Hey everyone, hope you had a good Christmas. No post this week but did want to say something about the passing of an old and dear friend, Jerry Leppo. He passed away unexpectedly on the night of Dec. 24th. He was a Hanover Borough Council member and brought some much need youth to the city’s governance (along with our new mayor). He truly cared about the future of Hanover and was actively doing something about it. He also went out of his way to help myself with a problem within the borough.
I met Jerry back in the early 90’s. He was part of a group of people who were Heads living in this sleepy little town close to the Mason Dixon line. Not too many cool people, but the ones who were here started the seeds of the community that flourishes here in our neck of the woods today. The only music scene was Sunday evenings at the old Mark Stevens (which became Lupita’s and the Wasabi Steakhouse) Well before Kclinger’s existed or the Winner’s Circle evolved, these people made their own scene.
I had lost touch with him in the mid 90’s. But when I did run into him again at the Chili Cookoff in the early Aughts, it was like we’d seen each other just last week. Big early supporter of Obama and always went out of his way to help me. Ran into him and a bunch of other old Hanover Heads ( Disclaimer: Was going to call them older Heads but they’re all my age) at the Furthur shows at the Mann Music Center this past summer. Great show and a great time. Last time I saw him was at the 2010 Chili Cookoff. He was an old soul who left us much too soon. My thoughts and prayers are with his family.
Long may you run my friend
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Phish Fall Tour 1995: The Most Important Tour Ever.
All right people, let us do a little bit of time travel and let’s journey back to the early 90’s. The jamband scene was still in its infancy. Blues Traveler opened for Widespread Panic down South and switched places when Panic came to the MidAtlantic. Phish would open some shows outside their comfort zones and welcome the other bands to open for them in New England. None of the bands could hope to fill an ampitheatre by themselves. They joined forces in 1992 and 1993 and toured together has the H.O.R.D.E. festival. The only band that could fill any venue, any size for multiple nights was the good ole Grateful Dead.
The Dead were IT on the scene. Their shows were first on the priority list of most folks. But as the 90’s continued on, Phish slowly started moving up the ranks. By ’93, they were playing the smaller outdoor ampitheatres (the Mann Music Center, Wolf Trap) on the East Coast and in theatres in the rest of the country. As 1995 rolled around, the Dead will still playing stadiums but Phish was doing multiple nights at the Mann and even did a 2 day pseudo festival in Vermont on the side of a ski slope. I even skipped a Dead show at RFK to see Phish at the Mann on June 24th and then jetted down to DC for the show on the 25th.
After the Dead’s and Phish’s summer tours ended, a lot of people’s worlds were rocked by the passing of Jerry Garcia. With the future of the Grateful Dead in doubt, many people looked to see what band would replace them at the top of the touring band Mt. Olympus. Well it just so happened that Phish already had a 3-month, 53 show Fall Tour already booked. With all eyes in the music community on them, Phish strutted onto the biggest stage of their career and rose to the occasion.
A true test of endurance, they would have only a week off the whole tour, the week after the Halloween show. The tour went across the whole country, starting in California, and ending three month later in Lake Placid, NY. It had a chess tournament where the band and audience alternated making moves. The final score, 1-1. As the tour continued, the shows got stronger and reached a peak as they finally returned to their old stomping grounds in the Northeast and MidAtlantic states. I was fortunate enough to have caught four shows on this tour.
First up was 11/22 at the Cap Centre in Landover, MD. It was the Friday before Thanksgiving and on the biggest day of the year for bars, the smartest people on the East Coast were in a hockey arena whose search policy upon entering would make a current employee of the TSA blush. The highlight of the show was the aborted Rift second set opener, blamed on Fishman, that lead into the second ever version of any Phish song containing what would become known as Cowfunk jamming. This time the vehicle was Free. A day off to eat turkey with our family and then Friday after Thanksgiving saw the boys throwing it down in Pittsburgh at the Civic Arena. An Oh Ka Pa Ceremony>AC/DC Bag opener got things rocking. A solid show overall that would keep my new found lust for all things Phish in check until I saw them in Hershey, PA AKA The Land of Chocolate on Dec. 1st.
This show was absolutely mind-blowing. A lot of my friends from Penn State came down, as did everyone and anyone from the Hanover area. I met so many people from the local area. First time I began to think that maybe there was a scene in Hanover beyond my five or six friends that always went to shows. I had 5th row center seats and the whole night was just magical. Trey doing Narration during Famous Mockingbird; one of the last times he ever referred to the Rhombus and a huge clue as to where to find it. The girl in front of Nad being given a giant Hershey cookie from Mike. All the Christmas lights up and glowing, just an incredible festive mind blowing time.
The boys were kind enough to give me two weeks off until the Spectrum show in Philly on Dec. 15th. Trey claims he saw his first concert (Jethro Tull) here and he is a huge lifelong fan of the Flyers. So to be playing music on that stage must have been a personal highlight for him. We got Fishman doing his Elvis schitck and a Tweezer Reprise to open the second set and to end the show. Throw in a Mike Tyson joke (he was fighting here the next night) and you have a raging show in the City of Brotherly Love. Two more shows on the Fall Tour and a 4 night run to close out 1995, including their first of many NYE shows at Madison Square Garden capped off what might have been their most important year ever. Rolling Stone magazine called this NYE performance one of the best concerts of the 90’s.
Hemingway said the true measure of a man is his grace under pressure. With a scene of fans and fellow musicians looking on, Phish made the transformation from a regional band to America’s biggest cult band. While there would be higher points in their career, (the Clifford Ball in 1996, Big Cypruss NYE 1999, the 3.0 comeback in Hampton, March 2009) few tour could match up to the magnitude or importance of the Fall of 1995.
The Dead were IT on the scene. Their shows were first on the priority list of most folks. But as the 90’s continued on, Phish slowly started moving up the ranks. By ’93, they were playing the smaller outdoor ampitheatres (the Mann Music Center, Wolf Trap) on the East Coast and in theatres in the rest of the country. As 1995 rolled around, the Dead will still playing stadiums but Phish was doing multiple nights at the Mann and even did a 2 day pseudo festival in Vermont on the side of a ski slope. I even skipped a Dead show at RFK to see Phish at the Mann on June 24th and then jetted down to DC for the show on the 25th.
After the Dead’s and Phish’s summer tours ended, a lot of people’s worlds were rocked by the passing of Jerry Garcia. With the future of the Grateful Dead in doubt, many people looked to see what band would replace them at the top of the touring band Mt. Olympus. Well it just so happened that Phish already had a 3-month, 53 show Fall Tour already booked. With all eyes in the music community on them, Phish strutted onto the biggest stage of their career and rose to the occasion.
A true test of endurance, they would have only a week off the whole tour, the week after the Halloween show. The tour went across the whole country, starting in California, and ending three month later in Lake Placid, NY. It had a chess tournament where the band and audience alternated making moves. The final score, 1-1. As the tour continued, the shows got stronger and reached a peak as they finally returned to their old stomping grounds in the Northeast and MidAtlantic states. I was fortunate enough to have caught four shows on this tour.
First up was 11/22 at the Cap Centre in Landover, MD. It was the Friday before Thanksgiving and on the biggest day of the year for bars, the smartest people on the East Coast were in a hockey arena whose search policy upon entering would make a current employee of the TSA blush. The highlight of the show was the aborted Rift second set opener, blamed on Fishman, that lead into the second ever version of any Phish song containing what would become known as Cowfunk jamming. This time the vehicle was Free. A day off to eat turkey with our family and then Friday after Thanksgiving saw the boys throwing it down in Pittsburgh at the Civic Arena. An Oh Ka Pa Ceremony>AC/DC Bag opener got things rocking. A solid show overall that would keep my new found lust for all things Phish in check until I saw them in Hershey, PA AKA The Land of Chocolate on Dec. 1st.
This show was absolutely mind-blowing. A lot of my friends from Penn State came down, as did everyone and anyone from the Hanover area. I met so many people from the local area. First time I began to think that maybe there was a scene in Hanover beyond my five or six friends that always went to shows. I had 5th row center seats and the whole night was just magical. Trey doing Narration during Famous Mockingbird; one of the last times he ever referred to the Rhombus and a huge clue as to where to find it. The girl in front of Nad being given a giant Hershey cookie from Mike. All the Christmas lights up and glowing, just an incredible festive mind blowing time.
The boys were kind enough to give me two weeks off until the Spectrum show in Philly on Dec. 15th. Trey claims he saw his first concert (Jethro Tull) here and he is a huge lifelong fan of the Flyers. So to be playing music on that stage must have been a personal highlight for him. We got Fishman doing his Elvis schitck and a Tweezer Reprise to open the second set and to end the show. Throw in a Mike Tyson joke (he was fighting here the next night) and you have a raging show in the City of Brotherly Love. Two more shows on the Fall Tour and a 4 night run to close out 1995, including their first of many NYE shows at Madison Square Garden capped off what might have been their most important year ever. Rolling Stone magazine called this NYE performance one of the best concerts of the 90’s.
Hemingway said the true measure of a man is his grace under pressure. With a scene of fans and fellow musicians looking on, Phish made the transformation from a regional band to America’s biggest cult band. While there would be higher points in their career, (the Clifford Ball in 1996, Big Cypruss NYE 1999, the 3.0 comeback in Hampton, March 2009) few tour could match up to the magnitude or importance of the Fall of 1995.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Phish NYE runs of the past
As some of you may be aware, Phish’s New Year’s Eve (NYE) run is fast approaching. Believe it or not, I’ve never seen Phish on NYE (That’s changing this year barring destruction of Manhattan by a meteor). However, I have seen many shows on their NYE runs. The following is a brief synopsis of what I have seen.
The first NYE run show I saw was on 12/28/94, at the Civic Center in Philadelphia. Located right downtown, this old building also hosted the basketball games for many of the smaller colleges in town, like Drexal, La Salle and Philadelphia University.
Set 1: Mound > Simple, Julius, Bathtub Gin, Bouncing Around the Room, Axilla (Part II), Reba, Dog Faced Boy, It's Ice > Run Like an Antelope
Set 2: Suzy Greenberg, NICU, Mike's Song -> The Mango Song -> Weekapaug Groove, Contact, Llama, Hold Your Head Up > Love You > Hold Your Head Up, The Squirming Coil
Encore: Bold As Love
This was another show where Nad (as seen in my Halloween 1994 adventures) did a balloon and another face plant. Another one of my friends, attending his first Phish show, decided to eat his tab of acid in the car on the way to the show. To say he was uncomfortable while we sat in traffic on the Schuylkill highway is an understatement. The highlight of the show for myself was the Weekapaugh Groove. Trey threw in some Aud Lang Syne teases and the most demented Little Drummer Boy jam ever played. He goes into a minor key and you think the Grinch himself is going to rise out of a crack in the Earth’s crusts to steal all of our gifts.
Next up was the amazing 2 night run on 12/28 and 12/29/96 at the Spectrum in Philly. I know many of the Devolver crew was at these shows, including the guys who got a ride home from Mike Lerman. One member of the Devolver crew was tripping balls and had to sit in the front seat and hold a conversation with Zach’s dad the whole drive home.
Set 1: Runaway Jim, NICU, Wolfman's Brother, It's Ice, Billy Breathes, Ginseng Sullivan, Split Open and Melt, The Mango Song, Frankenstein
Set 2: Makisupa Policeman -> Maze, Bouncing Around the Room, Digital Delay Loop Jam -> The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > Mike's Song -> Strange Design > Weekapaug Groove, The Star Spangled Banner
Encore: Johnny B. Goode
The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday was the highlight of the first night for myself. An amazing dance groove to a traditional 2000+ year old Jewish prayer that just rocks. A quick research of the Internet revels that it has 50+ verses. Glad Phish went with only 2.
The next night raged even harder.
12/29/96
Set 1: Poor Heart, Caravan, Cavern, Taste, Guelah Papyrus, Train Song, Rift, Free, The Squirming Coil, La Grange
Set 2: David Bowie, A Day in the Life, Bathtub Gin, The Lizards, You Enjoy Myself -> Rotation Jam -> Sixteen Candles -> You Enjoy Myself, Harpua -> Champagne Supernova -> Harpua
Encore: Rocky Top
The Harpua Champagne Supernova Harpua sandwich was fantastic. Tom Marshall came out to make the sound of Hell, which was Oasis (Disclaimer: I love Oasis’ first three albums. This song is on one of them). We ended up parked next to the guys from Splintered Sunlight (Philadelphia’s premiere GD cover band). It was cool to see our peers at a show. Again, the only difference between the bands and the fans, some of them are on stage.
Last but certainly not least is 12/28/97 from the old Cap Centre down in Landover MD, right outside of DC.
Set 1: Julius, Cities > The Curtain > Sample in a Jar, The Old Home Place > Runaway Jim, Farmhouse, Funky Bitch, Split Open and Melt, Bouncing Around the Room, Character Zero
Set 2: Axilla > Simple, Ghost > Drowned > Scent of a Mule , Halley's Comet > Slave to the Traffic Light, Rocky Top > Cavern
Encore: Bold As Love
I remember the bass being incredibly loud. This was also the first show I ever downloaded over the Internet. I had a dial up line back then, so I think it took a whole year. Got my first Drowned (Disclaimer: Huge Quadrophenia fan)
I guess one could consider the Hampton 2003 run part of a NYE run, but that was so muckhfun and so crazy that it deserves an entry of its own. I’d like to wish everyone a safe and joyous holiday season (yes, I said holidays. I’d give a shoutout to the FSM but don’t want to get caught up in the War On Christmas) Hope you have fun for NYE and I’ll have a dispatch on the insanity that went down as I see my first NYE show and my first NYC show (I know, I never saw a show in NYC. I’m such a slacker)
Dave Kemp
BA in American Studies
PhD in Rock and Roll
The first NYE run show I saw was on 12/28/94, at the Civic Center in Philadelphia. Located right downtown, this old building also hosted the basketball games for many of the smaller colleges in town, like Drexal, La Salle and Philadelphia University.
Set 1: Mound > Simple, Julius, Bathtub Gin, Bouncing Around the Room, Axilla (Part II), Reba, Dog Faced Boy, It's Ice > Run Like an Antelope
Set 2: Suzy Greenberg, NICU, Mike's Song -> The Mango Song -> Weekapaug Groove, Contact, Llama, Hold Your Head Up > Love You > Hold Your Head Up, The Squirming Coil
Encore: Bold As Love
This was another show where Nad (as seen in my Halloween 1994 adventures) did a balloon and another face plant. Another one of my friends, attending his first Phish show, decided to eat his tab of acid in the car on the way to the show. To say he was uncomfortable while we sat in traffic on the Schuylkill highway is an understatement. The highlight of the show for myself was the Weekapaugh Groove. Trey threw in some Aud Lang Syne teases and the most demented Little Drummer Boy jam ever played. He goes into a minor key and you think the Grinch himself is going to rise out of a crack in the Earth’s crusts to steal all of our gifts.
Next up was the amazing 2 night run on 12/28 and 12/29/96 at the Spectrum in Philly. I know many of the Devolver crew was at these shows, including the guys who got a ride home from Mike Lerman. One member of the Devolver crew was tripping balls and had to sit in the front seat and hold a conversation with Zach’s dad the whole drive home.
Set 1: Runaway Jim, NICU, Wolfman's Brother, It's Ice, Billy Breathes, Ginseng Sullivan, Split Open and Melt, The Mango Song, Frankenstein
Set 2: Makisupa Policeman -> Maze, Bouncing Around the Room, Digital Delay Loop Jam -> The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > Mike's Song -> Strange Design > Weekapaug Groove, The Star Spangled Banner
Encore: Johnny B. Goode
The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday was the highlight of the first night for myself. An amazing dance groove to a traditional 2000+ year old Jewish prayer that just rocks. A quick research of the Internet revels that it has 50+ verses. Glad Phish went with only 2.
The next night raged even harder.
12/29/96
Set 1: Poor Heart, Caravan, Cavern, Taste, Guelah Papyrus, Train Song, Rift, Free, The Squirming Coil, La Grange
Set 2: David Bowie, A Day in the Life, Bathtub Gin, The Lizards, You Enjoy Myself -> Rotation Jam -> Sixteen Candles -> You Enjoy Myself, Harpua -> Champagne Supernova -> Harpua
Encore: Rocky Top
The Harpua Champagne Supernova Harpua sandwich was fantastic. Tom Marshall came out to make the sound of Hell, which was Oasis (Disclaimer: I love Oasis’ first three albums. This song is on one of them). We ended up parked next to the guys from Splintered Sunlight (Philadelphia’s premiere GD cover band). It was cool to see our peers at a show. Again, the only difference between the bands and the fans, some of them are on stage.
Last but certainly not least is 12/28/97 from the old Cap Centre down in Landover MD, right outside of DC.
Set 1: Julius, Cities > The Curtain > Sample in a Jar, The Old Home Place > Runaway Jim, Farmhouse, Funky Bitch, Split Open and Melt, Bouncing Around the Room, Character Zero
Set 2: Axilla > Simple, Ghost > Drowned > Scent of a Mule , Halley's Comet > Slave to the Traffic Light, Rocky Top > Cavern
Encore: Bold As Love
I remember the bass being incredibly loud. This was also the first show I ever downloaded over the Internet. I had a dial up line back then, so I think it took a whole year. Got my first Drowned (Disclaimer: Huge Quadrophenia fan)
I guess one could consider the Hampton 2003 run part of a NYE run, but that was so muckhfun and so crazy that it deserves an entry of its own. I’d like to wish everyone a safe and joyous holiday season (yes, I said holidays. I’d give a shoutout to the FSM but don’t want to get caught up in the War On Christmas) Hope you have fun for NYE and I’ll have a dispatch on the insanity that went down as I see my first NYE show and my first NYC show (I know, I never saw a show in NYC. I’m such a slacker)
Dave Kemp
BA in American Studies
PhD in Rock and Roll
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Thanksgiving 2010
Well, one more Thanksgiving in the books. I wasn’t able to write this immediately after the shows because I came down with my traditional post Thanksgiving cold brought on by Contact with my niece and nephews/ seeing friends/ change in outdoor temperature. I have since recovered and now am ready to drop some wisdom on ya like Stephen Hawking tripping balls.
Black Friday had Devolver at Kclinger’s is one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions. Sometimes the sound is less than perfect but this time it was really good. The boys restrained the volume a little and didn’t try to play over each other. I haven’t written down a setlist in years but this time I did my best. A new cover, I Got Mine, by Akron’s own Black Keys was a welcome surprise. Then Devolver blew my fucking mind by playing One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket. I’ve seen MMJ 3 times and when I saw them this past spring, it reaffirmed my belief in the redemptive power of rock and roll. I actually had been thinking how cool it would be for Phish or Devolver to cover a MMJ tune and then Andy begins the guitar intro to it. I feel rather proud of myself by restraining my initial reaction to them playing it. (My true reaction involved howling, smashing chairs, and a pagan sacrifice, but I digress.)
Other highlights include an amazing Cross-eyed and Painless and Paranoid Android.
The second set started off with 2001 and lead into an EPIC Funk II. After the song was over, they easily could have called it a night. It’s been awhile since they had a moment like that but they nailed it. After catching our breath, they went on to do I want You (She’s So Heavy), Edge, and Turnaround. There was more but I can’t remember or write them down. An energetic encore of Psycho Killer > Edge Reprise to end an amazing night. If that as the last Devolver show, what a way to go out.
Saturday brought Boxcar Social to the Coliseum. While not the best venue, Boxcar does their best to change the vibe. When you see them upstairs, it’s a mind-blowing spectacle of lights and jams. You go down to get a drink and some of the ambiance is lost.
They put on a tight show that highlighted their ability to stretch out the jams. I even got a NRPS “Dirty Business” for my birthday. I missed the shout out to myself because 1) I was downstairs 2) and I was having a discussion about if a Manhattan tasted right. I consider myself an expert on that old school cocktail because my Dad drank them and I know when the vermouth isn’t blended in correctly. After making it until almost the end of the show (very impressive given I was up at 6 am after Devolver the night before), we then went back to Andy/Corey O’s crib to watch the funniest movie of all time, Conan the Destroyer (only funny when the dude formerly known as Grace Jones appeared on screen). I was laughing so hard I was crying.
It was great seeing everyone and let me be the first to wish you a Merry Festivus.
Black Friday had Devolver at Kclinger’s is one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions. Sometimes the sound is less than perfect but this time it was really good. The boys restrained the volume a little and didn’t try to play over each other. I haven’t written down a setlist in years but this time I did my best. A new cover, I Got Mine, by Akron’s own Black Keys was a welcome surprise. Then Devolver blew my fucking mind by playing One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket. I’ve seen MMJ 3 times and when I saw them this past spring, it reaffirmed my belief in the redemptive power of rock and roll. I actually had been thinking how cool it would be for Phish or Devolver to cover a MMJ tune and then Andy begins the guitar intro to it. I feel rather proud of myself by restraining my initial reaction to them playing it. (My true reaction involved howling, smashing chairs, and a pagan sacrifice, but I digress.)
Other highlights include an amazing Cross-eyed and Painless and Paranoid Android.
The second set started off with 2001 and lead into an EPIC Funk II. After the song was over, they easily could have called it a night. It’s been awhile since they had a moment like that but they nailed it. After catching our breath, they went on to do I want You (She’s So Heavy), Edge, and Turnaround. There was more but I can’t remember or write them down. An energetic encore of Psycho Killer > Edge Reprise to end an amazing night. If that as the last Devolver show, what a way to go out.
Saturday brought Boxcar Social to the Coliseum. While not the best venue, Boxcar does their best to change the vibe. When you see them upstairs, it’s a mind-blowing spectacle of lights and jams. You go down to get a drink and some of the ambiance is lost.
They put on a tight show that highlighted their ability to stretch out the jams. I even got a NRPS “Dirty Business” for my birthday. I missed the shout out to myself because 1) I was downstairs 2) and I was having a discussion about if a Manhattan tasted right. I consider myself an expert on that old school cocktail because my Dad drank them and I know when the vermouth isn’t blended in correctly. After making it until almost the end of the show (very impressive given I was up at 6 am after Devolver the night before), we then went back to Andy/Corey O’s crib to watch the funniest movie of all time, Conan the Destroyer (only funny when the dude formerly known as Grace Jones appeared on screen). I was laughing so hard I was crying.
It was great seeing everyone and let me be the first to wish you a Merry Festivus.
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