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Poster: | ChronaldMcDonald | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 9:22am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
I myself have been a huge dead fan since my dad played me some of their recordings when I was a wee lad. I was lucky enough to get to see them not only at the Hartford Civic Center, but also at Rothbury and I am so glad that I forked over all that cash to do it!
But now I'm back at school and am doing a research paper on music taping and recording. Since the Dead clearly have the most dedicated tapers around, I thought I would ask around and see if any of them are trolling on these forums. If you are, and wouldn't mind having a little e-mail interview with me I would REALLY REALLY appreciate it.
My email is gordon117@gmail.com.
Much love.
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Poster: | Mosquito | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 10:15am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
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Poster: | jglynn1.2 | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 5:01am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview |
Your inquiry got me curious so I did a search on Barry Glassberg (a taper with lots of material on the archive) and I found this interview.
http://www.gdhour.com/music/tapers.html
Pretty neat
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Poster: | ChronaldMcDonald | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 8:09am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview |
Let me just say that I cannot thank you guys enough, I was sure this paper was going to be very difficult because I don't really know any tapers very well. I have done a few shitty bootlegs but besides that nothing special at all.
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Poster: | arkstar | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 8:48am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview |
This crowd is amazing, isn't it. Deadheads. A wonderful bunch.
If you do need any other rambling insights certainly feel free to drop me a line as you need. I've actually been interviewed and used for a couple other papers along this line in the past.
Wish I could have majored in the Dead back in school. Gosh, maybe I did after all? :-)
And thanks you other guys for all the kind words, as always.
Noah (www.deadlistening.com)
noahbw_AT_gmail_DOT_com
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Poster: | jglynn1.2 | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 8:57am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview |
Greatly enjoy your work as well as many of your fellow tapers works.
Nice to be able to thank you directly.
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 10:20am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
Harry Bickel's place in Louisville - Dec 14, 2008 Reunion
Tony Rice, Curtis Burch, Dan Crary, J.D. Crowe, John Cowan, Sam Bush
Brian was just like me, when I was a Taper. He was taking care of business, and getting "it" done. Brian shared his love of the music with me, and told me about his Taping of shows. He wanted me to provide him SBD feeds for all the music that was going to be played. This involved jamming at Bickel's place, a concert at Rudyard Kipling, and a Festival with a blockbuster concert.
Rudyard Kipling [club] - Louisville, KY Dec 14, 2008
Dan Crary, Sam Bush, John Cowan, J. D. Crowe, Tony Rice [Curtis Burch is off-camera]
Brian was at the show at Rudyard Kipling. He Taped it — a pretty decent AUD. We smoked a joint outside after the show. We had a great time talking about GD. Brian is a huge DeadHead. This whole thing is Earl Powell's fault, since he helped my out with the contact info I was asking for on here 2 years ago. I contacted Bill Millet and John Jump after that, making sure it was okay w/ them for me to circulate Tapes of them. Then they started talking to each other after more than 30 years. Once I circulated some of my Tapes from the good-old Louisville days, Bill "created" this reunion thing from scratch. It eventually turned into a promoter's mismanaged flop. Many Festivarians were disappointed. For the most part, once Arb and a few others here talked me into sharing some of my recordings from my live music Taper's collection, I was determined to circulate the most unique and fantastic live music I could share, while trying to be very considerate and protective of all the musicians. Not to mention, all of this was quite emotional for me. The story ends with Brian, at my request, sending me the blockbuster track from his tapes of Dec 14, 2008. It features John Cowan's fanastic vocal power - at age 55 - singing this hugely impressive Newgrass Revival classic, Good Woman's Love. Thanks Brian! Here's Good Woman's Love from my SBD recording of Newgrass Revival in 1975.
Newgrass Revival - 1975
Courtney Johnson, Curtis Burch, Sam Bush, John Cowan
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 12:06pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
July 23, 2009
Sam Bush receives2009 AMA Lifetime Achievement Award
YouTube clip of Sam backstage after
Sam Bush receives State of Kentucky Honor - March, 2008
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Poster: | bbbrew | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 1:11pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 2:42pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
Clarence White's electric guitar playing on The Muleskinner album was incredible inno - va - tion Sam Bush, Ebo Walker & Courtney Johnson - Hamilton, Ontario 1973
"brothers" - Sam and Curtis
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Poster: | bbbrew | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 9:35pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
Ive been listening to recordings of KC at The Cabale Berkeley, Ca. and the Newport Folk Festival, which includes a fun intro by Jerry Garcia. Seems he was a big fan at the time.
Clarence White was incredible. Flatpickin inno-va-tor.
Thanks for all your efforts and sharing.
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Poster: | Misty Eastwood | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 1:09pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
This post was modified by deadski on 2009-11-05 21:09:58
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Poster: | Pete Bardo | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 1:58pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
Salem and Dolly Parton
Salem and Jorma Kaukonen
Salem and Spencer Bohren
Salem with Jack Cassidy (this one's my favorite)
Salem with John Cowan Band
Salem with Warren Haynes
Salem with Bellski
Salem at White Sands
Salem with Dad (that's me) at Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
For more fun with Salem see myspace.com/SalemTheBear and be his meth-free friend!
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Poster: | bluedevil | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 2:44pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
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Poster: | bluedevil | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 1:08pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Good taper interview - thanks Arb and Earl |
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Poster: | Misty Eastwood | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 2:43pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
RIP BOBO
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Jan 16, 2011 2:31pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
portable cassette recorders
Here are some facts about early Taper equipment, including my own Taping gear. I did NOT use a Sony TC-110 portable cassette recorder to tape the RFK Stadium GD shows in 1973. I taped these shows on my Sony TC-2850SD portable stereo cassette recorder. It was brand new when I taped both shows there.
portable cassette recorders were monaural at first
Sony TC-100 | Sony TC-110 w/ built-in mic |
I never owned a Sony TC-110, and I never taped with one - even though earlier I have said I did. Looking back, it was my mistake, based on confusion, bad recollection, and the fact that others have claimed to have recorded with these decks. The TC-2850SD, as I understand it, was the first portable STEREO cassette recorder in the world. It became available in 1973. Features include peak limiter, manual or automatic recording levels, VU meter lighting, stereo headphone monitor, and tape counter. However, there was no Dolby NR, and no Chromium Tape bias/EQ circuits.
Sony TC-2850SD portable stereo cassette recorder
I purchased my Sony TC-2850SD stereo cassette recorder and ECM-99 stereo mic together. My Taping kit that I put together included extendable external portable speakers, AC power supply, rechargeable battery pack, and a shoulder strap. The tape deck operated on 4 C-cell batteries. The ECM-99 was a condensor mic, and it required a battery. The TC-2850SD offered exceptional recording fidelity to go, in a brown and silver metal case. Controls were designed to more professional standards, and this is apparent in the buttons and level meters. Operating the switches felt like toggling high-end levers. What made this recorder a hit was its combination of durable construction and great usability. The kit displayed below shows the ECM-99 mic (left of deck) with the recorder, in the left pic. ECM-99 stereo mic is shown in the right pic.
I never heard the name "Densuke" before. Sony's TC-2850SD "Cassette Densuke" - the "Densuke" name comes from Sony's professional-level portable tape recorder. A popular magazine strip featured a reporter named Densuke who wore Sony's tape recorder to sample public opinion. From then on it became widely known as "Densuke". Broadcasters ended up referring to all portable cassette players as "Densuke" hence why you see the name in 1973 for the TC-2850SD.
Nakamichi 550
Then I purchased my Nakamichi 550 portable stereo cassette recorder in June, 1973. It was state-of-the-art and its quality was superior to my Sony TC-2850SD. The Nakmichi 550 was the first portable stereo cassette recorder in the world to feature Dobly NR and Chromium Tape bias/EQ circuitry. It also featured a 3rd mic input that blended into both L and R channels. So you had a built-in mic mixer for 3 mics. This Nak was a heavy device to haul around. This portable deck weighed 11¼ pounds without batteries. It required 8 D-cell batteries to operate in the field. But you had extended battery life, several hours longer than my Sony TC-2850SD had, without changing batteries. I believe I had the first Nakamichi 550 deck on the East Coast in 1973. I bought it from a very high-end audio dealer in NJ, named Roger Iselle. At his insistence, I had to pay him $500 cash up-front. I waited one month for my new deck to arrive. It was brand new when I taped GD at Roosevelt Stadium, July 31 and Aug 1. We have Jerry Moore's AUD beauty on The Archive for July 31, thanks to Noah Weiner's transfer. It was recorded on Sony TC-110.
This post was modified by dead-head_Monte on 2011-01-16 22:31:01
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Poster: | Da Red Rooster | Date: | Mar 8, 2012 3:33pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
This post was modified by Da Red Rooster on 2012-03-08 23:33:43
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Mar 8, 2012 3:50pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
I didn't have any overseas connections. But I think the guy I purchased my Nak 550 from had excellent connections. I'm pretty sure he developed reliable European and Japanese connections for his business. He was the only "exclusively high-end" Audio Dealer in my area. Me and my friends went to his place several times. After that I felt comfortable fronting him $500 and waiting one month for my Nak to arrive.
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Poster: | Da Red Rooster | Date: | Mar 8, 2012 4:32pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
This all got stimulated by finding your 8-1-73 recording on Dime. I worked at a stereo shop in Boulder in the mid-'70s and had access to some pretty good equipment. I borrowed their Sony 152-SD to record Emmylou Harris in a small club in 1976 (just after her first album came out). I still have the AKG-1000E mics I used. I eventually had a Nak 500 and 550, and later a couple different home decks. Eventually unloaded them when they broke down and Nak parts were hard to come by after the company went under. I taped several Colorado Dead shows with the 550. It was a great unit, but so large and clunky compared to the Zoom H4n digital recorder I have now.
BTW, the RFK 6-10-73 show was my last Dead show on the East Coast before we moved out West. It was a memorable one!
All the best to ya from one old taper to another.
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Mar 8, 2012 5:14pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
My old Sony recorder also had the two detachable plastic speakers that you mentioned came with the Sony 124-SD your friend's dad had. Without searching this out, you are probably the first audience GD taper to use a stereo portable cassette recorder. Wow, no Pause Button on the TC-124? My Sony deck had one.
btw, you are definitely welcome to join us if Charlie Miller, me, and some of the other early-era Tapers ever get an online Compendium going.
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Poster: | GerryO | Date: | Jun 4, 2014 9:27am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
This post was modified by GerryO on 2013-04-30 19:43:41
This post was modified by GerryO on 2014-06-04 16:27:50
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Poster: | GerryO | Date: | Apr 30, 2013 12:53pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
This post was modified by GerryO on 2013-04-30 19:53:51
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Poster: | Da Red Rooster | Date: | Mar 8, 2012 8:53pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: the first portable cassette taping gear |
Also the TC-124: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTr8kh-A7wE&feature=related. I drove across country in 1971 with the 124 in the front seat and a small bookshelf speaker jacked into it in the back seat.
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Poster: | wineland | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 5:15pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
This post was modified by wineland on 2009-11-04 01:15:26
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Poster: | Mosquito | Date: | Nov 4, 2009 10:18am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
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Poster: | ChronaldMcDonald | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 7:37am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
I was planning on posting the interviews that I conduct somewhere on the interweb, why not here?
Even better, maybe I'll post the paper when it is done as well, as a kind of thank you for everyone who has given me soooo much to work with.
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Poster: | high flow | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 9:51am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
- OR -
Monte Barry! COME ON DOWN!!!
Seriously, Monte is our resident taper/taping veteran. I'm sure he'd be happy to offer his unique insight.
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Poster: | William Tell | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 2:18pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 11:09am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
I'm trying to tell "their story" about some of the greatest music I ever heard played — but in this case, for the time being — I can only do it from my point of view. Sure, I could tell you some of the fly-on-the-wall stories... oh my. I could tell you stories about me being roommates w/ Vince Gill, or going to the original Grand Ole Opry w/ Bluegrass Alliance as their soundman and hanging out with Lorretta Lynn on her bus there, and meeting everyone. At the Cowboy Bar in Jackson Hole, I discreetly put Lonnie's fiddle playing through a phase-shifter one night during a massive band rebellion. The band revolted on-stage against him. He was the band leader. I also cut his vocal mic between songs and we had Vince Gill stealing the coveted MC spot from him. And then the band went on to play some unknown material that Lonnie Peerce never heard before, and I cut all his mics off completely.
Bluegrass Alliance
Lonnie Peerce, Robert Pool, John Jump, Vince Gill, Bob Briedenbach, Bill Millet
Million Dollar Cowboy Bar - Jackson Hole, Wyoming - July, 1976
A lot of other people heard the same music played that I heard. Many of them have tapes of some of it, as well as tapes of other stuff played. And many others also have tapes. My thinking was, maybe I could put something together like a "music book" on the internet. So I tried to tell "their story" in a "music book" format on the internet. I could only do it from my point of view. No one is telling me how to do this or what to say. Sure, I want to be a Digital Archivist here, and I've worked at this for 2 years. It's one long learning-curve. I enjoy it. Point is, the musicians and artists should be telling their histories to you. I'd like to be their archivist and put it on the internet for them. What about these people hoarding some of these huge live music tape libraries to themselves, and not sharing? For what? Not just DK and her Jer tapes, but lots of people holding out on lots of artists playing and performing. You can't take any of this art to the grave with you. What should be done? So I thought I'd try and set the bar, for example, with my website. So I built up the Monte the Taper section, and made a Taper's Catalog, so to speak. I've told you a few GD stories, like the one about Jerry Moore's AUD beauty on July 31, 1973 -- no SBD exists. I was there taping w/ my brand new Nakamichi 550 and an ElectroVoice RE-15 studio mic strapped to a 10-foot pole - rigging that I improvised at the show. I was 25 feet from the stage, FOB / dfc. I was just a little 130-pound punk from NJ when a 280-pound, 6' 8" Hell's Angels security gorilla parted the crowd from backstage, and walked right up to me to take my tape away. I once mentioned here that in spring 1974, the best security detail I ever saw caught me red-handed "in the act" secretly taping at Carnegie Hall in NYC with my ultra-stealth taping kit. It still took the 2 of them about 30 to 45 seconds of intimate scanning the darkness of my booth w/ their flashlights beaming, to finally know for certain they caught me taping. I was politely escorted out the front door after my tapes were confiscated. I never told you this. I was at Dave Epstein's house one day. He was a part time Kay guitar dealer then. He whipped out a brand new cheapo guitar and proceeded to retrieve a $40 bag of weed out of the $20 guitar. Problem was, Dave couldn't get the ounce bag back out of the porthole while the guitar was still strung up. So Dave says, "fuck this, that weed is worth more than this fucking guitar," and he starts breaking into the back of it. I convinced him to carefully remove just the back of it. I kept this guitar for my taping kit. Inside a guitar case, that guitar with the back removed fit perfectly over my Nakamichi 550.
The guitar case didn't hang well by the handle because the center of gravity was way out when I had my Nak inside. It hung on an unnatural angle with a noticeable slant. I got into a lot of clubs with that taping kit by saying I was a musician and I couldn't leave my axe outside in the car. The 2 security pros at Carnegie Hall are the only dudes who ever noticed that. I was too lazy to install a counter-balancing weight to correct this. If I had, no one would have noticed anything wrong. I would re-emphasize that both these 2 guys, and the Hell's Angels security dude, were amazingly very polite to me. The most important story I have for my own music book story is the one I've already told you about — it's about Jimmy Watson and Jay Delia and my GD roots. All of us can talk about the wild times too. Or the women. I was tripping at every GD show I went to in 1973. On the other hand, a bunch of us got together this past December after 30-plus years, for a reunion. You can't see me in this pic, but I'm standing just inside the front door of The Bluegrass Hotel. I lived in this housefull of musicians 1975 - 1977. It was the epitomy of a 24/7 jamming house.
Friend of the Devil > Blackberry Blossom taped by Monte in 1976
performed by a few of these boys
featuring 15-year-old Mark O'Connor on violin
Harry Bickel's place in Louisville - The Bluegrass Hotel - Dec 14, 2008
Tony Rice, Curtis Burch, Dan Crary, J.D. Crowe, John Cowan, Sam Bush
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Poster: | ChronaldMcDonald | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 12:25pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
@Monte - if you wouldn't mind, could I get your e-mail so that I could contact you with a larger list of questions for the paper? I wasn't quite so prepared to get great responses so quickly!
Thanks a million guys, and keep the tunes coming!
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Poster: | jglynn1.2 | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 2:03pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
http://www.motb.org/
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Poster: | high flow | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 2:40pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
Best of luck with your project. Tapers rule. Don't forget, there are still many brilliant tapers who are active in the craft. Browsing the thousands of audience recordings here at LMA is probably the best way to familiarize yourself with the most dedicated and talented among them.
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Poster: | Earl B. Powell | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 3:42pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
To take it a step further, I've had some real issues to deal with over that past couple of months. Although I haven't always been the sweetest of people, everyone here has been supportive to a fault. I count you folks as a blessing...
(Group Hugs)
I love youz guys.
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 1:25pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
This post was modified by dead-head_Monte on 2009-11-03 21:25:37
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Poster: | veblen | Date: | Nov 5, 2009 1:20pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
http://www.shnflac.net/torrents.php
http://gdvault.com/tracker/
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Poster: | Ken Lee NYC | Date: | May 22, 2015 10:59pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
Two years later they were at Carnegie Hall, where we took a whole box for Judy & I taped power down, positioned mic extension lines and placed the mics. Then I headed down to the bar to hang with the roadies. I had been with ELP for a while and it was quasi-professional schmoozing. We all had our gear in place & it was time to chill, pre-chill. Judy stayed with the deck, nobody messed with Judy, still true.
I was still at the bar finishing my drink when they blew up the stage with overloaded flash pots. When I looked through the bar doors, I saw this giant cloud of smoke roll out from the stage and engulf the entire audience.
May 2, 1972. I remember it well
Ken Lee
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Poster: | dead-head_Monte | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 2:53pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
I view Sam Bush's countless on-stage live performances as simply as I view Jerry Garcia's. These 2 guys are my favorite musicians when it comes to brilliant energy, incredible jams and improvisations, singing souful vocals, and playing sweet music. Not to mention, both men are legendary pioneers. They both have a "main" band, side bands and side gigs, several notable "periods" during their long and distinguished musical careers, and they are best known for their many on-stage appearances with all kinds of bands. I look at the whole body of their work. Both artists have countless recordings that circulate on the internet — recordings of them performing live on-stage — over a 30 to 40 year era.
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Poster: | wineland | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 10:51am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
http://www.archive.org/details/gd1973-06-09.sonytc.monte-barry.91236.flac16
http://www.archive.org/details/gd1973-06-10.aud.barry-gadsden.tobin.90796.flac16
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Poster: | Bob Gnarley | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 11:01am |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
http://designsbymonte.com/monte/
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Poster: | staggerleib | Date: | Nov 3, 2009 6:35pm |
Forum: | GratefulDead | Subject: | Re: Trying to get in touch with tapers for a college project |
He's also stated a preference for early seventies, specifically.
Give it a shot.