 8-min range.

! R: d2t04 Russian Lullaby clips in

LN19810129 JGB Catalyst Santa Cruz

Jerry Garcia Band, Sunday, January 29, 1981, The Catalyst, Santa Cruz, CA. shnid 111412.

So I thought I'd check out an early Melvin Seals JGB show as a reward for having concluded that his public debut with JGB was 1/22/81. Randomly picked this one. Pretty nice tape that puts you FOB, but the show is not much of a treat. In fact, it's a total trainwreck. I cannot recall hearing Jerry sound this out of it this early on. It's not quite as bad as ca. August-December 1984, but it's pretty bad. Melvin is bringing it, the drummer seems on, and it sounds to me like the main culprit is Garcia.

Anyway, this is a quintet, post-Ozzie Ahlers and pre-arrival of the backup singers in June, featuring Jimmy Warren and Melvin Seals on keys and Daoud Shaw on drums. By my reckoning this is their fourth show together. Things would get better very, very quickly ... the February '81 east coast tour is quite hot right from the get-go. So this sounds like a down night, warming up a new band, fighting technical gremlins. Can't win 'em all.

Jerry Garcia Band
The Catalyst

Santa Cruz, CA zzzzz
January 29, 1981 (Thursday)
JS MAC

--set I (4 tracks, 47:12)--
d1t01. How Sweet It Is [8:55] [0:12] % [1:15]
d1t02. Catfish John [8:55] [0:07] % [0:26]
d1t03. Like a Road [16:18] [0:03] % [0:09]
d1t04. Deal [10:23] [0:13]

--set II (6 tracks, 62:15)--
d2t01.  //Harder They Come [12:39] [0:10]
d2t02. % [0:05] Mission in the Rain [12:59] % [0:22]
d2t03. That's What Love Will Make You Do [9:29] [0:02] % [0:40]
d2t04. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down [8:21] ->
d2t05. Dear//Prudence [#9:24] ->
d2t06. Midnight Moonlight [7:54] [0:09]

This originally listed as shn 17145 with incorrect attribution and lineage.

! ACT1: Jerry Garcia Band
! lineup: Jerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
! lineup: John Kahn - el-bass;
! lineup: Daoud Shaw - drums;
! lineup: Melvin Seals - keyboards (organ);
! lineup: Jimmy Warren - keyboards (electric piano)

JGMF:

! Recording: symbols: % = recording discontinuity; / = clipped song; // = cut song; ... = fade in/out; # = truncated timing; [mm: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 [mm: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/19810129-01  

! R: field recordist: JS

! R: field recording gear: 2x Electrovoice RE-10 microphones > Sony TC-D5m

! R: Transfer: Nakamichi Dragon (Dolby B decoded) > Macintosh with Digidesign AudioMedia III sound card(A/D 44.1/16) > Pro Tools (minor "nip and tuck" edits, normalization and tracking - no EQ or digital noise reduction) > AIFF > CD > Toast > xACT (FLAC level 8 files with sector boundaries verified); transfer by JS.

! Recording: Nice FOB tape. Vocals are low, bass is pretty near inaudible, but the drums are right on you and guitar is pretty good. Keyboards nice and clear. Not too much crowd.

! R: d1t01 HSII some tape funkiness at start

! P: d1t01 HSII @ 1:22 Melvin does an 8-second sustain and then comes in with a nice solo. This is clearly early Melvin, and he is tearing it up! HSII goes for almost three minutes instrumentally, as they try to find the groove and as the sound people try to get things right. Jimmy solo, but Melvin solos over him, @ 2:12. Jerry's guitar is completely absent, then there's a crowd cheer @ 2:24 and Jerry's guitar comes in. Sounds like technical difficulties. First vocals don't start until 2:57! Then there is a lot of playing around before they land back .... Jerry starts the song back over at 6:46 with first vocals again ... yikes! He hits two clams in a row and sounds really, really bad. HSII vocals almost inaudible, more technical difficulties, @ start. Jerry sounds pretty sick on the opening vocals of HSII. Ragged. HSII @ 7:32 second vocals another horrible vocal clam. OUCH.

! Performance: Jerry's vocal weaknesses on this show, and his overall sound, lead me to conclude that he was probably not making healthy choices this night, or in any case was just off his game. I was going to lambaste the four-song first set, but I think equipment problems dictated that. There's a longish delay before the setbreak announcement (after Deal), Jerry sounds a little exasperated, and there are audible electronic gremlins out of the PA while he's talking.

! P: d1t04 Jimmy Warren is really not bringing much to Deal

! R: d2t01 HTC cuts in, enters on "battle won"

! P: MITR bad vocal flubs ca. 2:45. He sounds lost, and so he forgets the words, and he gets embarrassed and sings in a more constricted way, and so forth. A struggle. He is LOST.

! R: d2t05 Dear Prudence tape flip @ 0:05.1.

When did Melvin Seals begin with JGB?

Edited 20110216

The Jerry Garcia Band show listed as Saturday, December 20, 1980, Keystone Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA, has always struck me odd. I argue here that (1) "12/20/80" is a "phantom" listing, a mislabel of 12/20/79. Along the way (2) I argue that "1/18/81" is also a phantom, a mislabel of 1/18/83. This leads to a new-to-me understanding of when Melvin Seals joined the band; I (3) conclude here that Melvin Seals's public debut as keyboardist with the Jerry Garcia Band was Thursday, January 22, 1981 at the Keystone Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA. This can be seen as a companion piece to my query about the start of the Garcia-Saunders relationship.

Observation #1: all circulating tapes of "12/20/80" are actually copies of 12/20/79. No-one with ears to hear (or eyes to see, if one had been there) could confuse Melvin and his Hammond B-3 with Ozzie Ahlers and his electric piano (can't remember the precise gear right now).

Observation #2: the last reasonably well documented JGB show before "12/20/80" is August 9 (*shiver*), 1980, Keystone Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA (shnid-29088 [partial sbd]). As we presently understand it, that is the last show of the Garcia-Kahn-Ahlers-Errico quartet version of the Jerry Garcia Band. (Errico would return on October 13, 1982, for another 8-month stint.)

Observation #3: I know of no hard evidence (newspaper ad, ticket stub, attendee recollection, distinct tape, etc. etc.) of a JGB show on 12/20/80. Gordon Sharpless, credited as contributor at TJS, has shared his conclusion that "12/20/80" is a misdate of 12/20/79 in comments.

Observation #4: there have been tape recordings labeled "Melvin Rehearsals", dated Wednesday, January 14, 1981 through Friday, January 16, 1981, at Club Front in San Rafael, CA. I have January 16th to listen to (thank you, wk!) but haven't gotten around to it yet. It's the kind of thing that is going to be all consuming for 90 minutes, and I tend not to have chunks of time like that. Tape datings are among the least reliable data sources we have --I have created a new tag called 'methodology', by the way-- but the coincidence of Wed-Fri rehearsals right before starting up the new configuration the next week is a strongly suggestive one. (I would have guessed that they'd gig on Saturday 1/17, but if they weren't ready they probably spent a few more nights rehearsing.) There may well have been further rehearsals, but there is no public information about that. Anyway, these rehearsals are consistent with a later starting date than "12/20/80" ... I don't think workaholic Jerry would have been rehearsing this new band for the 3-4 weeks required to have started up before 12/20/80 and still been rehearsing in the third week of January.

Observation #5: The next conventionally-listed JGB gig is Sunday, January 18, 1981, Catalyst, Santa Cruz, CA. This would be a plausible first gig for a band with a new lineup: Sunday night at the relatively out-of-the-way Catalyst. I see three reasons to conclude that this date is bogus, though. First, the tapes circulating with this date are all from January 18, 1983 (same venue, the Catalyst). Mislabels being what they are, this doesn't mean an '81 show on this date and venue didn't happen. Second, TJS had this note: "DeadBase's setlist for this show is a duplication of their 01/18/83 setlist and incorrect", and it credits gorshar as a contributor. This is exactly like the profile of 12/20/80, of course. Third, the manucript tradition (i.e., Corry's lists) never contained information on this show. Strike three and this date is out, as far as my current reasoning goes.

Interim Analysis. Here's what I think happened for both "12/20/80" and "1/18/81". The old manuscript tradition correctly had no listing for these shows. At some point a tape of 1/18/83 gets mislabeled "1/18/81" (easily enough), just as a tape of 12/21/79 became "12/20/80" (though this one has a less obvious orthographic explanation). This tape forms the basis of a Deadbase listing (most of which, but obviously not this one, drew from Corry's lists). When the Jerry Site comes around in ca. ?1999? or ?2000?, gorshar tells Ryan about the mislabel, but Ryan (rightly, conservatively) makes the note but keeps the entry in, just in case. But I am prepared to conclude here that 1/18/81 is also a bogus listing.

Observation #6: the next known JGB show is Thursday, January 22, 1981, the first of two nights at the Keystone Palo Alto in Palo Alto, CA (Jerrybase, shnid-97266 [Latvala's partial audience recording]). These are Melvin's presumed third and fourth shows, after "12/20/80" and "1/18/81". But I argue there that 1/22/81 is the correct dating for Melvin Seals's public debut with the Jerry Garcia Band. The two preceding dates, "12/20/80" and "1/18/81", are both phantoms, by my analysis.

Aside, re: personnel: Melvin would never leave the JGB's keyboard chair, putting in an astonishing 14+ years. Without checking the numbers, I think this makes Melvin Jerry's #2 onstage musical collaborator (in terms of frequency) outside the Grateful Dead, following Jerry's ol' buddy John Kahn. There is obviously much, much more to say about Mr. Melvin Seals, who continues, 30 years on, to engage this music as "Melvin Seals and JGB".

Aside re: venues: Corry's pathbreaking work on the Keystone complex, including his Garcia shows at Keystone overview, deserves to be borne in mind at all times. His economic analysis is especially important, really providing some good hard evidence about the Garcia-Keystone (let me use that as shorthand for Freddie Herrera and the whole complex here) symbiosis. He mentions the nice complementarities of Jerry being able to rotate through the various clubs, especially in this period when the Keystone Berkeley, Keystone Palo Alto, and the Stone (San Francisco) were all operating. I don't read him as identifying any further division of labor, but I have a hypothesis: the Keystone Palo Alto was more likely to be used midweek than either of the other two clubs. That's not to say the KPA never got weekend shows, just that, by the early 80s, if there was woodshedding to be done and a Keystone club was to be involved, it was more likely to happen in Palo Alto than in Berkeley or SF. Otherwise, it seems like slightly more out-of-the-way places such as the Catalyst and the River Theater got a disproportionate share of the "debut" action. And given the fluidity of JGB membership in the early 1980s (e.g., in terms of backup singers and drummers), there was an unusual amount of woodshedding to be done. I do think we could get at this with some very simple statistic tests, but I'll add that to the "to-do" list.

And a meta point underneath (or "over", anyway) that: maybe the fact that less central venues tended to get the "debut" performances in the early 80s is why information on precise starting and ending dates has been so inconsistent. Fewer notetakers and tapers = less carry-though to the present. An interesting sociology of knowledge involved in all this, but I digress ...

Upshot:

1. I argue and conclude that the "12/20/80" JGB date is a phantom
2. I argue and provisionally conclude that the "1/18/81" JGB date is a phantom.
3. I argue and conclude that Melvin Seals's public debut with the Jerry Garcia Band was January 22, 1981, following at least some rehearsals the week prior.

Source Check:
McNally, LST: no mention
Jackson, Garcia, p. 321: Melvin's arrival and tenure noted, but no starting date/timeframe given.
Jackson, cutting room floor: no mention.