| Author | Message | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2241 Registered: 7-2004 |
O.K., how many of us came to Alembic through the Grateful Dead? How many play Dead music? I'll be the first to throw my hat in this ring. Yes on both accounts. Bill, tgo | ||
| flaxattack
Senior Member Username: flaxattack Post Number: 1418 Registered: 4-2004 |
ya know bill i dont remember how i found alembic..lmao had to be through my deadness.... i did see jack play#1 but didnt know who made it binghampton 73 or was it 74? uh i play some dead tunes...... does over 150 shows count? | ||
| keith_h
Senior Member Username: keith_h Post Number: 724 Registered: 2-2005 |
No Grateful Dead connection here. I came to Alembic through Stanley. | ||
| kmh364
Senior Member Username: kmh364 Post Number: 2097 Registered: 9-2003 |
sign me up | ||
| chuck
Member Username: chuck Post Number: 91 Registered: 3-2005 |
Me to. Chuck | ||
| tom_z
Senior Member Username: tom_z Post Number: 507 Registered: 7-2004 |
I most definitely came to Alembic because of the Dead connection. I became a return customer because of the unparalleled quality, craftsmanship, and customer service. I play Grateful Dead material and lots of other stuff.  Peace Tom | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 1210 Registered: 2-2006 |
I wouldn’t classify myself as a “Deadhead” but I do like their music. I too was more influenced by Stanleys than the “Dead” connection to Alembic. But my greatest influence and introduction to Alembic was a schoolmate in High School who bought a new Series-1, let me play it once and I was hooked. | ||
| grateful
Intermediate Member Username: grateful Post Number: 187 Registered: 12-2004 |
That's why I'm here! Mark | ||
| alembic_doctor
Advanced Member Username: alembic_doctor Post Number: 241 Registered: 8-2002 |
I came to Alembic through my Dad. I started carrying his Series I for him when I was 4 years old. | ||
| dannobasso
Senior Member Username: dannobasso Post Number: 485 Registered: 3-2004 |
Stanley, no DH connection whatsoever though I did have to cover a few tunes in my day. | ||
| kenbass4
Advanced Member Username: kenbass4 Post Number: 242 Registered: 10-2003 |
I'm probably the only one that got here THIS way: Michael Rutherford (of Genesis) I was looking through his equipment list, and he had "Alembic" listed. Being curious, I checked out a Distillate in the early 80's, and that was it for me. Ken (TEO) | ||
| bracheen
Senior Member Username: bracheen Post Number: 1187 Registered: 11-2003 |
I found Alembic about two days after deciding to play bass. I had never heard of them and had no idea who might play Alembic. What I did know was as soon as the music store guy put it in my hand I found something special. 20 some years later here I am. Sam | ||
| 2400wattman
Advanced Member Username: 2400wattman Post Number: 312 Registered: 11-2005 |
Funny enough, my introduction to Alembic was through Zeppelin bootlegs and John Paul's tone was not the greatest at that period and sounded inappropriate for the older stuff w/ the Jazz bass. So why did I get one anyways? I found an '86 Distillate which sounded great and basically stole it from the store, and the G.A.S continues. Now I'm going to ask for an explanation from you "Dead Heads"(something I've been meaning to ask). What is it about them that makes them so appealing to you? I've played many festivals w/ jam bands and they were all good bands w/ very good players I just did'nt get it. I do not ask this with any insults implied I just feel that I could get a better explanation here than the atypical "cogh cough it's the Dead bro, whadda ya mean ya don't get it cough cough?" | ||
| groovelines
Senior Member Username: groovelines Post Number: 468 Registered: 4-2003 |
Stanley Clarke, but not because I had heard him play. I hadn't, that didn't come until much later. It was an art school project to re-do an existing black and white magazine ad. Found one with this tall dude holding this teeny-tiny bass. Cool looking bass, me thought. Forgot all about Alembics until I bought one almost twenty years later. Well, there was a Zep concert in 1980. Achilles' Last Stand shook the ground. But I don't remember too much more from that night, yeesh. | ||
| jet_powers
Advanced Member Username: jet_powers Post Number: 322 Registered: 2-2003 |
JAE 'nuff said. For now.... | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2243 Registered: 7-2004 |
Adam: What can I say? A live Dead show, when the muse graced us with it's presence, was the nearest thing to a "religious" experience I've ever been privy to. It was more than music. I love a lot of different types of music, from Bob Wills to Beethoven, but, as many before me have noted: "There is nothing like a Grateful Dead concert". After Winterland closed, Bill Graham had the following painted on the side: "They're not the best at what they do. They're the only ones that do what they do". The Dead had their own, unique approach to music and the music business. They were in it for the art/music/whatever you want to call it. No selling out (arguably, towards the end they played in larger venues than they wanted because they had a family of about 60 employees to support .... but not for personal gain). The bottom line is that when they were running on all cylinders, we together took our minds, spirits, (and sometimes bodies!) on a breathtakingly beautiful trip through the cosmos. By "we" I mean not only the guys up on stage, but also the 5000 or so of us crowded into Winterland. At those magical moments the audience was every part a member of the "band" as any of the instrumentalists. And I don't mean it in the usual sense it is used in rock 'n roll. With the Dead it really happened, it was amazing, and it never failed to completely blow my mind. I miss it. Bill, tgo | ||
| bsee
Senior Member Username: bsee Post Number: 1520 Registered: 3-2004 |
I've played in a band since '90 that does about 60% Dead stuff, but it had nothing to do with my interest in Alembic. I grew up as a big fan of several bands where the bassists played Alembic at one point or another (The Who, Zeppelin, Airplane), but that had nothing to do with me coming here. I came to Alembic basses because I was able to play one or two and they were the best. -bob | ||
| hifiguy
Member Username: hifiguy Post Number: 86 Registered: 10-2006 |
I was 16 when I saw a pic of the mighty Jack Casady playing 72-001 in Crawdaddy. I'd been playing bass for about six months and knew that some day, one day, I would own a bass from whoever made that one. It only took me 26 years, but I finally made it. Stanley's was probably the first Alembic I heard. I was just as blown away by the sound as buy the looks. Got more into the Dead about 15 years ago | ||
| glocke
Intermediate Member Username: glocke Post Number: 170 Registered: 9-2002 |
i came to alembic through the dead... Fell in love with Phils tone on europe '72... | ||
| tbrannon
Advanced Member Username: tbrannon Post Number: 344 Registered: 11-2004 |
Non-deadhead here. Jimmy Johnson with James Taylor was the first Alembic I ever saw. | ||
| hankster
Intermediate Member Username: hankster Post Number: 107 Registered: 6-2004 |
Okay, what if you are a deadhead, a huge fan of the New Riders, and yet, came to Alembic by way of Stanley Clarke ( or just by way of recognizing bass engineering genius when you saw it)? Is this bad? rick | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 4908 Registered: 5-2002 |
(cough cough) Anybody know any Dead? Sure, you know Friend of the Devil? Yea, what key? I don't know, how about G. Cool .. (cough) [15 minutes later] Wow, that was great! | ||
| the_8_string_king
Senior Member Username: the_8_string_king Post Number: 488 Registered: 9-2005 |
Being turned on to Stanley Clarke and Alembic (simultaneously, of course) was a big factor in my being a bass player. But I'm most definitely a Deadhead. | ||
| glocke
Intermediate Member Username: glocke Post Number: 171 Registered: 9-2002 |
lol...good one Dave.... | ||
| bsee
Senior Member Username: bsee Post Number: 1521 Registered: 3-2004 |
Geez, Dave, stamina issues? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 4910 Registered: 5-2002 |
No Bob, I broke a string. | ||
| 2400wattman
Advanced Member Username: 2400wattman Post Number: 313 Registered: 11-2005 |
Okay, what I gather from Bill's statement is that it is the Dead's live shows that kicked it for him and most likely the rest of you. I can dig it, I mean that is the way to truly appreciate music IMHO. Which string Dave? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 4912 Registered: 5-2002 |
Adam; I usually break the D string at the bridge; however, at our last gig I broke the G string at the ball. We have China Cat and Eyes Of The World in our set list. I love playing both tunes. | ||
| bsee
Senior Member Username: bsee Post Number: 1522 Registered: 3-2004 |
It's great stuff. You only have to learn one or two tunes and you can do a set. A dozen songs is enough for a whole night's entertainment! Dave, I can't say that we ever tried to stretch FoD to 15 minutes. That must have been something! | ||
| keith_h
Senior Member Username: keith_h Post Number: 725 Registered: 2-2005 |
You know Dave I would reword lines that talk about breaking G strings at the ball. :-) Keith | ||
| richbass939
Senior Member Username: richbass939 Post Number: 821 Registered: 11-2004 |
Stanley .. Alembic .........(30 years) ..........buy an Alembic, then another Alembic .. (1 year) .. jam Dead with club member .. (1 year) .. play Dead gig with same club member. I have always been aware of the Dead phenomenon and their music but I wish I had really investigated them much earlier in my time playing bass. It is fun stuff to play. Rich | ||
| 2400wattman
Advanced Member Username: 2400wattman Post Number: 314 Registered: 11-2005 |
Yes Keith, I know what you mean. The last time I broke a G string at the ball I was told "that'll be fity buks". Dave, file your bridge bro, cough,cough,cou......gh, wheeeeeeezzze. That was the Punch Rothschild not the other stuff. | ||
| terryc
Intermediate Member Username: terryc Post Number: 109 Registered: 11-2004 |
Stan the Man...seen him on UK TV show 'Old grey whistle test', didn't recognise bass(not a fender or gibson..what is it?) Bought'School Days' cover notes 'Alembic basses', wished for one from 1976 to 1998(22 years) MK standard bought in New York whilst I was on holiday from Rudy's Music Stop for $1800(a bargain) Brought it back, was offered £2000(sterling) as someone collared me in the pub after seeing me gig it..no sale mate..waited too long for one. | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 1120 Registered: 10-2002 |
Although I'm a huge fan of the dead, I'd never given any thought to their equipment. Same with Stanley; I've been a fan of his since schooldays came out in '76. In fact, the only bass I ever coveted was a rick 4001 as Chris Squire played on and he's the one that turned me onto bass playing in 1974. I ended up with my epic after several weeks of auditioning every 'boutique' instrument I could afford in 1996. It says something when Alembic's entry level instrument can wipe the floor with top of the range Warwicks and pre-gibson tobias'. Graeme | ||
| ajdover
Senior Member Username: ajdover Post Number: 482 Registered: 11-2003 |
Grateful who? Not a Deadhead. In fact, I've never gotten the whole "Dead" thing. Same way I never got the whole "Phish" thing, or Dave Matthews thing. Never been a Dead Head, never will be. I came to Alembic through Stanley, John Alec Entwistle, and Greg Lake. Alan | ||
| keavin
Senior Member Username: keavin Post Number: 1096 Registered: 12-2002 |
I'm more of a Deadbeat dad than a Dead head!...LOL! | ||
| alembic76407
Senior Member Username: alembic76407 Post Number: 506 Registered: 5-2002 |
I wasn't a dead fan, but a bass playing friend was and he showed up one night with a $2000.00 bass he had just bought, (this was in 1976) I had to ask what kind of drugs he was on to pay 2 grand for a bass, he let me play it all night and the next day I went to a music store and they had 2 Alembic instock, and when I left, they only had 1 in stock. that was 7-2-76 I loaded up my $2000.00 in to my $200 Karmann Ghia rag top with the top down, it looked like I was hauling a surfboard and the rest is history David T | ||
| phylo
Member Username: phylo Post Number: 66 Registered: 10-2005 |
I spent Friday and Saturday with the Dark Star Orchestra. And drove 360 miles RT to Portland to do so. | ||
| jubeas3eyes
Member Username: jubeas3eyes Post Number: 76 Registered: 1-2006 |
I was searching around for a new bass after my Warwick broke (ungh that sucked and its a long story. I HATE music123.com) and found a couple alembics on ebay. I then found the site and my face exploded when I saw the price. After my face was reassembled I promptly bought one. | ||
| cozmik_cowboy
Intermediate Member Username: cozmik_cowboy Post Number: 122 Registered: 10-2006 |
Deadhead? Oh, yeah - though not what you'd call hardcore (I never drove more than 700 miles for a show. ) And Alan, the first instrument I ever bought was a Winston P-bass copy ($75 w/a Paris combo amp.) To mention Dave Matthews in an explaination of why you're not a Deadhead is akin to my saying I really don't get the fuss about Alembic, and I didn't get the Winston, either. The difference is that great. When Garcia died, Dylan said "There are a lot of spaces between Buddy Holly and the Carter Family and, say, Ornette Coleman. Somehow he managed to fill them all." That pretty much extrapolates to the band as a whole, and that's what it was about for me - what Mickey Hart called "using a rock lexicon with a jazz syntax." But, ulitmately it's like the Harley t-shirt says - If I need to explain it....... me, I got it, and one of the great joys of my life is that I was able to be present for the creation of that magic on multiple occasions. Peter | ||
| tom_z
Senior Member Username: tom_z Post Number: 509 Registered: 7-2004 |
Right on, Peter! I got it too and it changed my musical life. I miss the Grateful Dead! Bill hit it on the head - and Adam picked up on it. The Grateful Dead "thing" is about the LIVE performance. At their worst the Dead were a very professional improvisational rock band. At their best they were a true force of nature - Pure Magic! It's probably not really any different than any aesthetic experience that "sends" you. It's difficult to write about what it is technically that causes the magic. I'm thankful to have experienced the Grateful Dead phenomenon. By the way - I don't see that's it's come up in this thread, but, in case anyone was wondering, it wasn't entirely about the drugs either. I've seen many Dead shows completely sober and the magic was absolutely as palpable as when I was in an "altered state." It's just really cool to me that the origins of Alembic are entwined with the history of the Grateful Dead and that spirit of creativeness and innovation in art and life. Peace Tom | ||
| phylo
Member Username: phylo Post Number: 67 Registered: 10-2005 |
Sorry, but I felt the need to chime in again. In 1992, I drove from Portland to Oakland, in December, to see 2 shows. Drove back up to take a final and then back down the next day for 2 more shows. And only one car got totalled in the process! | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2246 Registered: 7-2004 |
Peter: I'd never heard that quote by Mickey before, but I wasn't surprised to read it. For years I've described Dead music as "a jazz approach using rock 'n roll tools". Bill, tgo | ||
| 57basstra
Senior Member Username: 57basstra Post Number: 563 Registered: 4-2005 |
I feel a good deal of Bluegrass in the Grateful Dead's music. Sometimes when I hear (or am playing with) a really kickin' Bluegrass group that goes jammin' I think, 'Man, this is really kinda Dead.' | ||
| dadabass2001
Senior Member Username: dadabass2001 Post Number: 767 Registered: 6-2002 |
uhhh...43? (counting me) Mike P.S. yeah, I only went to about six shows, but I loved them all. | ||
| flaxattack
Senior Member Username: flaxattack Post Number: 1421 Registered: 4-2004 |
whats the first thing a deadhead says when they run out of drugs........... this band sucks....... awh just kidding | ||
| 57basstra
Senior Member Username: 57basstra Post Number: 564 Registered: 4-2005 |
"What a long, strange trip it's been." Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. | ||
| alembic_doctor
Advanced Member Username: alembic_doctor Post Number: 244 Registered: 8-2002 |
good one flax. I think Dead Heads are interesting creatures. Especially the ones that grew up and made good in the world but didn't get out of completely. I've got a friend who is just such a person. Well to do. Invested some serious bucks in a nice amplifier and some really nice speakers. Well over 10k on those two items I'm sure. And he listens to nothing but dead bootlegs. Go figure. I'm not even sure he know's what his speakers are even capable of. I'm not sayin' it's wrong. Just very interesting. | ||
| 2400wattman
Advanced Member Username: 2400wattman Post Number: 316 Registered: 11-2005 |
I have seen a shirt that says "Jerry's dead, Phish sucks, Get a job" | ||
| alembic_doctor
Advanced Member Username: alembic_doctor Post Number: 245 Registered: 8-2002 |
Can I buy one without the Phish Sucks part. Those guys were really good. I think we're totally hijacking this thread. Sorry Bill. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2248 Registered: 7-2004 |
Doc: Forget about those directions I sent you for the gathering this Saturday. They are ... er ... not the right directions ... yea ... not the right directions ... I'll ... uh ... send you some other directions ... yea, that's the ticket. ... I'll send you some new "good" directions. hehehehe Bill, tgo | ||
| alembic_doctor
Advanced Member Username: alembic_doctor Post Number: 246 Registered: 8-2002 |
Right. No worries mate. | ||
| pace
Advanced Member Username: pace Post Number: 312 Registered: 4-2004 |
I guess that's the crux of the matter Doc (re: your friend).... I spent my whole college career as a sound recording major seeking out and listening intently to whatever GD shows I could get my hands on (mind you, this was before LMA, SHN vines and whatnot).... I mean sure, I did a ton of critical listening and refined my ear thanks to plenty of other artists. But, to follow/disect/analyze the performance of a group of musicians across a span of 30+ years was a task I felt up to at that time. In doing so, not only did I learn about different recording techniques & technology through the ages. I also heard the "evolution" of all the backline equipment~ of which Alembic had a great deal to do with at certain place & time..... I was able to deduce from my observations that Alembic might be a company which I could place my trust in to deliver a certain aspect of "that sound" which I wasted so much of my formative years listening to..... Im glad they were able to deliver. | ||
| elwoodblue
Intermediate Member Username: elwoodblue Post Number: 122 Registered: 6-2002 |
...love that "Thick air, ". : ) | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 2249 Registered: 7-2004 |
Doc: A point about your friend with the expensive equipment listening to "Dead bootlegs". The multitude of audience tapes floating around are not really bootlegs. The Dead not only didn't discourage audience tapes, they encouraged it! They set up a band authorized special taping section right behind the soundboard. There you could find dozens of tapers with state of the art equipment taping right out in the open. Additionally, unlike the overwhelming majority of rock bands, the Dead played CLEAN. Even on recordings of lesser quality, one can easily make out each individual instrument. In this regard, I have found the Dead similar to classical music and/or Dixieland Jazz where a lot is going on - each instrument playing something different - but you can make out each part, they all fit together, and the whole is far greater than the sum of the parts. Bill, tgo (Message edited by lbpesq on March 28, 2007) | ||
| crgaston
Advanced Member Username: crgaston Post Number: 364 Registered: 11-2005 |
I'm a Deadhead. I used to play in a Dead cover band, and I've usually been able to convince whatever band I'm in to do at least a Dead tune or two. I think my introduction to Alembic came from a friend who had one. He was more of a Rush freak, strangely. His name is Dave Letendre and he could play the heck out of that bass. I remember thinking that it was the coolest bass I had ever seen; a mid- '80's Spoiler with a bubinga top and Persuader electronics. | ||
| tom_z
Senior Member Username: tom_z Post Number: 510 Registered: 7-2004 |
Not to mention, Bill, the multitude of soundboard recordings that have - for better of worse - slipped into the trading circles. It is probably not a stretch to say that the Grateful Dead easily have the most well documented and publicly available audio archive of their 30ish years of live performances. Doc - your comments are amusing - I've heard almost the exact same reference to Alembic owners as "interesting creatures." The Dead/Alembic connection deepens. Peace Tom | ||
| dela217
Senior Member Username: dela217 Post Number: 785 Registered: 6-2002 |
No Deadhead here either. But without them would we have Alembic? | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 1212 Registered: 2-2006 |
Very valid point Michael. Bass being my first and main instrument I often tend to think of Stanley when I think Alembic when in reality one wonders if there wasn't a Grateful Dead would there be an Alembic guitar company. (Things that make you go, HMMMMM) | ||
| jimbobv
Junior Username: jimbobv Post Number: 39 Registered: 4-2003 |
Deadhead, (heard Truckin on AM630 in '72 in DC) +plus 2 older brothers influenced my taste, ++ around 76 / 77 or so, Veneman's in Rockville MD had a used Alembic, $2k or so I recall, that I was fascinated with. Series I IIRC, plus the body had a carved pattern resembling tooled leather all the way around the edge of the body. It was huge, beautiful, and way out of my price range. | ||
| phylo
Member Username: phylo Post Number: 68 Registered: 10-2005 |
How many Deadheads does it take to change a light bulb? Just one, but they wait for it to burn out and then follow it around for 10 years first. --From the Grateful Dead East Coast Hotline circa 1991. | ||
| 57basstra
Senior Member Username: 57basstra Post Number: 565 Registered: 4-2005 |
Words from the wise: 'I read somewhere that 77 per cent of all the mentally ill live in poverty. Actually, I'm more intrigued by the 23 per cent who are apparently doing quite well for themselves.' – Jerry Garcia | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 1213 Registered: 2-2006 |
One of the 23% has custody of Anna Nicholes baby. | ||
| alembic76407
Senior Member Username: alembic76407 Post Number: 507 Registered: 5-2002 |
that baby's worth a half billion dollars | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 1214 Registered: 2-2006 |
I'd say that makes him doing quite well indeed. But only a crazy man would think that people can't see through his devious plan. |
