THURSDAY, JANUARY 17 AT ASHKENAZ
STRAWBERRY FIELD TRIP
Stu Allen, David Gans, J. Raoul Brody, Robin Sylvester, Peter Lavezzoli
Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$12
Facebook event
It’s a world premiere; don’t miss it! A band so new that it doesn’t have a website yet, Strawberry Field Trip is a combination of favorite musicians from various Dead jam bands, Dylan tribute groups, and Bay Area psychedelic rock ensembles, all longtime vets of the scene who have played in countless groupings. Strawberry Field Trip transforms Beatles songs, giving them beautifully harmonized arrangements and then stretching out and jamming on them. Among songs one can expect are “Rain,” “Within You Without You,” “Tomorrow Never Knows,” and “Things We Said Today.”
With David Gans and Stu Allen sharing guitar duties, most of the band also helps out on singing, with keyboard player J. Raoul Brody (a Bay Area legend from the Rick & Ruby Show to Tango No. 9), bassist Robin Sylvester (Ghosts of Electricity, RatDog, Melvin Seals & JGB, David Nelson Band, and many more), and drummer Peter Lavezzoli (Melvin Seals, Stu Allen, Donna Jean Godchaux, etc.). An interesting footnote: A young Robin Sylvester was working as an assistant at London’s Abbey Road Studios when the Beatles recorded the White Album; he was inspired by Paul McCartney to take up the bass. Gans hosts KPFA-FM’s Wednesday night “Dead to the World” and the syndicated radio program “The Grateful Dead Hour”; Allen hosts most of the Ashkenaz Grateful Dead Nights, including five this month.
(P.S. Stu gets the credit for the cool band name!)