PH!SH, Dead, & SRV Part One

Today is Thursday January Seventh Two Thousand Ten. Not much to report in my current life so perhaps I should convey some thoughts of yesteryear. I did go to the Paramount with my folks and had an excellent ahi tuna salad. There was a shit ton of tuna on it and the veggies didn't get in the way too much. Its difficult eating correctly when eating out but I think that restaurants have come a really long way. It still sucks if you are a vegan but vegans are freaks anyway.

Some of the best times that I have ever had in my life were at PH!SH concerts and since I have seen a couple of hundred of them I guess you could say that I have had a couple hundred excellent times. The only thing is that for almost all of them I was on LSD or MDMA with a ton of booze thrown in so many memories of those shows are foggy. A big turning point for me was in the summer of ninety five when I saw three Dead shows in Chicago and then a few days later saw two PH!SH shows in Mansfield followed by two shows at Sugarbush. I remember thinking that PH!SH was really my band and that while I will certainly follow the Dead around I was going to focus on the boys from VT. There is a passion at PH!SH shows that I have not felt in large arenas with the exception of catching a Widespread Panic show in the south. Phans are totally dedicated and know every song, most of the times within the first few bars of the tune. Ninety Five is when my love of PH!SH really took off and since then I have had the chance to see them all over the east coast and in Spain.

The only bummer about ninety five was that in the fall a personal musical hero of mine finally made his deal with his god and passed away. I felt really guilty about it because after all I decided that I liked seeing PH!SH better than the Dead. But the same is not true for the Jerry Garcia Band. I would have always rather seen JGB over pretty much anyone other than Stevie Ray Vaughn but then Jerry had to go and die on me in the fall of ninety five. He was the reason I went to see the Dead and also the reason that due to his declining health I liked PH!SH better. JGB was awesome because there wasn't any Bobby influence and the song selection was amazing. I only got to see JGB twice in comparison to the Dead about a hundred times but the JGB shows were better than all the Dead shows combined. I didn't care what his politics, diet, or drug habits were, Jerry was just an awesome musician who seemed to really care about what he played and the fans.

I mentioned SRV previously and he was one of the best entertainers I have ever seen live. I only got to see him a couple of times but each one stands out in my memory even though it was more then twenty years ago. I was driving home from work on Perkins Row in Topsfield when I heard of his death on BCN and I just about drove off the road. He could play his guitar like no other man alive and had battled poverty and drugs to make a name for himself and provide for his family. He used to drink a quart of whiskey laced with cocaine to get himself out of bed. He was able to clean himself up however. He died like many other rockstars crashing in a helicopter after a show in Alpine Valley. Clapton gave up his seat for SRV. I dunno, I think I would have rather seen Clapton go but both would have been huge losses. Thing is, Clapton had been there and done that while Stevie was in the prime of his life. Some folks don't like his texas blues style but he did pave the way from a bunch of others. I hope to visit some site of SRV interest when I go to TX.

The last time I got to see SRV was at two am show on NYE 1987 at the Ritz in NYC. A bunch of my friends and I got tickets that afternoon for the show and spent the day hanging out and running around NYC. The show had many musical highlights but personal highlights for me included: seeing two hot girls making out at length for the first time, seeing a all night show in NYC, and walking out of a club into daylight at eighteen years old. We had all smuggled in pints of booze to drink during the show but I was so into SRV I didn't even crack the pint. We did however, dispatch them with great haste after everything was over. It was also the first time that I encountered a doorman and found a full crack vial on the street. Very interesting trip indeed.

Things are looking cheery on the xx chromo front as I had a few messages from a certain one yesterday. We made plans to see some music and I can't wait to hang with her. She is really sweet and seems book smart but not all that street smart but thats fine with me. I dunno how she feels about me of course, asking her would be way too easy but its cool that she is thoughtful enough to include me in her plans. I don't think she has a bo-bo, at least she doesn't constantly mention him like some chicks. She is incredibly hot and has a killer smile so hanging out with her is fun. She also seems to totally be into seeing live music which I think is very important for someone to like if she is going to spend any time with me. Live music is very important and a central theme in my life and whomever I trick into dating me will go a long way in enjoying that same scene.