Here is the latest news from David Gans, producer and host of the Grateful Dead Hour.
Rubber Souldiers at Slim’s 1/22/11
Mike Potashnick RIP
On the day Jam Cruise returned to terra firma, we received the terrible news that Mike Potashnick had died at the age of 52. Mike was the emcee of Gathering of the Vibes and a beloved character on our music scene.
GATHERING OF THE VIBES FESTIVAL LOSES ITS VOICE
The New England Arts and Music Community Celebrates the Life of Michael J. Potashnick with Memorial Celebrations in Burlington, VT and Bridgeport, CT
BRIDGEPORT, CT (Jan. 24, 2011) – On Monday, January 10, 2011, the Gathering of the Vibes festival lost its crowd-rallying, on-stage “Voice of the Vibes,” Co-M.C. Michael J. Potashnick. The news of his sudden passing sent ripples throughout the New England arts and music community. A beloved friend to countless people, the spirit and memories of Michael J. Potashnick will not fade away.
Organizers have announced that two gatherings will take place to honor and celebrate the life of the 52-year-old producer who died from pneumonia. The first gathering, organized by the Lake Champlain Maritime Festival, will take place Sunday, February 13th from 2-5 p.m. at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, 153 Main Street, Burlington, VT. Friends and family are invited to join together for an afternoon of storytelling, remembrance and celebration.
Hosted by Gathering of the Vibes, the second celebration will take place Sunday, February 20th on the campus of the University of Bridgeport’s Arnold Bernard Center from 3-9 p.m. The Bridgeport gathering will include live music and dedications by some of Michael’s favorite artists.
Those planning to attend either event are requested to RSVP via the “Michael Potashnick Memorial” Facebook page by clicking here. Those wanting to make contributions in Michael’s memory are asked to kindly donate to his favorite charities: The United Way and the SoNo Arts Festival in Norwalk, CT.
Though Michael had been involved with Gathering of the Vibes every year since its inception in 1997, he also was like family to much of the New England arts and music community. He was an integral part of the Lake Champlain Maritime Festival, the SoNo Arts Celebration, Bridgeport’s Polka Dot Playhouse, Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, Burlington’s Flynn Center for the Performing Arts and the All Good Music Festival in West Virginia.
“Michael was family,” said Ken Hays, founder of the Vibes. “He exemplified what the Vibes means to so many, reminding us from his spot on center-stage of the love we have to offer each other, and that through music, we can truly see the light that brings harmony and balance to the world. We will miss him tremendously.”
A slideshow photo tribute in memory of Michael can be viewed on the Vibes home page: www.GOVIBES.com.
Those who would like to contribute stories and photos to Michael Potashnick’s memorial services are asked to submit medium/high-resolution photographs (preferably in JPEG format) and stories (1-2 paragraphs) through a special memorial website, https://www.atomicproaudio.com/mikep, or email them directly to mjpmemories@gmail.com.
Born Oct. 7, 1958 in Trenton, NJ, and raised in nearby Morrisville, PA, Michael’s arts roots ran deepest in Bridgeport, CT and Burlington, VT, during his career. He studied theatre at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, performing in more than 85 plays and musicals, including appearances on the popular soap operas, “General Hospital” and “Another World.” In 2006, Michael relocated from Connecticut to Vermont, where he was best known in his fundamental roles as Production, Stage and Site Manager at Lake Champlain Maritime Festival, the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, and Burlington’s First Night, among other events in the Burlington, region. He was a perennial favorite at the Gathering of the Vibes Festival, acting as Production Manager from 1996-2004 and Co-Emcee from 2004 through 2010.
Pre-deceased by his loving mother, Louise Potashnick, Michael is survived by his father, William Potashnick; stepmother Peg Potashnick; brother David Potashnick; and ex-wife Marianne Castaldo. Michael also is survived by his extended Gathering of the Vibes family; friends and colleagues in Burlington; as well as the countless members of the New England arts and music organizations he touched and influenced during his 26-year career.
Grateful Dead Hour no. 1166
Week of January 24, 2011
Part 1 38:10
Intro
Grateful Dead 8/6/74 Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City NJ
PLAYING IN THE BAND->
SCARLET BEGONIAS->
PLAYING IN THE BAND
ID
Part 2 14:01
Intro
Interview: Jody Stecher
Joseph Spence and the Pinder Family
I BID YOU GOOD NIGHT
Interview: Jody Stecher
Outro
Gans gig spam – first of 2011!
Hello and Happy New Year!
I started 2011 on the high seas! Jam Cruise 9 was a great party, in the best possible sense of the word: amazing music going at all hours, a comfortable and quiet bedroom just a few feet away at all times (I got MORE sleep than usual on board – go figure!), conversations with interesting people, exciting ports of call, fresh musical opportunities, receptive audiences… I participated in a panel discussion n environmental responsibility (and yes, we were ALL aware of the contradiction inherent in doing so on a cruise ship; one of the aims of this was to see how we can reduce the impact of these cruises on the planet). I’ve posted a couple dozen photos from the event here.
Recordings of my Jam Cruise 9 performances will be available soon –
Zebra Bar 1/6
Solar Stage 1/8
We got off the boat on the morning of January 9, and that night I attended a show in Ft Lauderdale with Donna the Buffalo (who were NOT on Jam Cruise) and The Rhythm Devils (who were). And the following night I played a house concert in Boca Raton, at the home of Al and Janice Lucas, who produce an online national directory of Grateful Dead tribute bands. Huge thanks to Janice and Al for taking a leap of faith with me; the house concert was a smashing success.
Now I’m back at home in Oakland, and I’ve got several gigs here in the Bay Area in the next couple of weeks:
Tuesday, January 18, 9pm to midnight: Sleeping Lady, 23 Broadway, Fairfax CA. No cover!
Saturday, January 22: Rubber Souldiers at Slim’s, 333 Eleventh Street, San Francisco
Wednesday, January 26, 9pm: Dedicated Maniacs and DG at the Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley CA. $10
Saturday, January 29: private party, Mill Valley CA
Wednesday, February 16: Rubber Souldiers appear on the Bruce Latimer Show, Pacifica (CA) Community TV
Thursday, February 17, 8pm: Rubber Souldiers at George’s, San Rafael CA
Saturday, February 19, 9am-1am (16 hours): David Gans hosts the annual KPFA Grateful Dead Marathon, a fund-raiser for listener-sponsored KPFA radio. Webcast via gdradio.net, nugs.net, dead.net, kpfa.org, and kfcf.org, and of course broadcast live on 94.1 fm in northern California.
Saturday, March 5: Rubber Souldiers at Rancho Nicaso, Nicasio (West Marin) CA
Saturday, June 25: Rubber Souldiers at Children’s Fairyland, Oakland CA
August 12-13: A Bear’s Picnic, Laurelton PA
Sunday, August 14: House concert, Wellsville OH
My performance schedule is posted at https://www.dgans.com/gigs.html – new gigs are being added all the time.
As always, I’m in the market for house concert opportunities. If you see an open spot on my schedule in your general vicinity, let’s try to make something happen!
And remember: word of mouth is a gigantic part of musicians’ promotion and publicity these days, so if you like my music, please spread the word about my gigs and recordings.
My CDs are available at cdbaby.com
And please check out my first online-only release, via livedownloads.com: the recording of my 9/4/10 house concert at Club Meg in Missoula, Montana. Available in high-res, CD quality, and MP3 at
More info and links at dgans.com/gigs.html
Grateful Dead Hour no. 1165
Week of January 17, 2011
Part 1 15:34
Open
Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack (10/19/74)
EYES OF THE WORLD
ID
Part 2 38:56
Intro
Interview by Rich Mahan: DAVID NELSON
“The Log Cabin Boys” 11/23/86
ROSALIE McFALL
COLD JORDAN
Interview by Rich Mahan: DAVID NELSON
Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band, Ragged But Right
TWO SOLDIERS
Interview by Rich Mahan: DAVID NELSON
Jesse McReynolds and Friends, Songs of the Grateful Dead
BLACK MUDDY RIVER
Interview by Rich Mahan: DAVID NELSON
Outro
Rich Mahan caught up with David Nelson at a New Riders of the Purple Sage show in Arizona last November. I aired this interview on KPFA’s Dead to the World in December, and listener Damien Palermo sent these notes – not quite a verbatim transcript, but all the facts are here. Thanks, DP!
In the summer of 1960, Nelson was living in San Carlos. Rodney Albin invited him to go to a bookstore on Tuesdays and Thursdays to play music. They setup a bookcase stage with an amp and mike.
Rodney wanted to go looking for beatniks at Kepler’s Bookstore in Menlo Park. Jerry Garcia played 12-string on a borrowed guitar. Nelson had a banjo. They invited Jerry to come up to San Carlos and play the bookstore there.
Jerry came up from Palo Alto to San Carlos to play. Dave McQueen (aka David X) from EPA, Robert Hunter, and Marshall Leceister were also there. Garcia sang songs including When First Unto This Country and Fennario.
During this period, after-parties were held at houses and became bigger over time with bands forming out of the party scene.
The Boar’s Head was a room upstairs at Mr. Hutchins’ bookstore that was used for music from 9-11pm a few nights a week. The following summer (1961?) another Boar’s Head was located in San Carlos (Carlos Bookstall?). Ron “Pigpen” McKernan was there one night and wanted everyone to go to Palo Alto for after parties.
Jerry wanted to learn 5-string banjo, but didn’t have one. He had a good, old Martin D-18 guitar. Nelson had a 5-string banjo, but not a good guitar, so they traded instruments. This led to the formation of the Wildwood Boys.
The Wildwood Boys played from November 1962 until about February 1963. The band had Jerry on banjo, Nelson on guitar, Hunter on mandolin or bass, and Norm van Maastricht on Dobro and guitar. The band folded when Hunter could no longer play the gigs.
Jerry brought a mandolin for Nelson to play and said they could get Eric Thompson to play guitar. This resulted in the Black Mountain Boys, who played from late 1963 to the spring of 1964. Then, Eric went off to New York and they got Sand Rothman from Berkeley to play guitar.
NRPS formed in 1969. John Dawson came back from England and had written some songs. Nelson was playing in different bands at the time. Nelson said that Jerry and Dawson played a pizza parlor in Palo Alto in ’69 (possibly The Underground on El Camino Real in Menlo Park, 5/14/69?)
The band had practices at Jerry’s place in Marin County and also played a gig at the Bear’s Lair student union at UC Berkeley, billed as Garcia & Friends (possibly 7/23/69?). The band tried to come up with a name and even kicked around ideas like “The Murdering Punks.” Hunter suggested Riders of the Purple Sage, but Nelson pointed out that the name had already been used in the 1940’s by Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage, so then Hunter suggested NRPS.
Jerry had the diabetic coma in the summer of 1986. His doctor said he needed old, familiar things as part of his recovery. A Thanksgiving party was held in November 1986 where Jerry, Nelson, and Sandy Rothman played music together (Log Cabin Boys 11/23/86 in San Anselmo?)
Jerry was booked with John Kahn to play an annual artists benefit for Bill Graham (11/14/86 in San Rafael?), who pointed out that they were playing old songs that traced the roots of the Grateful Dead. Jerry then told Graham that he ought to take them to Broadway.
In October 1987, the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band played the run of shows at the Lunt Fontanne Theater on Broadway. On the JGAB CD, Almost Acoustic, Nelson sang I’m Just Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail (by Karl Davis and Harty Taylor). Nelson said he likes the old songs of Frank Wakefield and Red Allen on the Folkways and Kitchen Tapes recordings.
The JGAB followed the Broadway run of shows with a tour of the Wiltern and Warfield Theaters in Nov/Dec 1987. The last JGAB show was on 7/9/88 at Frost Amphitheater on the Stanford University campus, followed the next day by a JGB show at the Greek Theater in Berkeley.