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| The cover to Cats Under The Stars, the Jerry Garcia Band | 's 1978 album |
This list is focused on actual members of the Jerry Garcia Band, or substitutions for those members. I have not attempted to include any guests, such as times when Maria Muldaur may have made guest appearances prior to 'officially' joining the band, or some Clarence Clemons appearances in September 1989, and so on. I am concerned about 'first' and 'last' shows for each lineup, but I am not trying to create a thread for discussing shows that are in and of themselves disputed.
The numbering system for each lineup is arbitrary, and only exists in order to facilitate discussing the lineups in the Comments. Anyone with additions, corrections, insights or speculation is encouraged to chime in. I am conceiving of this post as a permanent installation, and I will make changes to the list as new information comes to light.
KEITH AND DONNA with JERRY GARCIA
First show-August 5, 1975 Keystone Berkeley
Last show-August 30, 1975 The Orphanage, SF
Donna Godchaux-vocalsNotes; in the period between the end of Legion Of Mary and the beginning of the Jerry Garcia Band with Nicky Hopkins (JGB #1), Garcia played a few dates with the Keith and Donna Band. A few of them were billed as "The Jerry Garcia Band." Whether this was a result of confusion on the club owner's part or because the dates were booked before Hopkins was ready is unclear. Since some dates were booked as Jerry Garcia Band, I am including this lineup on my list.
Jerry Garcia-lead guitar, vocals
Ray Scott-guitar
Steve Schuster-tenor sax, flute, congas
Keith Godchaux-electric pianos, vocals
Mike Larsheid-bass
Bill Kreutzmann-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #1
First show-September 18, 1975 Sophie's, Palo Alto
Last show-December 31, 1975 Keystone Berkeley
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: This lineup was usually billed as "The Jerry Garcia Band with Nicky Hopkins." The lineup also recorded part of Reflections, although Larry Knechtel played many of the piano parts instead of Hopkins. Gregg Errico played the final show because Ron Tutt was playing with Elvis Presley.
Nicky Hopkins-piano, vocals
John Kahn-bass
Ron Tutt-drums
>Gregg Errico-drums (December 31, 1975 Keystone Berkeley only)
JERRY GARCIA BAND #2
First show-January 9, 1976 Sophie's, Palo Alto
Last show-January 10, 1976 Sophie's, Palo Alto
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: I have a lot to say about this, but you'll just have to trust me for now. I do not actually know yet how the Sophie's shows were billed (update: I finally got around to it. An eyewitness also reports that the shows were billed as The Jerry Garcia Band).
James Booker-piano, organ, vocals
John Kahn-bass
Ron Tutt-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #3
First show-January 26, 1976 Keystone Berkeley
Last show-August 12, 1977 Pier 31, SF
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: this lineup recorded Cats Under The Stars, with some help from Maria Muldaur and Stephen Schuster.
Donna Godchaux-vocals
Keith Godchaux-piano
John Kahn-bass
Ron Tutt-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #4
First show-November 15, 1977 Keystone Berkeley
Last show-November 3, 1978 Keystone Palo Alto
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: This lineup was billed as 'Jerry Garcia and The Mystery Cats" for a few East Coast shows, but the name never caught on, if it was even intended to.
Donna Godchaux-vocals
Maria Muldaur-vocals
Keith Godchaux-piano
John Kahn-bass
Buzz Buchanan-drums
RECONSTRUCTION #1
First show-January 30, 1979 Keystone Berkeley
Last show-September 22, 1979 Keystone Berkeley
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Reconstruction was really a different group than the Jerry Garcia Band, but they are included here for continuity. John Kahn had started Reconstruction as a contemporary jazz group, with the idea that Garcia would just be a guest. Shows were often billed as "Reconstruction with special guest Jerry Garcia."
Ron Stallings-tenor sax, vocals
Ed Neumeister-trombone
Merl Saunders-organ, keyboards, vocals
John Kahn-bass
Gaylord Birch-drums
RECONSTRUCTION #2
First show-August 4, 1979 Keystone Palo Alto
Last show-September 29, 1979 Keystone Palo Alto
Carl Lockett-guitarNotes: As Garcia's participation started to wind down, Reconstruction played a few shows without him, but there was very little traction and the group faded away. I have included the later Reconstruction lineup here for continuity. It's possible that the last date was actually September 4 in Bolinas, but I am not pursuing that subject in this post.
>Jerry Miller-guitar, vocals (for a few shows, presumably in place of Lockett)
Ron Stallings-tenor sax, vocals
Ed Neumeister-trombone
Merl Saunders-organ, keyboards, vocals
John Kahn-bass
Gaylord Birch-drums
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| A newspaper ad for The Keystones in October 1979 (probably from the SF Chronicle Sep 30 '79) |
First show-October 7, 1979 Keystone Berkeley
Last show-March 27, 1980 Keystone Berkeley
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Originally, it appears this lineup was designed to co-exist with Reconstruction, but Reconstruction tailed off before the new Garcia Band got started.
Ozzie Ahlers-electric piano, synthesizer
John Kahn-bass
Johnny De Foncesca-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #11b
First show-July 18, 1980 The Stone
Last show-August 9, 1980 Keystone Palo Alto
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Johnny De Foncesca died in an auto accident in the Spring of 1980, and Gregg Errico was brought in as a substitute for a brief tour.
Ozzie Ahlers-electric piano, synthesizer
John Kahn-bass
Gregg Errico-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #12a
First show-January 22, 1981 Keystone Palo Alto
Last show- January 23, 1981 Keystone Palo Alto
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: This lineup seems to have originally been conceived of as a quartet, although they only played two shows in that format.
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
Daoud Shaw-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #12b
First show-January 27, 1981 Old Waldorf
Last show-June 1, 1981 The Stone
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Jimmy Warren joined the band on their third date, at Garcia's request.
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
Daoud Shaw-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #13a
First show-June 25, 1981 Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium
Last show- June 26, 1981 Fox-Warfield
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: I have a lot to say about these shows as well, but it's too long to summarize. For some reason, Phil Lesh substituted for John Kahn for the debut of the vocalists. There may have been a 'stealth' warmup show with Phil Lesh on bass in Salinas on June 24, as well. For now, you'll have to wait until the full post.
Essra Mohawk-vocals
Liz Stires-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
Phil Lesh-bass
Daoud Shaw-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #13b
First show-July 23, 1981 The Stone
Last show-August 23, 1981 Keystone Palo Alto
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: This lineup seems to have been the first iteration of the permanent structure of the Jerry Garcia Band, with Melvin Seals and two female vocalists. Essra Mohawk was Daoud Shaw's wife, and Liz Stires was Jimmy Warren's girlfriend, so the JGB replicated its previous vocal team, using the wife and girlfriend of two band members. Mohawk was a successful songwriter and vocalist in her own right, and may have only planned to be part of the band for a brief time in any case. Phil Lesh filled in for another show in Fairfax, some sort of Benefit that was booked at the last minute.
Essra Mohawk-vocals
Liz Stires-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
>Phil Lesh-bass (August 22, 1981 Fairfax Pavilion only)
Daoud Shaw-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #14a
First show-September 7, 1981 Concord Pavilion
Last show-September 20, 1981 The Stone
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Local singer Julie Stafford replaced Mohawk on a more permanent basis. Shaw left also, and both of them returned to Philadelphia. Bill Kreutzmann filled in for a few shows, for the first time since the days of the Garcia/Saunders band. I saw the September 7 show, so I am certain about Kreutzmann's presence. I am just guessing about the trio of shows at the Keystones that followed (September 18-20). It's not impossible that Tutt played those shows.
Julie Stafford-vocals
Liz Stires-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
Bill Kreutzmann-drums
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| The cover of the Jerry Garcia Band's 1982 album Run For The Roses |
First show-October 25, 1981 Keystone Palo Alto
Last Show-November 20, 1981 Rainbow Theater, Denver, CO
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: The voice of Steve Marcus on the Grateful Dead Hotline announced this tour as "The Return Of Ron Tutt." Run For The Roses was also recorded during this period, with Tutt playing the drums, and that would not at all have been by chance. Although Roses was not a satisfying album, it was a sign of Garcia's seriousness that the tracks were recorded when Tutt was available.
Julie Stafford-vocals
Liz Stires-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
Ron Tutt-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #14c
First show-December 17, 1981 Keystone Palo Alto
Last show-June 22, 1982 The Mosque, Richmond, VA
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Kreutzmann returned to the drum chair for the remaining six months of this lineup. Stires left the band two days before the tour ended, for unknown reasons.
Julie Stafford-vocals
Liz Stires-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
Bill Kreutzmann-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #14d
First show-June 23, 1982 Stanley Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
Last show-June 24, 1982 Capitol Theater, Passaic, NJ late show
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsJERRY GARCIA BAND #15a
Julie Stafford-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
Jimmy Warren-electric piano
John Kahn-bass
Bill Kreutzmann-drums
First show-October 13, 1982 The Catalyst
Last show- October 24, 1982 River Theater, Guerneville, CA
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Jimmy Warren left and was not replaced. It appears that there were plans for new vocalists, but for some reason a few shows were played as a quartet. Gregg Errico returned on the drums.
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
Gregg Errico-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #15b
First show-October 28, 1982 Rissmiller's, Reseda, CA
Last show-June 5, 1983 Tower Theater, Upper Darby, PA
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: My understanding has been that DeeDee Dickerson and Jaclyn LaBranch were singers in the choir for which Melvin Seals was the musical director.
DeeDee Dickerson-vocals
Jaclyn LaBranch-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
Gregg Errico-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #21a
First show-July 20, 1983 Keystone Palo Alto
Last show-July 24, 1983 Nevada county Fairgrounds, Grass Valley, CA
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: David Kemper began his long run as drummer for the Jerry Garcia Band in July of 1983. Nobody in the band had met him beforehand--Kahn had simply called a producer friend in Los Angeles and asked him who was good. Kemper, who had been a studio musician since 1966, was good alright--really good. He stayed for 10 years.
DeeDee Dickerson-vocals
Jaclyn LaBranch-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
David Kemper-drums
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| The cover of the Jerry Garcia Band's 1991 live album, recorded 1990 |
First show-September 30, 1983 Country Club, Reseda
Last show-November 19, 1993 Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Gloria Jones, another choir member, replaced Dickerson. This configuration of the Jerry Garcia Band played more shows than any other lineup, probably more than all the others put together.
Gloria Jones-vocals
Jaclyn LaBranch-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
David Kemper-drums
>(Gaylord Birch-drums: Oct 7 '85>Feb 2 '86 see JGB #22)
JERRY GARCIA BAND #22
First show-October 7, 1985 Keystone Palo Alto
Last show-February 21, 1986The Stone
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: Gaylord Birch played 10 JGB gigs during this stretch, all in the Bay Area. I presume that Kemper had another commitment, and since Birch was an established quantity from his time in Reconstruction, he was a comfortable choice as a sub.
Gloria Jones-vocals
Jaclyn LaBranch-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
Gaylord Birch-drums
JERRY GARCIA BAND #23
First show-February 4, 1994 The Warfield
Last show-April 23, 1995 The Warfield
Jerry Garcia-guitar, vocalsNotes: For reasons unknown, Kemper was replaced after 10 years by Don Baldwin. Baldwin had played with Melvin Seals and Mickey Thomas in the Elvin Bishop Group in the 70s, and then had joined Thomas in the Starship in the 1980s. Presumably Seals recommended him for the Garcia Band, although Garcia and Kahn would have been familiar with his drumming from the past.
Gloria Jones-vocals
Jaclyn LaBranch-vocals
Melvin Seals-organ
John Kahn-bass
Don Baldwin-drums
Posts
WOW. Foundational. Much to say, a few little tweaks to add. But I am offline for the next couple of days.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Now you can see why I was fixated elsewhere on the idea that JGB #21B was an outlier as such a long-running configuration.
ReplyDeleteThis might not be the correct place to ask, but why didn't Jerry and Merl play together after Reconstruction? The Jerry bands with Merl in them were by far my favorite Jerry bands.
ReplyDeleteIt's probably a great place to ask!
ReplyDeleteThis has never been explained. There were various studio crossings, and the occasional one-off live gig (Merl sat in with JGB in June of '81, and with the GD in March of '85), but nothing systematic. Presumably it's a lot of things, not all of them complicated.
Jerry and Merl did play together after Reconstruction, on the 'Twilight Zone' soundtrack, a Merl solo album, and the occasional sit-in. So they were still friends. However, Jerry's pattern with his own bands seems to have simply been to move forward and have change for the sake of change. I think Jerry enjoyed changing drummers and so on (even if the drummers didn't), because it made for a new experience.
ReplyDeleteI interviewed Merl on KZFR-FM in 1999. I asked him when he last played with Jerry and he said he couldn't remember when they last performed onstage together, but that they played music in private quite a bit.
ReplyDeleteAnd it was Merl who Garcia played with to get his chops back after his coma, so they certainly were not estranged.
ReplyDelete"Jerry's pattern with his own bands seems to have simply been to move forward and have change for the sake of change"
ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to you elaborating on this, Corry, because ex ante I don't think I agree.
One of the functions of this post was to act as an ongoing footnote to that sort of discussion. My current opinion was that the Garcia Band, in contrast to the date, was designed to change. As the band became more static, it became less exciting.
ReplyDelete"Jerry and Merl did play together after Reconstruction, on the 'Twilight Zone' soundtrack"
ReplyDeleteI saw Merl a bunch of times in the late 90's and early 00's, and at one of the shows during the between song banter he mentioned that most (if not all, I can't remember) of "Jerry's" playing on the 'Twilight Zone' soundtrack was Michael Hinton. I think that he said it during his show that he played on the one year anniversary of Jerry's death, and that Jerry had allowed Merl to use his name to get the contract with CBS. He told a lot of stories during that show, including how nobody would tell him what hospital Jerry was in during his coma, and how he had to find him on his own. I'll have to listen to it again tonight to refresh my memory.
Jeremy, that's a very interesting little tidbit about the Twilight Zone soundtrack. I find it completely believable. Jerry was a generous guy, but I always wondered where he found the time to do all those little musical vignettes. Maybe he just didn't, but was more than willing to let Merl use his name.
ReplyDeleteI hope it was actually Jerry on the "neener-neener" theme, though, just for the sake of history.
I saw a JGB show at the Warfield sometime in the late 80's or early 90's where there was a drummer who looked like a deadhead they pulled out of the crowd. He wasn't very good. It might have been around the time that Birch played with them. Any ideas about who/when this was? I saw a bunch of shows 84-86 and then a few in the 90-94 era. Sorry I can't be more specific.
ReplyDeleteThis interview with David Kemper gives some insight into the band during his tenure: http://www.well.com/user/shmo/kemper.html Judging by what he says, I think it would be hard to make any statement about what Garcia's patterns for his band were.
ReplyDeleteDr.Jeff, The Jerry Garcia Band didn't play the Warfield until late 1987 (save for a single show on Jun 26 '81, which I saw, with Daoud Shaw on drums). David Kemper might look like a Deadhead from some angles (as opposed to the African American Gaylord Birch). He was a great drummer, but he could have just been having an off night. Do you think the drummer wasn't Kemper?
ReplyDeleteTwilight Zone soundtrack:
ReplyDeleteWhile introducing Michael Hinton on 8/9/1996: "We did the Twilight Zone. Back in the 80's, '83 and '84 I was the musical director. When Jerome couldn't come in--and CBS didn't know, they were just tickled to death we were doin' it--and pretty soon Jerry wasn't into it sometimes, you know. He'd say, "Merl, it's cloudy today. Do I have to come in?" I'd say, uh that's okay, and I'd call up Michael Hinton, and he would play his parts, you know. So a lot of those parts that'cha heard, some of 'em were Jer some of 'em were Michael Hinton, ya know. [laughs] We can tell CBS now, ten years later, ya know."
I saw Kemper a dozen times at least, Birch once, and this guy wasn't either of them. It was an amateur, I'm telling you. A review (on rec.music.gdead) said he was using a lot of drummer cliches if that makes sense. Maybe it was the Stone?
ReplyDeleteDr. Jeff, one of the maddening things about the Garcia Band was that they performed in a weird vacuum. No press releases, no interviews, no reviews, no stage announcements. It's fascinating but not surprising to find out about a substitute drummer whose presence was never identified. Kemper was a busy guy, and must have had a conflict.
ReplyDeleteIn defense of whoever the guy was, it had to be hard to sit in with a band in front of a few thousand people with little or no rehearsal. Kemper accurately described the JGB style with the immortal phrase "one foot on the gas and the other on the brake" and that had to be hard to step into cold.
Yes, it's true. I don't mean to slander the guy publicly, and it clearly doesn't count as a version of the band. I just thought it was strange that a guy of Jerry's caliber couldn't pull in someone better if he needed a sub on short notice.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things we tend to lose sight of was how deceptively difficult the Jerry Garcia Band would have been to play with. I can imagine a lot of pretty good rock drummers would find themselves completely thrown for a loop trying to play with Garcia and Kahn, particularly since those two and Melvin were together for 15 years.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing we lose sight of was what great drummers Garcia actually used. Guys like Paul Humphrey, Ron Tutt and David Kemper weren't just "pretty good," they were among the finest drummers in the music industry.
I'm still interested in who that sub might have been, just to trace out the various connections.
On February 4, 1994 Garcia introduces Donnie Baldwin. On the amazing Chuck Vasseur recording (shnid 15602), during d1t04 (I don't know where in the track), Garcia says "The new guy is Donnie Baldwin, playing drums."
ReplyDeleteOK for the record, it was Baldwin, and it was his 3rd show with JGB (2/6/94) that I saw him. And I had never seen him before, having mainly seen Kemper (and a couple of Birch shows). There you have it.
ReplyDeleteWe need JGB 14d. You mention it in comments of 14c, but if we are going to do it we might as well do it right! I like this system, to use a base number and variations.
ReplyDeleteJerry Garcia - el-g, vocals;
John Kahn - el-bass;
Melvin Seals - organ;
Jimmy Warren - electric piano;
Bill Kreutzmann - drums;
Julie Stafford - backing vocals.
Liz Stires is definitely not present on 6/23/82. I'll be checking out 6/24/82 soonish. But we she's probably gone and #14d is probably this sextet for these two dates (three shows, since there were early/late shows on 6/24).
I concur, so I made a JGB 14d listing.
ReplyDelete