Dso Bay Area

[sakada]

So, lemme BEgin by reiterating {again}: GOD BLESS THE GRATEFUL DEAD !!!

The following, short Treatise on DSO Bay Area Shows, circa 9/29 - 10/4, admittedly may be slightly skewed by mind-state, interpretation, & opinion, tho i will do my best with it…

9/29 Guerneville:

Smooth ride down from Tahoe on Wednesday. Not too hot & traffic-y in Sacramento, made gr8 time…Went to Harbin Hot Springs Wednesday nite. As usual, wonderful soak and relaxing vibes. Only complaint was that some jackass locked their 2-3 yr. old kid in the van in the parking lot, who popped out crying around 2 a.m. and i {of course} was the lucky one to search out said "parent" and slap them…just kidding, as i didn't get the chance, as after 45 min. of searching, i found a Harbin security guard to turn the child over to. ANYWAY…Thursday was an easy, mellow drive over to Guerneville, by way of free $900 of credit at Bananas at Large Music Store {they apparently wiped their computer memory clean and thus didn't know how much credit {nor i} i still had, so just gave me some for my troubles}…NICE…Twas a beyond-comfortable 75-ish degrees {i apparently brought Tahoe weather with me, as it was 90+ the day prior}…after a greasy-spoon breakfast with friends, meandered around the wooded park lining the Russian River…a few hours later, a jaunt to a local wine bar {some FABULOUS syrah & pinot noir, btw} led to being ready for showtime…River Theater {Jerry played there a number of times} had some interesting Guerneville-esque {if ya catch me} decor…apparently was kinda a nightmare for the crew in there…what i dug, personally, was the SOFT floor to dance upon…the show was 4/8/71 Boston…High-lites for me: Bouncy Bertha, Playin' w/ NO jam {as per the era}, sublime Loser, up-tempo BIODTL, 1st GD {of 3} 2nd That Emotion played all slinky like {think West L.A.}, surprise 1st set Sugar Mags, BuBbLe-Y China Cat…another Dark Star with hints of most everything, incl. the kitchen sink > stephen > WOW segue of NFA > GDTRFB {HOT HOT HOT} > NFA, Sing Me Back Home a rare treat {tho good Goddess, was missin' Lisa during it…nothing against the band, just she adds such depth}, Cumberland {HIGH-LITE of nite for me…twas heart-attack material!!!}, early style Greatest Story, and then, of course, Pigpen's version of Good Lovin' {complete with Brooklyn Bridge & Pony raps}…tangled up in blue kept the dancing' goin'…but alas, another show comes to an end…Guerneville River Cottages is a lovely play to stay…s'mores ingr. provided around bonfires et.al., apparently, but i got there around 4…in the morning, found a fig tree over the entrance with THE most delicious yellow w/ green striped figs…mmmm….

Fri., S.F.:

WOW!!! 70 & sunny in S.F. is practically unheard of…got there around 2 via a BEautiful drive down hwy.1 in Sonoma County {picking' up my custom shoes <made by lady @ OR Country Faire…http://www.windwalkers.net/> in Bodega Bay}…checked in to Opal {free upgrade to suite, as ALL S.F. hotels sold out due to Oracle Conference} & hung about 'til Willow & kids showed up…well, i guess started drunken' around that point…GAMH hosted a private party with {rumor has it} a stand-alone Scarlet & a Help > Slip > 11 > Franks…Me & Willow ended up drunken' w/ a friend @ a local friend-owned bar…{btw, do NOT switch to champagne @ 1:15 a.m., after beer all day, EVEN if it's "on the bar-owner" !!!}…stumbled back to bed @ Opal…

Sat., S.F.:

peeled myself off the pillow @ 2 p.m….was gonna take Desta to Academy of Sci., but didn't happen…finally came 'round to "normal" about supper time…gr8 Thai supper..headed to Regency…1st set was certainly something' {sans the terrible/horrible attitude of the staff towards us dancers}…Jack Straw > Jack-a-Roe set the tone for a rocking' night…Bucket followed. SMOKIN' version {Willow slipped on the wet floor but landed amazingly gracefully during the line "…if every nite i stumble & fall" LOL}…Bird Song > Other 1 > Bird Song !!!!!!!!! now, later day GD Bird Song Jams certainly coulda gone into the Other One {kinda surpised they didn't, actually}. THIS ONE DID, to say the least…rest of set {except WRS > Let it Grow} kinda escapes me, as the security up front left, where we all were dancing, was strenuous {a.k.a. ABSOLUTELY SHITTY} at best…i mean, screaming at us "don't give me attitude", when our request was some fresh air to be let in…seriously, was a sweatbox in there…apparently, unless all one says to them is "YOWZA" {to quote Richard}, it's gonna be an issue…ANYWAY, black & white, the vibe b/w 1st & 2nd sets…{dunno who said what to them [Nick???], but…} door was open, vibe was chill, they turned friendly towards us, accommodated just about EVERY request we had regarding the space…AND the music corresponded impeccably…Shakedown was slinky, groovy, psychedelic, WOW…CA EARTHQUAKE {need i say ANYmore??!!??}…Playin' kept that same "dripping" feel thruout…Terrapin played on ALL the senses {and then some}…DRUMS…lemme reiterate…D R U M S ! ! ! {i not the ONLY one who gonna say this} had this vibe where time ceased and was BEing at ALL times simultaneously outside of "time"…from 1-celled organism thru ancient cultures {Egypt, Mesoamerica, etc etc}…like being electrocuted, having a full-body chill, yet hard-wired & jumper-cabled direct to the SOUL…anyhow…Saint of Circum. was perfect from there {this must be heaven..TONIGHT I CROSSED THE LINE…LOL}…VISIONS OF JOHANNA {Jeff's vocal inflections truly impressed me.."She's alright, she's just weird..} played crisp, clean…um…what came next {goin' by memory here, folks} ?….oh, Sugar Mag > Rueben & Cerise…nice…Werewolves a pleasant and FUN surprise…after the show saw us partying @ hotel {complete with the NICEST visit from SFPD, serious} to some FABULOUS Carnerros Pinot Noir…up till almost 6…late night TL offers true entertainment & humor value…

Sunday, S.F.

y'all gotta get Philz Coffee if in that S.F. neighborhood…each cup brewed per order….mmmm, Turkish Coffee with Cardamon & fresh mint….headed to Irving St. neighborhood for amazing food { check out the Crepevine!!!!!} & best bloody mary in years…parking was a nightmare at best {it is on a regular 'ol Wednesday…imagine Hardly Strictly Bluegrass weekend}…LONG walk to the most ridiculously packed Golden Gate Park i seen at ANY h.s.b….got there for end of Mother Hips…rocking' Other One by them…now…DSO in Golden Gate Park…had been thinking all week that the perfect show for them to play, considering where this was, would be 9/28/75 Lindley Meadows…{even got the expected "blow-off" from a couple of the band members when i brought it up prior}…well, WHAT A SHOW !!! sun setting over the trees at the far end of the meadow…8 million friggen people…yet, us dancers found our way {as we do every year} to directly in front of the stage on the left {you just gotta be patient to get there and it's ALWAYS free & clear there…i guess years of attending HSB has it's advantages}…LISA WAS BACK !!!! Barraco with a Rhodes…hmm…what show? Help > slip {no franks}…and an INCREDIBLE slipknot jam at that !!!!!!!!!!!!!!…TLEO was that other other version…{the fast version with extra bridge of 73-74 left behind…not quite the SLOW slow SLOW version of 76 had yet come about}…dig it !!!….hoppin' BIODTL {matt kelly on harp at orig. show…did Lisa play harp on this? i forget..} had the crowd of 30+,000 goin' nuts…FRANKLINS {need i say more…well, i guess i will…the vocal jam at end was LONG and gorgeous…LOL@Barraco for that bit of vocal humor}…ditto on the 30+,000 dancing when it came to Big River…Stronger Than Dirt {1st w/ Jeff} played to a crisp psychedelia…GDTRFB {Lisa, on stage, had the MOST dancing room of anybody there…and full on took advantage of that…could see her heart healing as she danced and especially WAILED the peak vocals at the end of the song…BLESS YOU, LISA !!!}….a quick {for us, at least} sushi supper with all the friends after…and home to Tahoe…made gr8 time but was EXHAUSTED by the time i got home to summer being gone, almost winter here {4 seasons in Tahoe…almost winter, winter, still winter, road construction}….

Monday, Tahoe:

BBQ @ my house…glad y'all could make it…equally as glad to give back a fraction of what y'all give me…some gr8 late night Barraco & Cotter {and Willow} acoustic guitar jams…oh yeah, tripled my $ late night craps {thanks Will for the inspiration}...

TAHOE Tuesday:

up by noon-ish {needed that}…got to Montbleu about 8…$200 turned to $480 @ craps table in 20 min…{man, i been ON FIRE with the dice lately}…as noted in my DSO Review of the show, BEST Tahoe venue BY FAR…{i may take it as a personal affront if the band plays ANYWHERE else up here in the future}…BEST DANCE ROOM IMAGINEABLE !!!…instrument set-up on stage, walking in, affirmed an 80s-style {but mic for Lisa cemented ELECTIVE night}…a few sloppy vocal moments {gotta input an iota of constructive criticism} in the 1st set, tho i will leave out by whom & where {it's completely understandable after a whoop-yo-ass [and theirs] S.F. weekend}…GORGEOUS Sitting in Limbo, however…vocals were spot on, solos {Jeff & Baracco} WOW !!!…Lazy Lightnin' > Supplication, Might As Well rounded 1st set high-lites…some awesome Kevin bass, too…2nd set {as with Regency} WHOA-boy-ness…Samson & Delilah had that Samson & Delilah just about heart attack feel…Cold Rain & Snow {perfect, as the weather outside complimented}…{i truly thought from the tuning that this was gonna be the 1st set opener, tho was Minglewood, to go back for a second}…Women R Smarter kept the same rocking flavor…Foolish Heart next…{now, i was NOT impressed with the Reno Foolish Heart last tour, but this one changed my mind}..the jam kept goin & goin & goin…geez when is drums?…but NOOOOOOOOOOO, Fire On The Mtn. {Tahoe feel} came next…FOOLISH > FIRE !!!! {twas the bookend to that previously mentioned {rumored} GAMH stand-alone Scarlet from Friday…and this FIRE was ON FIRE {pun intended}…drums {AGAIN} did that thing…Mattson & Barraco came out at the end of drums and finished it up {added to by Kevin a few mins. later} with the funkiest/weirdest/funkiest ditty of a jam…Miracle…COMES A TIME {spot on vocals, btw} had an AMZING jam at the end of it, leading to the {as usual} rocking Throwin' Stones…during the vocal jam at the end i was thinking: "geez, ANOTHER NFA??!!??", but surprise surprise DEAL !!!! {y'all ought do shit like that more often}…MIGHTY QUINN encore did its best, for sure….a few beers {and a couple hours} later at the bar with Barraco, Eaton, Will, et.al. and "the band was packed & gone"….safe travels, watch out Salt Lake City !!! btw, glad y'all made it over the pass safe {as noted: SNOWED IN TAHOE 10/4 !!!! wootwoot, the Mtns. will be open by 10/31, mark my words}…got home around 3…in bed by 4 {early night}….

RETROSPECT:

whatever it was, it was worth my time & energy…any naysayers ought be reprimanded…i am SO picky….GOD BLESS THE GRATEFUL DEAD !!!!!!!!!!!!

p.s. Kudos if YOU read this through !!!

[redeyedbert]

p.s. Kudos if YOU read this through !!!

I read it. Great review. Sounds like a great time.

[Evangeline]

Ditto!

[Guest crazy digits]

So, lemme BEgin by reiterating {again}: GOD BLESS THE GRATEFUL DEAD !!!

The following, short Treatise on DSO Bay Area Shows, circa 9/29 - 10/4, admittedly may be slightly skewed by mind-state, interpretation, & opinion, tho i will do my best with it

[chuckvegas]

Love is a rose

You better not pick it

It only grows when it's on the vine

A hand full of thorns and you know you've missed it...

I made it through Sakada's beautiful words too, and am proud to join in the group bow.

Like the rest of you, I've been reading a lot of other posts too, and I don't know that I have ever seen this place in quite the space it has been in this last week or so. New ones come and old ones certainly go, but I believe it is more than that. Honestly, I see it as a combination of collective and individual growing/real world pains (certainly in my case) and the troubles of relating to the expansion of the DSO fan base (a good thing to be sure, but this old town don't look the same as I step down from the train).

All of this was the farthest thing from my mind on Saturday in SF. Like a lot of us, I don't get out as much as I used to. More's the pity but it only makes each show more precious than ever. And when it is what amounts to a backyard show it is a real treat - the flight was only 1 1/2 hour gate to gate. Then there was the easy BART ride to only 10 short blocks from the venue.

And the Regency was interesting. Security did indeed make a strong impression from the time you entered the place, but my experience inside wasn't as heavy handed as Sakada's and the Phil zone crew. I was impressed with the layout inside, which featured a nice, although somewhat out of the way, room for Ellie's merch and the Wharf Rat table. And it was a nice touch for management not to have the bar right next to the WR open for business.

I gravitated to the back of the room as the balcony wasn't open (yet) so I couldn't take the high ground. And there was a bonus there - fresh air. The back of the room featured high double doors onto some scaffolding outside, and there a big floor fan blowing away. There would be sweat but heat stroke was averted.

I have never had more room to dance at a show in SF. In fact, even the staff tasked with keeping us from fucking with the fan was dancing on the clock. Some big bruisers did come through from time to time but otherwise there were no issues in back.

The Jack Straw came on strong (when doesn't it) and the few loud folks STFU. Always a plus. Things were off to a fast start. Now, I love Jack a Roe. I'm a Roe ho. This one was what I needed... To me the song has a strong moral core. The 91st Psalm features in Roe, as it does in another favorite, and I take comfort in both the lyrics and the power Jeff brings to them. This performance of it was the night's first example of the maturity of this band's cohesion in the much-discussed post-JK era.

Bucket is not one of my personal favorites, if only because I remember Bobby's video, although epitomized that era. Plenty of others dig it, and it is a fun sing-along so who I to do anything but grin and dance? Easy to do...and then came the Birdsong>TOO>Birdsong. Maybe this is the part some called "dark." God knows it was heavy in a musically lyrical way. This was the point where it was time to fasten the five point harness and get ready for the G forces. These two songs are indeed a perfect fit and this pairing showed to any in doubt (there are always some) that this band does a bit more than parrot shows note for note. The monster surprise of the set, this flowed beautifully, as it they had been playing this construct for decades. Please do it again!

Ramble is more Dead karaoke and several people around me joined right in. They actually didn't suck too bad. Around this time the venue big police wandered through to break up whatever they thought was happening. I give them credit for moving on through rather than planting themselves like Easter Island Moai. But they are hard to miss and bring a certain energy all their own. So went Stranger.

I love Althea. Long about this time, if the door was opened for Sakada's crew, ours in back was pushed to. The fan moved the air but the freshness was noticeably lacking. OK, that wasn't fine.

But the WRS>Let it Grow was! It demands interpretive dancing from anyone whose feet aren't nailed, or glued by drying beer, to the floor. The LIG just didn't stop emotionally. Dedicated to Lisa and her family's loss, this had a power that DSO always makes me want to experience with heart and soul wide open.

Like everyone here, I have had shows that have left me not necessarily flat, but feeling a little less than full. That has been a result, without fail, because of what I brought in my head to the show. This is no great revelation or insight. It is a comment on the human condition because no matter how hard we strive, how much we hope and try, what is on our minds at any one time can't be turned off like a light switch.

But the music is the one thing that can wash over those concerns and submerge them. It is a corrective, a kind tool of perspective and equilibrium. It is not a magic wand but it is magic. I believe in magic. And DSO has mastered the art. The second set made that so, so clear.

Shakedown came as no great surprise. And the fresh air returned! All the right move your ass buttons. The setbreak chill from drying clothes went away in a hurry. Just in time for California Earthquake! I hadn't heard this song live before. DSO has now played it more than the GD did. It was performed with the reverence and quiet strength the lyrics command. The message of persistence and revival, of unquenchable will, is a testament to all this music offers us. Works are always torn down and we grow in the rebuilding. That is life.

PITB kept the feet moving and Terrapin lifted them up. This song is one of my touchstones. It never disappoints; how can it? And tale of rising and falling and rising again... The sheer power of it reaches inside and opens the soul.

The jam out of Terrapin into drums was one of the best I have heard in I don't know when. When for me, anyway. Some drums are syncopated percussive jams, some trance/house, some open and spacey, all with a come-hither tribal pull to our roots from around the camp fires. And all are good for opening up the floor. This one invoked a journey through motion (and thirst as the water ran low) by tapping into what I love. It carried us into Saint... I didn't know where it would go, and going into Visions was a gift.

I think most everyone will agree Vision is sacred. Most Dylan songs are poems that transcend any mere rhyme or blank verse scheme. While all are holy, some are more holy than others. This is one.

Saturday's Vision was a milestone. We have seen JK leave and JM come. It has been a source of no little discussion and dissension so I will NOT rehash that. I will say that Visions was all the evidence anyone could want that Jeff is an integral part of this band. Not just integral but a driving force, leading us on a journey that is the never-ending story of why we love this music. No one I know has doubted the mastery of his playing. Well, the vocals are there too, in spades. More than one person around me, Cali heads, commented that his performance owned that stage.

Back into Playing - well, in all the excitement I had kind of lost count of it myself. Sugar Mag - dig down deep and dance for the sheer joy of body and soul moving each other. Then came Reuben...music is the thread that connects us in this realm with our home above. The melody and lyrical soul of this song haunt... "the course of love must follow blind without a look behind." God, has it ever been said more perfectly? And this band brought the fire of the heart down from Heaven. Thank you, thank you, thank you for that Promethean gift!

The fun of Werewolves was just the right touch to put a smile on the face to go with the happy feet. Then it was time to leave the womb.

Like trying to tell a stranger about rock and roll. I love you.

[sakada]

thanks, Chuck...lovely soliloquy