Furthur Rehearsals Part II (1/7-1/9)

THURSDAY (1/7)

Thursday was fire from the opening note. Phil turned his bass lights on to let us know he was for real. The shows had been starting around 8:20 or so, but they didn't come on until almost 9 this night. Cumberland and Doin That Rag seemed very tight, jammed out, and psychedelic. The Wheel -> No More Do I -> He's Gone was probably the best jamming I saw all week. Seamless segues, and big jams in between verses ended with some sweet vocal stylings at the end of He's Gone - 'nothing's gonna bring him back,' - again complete silence in the room (something you don't hear very often in SF or anywhere else in this scene for that matter).

Built to Last was good, but JK had trouble with the vocals of Peaceful Valley - can't really handle them imo. But it was followed by a thick jam that led into ... probably the musical highlight of the shows I saw ... Morning Dew. This Dew, sung by JK, was as good as it gets - with JK really shining at the end. The place went BANANAS!! And let me just say that I HATE Satisfaction, like more than any other song, but was so amped by the show and the Dew that I was full on into it: "I can't GET NO!!! I can't GET NO!!!" Definitely the most fun I have EVER had with that song. Encore GDTRFB segued into Bid You Goodnight. I had been meandering through the crowd and ending up directly in front of Phil for the ends of these shows. We Bid You Goodnight on the lip of the stage was as peaceful a moment as I can remember - so so blessed. Extended ending with JK and Bob trading lines and the ladies really filling in the spaces.

Wow. Just wow. Luckiest guy on the planet...

Thursday ended just before 11, with the band blowing off curfew for a full hour. Phil came out before the encore and said, "If you are patient enough, good things will happen," referencing the late start time (and maybe the disjointed playing on Wed?).

Words to live by from Master Phil...

Thursday at the Throck

Cumberland
Doin that Rag
Tennessee Jed
Wheel->
No More Do I->
He's Gone
Built to Last
Peaceful Valley
Other one Jam
Morning Dew
Satisfaction

Donor rap
GDTRFB
And We Bid You Goodnight

FRIDAY (1/8)

After the initial disbelief that I was able to score tickets to see this shit on the weekend, I was pumped for Friday night and hoped for two sets due to the extended curfew. The band really seemed to jell on Thursday and I was hoping for more. Though the band was pretty jelled on Friday, the shortness of the show really took away from everyone's good time. They started at 7:40, about a full half hour earlier than they had started yet, and the room was literally only half full. The energy started high with a short Midnight Hour that got the place moving, and a surprisingly ripping Just a Little Light. There had been a cardboard cut-out of Elvis in one of the balcony suites all week and I wondered if they'd pay homage to him tonight b/c it was his birthday. Around and Around was as close to Elvis-style rock and roll that they got, and I quietly wished the King a happy birthday.

Phil left the stage briefly (bass issues or piss, I couldn't tell) while Bob told a joke: "What is the difference b/w a duck? It has two legs both the same." Said "Jer taught me that." Then he told a confused version of the duck in the bar with the nails. I think he switched up the words on purpose to mess with us - classic Bob. Days Between was powerful by the ending - similar to the Gorge version last May but not as long. Queen Jane sounded like Ratdog's version. No More Do I again? I'll take it cause I love the song, but it's now the third time they've played it in the rehearsals. I guess we'll be seeing a lot of it on the winter tour. Not as good as Thursday's, but still a good song. After US Blues, Phil said they were ending so he could go check out his son's band play in Fairfax, and he invited us along. I decided to cruise over to see if Phil would play. Alas he did not, and I found my home for a little while at a Grateful Dead cover band next door at 19 Broadway.

As a fan, I was a little pissed for like one minute that he would short change us. Then, seeing Phil sitting in the bar with his family, I realized he was prioritizing his time. After all, these are just rehearsals, and he wants to go see his SON play MUSIC in FAIRFAX. Makes sense to me, and I commend Phil on being a great dad.

2010-01-08, Friday
7:40 - 9:05 pm

In the Midnight Hour
Just a Little Light
Round and Round
Duprees
Come Together
Jam
Days Between
Queen Jane Approximately
No More Do I

E: US Blues

SATURDAY (1/9)

For Saturday, I scored probably the best spot I had the whole run and kept it the whole show - b/w JK and BW one person off from the rail - great view of the whole band, including, most importantly, Phil and Bob. Ripping Alligator opener - great energy in the place. Pride of Cucamonga is a personal favorite and it had been a LONG time since I heard it - stoked. "Since I came down from Oregon, there's a lesson or two I've learned...So I think I'll drift for old where it's at." JK had great energy during Death Don't Have No Mercy. Anther Magnolia Mountain (this time Phil beaming like he just won the lottery during the Scars to our children part) and a solid UJB led us into Good Lovin. It really is all you need...

Set Break - finally! Second set was short though - more of an extended encore. 20+ minutes of Dark Star before the first verse was sang segued VERY nicely into Let It Grow, which was awesome. Dark Star v2 and...then...Attics. Something was wrong with Phil's ear monitors and it really detracted from the song, but it was still a very very special moment. Thank you so much Phil, Bobby, Jeff, Jay, John, and Joe (lots of J's!), Zoe, and Sunshine for allowing us to watch the 'rehearsals,' it was certainly five days that I will never ever forget.

Lights no eye can see...


Saturday (1/9)

8:24 pm

Alligator
Next Time You See Me
Pride of Cucamonga
Money for Gasoline
Hurricane
Death Don't Have No Mercy
Silvio
Magnolia Mtn.
UJB
Good Lovin

setbreak 9:56pm

10:07pm - 10:50pm

Dark Star! V1>
Jam>
Let it Grow>
Dark Star v2
Attics of My Life


The Band: A Comparative Approach - Not to take anything away from the soul shaking time I had this week or anyone else's great time at the shows...

Furthur sounds like the good ole GD. For the Dead tunes, JK really fills out the sound and gets the crowd grooving. However, that sweet sacred psychedelic space where all time stops and there is nothing but pure beauty is going to be a little tougher to come by than in the Phil bands (yes, even including the Jackie band).

They do not seem to have the tempo issues that plague Ratdog and the Dead last spring, which is good. But the guitar sound is too tinny to really give the solos any balls. And the drums to me are too cymbal-ly (again, no balls). For me, personally, (and I'm very selfish with what I want musically) I don't see any reason that John Molo is not replacing both these jokers on the drums and MK isn't ripping it up in place of JK.

This band instead has JK and the ladies' vocals and JK's guitar which make for an experience that sounds much closer to Grateful Dead music than Phil's interpretations of the past decade. More like a DSO, except with Phil and Bobby. They will have no trouble making these venues very happy this winter, but will not be able to sustain any kind of extended jamming which makes heads melt, imo. So go if you love the Grateful Dead music, you will not be as disappointed as you were with the Dead Spring 09 tour.

Furthur Rehearsals Part I (1/5-1/6)

Wow. Where to begin? I guess I'll begin with regretting not staying for Sunday, as the show looked awesome:

Throckmorton Theatre
Mill Valley, CA
1-10-10

Here Comes Sunshine
Jack Straw
Till The Morning Comes
The Wheel >
Althea
Throwing Stones

St. Stephen>
The Eleven>
Drumz
King Solomons Marbles
Unbroken Chain
Wharf Rat
Touch of Grey

I heard Phil had his bass lights on again - made for a SICK show on Thursday...

I guess I simply ran out of money and energy but felt strangely content leaving knowing that I could have stayed for more. Whereas they would have had to drag me out of Marin County by my feet to get me to leave on Saturday...


Tuesday

The whole run was just simply awesome for me. First and foremost, the Bay Area continues to amaze me - just world class in every sense. I am head over heals in love with the place - the people, the food, the places, the magic, the scenes, all of it...

If you've never been to the Throckmorton before, it is an intimate theatre in Mill Valley (300 capacity) with great sound. The artwork is beautiful with murals all over the walls. The ceiling is a blue sky scene with clouds and angels looking down over the crowd from the sides. For these shows, they had the balcony closed off (for VIPs presumably) as there was never really more than 10-15 people up there.

After passing on Sunday and Monday for silly reasons, I told myself Wed was the day and I was going no matter what. As it turns out, Tuesday became the day, and I'm glad it did. I left Eugene Tuesday morning and arrived at the Throckmorton just in time to grab a drink before showtime. I was laughing all week that 'you know you make the drive too much when you can drive from your house to the venue with perfect timing.'

I had been feeling a little like my cup was half empty, but Tuesday filled my heart until it was overflowing. The show started out choppy, but started rocking with Greatest Story. Probably my favorite part of the ENTIRE RUN: seeing Phil sing along with the part in Magnolia Mountain "We burned the cotton fields down in the valley and ended up with nothing but scars. The scars became the lessons that we gave to our children after the war." If you don't like this song in the Dead context, I don't know what is wrong with you... Comes a Time was breathtaking. This band has really been nailing the ballads. The entire room was silent. Unbroken Chain drove it home for me (always always does), and when Bob false started Masterpiece and started fiddling with his guitar, Phil said "Since this is a rehearsal, we're going to let Bob change his battery. ::short pause:: The battery on his guitar, that is..." Love it!! To finish off, they somehow turned Ship of Fools into a rocker - not slow and building, but rocking from note one - very very fast tempo. And the Lovelight brought the house down, which was already very high due to the second half of the show.

Wednesday

Wednesday I returned feeling very fresh. Seemingly, a little of the novelty of seeing these guys with 250 other people had worn off a little already, and I found myself with crossed arms this night. Looks Like Rain was great - probably the only time other than Dear Mr. Fantasy when the band 'got there.' Welcome to the Dance is about as bad as I thought it would be - luckily there is a good heavy jam at the end that might make sitting through the song worth while. Really not that much more to say about Wed...

Hello in there?

I've been reviewing live music on various internet message boards for years and decided my voice could better be heard through a blog (hey, everyone's doing it). I don't have a digital camera yet but plan on getting one soon, so the quality of the substance should improve when that happens. Until then, enjoy some black letter words. Enjoy and please leave comments or sign the guestbook or do whatever it is you do with a blog...