Jerry Garcia - After Midnight: Kean College 2/28/80 (Dig)
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Free Music Notes for After Midnight: Kean College 2/28/80 (Dig)
Free Music Review: The Good, The Bad and The Jerry
Hit: 4 Stars
When Keith and Donna exited the Dead in 1978, they also left the Jerry Garcia Band. The Jerry Band went into hiatus while Jerry formed Reconstruction from the ground up but by the end of 1979 the JGB was back up and running with Jerry, John Kahn with new members Ozzie Ahlers on keyboards, vocals and Johnny d'Foncesca on drums.
This show, recorded on Thursday, February 28, 1980 at Kean College in Union Township in Union County, New Jersey finds the band starting with a good Sugaree with the band playing fine. The mix is a little odd with very little stereo spread. On my old soundboard tape, Jerry was panned to one side with the keyboards panned to the other. I have a feeling that this was changed here to bury some of Ozzie's keyboard playing as Ozzie was louder of the soundboard. Catfish John is next, and while good, it suffers as having been played a bit better better by other JGB line ups. The show takes an upturn with a powerful version of That's What Love Will Make You Do which finds the band clicking. Simple Twist Of Fate is sweet and I've always thought that this line up was at it's best with some of the slower numbers. How Sweet It Is falls back into being performed better with other line ups. I wish that they would've simply stuck this tune at the end of the first disc and then used the remainder of the second disc (which is short, anyway) with songs from the bonus disc.
The After Midnight jam is very good and brings the energy back up flowing in and out of an instrumental version of Eleanor Rigby. I'll Take A Melody is very, very strong and works quite well for this version of the JGB. Tore Up Over You is it's usual rocking self. Knocking On Heaven's Door is a good version as is The Harder They Come. Robert Hunter joins the band for the next two songs, Tiger Rose and Promontory Rider which were only played 5 times over 5 consecutive shows. Mission In The Rain is performed very strongly and the ending Midnight Moonlight is a joy. All in all, not a bad release.
Free Music Review: How Sweet It Is
Hit: 4 Stars
I've spent years (wait...make that decades...time flies when you're having fun) building up a more than respectable collection of Grateful Dead recordings, but my collection of Jerry's solo material is pretty thin, so I went on an online quest to find out which of his recordings have gotten the most accolades. "After Midnight...", along with a couple of others, rose to the top pretty quickly.
After having given this show a couple of good listens from start to finish, I agree, as many have said, it represents Jerry at his peak performance in every way. His and his band's playing is fluid and intense at the same time. As Jerry's longtime songwriting partner Robert Hunter says in the liner notes of the CD, early 1980 represents a period of extraordinary lucidity on Jerry's part. He does some hair raising meandering leads while simultaneously, and incredibly, is able to coax backup guitar parts from his guitar. The show has a laid back, jazzy and relaxed feel about it, and the sound quality is fantastic.
Those of us who like to attend concerts with more frequency than most people, do so in order to try and capture those fleeting moments of transcendence between performer and listener that we're occasionally fortunate enough to experience every now and then at a live show.
Any live band or musician, The Dead included, at their best, succeed in producing many such moments, but when they don't, the next best thing to experiencing those magical moments that literally defy time and space, is to simply get lost in a song at the same time the musician or band is getting lost in the song. There are many examples of that on "After midnight...".
This is definitely a must have for any Deadhead, and a great starting point for those who want get into Jerry's solo work. The only reason I give it four, instead of five stars is that there are a few duds in this show, but overall, very very good.
Free Music Review: I've Heard Better
Hit: 4 Stars
I have been a Dead, particularly a Garcia fan since the 60's, but would never consider myself a "Deadhead". I think that all too often the ardent followers let their deadication get in the way of a reasonable assessment of the music. I bought this CD because I was in the mood for some Garcia solo work, something I often find more enjoyable than listening to the Dead. This particular album had good reviews, mostly from people who appear to be ardent Deadheads. It was primarily these reviews that led me to choose this CD above the many others in Garcia's catalog.
Maybe it was the back up band - too much synthesizer with tunes that would have been better served by a B-3. The liner notes made mention of having the opportunity to hear Garcia handling the rhythm as well as the lead guitars. Guess what? It doesn't work. Overall, it sounded thin.
This isn't said to take away from the many things that are enjoyable on this album. Garcia is in good voice, hitting his idiosyncratic style without the notes going sour. His guitar lines are melodic and fluid, ( but would have benefited from a more solid backing...see above). I would have liked to have seen some more Garcia original tunes included in the repertoire, but the covers were a good mix. While I enjoyed listening to all of the tunes, I found that "After Midnight / Eleanor Rigby Medley" was the only stand out.
So, I am happy with the album and it's had some frequent listening, yet I still can only give it four stars....and that is stretching things a bit. If you are an ardent Deadhead, hit the order button now. You will surely enjoy the results. But, if you aren't a fanatic and simply enjoy Garcia's music, you may want to take a pass on this one. There are better things in his catalog.
Free Music Review: Excellent addition to the JGB catalogue
Hit: 4 Stars
Given the reputation of Garcia, it's surprising that there are not all that many live Jerry Garcia Band releases.Sslowly but surely more JGB concerts are finally being released. JGB has always played second fiddle to the Dead, and that's regrettable as JGB should be seen as complimentary to the Dead, not in competition.
"After Midnight - Keane College 2/28/80" (16 tracks; 3 CDs; 165 min.) features a short-lived 4 person line-up of JGB. Besides Jerry, there is also John Kahn on bass, Ozzie Ahlers on keyboards, and John de Foncenza on drums. The band is super-tight throught the evening, starting with "Sugaree" (one of only 2 Garcia/Hunter songs in the set). There are 2 great Dulan covers, including a delightful "Knocking on Heaven's Door". The set also includes a guest appearance from Robert Hunter on vocals, doing his own "Tiger Rose" and "Promontory Rider". The cover of Allen Toussaint's "I'll Take a Melody" also works very nicely. But the brightest star on this set is the 25 min. medley of "After Midnight>Eleanor Rigby>After Midnight (Reprise)", with everone in the band getting an opportunity to stretch out, although the best of course comes from Garcia's solos.
Somewhat awkwardly, the first set of the evening goes about 85 min, and thus does not fit on a single CD, reason this release ended up as a 3CD release. The liner notes from Robert Hunter are a nice addition and the overall packaging is top notch, courtesy of the wonderful folks at Rhino, reliable as usual. In short, "After Midnight" is a great addition to the Jerry Garcia Band catalogue.
Free Music Review: Not better than the Dead. Not close.
Hit: 4 Stars
I was inspired by the glowing reviews to buy this relatively expensive CD ($30 retail). At the same time, I've been listening to a group of Dick's Picks, mostly from the early 70's. DP #19, for example, is an incredible recording. What is clearly evident is the marked difference between the complexity of the Grateful Dead and this version of Garcia's Band. The Dead has three guitarists, a piano and drummer(s) playing completely different parts in a rich mixture. This band, on the other hand, is Garcia as lead, plus bass, keyboard and drummer playing supporting roles behind him. Right on the one beat. Right in the center of the chord. Never anything too unexpected or too complex.
The value of this CD is that you get to hear some nice, and different, songs the Dead didn't do. And Jerry plays and sings well--although there are plenty of records--especially in the late 60s and 70s where he plays and sings very well. So if you like the complexity and depth of the Dead--some caution. This is Jerry plus a backing band. It's like a star musician rolling into town and picking up some local talent to back him for the show. As adequate as they may be, it isn't the Dead.