Wednesday, January 4, 2023
Home, Again
He
walked slowly up the aisle of the enormous old theater, all
tie-dyed T Shirt and baggy pants. He hugged everyone he
encountered in turn; an embrace, a moment of eye contact, a small
smile. He arrived at where my friend and I stood, and I opened my
arms and shared with him a moment of warm, slightly sweaty
contact. Then he turned to my friend. I don't think he had been
following the dynamic, so I said to my buddy "I think he wants to
give you a hug." A stiff hug followed.
"That
was not a good hug," tie dye man said.
It
may well be that a few years had gone by since my friend had been
in the company of such a large group of tripping people.
It was early March and I had decided to follow JRAD, Joe Russo's Almost Dead, on their Northeast mini-tour. A Friday show in Albany, then a two-gig weekend in Portland, Maine.
Superficially,
JRAD are another Grateful Dead tribute band, one of two (1)
that tour nationally. But, to those of us who love them, they are more
than a cover band. The members have known and played with each other
for many, many years, well before they started this project. Their
friendship is clear in how much fun they seem to have playing
together. Their mastery is clear in just how much they listen to one
another and intuit together the journey the music will make. As much
(or more) than any band who approach this catalog, they truly embrace
improvisation on every level; any song can be played at any time, and
each time they play a song they seem to break it down and reassemble
it differently. I'm old enough to have seen the Dead many times,
including shows in their early 70's prime. This unit matches the
energy and ecstasy of those experiences. And if you're talking about many
nights from the last decade of the GD run, when drugs and fatigue and
enormous venues robbed much of the spark, I would say that they often exceed
the musical quality of the original. (2).
But
rather than just giving you an account of this late-winter three-show
swing, what I really want to explore is
something I think about a lot regarding this improvisational music.
How much of what I experience listening to this music is personal to
me, and how much is shared by the other listeners/dancers with me? And
how appropriate is it for me to judge it, either good or bad?
I'm Buddhist-leaning, and understand that distinctions like this are sometimes only in the eye of me, Win, beholding the concert. Time I spend trying to compare one experience to another is time spent away from the present moment, time that I could be doing so many other, more mindful activities.
And,
for better and worse,
I'm also a critic, proud about being discerning, about trying
to nuance what makes the difference between good and great and
GREAT. I'm human, and humans mull over distinctions that separate
sustenance from poison, better from worse, more pleasing from less.
But, when the evening borders on the mystical, is there any place for criticism?
But, when the evening borders on the mystical, is there any place for criticism?
Friday's show began with a late afternoon drive from Vermont to
central New York, dinner, and then a walk along busy Albany sidewalks to
the show. Elton John was playing down the street and the city was
buzzing.
We found seats in the taper section, amidst a forest of aluminum
poles lofting expensive microphones toward the vaulted ceiling. Our
thinking was, "If this is the spot that they think will get them the
best recording, then the sound should be good, right?" And I'm all
about sitting where the sound will be good (3).
Last year, seeing the same band in the same venue, I experienced a
half hour of mediocre sound before I moved around and found that the
sound was much better 30 feet to the left. From then on I had a
wonderful time. So this year I wanted to get it right.
But
when the lights went down, and the band started to play, the sound
wasn't great. Too loud. Too boomy, like the reverb had been maxed
out. I could hear some instruments well, others not at all.
But
did I move? No. I was there in my seat, thinking:
A)
Costello, the sound guy, will hear this and dial in the changes to
make it better. It can't stay like this.
B)
The tapers aren't freaking out, so they must think it sounds
alright. Or if not, that it'll get better soon (see A).
C)
It's actually NOT distorted. This is a psychedelic rock band, and
this is how they WANT to sound.
D)
I ate too much cannabis 45 minutes ago, and it's coming on right now
in the form of brain-related reverb and distortion.
followed
by
E)
I'm really overthinking this.
While
my brain whirled the band played on. And they played well. I could
tell they were playing well, but I was still watching the band
playing well rather than being swept upon the wave of the music.
I was an observer standing just outside of it all.
Half
an hour and three songs later, the sound had not really improved.
But the band was still playing great. I finally got out of my seat,
said a quick goodbye to my friend, and moved into the aisle. I moved
up several rows, and could see the band better. Could see their
expressions and interactions better. And the sound was better, though still not great. "Is
it just me, or is Joe's kick drum the loudest thing in the
band?" I wondered. The sound seemed to echo in the hall and in
my brain, turned up to where the nuance was obscured.
They
slipped sideways into "The Other One", wandering into the first
verse of the song without playing most of the standard riffs. Then
they hit the chorus, hard, with all the right parts meshing and
building and slamming hard to the ground the way they did for the
Dead regularly in the late 60's. And now again. For a moment, I was
in the music, finally.
But
for the rest of the night, I was in and out. For all the moments
that I stood with admiration for what the band was pulling off on
stage, there were still other moments when I wished I could see
better, hear better, feel better. Between the times when I felt
kinship with those dancing around me there were more moments of
feeling that these folks were too drunk, or too talkative, or too
much in their own universe to connect with mine.
It was a
good show, maybe a great show. But ultimately I was left feeling
that I had stood in my own way all night, that I might have had a
better time staying at home, watching the gig on the live webcast
with great sound pumped through my stereo, a comfy couch yards away
from my warm bed, and in the company of my wife. Driving home,
listening to Ernest Ranglin in the car, I looked forward to hearing
the show again when the soundboard (4)
is released so I can appreciate
the interplay, the subtlety that had been lost on me. (5)
When the band came on, I danced, and danced, and loved having the band right there where they could see me as well as I could see them. After being with 6,000 fans the night before, I felt like I was at my hometown bar, hearing my favorite band. This was more like it.
In the second set, there arrived two guys to my side, quite drunk. And quite loud. I tried to move, but they moved with me. I said something to them, but they took affront at me tamping down their good time. And then a lovely thing happened. A baseball-hatted guy standing in front of us took in what was happening with me and the drunk guys. He reached for me, and guided me to his side. He said something to the guys, and I never saw them again that night until the taller one tried to get to the lip of the stage a few songs later. My new friend grabbed him as he tried to pass us, turned him around, and pushed him in the direction of the back of the hall where he went without argument.
After the show, new buddy Brian apologized that I had to suffer the fools. I thanked him for bailing me out. He offered me gummy worms.
A
wonderful show (6).
I emerged from the old theater into a quietly bustling downtown
and a light snow. The music had been fine, if not transcendent.
Like with the Dead, there are nights that can feel more
workman-like; a band playing more than competently, pleasing the
dancing fans, giving me more than my money's worth, and, at the end
of the evening, leaving me happy if not completely transported.
Such were many nights with the Dead, and some of my fondest
memories. I'm sure that many fans would consider these to be
terrific shows, maybe their favorites. And I did have a great
time. But my earth was not moved, and even though my respect for
the individuals in JRAD continued to climb, for me they were not
psychedelic priests that night. They were kick-ass members of a rock
and roll band that could fold some Led Zeppelin into a night of
Grateful Dead, and keep me dancing furiously for 3 hours. But
there was no crack in the heavens. I was sweaty, happy, and
earthbound. Would
I have had a different experience if
I hadn't been up to 2 am the night before and then driven 4 hours?
Very likely. There are shows that can fall either way depending on
our own openness to ecstasy.
So what makes that subtle but definitive difference between a night that is fun and one that changes you? If I asked the band after one of THOSE nights, would they have sensed it too? Is it just my personal experience, my openness to the moment? Is it just the letting go? No judgement, no expectation, no tension? Is it the sound; not too loud, balanced and mixed to where each voice and instrument can be heard, each thread can be woven?
I can't say. But I'm pretty sure it's more than just me that determines the degree to which normal experience is transcended. Not that the preparedness isn't important -- It helps to be rested, and open, and yes, if you're attending a psychedelic band concert, and you don't have issues with substance abuse, you might consider the right amount of soft drugs. Not too little, not too much. (Though, that said, I've had great times at The Dead with no Kool Aid, and there are plenty who are obsessive about JRAD without indulging.)
But oh,
the next night... Sunday evening,
March 3, 2019. When that night was over I know I was not the only person in that small theater in
Maine who knew thay had shared something unique and precious and MORE
than fun. After the show many of us were milling around, not
wanting to leave that newly sacred place. Smiles. And more smiles.
From
ten minutes into their first set (7),
there was something clicking between the band members, and between
them and us. They were firing on all cylinders, and then more.
They each had a say in where the beast was going, but no one was
in control but the beast himself and he was the sum of all of us.
Some might say it was my state of mind. I believe it was the
state of creation and community.
 |
| Help on the way, AKA Brian |
It
went on forever, and was over too soon.
The
thing that I was looking for, the thing that made me spend that much
money and that much time away from wife, daughter, and home, that
thing that I seek in going to these celebrations of improvisation,
the thing that had been hinted at each of the previous nights -- On
Sunday I found it. I remembered it.
And I'm choosing to believe that there were many others there that
found and remembered it too. It's beyond words, which makes my
attempt to describe it a folly. But that doesn't mean it wasn't
real or the way it brought band and fans together any less
genuine. It's why we come back. It
was something that no livestream could have delivered, because
it was us being there that made it happen. That evening, for me, the
State Theater in Portland, Maine was the center of the known universe, the very best place to
be.
All day Monday, driving home through yet more March snow, I felt a relaxation. I had not lost my ability to be stunned. To let go, to hug a stranger and be hugged by an experience. To feel so lucky to be dancing to a band that is at their peak, having a blast together, having one of THOSE nights, and everyone, it seems, knowing it. Feeling good fortune together, and joy, and maybe a little hope that this feeling can help all of us improvise our way to a better tomorrow.
Home,
again.
______________________
Postscript
During
the set break Sunday, glowing in what had just happened and
anticipating what would be a second set for the ages, one of the
drunk guys from the night before came up to me and apologized for
having been an asshole. What a gesture! I reached out my hand, we
shook, and I said "How about that first set??!!"
______________________
(1)
The other band, Dark Star Orchestra, is also quite
successful with their shows featuring set list
recreations. Like JRAD, the fans come to see them for
the improvisation, the band interplay, and for the
communal joy joining band and fans.
(2) Though let's be clear. JRAD stands firmly on the shoulders of the Grateful Dead. The Dead not only are responsible for writing or arranging these tunes, but they more or less created the whole genre. Now, more than fifty years later, it's easy to forget how groundbreaking and astonishing it was to see a group of scruffy musicians merge jazz, jugband, country-western, avante guard, R&B, and rock and roll with energy and abundant risk taking. When I compare, I'm talking about the performance and its ability to take an audience on an evening-long journey. Other jam bands do the same for their devoted fans. But they all are indebted to the Dead, who staked the claim.
(3) Good sound is a hallmark of this jam scene. As in jazz, the musicians need to hear each other clearly in order to have a musical dialog with each other. And the experience of the fan is the same; we need to hear each instrument and so the dovetailing parts can make the whole. The Grateful Dead were famous for their dedication to good sound, and basically invented the modern rock concert PA. Likewise, JRAD has always worked hard to make their sound as good as possible. Personally, the quality of my experience at a show (or listening to a recording) is closely related to the quality of the sound. Sometimes I wish it wasn't, but I'm picky that way.(4) The band generously shares soundboard/audience matrix recordings of most of their shows for free. Below are links to all the shows on this tour if you are curious. The detailed notes are courtesy of the bands manager, sound man, and all around friend to the scene Peter Costello.
______________________
Joe
Russo's Almost Dead, New York / New England Mini-Tour, March 2019
(5)
March
1, 2019
Palace Theater, Albany, NY
https://archive.org/details/jrad2019-03-01.cmc621.cmc64.sbd.matrix.flac16
Set
One (8:15PM - 9:27PM)
Cassidy
Jack
A Roe >
Box
Of Rain
The
Other One -> Drums -> The Other One Reprise @
Shakedown
St #
Set
Two (10:00PM - 11:43PM)
Jam
->
Black
Throated Wind ->
Bertha
Jam ## -> Dupree's Diamond Blues $
Playing
In The Band ->
So
Many Roads % ->
Estimated
Prophet >
St
Stephen ^ -> Bertha &
ENC:
Marco
Solo ->
Werewolves
Of London *
!
- Not Played by Almost Dead Since 2018-02-15 War Memorial
Auditorium, Nashville, TN, a gap of 43 shows
+
- Not Played by Almost Dead Since 2018-02-17 The Pageant, St Louis,
MO, a gap of 42 shows
@
- With a Duo Jam, first Almost Dead version of "Other One Reprise"
#
- With a "Love Supreme" (John Coletrane) Tease (TH) and a Jam that
included elements of "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" (Michael
Jackson) and "Serpintine Fire" (Earth Wind & Fire)
##
- First Time Played in this manner by Almost Dead
$
- Not Played by Almost Dead Since 2018รข€“03-08 Brooklyn Bowl,
Brooklyn, NY, a gap of 39 shows
%
- With a "Knocking On Heaven's Door" (Bob Dylan) Tease (TH) Tommy
actually quoted the Guns N Roses version. Not Played by Almost Dead
Since 2018-03-16 The Palace Theatre, a gap of 35 shows Albany, NY
^
- Unfinished
&
- With a "Reveille" (Traditional) Tease (SM) and a "Rock And Roll"
(Led Zeppelin) Tease (JR)
*
- With a "Sweet Home Alabama" (Lynyrd Skynyrd) Tease (MB)
Pre
Show Music: "Wake" (Chris Harford) & Costello's Prince &
Michael Spotify Playlist
Set
Break Music: Costello's Prince & Michael Spotify Playlist
Walk
Out Music: "Burning Down The House" and "Naive Melody (This Must Be
The Place)" Talking Heads
Poster:
Michael Fuchs
***********
(6)
March
2, 2019
State
Theatre, Portland, Maine
https://archive.org/details/jrad2019-03-02.cmc621.cmc64.sbd.matrix.flac16
Set
One (8:11PM - 9:27PM)
BIODTL
@ ->
Cumberland
Blues # >
My
Brother Esau
They
Love Each Other >
Casey
Jones
Good
Lovin' $ >
Uncle
John's Band
Set
Two (10:03PM - 11:39PM)
Jam
->
Here
Comes Sunshine
Lost
Sailor ->
Saint
Of Circumstance
Bird
Song % -> How Many More Times ^ -> Bird Song Reprise &
Silvio
* ->
I
Know You Rider
ENC:
Marco
Solo ->
Such
A Night + >
Touch
Of Grey
@
- With 23 beats to start - Maine is the 23rd state
#
- With an "LA Woman" (The Doors) Tease (MB)
$
- With a "La Bamba" (Richie Valens) Tease (MB)
%
- With a Bertha Tease (TH)
^
- Partial version of a Led Zeppelin Cover, First Time Played by
Almost Dead, Joe sang a few lyrics
&
- Not Played by Almost Dead since 2017-10-26 Hulaween - Amphitheatre
Stage, Spirit of the Suwanee Music Park, Live Oak, FL, a gap of 56
shows
*
Not Played by Almost Dead since 2018-03-15 Landmark Theatre,
Syracuse, NY, a gap of 37 shows
+
- Not Played by Almost Dead since 2017-10-13 Brooklyn Bowl,
Brooklyn, NY, a gap of 58 shows
***********
(7)
March
3, 2019
State
Theater, Portland ME
https://archive.org/details/jrad2019-03-03.cmc621.cmc64.sbd.matrix.flac16
Set
One @ (8:16PM - 9:18PM)
01.
Don't Ease Me In #
02.
Alligator -> Jam ->
03.
Viola Lee Blues $
04.
I Need A Miracle -> Jam ->
05.
Dire Wolf ->
06.
King Solomon's Marbles %
Set
Two (9:53PM - 11:37PM)
01. Jam ->
02.
Crazy Fingers ->
03.
Jack Straw ->
04.
Greatest Story Ever Told ^ ->
05.
Cosmic Charlie & -> Jam ->
06.
Cats Under The Stars * ->
07.
Slipknot! -> Jam + -> Slipknot! @@ ->
08.
Franklins Tower
Encore:
09.
Marco Solo -> Yazoo Street Scandal
10.
Samson & Delilah
@ - For
David Kay on what would have been his 65th birthday (Joe wished him a
HBD after Sampson)
# - Not
Played By Almost Dead Since 2017-03-10 Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn, NY, a
gap of 83 shows
$ - With
a Duo Jam & a "The Champ" (The Mohawks) &/or "The Tramp" (Otis
Redding) Tease (MB)
% - With
a Drum Solo to start
^ - with
a Marco Solo to start, Unfinished
& -
Not Played By Almost Dead since 2017-10-13, Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn,
NY, a gap of 59 shows
* - With
a Here Comes Sunshine Jam (Band), a Good Lovin' Tease (MB), a Scarlet
Begonias Jam (Band) and a Serpentine Fire Tease (MB)
+ - With
a DD Solo to start
@@ - With
"Whipping Post" (The Allman Brothers Band) Teases (SM & TH)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)