Space Funk: Jerry Garcia & Howard Wales

Forums:

light a fire, relax, put this on:

Jerry Garcia & Howard Wales - "Space Funk" - Side Trips Volume One

Published on Nov 8, 2017

Jerry Garcia & Howard Wales perform "Space Funk" from Side Trips Volume One. The full release will be available on limited edition 2XLP 180 gram vinyl and digitally for Record Store Day Black Friday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95kv2JjD-6k

thanks for this.

I've been hoping for years that more Garcia/Wales stuff will be unearthed

This is I think the one complete show we have from that tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfL9m7T63AU

Something about the almost unearthly voice giving the weather report at the beginning really conjures a strong image of being hunkered down on a frozen New England night, preparing to get your synapses blown out over FM

Good excerpt on Wales in McNally's book --

After emigrating to San Francisco, he landed a gig at the Matrix organizing a regular jam on Monday nights. Late in the spring of 1970, Garcia began to sit in regularly, soon joined by John Kahn, a bass player then working with Mike Bloomfield. There was almost no audience, and they didn't have songs, either. "We didn't play anything very basic at all," said Kahn. "It did not sound like any music you would be used to." "Howard would just play through tremendously extended changes," said Garcia. "It developed my ear...so outside and totally unpredictable." Later Garcia would add, "John and I played for a year before we even really talked to each other. 'Hey what's doing man?' and then spend all night muttering to each other, 'What key are we in?' Even Wales would describe their music as musical adventures, "free-form jams...I generally induced certain phrasings and stuff that basically would incorporate sort of a composition of a song, but the thing is, it started at one place and ended up in other places."

Bought Side Trips Vol 1 when it first came out on CD.

Still fucking waiting for Volume 2!

 

Early 70..Prolific time in Garcia's career

"At the same time, remarkably, while Jerry Garcia's first formal "side" band, the New Riders Of The Purple Sage, were on hiatus in March because they appear to have had no bass player, Garcia found time to start jamming at the Matrix with Howard Wales. The jams with Wales led ultimately to the partnership with Merl Saunders..."

March 2, 1970: The Matrix, San Francisco, CA: Jam Session with Howard Wales
"...Around February 16, 1970, the jam session started to be hosted by organist Howard Wales. His regular partner was drummer Bill Vitt. Garcia knew Wales and had jammed with him on occasion. At least one tape endures from The Family Dog on August 28, 1969. It's impossible to be certain when Garcia first started showing up at Wales's Matrix jam sessions ..., but the likeliest dates seem to be March 2 or March 9,1970. "

http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/search/label/Howard%20Wales

amd Kahn comes aboard around this time

(If you aren't familiar with Lost Live Dead blog, it's a fun read and seems to be pretty well supported research as well as some fairly educated guesses, plus one guy's surmises. Eyewitnesses to the events described in the article usually chime in in the Comments sections.)

"...that it was very likely that Jerry Garcia went over to the Matrix on Monday, March 30 to jam with Howard Wales and Bill Vitt. "

"The interesting thing about the March 30 is not whether Garcia showed up, since I'm pretty sure he did, but whether it was the night that John Kahn first showed up as well. The long partnership of Garcia and Kahn began around this period at the Matrix, but as I discussed elsewhere, I can't tell for certain whether Kahn first showed up on March 30, April 6 or April 13. A symphonically trained bassist named Richard Favis actually played one night (invited by Vitt), who did not work out, so Vitt invited Kahn. My own guess is that April 6 was Kahn's first night jamming with Garcia, but it's impossible for me to be certain at this time."

http://lostlivedead.blogspot.com/search/label/Howard%20Wales

Always loved the side trips release.

early 70's Garcia is god

>>>>>early 70's Garcia is god

 

I’d wear that on a T shirt.

His playing in that period is truly unparalleled.  Had his playing stayed consistently like that he’d be up there with the Richard Thompson’s of the guitar world.

 

>> The full release will be available on limited edition 2XLP 180 gram vinyl and digitally for Record Store Day Black Friday.

This is what I plan to be doing on Black Friday. Hopefully getting in line early. This is one on my list. I hope I can grab it. 

Garcia, Kahn and Vitt all played on the album Tarkio, by Brewer and Shipley which came out in 1970.  Jerry plays pedal steel on Oh Mommy, I Ain't No Commy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEVVOaPMj08

this and hooteroll made for some mighty fine "post-JRAD head still full of acid" listening last night.

a time in music when the album was really a crafted journey and thought was put into how the progression of the music might influence a small gathering of friends or a big party.

youtube then lead me into garica's self titled 1972 record and i had forgotten what an actually really solid record this is. def one of the better "dead" records.

unclesam..That show is hot too trot!!! Thanks for the link really enjoying!!!

Wales had a pretty good band in 69 - -   AB Skhy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OPr36HIAn4

 

they played around Calif a bit