Category: Melvin Seals

  • Did You Ever Notice the 9/18/81 JGB Rehearsal Has Jerry Playing Acoustic?

    The spine of Betty’s 9/18/81 JGB rehearsal tape box A beautiful piece of tape: Betty’s reel from the 9/18/81 JGB rehearsal I just revisited this little 20+ minute rehearsal fragment. Thank you Betty! This is the latest piece of Betty Board of interest to me: some of the abortive Brent solo album material came from…

  • Donny’s Debut: JGB at the Warfield, February 4, 1994

    LN jg1994-02-04.jgb.all.aud-vasseur.146010.flac1644 Friday, February 4, 1994 through Sunday, February 6, 1994 are super interesting, for reasons that may not be independent. The amazing drummer David Kemper was let go at some point between the end of the fall ’93 tour and the first night of this run, for reasons that seem unclear even to him. After…

  • The Romanesque Church Design Was Based On The Roman Basilica: Discuss (JGB at the Knick in Albany, November 3, 1993)

    I just marveled at the almost 90-minute second set offered up on 12/22/90, and got to wondering about post-coma others that might match or beat it in duration. I recalled some long sets on the 11/93 tour, recalled that I had unposted (because not very informative) notes on 11/3/93 (my 23rd birthday, though I was…

  • Firing On All Cylinders: JGB at the SF Civic, December 22, 1990

    LN jg1990-12-22.jgb.all.aud-stucco-gems.149794.flac1648 When you say something sucked, or point to some darkness, you are scandal-mongering. When you rave, your are homer-fanboying. In all cases it’s subjective. But, fuck it – it’s my blog, and these are my impressions, and if you want to compare notes put ’em in comments or somewhere’s else I can find ’em!…

  • Carl Lockett and the Side Trips Social Network

    Preface: Reconstruction #2 Jerry Garcia’s commitment to Reconstruction never seemed total, a big problem if you’re John Kahn, first, and then Merl Saunders, looking to reboot the lucrative Garcia-Saunders-Kahn Fantasy Records franchise. It’s no good if the G is wobbly, because “multiracial dance and jazz band with a rotating cast of Bay Area guitarists, including…

  • Color: January 12-25, 1972 Night Times listings

    Here are some listings from the Night Times, with a few scattershot thoughts. 1) The Berkeley Night Times is a gem. 2) It’s especially good re: race. The range of clubs it covers exceeds most other sources – you’ve got the country clubs, the rock clubs, the black soul/R&B/gospel clubs, the Latin clubs, a little…

  • I sing the blues, where has it led?

    LN jg1983-05-31.jgb.all.aud-vita.76578.flac1644 On Tuesday, May 31, 1983, the Jerry Garcia Band (#15c) lit up an SRO West 52nd Street institution, the venerable Roseland Ballroom, with one of the finest shows of the 1980s.  On any given night, Jerry Garcia could deliver the fucking goods, and this is the fucking goods. Everything crackles. I have titled…

  • RN Sandy Troy’s Captain Trips (1994)

    Reading Notes Troy, Sandy. 1994. Captain Trips: A Biography of Jerry Garcia. New York: Thunder’s Mouth Press. JG devoted to music Troy 1994, xiii JG was into all kinds of music: folk, bluegrass, country, acid rock, R&B, gospel, jazz. But he never dabbled, he always “plunged in” Troy 1994, xiii Jose Ramon Garcia emigrated from…

  • Is Jimmy Here? JGB, Keystone Palo Alto, January 23, 1981

    LN jg1981-01-23.jgb.all.aud-latvala.97205.flac1644 Well, I hear some electric piano here (see notes), but I think it’s Melvin. So, as Corry indicated, this (along with 1/22/81) might be a hitherto unknown quartet configuration of Garcia, Kahn, Seals and Shaw — no Jimmy Warren on second keys, as traditionally believed. Otherwise, nothing to write home about, to my…

  • Melvin in the House: JGB, Keystone Palo Alto, January 22, 1981

    LN jg1981-01-22.jgb.partial.aud-latvala.97266.flac1644 Corry listened to this and said he didn’t hear two keyboards (in comments to his main post on Jimmy Warren). I don’t think I do, either, but I’d love for someone to check the 2-minute mark of I’ll Take a Melody and the 6-minute mark of Like a Road. I have a much…