Saturday-JGBB-continously being edited and added to til this title gets changed

After Friday's show and late night/early morning activities, Glowy and I slept in a little bit longer than we expected. Getting into the campground went real quickly as most of the campers were already there.

Before reporting to Chez for rail service, I made my rounds through the Shakedown..Spent most of my time at the one & only stained glass booth. Bought dangly glass trinkets for Sash (a dragonfly) & Jase (a star) there, then found a dancing bear pendant & ring for Noah. And a few other things for a few friends. Prices were good and the venders were pleasant. I shouldve gotten that "If found, Please return to the Drum Circle" tee shirt though! I didnt forget Scott- Mike had stopped at a gas station on our way through Pennsylvania that was next to a little roadside farm food booth...Nothing (well, almost) makes Scott happier than trying out homemade preserves- so I bought him a few jars of the kind of jams he loves...Scott is very happy with his jam these mornings.


Once I got my water, I headed back to the blankets..on my way was my buddy Topher! Wasnt sure he would make it but I'm glad he did! Scott and I met Topher long ago at a Ratdog show in New Orleans...It was good to catch up.
Back at the rail, already it seemed more intense than the day before..lots more folks settling in early. The only times I got away from there were to go say hi to a friend and a little later to buy a wristband for the ocrs.
But it was fun..not far from us were several friends...every so often someone would come around for a quick visit. It was also cool to see Dick-another Bay Area face...I think he did the entire first leg, too?
The weather was somewhat warmer and less ominous than the day before...for a little while the humidity seemed to lift and all that remained was the direct heat- felt very California like for a bit. Interesting, while I get fussy about humidity-which doesnt seem bother the East Coasters so much, I noticed the penetrating Cali-like sun seemed to bug the East Coasters more than the humidity..
There was music all day which for me ranged from okay to alright....It was nice to see DNB there..Robin Syl joined them for a song..

I totally enjoyed Jimmy
Herring with the Code talkers - sort of a little like the BareNakedLadies in that they had all kinds of little tricks and flash for us.

Bobby watched part of their set from the back

...This day we were stationed in front of MK...and sure enough a guy with a big camcorder set up his tripod right in front of my spot...
The rail and first several rows were tight with folks. Predictably, most folks arrived with The Codetalkers...It was pretty squeezy. When I was ready to make a break away to go dance on the hill (During Odessa) I had a young friend take my spot and moved toward the slope or tried to. I couldnt break through the wall of folks! Last time I was on such a tight rail was at the Sweetwater for Crusader Rabbit Stealth thing..There was no choice (I was getting the most evil looks trying to fit in somewhere) back to my rail spot...Just in time for Corrina...I wasnt paying much attention to who was next to me until a girl with dready hair pounced next to me..soon enough her boyfriend showed up and he and her got into a squabble that involved some namecalling and swatting..The guy left and all returned to good. The second set was my fave set of the Bash. I'll be back with my impressions of the setlist. I did so miss my Scott through SOTM..
Again once the show ended it was a moment before enough folks moved so I could run up to the Ocr line...Once disks were in hand, I headed back to the rail where Glowy was waiting with all our stuff. It was nice, Jay and Robin Syl were around. Spoke with Jay for a little bit- he's always very sweet to me- no doubt it's likely I remind him of some old auntie. I let him know how wonderful those Mid Atlantic/East Coaster fans had been to me.
Glowy and I hadnt eaten since way earlier and so headed toward the food boothes. Found Cuz Bud on the way and the three of us went on to munch out on pizza & gyros. The only thing I'd want to add to the SSDD campgrounds would be some picnic tables or something near the food concessions...There was no where to just sit and eat/drink. Ever try eating a greek salad while schlepping a pack and sipping a beverage...It's not easily done. We found a flat surface to balance our plates on inside the barn and munched while grooving to G-13.
After the music ended we wandered out and around the campground- really a sweet place- we found a second "shakie Shakedown" somewhere by the big bonfire. It was lovely to be outdoors and among friends in such a place. Almost dreamlike.




.................
With GG & yet another cute guy named Dave...

mmm, gyros!

FriDog @ JGBB

We were up and out to the campground by 10 am.
The weather was weird..Warm but dark and cloudy and humid. I was happy it wasnt hot & humid like it was in DC or London...Some scary looking clouds...We were lugging a cooler and bags of stuff but didnt get far when a golf cart stopped to give us a lift. Glowy went in the front to navigate, I hopped on back ending up next to a guy calling himself 'Spirit" he seemed a bit spun and was kvetching that he couldnt find his hoop.
The cart let us out right in front of the cook tent at Camp Tooboard-aka-Hamhoarders..Naturally, we were greeted with hoots for our royal entrance.
After visiting a bit, and for me meeting a bunch of TOOBoard people, Glowy and I went to go take a look around.

We were walking toward the big picture of Jerry Garcia when I ran into one of the usual suspects on his way to work..Went by grabbed a hug, made some quick introductions then left him to work his magic...within seconds I met Jilly! I know Jilly & Ben from Deadnet for years but have never met them in 3-d before! Jilly's lost (I dont think she'd mind me saying) a huge amount of weight and is truly an inspiration! Ben and I post in DNC's teacher discussion ..My friend Kemmie has met them both and told me good things. I loved getting to know them. In the midst of chatting away, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cousin Bud!
I love the cousins, I met them on the UKRD tour and well, just love them! Glowy wanted to go check something out and so I went for a walk with Bud to find Sammy.
They were set up by the Dot orgers. I can't say it enough..I luv the Cousins! And it was great to see them- I caught them up on our mutual UK friends. I'm real happy and lucky to have seen so many of those 2003 tour buddies this Summer!
We put the walkie talkies to the test and located Glowy..We could see her but it was a moment (that included bystanders waving their arms in her direction) before she saw us and climbed up the slope toward us. We sat for a moment with Jilly, Ben and DNCr TMC. I know TMC from the Deadnet Discussion about kids with learning differences. While most folks think of message boards as gossipy type places, Deadnet has many very special support discussions and you make a particular connection to people who take a moment to listen or help you through a tough day..and Lord knows, Ive had some rough days.....Also, hanging in Jilly's place were Graceful & Russ- my West Coast Tour Buddies. Graceful stayed at my house for the Marin Ratdog thing in May and it was fun having her happy self there.
After visiting we wandered down to the stage to find that rail space was being claimed, Chez had claimed space for us and so Glowy and I sat down spread out our stuff and enjoyed the humidity with a group of folks. I met BEW & Lizardking & Jammin John & KC Jones & FLA Jen and dozens of online folks...On the ride back to Newark, I counted over 50 names from all over the net that we saw/ met! I liked everyone I met..it was just like the Eurotours in that way..You just sort of bond.
I saw a few others from the Euro/UK tours over the weekend ((Gronk,Warren,Keir,Ruth))..
The rail thing was easy going and friendly through the day. As usual, I found ways to entertain myself, taking a poll of who wanted which song, working on my crocheting, scribbling notes, taking a couple of pictures.
Some bands came and went..I was primed only for my Ratdog though and when Rail buddies came for their turns holding space, I took off in search of my homeboy. Before finding him, I did a quick stop at the gate for a hug from Robin Syl(Hey, it was a courier thing!) Snapped a photo of Jammin while I was there too.
At last found my buddy and we took a look around Shakedown and had a nice visit and then it was time for me to return to the rail.


So yes, back to the rail por moi.
Yay! Showtime!
The day before leaving (real last minute) I got an urge to make a banner...Either for the vacation house or the tent- so I could identify my "home" in case I got confused (I do get so easily confused) I had a few yards of red, white and blue sequiny-sparkly fabric which turned out to be just right for a sort of dogbone motif. It turned out okay and ended up hanging on the rail, which made finding my rail crew right easy. We turned it so that it faced (blinded?) the band. I left it with Chez, so now he can figure out what to do with it through the rest of tour.
The entire front of the rail was occuppied by online folks-which was pretty cool! In my immediate circle were great friends from TooBoard,Deadnet and new friends from DotOrg. It just rocked. Later during the show, when some guy wanted to cut into my spot, a paticular online God had my back. Thank You!
Anyhow, My spot was just exactly perfect. While I was wandering around a cam had been set up right in front of "my spot"on the rail. I have my preferred places to be when I do get a choice at the rail which almost always coincide with the photographers. So cool, the pretty woman with the mega cam was in front of me. A little between Jeff & Kenny. Love it- the band seemed to be a bit angled toward the big cam all night. Real or imagined, I felt every smile, scowl, nod, blink, wink,grimace & grin was being aimed right at me...Except for the Bobby scowls, it was too fun!

............................
Setlist-Fridog
Inspiration move me brightly...
Through the show bubbles poured down from somewhere above the stage.
Some guy with a clipboard was in the photo pit - everytime the ever watchful Dennis McNally looked at him, the guy would pretend to be writing notes (he just had scribbles n his paper the whole time)...when Dennis looked away the guy would be dancing...at some point the guy moved on. Gotta love the old clipboard scam!
Didnt expect a Blackbird opener- but it was a perfect opener.
Maggie was fun.
I'm getting more than my share of HCS- It seems to be coming up about every other show I go to. That's cool..
Easy Answers...
Baby Blue has the line "Highways for gamblers" which rang kinda true for the drive into Terra Alta.
Youngblood is always fun.
Didnt expect Crazy Fingers...Life may be sweeter for this..I don't know
Masterpiece- I never get tired of this one. I just set my London slideshow to it (takes forever). This song brings back so many excellent memories..It was one of my 2 hoped for songs for the weekend.
After was a real teaser of a jam..I thought it was gonna be about 3 different songs but was thrilled (it was Glowy's choice) that it turned into Miracle! I need a miracle everyday! Real groovy weird jammin in this song....gets spacy...and then
voila- It's a lovely Uncle John's band....My sons number one favorite GD song...and I thought of both of them all through this..
Then OH YES!!! It's in the jammmmmmin-/TOO up next! ! Another alltime Bobstar favorite..I'm smiling just thinkin about it! If I ever choose another screen name, I think it's gonna be "Spanish Lady"!
Big Cheers from everyone after that one.
Next up I think was Jay drumming on Robin's bass...I can't think where but I seem to recall I've seen Jay do this before? Maybe with ABC Soup? The Elbo Room thing? Where? Sounds like an ABC jam too..gets severely jazzy.
then slows out into (Sasha's favorite) Ladyw/fan/Terrapin!
I understand this one was for Topher -for his berthaday! Nice!
Spiral Light of Venus rising first and shining best!
Ends with a sweet little keys thing ((Jeff)) which turns the corner to a bouncy start to a soaring 2Djinn..Isnt this how all good tales begin? This is my favorite 2 Djinn that I've seen/heard live...was having one of those nites where the setlist (set2 esp.) made perfect sense to me...
For an encore we got a rousing US Blues! WOOHOO!
check my pulse!
Hippy Bill we missed you being there to wave that flag high and wide!





......................

I would never have found this place on my own.
.Really grateful that Mari had been there before and after pulling up, getting checked for glass and receiving our bright green wristbands we were let in. Camp wasnt even a 1/4 filled yet and we had no trouble at all locating Chez and his fellow early birds. I lamely tried to help set up our tent- we didnt intend on sleeping there but Glowy felt it would be good to have somewhere to crash if we needed to. Good thinking there! We were located withing a large circle of TooBoarder's tents.
As soon as possible we went down to check out the shopping and food.
The pizza was good. But imagine my excitement to see the gyros booth! I have a real thing for anything in a pita...and there really isn't anything quite like having a big messy, dripping gyros/falafel/sharma/doner kabob after a Ratdog show. I have dripped hummas and tahini post Doggy show in Germany, Holland,The UK and now we can add W.Va. to the list.
Glowy & I hung out for awhile and then headed to take the truck back to the house. It was a little horrible in a funny way...because the truck was parked in a field with knee high weeds and potholey ground and it was dark and we were stumbling unable to see each other even and I hadnt slept on the plane and had been awake for over 30 hours straight...Just as I went tumbling down for about the 5th time, I grabbed the distinctive grill of the car.. and yelled "Hey Robin, I think the truck found me!".
Phew, It was the truck! We climbed in and used the 4wh drive to get out of there. Folks were driving in so we had to wait a few moments. The traffic guy gave us a hard time about coming and going which was a little upsetting but he chilled out after a moment and let us go..He was wise to do that too because if I didnt get into a shower or a bed real soon, I mightve gotten a little insane on him..luckily we were out of there and back at the house within moments.
We fought our way past a plethora of moths (some were the size of birds!) who were lazing on the screen door by the outside light.. The house was great! two stories, TVs, 2 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms,a back deck with a forest behind it..Of course, bear warnings (no one said there be bears!) Did some girltalk with Robin and crawled into bed about 2:30am

My strange heroes lead me on...again! Or in the words of Steve Miller "Go on, take the money and run!"

How did this start? Back in May or June? Glowy said she'd figure out the logistics and accomodations- All I'd have to do is just get to NJ....Timing is everything and in this case, Scotto was planning a party or something like that for his softball buddies around the time of the JGBB and so couldnt have been (as you can see by the photo) happier to send me across the country to a place where cell phones cease to work.
.......
I won't waste time describing how terrible US Airways was...always Virgin Air if possible from this day forth for me. My first flight was to Dulles- I had to RUN to catch it. Then it was a teeny plane to Newark. Newark is a bigass airport and I just hoped Glowy would find me- sure enough she did! We were on the road to Pennsylvania to regroup with Mike & Mari. Pennsylvania was cool to finally see. We drove through Bethleham ! It was nothing like I'd imagined- it and most of the towns we passed through reminded me of the California Gold Country.
Had a long (about 5 hours?) but great drive time driving along the Applachian mountains. They are low and rolling compared to our Sierras. I was trying to tell my ever so practiced and perfected cheese smuggling story when Mary yelped "BEAR!" ..Sure enough crossing the highway was a glossy black bear! We all just sat there open mouthed for a moment..lol, had a tough time talking about cheese after that!
..............
We managed to avoid Maryland, where "Operation J. G." was in progress, til the last hour or so of driving but soon were in Terra Alta and very soon found our way to the excellent vacation house that was our off campsite base. After unloading some of our stuff, it was back in the truck to head out to the Sunshine Daydream Campgrounds.

Holy Smokes!

Before even having a chance to process JGBB, we are already looking forward to the ComesatimeRatdogA the Greek adventure next month...
Whooooosh! And Somewhere in between Sunday and today, I took my Sash to Berkeley to catch a bus to camp. I hope she's having a great time as usual. It may be her last Summer as a kid - she starts High School later this month. Next year maybe teen camp?
Time stops for no one and while Jerry Garcia is present in dvds, cds, paintings, fashionable accessories and most importantly in his music...it has been ten years since we lost him in his mortal form. I think I heard the news really early in the morning when Lynnie phoned me. Lots of tears and lots of phone calls from Deadhead friends and unexpected sympathy and love offered up by non deadhead friends..Our parents were sensitive and respectful which meant a lot to me...Scott still had his mom & dad then...Jase was still a boy (and was mad at us for never getting around to taking him to a GD show) and Noah was a month shy of his first birthday.
On the day of the memorial My sister (she wasnt married yet) and Chris took Noah to Stinson beach for the day, while Jase went to his Dad's. Scott and I took Sasha who was just 3 years old with us to the Polo fields. We were all decked out in tie dye. When we first got there, Sasha gaped at all the people - a city of tie dye and exclaimed "Oh Mommy! This must be where all the rainbow people live!"
We managed to miss the speeches and parade but I don't think I wouldve been able to handle it anyways. It was emotional enough just to see the big shrine. There were little shrines and assorted drum circles everywhere. I dont remember how we passed the time there but by evening we ended up on Haight which was as crowded as it had been when I first remember going there with my parents in the mid 60's..It was pretty much impossible to drive around. There were simply too many people. I dont remember much else..except being happy to see so many people publicly come out to say good things about Jerry and his legacy..
Up til about then, I took it for granted that there would always be a Grateful Dead and that maybe someday some way I'd meet and be able to express my thanks to those guys. And though I loved Jerry , it's always been Bobby who takes the dark out of the night for me. It was/is very important to me that I'd get a chance to return some nice type of energy to him and his while we are both still around...
Damn,
I have to end this here - it's Scotto's day off and he and I have plans.
When I'm back online, I'll finally reflect on JGBB. I really did have an Epic time!

They didnt even give me enough time to unpack yet!
WOOHOOO!

Dear Friends,

We are extremely pleased to announce a very special benefit for the Rex Foundation:
On Saturday, September 24th the Jerry Garcia Estate presents Comes a Time - A Celebration of the Music and Spirit of Jerry Garcia, at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA. This extraordinary evening of music features Trey Anastasio, Hmza el Din, Mickey Hart, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Bruce Hornsby, Gloria Jones, Bill Kreutzmann, Jackie LaBranch, Donna Jean McKay, David Nelson, Sandy Rothman, Melvin Seals, The String Cheese Incident members Jason Hann, Michael Kang, Keith Moseley, and Billy Nershi, Bob Weir and Ratdog members Kenny Brooks, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Jay Lane and Robin Sylvester.
Check our website for updates to the line-up: http://www.rexfoundation.org

General Admission tickets are $50, available as of August 14th through GDTS TOO - http://www.gdtstoo.com / Hotline (415) 457-6388 and TicketMaster - http://www.ticketmaster.com.

We offer you premium seating that is also an opportunity to make a charitable contribution. Special reserved and front-of-pit seats at $100 and $250 are available only through the Rex Foundation and GDTS TOO. To order reserved tickets through the Rex Foundation, call 415-561-3135 or use the order form on our website at www.rexfoundation.org. All but $50 per ticket is a charitable contribution. You can place your orders right away.

Thank you for being part of the Rex Foundation community. Because of support like yours, we are all furthering a tradition of grassroots giving that Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead inspired when they played the first Rex benefit concert 21 years ago.

Sandy Sohcot
Executive Director
sandy@rexfoundation.org
http://www.rexfoundation.org


This email was sent by: Rex Foundation
P. O. Box 29608, San Francisco, CA, 94129-0608, USA

Jerry

WOWZA!

Still recovering from an epic weekend! The (dreamy) setting, the music (omigod!) and the people- FABULOUS! It was a total convention of Dogfreaks. We came from all over to be there and I think I heard there were about 6000 tix sold? Talk about yer Terrapin!! I fell in love with just about everyone I met..Friday night I think everyone on the rail was from DNC,DotOrg or TOOBoard.
(((Jen))) luv my magnet
(((Bud))) keep an eye on the mailbox.
Hugs that were sent home with me from across the Atlantic when I was there in July were delivered to assorted Mid Atlantic freaks.West coasters sent hugs to East Coasters and now I have a ton of East Coast hugs to deliver to my local Dogheads..
It's a good job being a Hug Courier!
Can't go on before saying that Mike and GlowyGirl are awesome people. They took real good care of me, so I hope at least one of you can make it out here next month, so I can even things out a lil?
The music!! Excellent ..We listened to the cds (bought em there) of both nights on our way from West Va. to Pennsylvania and then on to Newark. And wowza, these were good shows! Scott and I just listened to the "Come Together" from Sat. and yeah! Woof! Nailed it!
Hey, I gotta sleep (I barely slept much this weekend) and will add more tomorrow..

Off to the festival

Gotta fly 2,536 or miles in the air and I have no idea how many more once I get to New Joisey...

Meetcha at the jubilee
Look for the sparkly Dogbone banner and I'll probably there abouts!
Safe travels to all who's going!
I'll be back Monday night!
WOOF!

Congratulations to JASON!!

He passed his series 7 exam..He's licensable (is that a word?) to buy/sell stocks, bonds, annuities!!
Scott & I are so proud of you, Babe!
.........................................
ChetFestPIX!
And a full setlist can be found on the Flying Other Ones website...
.........
Been having a couple of good days here!
Will try to get back in here sometime before I leave tomorrow night.

Can't wait!

CHET FEST!

The poster pack!


An amazing night!
We began around 11 am when I snagged a ride to Millbrae BART from Vera- Q of Ds! We got off at Civic Center and in just a few minutes we were in front of GAMH..Hoping the BO would be open and have a stash of tix available...but nope not open and already a few folks anxious to nab any ticket that might become available..Already the ticket line duty was on! Though several usual suspects werent around-probably theyre on the way to jgbb.....Wandering around the front was Hippie Bill (I scored my hugs- I love Bill! I don't think we'll see him in W.Va though-wah!). V & I grabbed lunch at Mel's Diner (yum) on Van Ness then headed back to see what was what at GAMH.
I hung around for a little while, getting to watch different musicians wander in. I saw Paul Kantnor- it gave me shivers! And briefly saw M & MK as they got to work...Various familiar faces came by- red carpet GAMH style!
I've never seen so many older people looking for tix!
I left Vera among her line duty friends to head back to BART and go down to the Mission...I felt sticky and decided to head over to my favorite clothing place- the Cut Loose Outlet. I found a blue blouse which fit and made me happy..then back to meet Scott at the apt behind the shop. We got ourselves together and whipped over to the Alley we like to park in. The Online will call line was short and efficient and we thank Paulyy for steering us there! We each received a ticket and a lammie, then got in the big line. Familiar faces popped up everywhere..Including the Bobstar's as he was making his way to his car. He looks fit as a fiddle too! We chatted with a couple behind us from FLA. They were stoked that this was happening while they were in town for other reasons-Mazel Tov to them-they said they were going to Tahoe to get married after the show.
Scott was really happy for many reasons -but partly because he had been visited earlier in the day by a musician he knew via his work..This musician had made it, then got swallowed up by personal demons - but now is clean and on a career rebound! S. was touched the fellow went by the shop just to see him & catch up.It was a thrill to see that cat back on stage later at GAMH!
A few of the musicians on stage through the night Scott knew from selling or buying instruments over the years...

There was so much going on inside the GAMH. that I think I'll need to wait til someone puts together a set list or 3 or 5..Musicians & Music galore and every set was fabulous in it's own way and of course, my favorite moments were when Bobby was singing. I had the best group of folks around me! Big tall huge men that pushed me in front of them when Bobby came out! And these guys were so sturdy that they basically lifted up and moved wedgers along.. We were about 4 rows from stage- right in the center! I didnt realize til later on that I was having a wardrobe malfunction - my pretty blue blouse unbuttoned itself right down to my navel- but I doubt anyone noticed as the incredibly exotic and beautiful Caroline in the shimmery gown was dancing next to me...
Bobby sounded perfect..And played more than I guessed he would be able because there were so many musicians there! My favorites were
Ashes & Glass and She belongs to me.
I have a line from Ashes and Glass as my DNC tagline- I put it up days ago..Most of the music til then were 60's songs so Ashes and Glass was a bit of a surprise and it made me think of London.
'She Belongs to me' is a favorite and I love you Bobby for that one!
I think it was FOTD that Bobby sang in a new way...
Deal was great!
Was that the song that MK just went insane on?
I didnt expect to see Robin Silvester on stage but YAY! He was there with MK (orange Gretsch!) & Bobby!
awesome!
A few quick notes because I've gotta attend to los bambinos today- they want to go to the bookstore.
Wavy looks great too- a beard (he joked that folks were now confusing him with Bobby) and slimming down! At one point Wavy was dressed as a giant whoppee cushion! I'll be seeing him in a few weeks when we go to retrieve Sash from camp.
Merl Saunders is a hero! He was on stage and played a whole tune..I love you Merl!
MATT KELLY played too-with MK, Bobby & Robin! He still looking so boyish too!
The Holding Company knocked our socks off! The woman who does the Janis songs was amazing...oh yeah!
it was a great night and a fitting tribute to the life of (((((Chet Helms))))))


Here is a list of 26 of musicians who were playing last night- not a complete list of every musician who played though (Merl Saunders & Matt Kelly are 2 that I know arent on this list)

Peter Albin – Big Brother & The Holding Company
Greg Anton – Zero
T Bone Burnett – Bob Dylan, and countless others
Mario Cipollina – Huey Lewis And The News, Soundhole
Greg Douglass – Country Weather, Terry & The Pirates, Steve Miller
Naomi Ruth Eisenberg – Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks
David Freiberg – Quicksilver Messenger Service
David Getz – Big Brother & The Holding Company
Wavy Gravy – Hippie Activist Clown
Terry Haggerty – Sons Of Champlin
Paul Kantner - Jefferson Airplane/Starship
Mark Karan – The Other Ones, Rat Dog
Rich Kirch – John Lee Hooker Band, Billy C Farlow
Mickey Hart – Grateful Dead
Country Joe McDonald – Country Joe & The Fish
Kathi McDonald – Big Brother & The Holding Company
David Nelson – New Riders Of The Purple Sage
Prairie Prince – Tubes, Tommy Bolin, Jefferson Starship
Jimmy Sanchez – Kingfish, David Nelson Band, Boz Scaggs
Pete Sears – Jefferson Starship, Rod Stewart, John Cipollina
Barry Sless – David Nelson Band, J.C. Flyer
Leigh Stephens – Blue Cheer
Robin Sylvester – Rory Gallagher, Marty Balin Band, Steve Douglas
Bobby Vega – Zero, Problem Child
Bob Weir – Grateful Dead
Narada Michael Walden – Everybody

Drive by Blog...

Woof!
My ticket to the Jerry Bash arrived today!
YES!
And without much planning, Kems and I found ourselves at Stanford University last night...After a bit of searching we even located the Kenny gig!
Stanford campus is really close to Belmont and Kemmie lives on the way- we don't even have to get on a freeway to get there...In 1982 I took some classes there and loved that campus!
We eventually found Braun Hall and the Cambell Theater- which is small with lovely acoustics..We made it by the second set which was fantastic! We especially enjoyed an original (tune?) called Weapons of Maniacal Destruction..The sextet including Kenny were all dynamite! I have the program but it's downstairs (sorry I'm lazy!)
Anyhow- Anyone in the city this weekend might contemplate having some dinner on Columbus and then popping over to Jazz at Pearls to check out Kenny & some of these Jazz cats he'll be playing with..I think they'll be there Friday AND Saturday!

Hmmm...Kenny Brooks at Stanford tonight!

And yay! New Stuff on the way!

Hippy Berthaday ((((TRINKS)))!!

Weirever you are- I hope it's a GREAT day!
....................
Thanks to Tiny Dancer for finding the most excellent Bobstar interview!!
It's in Relix..I checked out the Rex website and there are all kinds of good reading matter there so take a link
to the whole site and have a look!
........
Crazy busy here! Felt as though I spent 2 entire daze on the phone with Mac.com trying to get some help and also had a big problem with a set of tix from Travelocity- so many hours trying to talk to a living breathing person...the ones I did get through to passed the buck and so I guess I'm still waiting for someone to return a call....Then there's this whole thing with getting braces on one of the kids...ex-rays and molds and I have had to cancell out on seeing my mom twice now....
whine whine whine
But, next week I'll be flying Red Eye (unless Travelocity fugged up those tix too) to New Jersey and travelling on to JGBB!!!
And
sometime this week there will be Kenny Brooks -if I can get my hausfrau stuff together I may be able to slither over to Stanford or wherever he might be performing.
And
Friday night is the Chet Helms deal!
Adrian, who works part time at the shop with Scott, is friends with Chet's brother and will be going. Adrian is a pretty cool guy- paints,bikes everywhere, he is from Holland, but has lived in SF since the 60's where he owned an antique store with Chet's brother and played in a band with Rob Wasserman (The Bourbon Street Irregulars) Adrian was the drummer..A fact which didnt come out til Scott found a copy of that band's album which the Wass so kindly signed for us!

Revving Up! Rexing Up and another friday walking in SF.

Can't wait til Ratdog in a couple weeks!
Wooooooooooooooooof!

From: www.rexfoundation.org:

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF - The Rex Foundation, a public charitable organization established in 1983 by friends and members of the Grateful Dead, is launching the Rex Community Caravan – its virtual vehicle for philanthropy. Individuals can make a difference with donations of $5 or more. Having raised the bar of grassroots grant-giving, the Rex Foundation Community Caravan kicked off the summer of 2005 with presence at various summer music festivals, such as Bonnaroo in Tennessee and the 10,000 Lakes Festival in Minnesota. In the fall, the Rex Foundation will host Black Tie-Dye Balls, in San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C., to bring people together in local communities.

NEW BOARD DIRECTORS

The Rex Foundation's Board of Directors include such luminaries as Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir and drummer Mickey Hart, President and CEO of Grateful Dead Productions Cameron Sears, Woodstock 1999 producer John Scher, and San Francisco's KFOG Radio Station disc-jockey Rosalie Howarth. As of Spring 2005, recent additions to the board are Stefanie Coyote, Executive Director of the San Francisco Film Commission, Steve Bernstein, Publisher of Relix Magazine and Andy Gadiel, Founder of JamBase.com. The Board of Directors identifies and approves grants for small organizations often overlooked by mainstream funding sources. Rex grants have often helped organizations at critical junctures in their development.

ABOUT THE REX FOUNDATION AND THE REX COMMUNITY CARAVAN

For over two decades, the Rex Foundation has been deeply rooted in the music community and the progressive efforts that have spawned from an inspired demographic. Since 1984, the Rex Foundation has granted $7.7 million to some 1,000 grassroots programs across the U.S. and around the world in support of the environment, the arts, education, social and economic justice. As social, environmental and educational programs suffer from a lack of adequate funding, the Rex Foundation creatively attracts dedicated supporters and remains at the forefront of grassroots giving. The Rex Community Caravan provides the opportunity for thousands of people to collectively further what the Grateful Dead and their fans started at the first Rex benefit concert in 1984.

Look for the Rex Community Caravan and a Black-Tie-Dye Ball event at a music festival or concert hall near you! Help spread the word of an ongoing Grateful Dead tradition of generosity and concern to help others.

To get onboard the Rex Community Caravan go to www.rexfoundation.org.

[Published on 7/21/2005]
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Spent another Friday in SF walking with the kids.
We found out that if you walk up 19th street from Mission, You can get the world's best Shawrma(made right with a layer of hummas,a layer of tabuli and french fries rolled like a burrito in aram bread instead of stuck in a pita) at Ali Baba's Cave at the corner of 19th & Valencia...To get to Ben & Jerry's on Haight & Ashbury from there you must proceed North, past Guerrera all the way up to Castro street. Turn right on Castro street and follow along til you get to Haight street..Try very hard not to get sucked into the cute shops & cafes along Castro or you'll never make it uphill to the Haight! Turn left and walk up hill to Ashbury. We did stop at the more interesting shops along the way...Kids especially loving the tee shirt shops (one tee shop had a tee hanging in the doorway with a picture of our Bobby Weir on it!) After they got ice cream, we continued on to look around...noticing a few mini shrines one for {{{Chet Helms}}} and another for the woman who used to take pictures of people in front of the Haight-Ashbury street sign.
Sash discovered the amazing Mendel's store and I had to drag Noah out of Booksmith. Then it was time to head back down to the Mission and we were happy that it was all downhill from there..We stopped and bought waters and kicked back for a little rest at Buena Vista Park..then got a little creative on our route back- stopping at the authentic Mission Delores and winding around a slew of streets til we got back to 19th & Mission...Total time of wandering:4&1/2 hours...Hung out as Scott et al closed the shop then out to North Beach for Tommaso's Pizza!

((((( London))))))
A week ago, we were homeward bound on Virgin.. Not long after takeoff, the pilot requested passengers observe the two moments of silence for the victims of the 7/7 bombings except for the cries of a toddler, everyone was respectfully quiet. I don’t know if you could call it a prayer but I wished peace to the families and loved ones of the victims...London was doing okay while we were there,but still I hoped for it to remain safe from any more craziness.....
I got so used to seeing the words “London” and “bombs” strung together that I missed reading it on the newspage on my internet....but found out via an email. The kids and I watched CNN (couldnt remember which of our gazillion channels is BBC) for awhile today...
We talked about the connection they made to the City there... Sash loved the play at the Globe..Noah enjoyed the gory tales of the Tower....
And we talked about
our friends we had just seen there (((Robin, Angela & Theresa))))




as well as some of the places we had been to.....
Like the tops of the double decker buses..


and the funky older underground trains

I was 14 the first time I went to London. My social Studies teacher -Mr McKinney organized a student travel group. I was sent along. We traveled through Scotland and stayed in London in Mayfair. Who’d ever guess that old dive we stayed in on Half Moon Street would be turned into a Hilton with a single room going for hundreds of a dollars a night? That was the trip that I looked the wrong way on Piccadilly Circus and got hit by a car....32 years later and I still tremble at the thought of crossing the street....Mr McKinny gave us loads of free time..while the other lil girls wept from homesickness, I embraced the freedom..at first chance, I abandoned my classmates and took off to find Carnaby Street on my own...and I did!
.As a kid I was a “roamer” and I still am and that is just how I spent my last day in London. We all went to the Globe Theater..but there was no way I would spend 3 & 1/2 hours watching Shakespeare in the heat & humidity! So, I took off, I had my Tube ticket and had money so I could always grab a taxi if I got lost. But of course, I didnt get lost.
I crossed the Thames on the Southwark foot bridge which leads one right to St. Paul’s ..
From there it was easy (turn left and head west!) I marched along fleet street found myself in Theaterland (yes, that’s what it’s called). My favorite shopping is Covent Garden (no garden just shops and market stalls) I spent quite awhile hunting for little treasures there- they have some very nice crafter’s boothes there) . I moved along through Soho (no werewolves holding Chinese menus this time, though) to Piccadilly Circus and along Piccadilly to Mayfair past The Hard Rock (my favorite London hang out when I was 14) To Hyde Park...Once in Hyde Park, I trekked up Rotten Row and The Serpintine crossed the bridge and wandered through the meadow to Princess/Lady Di’s fountain - which is like a cement creek the course is shaped like a letter “D”....I found Bayswater road a bit of ways from there and followed it West toward Kensington. Once I saw the statue of Peter Pan, I knew I was pretty close to Nottinghill gate and kept on til I got to our street (Pembridge Gardens). A triumph for me! I didnt need a Tube or a bus or a cab or even a map..
Along the way, I recognized all kinds of places that brought back memories...like the Waldorf! One trip to London, I was with my pal Trinda, we were 18 and about to begin the huge Eurotrek...we had just gotten off one of those Freddy Laker air buses and were wearing truly raggy jeans and tees...and had all this backpacking type gear..My Dad’s travel agent had made these 1st nite reservations for us at the quite posh and stuffy Waldorf..the desk clerk did not seem to believe us or our vouchers and even phoned the US to make sure we were who we said we were before finally letting us check in...
So many memories...

Wednesday

A couple of articles/sites may be of interest-
GDVolkswagon

Kyndmusic

............
Irenie stuff-
Home almost a week now...Travel journal coming soon to those actually interested in our vacation...Might be helpful to those considering taking older kids across the ocean..Except for about 15 minutes in Volendam, we had a wonderful time...
Of course, I might just continue to refer to the events here in spurts and save everyone the trouble of looking at paragraphs & paragraphs all at once..

Only (according to Chez) 16 days til JGBB and just a little over a week til Bobby & MK A GAMH!
It's becoming a rather spectacular Summer!

Very cool! Amatt from RDUK Tour of 2003, was in town and popped into the shop to check out guitars. I dont know who recognized who but it was a pleasant surprise!
Maybe I'll run into him myself when the kids nd I BART up to SF this Friday? We'll be wandering toward the Haight and Noah wants to go back to Union Square...followed by dinner at Tommasso's.
I love LOVE love Summer vacation!!

Reminds me- we ran into my parents closest friends (Judy & Jack) at Heathrow!
Heathrow is HUGE - even the International Terminal is monstrous- like a big shopping mall - with a caviar bar and jewelery stores...and packed with travellers from every country...To run into anyone by design could be tricky let alone having a chance meeting with old friends!
When I was between Mr. irenies, my mom, Judy, my friend Leslie and I went to Paris for a week. Leslie and I fooled around in the Left Bank, ate shawarma and made daily visits to Shakespeare & Co. bookstore while Judy and my mom took on shopping on the Champs D'Elyssae (okay I forget how that's spelled). Mom & Judy went every year to shop- not only for themselves but had lists of items wanted by friends who trusted their taste(true, either lady wouldve made a Killer personal shopper).
Already that was a long -long time ago!

Judy and Jack moved down to Las Vegas or Palm Springs..somewhere like that to play golf, so it was actually great to see them and for them to see my younger kids.
My parents were tickled pink to hear we saw them..

Pictures

Mazel Tov to Alan!


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More vacation pix-

Scott



A better picture of the corner of our street (Korte Leides. and the Leidesplein)
A neighborhood which NEVER quiets down!





Hyde Park


Sash in the Hogswart dining hall (Christchurch College)

More Dining hall (How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?


The Princess @ The tower of London- That's Tower Bridge behind her.






Korte Leideswarstraat at night...


Noah peeking out from our Amsterdam window.


Scott filming Parliment & Big Ben


Window shopping in London


The rail at the Globe Theater!


Yum! Sherpa! Located a few steps away from our AMS homebase.


City of Oxford- excellent Tudor building on the left there!


Portobello Road, London


Hyde Park


makeshift memorial for 7/7 victims..

Home Again

Had a good time!
Already working on a AMS-Volendam-London-Oxford review.

The short version:
Virgin Atlantic definately the way to go!
Even if my suitcase didnt make it home just yet- it's our fault for being late for the plane. My case with all the goodies in it, was of course, the only one left behind..
Just 10 hours non stop - it will take me a few more hrs than that with 2 flights just to get to the east coast next month for jgbb.

Vacation Pictures coming soon too
Even more than we thought we would end up with because the camera we lost was located -They are sending it to us (((3 Big Cheers for "The Best of Holland Excursions-Volendam"))) they found it on the bus that we missed our ride back to Amsterdam on (not our finest hour, I will admit)...Til that point Sasha had been doing all the Holland photos with our Olympus...I did all the London/Oxford photos with my trusty old Kodak...Scott dealt with the digicam...much downloading in the near future..


Had gone online in Amsterdam-once to check in with homefront- while I had extra minutes, I checked into Deadnet and saw the announcement about the Chet fest so ordered tix right from the Bulldog Coffeeshop. Lucky I did because that show is now sold out!


Okay, so aside from a nearly missed plane, a missed excursion bus, a lost camera and some momentary concern about continuing/returning on to London (We had arrived into Heathrow on the 4th but left the same day for Amsterdam)..Everything went very smoothly...
This is the Wellington Arch...The statue depicts Peace descending on the chariot of war...



An ad posted on the wall of the underground...no idea what it means but we liked it!

Going..Going...

...Going to London in a couple of hours.
Very very very sorry there wont be any Bobdog to take in but I look forward to going to West Virginia in August and half expect that withing a few daze of being away that some sort of Bobthing will be scheduled...no inside info just my luck....Just speculating...
Anyhow- everyone but me is packed...I'm just half packed...but waiting for coffee first and then I'll pull it all together.
Dinner last night with my folks, my father has returned from safari! It sounds hilarious to me because my dad seems so not the camping in the Serengetti type...Guess he is! Lots of pictures of wild animals and many handcrafted treats from the villagers...His travel buddies told us that Dad was the favorite among villagers because he kept giving money to kids and having venders "keep the change"....Knowing $5.00 will feed a family of 4 for a month in that village...
Live aid Dad style...
Okay going for my coffee now, then pack,then make sure for the 20th time that we have all the passports & paperwork..
then off to SFO and the wild blue yonder!
Wonder if we will see fireworks from the plane?
Be back in a few weeks!
WOOF!

Babble on...

Still packing and playing...
I can't believe all the stuff we are taking!
It's like weve traded in diaper gear for electronica...
really, ipods, cameras, converters & battery chargers..portable dvd thing &walkie talkies..
at least I can leave the computer and cell phone at home...

Bobby related something here

Checking in...irenie Babble...

It's time to get packing over here..
For me that means cleaning out my drawers and closets because it's the easiste way to find stuff...rather than tear through everything looking for whatever, leaving my room looking like a crime scene, I merely empty all my stuff on the bed and make 3 big heaps- stuff to be donated, stuff to reorganize and stuff to take. Did that yesterday with my accessorydrawers - jewlery,cosmetics and paper things like addies...Found one set of voltage converters and both battery chargers with rechargable batteries...Not too bad- but considering weve only lived here about 10 months, the junk sure piles up!
Doing pretty well, off work one week now and a week from now, we'll be on our way!
I googled up the Virgin Atlantic Airways and enjoyed purusing the site- looked up which movies & programs they'll have going across and back...Nice to see the have video games on the plane- that should keep the 10 year old reasonable entertained..
Anyhow last week was some scrambling around..wanting to play since school was over but needing to get a few things workied out.
We celebrated by spending an entire day wandering through the streets of SF...
Grabbed the Millbrae BART around 10 am
Usually when BART stops at the airport only a few folks get in or out..but Friday it was crazy! Loads of same sex couples getting into town for the big Castro Street Gay Pride weekend..
So many same sex couples in the city on Friday that it almost felt a little like the 70's...almost.
walked up Mission from 24th street- a much nicer direction than coming down 16th (trust me on this!)
Spent a few minutes at the shop with Scott, choosing dvds to take on the trip from the used dvds they sell.
Decided too early for lunch and so headed out to Mitchell's for ice cream (no relation to Mitchell Brothers sex shows)...We walked up to Valencia all the way out to Cesar Chavez boulevard (2&1/2 miles) Still couldnt find Mitchell's (because it's on San Jose not Valencia-doh!)
So marched back to 24th St BART and decided to go downtown- in search of adventure on Powell street...
We wandered around Union Square unable to decide on where to lunch...remembered that the Virgin Mega store had a cupcake cafe on the top floor so headed there...the cafe turned out to not be what we wanted after all...but still the kids took their time looking through the immense book section...
Another march up to Grant street where in the distance the entry to Chinatown was noted..and so we decided to walk through it to get to Columbus...It took forever to get to North Beach- Chinatown is pretty damn big!
The kids wanted to peer through City Lights Bookstore - We've never found a bookshop we didnt like or car to explore..
this mightve happened because they get their allowance in Borders gift cards..
Anyhoo,
Marching up Columbus I spied one of venues where Kenny Brooks plays sometimes 'Jazz at Pearl's' is the place, and because my head is in a plane heading to London these daze, I got very excited to see a sax in the window- so I hoped maybe there was an early Kenny gig- but nope a different group was setting up..so kids and I headed back out in search of lunch which we took at Buster's cheesesteak place..avoiding all the yum pizza places since we were gonna be returning to North Beach later for pizza at Tommassos.
Though the city was buzzing with tourists no one was dining at Buster's (it was about 3pm) but us so the management was kind enough to let us takeover an outside table for about an hour..the kids read and I just loafed in the sun, counting the tourbuses stopping (8)to comment in front of the Vesuvius cafe (across the street from Buster's).
We then moved down hill toward the Pyramid building and ending up on Montgomery street heading to the Montgomery BART station. We looked for our Jason among all the suits and ties since he is now gone corporate and working right there in the financial district..
Back on BART this time we took the 16 street exit back to the shop. I was ready to head back to Valencia to check out Beadissimo but the kids just wanted to rest. So we went up to the apartment..The weather was still really pleasant so we sat out on the deck Kids again submerged in books, I again just loafing, enjoying the views- From the back deck, some of the Pyramid is visable and you can see the tops of the shops along Mission from the front deck you can see twin peaks and the rainbow flag of the Castro and the top of the Mission church...
Finally 5:30 arrived and we watched Scott appear from around the corner...off to Tommassos to re- consume all the calories we walked off.
A pretty great day practicing being tourists in our own big city!

.................................
Was very upset to hear/read of Chet Helm's death!
The fragility of life sort of had been haunting me through the day in SF...Lots of memories of back in the days (my era being the 70's & 80's not really the 60's) when (mostly unbelievably gorgeous) Gay men ruled SF...My buddy Stan, from High School had just come out of the closet in 76 and in between boyfriends and husbands, when I was really really depressed, Stan would insist we go to SF and see what mischief (mostly he) we could get into...Stan like so many others (including Scott's friend Michael) died of Aids in the early 90s...seeing the return of so many same sex couples in SF all day was a bittersweet reminder of the old days with Stan
Do the hustle! YMCA!
I'm just a love machine!
But then to learn of Chet Helms passing, brought me down...
Cant say I knew Chet Helms.. he was everywhere but he was as gentle-practically timid- compared to all the other great charactors of the 60's that still pop up at Dead related events..nothing surreal about Chet with those big doe eyes of his..Anyone and everyone could approach him and he seemed a little shy but happy to oblige with a little conversation or a gentle smile...I mightve found myself having traded pleasantries maybe a few dozen times with him...when they say he was the polar opposite of Bill Graham, I'd have to agree from what I knew of them...
..........
Time to get back to packing...

{{{{{Chet Helms}}}

RIP

We miss you already.

Summer's almost here!

Up to my ears in travel plans...And trying to organize stuff...the "TO DO" list isnt sooo bad....Stuff to do like
making sure
-everyone has enough clean underwear for 10+ days?
-that we have enough voltage converters & rechargeable batteries for the cameras, gameboys,ipods& portable dvd players?

Going online to prelocate banks & atms near our accomodations..Our local bank (Scott went in to make inqueries) gave us a lot of very useful information about things such as which 'siater' bank overseas to use in order to save on the exchange rates....We also had our daily atm limit changed ..because- you never know!
Once we return there will be yet more travels to organize- Sash will return to Wavy's Winnarainbow and I'll be West Virginia Ratdog bound...

Summer food for thought:

see list of all reviews from this issue: July-August 2005
Early Computing's Long, Strange Trip
Jaron Lanier

What the Dormouse Said: How the Sixties Counterculture Shaped the Personal Computer Industry. John Markoff. xxvi + 310 pp. Viking, 2005. $25.95.

Does history matter? No one would think of reading Shakespeare without learning enough of the historical context to understand the Bard's words. But does the history of science and technology matter in a similar way? Does knowing the first thing about the exotic megalomaniac Nikola Tesla make any difference at all to a young engineer plugging a computer into an alternating-current outlet (one of Tesla's inventions that we take for granted today)? After all, the AC outlet will work whether Tesla is remembered or not.

Let's focus the question more narrowly: Does the history of computers as we experience them—the history of the user-interface design, for instance—matter? I say yes. Like Shakespearean English, the computer is a tool that must be understood in depth to be deeply useful, and the richer the information about context, the richer the understanding.

It is nothing short of bizarre, then, that it has taken so long for a book to appear that chronicles the early cultural history of the personal computer. John Markoff's What the Dormouse Said (the title is taken from the lyrics of the Jefferson Airplane song "White Rabbit") tells the story of the important period when the personal computer and the Internet as we know them came into being. He also describes how a new culture of drugs, sex and rock and roll was created at the same time as the computers, sometimes in the same rooms, by some of the same people. Some readers may be shocked by the degree to which the design of modern computing was a central component of the 1960s counterculture in Northern California.

This is news that might interest young engineering students, for reasons much more important than titillation. The computer and the Internet are cultural as well as technical artifacts, and they are still changing. We can now see for the first time the relation between the aspirations of young idealistic designers and the actual experiences of people using these tools on a massive scale in a world newly rich with information. The story thus far is more inspirational than not, but it is filled with drama and lingering uncertainties.

Markoff's book covers the years 1960 to 1975 and the area south of San Francisco around Stanford University that would later come to be known as Silicon Valley. I arrived in Palo Alto in 1980, after the period described in the book, but got to know most of the people Markoff depicts. I can report that if anything, he underplays the degree to which they behaved in ways that would today be considered outrageous and radical, and what I saw was said to have been mild compared with what had come before.

click for full image and caption


The book captures what can only be called the funkiness of the time and place. I well remember the boomerang-shaped Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, hidden in the hills, at once a futuristic science-fiction vision and a dangerous, dilapidated mess that would be considered unfit for human use in the current climate of liability litigation. Masses of wires blossomed out of the rear ends of hot, giant early computers, looking rather like the hair on the heads of the engineers building them. The ragged, broken walls and ceilings were softened by the hippie décor and the fragrance of marijuana and candles, which created a warm ambience. And yes, there were drugs and naked people in the rooms where some of the code that now drives your e-mail around the globe was first set down. The people who conceived of critical aspects of modern computing moved in the same social circles as the musicians who became the Grateful Dead and the people who invented drug "tripping" and New Age spirituality.

Markoff tells the deliciously scandalous true history of computing in the '60s and also considers how that legacy matters. His principal focus is on one of the enduring ideological conflicts that first appeared then: the struggle between open and proprietary software. He presents a marvelous chronicle of the first open-source project, which was also the first video game: "Spacewar." He also describes some of the early attempts to supplant the open-community method with a proprietary regime, particularly those of a kid named Bill Gates.

Markoff has laid down a reliable record and begun the process of interpreting it, but much remains to be done. Many of the software layers we still use without thinking, like the air we breathe, are remarkably open, and this reflects the cultural context in which they were invented. For instance, when I arrived in the Valley in 1980, it was still considered somehow uncool not to live semicommunally. The ideal of communal living eventually came to be tempered (and was nearly destroyed) by the reality of interpersonal conflicts, which tore apart one group household after another in the 1980s. The architecture of e-mail as we know it was made up during the communal period; had the protocols been defined just a little later, a more realistic or even fatalistic model of human nature might have held sway. The early crafters of the idea of e-mail could have made it much harder to falsify a sender's identity, for instance, and we might have been spared some of the deluge of spam and viruses to which we are now subjected.

Markoff's narrative is organized around the stories of a few of the most creative and influential individuals of the time, such as AI pioneer John McCarthy and journalist/philosopher Stewart Brand. The most beautiful and nuanced portrait, however, is of Douglas Engelbart. Engelbart more than anyone else invented the modern user interface, modern networking and modern information management. In 1968 he demonstrated a computer he had been building, one that had rudimentary implementations of a mouse, windows, word processing, databases, network file sharing and so on. This demonstration turned out to be a transformative cultural moment—akin to the Moon landing, even if it wasn't as widely publicized.

There's an almost mythic sadness to some of the stories of the creative minds behind the modern computer. Engelbart wanted to build user interfaces to support virtuosity in users—the sort of virtuosity one would expect from a fine musician. But instead, to his profound disappointment, a compromise took hold in which only the less challenging of his ideas have come into widespread use. He and many of the other pioneers—Alan Kay and Ted Nelson, for example—labor on to this day, building the computer as they feel it should be, even as the world at large has adapted on a massive scale to a computer that to those pioneers is only half-born.

The book also captures an important early conflict between two cultures of computing that seemed compatible on the surface but actually had opposing aims. On the one side was the human-centered design work of Engelbart, based initially at the Stanford Research Institute, and on the other was artificial intelligence culture, centered on the Stanford AI lab. Engelbart once told me a story that illustrates the conflict succinctly. He met Marvin Minsky—one of the founders of the field of AI—and Minsky told him how the AI lab would create intelligent machines. Engelbart replied, "You're going to do all that for the machines? What are you going to do for the people?" This conflict between machine- and human-centered design continues to this day.

What might all this mean to young engineering students? At the very least, this book will probably serve as a hedge against complacency. How can they read these stories without wanting to prove that they can be more vital, revolutionary and inventive than a charming gang of hippies?



Reviewer Information

Jaron Lanier, a computer scientist best known for his work in virtual reality, is also a composer, visual artist and author. He is currently a visiting scientist at Silicon Graphics and an external fellow at the International Computer Science Institute at the University of California, Berkeley.

Happy Father's Day!!

Jerry Garcia tribute album will benefit Camden schools
Friday, June 17, 2005

By CHUCK DARROW
Courier-Post Staff

Bob Makin recalls the exact moment he was moved to do something for the children of Camden. "I was stuck in a traffic jam on Mickle Boulevard, going to see one of the new incarnations of The Dead (at the Tweeter Center)," recalls Makin, 40, who spearheaded the just-released CD, Jerry Jams, Jerry Cares: A Charitable Tribute To Jerry Garcia. "I looked to my right and saw the Camden County (Jail). Then I looked to my left and saw this obviously impoverished kid. He was barefoot and malnourished-looking. He must have been 7, 8, 9 years old, and he looked right at me with so much anger in his eyes. "And I look at the jail again and think, `What does he have to lose?' Then I thought, `The Grateful Dead will help us help this kid in some way.' "

Makin, who is the entertainment editor of the Courier-News of Bridgewater, which, like the Courier-Post, is published by Gannett Co. Inc., wasn't just indulging in an altruistic fantasy. He actually had the mechanism in place to get the wheels turning. In 2002, he helped found Jersey Jams, Jersey Cares, a fiduciary fund of the Bergen County United Way which, through CD sales and concerts, raised thousands of dollars for afterschool musical mentoring programs for New Jersey children who lost parents in the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. "I went to the Bergen County United Way and asked if they wanted to keep it going," he says. "They said, `Keep it going.' That's where the Jerry Jams, Jerry Cares CD came in." The three-disc set, released on June 3, features a number of musicians performing songs written by Garcia, the legendary Grateful Dead guitarist who died in August 1995.

Among those contributing are singer-songwriter David Gans, bluegrass stalwart David Grisman, a longtime Garcia collaborator, and the Dark Star Orchestra, one of the nation's top Grateful Dead tribute bands. Makin's goal is to raise enough money through sales of the CD and live events to enable the school districts in Camden and Garfield to receive $10,000 for the same kind of programs created for the 9/11 kids.

Annette D. Knox, superintendent of schools in Camden, says the district looks forward to receiving the donation. "The Camden City public school district proudly accepts the opportunity to receive this honor from the Jersey Jams fund," Knox says. "Upon board approval, we will be happy to accept the funds to use toward enhancing our music programs. We look forward to learning more about this program and the opportunities it will afford us." Makin is hoping to have the funds distributed through Little Kids Rock, a Montclair-based non-profit organization that creates music-education programs. But, he says, if that doesn't work out, the money will nonetheless get to its intended recipient. "One way or another, the Camden school district is going to get $10,000," he pledges. "One way or another, we're going to make an impact on the Camden school district."

TO ORDER THE CD
To order a copy of `Jerry Jams, Jerry Cares: A Charitable Tribute To Jerry Garcia,' send a $20 check or money order to the Bergen County United Way (with Jersey Jams Fund in the memo).

The address is: Jersey Jams Fund, 33 Aberdeen Road, No. 355A, Matawan, NJ 07747.
For more on the CD and a schedule of upcoming concerts, go to www.jerseyjamsfund.com/press.html.
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Leaving in a few minutes for Father's Day lunch at the nearby grill, then out to buy yet another couch, this one is for our den- looking at sofa beds...
Strange to not have plans with my folks (Scott's are deceased) My Dad is on a safari in Africa...My mother is at Golf Camp...

HAPPY VACATION & BERTHADAZE & FATHER'S DAY TOO!

The power source on my computer burned out!
So, I'm using the 10 year old's computer (my older imac) and it's exxxcruuuciatingly s-l-o-w & the screen seems so tiny and getting into my mail is tricky...So I probably won't be blogging in very much until I get my imac back...
Still visiting all the regular online haunts though...
............The Non Bobby Stuff.................................................
Been a supremely busy few days though!
Sashie graduated Middle School and we are very proud of her and the armload of awards she's received...Sashie spent every year in Elementary school being pulled out of regular class to work with a "resource specialist" Although we spent a lot of time & money to get to the bottom of whatever learning differences were plaguing her, no actual diagnosis was ever made.Though a very prolific and creative storyteller, Sash had major difficulties with reading, comprehension and math...Then at the end of 5th grade, the Special Ed teacher tested her and found Sash to be at grade level and not eligable for Special help...
My friend Julie, who is also an artist and who also has a very creative child researched our local schools and found a Magnet school for the Arts and creative technology among the local Middle schools. A Magnet school is a a school with a particular curriculum set up in a less desirable neighborhood to attract students from other neighborhoods. We all visited the school, were impressed by the arts program and with the enthusiastic approval from the kids, we enrolled our girls.
From the first day to the last, Sasha soared and has succeeded beyond belief!
Among her awards, 3 are for Academic Honors, 1 is for Art and 1 is for (ahem, my favorite!) Citizenship!
Today was Noah's last day of Elementary school..We celebrate his success in moving on to Middle School..A move we werent at all sure would happen as in his case, we are dealing with an array of learning differences- Dyslexia, Dysgraphia and Auditory processing disorder..Still his grades have improved and despite all the challenges, he has a good attitude about school...He loves history and is very excited to be travelling abroad with us this Summer...
just a few weeks to go!
...............................................................
................................................................
Hey, Does it happen to you, too?
Last Night-
I finally got sore/tired of being online- rummaging around the boards etc for Bobby & Grateful Dead news/stuff..
I tell myself "Argh, ENOUGH!"
Grab my beads (still working on my trellis) or my crochet and go to the couch to veg out and watch TV...
I find something on Showtime that seems vaguely interesting- a documentary about a group of guys who grew up together in (I think) the Brighton Beach area..for the longest time they discuss their passion for basketball and then the subject moves on to (cue: Sugar Magnolia playing in the background) their love for The Grateful Dead! How they went to the Midnight Shows and all..Flashing photos from when they looked like young hippies and photos of a very young Grateful Dead!
The Boys of 2nd Street Park-Check it out!

Anyhow, thought it was funny- I swear everytime I conciously think I've had enough, I will run into some sort of reminder!

WOOF!

Last week of work for me!
But today is a Jewish holiday and so no work today!
Weeeeeeeeeeeee!
Actually, I'm typing up the Rainbow Bears' Father Day stories...Some are very cute, but I'll spare ya....
Spreaking of cute- see this recent photo of Bobstar
By Chez

from the dotorg:
6/12/2005 (Sun.) Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN
Jam > Truckin > Playin in the Band, Bird Song > Cassidy > Jack Straw > Ashes and Glass > Two Djinn, St. Stephen, Dear Prudence, Sugar Magnolia
RatDog's 600th Show; Bob Weir's 600th Show; Jay Lane's 600th Show
(Bonnaroo Main Stage)
Thanks Sandy, Jammin John, Doc, and Lizardking

Relix Reports from The Roo-

------------------------------------------------------------------------Report from the Roo 2005-06-11 (sat. morning)

Glowsticks and covers colored the Dave Matthews Bands’ headlining set Friday night at the Bonnaroo Music Festival. After opening with “One Sweet World,” the Virginia-bred quintet offered over two hours of continuous music, including a cover of the Zombies’ “Time of the Season.” Before inviting Warren Haynes onstage for a version of “Jim Thing,” which gradually slipped into Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It's Worth,” a glowstick war erupted during “Bartender.” Later in the evening, the guitarist invited Robert Randolph onstage for versions of “Louisiana Bayou” and “All Along the Watchtower,” with Matthews sporting Randolph’s trademark brim hat.

The Dave Matthews Band’s first appearance at Bonnaroo arrived near the end of a busy first day. During the Allman Brothers Band’s set on the Which Stage, Jerry Douglas emerged for a version of “Good Morning Little School Girl.” The Allmans also performed its share of covers, including The Band’s “Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and the Grateful Dead’s “Franklin’s Tower.” Later in the evening, Gabby La La added her distinctive sitar style to “The Beltless Buckler” during the Benevento/Russo Duo’s set with Mike Gordon. Before its 1:30am show in The Other Tent, Sound Tribe Sector 9 also offered a set of music under its electronic Live PA alias on the Sonic Stage.

As expected, Galactic’s Krewe De Carnivale served as a springboard for countless collaborations. Nodding to its New Orleans heritage, Galactic invited Big Easy icons Leo Nocentelli (the Meters), Kermit Ruffins (Rebirth Brass Band), Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and the Gold Eagles Mardi Gras Indians and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band’s Roger Lewis, Efrem Townes and Kevin Harris onstage at various points throughout its after-midnight set. American Idol runner-up Bo Bice also made a surprise appearance with Galactic after serving as Grand Marshall during Bonnaroo’s annual Centeroo parade. Bice added vocals to a series of covers, beginning with Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love,” with Teedy Boutte and Dave Matthews Band’s Boyd Tinsley also joining in the fray. Meanwhile, in the comedy tent, four costume-clad Bonnaroo artists performed a surprise “Masquerade Ball.” Filling its set with classic-rock and metal covers like Eric Clapton’s “Cocaine,” the quartet was later revealed to be Marco Benevento and Particle’s Darren Pujalet, as well as Umphrey’s McGee’s Jake Cinninger and Brendan Bayliss. Adding to the confusion, Cinninger traded in his guitar for a bass for the surprise performance.

Throughout the day, scattered showers seeded Bonnaroo’s mud pits, though on the whole the festival’s grounds are still in good condition. Herbie Hancock--perhaps the weekend’s most anticipated performance--performed versions of his “Watermelon Man” and Edgar Winter’s “Frankenstein” with a new version of his Headhunters. In a press conference before his set, Hancock discussed the jamband scene with Headhunters guitarist John Mayer, Saul Williams and Matisyahu. When asked about his increased presence in the jamband community, Mayer mentioned his admiration for Charlie Hunter and joked about his pop single, “Your Body is a Wonderland.” “When people compliment you, you say ‘thank you’,” Mayer says. “But then you think ‘Wait till you see what I’m about to do next.’”

For more 'Roo news and photos, go to http://www.relix.com/festivaldiaryBack to top

6/10/2005 (Fri.) The Pageant, St. Louis, MO
I: Jam > Tomorrow Never Knows > Mississippi Half-Step > Wrong Way Feelin' > Tennessee Jed > Even So* > October Queen* > The Deep End* > Wang Dang Doodle*+, Lost Sailor > Saint of Circumstance
II: Good Morning Little Schoolgirl*, Althea*, Tanqueray*+# > Little Red Rooster*+#, Dark Star* > Jam% > Jam%* > Sugaree > Throwing Stones
E: Lazy River Road, Johnny B. Goode*+#
* -w/ (trumpet) and (sax); +-w/ (drums; Jay on percussion besides "JBG" without Jay); #-w/ (bass; without Robin); %-Jeff, Jay, and Kenny Previous "Tanqueray" 11/15/2003 [72 shows]
Photos can be found at
http://members.aol.com/mxicaliblz/ratdog2005.html
.........
.........

Did I already post this one?

I think not so heeeeeerrrrrreeeee ya go---

'Dead' guitarist brings in Ratdog


By Rick Bird
It was 40 years ago this summer that a band called The Warlocks began playing around San Francisco. It was an eclectic mix of bluegrass, jug band and jazz players destined to become rock's first fusion outfit mixing jazz, blues, soul and country influences.

By the end of 1965, author Ken Kesey considered the group the house band for his "acid tests" and they had changed their name to the Grateful Dead.

In true Dead play-for-the-moment style, band members say, at this point no major concert or event is planned to commemorate the 40th anniversary of their "long strange trip."

The Dead toured last summer, reconfigured with original members guitarist Bob Weir, drummer Mickey Hart and bassist Phil Lesh. Despite 2005's historical milestone, band members this summer are going their own separate ways.

Lesh has his own band and new book on the Grateful Dead. Hart is out drumming with a new group, Hydra, and Weir is touring with his long-time side project, Ratdog, playing Wednesday at the Madison Theater, Covington.

Ratdog now features Weir jamming with musicians from the Bay Area jazz scene. The set lists have been sprinkled with versions of Grateful Dead favorites. In the spirit of the always evolving Dead, Weir is reluctant to explain the Ratdog sound.

"I would be loathe to try to describe it," he said in a recent phone interview. "We do mix it up."

Weir did make one pledge for the Madison concert that is the consummate promise Dead members have delivered to fans for 40 years"

"If you are not smiling from inside your soul and your body is not moving, then we are not doing our jobs." According to Weir, Ratdog may have the incredible number of up to 150 songs in its repertoire.

"Every time a song comes up in rotation it's a little more precious to you because you know you are not going to get a crack at it for a good long time," Weir said about Ratdog - but, in a sense, explaining the concept behind the improv-rock sound the Dead practically created. "There is never tomorrow night or the next night. You really have to focus on the song."

This August also marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Dead cofounder and beloved frontman, Jerry Garcia, or, as Weir prefers to call it, "The anniversary of Jerry's departure."

Weir said a major memorial concert is being put together for late summer in the Bay Area featuring Dead members and "Jerry's friends." "It will be a meaningful event," Weir said, although names, dates and location are not finalized.

Since Garcia's death, Weir has assumed the mantle of Dead bandleader and point man, at least in the eyes of the Deadheads. It's not a role he is comfortable with, but he understands. "There are numerous point men. I'm just one... But I do feel like I have a torch to carry."

Weir is carrying that torch by simply making music and doing it often. Ratdog's Covington appearance is part of a series of warm-up gigs as Ratdog plays its way to Bonnaroo - the four- year-old, three-day jam-rock orgy set for this weekend in Manchester, Tenn. Weir thinks Bonnaroo has quickly become one of America's two great musical events, along with the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

"One thing I really dig is Bonnaroo is focused on predominately jam bands, but bands that state a game then work it. It's the jazz mode, but the book of standards is different," Weir said. Of course, a gathering of the jam-band clan would not be possible if the Grateful Dead hadn't pioneered the genre for rock fans. But the self-deprecating Weir is reluctant to connect those dots. For him, the improv spirit of American music is far bigger than the Dead.

"The dots go way back. They go back to Louis Jordan, to Count Basie, Duke Ellington. It is the gift America has for the music world. It is uniquely American that is wonderful stuff I live and die by. I certainly don't take credit for it."

Meanwhile, the Dead's history is being relived with Lesh's book released this spring, "Searching for the Sound: My Life With the Grateful Dead," the first inside history from a band member, although long-time publicist Dennis McNally three years ago released, "A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead." Lesh's warts-and-all book is best when describing the spirit and chemistry of the musicians and at its silly best with such anecdotes as the night a stoned Lesh nodded off in the middle of a set. Hart was so upset he started banging on Lesh's head as if it were a drum.

Weir says he hasn't read the book. "I'm dyslexic. It will take me awhile to stumble through that one," he said. "I suspect it's pretty factual. The question is, how do you get it all into a book? There is so much that happened to us."

Weir said "it might be fun" to someday try his own Dead autobiography, but acknowledged, "If I'm going to do something like that, I'm going to hire a hypnotist to take me back any number of places in time and see what turns up. I'd want to play around with it a bunch."
Publication date: 06-07-2005
-------------------------------------
------------------------------------------
Setlist for Columbus Dog- Looks like a great one (mmm mmm 2nd set!)- according to the reviews, it was!
Here Comes Sunshine
Minglewood
Queen Jane
MNS
This Time Forever
Shade of Gray
Fly Away
Bury Me Standing
Scarlet

Twilight Time@
Blackbird@
Mexicali
Golden Road
Estimated>
Wheel
LWAF>
Terrapin
Corrina
--------------
At A Siding
Terrapin Flyer

woof!

Welcome back online (((((David))))))!!!
Sounds like a great time-
Info culled off Deadnet:


6/8/2005 (Wed.) Madison Theater, Covington, KY
I: Jam > Feel Like a Stranger > Easy Answers > Baby Blue, Mission in the Rain > Walkin Blues > Josephine, Lucky Enough, Ramble On Rose > Playin in the Band
II: Artificial Flowers@, Me and My Uncle@4, When I Paint My Masterpiece@5>6, Playin Jam > Uncle John's Band > Jam* > Knockin on Heaven's Door > Playin in the Band > China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider
E: Brokedown Palace
 *-without Bob; "Stranger" tease during 1st set "Playin"
Handsfree - 08:57am Jun 9, 2005 PDT (#2602 of 2636)
FREE TURF

Last night was a smoker, scorcher, hot, blazin rippin tight band playing for a sweet crowd charged and howling. First set was solid the stranger and Walking blues ruled...but the Playin was just astounding...some exceptional beautiful music from everyone up there. Man, this band is on fire. Thanks Bobby! Got to say hi to Jeff and Robin...they were so sick. Man, that was a huge amount of fun! UJb was rippin, China Cat...I think they are on another level now...really charged and ready to lay a fat trip on you. Best RD show I've seen from a solid, tight musical perspective. The sound was crystal clear...the Ramble on was a great time too...great ears on these guys, they play togehter so well. It was great! Thanks!
------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEW BOBBY INTERVIEW!!

GO Here:
Bobby!
A rather great interview!
...
Been busy here- actually, finally getting around to booking our London/Netherlands vacation..About time, eh..since we are taking off in LESS THAN A MONTH!
Reservations went pretty easily...Taking Virgin Airlines nonstop (only 10 hour flight!) to UK then grabbing a flight out to Ams.
Renting the townhouse ABOVE Rookies..It's funky but has a kitchen, more beds than we even need, a rooftop patio and is so perfectly wonderfully located around the corner from Leidesplein..Will probably be noisy but we are good sleepers.
When we finish in Ams- it's back across the North Sea to London..The Sterling is giving us a pounding, no Mayfair this time ( especially since we are +2 more travellers this round) But we are happy to have found a nice place in Notting hill - "a minute away from the underground"..
Then in August- looks like I'll be heading to West Virginia...probably...maybe...looking good!
.................

How about that VH1 Bobby?! Such a rush to see him & the fellers on TV! I love the Hell in a Bucket video!! Turned the TV on to Vh1 again this afternoon and they were playing it again!
........
Somewhere online is another recent Bobby interview- I'll look for it tomorrow!
woofing!

Jam on the Dam- No ratdog but...

JAM IN THE 'DAM 2006 SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT & PRE-SALE

2 Weeks, 8 Bands, 3000 Fans.

Following the unprecedented success of this year's first ever international multi-band festival in Amsterdam at the legendary Melkweg, Vision International is proud to announce that in 2006, we are expanding to TWO three-day shows. They will be held on back-to-back weeks, at the fan-friendly venue that hosted us so well in March.

Jam in the Dam's "Eerste Week" will be March 12-13-14 and the "Tweede Week" will be March 19-20-21. For the really dedicated, there will be a limited number of discounted tickets, good for both weekends, complete with four days in
between to recharge.


The line-ups are as follows:

Eerste Week (March 12-13-14):

Disco Biscuits
Yonder Mountain String Band
Galactic
The New Deal

Tweede Week (March 19-20-21):

Umphrey's McGee
Sound Tribe Sector 9
North Mississippi Allstars
Benevento/Russo Duo

Each act will play a long two-hour set each night of Jam in the 'Dam, in one of the two venues. There will be overlap, so that we can accommodate all attendees within the two rooms. Even though the total capacity is 1750, we only plan to sell 1500 tickets to each event, so as to keep it very comfortable for all. This worked very well in '05, and rarely, if ever, did either room get overly crowded.

We are offering members of the Jam in the 'Dam, Walther Productions and artist mailing lists the first shot at tickets, with a limited number of pre-sale tickets available starting Wednesday June 29th at NOON Eastern.
The General Public on-sale will begin a week later on Wednesday July 6th at NOON Eastern at: http://jaminthedam.com/

Also, at that time or shortly thereafter, travel packages will be available from Madison House Travel. Due to the nature of the show, there will not be a 'one size fits all' package, but packages will include deals on airfares, hotels, and offer travel insurance. Show passes can also be included, but not discounted further.

Buy early and save $30 on your pass! Early-Bird Passes will be sold at $169 per weekend for a limited time only, while supplies last. Once all the Early-Bird passes are sold out, the price will go up to $199 per weekend. We will also have a very limited time offer for a very small quantity of 2-Weekend Passes, good for both the Eerste Week and the Tweede Week shows. For the first week of presales, we will be offering the 2-Weekend passes for a super discounted rate of $245 each, which is a savings of more than $150 on the total cost of purchasing Advance Passes for both weekends. As an added bonus, the first 100 ticket buyers will receive a copy of Joe Pauker's new 2006 edition of "Get Lost: The Cool Guide to Amsterdam".

Pre-sale ticket deal offers can be purchased, starting Wednesday June 29th at Noon Eastern through:

http://Www.walthertix.musictoday.com

Charge by phone by calling 1-800-594-TIXX (8499)

For more information, visit the official Jam in the 'Dam website. Due to the late confirmation of some bands, the site will evolve over the next few weeks. One of the new features will be a short form video from March.

http://jaminthedam.com/

Please be advised that passes are non-refundable, and once purchased, it is the sole reponsibility of the buyer to arrange travel, whether through Madison House, or on your own.

Thanks for making the first Jam in the 'Dam over the top. We hope to see you and your friends again next March.


_______________________________________________________________________
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The Queen of Busy work

Hey Now!
I will have to return to add links but-
CONGRATULATIONS to Cousin Bud!! I understand Relix is using one of his Bobby pictures!
Cousin mightve talked me into attending the Sunshine Daydream festival..Ive gotten as far checking air fares (as low as $423 from here...but first I must finish planning the big trip to UK & AMS...Finding lowest fares about $889 for SFO-Heathrow...

I love Hotwire & Expedia...Due to camping in Europe when I was a youth, I missed starting my first semester of college ...But at the time SFSU was offering quicky night courses for wanna be Travel Agents (a dying breed I suppose these days). I took a part time job at an agency and filled my nights with travel courses...This was before computers were common and back then being a travel agent required LONG hours on the telephone, Weekly bigger than a drive in movie flight books...And of course, lots and lots of math...Not a career for creative types at all..I gave it up after about 4 months and went on to Art school....
But I still get a thrill out of hunting through Hotwire, Expedia And I do love ferreting out the just exactly perfect hotel...
........................
Front page of Ratdog.org promises transcripts of a recent unpublished Bobby interview!
........
Okay, must drag self away from the computers the Teenyboppers require a ride to the mall..
oy.

FRIDAY!

And I've got a housefull of kids!
Sash has invited a few girls plus a guy over this afternoon..All 4 of them are shrieking it up (as only 13 & 14 year olds can) in the hot tub. Sash's friend Sunshine ought to be here any moment...The girls are sleeping over, the guy will be picked up by his Mom in a little while...
Noah and Aj are mastering the gamecube...
And I'm sorry to have to miss The Waybacks at the Sweetwater tonight..
..................
If you missed it- Mark Karan appeared for an interview and a chat in the Ratdog.org Chatroom last night..
You can read the transcripts over on Dot Org-Use the link on this page to get there!
Had fun through it all!
Yay MK! and Thanks Dave Rosenberg & Topher!
...............
...................
For a concert, how short is too short?
Jon Bream,  Star Tribune
June 5, 2005 POP0605

 
'Damn, you're too nice" is what the subject line on the e-mail said.
As a music critic, I'm not accustomed to hearing that. The e-mail was from Tom Evered, general manager of Capitol Records' jazz and classical divisions, including Blue Note Records. Perhaps Evered, whom I've known since his days in the record biz in the Twin Cities in the 1980s, has forgotten about my scathing review of Blue Note's marquee artist Norah Jones at Northrop Auditorium two years ago.
This time, Evered was responding to my review of Al Green's 51-minute concert at the State Theatre, which he happened to attend. He was surprised that I didn't make much of a fuss about the shortness of the show.
"It's a good thing he was playing for a nice Midwestern crowd," Evered said of Green, who records for Blue Note. "Al just doesn't do a long show. He may have misread the clock and left early. He plays it for the moment. I was caught up in the moment. I wanted to dance for another half-hour."
In an online review, I had opined: "So what if it was an all-too-brief 51 minutes? It was 51 minutes of the most exciting, uplifting soul man as religious experience as you might ever witness." (See the review at www.startribune.com/289.)
This raises the question: How short is too short for a concert? Or how long is long enough?
For a nightclub or casino gig at which the artist is doing two sets, 60 to 75 minutes is standard -- and long enough. I've seen artists at, say, the Dakota Jazz Club stretch the late set to 80 or 90 minutes when they were in the mood.
For an artist doing a single club set or a concert, there is a different standard. Several factors are involved, including the ticket price, the size of the artist's repertoire and the amount of time filled by opening acts.
An artist's contract with a promoter typically outlines the duration of a performance. Green's contract, for example, called for 60 minutes, said co-promoter Sue McLean, who once presented a 45-minute Green show that she didn't want to replicate.
Other recent shows McLean promoted called for "one 90-minute set" (Branford Marsalis) and "length of show 120 to 150 minutes" (Bob Weir & Ratdog).
She also presented actress-turned-singer Minnie Driver, who performed for only 55 minutes -- including an encore -- April 28 at O'Shaughnessy Auditorium in St. Paul. Even though Driver has recorded only one album, that's too short, especially when tickets cost $30. (She should learn some more cover songs.)
Even when an artist has only one album, the main set should be at least one hour.
That wasn't the case at Bloc Party's packed show at First Avenue on March 30. The British buzz band was on stage for exactly 60 minutes -- but that included a four-song encore.
Sometimes the quality of a performance compensates for its brevity. For instance, when the Strokes made their debut at the 7th Street Entry in 2001, they played a killer 40-minute set. When they returned 12 months later to headline at the Orpheum Theatre, they spent 45 minutes on stage, doing almost all the songs on their debut CD and three new numbers. When the New York group returned last year to promote its second album, the guys rocked for a whopping 70 minutes at First Avenue.
Other hot new acts with only one album -- namely Franz Ferdinand, the Kaiser Chiefs and Keane -- recently gave Twin Cities club shows that lasted about 60 minutes, but those were exciting, crowd-pleasing performances.
When you get to superstars charging $75 or more, then you'd better get at least a 90-minute performance. And when the Paul McCartneys, the Bette Midlers, the U2s and the Rolling Stones are asking more than $150 a ticket, you expect two full hours and a spectacular production.
Like McCartney, U2 and the Stones, Green is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. While those other acts are performing in arenas with some tickets going for $250, he filled the State at $60 at ticket. But that show left many concertgoers feeling, "Yeah, but. ..."
"I thought it was short, but a fabulous concert," said Jearlyn Steele, a singer who knows about fulfilling contracts.
"I thought it was too short but very good for the time he was up there; he was definitely on," said Tom Shiah of Minneapolis. "But the last time [he was] at the Guthrie [in March 2004], that was one of my top 10 concerts ever. The Guthrie seemed longer."
It was -- 70 minutes, to be exact.
Shiah felt that for $60 a ticket, Green should have performed for an hour and a half. "But part of the fun is not knowing what to expect," Shiah said.
However, he said, he didn't feel ripped off, as he did when he saw Miles Davis in New York in the '70s for $5.
"I don't think he ever took the stage," Shiah recalled. "He was off to the side of the stage playing [trumpet] by the risers. He still owes me 5 bucks."
What do you think? E-mail Jon Bream at popmusic@startribune.com.

WOOF!

ON VH1 CLASSIC

RatDog Set to Appear on VH1 Classic on Sunday
The RatDog taping from New York at the end of spring tour will air this
weekend on VH1 Classic, according to the VH1 Web site. "All-Star Jams" is
scheduled to be shown Sunday, June 5 at 10AM ET and 10PM ET on the channel,
which is generally only available to digital cable subscribers and satellite
subscribers.
http://www.vh1classic.com