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| The Great American Music Hall, at 859 O'Farrell Street in San Francisco |
1974 Bay Area Rock Nightclub Survey-May to September 1974
As part of my program of unpacking the economics of original rock music in San Francisco Bay Area nightclubs in the 1970s, I have looked at the histories of a few different clubs. The Matrix had been San Francisco's original hippie rock nightclub, and although it was no longer economically important in 1970, it had still played an important role in incubating rock bands. In contrast, the Keystone Berkeley had opened in March, 1972, and rapidly became the best paying night club booking the Bay Area. I reviewed the history of performers at both the Matrix and Keystone Berkeley at great length.
By 1974, the rock nightclub market in Berkeley and San Francisco had matured somewhat. There were a number of clubs that booked original music, sharing some bands but each with their own slice of the market. Rather than repeat myself too often, I have chosen to look at 1974 by looking at a single month's booking for a variety of individual clubs. We will learn enough about the dynamics of each club, while still reviewing just about all the acts playing the Bay Area. My previous post looked at early 1974 bookings for three main Berkeley clubs: the Keystone Berkeley, the Long Branch and the Freight And Salvage. For contrast, we also looked at a month of bookings for Bill Graham Presents, to provide some perspective on the rock market as a whole.
For this post, we will focus on the three main San Francisco clubs featuring original rock, along with other kinds of music: The Great American Music Hall, The Boarding House and The Orphanage. To keep the post manageable, I am just looking at a single month's booking for each club. For contrast, I will also look at a month of bookings for the original rock clubs in Sonoma County (Inn Of The Beginning) and Marin County (The Lion's Share). In 1974, there were no original rock clubs in the Peninsula or South Bay. Some bands played the occasional San Jose beer joint, but original rock was confined to San Francisco, Berkeley and the North Bay.
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| The Winterland Ballroom, at Post and Steiner in San Francisco, some time in the late '70s |
Bay Area Live Rock Music Landscape, 1974
Bill Graham Presents
Bill Graham Presents: Winterland Ballroom, 2000 Post St, San Francisco, CA
Bill Graham Presents: Cow Palace, 2600 Geneva Ave, Daly City, CA
Bill Graham Presents: Berkeley Community Theater, 1980 Allston Ave, Berkeley, CA
Bill Graham Presents: Paramount Theater, 2025 Broadway, Oakland, CA
Bill Graham Presents: Oakland Coliseum Arena, 7000 Coliseum Way, Oakland, CA
Rock promoter Bill Graham, already a legend by 1974, dominated the Bay Area concert business with his firm Bill Graham Presents. Graham booked just about every major rock act that came through San Francisco, which was all of them. His principal venue was the Winterland ballroom, an aging ice rink that had opened in 1928. Graham had converted the building to a music-only venue in 1971, the same year that he had closed the Fillmores East and West. Winterland wasn't a nightclub, of course, but for rock fans, BGP and Winterland defined the rock market, so any rock nightclub in Berkeley or San Francisco was indirectly competing with Bill Graham for patronage.
For just about anyone under 30--and some people older than that--rock music represented the most important form of entertainment, whether live or on record. When major acts came to the Bay Area, they were major events. Bill Graham Presents always booked the major acts. When The Who had begun their Quadrophenia tour at The Cow Palace on November 20, 1973, it had been a major event. When Bob Dylan and The Band had played two shows at the Oakland Coliseum Arena on February 11, 1974, it had been an even bigger event. Rock fans lucky enough to get tickets had circled their calendars weeks in advance.
Bill Graham Presents booked a concert at
Winterland just about every weekend. Most bills featured two or three
bands, somewhat like the Fillmore West days. The headline bands weren't
arena-level, but any act headlining the 5400 seat hall had albums that
got heavy airplay on FM radio. Any rock fan considering their weekend
live music options was going to compare a local club offering to whoever
was booked at Winterland. So in that sense, every nightclub was
competing against Bill Graham and Winterland each weekend. For acts whose audience expected their own seat, there was the 3500-seat Berkeley Community Theater. Bigger acts were booked at the Cow Palace or Oakland Coliseum Arena. Occasionally, other venues were used as well. Every nightclub was implicitly competing against any of these shows.
Younger rock fans had little choice, of course. If a fan was under 21, and had access to a car, Winterland was more viable than trying to get a fake ID and get into a club. The "festival-style" seating meant that it didn't matter if you got tickets later, or if a friend wanted to come, as it favored a group of friends, or loose multiple groups of friends, hanging out together.
Rock fans weren't all under 21, however. If you didn't want to hang with a bunch of people, or you were on a date, the huge Winterland floor wasn't so appealing. If you wanted a beer, or some food, a club was way more attractive. And Winterland was in a sketchy (spelled "African-American") neighborhood, far from any convenient bridge off-ramp. For many rock fans, a night at the local rock club had a lot of appeal. The question was always the same--who was playing?
Rock and roll's economy had exploded in the early 70s, and successful bands made more money than ever. For the rank and file bands, however, touring was not a prevalent as it had been. The "Oil Shock" of 1973 had made the economy more difficult. While fans would always find money for Bob Dylan or The Who, they weren't as ready to go out every week. Also, in the Fillmore days, a lot of fans just went to "the Fillmore" to see whoever was playing there. Winterland did not have that cachet. Fans knew more, and were more selective, so BGP no longer booked as many shows each month as they had when Fillmore West was open. If Winterland wasn't an appropriate venue, than BGP used other halls around the Bay Area, but the "concert dollar" (as it was called) seemed to be finite.
In the previous post, I looked at the different BGP bookings for Winterland, Berkeley Community Theater, the Cow Palace and The Paramount for March, 1974. There weren't any tours big enough for the Oakland Coliseum Arena or the Oakland Coliseum Stadium that month, but they too were part of the mix for major BGP shows.
In the East Bay, there were three main nightclubs that booked original music:
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| This photo of the Keystone Berkeley is from about 1982, but it didn't change much |
Keystone Berkeley, 2119 University Avenue, Berkeley, CA
The Keystone Berkeley was downtown, right near the UC Campus and easy to find. Parking was reasonably easy to find, and largely free. The Keystone had opened in March, 1972, and had an official capacity of 476, widely believed to be regularly exceeded. There were a few tables and a little bit of food, but mostly there was room to drink beer and dance. Keystone Berkeley favored bands who were up at it, lots of jamming, lots of long guitar solos and a beat you could dance to. It was the second best paying gig in the Bay Area for rock bands, behind only playing for Bill Graham Presents. Jerry Garcia, Elvin Bishop and Tower Of Power regularly played the Keystone Berkeley. Touring acts, particularly blues musicians, were a regular part of the bookings.
Long Branch Saloon, 2504 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, CA
Two miles West and South of Keystone Berkeley, the Long Branch was the latest incarnation of a long-time club on San Pablo Avenue and Dwight Way. It had opened in May 1971, and had a capacity of about 350. The Long Branch was sort of like Keystone Berkeley, loud and rocking, but a bit younger and a bit more local. Many East Bay bands played both clubs.
Freight And Salvage, 1827 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, CA
The Freight And Salvage was a unique institution. Founded in 1968, the 87-seat coffee house booked traditional folk music of all types, not just bluegrass and "old-time." No one was allowed to smoke, and they didn't sell beer, because clinking glasses interfered with listening. Miraculously, the club stayed open--it's still open--providing an outlet for really serious musicians playing for small but appreciative audiences.
The Peninsula and The South Bay
In mid-1974, there weren't any nightclubs that primarily booked original rock music. Palo Alto had had a few: there was the Poppycock, open from 1967 to 1970, but at around 250 people it had simply gotten too small. By 1971, the venue (at 135 University Avenue) had evolved into the eclectic In Your Ear. In Your Ear featured jazz, but also some blues and creative rock, a thoughtful music club for a college town. A New Year's Eve '72 fire in a pizza oven put an end to it. Not far away from downtown was the raucous Homer's Warehouse, more like the Keystone Berkeley but in an old quonset hut, but it too had closed by the end of '73.
The Peninsula and South Bay, from Daly City to San Jose, just had some dance joints. Sure, sometimes a funky band like the Sons Of Champlin or Elvin Bishop played one of those clubs, but they were just being a dance band for the night. The Peninsula was still a hotbed of social rest, and interesting music was only happening in San Francisco and Berkeley, with a few outliers in the North.
San Francisco and North Bay Rock Music Club Survey, May-September 1974
Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell Street (near Van Ness), San Francisco, CA
The Great American Music Hall, at 859 O'Farrell, was a club in a beautiful old building in a very sleazy part of San Francisco. The establishment was built in 1907. It was initially a nightclub, restaurant and house of ill-repute called Blanco's, until 1933 and the end of Prohibition. The infamous Sally Rand ran the place as a sort of burlesque dance hall called The Music Box from 1936 to '46. It went through various incarnations in the next few decades, reopening as a jazz club called Blanco's in '48, and then taken over by members of The Moose Lodge. The building was nearly condemned, but at the last second the building was refurbished around 1970 as a short-lived French restaurant called Charles, after its proprietor.
Finally, in 1972, Tom and Jeannie Bradshaw opened the Great American
Music Hall. The club featured jazz, and its full capacity was supposedly
about 600, although I actually think far fewer than that were present,
even for sold out shows. For the most part, there were tables on the
floor and the balconies, although the room was occasionally cleared of
the tables to create a dance floor. Unlike many Bay Area rock clubs,
there was a full bar and a kitchen, so in that respect the Great
American Music Hall was a true nightclub, rather than a beer soaked dance joint like the Keystone Berkeley.
Initially, the Great American Music Hall was focused on jazz bookings.
This was timely, as the older jazz clubs in San Francisco had closed or
were on their last legs. Elsewhere in San Francisco, there was also still the Keystone Korner, of course, but
it did not have a liquor license (I think they did sell beer, but I'm
not sure). The Great American location was appropriate, too, as it was not too far from
main streets and downtown, halfway between the Fillmore West and the
old Fillmore, at the edge of a very seedy old neighborhood called The
Tenderloin. However, inside the refurbished bordello it was quite
beautiful, and the sound was wonderful: elegant sounds in a seedy
neighborhood is the essence of jazz in many ways.
Very quickly, however, the "Great American Music" name took on a broader
significance. There were plenty of rock nightclubs in the Bay Area, but
with folk music no longer viable, there were plenty of artists who
didn't really have a place to play. Thus the Great American became a
stopping point for great American musicians like Vassar Clements or John
Fahey, working in a variety of musical traditions in a mostly acoustic
style, but with an appropriate seriousness that put them on the level of
the jazz musicians who also played there. Sitting down at a table with a
drink was a far better way to hear Doc Watson or Howard Roberts than
some noisy place that was better suited for rockin' out.
The Great American Music Hall was just two doors down from a truly
notorious San Francisco institution, called The O'Farrell Theater. The
O'Farrell Theater, at 895 O'Farrell (at Polk), formerly a Pontiac
dealership, had actually briefly been a former Grateful Dead rehearsal hall in early 1967. Later in 1967 it became a rock venue called The Western Front,
but there were various problems, and since they were never able to book high
profile bands, the venue closed. Near the end of The Western Front,
in late 1967, it was taken over by two brothers from Antioch named Jim
and Artie Mitchell. The truly infamous Mitchell Brothers gave up putting
on rock shows and instead used the venue to show the movies they had
made, changing the name to The O'Farrell Theater.
There is quite a lot more to the Mitchell Brothers story, although I
strongly advise you not to google it at work. By 1974, although the
Mitchell Brothers had made some very lucrative movies--Mitchell Brothers
lawsuits are responsible for those FBI warnings you see prior to
watching a video--the O'Farrell Theater was primarily focused on live
performance, albeit not of a kind that competed directly with the
Great American Music Hall.
In May 1974, the Great American Music Hall was still primarily a jazz club, but they had widened their scope. In the 60s, "jazz fans" were some years older than rock fans, but by the '70s the audiences had merged somewhat. There were older jazz fans, sure, but there were also rock fans whose tastes had broadened as well. Also, listeners were more aware that American musical styles had evolved in different ways, and bluegrass, for example, wasn't necessarily so far from be-bop as you might think. The Great American Music Hall played a critical role in reminding the Bay Area that different strains of American music, from rock to jazz to bluegrass and beyond, had more in common than not. Since this is a rock blog, for this post I will only summarize the different jazz and folk acts, rather than go into complete detail, or the post will never end.
Great American Music Hall Performance Listings, May 1974
May 2, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Art Lande's Rubisa Patrol and Light Year [space-rock] Free (Thursday)
In May, 1974, The Great American Music Hall was generally open on Thursday through Monday nights. Some weeks there were shows on Tuesday or Wednesday, but only for touring acts. On some Thursdays and Mondays, there would be jazz performers and no admission charge. The Great American had a bar and a kitchen, so they were not as dependent on ticket sales.
Pianist Art Lande (b.1947) had moved from New York to San Francisco in 1969. His band Rubisa Patrol played very sophisticated jazz, but it was quiet and reflective, rather than loud or electric. In November 1974, Lande would release the album Red Lanta on ECM Records. Red Lanta was an album of duets between Lande and saxophonist Jan Garbarek. The Rubisa Patrol featured trumpeter Mark Isham, bassist Bill Douglass and drummer Glenn Cronkhite. The quartet would release a well-regarded album in ECM in 1976. The Rubisa Patrol wasn't loud, but they didn't play easy listening music, either.
The band Light Year was advertised as "Space-Rock." The implication from this and various other bookings around town was that Light Year played some sort of progressive rock. This, too, was revealing, suggesting that the same sort of listeners liked advanced jazz and advanced rock. Of course, with no admission charge, the goal might also have been to capture small audiences for both bands, too.
Latin Jazz had always had a large footprint in San Francisco, and thanks to Carlos Santana, it had a much broader audience. The Great American Music Hall were the promoters for a big Latin jazz concert at California Hall (at 625 Polk Street, at Turk). The ads said "The Great American Music Hall Presents." Clearly the club felt they could draw more than their own house could hold. The California Hall was a 2000-capacity hall for rent, occasionally used for rock concerts over the years.
Mongo Santamaria (1917-2003) was a Cuban conguero and bandleader, who spent most of his professional career in the United States. He had recorded big "crossover" Latin jazz hits with the songs "Afro-Blue" and Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man." Luis Gasca was an experienced trumpeter who had many associations with Santana, Malo and other Latin rockers. San Francisco's own Cal Tjader (1925-82), from San Francisco, was a Godfather of Latin jazz, despite being of Swedish descent. Chepito Areas had been the timbalero in the classic Santana lineup, and was now leading his own band.
In the meantime, however, the Great American was still open. Shrewdly, they booked an act who would draw almost no crossover with Mongo Santamaria. Butch Whacks and His Glass Packs were a 15-piece rock and roll band dedicated to performing old style rock and roll hits from the 50s and early 60s. The band got their start as students at St. Mary’s College in Moraga playing frat parties, and eventually morphed into a very popular bay area club and theater act.
For jazz acts, there were tables on the main floor, very appealing for those who wanted to come early for dinner and a drink. I'm pretty sure that for a dance band like this, the tables were cleared from the main floor. There still would have been plenty of tables in the balcony or around the rim of the floor for those who wanted a seat.
For Sunday and Tuesday night, the Great American hosted a touring folk revival act. In the late 50s and early 60s, Alex Hassilev, Mike Settle and Dave Guard had been in the Limeliters, the First Edition and the Kingston Trio, respectively. All of those groups had gotten popular with the college crowd, singing catchy old folk tunes devoid of any of the context. It was entertaining, but exactly the sort of approach that serious young musicians like Jerry Garcia or David Grisman objected to about those sort of folkies.
Per an SF Examiner review by Phil Elwood, the trio was well-received by a crowd of the age of those who would have liked it 10 or 15 years earlier. Keep in mind, many of those fans had gotten to love jazz at the same time, as well, so this booking isn't the outlier it seems. Still, Elwood pointed out that the music hadn't aged that well, and nobody younger was playing this kind of music anymore.
Reilly & Maloney were a folk duo who performed their own songs. Ginny Reilly and David Maloney would release five albums from 1976 to 1983.
May 6, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Free Jazz w/Scratch Ensemble Big Band (Monday)
On Monday nights, the Great American Music Hall had a big band, and admission was free. Now, the listings were slightly misleading, since the Scratch Ensemble didn't play "Free Jazz," but probably anyone thinking of going already knew that. Jazz musicians often love big band jazz for the discipline and camaraderie, and many of them played in such groups in school. But big band music, even--or particularly--modern variants, was no longer popular music. In any case, a 12-or-more-piece jazz band made no economic sense. So many jazz clubs had a Monday night big band, with the local heavies showing up to play and hang out. Jazz musicians don't usually have gigs on a Monday, so they were all available. Since big bands have charts, it didn't exactly matter how often the players had showed up, since they were reading anyway. The music was probably great, and thoroughly lost over time. I believe saxophonist Vince Denham was one of the anchors of the Monday night band.
May 10-11, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Don Ellis and his Electrophonic Orchestra (Friday-Saturday)
Trumpeter Don Ellis (1934-78) had led a remarkable big band since the 60s. The Don Ellis Orchestra had been founded in Los Angeles in the late 60s as an attempt to fuse Indian rhythms with big band instrumentation. As an added bonus, the Orchestra featured many electric instruments, then fairly rare in jazz. Playing big band charts in times like 19/4 was incredibly difficult, and thus hugely attractive to LA studio musicians that were making bank on film sessions, but longing to play serious jazz. The first Don Ellis Orchestra, Live In 3 2/3/4 Time, had been recorded at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1966. They had released numerous albums since, played the Fillmore West and other rock venues, but had always been a part-time ensemble.
For most music fans, their only contact with Don Ellis' music was the soundtrack to the French Connection movie (with Gene Hackman), particularly the amazing car-chase sequence. I don't know how many people attended this weekend's concerts, but every Ellis lineup featured heavy session players showing they could still jazz it up, no matter how hard the chart. At this time, Ellis' most recent album would have been Soaring, released on MPS in 1973. The lineup included a string section, but I have no idea if that was part of Ellis '74 touring band. Sadly, Ellis passed away from various ailments in 1978.
Rosalie Sorrels (1933-2009) and Mike Seeger (1933-2009) were both established folk artists. Mike Seeger (half-brother of Pete) had formed the groundbreaking New Lost City Ramblers in 1958, who were essential in returning authentic folk music to the fore, wresting the genre away from the likes of the Kingston Trio. Rosalie Sorrels had not really started her music career until the 1960s, by which time she was already married with a family. Both of these singers fit into the Great American rubric of presenting important American music, without direct concern over genre. Although both singers could (and did) play the Freight And Salvage in Berkeley, there wasn't really another good venue for them in San Francisco.
May 13, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Free Jazz w Scratch Ensemble Big Band (Monday)
May 16, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Bo Diddley (Thursday)
If Bo Diddley isn't great American music, who is? The Keystone Berkeley regularly booked Bo, but there weren't really any other gigs for him in San Francisco or the Bay Area.
Moby Grape had been the Great-Almost of the Fillmore, a band of 5 talented, handsome musicians with a killer debut album in Summer '67 on a major label who should have rolled on to huge success. But Columbia pushed them too hard, and the rock underground was suspicious of the Grape's sudden arrival. In fact, they were a great band, really good on stage and with infinite potential, but they never got over the hype of their debut. By 1974, Moby Grape was on their third reunion.
But guess what? Moby Grape was still really good. This configuration of the band had original members Jerry Miller, Peter Lewis (guitars) and Bob Mosley (bass), along with South Bay guitarist Jeff Blackburn (taking the Skip Spence slot) and Santa Cruz drummer John Craviotta. Tapes show us that this Moby Grape were a really good band. Blackburn would go on to write "My My Hey Hey" with Neil Young, a few years later, when he was in The Ducks (along with Craviotta and Mosley). For the Great American, the marker here was that a Friday night booking of some old Fillmore stalwarts fit broadly into their universe. There wasn't a meaningful distinction between a "rock" or a "jazz" club.
Sutro Sympathy Orchestra was a rock band from Reno that regularly played San Francisco.
May 18, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Hassilev, Settle and Guard (Saturday)
May 20, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Free Jazz w/ Scratch Ensemble Big Band (Monday)
May 21-22, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Maynard Ferguson and his Orchestra (Tuesday-Wednesday)
Trumpeter Maynard Ferguson (1928-2006), from Montreal, had been part of many big bands in the 1950s, and he had formed his own in the early 60s. When big bands declined in the mid-60s, Ferguson moved on to England. By 1971, his new big band was touring North America, merging jazz and rock in a big band context. By 1973, Ferguson had relocated to New York, and his band was mostly American, but with just 12 members. His current album would have been M.F. Horn 4&5, Live At Jimmy's, a double album recorded July 10, 1973 and released by Columbia in 1974.
May 23, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Art Lande Rubisa Patrol (Thursday)
May 24-25, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Morgana King with Art Lande Trio (Friday-Saturday)
Singer Morgana King held down the weekend, backed by the Art Lande Trio (Rubisa Patrol without trumpeter Mark Isham). Rubisa Patrol held down the Thursday night slot.
Morgana King (1930-2018) was from Pleasantville, NY, and had been a jazz singer since the 1950s. She was also an actress, and had appeared in the original Godfather movie (as Don Vito Corleone's wife)
May 27, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Free Jazz w/ Scratch Ensemble Big Band (Monday)
May 30, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Jerry Garcia, Merl Saunders and friends (Thursday)
The Great American Music Hall was open on Thursdays, and on this Thursday the great American music was provided by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders. The concept of "Great American Music" was perfect for Garcia, since he cut across all sorts of styles. Although Garcia's home base was the Keystone Berkeley, the Great American had a mellower feel to it, and Garcia responded accordingly. E.W. Wainwright played drums this night, along with Saunders on keyboards, Martin Fierro on tenor sax and flute and the perennial John Kahn on bass (yes, of course there's a tape, and we know what Jerry played).
Garcia's critical importance to Bay Area nightclubs wasn't just that he was a major star willing to play clubs. It was that he would play on weeknights. If you look at just this month, the Great American had some free nights of jazz (or perhaps $1.00 at the door), and the no-longer-current Bo Diddley. When Garcia played on a Thursday night, he would pack the place on a night when the club was normally thin, leaving the weekend free for a regular booking. And, let's face it, we know about Deadheads--they came early, stayed for two sets, danced happily on a (no-doubt) cleared out dance-floor and got plenty thirsty. Garcia's economic importance in the Bay Area nightclub ecosystem cannot be overstated.
May 31-June 1, 1974 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA: Taj Mahal (Friday-Saturday)
Taj Mahal (b. 1942 Henry St. Clair Fredericks) came from a musical family, so he grew up with a far broader understanding of different musical styles than most '60s musicians. After college (UMass-Amherst), Fredericks had moved to Santa Monica in 1964. He started playing electric blues in a racially mixed band, not a recipe for commercial success, but well ahead of his time. Although the Rising Sons (with Ry Cooder, Gary Marker and others) ultimately came to naught, Fredericks was signed to Columbia as "Taj Mahal." With the help of Ry Cooder, Jesse Ed Davis and others, Taj put out some seminal 60s electric blues albums.
By the 1970s, the world had caught up somewhat, and Taj Mahal did not stand out as much. He was still ahead of the curve, though--at one point he had toured with a band featuring 4 tubas, for example. His 1974 album was his 8th on Columbia, Mo' Roots. It featured reggae piano from Ashton "Family Man" Barrett, and some covers of reggae songs ("Johnny Too Bad" and Bob Marley's "Slave Driver"), along with the presence of local musicians like Merl Saunders, guitarist Hoshal Wright and bassist Billy Rich. In 1974, this was way ahead of its time.
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| The entrance to the Boarding House, at 960 Bush Street (near Taylor) sometime in the 1970s |
The Boarding House, 960 Bush Street (near Taylor), San Francisco, CA
960 Bush Street, the home of the Boarding House, had a lengthy history. Throughout the century, it had been a nightclub, or a restaurant, and even a recording studio at various times. In 1970, the building had been bought by Doug Weston, the proprietor of West Hollywood's legendary Troubadour club. Weston's plan was to open a San Francisco Troubadour, that would include recording and television studios, and spark an empire for Weston. The SF Troubadour had opened in August 1970, but it hadn't gone well. The Troubadour was too straight for San Francisco, and too freaky for the Nob Hill Fairmont crowd. The club had closed by Halloween.
In March, 1971, Weston's house manager David Allen (who had also been the manager at the Hungry i in North Beach), had reopened 960 Bush Street as The Boarding House, focusing on acoustic music. By mid-72, the original venue had moved upstairs to what was then called The Boarding House Theater. The venue, the former Coast Recorders studio (still at 960 Bush Street, but on the second floor), was lovely little bowl-shaped room. It seated up to 300, with great sightlines and nice sound. The Boarding House rapidly became the most appealing room in the city for breaking new acts.
Despite its appeal, however, the Boarding House still had financial problems. For one thing, although the club was a restaurant and served dinner at every show, it had no liquor license, and could only serve beer and wine. For another, the location was in a hilly part of the city, several blocks from downtown, and it wasn't going to pick up casual walking traffic like a Broadway or North Beach club. Finally, parking wasn't that easy, and thus the club would be daunting for suburbanites. Actually being inside the Boarding House was great--I saw some bands there, and I can vouch for that--but it had some barriers to success. It was small, so it was hard to have a big win. It had no liquor license, so it didn't make as much money on slow nights. And it got no casual traffic, so it had a hard time building up regular acts. If the act wasn't "hot," the Boarding House didn't do that well. Local acts did play the Boarding House, but generally only when they had record company backing.
Still, until the rise of the Old Waldorf club in 1977, the Boarding House was the preferred place for record companies to showcase their acts for critics, radio and record industry people, and so the acts were always interesting.
The Boarding House Performance Listings, June 1974
May 28-June 2, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: David Bromberg/Lisa Kindred and Ascension (Wednesday-Sunday)
Guitarist David Bromberg, from Tarrytown, NY, had dropped out of Columbia University to become a professional musician. Bromberg had played numerous sessions, for folk, rock, soul and country artists. He excelled at both electric and acoustic guitar, and his knowledge of different blues and folk styles was encyclopedic. Rock fans mostly recognized his name from the back of some Bob Dylan albums, as he had played on Self Portrait and New Morning. Bromberg had released his debut Columbia album in 1972.
Bromberg was a brilliant musician--still is--and his albums were remarkably eclectic. This probably didn't help him commercially. Bromberg's voice wasn't that pop-friendly, either, but his sardonic delivery was appealing to over-educated teenagers (take it from me). Around 1973, Bromberg had moved to Marin County. His current album was his third, Wanted: Dead Or Alive. One side of the album was live, and the other side had been recorded with members of the Grateful Dead (on June 17, 1972, with additional overdubs later). Bromberg was based locally, but he was signed to a major record label, and in that sense this booking was typical of the Boarding House.
Bromberg performed with an amazing band, always with at least seven members. Dick Fegy played guitars, mandolin and other stringed instruments, Hugh McDonald played bass, Steve Mosley on drums, Jay Ungar or Brantley Kearns on fiddle, and a horn section of John Firmin (saxophones), Curt Lindberg (trombone) and Peter Ecklund (trumpet). Most of the band switched instruments constantly to accommodate the varying arrangements (for a contemporary tape, see here).
Ascension was a sophisticated rock band featuring guitarist Lisa Kindred. Kindred, from Buffalo, NY, had released an album of fingerpicking blues on Vanguard back in 1965 (I Like It That Way), but had nothing but bad luck afterwards with record companies. Around 1970, Kindred had moved to the Bay Area, and only played locally for the balance of her career. Mostly she played solo, but in Ascension she teemed up with lead guitarist Debbie Olcese, Malcolm Rockwell on keyboards, Chuck Bernstein on drums and either Gary Nelson or "Maus" on bass. Ascension never recorded to my knowledge.
This weekday booking was advertised as an event taped for television, with unnamed special guests. Most likely, well-known country musicians would sit in with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. The configuration of the Boarding House stage was very well-suited for filming. Since both the Dirt Band and Steve Martin had the same manager, the pairing made sense.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band had been founded in 1966 in Long Beach, CA, and had released five albums by 1969. Initially somewhat successful, in a country-folk vein, they "went electric" but did not thrive. At the end of 1968, after appearing in the musical Paint Your Wagon, they temporarily broke up. Late in 1969, the band had reformulated itself. Their 1970 album on Liberty had been Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy. The album would be fairly successful. The band would make a pop hit out of Jerry Jeff Walker's ballad "Mr. Bojangles," which would reach #9 on the Billboard pop charts. In April of 1971, they would also have a modest hit (it reached #53) with their cover of Kenny Loggins' "House At Pooh Corner" ("Winnie The Pooh/Doesn't know what to do"), although the song is now associated with Loggins And Messina.
Manager Bill McEuen had renegotiated their contract,
giving the group more artistic control. The band now emphasized a more
pronounced country/bluegrass style, shying away from straight pop music.
The band still featured Jeff Hanna as primary vocalist, Jimmie Fadden
and Jimmy Ibbotson on guitars, John McEuen (Bill's brother) on banjo and
various stringed instruments, and Les Thompson on bass. Most of the
group sang, and between them they played a wide spread of instruments. In 1972, Bill McEuen had arranged for the Dirt Band to record and release a triple album featuring country music pioneers like Mother Maybelle Carter, Merle Travis, Roy Acuff, Earl Scruggs, Vassar Clements and Doc Watson. 1973's Will The Circle Be Unbroken (United Artists) remains a timeless document of the history of country music.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's current album was Stars And Stripes Forever (UA, 1974). It was a mostly live double album.
Comedian Steve Martin
had been a High School classmate of the McEuen brothers in Orange
County. Bill McEuen managed Martin as well as the Dirt Band. At one
point in the late 60s, he had shared a house with the Dirt Band. Martin
had been a writer for the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, until the
popular, yet controversial, show had been canceled by CBS in early 1970. Martin now had a rising career as a comedian, although his banjo playing was part of the act.
June 5-9, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: Mary Travers/ Ed Bluestone (Thursday-Sunday)
Mary Travers had been part of Peter, Paul and Mary in the 60s, and had since gone on to a solo career. He current album was Circles, on Warner Brothers. It was her 4th solo album, and included covers of songs like "Goin' Back" and "House At Pooh Corner." Phil Elwood reviewed the show and was modestly positive, but he noted that Travers' act was more suited for a Las Vegas nightclub. His comment signifies the view of hip San Francisco at the time, namely that rock, jazz and folk music was more authentic than the mere entertainment seen on TV or in a casino. Comedian Ed Bluestone opened the shows.
June 11-15, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: John Stewart/Wendy Waldman (Wednesday-Sunday)
John Stewart (1939-2008) had been a member of The Kingston Trio from 1961 to 1967. The group had been very popular, but they had been passed by when the likes of The Beach Boys and The Beatles came along. Stewart had gone solo, and released a variety of well-received albums, such as 1969's California Bloodlines. Although he had written a hit for The Monkees ("Daydream Believer"), and he was well known at this time. yet was not particularly successful. His most recent album would probably have been The Phoenix Concerts, a live double album released by RCA in 1974. On the album, Stewart was backed by a crack band that included Jim Gordon (drums), Loren Newkirk (piano) and Dan Dugmore (pedal steel guitar), along with his wife Buffy Ford Stewart on vocals.
By 1974, Stewart had moved to Marin. Similar to Bromberg, although he lived locally, he was on a National label. I don't know if he had a small combo or just accompanied himself on guitar.
Wendy Waldman had been in group called Bryndle, with Karla Bonoff, Kenny Edwards and Andrew Gold. Bryndle had released one album in 1970, but all the band members went on to solo careers. In 1974, Waldman released her second album, Gypsy Symphony, on Warner Brothers, had been recorded in Muscle Shoals. Waldman's recording and performing career was minor, but she was hugely successful over the years as a songwriter.
June 16, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: MaryMcCreary/Wendy Waldman (Monday)
This Monday night booking was probably sponsored by a record company, in order to invite radio and other industry people to see Mary McReary. For music professionals, any weeknight was a worknight, so the fact that civilians couldn't always attend Monday night show wouldn't have mattered.
Mary McReary had initially been in a Berkeley gospel group called The Heavenly Tones, when she was in High School. One of the members was Vet Stewart, who was Sly Stone's younger sister. The Heavenly Tones evolved into an R&B group called Little Sister, who had released a single under Sly's imprint. McCreary became a backup singer for The Family Stone, until she left to go solo in 1972. Jezebel, McCreary's current album, was her second album on Shelter Records. Shelter owners Leon Russell and Denny Cordell co-produced the album (McCreary would marry Russell a few years later). Jezebel had A-list players on the record, including Russell's band members, the Tower Of Power horns and Chuck Rainey.
June 19-22, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: Livingston Taylor (Wednesday-Sunday)
Livingston Taylor was two years younger than his brother James, but he
had been a folk singer in the Boston area since 1966. Livingston was also a songwriter,
but he played in a bluesier style than James. Livingston had been one of
the first signings on Capricorn records, the Macon, GA label founded by
former Otis Redding manager Phil Walden. Walden and Capricorn's
flagship was the Allman Brothers Band, of course, but they had various
other acts as well. Taylor's current album was Over The Rainbow, which had been released on Capricorn in 1973. On the album, Taylor was backed by some Capricorn regulars like Chuck Leavell, Jimmy Nalls and Tommy Talton. I assume he played solo in person.
June 25-30, 1974 Boarding House, San Francisco, CA: Etta James/Dave Alexander (Wednesday-Monday)
Etta James (1938-2012, born Jamezetta Hawkins) was a legendary talent, but her career had been beset by numerous health issues. At this time, her most recent album would have been Come A Little Closer, which had been released in 1974 on Chess Records. She had recorded the album in conjunction with a trip to drug rehab, and it was a tribute to her talent that everyone got it done. It was produced by Gabe Mekler (from Steppenwolf), and had included contributions from the likes of Lowell George, Chuck Rainey and Larry Nash.
Oakland-based blues pianist Dave Alexander was actually from Shreveport, LA. He had moved to Oakland in 1957, after a stint in the US Navy. He was a largely self-taught piano player, although he had played with many blues artists. Mostly Alexander played solo, itself a rarity on the local blues scene. In 1973, he had released his second solo album on Berkeley's Arhoolie Records, Dirt On The Ground.
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| A Chronicle ad for The Orphanage, at 807 Montgomery Street in San Francisco, for the week of July 14, 1974. Unlike most rock clubs, they served lunch. |
The Orphanage, 807 Montgomery Street (near Columbus), San Francico, CA
The Orphanage, at 807 Montgomery Street in San Francisco, had opened about 1973. In the 60s, the site had been a topless joint called The Roaring 20s. Roaring 20s featured psychedelic blues bands (like The Charlatans or The Salvation Army Banned), and also a topless girl on a swing. The location, near Columbus and Broadway, was at the nexus of groovy North Beach, sexy topless Broadway and the downtown Financial District. The Orphanage featured original rock, but it was a bit second tier, usually groups on the way up or past their prime. Still, the club had its moments: in 1973, one of the regular bands had been Graham Central Station, featuring former Sly and The Family Stone bassist Larry Graham, and they had gone on to big success.
I'm not really sure of the size of the Orphanage, but based on the bookings I think it was about 300 or so. The Orphanage, however, was different than the other rock clubs in this chronicle because it had a different business model, shown by the ad above. For one thing, The Orphanage served lunch from 11am, and they also offered catering. Most California nightclubs served a little food, for licensing reasons, but it was usually just burgers or fried chicken. The Orphanage appears to have been an actual functioning restaurant. Also, not only was the Orphanage a rock nightclub, they had "Troubadours Extraordinaire" from 5-7pm almost every night of the week. I assume these were acoustic solos, probably singing popular covers, but that meant that the Orphanage had business at lunch, happy hour and evenings on every weeknight. This was very different than music-focused clubs like Keystone Berkeley or Great American Music Hall.
The key to the Orphanage's business model was its location. Because it was on the edge of the Financial District, there was an opportunity for lunch business, and post 5pm Happy Hour, too. All those workers could take off their ties and stop by for a drink, and they didn't have to be young rock and rollers. But if they were younger, they could stick around, or even go to dinner somewhere else and catch the evening's live show. So the Orphanage catered (literally) to the Financial District in the afternoon and rock fans at night, absorbing whatever crossover there might have been. At the same time, 807 Montgomery was near enough to North Beach and Broadway to absorb some evening crossover from those districts as well.
With respect to the Financial District, keep in mind that in those days the New York Stock Exchange was only open from 10:00am to 3:00pm New York time, so in San Francisco that was 7:00am to noon. So all the stock traders were "Done For The Day" (in the lingo) shortly after noon. The considerably less automated marketplace had far more order clerks and phone operators than today, so there were lots of people downtown whose workday was ending when most people were finishing lunch hour. Take it from me--those people were ready for a drink or two at 1:00pm (and, let me add, this was before the Options Floor opened in 1976...). So the Orphanage could be a Financial District watering hole in the afternoon and early evening, and a rock club at night.
The Orphanage Performance Listings, July 1974
July 3, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Big Joe Turner (Wednesday)
Big Joe Turner (1911-85) was a legendary singer before there was even rock and roll. Known as "The Boss Of The Blues," he had gotten his start singing in Kansas City nightclubs in the 1920s. In the 1930s and 40s he had sung with the Count Basie Orchestra. Big Joe had had the original hit with "Shake, Rattle and Roll" in 1954, a few years before Bill Haley (a local band must have backed Turner--I'd love to know who it was). By this time, the world had somewhat caught up to Turner's importance. His most recent album would have been The Bosses, with Count Basie, which had been released on Pablo Records in 1973.
July 4-6, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Grayson Street (Thursday-Saturday)
Grayson Street were a sort of roots rock band from the East Bay. They were co-led by harmonica player Rick Kellogg and tenor saxophonist Terry Hanck, both of whom sang. Grayson Street never recorded, but many of its members ended up working with Elvin Bishop, Coke Escovedo, Tower Of Power, Santana and others. Lenny Pickett had been in Grayson Street, prior to answering the call from Tower. The actual Grayson Street was in West Berkeley, pretty near the Long Branch. Needless to say, Grayson Street was one of the regular bands at the club near its namesake, but they played all over the Bay Area.
July 7-8, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Delta Wires (Sunday-Monday)
Delta Wires were a hard-working band from Oakland. They had formed in 1970 at the California College of Arts and Crafts (on Broadway Terrace), and had been gigging ever since. They had a bluesy sound with a 3-piece horn section. Delta Wires played East Bay clubs for many years, and developed a local following, but never graduated beyond the East Bay.
Stoneground had originally formed in 1970, as the "house band" for Tom Donahue's Medicine Ball Caravan adventure. They had released a few albums, and had built a sort of following, but they had broken up in early 1973. In 1974, the core members re-formed the group. This time, instead of 5 lead singers, there was just one, and (I think) there were only four band members, fronted by lead guitarist/singer Tim Barnes and organist Fred Webb. Although I'm sure they did some of the same songs, the new Stoneground would have only been vaguely similar to the earlier incarnation. At some point in 1975, Stoneground added two female lead singers (Annie Sampson and Jo Baker), but I'm not sure when they joined.
The characteristic booking at the Orphanage was a danceable
soul/rock crossover. Graham Central Station, while leaning heavily on
the funk, had found that nice sweet spot between rock and soul. Bands
like Delta Wires, Grayson Street and Stoneground were also trying to straddle that
line.
July 11-13, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Sahara (Thursday-Saturday)
Sahara is unknown to me. Note that in contrast to many other rock clubs in the Bay Area at the time, the Orphanage didn't have their best acts on weekends. That tells us, implicitly, that much of the Orphanage's crowd came from downtown offices, or people who served them (like waiters or bartenders at Financial District restaurants). The Financial District was a ghost town on weekends, so the Orphanage didn't book the bigger acts then.
July 17, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Coasters (Wednesday)
The Coasters had been a successful recording act since 1955. Everybody recognized their hit songs, like "Searchin'," "Youngblood," 'Poison Ivy" or "Yakety Yak." Throughout the 60s, the Coasters continued to tour with different members, replaying their old hits for nostalgia, or people too young to have seen them earlier. Many rock fans looked down their noses at the 60s and 70s Coasters for being an "inauthentic" copy band with only one original member (if that), trading on nostalgia. Probably those same rock fans went to Indian Bingo Casinos in the 90s to see the retread versions of their favorite teenage bands, with just an aging lead singer or a drummer as the sole connection to a storied past.
July 15-18, 1974 The July 15-18, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Sapo/Bittersweet (Monday-Thursday)
Sapo is unknown to me, but they may have been a Latin rock band.
Bittersweet was a rock band from Chico, CA, who moved to the East Bay. Rock historian Bruno Cerriotti has a detailed history of their adventures.
July 19-20, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Cisium (Friday-Saturday)
Cisium is unknown to me.
July 21, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Holly Penfield (Sunday)
Holly Penfield has been a singing star in London and Europe for over 25 years, known for her sophisticated jazz styles.Penfield was a
native of San Francisco, however, and back in the 1970s, she was writing
her own songs and accompanying herself on piano. At this time, of
course, Carole King was one of the most popular recording artists in the
world, and the singer/songwriter track was a viable one. Penfield
played many club gigs around the Bay Area, but did not thrive until she
went to London and re-invented herself in the 1980s.
Note that Penfield isn't really dance-oriented, atypical for the Orphanage. But on a Sunday night, the club wouldn't have had a liquored-up after work crowd from the offices, so a mellower evening would have worked just fine.
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| The Rubinoos, from Berkeley, some time in the mid-to-late 1970s |
July 22, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Earth Quake/Rubinoos (Monday)
Earth Quake had formed at Berkeley High School in the 60s as The Purple Earthquake. In 1972, they would release their second album on A&M Records, Why Don't You Try Me. A&M would drop Earth Quake by the end of that year. Earth Quake had refused to give up, however. By 1974, the band had built up a huge following at the Long Branch, regularly headlining Friday night shows. They had built a crowd at the Keystone Berkeley as well.
Earth Quake played in a somewhat anachronistic "British Invasion" style, but it would end up coming back into vogue when the "New Wave" surfaced. Earth Quake had original material, but they also covered obscure hits from the 60s (like "Fridays On My Mind," by the Australian band The Easybeats), so they distinguished themselves from other bands. Earth Quake would resuscitate their career in 1975 by releasing records on their own label, Beserkely Records, presaging the punk/DIY movement by some years.
The Rubinoos were another Berkeley band, featuring singer Jon Rubin and lead guitarist Tommy Dunbar, the younger brother of Earth Quake's Robbie. The Rubinoos played intentionally retro styled 60s pop. The Rubinoos were in the process of building an audience, following Earth Quake's path. In the middle of 1975, Earth Quake, the Rubinoos and some other acts associated with them would self-release an album called Beserkely Chartbusters. That album brought Johnathan Richman and Greg Kihn some well-deserved attention, and anticipated the Punk and New-Wave DIY ethos by a few years.
July 23-24, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Earth Quake (Tuesday-Wednesday)
July 25-27, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Grayson Street (Thursday-Saturday)
July 28, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Azteca (Sunday)
Azteca had been founded by brothers Pete and Coke Escovedo, well-known in Latin jazz circles in San Francisco, and fellow travelers with Santana and Malo, among others. Azteca was a remarkable group, playing progressive jazz with a Latin twist, with contemporary lyrics layered above it. Azteca had up to
15 members, including 3 or 4 vocalists and a horn section. They had put
out two albums on Columbia (in 1971 and '73)and got incredible reviews . Yet there was no way they could break through to sell enough records to
break even. At this point, I think any band the Escovedos fronted was
called Azteca--which wasn't invalid--but it's unlikely to have been the
All-Star ensemble of prior years.
July 29-30, 1974 The Orphanage, San Francisco, CA: Van Morrison (Monday-Tuesday) 7:30 & 11:00
Van Morrison made a guest appearance at the Orphanage on a Monday and a Tuesday--note the early and late shows. Probably the early shows were for the Financial District office crowd, and the later shows for fans who had gotten off work at the restaurants.
At this time, Van's current album was the double-live It's Too Late To Stop Now, released in February 1974 on Warner Brothers. His next album, Veedon Fleece, had already been recorded, but would not be released until November. Why Morrison felt the need to play these nights is unknown, as were most things related to Van. In any case, assuming he was in the mood--always a tricky question--Van would have taken his crack band and absolutely killed it in a club like the Orphanage.
I have never heard of Sisuin, but I have a feeling that the booking was actually Cisium (see July 19-20). I don't know anything about Cisium, either, but at least I recognize their names from listings.
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| The site of The Inn Of The Beginning, at 8201 Old Redwood Highway in Cotati, CA, as it appeared in July 2010 (the IOTB logo is still visible) |
Inn Of The Beginning, 8201 Old Redwood Highway, Cotati, CA
Cotati was a sleepy, iconoclastic community that dated back to the 19th century, and a generally interesting place, for a rural area. As development expanded beyond Santa Rosa, the largest city in the County, Cotati was in danger of being annexed by Rohnert Park, a growing suburb of Santa Rosa. As a result, the town incorporated as a city in 1963 to control its own destiny.
As part of the dramatic expansion of state-funded education in California, Sonoma State College was founded in Santa Rosa in 1960 (taking the faculty, staff and facility of San Francisco State’s Santa Rosa Center, founded in 1956). However, by 1966 the entire Sonoma State campus had relocated to a new site in Rohnert Park. Calling the campus and the county “bucolic” does it a cruel injustice; year-round balmy weather and a beautiful setting made Sonoma State a desirable campus immediately. Eccentric Cotati, just next to Rohnert Park, immediately became the ‘college town’ associated with the Sonoma State campus.
The free-thinking history of Cotati made it a nice fit with the newly expanding Sonoma State campus. The Inn of The Beginning was founded in 1968 as a coffee shop and bar that provided both a watering hole for the local wildlife and a venue for local groups. The opening night band on September 28, 1968 was Bronze Hog, featuring guitarist Frank Hayhurst. Hayhurst, at one point, became co-operator of the Inn, and later owned a music store in Cotati. The Bronze Hog played The Inn Of The Beginning in all its incarnations for decades, and the band still plays around the city periodically, and that sums up Cotati in a nutshell (for more on Cotati in the 1960s, see here).
Cotati’s friendly atmosphere and convenient location of The Inn made it an attractive place for the many world-class musicians who lived in Marin to use the Inn of The Beginning as a venue to work on new material or try out a new lineup. Over the decades, the likes of Van Morrison and Jerry Garcia played there many times, often with very little publicity. Ironically, this has led to an expansion of the legend beyond its actual width; the New Riders of The Purple Sage played there in 1969, but this has led to the unsustainable story that the Grateful Dead used to play there “every Tuesday.” Janis Joplin is reputed to have joined Big Brother there one night in 1970, and it is impossible to say whether she did for certain.
By 1974, however, while Cotati retained its charms, the Inn Of The Beginning had been crowded aside by larger Bay Area clubs. Since the Inn held only about 200, it couldn't compete with clubs in Berkeley and San Francisco that held more. A survey of the clubs bookings over the years show more and more local bands playing each year. Now, in some cases, those locals were from Marin County and had some albums under their belt--Jerry Garcia would play a gig there once in a while--but the Inn Of The Beginning was definitely in the second tier. Some good bands played there, but Cotati wasn't a premier booking.
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| Fee Waybill of The Tubes on stage, ca 1974 (probably at Winterland) |
Inn Of The Beginning Performance Listings, August 1974
Any presumably local bands that I do not recognize are listed in italics.
August 1-3, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: The Tubes/Mike McFadden (Thursday-Saturday)
A popular Phoenix band called The Beans had moved from Phoenix to San Francisco in late 1970. The Beans had played around the Bay Area some, but their brand of blues-rock didn't stand out. When a couple of members quit, guitarist Bill Spooner, pianist Vince Welnick and bassist Rick Andersen had recruited two members of a newly-defunct Phoenix band. Guitarist Roger Steen and drummer Prairie Prince were added (formerly of The Red, White and Blues Band). Shrewdly, the musicians promoted roadie John Waybill to lead singer, although he used various names--initially Fee Cranson, later just Fee, and finally Fee Waybill. They started playing as The Tubes in early 1972.
Unlike every other San Francisco band, The Tubes played neither jamming blues nor funky soul, but rather a sort of progressive rock, albeit with some pop sensibility. More importantly, all of their songs featured Fee wearing different costumes and inhabiting different personas. In the early days, many of the props and costumes were just made out of cardboard, but The Tubes were genuinely theatrical in a way that was unlike any other San Francisco band. By 1974, with art-school friend Michael Cotten playing synthesizer (and acting as Art Director), they were getting noticed on the club circuit. The Tubes had opened for Led Zeppelin at Kezar Stadium in 1973, and in the Sunday Chronicle of July14, 1974 critic Joel Selvin had devoted a whole column to them. Selvin's column introduced the Tubes to the Bay Area music public at large--I had never heard of them before that--even though they had no recordings. The Tubes were soon signed by A&M, and would release their debut album in the Fall of 1975.
August 4, 18, 25 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Folk Music (Sunday)
On most Sunday nights, the Inn advertised "Folk Music." Now, this really meant one or two singers with acoustic guitars. Maybe they played folk or blues, or maybe they played CSNY songs, or maybe they played their own music. In club listings, however, "Folk" meant "solo or duo acoustic."
August 5, 12, 26 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Jazz Concert, Jam Session (Monday)
Most Mondays were "jazz night."
August 7, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Acme Music/Me/Crackin' (Wednesday)
Crackin' was an R&B band from San Mateo. They sounded like The Sons Of Champlin, but with a consistently funkier edge. They would release an album on Polydor in 1975. They would also play my High School graduation dance that year.
August 8, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Frankie Beverly's Maze (Thursday)
Frankie Beverly was from Philadelphia, and he had recorded some singles in the 60s as part of The Butlers. In 1970, he had gotten signed by ace producer Kenny Gamble, and had formed a group called Raw Soul. Raw Soul recorded a few singles, but wasn't right for the smooth sound created by Gamble, however. Somehow, Raw Soul had gotten support from Marvin Gaye, and they ended up relocating to San Francisco. Raw Soul toured around with Gaye, who suggested they change their name to Maze. Maze would release their first album in 1977, and the band remains a huge success, still touring.
August 9-10, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Bob Ward & The Cigar Band/Stone Age Elegance (Friday-Saturday)
The Inn Of The Beginning seemed to have just local bands on weekends, a sign that groups could get better bookings in Berkeley or San Francisco, and saved Cotati for weeknights.
August 11, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Clifton Chenier (Sunday)
Clifton Chenier (1925-87) was one of the leading zydeco performers, but in the early 70s that was a pretty obscure form of music. Chenier had a distinctive style on the accordian, essentially playing blues accordian with a New Orleans beat. Chenier had been recording since at least 1954. In the 70s, he released albums on Berkeley's independent Arhoolie label. His current Arhoolie album was Out West, which included guitarist Elvin Bishop on four tracks.
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| All bow down: as we wind on down the road for a 3-hour cruise |
August 14, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Fly/Little Roger and The Goosebumps (Wednesday)
Little Roger and The Goosebumps were a poppy rock group with an arch sense of humor. They were led by guitarist and singer Roger Clark, and violinist Dick Bright. Their showstopper was a version of the theme song to the TV show "Gilligan's Island," done to the tune of "Stairway To Heaven." I saw the Goosebumps open at Winterland (for Thin Lizzy and Graham Parker), and when they did "Stairway To Gilligan's Island" the house went batshit crazy (I can't link it, because the song was blocked for copyright reasons--but you gotta trust me). The group had just formed at this time, and I don't think they were doing "Stairway" yet.
August 15, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Soundhole/Crackin' (Thursday)
Soundhole was a Marin County band that had formed around 1973. In
1974, Soundhole had hired on as Van Morrison's backing band, so they
had a certain status around the Bay Area, even if they had never made an
album. Soundhole played rock with some jazz and soul edges,
appropriately enough in the style of mid-70s Van Morrison. Soundhole
never did make an album (you can find a Nov 26 '74 Winterland tape if you poke around Wolfgang's Vault),
but most of the band members went on to bigger things. Guitarist Brian
Marnell was in SVT, with Jack Casady, organist John Farey was in Zero,
and saxophonist Johnny Colla, bassist Mario Cipollina and drummer Bill
Gibson would go on to Huey Lewis and The News (tenor saxophonist Brian
Hogan was the other member). Soundhole were pretty good, if not well-known.
Guitarist J.R. Weitz (1949-2012) had been in a band called Raven, from Buffalo, NY, along with drummer Gary Mallabar. They had released an album on Columbia in 1969, and had even opened for Led Zeppelin once at the Boston Tea Party (May 23-26 '69). Jimmy Page had been impressed enough to mention Weitz in an interview. In those days, however, musicians often ended up in California, and Weitz had moved to California in 1973 (Mallabar was already in Marin, as he had moved as part of Van Morrison's band).
Weitz played fusion-jazz for about a decade, and I believe Synergy was his band at the time. Weitz' bands never really made it, but based on his obituary, he had an excellent career working for technology firms in the 1980s, so his trip West paid off.
August 17, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Homestead Act/Skunk Cabbage/Carl Pagter (Sunday afternoon, live KVRE-fm and am)
KVRE broadcast on both FM and AM frequencies from Santa Rosa (it was 95.9 fm). The radio station had just gone on the air in early 1974. In sound and spirit, KVRE was very similar to KFAT over in Gilroy. Laid back, regional, mixing rock with country and folk, and few rules. This show was a Sunday afternoon broadcast featuring local bluegrass bands. The show was Tom Reed's Bluegrass Jamboree, which I assume was a regular show on KVRE. I don't know how often they broadcast live. There was a lot of hip, well-played bluegrass all over the Bay Area at this time.
Elmo Shropshire was a Veterinarian from Kentucky who had moved to San Francisco in the early 1970s. Homestead Act was his bluegrass band, which included his wife Patsy. The band had privately released an album in 1972, Gospel Snake. Elmo and Patsy would later gain infamy for their 1979 recording of the song "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."
Carl Pagter founded the California Bluegrass Association, and may have been either a performer or a host. Skunk Cabbage was another Bay Area bluegrass band.
August 19, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Bola Sete (Monday)
Monday night was jazz night at The Inn, and on this Monday there was a real jazz headliner. Bola Sete (1923-1987, born Djalma de Andrade) was a Brazilian jazz guitarist who had been prominent in the 60s. Bola Sete (which means "Seven Ball"), after a substantial career in South America in the 1950s, had ended up playing at the Sheraton Hotel in San Francisco, where he captivated Dizzy Gillespie (it turned out that Gillespie's piano player, Argentinian Lalo Schifrin, had played with Bola Seta in Rio). Brazilian jazz was hot at the time, and Bola Sete had recorded and toured with both Gillespie and Vince Guaraldi. Guaraldi and Bola Sete had made some very popular albums for Fantasy Records in the mid-60s. After about 1968, however, Bola Sete had reduced his presence and largely stopped recording and performing, although he hadn't actually retired. Bola Sete did continue to play periodic Bay Area shows.
At this point, Bola Sete only released albums occasionally. His most recent album would have been Goin' To Rio, which apparently featured just his guitar, supported by a few string arrangements. It had been released on Columbia in 1973.
August 21, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Four Skins/Blue (Wednesday)
August 22, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Stone Age Elegance (Thursday)
August 23-24, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Billy Faier/Skunk Cabbage (Friday-Saturday)
August 28, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Lawrence Hammond and The Whiplash Band (Wednesday)Lawrence Hammond had been in the absolutely legendary psychedelic band Mad River. Mad River, formed in Antioch College in Yellow Springs, OH in 1966. They had moved to Berkeley in early 1967. Even by the standards of the Avalon, Mad River had been out there. Hammond played bass and was the primary songwriter. After an epic, feedback-laden debut on Capitol in 1968 (even the band cannot tell if the record was recorded at the wrong speed--what's that tell you?), Mad River had unexpectedly released an album of country flavored songs before they split up in Summer 1969.Hammond had stayed in the Bay Area. He wrote country songs in a distinctly Western style, as opposed to the Nashville sound of the time. Hammond, backed by his band, did release a hard-to-find solo album on Takoma Records in 1976 called Coyote's Dream.
August 29, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: Stoneground/Dirty Legs (Thursday)
August 30-31, 1974 Inn Of The Beginning, Cotati, CA: David LaFlamme/Valley Boys (Friday-Saturday)
Electric violinist David LaFlamme had moved to San Francisco in the mid-1960s. He was best known as the leader of the band It's A Beautiful Day, founded in 1968. The band's debut album had been released in 1969, and LaFlamme's song "White Bird" was widely played on FM radio. IABD had released four albums, but LaFlamme left the group primarily due to a serious dispute with manager Matthew Katz. LaFlamme was tied up in litigation for much of the 70s, so while he could play in clubs, he apparently was blocked from recording, exactly when his fame for "White Bird" would have been at its peak.
The Valley Boys were some kind of country rock band, and I think they came from the Fresno area, but I'm not certain of that.
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| The Lion's Share, at 60 Red Hill Avenue in San Anselmo, as it appeared in the mid-70s |
Lion's Share, 60 Red Hill Avenue, San Anselmo, CA
The Lion's Share, about 2 miles West of downtown San Rafael, had opened in 1969. It was Marin County's first permanent rock nightclub. By 1971, although the club only fit 250-300 patrons, the Lion's Share played a big part on the local rock scene. All the locals like Jerry Garcia and Van Morrison played there, and numerous touring acts picked up extra bookings by playing the club. I wrote at great length about the range of bands playing the Lion's Share in 1971.
By 1974, while the Lion's Share hadn't changed much, the rock market had. Some competing nightclubs, like Keystone Berkeley or the Great American Music Hall, were bigger than the Lion's Share. Some clubs that were comparable in size to the Lion's Share had other advantages. The Boarding House was a particularly nice place to see a show, and the Orphanage was located near to a huge weeknight office population. The Lion's Share wasn't particularly attractive, and thinly-populated Marin didn't have as many casual club goers. While the Lion's Share occasionally had a drop-in from a world famous local resident, for the most part it was an afterthought on the rock scene.
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| Clover's second album, Fourty-Niner, had been released by Fantasy in 1971. The band had since been dropped by the label, but they added two members and kept gigging steadily throughout the Bay Area |
The Lion's Share Performance Listings, September 1974
September 2, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Clover (Monday)
Clover was Marin band whose members were really from Marin. Clover had formed in late 1967, out of a band called The Tiny Hearing Aid Company. Fantasy Records, flush with Creedence money, had signed Clover. The band released two poorly-produced but pretty good albums, their self-titled debut in 1970, followed by Fourty-Niner in 1971. Clover was a four-piece band, with lead and pedal steel guitarist John McFee, lead singer and guitarist Alex Call, bassist John Ciambotti and drummer Mitch Howie (McFee, Call and Howie had been in Tiny Hearing Aid). Clover worked out of Mill Valley.
September 3, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Fat Tuesday (Tuesday)
I think Fat Tuesday was a local band, but maybe it was just a promotion, a sort of disco night. A lot of rock clubs had "disco nights" of one kind or another. Certainly a place like Marin wouldn't have had much in the way of dance clubs, compared to San Francisco or Oakland.
The Sons Of Champlin were a Marin County band, and it too had been founded by Marin County residents. It's notable that the biggest acts playing the Lion's Share lived nearby. Back in 1966, Bill Champlin and Terry Haggerty had founded the group, switching from an R&B dance band sound to more of a Beatles groove. By 1967, however, they had gone full psychedelic, and brought back the horn section. Champlin was a powerful lead singer and a fine organ player, and Haggerty was a hugely talented lead guitarist. Along with pianist/multi-instrumentalist Geoff Palmer, the band had made 3 sophisticated albums for Capitol before disintegrating in 1970.
The Sons Of Champlin did not actually break up, however, and around 1971 they re-made themselves into a sort of fusion jazz/R&B ensemble called Yogi Phlegm--a name popular with no one--before reconvening again as the Sons Of Champlin. They had made a terrific album in 1973 for Columbia, called Welcome To The Dance. It had sold poorly, however, and The Sons had been cut from the label in the wake of Clive Davis' departure. The Sons kept plugging away, however, touring constantly. By 1975, they would record and release their own album, without waiting for a record company to "discover" them.
At
this time, the front line was still Bill Champlin (lead vocals, organ
and guitar), Terry Haggerty (lead guitar) and Geoff Palmer (piano,
organ, vibes, various). The rhythm section was David Schallock (bass)
and Jim Preston (drums), both veterans of many Marin ensembles. By this time, they probably had a horn section, too. Note that there are double shows each night, a sign both that the Sons were some kind of a draw, and also that this wasn't only a "fun gig" where they were inviting their friends to come hang out.
September 8, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Soundhole/Lizards (Sunday)
Soundhole was a Marin band as well. Most of the band members had gone to High School in Marin County.
September 9, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Clover/Great American String Band (Monday)
The Great American String Band had been formed by David Grisman, guitarist David Nichtern and fiddler Richard Greene. Their goal was to play all styles of American music on acoustic instruments: bluegrass, old-time, swing, country and so on. They mostly only played the Great American Music Hall (hence the name). Depending on availability, different members joined them on stage. Sometimes Grisman's old pal Jerry Garcia would play banjo with the group, but Garcia happened to be in London this night. I don't know who exactly was in the band for this show.
By mid-1975, Grisman would expand the GASB concept to create his groundbreaking David Grisman Quintet, but at this time that was just an idea.
September 10, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Fat Tuesday (Tuesday)
September 12-15, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Ramblin' Jack Elliott/James and The Mercedes and friends (Thursday-Sunday)Ramblin' Jack Elliott was a legendary folk singer. He lived somewhere in the North Bay, so he was a local, too.
James and The Mercedes was a new band led by James Ackroyd, formerly of James And The Good Brothers. One of the backup singers was Frankie Weir, Bob Weir's wife.
September 16, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Clover (Monday)
We are missing a week's worth of bookings. It's a safe bet, however, that if there were touring bands or big local acts, the Lion's Share would have made sure that they were listed in the local papers. So, while I'm curious about missing dates, I don't think we are missing anything important.
September 22, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Blue Bear Stomp (Sunday)
The Blue Bear School Of Music was an attempt to provide a sort of "Trade School" for rock musicians. I can't remember where it was located. It got a lot of press coverage, but I don't know if much came out of it. I assume this was a show that was part of the cirriculum. I can't recall if anyone interesting actually got much from the Blue Bear School, but I think guitarist Chris Hayes, later of Huey Lewis and The News, had some involvement.
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| Peter Rowan joined his brothers Chris and Lorin (this album was released in 1975) |
September 25, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Spanky And Our Gang/Rowan Brothers (Wednesday)
Spanky And Our Gang had been a popular group in the mid-60s, more or less in the style of The Mamas and The Papas. They had reformed, but the music was fairly passe, and the reunion didn't lead to anything.
The Rowan Brothers would have likely been a newly-reformulated group featuring Peter Rowan (ex-Seatrain, ex-Old And In The Way) and his brothers Chris and Lorin (the ca. '72 "Rowan Brothers").
September 26-28, 1974 Lion's Share, San Anselmo, CA: Kenny Rankin/Peter Spelman and Clarice Jones/Terry McGovern (Thursday-Saturday)Jazzy singer/songwriter Kenny Rankin (1940-2009) had a following, but he was probably playing solo, so the tiny Lion's Share probably made sense. His current album would have been Silver Morning, on Little David Records.
Peter Spelman and Clarice Jones were local folksingers.
Terry McGovern was a comedian, and later a popular morning disc jockey.
For whatever reasons, Clover was playing the Lion's Share on Sunday instead of Monday, and they were joined by Grayson Street.
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