Does anybody have the state-of-the-art understanding of what the “Scotty’s Music Store 5/14/70” / “Jetty’s Music Theater 12/7/71” NRPS jam session really is? TIA.
update
Looks pretty certain to have been 12/9/71 at Scotty’s Music Store. Here is some info from JGBP (thanks!).
Jerry plays a Zane Beck D-10 pedal steel and also Lloyd
Green’s old double neck Sho Bud with the yellow streak on the front owned by
Scotty, a flat top guitar [6] and a brand new 1972 Micro Frets Spacetone
guitar.
“The next time that the Dead came to St. Louis and the
New Riders were with them and both bands came to the store and we had a kind
off the wall jam session. Sometimes Buddy Cage would play the steel and then I
would play. I owned Lloyd Green’s old double neck Sho Bud with the yellow
streak on the front and that is the guitar we played on. They came to the store
one more time and anytime they would get within 200 miles of St. Louis they
would call me and I would take my reel to reel tape recorder to the motel and
took several tapes of the Steel Guitar Convention with me and after their
concert we would listen to them the rest of the night. I took pictures and even
put up a mike and recorded that jam session. I sold Jerry a double neck MSA and
when it came time to pay for it the manager said to me, “What’s our
price”? Jerry put his hand on his shoulder and said, You pay this man full
price!” Wow! Jerry and I corresponded for awhile and we exchanged LP’s
with each other. It’s odd – a guy devoted to pure country and one of the most respected
guys in rock and roll getting together and being so friendly with each other.
Jerry Garcia and DeWitt “Scotty” Scott, Bob Weir and the rest of the
band were very friendly too!” [4]
“That jam at Scotty’s was interesting, and Scotty
remembers a few details. Most interestingly is the smoking’ hot lead guitar
player. Scotty remembers his name I think. He was a Gibson rep out doing his
midwest rounds and happened to be stopping thru St. Louis that day. He was
there for the jam, and was totally unrelated to NRPS or Jerry. It really wasn’t
a performance as much as an impromptu jam. The Dead/NRPS were in town, and at
that time Jerry no longer played steel with them, hence Cage’s presence. A
bunch of local hippie/deadheads found their way and crammed into Scotty’s for
the little jam. Rick Rhamberg was there and recalls this Nashville Gibson rep
guitarist all duded out in his country getup and they didn’t know who he was,
but he sure could rip.” [5]
“My
store is small but both bands were here and they sat on the floor and we were
crowded but everyone enjoyed it. What they liked about meeting at my store is
that I did not take advantage of their being here by letting everyone know that
they were coming. Jerry, especially, liked that. All this is packed in boxes
and stored away. I did not even mark on the boxes what was in them back in
those days. I would have to search many, many boxes to find any thing that I
have on those guys. About the recording. I only made one. Buddy Cage played
steel guitar for awhile and I played steel guitar for awhile. Everyone had
their go at singing and playing the flat top guitars.” [4
“And that was the night of the jam session. Even if I
didn’t partake, there was a big enough cloud for everyone.”[1]
“Buddy
Cage, Chuck Berry and many others have been here several times. There have been
many jam sessions at this store and the one with Jerry Garcia is in the top
ten.” [3]
The
Grateful Dead performed at the Fox Theater, St. Louis, MO later on this date.
2.) Hitsman, Steve, comments, 2000-07-19,
http://steelguitarforum.com/Archives/Archive-000003/HTML/20011227-1-010467.html3.) Scott, Michael, comments, 2013-06-07, email to author.4.) Scot, DeWitt, robthewordsmith, comments, 2010-10-12,
http://archive.org/post/329204/scottys-music-store-jam.5.) Jim F., comments, 2010-10-14,
http://archive.org/post/329204/scottys-music-store-jam6.) Scott, Michael, photographer, 1971-12-09.
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