Best Selling Musical Artists by State?

I came across this map on Reddit, which means I’m not exactly sure if it is accurate because it didn’t link to an original source. Interesting though, and surely largely correct. Apparently, individual artists are attached to the state they were born in, but bands are attached to the state they formed in. This is certainly an eclectic mix of 50 artists.

My top 5

  1. Phish from Vermont
  2. Eagles
  3. Steve Miler
  4. Dave Mathews Band
  5. John Denver

Good2B Goose!

I am a huge Goose fan and they have a new album coming out in June. Their Spring Tour starts this weekend. Here is the short version of the first single from the new record. I like it more and more each time I hear it and I definitely dig the video. Hopefully I see them play this in Bend in August.

YouTube Video

In the Strangest of Places

This morning I came across this cool story in The Oregonian. Apparently there is a mysterious group in Portland that is beautifying public spaces by creating little pockets of artful color and beauty where there are cracks on the ground on roads or sidewalks. They have an Instagram account titled @fillthevoidpdx.

What caught my eye, other than the utter Portlandness of this activity, is that several of the installations contain Grateful Dead lyrics. Check out the examples of Portland Dead weirdness below. Here’s to this anonymous group’s continued activity around the Rose City.

7 Beautiful Covers

I love me a good cover. Here are some mostly femaie covers of songs I grew up loving.

  1. The Rain Song, Led Zeppelin

  2. Tears, Rush

  3. Going to California, Led Zep

  4. Landslide, Fleetwood Mac

  5. Sweet Child o' Mine, Guns and Roses

  6. Wish You Were Here, Pink Floyd

  7. Dirty Work, Steely Dan

Fellow Travelers

When traveling our family’s usual mode of transportation is Lyft. Despite being fairly introverted, I enjoy talking with the drivers and getting their perspective on driving in that particulr part of the world. Sometimes the drivers have the gift of gab, and often they are hardworking immigrants who don’t speak English well and prefer to remain silent.

On our recent trip to Santa Barbara I took a Lyft across town to a bookstore and noticed my driver was a fellow Deadhead right away. It wasn’t the faint but detectable smell of canabis. No, it was the Dead and Company shirt and the long white ponytail. I immediately indicated that I was a fellow traveler and we talked Grateful Dead the whole ride. He said he saw his first Dead show in 1974 at the Santa Barbara Bowl. Interestingly, he said he only saw ‘30 something’ Grateful Dead shows, but 42 Dead and Company shows. I thought that was interesting since I would expect most people his age to have seen more of Jerry than the what came afterwards. Oh well.

We also realized we had been at a few of the same shows, including the Santa Clara Fare The Well shows and the 2018 Eugene D&C show, which was amazing.

Some YouTube Recs

I got off social media many years ago and it was a great decision. Don’t miss those platforms at all. Not only was it good for my mental health, but it saved me a ton of time. That said, I do probably spend a bit too much time on YouTube. Nevertheless, there are a ton of great channels on YT that I get a lot out of. I thought I’d share 5 of them, mostly on the information side of things. These are all channels that I can have on in the kitchen and listen to, while not feeling like I need to ‘watch’ the video.

In no particular order….

  1. Caolan Robertson: This young dude is an amazing example of independent journalism. He has been camped out in Ukraine since the war started (he isn’t Ukrainian) and offers fantastic reporting on the war with Russia. If you want to know what is happening there, this channel is mandatory.

  2. The Warning with Steve Schmidt: Schmidt is a former Republican campaign pro who helped start The Lincoln Project. He has gone independent and offers a view of American politics very close to my own. He knows his history and doesn’t pull any punches.

  3. Amanpour & Company: This is a PBS show hosted by journalist Christiane Amanpour. They do substantive interviews with major newsmakers and smart pundits. They go deep, are very informative, and have enough respect for their audience not to try and gaslight them.

  4. C-SPAN: I know, I know….borrrrrring! But hey, I teach AP Governmet so this channel has a ton of content that is relevant to my job. One thing that is nice about this channel is that you can watch what transpires in Washington without it being filtered though the (usually conservative corporate) media. I also love their focus on non-fiction books and writing.

  5. Nugs: I listen to a lot of music on YouTube and this is one of my favorite channels. Tons of different bands are featured. However, my favorite type of video are their free opening Goose set live streams. Honk!

Rush is My Jam Show #14

What is the best aspect of this show? The long first set? All the classics in set two? Or the killer double encore? In the End is an old favorite of mine that didn’t get played by the band any more once I started seeing shows in the 1980s. Needless to say, if I was seeing jamband Rush, I’d dig this gig.

Going Furthur 16 Years Ago

Sixteen years ago tonight I saw my first Furthur show at the Portland Coliseum. If I’m honest, Furthur was my favorite of all the post-Grateful Dead iterations. Dead & Co. was fun and I’m a huge fan of John Mayer, but Further’s sound was the closest to the Dead’s to my ear. John Kadlecik was both a great ‘Jerry’ on guitar and I liked his voice, too. I sure hope he made some cash during Furthur’s multi-year run since he sort of got dropped like a hot rock when the band broke up.

Furthur shows were especially fun because the set lists veered away from what a typical Dead set was like (at least during the years I saw the Dead). This show featured the first Dupree’s Diamond Blues that I ever saw (an old Dead song that they hardly ever played). The second set also had a nice, unusual placement of Hell in a Bucket and West LA Fadeaway. Ending the second set with China > Rider instead of starting the set with it was also enjoyable. Another highlight was the cover of Ryan Adams' Peaceful Valley.

Rush is My Jam Show #13

The imaginary Rush tour continues! This show is a slobberknocker! Debuts of Stick it Out and the early deep cut Making Memories, which Rush never played beyond the 70s, if ever. This show contains both hits and rarer tunes, and covers much of their career. Getting psyched for seeing the real thing later in the year!

The Bus Came By...

February 20 will always be a special date in the calendar for me because I saw my first Grateful Dead show on that day in 1991 (35 years ago as I sit here now). A truly life changing event. Tip of the cap to my brother for taking me. I’ve written about that night on the blog before so I won’t say more.

5 Nights of Bliss in the Big Apple

I will likely be in the woods camping when this run of shows at MSG will be taking place at the end of July. Nevertheless, for me, this would be just about the best week of music I could imagine at one venue. Considering Rush will likely be mixing up their set lists pretty substantially, I shudder to think of all the great moments that the lucky few who attend all these shows are going to witness.

Loving both bands as I do, I am really hopeful that they take in a night of each other’s gigs. I am rooting hard for pics of the Phish guys at Rush (they of course grew up listening to Rush and used to cover them in their early, early days) and for the Rush guys checking out the amazing prog band known as Phish.

I am reminded of the fact that in August 2010 I caught three nights of Phish at the Greek in Berkeley, then saw Rush on night four at Shoreline. The Phish shows were peak, but being on the lawn at Shoreline was a bit of a let down after the intimacy of the Greek.

Man, what a run that’s going to be in the Big Apple!

5 Recommendations

  1. The American Empathy Project Spread the word, we definitely need more of this. It is time to fight back against idiotic ‘Chrstian’ nationalism. More here.

  2. Netflix’s series House of Guinness. Great, historical drama with a strong cast, good writing, and for once, and absence of gratuitous sex. I’m sure they are takng some liberties with the actual history, but I found the first season entertaining. I hope Season Two is out soon!

  3. Billy Strings' recent homage to Bobby Weir. Firey Cassidy in Georgia!

  4. Framing time as cyclical, not linear. I’ve been thinking about this idea as I read Neil Howe’s fascinating book The Fourth Turning is Here. My default is to think of time as linear, but as a teacher my life is very seasonal, and cyclical. This has been an interesting new frame of reference for me.

  5. Dynalist outlining software. I still think linearly, so that means I like to make outlines to capture my thinking. I tried Workflowy, but didn’t like it (becaue the keystroke commands weren’t intuitive). Dynalist fits my brain better. Is free to use online.

Music as Torture

I finished Steve Coll’s The Achillies Trap last month. Good book. Readwise reminded me last week that I had saved the quote below about the use of music by the C.I.A. prior to the 2003 invasion to signal to Iraqi generals that the United States was ‘around.’ It reminded me of the story of how the C.I.A. used music both to help capture Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega (Bush the Elder) and to torture prisoners at Guantanamo Bay during the administration of Bush the Younger. Metallica’s Enter Sandman was apparently a favorite. According to Sgt. Mark Hadsell of the 361st Psychological Operations Company, “If you play it for 24 hours, your brain and body functions start to slide… that’s when we come in and talk to them.” This practice, of using western music as torture, eventually led to a Freedom of Information Act request by many artists who wanted to know if their music was used and why it was chosen. Interesting list of artists.

This illustrates an important philosophical and spiritual point, which is that music (and everything else for that matter) is not inherently pleasurable or horrible. It depends on the mind that perceives it and in this case, how often one hears it! You know, the first bowl of ice cream is usually pretty yummy, but being forced to eat 20 of them would make you sick.

In the end, I find that It is a sobering reminder that the same melodies that offer us liberation or comfort can, in a different context, be weaponized to break the human spirit.

4 Articles and a Song

I came across these 4 article and 1 song in my recent internet wanderings and wanted to share.

  1. This article is about how the exposure to fire influenced human evolution.

  2. Found this by browsing the always interesting blog of Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution. AI renting humans??

  3. Cato Institute study on immigrants. Turns out, immigration is good for America. Who knew? See summary of study below.

  4. Ever wanted to know the history of the United States and Greenland? Here ya go.

  5. Lettuce playing Breathe. Nice Estimated tease in there!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Top 20 Most Played Dead Songs and My Stats

I came across the list in the pic of the top 20 songs every played by the Grateful Dead. Because I am a QS nerd and have all my Dead shows tracked in a database, I was quickly able to see how many times I have seen each of those songs. Below is my list based on the 48 Grateful Dead shows I was lucky to witness between February 1991 and June 1995.

The Other One 10

Me and My Uncle 2

Rider 6

Playin' 11

Mexicali Blues 2

Truckin' 8

Tennessee Jed 10

Looks Like Rain 8

El Paso 5

Wharf Rat 5

Big River 2

Estimated Prophet 10

Minglewood 3

Loser 10

NFA 11

Black Peter 3

Brown Eyed Women 4

China Cat 6

Eyes of the World 8

B.I.O.D.T.L. 2

Making Some Noise

Bruce Hornsby has a new album coming out. Yesterday the title track and first single showed up on YouTube. It is called Indigo Park and I’m digging it. Check it out here.

In honor of Bruce continuing to make meaningful and beautiful music, here are some of my all time favorite Hornsby tunes.

  1. Sunflower Cat Can you hear that unmistakable Garcia riff? Sooooooo good.

  2. Levitate Nice quirky Hornsby!

  3. Take out the Trash This whole album is great. Stanky…

  4. Fortunate Son The studio version of this is beautiful, and so is this live pairing with a popular Pink Floyd tune. Sublime.

  5. King of the Hill This song rips. Here is a nice live version that segues into a very Hornsby version of Big Boss Man.

Let’s go Bruce! 🎶

Sounds About Right

The Kitchen Dwellers nailed it.

See the commentary and performance here.

The Kids Are Alright

My school has a hybrid schedule. Two days a week the periods are 90 minutes long. I usually take that opportunity to start those longer classes with what I call a ‘whip around’ question. These questions are meant to let everyone share their thoughts and for me to get to know my students better. This week I asked my students ‘What is something that you are really into right now?’ I got a wide assortment of answers (from new TV shows, to baking, to taking walks at night), including references to music. To my delight, in my 7th period class four students mentioned listening to the Grateful Dead. This was an amazing surprise, though it makes sense in the wake of Bobby Weir’s recent passing. It goes without saying that I was stoked to be able to talk about my love of the Dead for a few minutes. Students even asked if I’d shared some Dead tunes in Google Classroom. (Mission accepted!)

Another cool thing happened at my school today. One of my former students, who is now a senior, organized a walkout and short march from our school to the district office. The whole thing lasted about an hour, but about 400 students participated. Needless to say, it is encouraging to see young people engage politically within the growing authoritarian environment we are all experiencing in the United States.

Rush is My Jam Show #12

The show would never happen in real life, but I would love it if it did. Lots of ‘tier two’ Rush songs that are top tier for me, including Vital Signs, Between Sun and Moon, The Big Money, and Losing It. How bout that post Neil trifecta at the end of the second set? So. Many. Good. Songs.

RIP Bobby

Well, it wasn’t the obit I was hoping for. Bob Weir, original member of the Grateful Dead, has passed away at the age of 78. It was something I think all Deadheads expected to happen at some point, but I am a bit surprised. He just seemed to keep on keeping on. Apparently he died of lung complications that arose from a fight with cancer.

The first time I saw the Dead was in February of 1991. I was blown away and have been a Deadhead ever since. The last time I saw Bobby perform was last May at the Sphere with Dead and Company. All together I think I saw him perform close to 75 times. Jerry got all the attention, but Bobby was also something special. It is crazy to think that he actually spent a bit more time playing Grateful Dead music after Jerry passed than he did with Jerry.

My favorite Bobby songs include the following:

  1. Feel Like a Stranger

This is my all time favorite Bobby tune. Didn’t see it live enough. When my mood is off I can put this on and I immediately feel better. My favorite versions are from the Fall of 1989 and Spring of 1990.

  1. Estimated Prophet

The studio version of this song was the first Dead song I fell in love with. This live version from Cornell is worth a listen, too.

  1. Cassidy

The lyrics to this song are sublime. John Perry Barlow wrote the lyrics, but Bobby wrote the music and sang the tune. My favorite version is the acoustic one from Reckoning.

  1. The Other One

Epic psychedelia. This is one of Bobby’s older tunes and I usually saw him perform coming our of Drums and Space. Always a welcome base line to hear coming out of the freeform madness.

  1. Jack Straw

Quintessential Grateful Dead. Always a great show opener. Bobby owned this tune. The version from Europe ‘72 is my fav.

  1. Truckin’

Bobby shares the lyrics with Jerry on this one, but his lines are canonical Dead. Hard to beat the studio version of this tune.

  1. Black Throated Wind

This not usually a top 10 song for most Deadheads. It was often tucked away in the middle of a first set. It always resonated with me though.

  1. Lay My Lilly Down

This tune was on Bobby’s solo record from 2016 called Blue Mountain. Wise Bobby music.

Fare-thee-well now

Let your life proceed by its own design

Nothing to tell now

Let the words be yours, I’m done with mine