Upcoming Shows

Our great state fair will host a couple of different artists this year.  I decided that I should really go see them.  They are Rush and Weird Al.  I will take my daughter to see Weird Al, and I bought a pair of tickets for Rush.  This will give me an opportunity to take someone with me.  I might met up with an old friend from school at the show.  I connected with  him on facebook today.  Here is a classic tune by Weird Al called "Albuquerque" part one, part two.  The Rush concert will feature them playing their album Moving Pictures.  Here are a few of tunes from that album. The first is "Witch Hunt."  The next song is "Vital Signs."  We will finish it up with "Red Barchetta"

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
April 16, 1978
Huntington Civic Center
Huntington, WV
listen here

Dark Star Orchestra
April 14, 2010
Mystic Theater
Petaluma, CA
listen here
This show is with Stu Allen.  Here is from Minnesota, and he has a local band called The Jones Gang that plays around the Twin Cities.  I have personally met the man, and he is the genuine article.  He is a very nice guy.

Pirate Radio

I picked up the blue ray disc of Pirate Radio.  One of the reasons for this was for the extras.  I was not disappointed.  The deleted scenes could have easily have made the movie, but it would have been way too long.  I was very satisfied to the point that it made feel even better about this movie.  There was a scene that took place outside Apple Studios  that foreshadowed the great album cover of Abbey Road by The Beatles.  I also found out that the role Gavin Canavagh was played by Rhys Ifans.  You know him from the movie The Replacements.  He was the soccer playing place kicker that says this about himself, " I'm wiry."  Here are some songs from the soundtrack of the film.  The first comes from The Beach Boys "Wouldn't It Be Nice."  The next song in The Kinks doing "All Day And All Of The Night."  The next is Cream doing "I Feel Free."  We finish this up with The Who doing "I Can See For Miles."

Music for today:

Log Cabin Boys
November 23, 1986
The Log Cabin
San Anselmo, CA
This was The Grateful Dead's Thanksgiving dinner party.
Set 1:
d1t01 - Freight Train Boogie
d1t02 - Rosalie McFall
d1t03 - Glass Of Wine
d1t04 - Drifting Too Far From Shore
d1t05 - Devil In Disguise
d1t06 - Two Little Boys
d1t07 - Cold Jordon
d1t08 - I'll Follow My Darling

Set 2:
d1t09 - Drink Up And Go Home
d1t10 - Mystery Train/Six White Horses
d1t11 - In God's Grace Forever More
d1t12 - Diamond Joe
d1t13 - A Little At A Time
d2t01 - Swing Low Sweet Chariot
d2t02 - I'll Go Drifting With The Tide
d2t03 - Snow White Wings
d2t04 - On Top Of Crucifix Mountain
d2t05 - I Hear A Voice Calling
d2t06 - A Broken Heart ->
d2t07 - Please Come Home

Line Up:
Jerry Garcia (banjo, vocals)
David Nelson (guitar, vocals)
Sandy Rothman (mandolin, banjo, guitar, vocals)
Dan Healy (guitar, vocals - does not play on last 4 or 5 songs)

This show was recently added to my collection, and I couldn't wait to hear it.  I would to thank Charlie Miller for making this show available.  Treasures like this are to enjoyed right away.

A Night On The Town

Later this evening, I will be doing fine dining and a Broadway show that is visiting Minneapolis.  The show in question is the musical Avenue Q. I will be joined by my daughter.  I first heard of this production through her.  Her online friends were all the rage over this musical, so naturally she wanted to experience it as well.  When I found out that it was coming, I got tickets as an early Christmas gift for her. I also bought the soundtrack to it as well. when we were in Florida, we listened to it in the car as part of the road trip that we took as we went to see her friends.  Here are some of the songs from the show.  The first one is "It sucks to be me."  The next is "Internet is for Porn."  The next song is from a reherasal "Everyone's a Little Rasist." 

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
April 8, 1989
Riverfront Coliseum
Cincinatti, OH
listen here

Death and Taxes

"Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." Letter to Jean-Baptiste Leroy (13 November 1789)

This famous line is attributed to Benjamin Franklin.  It is fitting to have it done on such an occasion as tax deadline day.  I will be getting mine in the mail at the deadline on Thursday afternoon.  I have plans in the evening, but I will report about this tomorrow.  So on the day that America bleeds green and black,  here are some tunes to help the medicine go down.  The first is the famous song by The Beatles "Taxman."  The next is by Pink Floyd from their reunion show from Live 8 "Money."  The next is from Dire Straits doing a live version of "Money for Nothing."    The last song is something that I found that sums it all up, and it is by a band called Death and Taxes "We Are Only In It For The Money." 

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
June 21, 1971
Chateau d'Herouville
Herouville, France
listen here

David Bromberg Band
February 3, 1976
Mother Blues
Dallas, TX
listen here (put in David Bromberg and search for date)

Life Matrixed Not The Movie

I was getting ready to watch the latest episode of Lost, and it occurred to me how obscure events are closely tied to one another over the course of time.  It really is something that things don't happen by accident.  There is meaning to things and people.  I will give you a perfect example.  Back in 1981, I met a rather strange individual named Cory.  He was one of these type that tried so hard to be the center of attention in everything that he did.  This also ran in his taste of music.  He was a huge fan of The Police in their early days before they made it huge.  Here is an example of this when they did "Roxanne" back in 1979. Here is a big hit of theirs "Every Breath You Take." I bring this up because in 1993 Sting opened up for the Grateful Dead at RFK Stadium in Washington D.C.  Jerry Garcia joined him during his performance.  If was to tell Cory that would happen way back then, he would probably say I was nuts.  This all reminds me of the movie "The Saragossa Manuscript" in which the details are fuzzy, but there is a payoff to a three hour movie in Polish. It is the most satisfying movie I have had every experienced.  It is really like a Grateful Dead concert.  Where is it going, I don't know, but I am willing to take the ride.  It also reminds me of the a saying that goes "life imitating art."  It goes to show you don't never know.  The lesson here is that when you think that you got it all figured out another layer is discovered or another connection is made that puts a whole new spin on it.  That is the Wow Factor.

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
June 11, 1976
Boston Music Hall
Boston, MA
listen here
This is great show from a great run.  I was really surprised at the quality of the recording.

Mixtape-bigfreakwhenyouawake
1. Aretha Franklin feat. Duane Allman “The Weight” (The Band)
    2. Bobbie Gentry “Son of a Preacher Man” (Dusty Springfield)
    3. Candi Stanton “Stand By Your Man” (Tammy Wynette)
    4. Dusty Springfield “To Love Somebody” (Bee Gees)
    5. Al Wilson “Lodi” (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
    6. Jim Ford “Long Road Ahead” (Delaney & Bonnie)
    7. Ike & Tina Turner “Honky Tonk Women” (Rolling Stones)
    8. Clarence Carter “Soul Deep” (Wayne Carson/ Boxtops)
    9. Linda Jones “Let It Be Me” (Everly Brothers)
    10. Wilson Pickett feat. Duane Allman “Hey Jude” (Beatles)

 Grateful Dead
June 21, 1971
Chateau d'Herouville (a.k.a. "The Honky Chateau")
France
DVD

Elvis Costello

Back in the Summer of 1983, my cousin Greg and I would hang out. He was at college here in Minnesota.  So, we would spend time time at one of the many lakes trying to pick up women.  He had a large appetite for music.  He introduced me Elvis Costello.  I remember seeing him on Saturday Night Live years earlier, but I failed to keep up with him.  Greg introduced me to his first album.  I have to say that I like it the best of all his works. 

I was reminded of this from watching House earlier this evening.  They played the song "Allison" at a critical touching time of the show.  The next song is partial used as the theme song for the PBS' program History Detectives "Watching the Detectives."  This nest song also comes from the first album "Waiting for the End of the World."  This comes from his album This Year's Model "Pump It Up." 

This is the real interesting part of the story.  When I got turned on to EC, I did not know that he was secretly a deadhead.  His first exposure to the band was at the Bickershaw Festival in 1972 during the legendary tour of the European continent. This underpinning of ideas led Mr Costello in ways yet unimagined.  It did make him want to pursue music with a burning passion.  Later in his career, he did get the chance to perform with his idol Jerry Garcia.  Here they are performing "You Win Again."   Here is recent performance of him doing "Friend of the Devil."

Going back to SNL, the aftermath of his playing Radio Radio instead of the agreed song got Elvis Costello banned for twenty years.  He shows up in the strangest place during The Beastie Boys set going again "Radio, Radio." We will finish this salute with a very appropriate song "What So Funny About Peace, Love and Understanding?"

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
January 6, 1978
Swing Auditorum
San Bernadino, CA
listen here

Mega Concert In The Summer Of 1977

Back in the Summer of 1977, there was a gigantic concert held at the old Metropolitan Stadium where the Minnesota Twins and Vikings would play. The Mall of America now occupies the grounds.  The line up was The Eagles, Steve Miller Group and Pablo Cruse.  The weather that day was extremely hot and humid.  This lead to thunderstorms later in the evening.  The stage was set up in straight away in the the out field towards the left center.There was around 65,000 people there for this event. I did see something tragic though.  There were these women drinking really hard.  One of them passed out about a half hour before they opened the gate to the stadium.  Her friends had to take care of her. I often think about that incident. I was in the second deck with three rows in from covered from the top deck.  When the rain came, I stayed completely dry while thousands got drenched.  I also saw a great natural light show from the lightening in the background.  Here are some tunes from the tour.  The first one is "Hotel California."   The next is a Joe Walsh tune played with The Eagles "Rocky Mountain Way."  The next song is "Fly Like An Eagle."  The last song is by Pablo Cruse "Love Will Find A Way."

Music for today:

Grateful Dead
June 3, 1976
Paramount Theater
Portland, OR
listen here