Dark Star Orchestra has been performing Grateful Dead music for close to 30 years and 3,300 shows. Often, shows are recreations of entire concert set lists the original group performed. Deadheads are good at identifying which show it is through repeated listening to the archives, which includes most every note the San Francisco band ever played. Not only through official recordings but primarily through freely recorded audience tapes, allowed over the years and traded among Deadheads through a network of “tapers” who set up in their own section, a practice that began to be sanctioned by the band in order to maintain open sight lines.
When DSO decides to perform a specific historical show, unannounced, the game is afoot for fans to figure out which show. Often. it’s the gear set up on stage that begins the process for what era the band was performing. My long history with the band wasn’t one that would qualify me as a Deadhead. My early years going to their concerts was before there was such a thing. I’ve found over the past few times I’ve been to the Golden State Theatre when DSO performed, the sound in the room was transcendent. I came to the conclusion it was because of the historic analog amps and speakers brought to the venue with their own sound people collaborating with the house sound crew.
We’ll find out Thursday evening at Golden State what music the band is bringing to the stage. Sometimes they design a unique setlist pulled from those years when Jerry Garcia was still alive and the group was the Grateful Dead. That name was retired when Garcia passed on in 1995. Since then there has been a succession of groups with the other surviving members involved. I can only imagine that with the recent passing of Bobby Weir, there is going to be a special night of music and a full house of fans to celebrate the group’s legacy. There are some seats still available at this writing high in the rafters, the General Admission tickets have sold out.
Members of DSO have evolved over the years, with a number of them having the experience of playing with one or more of the original members in their Grateful Dead offshoot bands. Likewise, the Grateful Dead members, Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, Vince Welnick, Tom Constanten and sound man Dan Healy have all been in on shows with DSO members. Currently in the band are keyboardist Rob Barraco, rhythm guitarist Rob Eaton, drummer (Kreutzmann role) Dino English, drummer (Mickey Hart role) Rob Koritz, vocalist Lisa Mackey, lead guitarist Jeff Mattson, and bassist Skip Vangelas.
In the tradition of sharing experiences at Grateful Dead shows, allow me my story. I’ve had two distinct eras of being around the band. I’m originally from the Bay Area, and was still living there in 1967 when the whole counter culture scene was blowing up. I had an older brother who took me over to the old Fillmore Auditorium on a secret outing my parents were not apprised of where I got to hear the Paul Butterfield Blues Band when guitarist Mike Bloomfield was still in the band. There were other shows the bro would attend, bringing home posters from those early years starting with the 1966/67 New Year’s Eve concert. I’d see all the names of the bands playing, including the Dead.
My dad was a music aficionado, mostly classical, and he brought home a new stereo system that included the newer FM spectrum. The bro knew that Tom Donahue was breaking ground with the underground radio, album-oriented style and so we snuck out of our rooms at midnight to lay down in front of the speakers to hear all the new music and DJs getting into it. That’s when I first heard the Dead, their debut album having recently been released March 1967.
Our family made the move to Monterey on the weekend of the Monterey International Pop Festival, June 16-18, 1967. I had been to the KFRC Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival the weekend before, and the bro and a friend came down to Monterey and attended the entire pop festival. My parents and I arrived on Sunday afternoon and I got swept up and taken to the festival for the closing show that night. We arrived at the fairgrounds right when the Dead started its set with “Viola Lee Blues.” And yes, Jimi Hendrix Experience followed.
Once I made friends in my new hometown that fall when school started (ninth grade), we would catch rides to San Francisco with the bro and his friends to attend shows at the Fillmore, Fillmore West and Winterland, and within the next few years my friends and I went on our own. We caught all sorts of bands, but we always made a point to go when the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane would do their joint shows at Winterland, always with a third band, usually Quicksilver Messenger Service or the Sons of Champlin. I had all of the Grateful Dead albums during that era, up through “Workingman’s Dead” and “American Beauty.” I’ve written before about how my early days listening to the band influenced my love of improvised music, leading me to the jazz/rock fusion bands and then into jazz itself. I left behind those early bands I loved and evolved into a well-rounded music listener. I studied classical piano and learned to play the guitar, and went out to local shows, whether for touring bands or our local groups.
Fast forward to when my career as a music writer was in full swing. I met Rock Scully first in 1996 when his book came out, and then in 2004 when we started to date. We were together off and on for years. We remained close up until his passing in December 2014. Scully was a legendary early denizen of the Haight-Ashbury scene and he became a manager of the early Grateful Dead along with Danny Rifkin in 1965. He left the band’s employ in 1985 and by the time I met him he had given up the lifestyle attached to the band and he lived a clean and sober existence. We both contributed to each other’s enjoyment of music, he being my plus one for many, many shows, and the same went for me when we would go up to San Francisco together. One such night was when we went up to attend a DSO show at The Fillmore Auditorium. It was a magical night.
We were allowed entry prior to the doors opening and I was hanging out in the Poster Room with Betty Cantor-Jackson, early sound engineer for the Dead. Out of thin air iin walked Robert Plant, former lead singer for Led Zeppelin. I confirmed with Betty that it was him, and I walked over to Rock to ask if he knew him. He confirmed he did and we went over to Plant and a woman that turned out to be his manager. It was a dream come true for me, as I had always been obsessed with the guy. We all chatted for quite a while. After that we walked back to the green room off the balcony near the stage and there Bobby Weir was holding court with a group of friends and that was my first introduction to him. Very cool. I’m like wow, this is really great. And then we had a night of Grateful Dead music by the Dark Star Orchestra. Oh yeah, I also got to meet Donna Jean Godchaux who was sitting in with the band that night.
When Furthur, one of the Grateful Dead offshoots, came to play at the Monterey Fairgrounds in October 2011, I had the opportunity to interview Weir and to have photo passes for the two shows. I really enjoyed the talk with Weir, covering ground from early rock to blues to jazz. Later on, I was fortunate to be close to someone who was in Weir and John Perry Barlow’s circle of friends, as well as Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, so I had numerous opportunities to hang out and socialize with those legendary characters. I have to say the loss of Weir and Lesh in the past year or so has been a rough patch, as music fans like me from the early rock’n’roll era are watching their heroes slip away one by one. As Weir was the co-founder of the band with Garcia, his passing marks a turning point. In essence, every band post Garcia is a tribute band, (Kreutzman has retired and so Hart is last man standing, but he’s not a frontman). Speculation as to the future is just that. Stay tuned.
DSO is the number one Grateful Dead tribute band on the planet. More info at www.darkstarorchestra.net. Don’t waste another minute if you want to get in the show Thursday, 8 p.m. Visit the theatre website at www.goldenstatetheatre.com to see what’s happening as far as tickets for DSO, plus for the next two weeks. There’s several good comedy shows you might want to check out.
Around town
Some shows to check out the next few weeks:
Feb. 6, 7:30 p.m., Jazz at Lincoln Center Live: The American Crooners, www.sunsetcenter.org/event/jazz-at-lincoln-center-live-the-american-crooners/
Feb.7, 7 p.m. – James Garner’s Tribute to Johnny Cash at Fox Theater in Salinas, www.foxtheatersalinas.com/new-page
Feb.13, 7 p.m. – Ms. Taylor P. Collins, Strong Confident Woman Show at Wave Street Studios, www.wavestreetlive774.com/shows
Feb. 15 – Jazz at the Cherry Presents: A Letter to Duke with guitarist Bruce Foreman and saxophonist Paul Contos, a tribute to Duke Ellington at Carl Cherry Center for the Arts in Carmel. First show at 2 p.m. is sold-out, a second show at 5 p.m. has been added. Tickets are $49.87, includes pre-show reception with food and wine. Visit www.carlcherrycenter.org for tickets and more info
Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14 shows
6 p.m. – Love Is In The Air with Dave Holodiloff (mandolin) and Michael Martinez (piano) at Stanton Center Theater, Monterey, www.eventbrite.com/e/love-is-in-the-air-valentines-day-concert-w-the-dave-holodiloff-duo-tickets-1982057850386?aff=oddtdtcreator
6 p.m. – Brad “Guitar” Wilson at Trailside Cafe in Carmel Valley Village, www.trailsidecafecv.com/event/bradguitarwilson-2-2/
.
