Trane and Monk (Tip of the hat to Mike Hinton for bringing this to our attention.)
After our High Noon show at the Keystone Berkeley in late July, 1981, Mickey Hart told the rest of the band “Anyone who wants to go, we’re heading over to the Hell’s Angels’ clubhouse in Oakland”. I followed the others in a caravan to somewhere in Oakland. We all pulled into a corner parking lot. …
There is a music gene in the human genetic code that contains an understanding of music. Sometimes it shows up in a family of non-musicians, sometimes it’s passed down through generations. It makes learning music easy. Becoming a musician still requires a lot of hard work, but those who have this gene have a big …
Happy Birthday Jesse Ed Davis! R.I.P. ♥ He played the guitar solo [and fills] on this. It was a first take gem. I met Jesse in 1983 when I was playing with Norton Buffalo at The Palomino Club in L.A. He was sitting by himself at a small table in the back, by the wall. …
Keystone Revisited will perform at the Alberta Rose Theater in Portland Oregon, Fri. Sept. 14th. Keystone Revisited features the music of Merl Saunders and Jerry Garcia. The band features drummer Bill Vitt, Merl Saunder’s son Tony Saunders on bass, Michael Hinton on guitar, and Steven Abramson on keyboards/vocals. (See graphic below for dates, times and …
On Easter Sunday when I was 12 I woke up with the mumps. Had a really high fever and couldn’t move my head without severe pain. My Mom said “Since you can’t have candy, what can I get for you?”. My answer was quick. “At Sprouse Reitz, in the middle row of the “Rock Albums,” …
“Dead Run” first aired on 2/21/86. When I went down to San Francisco to do the session, it was during the “flood of the decade.” I left my house in Sonoma in a torrential downpour. I drove out to Hwy 37 and soon realized there were no other cars on the road. I got onto …
When we were getting ready to do a session and record the soundtrack for the “The Girl I Married” episode of The Twilight Zone (below) which would air July 17, 1987, legendary rock guitarist John Cipollina and I were in the hallway at the coffee machine. John waited until I’d gotten through making up my …
When I was 14, I was figuring out how to play the songs on Teaser and the Firecat by Cat Stevens, Tapestry by Carole King, The James Gang Rides Again, and Black Sabbath I – all at the same time. It made sense/paid off when I got to record with Joan Baez and Roky Erickson …