Found some old tapes I recorded back in the early 60's

  • Thread starter Thread starter Harvey Gerst
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Love yah Harvey

PS: low fi definitely sounds cool.

Love the vocal where it stops and the accent pick of the guitar fills in for the vocal. Happens about 1:57
 
All these older players influenced generations of new guitar players, like the Beatles, the Stones, the Dead, Clapton, Bob Dylan, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and thousands more. Ed Pearl, the owner of the Ash Grove in L.A., provided the only nightclub that showcased these older blues and folk musicians in the 60's.

Every week, Ed featured old and new artists, like Doc & Merle Watson, Brownie McGee & Sonny Terry, Mance Lipscom, Albert King, Merle Travis, the Clancy Brothers, Jean Redpath, the Firesign Theater, Lightnin' Hopkins, Bud & Travis, the New Lost City Ramblers, Flatt & Scruggs, Mississippi John Hurt, Odetta, Clarence Ashley, Barbara Dane, Muddy Waters, Linda Ronstadt, Lenny Bruce, Joan Baez, Phil Ochs, Taj Mahal, Jerry Garcia, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Richie Havens, and dozens more.

Here's a more complete list:

Ash Grove Performers

It was an amazing time and place. I was involved pretty heavily at the Ash Grove, creating their sound system, and running sound on many occasions.

For me, a young guitar player in my 20's, it was a magical experience. At the same time, I was also at the other major clubs in Southern California, and my exposure to every kind of music imaginable was an experience that will never be duplicated again.
 
heatmiser said:
How do they hold up based on how you remember them sounding? Certainly lacking in high end, which is totally cool, but just wondering if that happened over time or if that was more or less how it was captured in the first place..
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I think they had a little more top end originally; they were recorded on a Roberts 4 track deck (2 tracks in each direction) at 7.5 ips. The old EV 664's the club used weren't famous for their extended top end, and the Bogen 4 channel mixer/amp didn't help all that much either. Channels 1 and 2 were for the EV's on stage, 3 was a spare, and channel 4 was the announce mic in the sound booth. The amp was rated at 60 watts and drove a pair of JBL D130's.
 
Here's one from the legendary duo of Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry:



Brownie McGhee had a crippled leg and he walked with a heavy limp, while the blind Sonny Terry hung onto Brownie's shoulder as they slowly made their way to the stage from the back of the dimly lit club. Once on stage, any pity you might have had changed to amazement, as they mesmerized their audiences, night after night.

After the shows, I would spend hours jamming with Brownie at their friend's house, where they stayed in L.A.. We'd go till 3 or 4 in the morning (Sonny usually got too tired after about 1 or 2 AM and had to go to bed).

Enjoy!
 
Harvey Gerst said:
I think they had a little more top end originally; they were recorded on a Roberts 4 track deck (2 tracks in each direction) at 7.5 ips. The old EV 664's the club used weren't famous for their extended top end, and the Bogen 4 channel mixer/amp didn't help all that much either. Channels 1 and 2 were for the EV's on stage, 3 was a spare, and channel 4 was the announce mic in the sound booth. The amp was rated at 60 watts and drove a pair of JBL D130's.
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Cool, thanks for the info. The recordings have held up really well to the test of time.

Sounds like you were kind of like an Owsley Stanley (minus the uh, acid production of course) :D
 
heatmiser said:
Cool, thanks for the info. The recordings have held up really well to the test of time.

Sounds like you were kind of like an Owsley Stanley (minus the uh, acid production of course) :D
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Owsley was on the Jefferson Airplane's payroll; he was great at modding small Fender amps.
 
Here's a track by Jesse Fuller that I recorded around 1960 or 1961:

San Francisco Bay Blues - Jesse Fuller

"San Francisco Bay Blues" is the most famous composition by Jesse Fuller. The song was brought into wide popularity in the early 1960s by club performances by Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Bob Dylan, and Jim Kweskin.

Recorded covers have been performed by many artists including: The Weavers, Richie Havens, Eric Clapton, The Flatlanders, Paul McCartney, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Mungo Jerry, Glenn Yarborough, George Ellias, Phoebe Snow and The Halifax III.

A "one-man band" rendition of the song featuring a kazoo solo was recorded by Fuller himself in a 1962 concert. This has been included in a Smithsonian Folkways compilation, "Friends of Old Time Music."

This track I recorded is a couple of years earlier than that. It features that same kazoo solo.

Enjoy!
 
awesome performance and recording. thanks. it sounds like that one held up well for a 50 year old tape.
 

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The Fuller track is a classic - harmonica & kazoo in themone song. Great tempo too.
Ms. Dane's piece is interesting from her generous treatment of her band via the intro to the VOICE. She seems to have a little of the grit I liked about some of the Lady Day recordings I have - that & the PAIN in the vibrations too.
Is that a bowed'n'plucked bass accompaniment?.
Excellent piece - THANX!
 
Harvey,

Thank you so much for the privilege of listening to these classics.

You are my hero!!
 
bigtom said:
Harvey,

Thank you so much for the privilege of listening to these classics.

You are my hero!!
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I ain't no hero! It was simply my privilege to be present, and record some of those great performances.
 
luvin for my ears

Those music clips are great little gems. I miss Uncle Josh. Earl Scruggs and Curly Sechler are the only two out of that group still around. The little instrumental has me all smiles this morning. Thanks for the treat.

Sonny Terry played all the harmonica anybody could ever need, IMO. He and Brownie were perfect together.
 
wretchasketch said:
Those music clips are great little gems. I miss Uncle Josh. Earl Scruggs and Curly Sechler are the only two out of that group still around. The little instrumental has me all smiles this morning. Thanks for the treat.

Sonny Terry played all the harmonica anybody could ever need, IMO. He and Brownie were perfect together.
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Yesterday, I listened to both shows I recorded so far, and one thing struck me about the Flatt and Scruggs stuff that I hadn't really heard before; Earl and Josh really played around on each song, very different each time. Josh would go way out on a limb during his solos, like a jazz player. But Earl would do the same thing at times, usually in the background though.

!960 would have put all of them in their 30's, and at their peak IMHO. It's amazing to me that I'm just now discovering the playfulness in these sets. Lester Flatt's voice always got to me. I'll try to put up a clip of Lester singing "Go Home" later today.

I'm still looking for my Kentucky Colonels recordings (back when they were known as the Country Boys).
 
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