tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post7873561897485888626..comments2024-03-25T06:33:12.809-07:00Comments on Lost Live Dead: December 23, 1970: Winterland: Grateful Dead/Hot Tuna ("Acoustic Dead" Benefit)Corry342http://www.blogger.com/profile/08049035074121231425noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-23164445598519744332020-12-23T04:43:24.327-08:002020-12-23T04:43:24.327-08:00My sister and I were there...I think we paid 2$ to...My sister and I were there...I think we paid 2$ to get in.<br />Super small crowd.<br />We partook from the “electric” plastic garbage can...apple juice.<br />It was an all nighter...left while Hot Tuna was still playing.<br />Scott Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09470527420912238375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-53755076958584452312020-12-23T04:43:19.935-08:002020-12-23T04:43:19.935-08:00My sister and I were there...I think we paid 2$ to...My sister and I were there...I think we paid 2$ to get in.<br />Super small crowd.<br />We partook from the “electric” plastic garbage can...apple juice.<br />It was an all nighter...left while Hot Tuna was still playing.<br />Scott Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09470527420912238375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-21790829194880566082020-10-26T10:28:56.731-07:002020-10-26T10:28:56.731-07:00Well I'm 70 now but I was at that concert and ...Well I'm 70 now but I was at that concert and let me tell you bear might have not been there but there was a lot of pretty little blonde girls with Visine bottles walking around and if you were smart enough to set your cup down a railing you had a real good time my problem was I couldn't get out of the balcony and they kept feeling my Cuppa the rest of the story is somebody walked out from behind the stage with two garbage can filled with liquid one that said straight and one that said Electric what I remember most is I woke up the next morning clutching a piece of cardboard in my hand that said ElectricAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02948319782285730243noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-77994001309958193822012-03-02T15:45:04.415-08:002012-03-02T15:45:04.415-08:00The Orinda bust seems to have been Thursday, Decem...The Orinda bust seems to have been Thursday, December 21, 1967. Melissa Cargill, identified as Owsley's girlfriend, and the one who "provided the scientific know-how" (per the UPI Wire story from the San Mateo Times, December 21, 1967), was also arrested. Three others were arrested too, including Robert Thomas, whom I assume to have been the Bob Thomas who did the lightning bolt logo and other artworks for the Dead.Corry342https://www.blogger.com/profile/08049035074121231425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-14205834906100822322012-03-02T07:09:45.290-08:002012-03-02T07:09:45.290-08:00Nice work, LIA. The '67 bust was in Orinda, Ca...Nice work, LIA. The '67 bust was in Orinda, California, for those keeping score.Fate Musichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05648291938690043423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-84005246055972737122012-03-01T20:21:59.862-08:002012-03-01T20:21:59.862-08:00I agree with Jeremy that Jerry was just talking ve...I agree with Jeremy that Jerry was just talking very loosely about "bailing out the Bear," and probably just meant something like helping him out with the legal fees, the way the 2/23/70 benefit helped out the Dead. <br /><br />(The thing is, we probably have the wrong end of the show - it's possible someone might've talked to the audience a bit about Bear's situation at the START of the show.)<br /><br />Despite JGMF's reservations and the lack of hard evidence, I think the timeline is pretty straight: <br /><br />July 15: Bear busted in Oakland. <br />July 16: the Dead play a show in San Rafael that comes to be known in Dead lore as "Bear's going-away party." <br />"They canceled my appeal bond in July 1970 and sent me to do my time... I didn't get out until July 1972." (Bear) <br /><br />This matches the vague received wisdom perfectly. In fact, there is plenty of evidence, albeit all of it secondary - we do know quite a bit.<br />As I understand it, the charge he served time for was not from the two 1970 busts, but from a 1967 drug arrest. <br />In the Conversations interview, Bear mentions that he was busted in December 1967 for LSD manufacture. (There's a picture of him going into the court for his initial arraignment wearing buckskin.) <br />The GD Illustrated Trip book (p89) mentions that in mid-1968, Bear was "awaiting sentencing on an LSD bust." <br />Bear says in the Conversations interview that by 1970, "I had already been convicted and been sentenced and was awaiting my appeals." <br />The case is also described in this excellent Rolling Stone bio of Owsley: <br />http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/owsley-stanley-the-king-of-lsd-20110314?page=4 <br />It notes that the initial drug bust was on December 20, 1967, and "Owsley's case dragged through the courts for the next two years." <br />After the Jan 1970 bust, "although all charges were eventually dropped, "a fucking judge who wanted to make sure I did time" revoked Owsley's bail on the 1967 LSD bust after he was arrested again in Oakland."<br />Bear also mentions (in Conv p323) that "it was really only one offense, they made three charges out of it and strung 'em out." <br />(The Illustrated Trip, though not a perfect reference, also mentions 12/23/70 as being a benefit "for Bear's ongoing legal battles.")<br /><br />Though it would be great to find more contemporary news articles to add precise details, I think the general picture is clear: <br />After the Dec 67 bust, Bear was out on bail up to 1970. After being sentenced to prison (sometime in 1968?), he posted an appeal bond and remained out on appeal. The Feb 70 bust caused a judge to revoke Bear's permission to travel outside CA; the July 70 bust caused a judge to revoke Bear's bail, thus sending him to prison for 2 years. Bear continued to appeal from prison, at least up to Dec 70. <br /><br />(Ironically, in later interviews he seems to have been more content with prison life than he was with the GD scene when he came back in late 72!)Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-29309506730661416202012-03-01T16:25:34.846-08:002012-03-01T16:25:34.846-08:00Nice! As I reported in comments to my post on the ...Nice! As I reported in <a href="http://jgmf.blogspot.com/2012/02/new-riders-of-purple-sage-and-acoustic.html?showComment=1330056745262#c7730674732859111189" rel="nofollow">comments</a> to my <a href="http://jgmf.blogspot.com/2012/02/new-riders-of-purple-sage-and-acoustic.html" rel="nofollow">post on the NRPS/Acoustic GD shows July 30-August 1, 1970 at the Lion's Share</a>, Bear was busted at 6024 Ascot Drive, Oakland, CA, 94611 on July 15, 1970 ("'LSD King' Nabbed Again in Drug Raid," Oakland Tribune, July 16, 1970, p. 19).<br /><br />The reason I say this is that everything to do with Bear's (and everyone's) legal hassles is among the areas of GD history that are the most dominated by vague received wisdoms. The truth is, we don't know squat about when bear went to jail, nor when he got out, nor, correspondingly, any consequences for the GD.<br /><br />I have no idea what they mean about bailing out the Bear, but there certainly is a lot of shit swirling around at this time. October-December 1970 is a deeply weird period in Deadland.Fate Musichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05648291938690043423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-70997631400506938702012-03-01T14:22:21.160-08:002012-03-01T14:22:21.160-08:00Just my opinion, but I think you're putting to...Just my opinion, but I think you're putting too much stock into Jerry's words when he mentions "bailing out The Bear." Since it doesn't sound like he actually needed to be bailed out of jail, it sounds to me like casual slang more than an accurate description of events. Maybe they were "bailing him out of a jam" that he was in, like needing money to pay lawyers.Jeremyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07231522886424791492noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-89197455815575310382012-03-01T13:25:01.037-08:002012-03-01T13:25:01.037-08:00PS - It's no miracle the 12/23 tape survived. ...PS - It's no miracle the 12/23 tape survived. The Dead's sound crew had started taping the Dead again earlier in December (starting on the 12th) - as a result, we have most of their shows from this month. (The 21st-22nd are still missing, at least in circulation. I believe Charlie Miller said he has the full show of 12/23.) <br /><br />My guess is, the Dead were already planning to record a live album in early 1971 (we know that in mid-December they were mixing multitrack tapes of the October 70 Winterland shows), so they must have wanted to have live tapes of themselves again to refer to.Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5493557313410969282.post-88822643588407885532012-03-01T13:18:35.031-08:002012-03-01T13:18:35.031-08:00A fascinating tale. I had always wondered why the ...A fascinating tale. I had always wondered why the Dead had billed themselves as "Acoustic Dead" for a couple shows in December 70, when they must have had no intention of playing acoustic. (Even when they did a little radio appearance to promote the Legion Stadium shows, they played a little on-air acoustic-gospel set with NRPS, resembling nothing actually played at the shows!) <br />And now...it's still murky, though now we have Bill Graham in the picture too; and perhaps it was some kind of response to him.<br /><br />His business machinations are always a twisted tale... That last news article, where he cancels several planned Winterland shows (apparently just because the agreed fees were too high), seems almost self-destructive!<br /><br />The story of Bear's incarceration is a murky one. <br />The accepted history in all the Dead books is that he went into prison in July 1970 and served two years.<br />Bear himself says (in the Taping Compendium interview): "The courts restricted my travel in February 1970 after the bust in New Orleans. They canceled my appeal bond in July 1970 and sent me to do my time. It crippled my appeal because I could not supervise the lawyers while I was locked up. I didn't get out until July 1972." <br />In the Conversations with the Dead book he also says "they carted me off to the joint" in mid-1970: "In February they stopped me going on the road because we got busted in New Orleans. I had already been convicted and been sentenced and was awaiting my appeals. The Dead got busted and I was busted with them, and that sent a bad message to the judge, and he revoked my permission to travel." (p324)<br /><br />JGMF has pointed out, though, that the actual date he started serving time is unknown. Apparently he had been busted again on July 15, 1970 (JGMF probably has more details on that). It doesn't seem coincidental that the Dead's July 16 show is known as "Bear's going-away party."<br />The "LSD King" was famed enough that I'm sure there would have been newspaper notices at the time of any trial results. (Which papers and which dates, though...)<br /><br />Judging by what Bear says above, the trial had already taken place (due to a 1967 offense), and he was out on appeal. So apparently it was the July 1970 bust that led the court to cancel his appeal bond, and triggered his imprisonment.<br /><br />The interesting thing is that Jerry specifically announces that the show is "helping us bail out the Bear." <br />I'm no legal expert, but as far as I know, isn't bail something posted BEFORE a trial - in fact, as shortly after arrest as possible? <br />This raises the question of just what Bear was up to between July & December 70. I could be wrong, but if he was midway through a 2-year sentence already, bail money would do little good in freeing him. Unless Jerry was just speaking loosely. <br />It seems to me that there may have been more legal proceedings coming up in the appeals process - since Bear, as he says, "could not supervise the lawyers while I was locked up," the Dead were trying to raise money for the legal fees, technically not "bail." <br />And as it happened, it didn't work, and Bear wasn't freed.<br /><br />What's also quite intriguing is that the Dead were opening for Hot Tuna on 12/23. That's something you didn't see too often!Light Into Asheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06943335142002007213noreply@blogger.com