I played on Saturday night at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco. This was probably about the 10th time I’ve had the pleasure of performing there. It’s always a thrill. Luxurious and ornate, It’s a bay area treasure.
I was playing drums with a great SF band, the Goldenhearts. This is a really special group that I’m honored to get to perform with. It’s guitar, bass, drums and a string quartet! Imagine if the Beatles had kept going in the baroque psychedelic chamber pop of Sgt. Peppers and you’ll get a glimpse of the Goldenhearts.
I was really knocked out by the headliner Tiny Television, whom I’ve heard about, but never seen. I heard their soundcheck and knew that I wanted to stay late and enjoy their whole set--and it was so worth it. At GAMH all the band green rooms are downstairs, very communal--always fun. I heard the sounds of Big Star coming out of their room. I've been in a very Big Star kinda mood lately after seeing the new incredible documentary about them. The Tiny Tele guys bring their own portable turntable and vinyl collection on the road--that's how they roll. How cool is that?
Tiny Television Is a bigger band: drums, bass, 2 lead vocalists/guitarists and a guitar/pedal steel player. They reminded me at first of the country era Wilco, especially the Being There album. I got the feeling that this was a band that was about to blow up onto a much larger stage. Tiny Television, like the current incarnation of Wilco, has 2 virtuoso level musicians: the drummer Dan Luehring and guitar/pedal steel man Dave Zirbel--again like Wilco’s Glenn Kotche and Nels Cline. Dan’s groove and dynamics were at a whole other level of deep than I’m used to seeing in local bands. Chops too. It was like Levon Helm on steroids. He played with a ton of soul and feel and you just sensed that he lived inside those songs. He owned the arrangements and found lots of room to really dig deep and pull out some incredible drum-istic stuff. Dave Zirbel. Where did this guy come from? I’ve never heard anyone mention him. Shame on all of us! One of the best around. Totally tasteful playing. He knows how to hang back and not take up a lot of space. He’s a songwriter’s dream sideman most of the time, but when they cut him loose he digs deep, never repeats himself, and solos beautifully. There’s a lot of country and soul, chuck berry and jerry garcia in there, but in a real original way. The band played really well together. Great ensemble. At times they would meander into a jam section that was really deep. These sections reminded me of some of the great, really deep instrumental sections of White Album era Beatles: think tunes like Happiness is a Warm Gun, Yer Blues, Dear Prudence. (How’s that for a reference?) Gritty, not pretty, deep groove, kinda spooky and dark, not typical jam band territory--no bouncing beach balls and flip flop wearing frat boys abusing the word Dude! This was the sound of the last judgement, heaven and hell, life and death, a showdown at the crossroads. I was sold. I wanna hear the songs again and really listen to the lyrics as I was a bit overly preoccupied with the playing of the band. There are worse dilemmas for newly converted fans to have. Listen to these guys. I’m thrilled I got the chance.
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