Big Brother and the Holding Company, part four. January to June 68

Posted on April 29, 2012 by J L tagged.

This is the story of Big Brother and the Holding Company. This is the part where we go up, up, up.

January to June 1968

Linda McCartney took this photograph when she was Linda Eastman and a dear friend of mine.

We became vegetarians together. That way we wouldn’t eat each other.

Not for our health, as Isaac Bashevis Singer might say, but for the health of the chickens.

5 January 1968 Rainbow Ballroom Fresno California

6 January 1968 Sacramento State College Steve Brown captured this lovely image of Janis. I think she liked him.

12 January 1968 Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles

13 January 1968 Barnes Park Bandshell Monterey Park California

16-21 January 1968 Golden Bear Club Huntington Beach California I always liked playing here.

25 January 1968 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

26-27 January 1968 Winterland San Francisco John Byrne Cooke, son of Alistair Cooke, Spanish major at Harvard, was our estimable road manager and good friend.

I don”t want to say that John is tall, but here he is hovering over Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Mimi Fariña and Joan Baez.

John writes western novels, he’s a photographer, and he introduced us to a whole new world when we went East in 1967.

He is now writing a book about his days with Janis in Big Brother, the Kozmic Blues Band and Full Tilt.

John took this photograph of Debbie Green and Mimi Fariña.

Albert Grossman, the schvitzing Svengali, our manager, the gray cloud, and now he’s gone.

28 January 1968 Avalon Ballroom San Francisco

Chet and Lori Helms with Bill Graham. Bill is doing the talking. Imagine that.

2 February 1968 The Cheetah Los Angeles

3 February 1968 Earl Warren Showgrounds Santa Barbara

9 February 1968 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Santa Clara California

10 February 1968 Community Concourse Exhibit Hall San Diego

16 February 1968 Palestra Philadelphia A “palestra” was originally a wrestling school in Greece (palaistra). In Italian, the word now means “gymnasium.”

17 February 1968 Anderson Theatre New York City

Elliott Landy took some very sweet photographs of nearly everyone at that time.

The lower East Side was a magic place to be in those days.

This restaurant was right next door to where we played.

Colors, smells, enthusiastic people who were personal, direct and kind, rather the opposite of the stereotype of New Yorkers.

Ukrainian easter eggs, Afghan coats, secondhand shops, it was like a giant bazaar.

23-24 February 1968 Psychedelic Supermarket Boston I walked into a store in Boston, asked for yoghurt and the grocer almost spat at me.

25 February 1968 Rhode Island School of Design Providence Rhode Island Yes, folks, there was a time when yoghurt was seen as exotic.

I lived in Paris 1962-1964 and a friend there was feeding yoghurt (“yaourt”) to his baby. First time I tasted it. Delicious. Tastier then… and there.

1-2 March 1968 The Grande Ballroom Detroit Michigan

Back in New York, in Albert Grossman’s office listening to what we did at The Grande. One of those moments of truth.

Bill Graham becomes the king of New York.

8 March 1968 Fillmore East opens. Linda made this poster.

We were living in the Chelsea Hotel, once home of Mark Twain, Eugene O’Neill, Thomas Wolfe and many other heroes of our youth.

William Burroughs lived there. So did Brendan Behan, O. Henry, Virgil Thomson, Larry Rivers, Charles Bukowski, Patti Smith and let’s not forget Sid and Nancy.

Jane Fonda lived there. So did Julie Christie. I visited each of them there. We were just friends. Coworkers, really.

9 March 1968 Wesleyan University Middletown Connecticut Janis is playing Combination of the Two.

15-17 March 1968 Electric Factory Philadelphia I always loved Philadelphia. The people I met there seemed very soulful. Still do.

Visiting the Columbia Records vault, New York City. Lots of treasure there.

And recording at the Black Rock. Columbia Recording Studio. I once did a session here at seven in the morning.

The Black Rock is at 52nd Street and Sixth Avenue.

I was very excited to be on this street and I walked west at night, hearing the ghosts of Monk, Bird, Diz, Bud Powell, Bill DeArengo, Milt Jackson, J.C. Heard, Ray Brown.

I walked 52nd Street whistling the tune they wrote and played here. That middle part is something else.

22-24 March 1968 The Cheetah Chicago

2-6 April The Generation New York City B.B. King inspired us this night with his sacred words and music.

7 April 1968 Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with B.B. King, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Guy, Richie Havens, Paul Butterfield, Joni Mitchell.

10 April 1968 Anaheim Convention Center

Tuning, always tuning. In the Renaissance they said that if a lute player lived to be eighty, he would have spent sixty years tuning. That’s about right

11 April 1968 We play Summertime on ABC-TV Hollywood Palace.

11 April 1968 Fillmore Auditorium with Booker T and the MGs and Iron Butterfly.

12-13 April 1968 Winterland San Francisco Now we’re home with our friends, practiced, proficient, professional and prone to perilous propensities.

Don’t ask me what that means. Well, actually, I know what it means, but am loathe to elucidate.

This gig at Winterland was recorded.

14 April 1968 Carousel Ballroom

19 April 1968 Selland Arena Fresno

20 April 1968 University of California Santa Barbara

24 April 1968 Straight Theatre San Francisco

26 April 1968 Foothill College Los Altos California

27 April 1968 San Bernardino California

1 May 1968 College Field Chico State College Chico California Chico is close to Paradise. I bet Donna Patterson can come up with a better line than that.

2 May 1968 Carousel Ballroom San Francisco

1968 3-4 May The Shrine Expo Center Los Angeles

3-5 May 1968

3-6 May 1068

10 May 1968 Cal-Poly State University San Luis Obispo California

11 May 1968

12 May 1968 San Fernando Valley State College Northridge California

15 May 1968

Fairly typical set list at this time.

16 May 1968 This doesn’t look like one of James’ usual guitars.

17 May 1968 Freeborn Hall University of California at Davis

18 May 1968 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Santa Clara Northern California Folk Rock Festival

This was a special gig, quite memorable.

Sunny, beautiful day, Janis relaxed and happy, sitting in the grass with me and the other children.

19 May 1968 Civic Auditorium Pasadena James singing Easy Rider. “And I will even buy you some cardboard fruit.”

21 May 1968 Bermuda Palms San Rafael California I used to play saxophone in this building with a big band.

24-26 May 1968 Carousel Ballroom with the Clara Ward Singers. Five errors ? Dave, Janis, Sam, James and Peter. That was easy.

31 May 1968

9 June 1968 Whisky-A-Go-Go Hollywood

Always so much going on at The Whisky.

13 June 1968 Fillmore Auditorium

14-15 June 1968 Winterland San Francisco

16 June 1968 Fillmore Matrix Benefit

22-23 June 1968 Carousel Ballroom

Owsley Stanley put us on tape many times. SONY has just released his recording of this engagement.

24 June 1968 Burlingame Country Club Burlingame California

26-29 June 1968 Denver

Part five next week. I love you all, you know that, right ? OK, just making sure.

Sam Andrew

_________________________________________________________________________________

Big Brother history, part four, January to June 1968

Posted on April 26, 2012 by J L tagged.

This is the story of Big Brother and the Holding Company.

January to June 1968

Linda McCartney took this photograph when she was Linda Eastman. Linda and I and quite a few other people became vegetarians at this time, not for our health, as Isaac Bashevis Singer might say, but for the health of the chickens.

Hey, I get to be Kermit the Frog.

5 January 1968 Rainbow Ballroom Fresno California

6 January 1968 Sacramento State College Steve Brown captured this lovely image of Janis.

12 January 1968 Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles

13 January 1968 Barnes Park Bandshell Monterey Park California

16-21 January 1968 Golden Bear Club Huntington Beach California

25 January 1968 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

26-27 January 1968 Winterland San Francisco John Byrne Cooke, son of Alistair Cooke. John studied Romance Languages at Harvard. He was our estimable road manager and has remained a good friend.

I don’t want to say that John is tall, but here he is hovering over Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Mimi Fariña and Joan Baez.

John writes western novels, he’s a photographer, he sings Louvin Brothers songs and he introduced us to a whole new world.

John is now writing a book about his days with Janis in Big Brother, the Kozmic Blues Band and Full Tilt.

John took this photograph of Debbie Green and Mimi Fariña.

28 January 1968 Avalon Ballroom San Francisco

We’re playing Oh, Sweet Mary.

Chet and Lori Helms with Bill Graham. Bill is doing the talking. Imagine that.

2 February 1968 The Cheetah Los Angeles

3 February 1968 Earl Warren Showgrounds Santa Barbara

9 February 1968 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Santa Clara California

10 February 1968 Community Concourse Exhibit Hall San Diego

16 February 1968 Palestra Philadelphia

A palestra was originally a wrestling school in Greece (palaistra). In Italian, the word now means gymnasium.

17 February 1968 Anderson Theatre New York City

This restaurant was right next door to where we played so we spent a lot of time there.

Tastes, feelings, colors, smells, enthusiastic people who were personal, direct and kind, the people we encountered were the opposite of the stereotype of New Yorkers.

Ukrainian easter eggs, Afghan coats, secondhand shops, it was like a giant bazaar.

23-24 February 1968 Psychedelic Supermarket Boston I walked into a store in Boston, asked for yoghurt and the grocer almost spat at me. Yes, folks, there was a time when yoghurt was seen as exotic, something that only a Democrat would eat.

25 February 1968 Rhode Island School of Design Providence Rhode Island

I lived in Paris 1962-1964 and a friend there was feeding yoghurt (yaourt) to his baby. First time I tasted it. Delicious. Tastier then… and there. We often had it with meals in the student cafeteria at the Sorbonne.

1-2 March 1968 The Grande Ballroom Detroit Michigan

8 March 1968 Fillmore East opens. Linda Eastman (McCartney) made this poster.

We were living in the Chelsea Hotel.

Jane Fonda lived in the Chelsea at that time. So did Julie Christie.

Combination of the Two

9 March 1968 Wesleyan University Middletown Connecticut

15-17 March 1968 Electric Factory Philadelphia

22-24 March 1968 The Cheetah Chicago

2-6 April The Generation New York City

7 April 1968 Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Guy, Richie Havens, Paul Butterfield. B.B. King inspired us that night with his sacred words and music.

10 April 1968 Anaheim Convention Center

11 April 1968 We play Summertime on ABC-TV Hollywood Palace.

11 April 1968 Fillmore Auditorium with Booker T and the MGs and Iron Butterfly

12-13 April 1968 Winterland San Francisco

14 April 1968 Carousel Ballroom

19 April 1968 Selland Arena Fresno

20 April 1968 University of California Santa Barbara

24 April 1968 Straight Theatre San Francisco

26 April 1968 Foothill College Los Altos California

27 April 1968 San Bernardino California

1 May 1968 College Field Chico State College Chico California

2 May 1968 Carousel Ballroom San Francisco

1968 3-4 May The Shrine Expo Center Los Angeles

3-6 May 1968

10 May 1968 Cal-Poly State University San Luis Obispo California

Sam Berdofsky drew this poster for our gig in Santa Rosa.

11 May 1968

12 May 1968 San Fernando Valley State College Northridge California

15 May 1968

Fairly typical set list at this time.

16 May 1968 That doesn’t look like one of James’ usual guitars.

17 May 1968 Freeborn Hall University of California at Davis

18 May 1968 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Santa Clara Northern California Folk Rock Festival

This was a special gig, quite memorable. The weather was beautiful and there was a spirit of togetherness.

19 May 1968 Civic Auditorium Pasadena James singing Easy Rider. “And I will even buy you some cardboard fruit.”

21 May 1968 Bermuda Palms San Rafael California One dollar seemed to be the going rate for these Angels affairs. Would be about $10 now.

I used to play saxophone in this building with a big band.

Five errors ? Dave, Janis, Sam, James and Peter. That was easy.

24-26 May 1968 Carousel Ballroom with the Clara Ward Singers

31 May 1968

9 June 1968 Whisky-A-Go-Go Hollywood

13 June 1968 Fillmore Auditorium

14-15 June 1968 Winterland San Francisco

16 June 1968 Fillmore Matrix Benefit

22-23 June 1968 Carousel Ballroom

Owsley Stanley put us on tape many times. SONY released his recording of this engagement.

24 June 1968 Burlingame Country Club Burlingame California

26-29 June 1968 Denver

Janis Joplin

See you next week?

Sam Andrew

___________________________________________________

Big Brother and the Holding Company, part three. July to December 1967

Posted on April 22, 2012 by J L tagged.

Well, hello, everybody !

July to Decmber 1967

This is the continuing story of Big Brother and the Holding Company.

The third of twenty-five chapters.

1 July 1967 Avalon Ballroom Quicksilver Mount Rushmore Horns of Plenty

“Big Brother and the Holding Company ?” How did you get a name like that ?

2 July 1967 Mount Tamalpais Marin County, California.

I remember I had a hard time driving down off that mountain after this gig. We had a 1955 Cadillac hearse which was unwieldy anyway, and I didn’t know Marin County yet, and especially Mount Tamalpais, so I had a fun time negotiating all those curves, peaks and valleys.

Anyway, on a beautiful spring day in 1965, Chet Helms held in his hands two legal tablets full of quirky, eccentric, purposefully puerile names.

Names like Tom Slow and his Sarcastic Grand Mo. Or Big Bother and the Folding Company. Or Country Schmo and The Knish. Or Quicksliver Military Service.

4-6 July 1967 Fillmore Bo Diddly Big Joe Williams

7-8 July 1967 Circle Star Theatre San Carlos California

Theatres in the round can be quite tricky. Westbury Music Fair on Long Island is another one. When they begin revolving there is a slight jerk that you should be ready for.

On one legal tablet, Chet had the name “Big Brother,” no doubt prompted by a recent reading of Orwell.

14-15 July 1967 Continental Ballroom grand opening.

20-21 July 1967 Avalon Ballroom Mount Rushmore On another legal tablet page, Chet had the words “The Holding Company.”

Holding ? Why Holding ?

23 July 1967 Straight Theatre San Francisco Grand Opening Freedom Highway The Phoenix Wildflower Grateful Dead

Mount Rushmore Quicksilver Messenger Service New Salvation Army Band Mother Earth Country Joe and The Fish The Charlatans Blue Cheer

28-30 July 1967 California Hall San Francisco

“Holding” was slang at that time for “possessing,” as in, “Hey, man, are you holding any drugs ?”

31 July 1967 Haight Ashbury Free Clinic Benefit

8 August 1967 Denver Dog Denver Colorado A band at this event played Bye, Bye, Baby. The guitar player even copied my mistakes. First time I heard that.

10 August 1967 Kaiser Dome San Bernardino So, on one yellow tablet Chet had “Big Brother” and on the other he had “the Holding Company.”

11-12 August 1967 Continental Ballroom Santa Clara California ”Big Brother ?” “Holding Company ?”

13 August 1967 Avalon Ballroom ”Big Brother” was big government. “”Holding Company” was corporate government. Corporations weren’t people yet.

16 August 1967 Golden Gate Park The Supreme Court was still an honorable institution.

Sharrie Gomez and I doing a Macy’s ad.

24-27 August 1967 Avalon Ballroom Bo Diddly Bukka White The Salvation Army Banned

28 August 1967 Lindley Meadow Golden Gate Park ”Big Brother ?” “Holding Company ?” Very political.

Country Joe and The Fish were a political group, but their name was non political. They should have had our name and we should have had theirs.

Country Janis and The Fish would have been perfect.

We were not “political” at all in the Berkeley sense. We were political just by being who we were. Our politics were non proselytizing, spiritual, private.

Joe MacDonald had a difficult time understanding this then and he may still.

So… “Big Brother ?” ”The Holding Company ?” For a group of people like us ?

We had a shoot in Sausalito at the Heliport with Irving Penn, master of photography, another not overtly yet intensely political artist.

This is the way Irving Peen’s portrait of us and the Grateful Dead looks on the walls of The National Portrait Gallery, London.

1-3 September 1967 Straight Theatre Haight Ashbury San Francisco.

4 September 1967 La Dolphine Estate Debutante Party Burlingame California

6 September 1967

8-9 September 1967 Family Dog Denver

You probably cannot see that Janis and I are committing some kind of nefarious act over there under the tree.

Talk about truth in advertising.

15 September 1967 Canceled. Anyway, so Chet put the names together. Big Brother and the Holding Company.

James Gurley said, “Hey, how is a name that long going to fit on a marquee or a record label ?”

And I thought, “You mean there’s going to be a marquee… and a record label ?”

September 16, 1967 Monterey Jazz Festival T-Bone Walker B. B. King Richie Havens The Clara Ward Singers Afternoon Blues Show

T-Bone Walker was my guitar hero when I was 14, him and Charlie Christian, so I was very excited to see him here.

19-24 September 1967 Golden Bear Huntington Beach California with Big Mama Thornton.

5 October 1967 The Matrix San Francisco James Gurley’s question was prescient. Big Brother and the Holding Company has always been a difficult fit.

On marquees, on record labels, on book titles, philosophically, spiritually… a difficult fit.

6 October 1967 The Ark Sausalito California

7 October 1967 Avalon Ballroom See ? The version below might fit us a bit bother, I mean, better.

8 October 1967 Santa Clara Fairgrounds Santa Clara California

13-14 October 1967 Eagles Auditorium Seattle This engagement was also canceled, I believe, and we played at The Ark instead.

To make the name Big Brother and the Holding Company fit on a poster, we have to squeeze it, so that our name is smaller. Boo, hoo.

15-16 October 1967 Avalon Ballroom

20 October 1967 Contra Costa College San Pablo California

27 October 1967 Cal State Hayward California

28 October 1967 McNear’s Beach San Rafael California

28-29 October 1967 Peacock Country Club San Rafael

31 October 1967 Trip Or Freak Hallowe’en Ball Winterland San Francisco

2-3 November 1967 Fillmore San Francisco Richie Havens

? November 1967 Golden Bear Club Huntington Beach California

4 November 1967 Winterland San Francisco Richie Havens Pink Floyd

4 November 1967 The Ark Baltimore Steam Packet Moby Grape

13 November 1967 Avalon Ballroom Grateful Dead Quicksilver Messenger Service

16 November 1967 Cubist stock certificate.

Lisa Law took this one in San Geronimo Valley not far from where I am sitting now.

This event never happened. In any year. I wish it would have.

23-25 November 1967 The Family Dog presents Thanksgiving Turkey Strut and Trot at The Avalon.

24 November 1967 California Hall San Francisco

25 November 1967 Avalon Ballroom Mount Rushmore

1 December 1967 The Matrix San Francisco Sandy Bull Dan Hicks

2 December 1967

14-17 December 1967 Whisky-A-Go-Go Hollywood

17 December 1967

18 December 1967 California Hall

19 December 1967 Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles We became acquainted with Connie and Renee Pappas somewhere along here.

They were good friends and the next time we played the Golden Bear or the Shrine, they had a party for us at their house.

20 December 1967 Whisky-A-Go-Go Hollywood

22 December 1967 Turlock Fairgrounds Turlock California

25 December 1967 Sokol Hall Christmas Party

26-31 December 1967 Winterland San Francisco

31 December 1967

Happy New Year !

Part four next week. See you then.

Sam Andrew

Big Brother and the Holding Company Alain Bertrand painted this. Notice the billboard down the street to your left.

Alain, je te remercie mille fois. My good friend.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Big Brother history, part three, July to December 1967

Posted on April 19, 2012 by J L tagged.

July to Decmber 1967

1 July 1967 Avalon Ballroom Big Brother and the Holding Company Quicksilver Mount Rushmore Horns of Plenty

“Big Brother and the Holding Company ?” How did you get a name like that ? Well, on a beautiful spring day in 1965, Chet Helms held in his hands two legal tablets full of quirky, eccentric, purposefully puerile names. Names like Tom Slow and his Sarcastic Grand Mo. Or Country Schmo and The Knish. Or Quicksilver Military Service. The Grapefruit Head. The Jefferson’s Bear Pain.

On one legal tablet, Chet had the name “Big Brother,” no doubt prompted by a recent reading of Orwell. On another legal tablet page, Chet had the words “The Holding Company.” ‘Holding ?’ Why Holding ? “Holding” was slang at that time for “possessing,” as in, “Hey, man, are you holding any drugs ?”

So, on one yellow tablet Chet had “Big Brother” and on the other he had “the Holding Company.” “Big Brother ?” “Holding Company ?” “Big Brother” was big government. “”Holding Company” was corporate government. Corporations weren’t people yet. Their ‘free speech’ hadn’t yet become protected by the Supreme Court, which was still an honorable institution.

“Big Brother ?” “Holding Company ?” Very political. Country Joe and The Fish were a political group, but their name was non political. They should have had our name and we should have had theirs. Country Janis and The Fish would have been something to consider, even if we didn’t have Janis yet.

James Gurley said, “Hey, how is a name like Big Brother and the Holding Company going to fit on a marquee or a record label ?”

And I thought, “You mean there’s going to be a marquee… and a record label ?”

2 July 1967 Mount Tamalpais Marin County, California.

I had a difficult time driving down off Mount Tamalpais after this gig. We had a 1955 Cadillac hearse which was unwieldy anyway, and I didn’t know Marin County yet, and especially Tamalpais, so I had a fun time negotiating all those curves, peaks and valleys after cocktails and cannabis.

4-6 July 1967 Fillmore Bo Diddley Big Joe Williams Quicksilver Big Brother

7-8 July 1967 Circle Star Theatre San Carlos California Theatres in the round, such as the Circle Star, can be quite tricky. Westbury Music Fair on Long Island is another one. When they begin revolving there is a slight jerk that you should be ready for or otherwise you could spill your Bombay martini.

14-15 July 1967 Continental Ballroom grand opening.

We’re playing Cuckoo here, a song that became Oh, Sweet Mary on Cheap Thrills.

20-21 July 1967 Avalon Ballroom Big Brother and the Holding Company Mount Rushmore

23 July 1967 Straight Theatre San Francisco Grand Opening Big Brother and the Holding Company Freedom Highway The Phoenix Wildflower The Grateful Dead Mount Rushmore Quicksilver Messenger Service New Salvation Army Band Mother Earth Country Joe and The Fish The Charlatans Blue Cheer

The Gurley man

28-30 July 1967 California Hall San Francisco

Josie and Eddy

31 July 1967 Haight Ashbury Free Clinic Benefit

8 August 1967 Denver Dog Denver Colorado A band at this event played Bye, Bye, Baby. The guitar player even copied my mistakes. First time I heard that.

10 August 1967 Kaiser Dome San Bernardino

11-12 August 1967 Continental Ballroom Santa Clara California

13 August 1967 Avalon Ballroom

16 August 1967 Golden Gate Park

Sharrie Gomez and I doing a Macy’s ad.

Bo and his balalaika

24-27 August 1967 Avalon Ballroom Big Brother Bo Diddley Bukka White The Salvation Army Banned

28 August 1967 Lindley Meadow Golden Gate Park

Hunter S. Thompson

We had a shoot in Sausalito at the Heliport with Irving Penn.

This is the way Irving Penn’s portrait of us and the Grateful Dead looks on the wall at The National Portrait Gallery, London.

1-3 September 1967 Straight Theatre Haight Ashbury San Francisco

4 September 1967 La Dolphine Estate Debutante Party Burlingame California

6 September 1967

8-9 September 1967 Family Dog Denver

Truth in advertising

You probably cannot see that Janis and I are committing some kind of nefarious act over there under the tree.

15 September 1967 Canceled

September 16, 1967 Monterey Jazz Festival Big Brother T-Bone Walker B. B. King Richie Havens The Clara Ward Singers Afternoon Blues Show

T-Bone Walker was my guitar hero since I was 14, so I was very excited to see him here.

19-24 September 1967 Golden Bear Huntington Beach California with Big Mama Thornton.

5 October 1967 The Matrix San Francisco

6 October 1967 The Ark Sausalito California

7 October 1967 Avalon Ballroom

8 October 1967 Santa Clara Fairgrounds Santa Clara California

13-14 October 1967 Eagles Auditorium Seattle This engagement was canceled, I believe, and we played at The Ark instead.

15-16 October 1967 Avalon Ballroom

20 October 1967 Contra Costa College San Pablo California

27 October 1967 Cal State Hayward California

28 October 1967 McNear’s Beach San Rafael California

28-29 October 1967 Peacock Country Club San Rafael

31 October 1967 Trip Or Freak Hallowe’en Ball Winterland San Francisco

2-3 November 1967 Fillmore San Francisco with Richie Havens

November 1967 Golden Bear Club Huntington Beach California

4 November 1967 Winterland San Francisco with Richie Havens and Pink Floyd

James Gurley plays an F# minor.

4 November 1967 The Ark with Baltimore Steam Packet and Moby Grape

Sally Mann photographed by Rosie McGee

Way Beck in the old days

13 November 1967 Avalon Ballroom Big Brother and the Holding Company The Grateful Dead Quicksilver Messenger Service

16 November 1967 Cubist stock certificate

This event never happened. In any year. I wish it would have.

23-25 November 1967 The Family Dog presents Thanksgiving Turkey Strut and Trot at The Avalon.

24 November 1967 California Hall San Francisco

25 November 1967 Avalon Ballroom Mount Rushmore

1 December 1967 The Matrix San Francisco with Sandy Bull and Dan Hicks

2 December 1967 1st L.A. appearance, it says. I didn’t realize that.

17 December 1967

18 December 1967 California Hall

19 December 1967 Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles

20 December 1967 Whisky-A-Go-Go Hollywood

22 December 1967 Turlock Fairgrounds Turlock California

25 December 1967 Sokol Hall Christmas Party

26-31 December 1967 Winterland San Francisco

Happy New Year ! 31 December 1967

See you next week?

Sam Andrew

____________________________________________

Big Brother and the Holding Company, part two. January to June 1967

Posted on April 14, 2012 by J L tagged.

January to June 1967

I found this photograph tacked to a telephone pole. By whom? Why ? I have no idea.

Palais des Beaux Arts. San Francisco.

A lot of our inspiration was coming from KMPX radio. They had a beautifully adventurous playlist which was the soundtrack to our lives at this time. Erik Satie, then Quicksilver, then Telemann, then Mississippi John hurt, then, well, it could go anywhere.

Howard Hessman didn’t only play a DJ on TV. He was one in real life, and a good one too.

Chet Helms about the time that we shared a house in Bernal Heights, San Francisco.

1 January 1967 Golden Gate Park “New Year’s Day Wail” with the Grateful Dead and the Orkustra

Fayette Hauser’s Cockettes in the Panhandle, Golden Gate Park.

The Panhandle in the 1890s.

Diane Vitalich playing in the Park, probably with the Ace of Cups, a good band.

The Wizard Martoon, Martin Gorak, artist, gentle soul, great human being, soul brother. He taught me a lot about how the stars move across the sky. Great painter.

9 January 1967 Straight Theatre

Rehearsing with James Gurley.

We took an early group photograph in Golden Gate Park by one of these windmills out near the ocean.

A very appropriate symbol come to think of it.

12 January 1967

13 January 1967 Santa Venetia Armory San Rafael California Ralph and Al Pepe presented Moby Grape, Morning Glory and us.

I remember John Cipollina at this one, talking my ear off , explaining what Leos and Virgos were. Full speed. Quicksilver.

Hey ! It’s Janis ! In San Rafael.

This is Peter’s school. He majored in photography here. Light is faster than sound.

14 January 1967 Human Be-in Golden Gate Park San Francisco

15 January 1967 Shrine Auditorium Los Angeles

The Merry Pranksters were along for this one.

17-22 January 1967 The Matrix San Francisco

Amazing what happened in this tiny room. Steve Miller was also on this bill.

24-26 January 1967 Soul City Club Dallas Texas

28 January 1967 Continental Ballroom Santa Clara, Calilfornia.

How it felt, how it looked.

29 January 1967 Avalon Ballroom San Francisco

Allen Ginsberg, Grateful Dead, Moby Grape.

Chet Helms, the high priest.

31 January to 5 February 1967 Matrix

I’ve noticed that a lot of really good singers have very wide, generous mouths.

3 February 1967 A Benefit for Hairy Harry California Hall Head Lights does the light show.

4-5 Feburary 1967 Matrix Where did they go ? All those sounds we played in that small room ?

10-11 February 1967 Golden Sheaf Bakery Berkeley

12 February 1967 California Hall

14 February 1967

We played with Moby Grape and Jack the Ripper.

15 February 1967 California Hall

Papa made the set list. Mama read the papers.

17-18 February 1967 Avalon Ballroom Tribal Stomp

Bob Seideman took this photograph of James.

19 February 1967 Matrix

Mojo Navigator There is a beautiful magazine now in the UK called MOJO. I wonder if they ever give any props to their ancestor ?

21 February 1967 California Hall

23 February 1967 The Ark

24 February 1967 Glide Memorial Church San Francisco

25 February 1967 The Barn Scott’s Valley California

This was a most interesting scene down near Santa Cruz in the magical town of Scott’s Valley. The Hershey Gumbo played downstairs at the same time as we did upstairs, and they were attracting a large audience. Janis and James and I went down to see what was going on. Ralph Saunders, a steel guitar player, was holding forth and there seemed to be some kind of intrigue in the air. Scott’s Valley has now become a wealthy enclave, in places a gated community seemingly unaware of its exotic past.

26 February 1967 Glide Memorial Church Sunday morning service

The Reverend Cecil Williams was a hero to us.

Then, that evening, we drove to Merced and played at The American Legion Hall.

2 March 1967

4 March 1967 Steininger Auditorium University of California Medical Center San Francisco with Steve Miller.

I loved this gig. I was fascinated by Steve, already a great player and very advenurous.

5 March 1967 Avalon Ballroom A Benefit for Newstage & the Straight Theatre Moby Grape Country Joe and The Fish The Sparrow

10 March 1967 Chessall High School Gymnasium Ukiah California

12 March 1967 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

14-16 March 1967 The Matrix

17-18 March 1967 The Avalon

Charles Lloyd The Sir Douglas Quintet

21-26 March 1967 The Rock Garden San Francisco

I was talking to Arthur Lee, “Boy, that was a great set you did !” He replied, “Who you calling boy ?”

31 March to 1 April 1967 Avalon Ballroom Charlatans Blue Cheer

Herb Greene took this beautiful photograph of these beautiful people, The Charlatans.

8 April 1967 Mount Tamalpais Outdoor Theatre Marin County

Quicksilver Messenger Service The Sparrow The Charlatans

9 April 1967 Longshoremen’s Hall San Francisco

10-11 April Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco We played that afternoon 10 April on Mount Tamalpais.

12-13 April 1967 Winterland and the Fillmore

15 April 1967 Spring Mobilization Kezar Stadium San Francisco

16 April 1967 Stockton Civic Auditorium Stockton California The New Breed played on the bill with us.

21 April 1967 In Athens there was also counter revolution and questioning of authority.

There was a wave of protest washing over the world. Even the Red Guards in China, misguided as they were, were part of this.

We must all stand together or surely we will all hang separately. Benjamin Franklin.

21-22 April 1967 Fillmore Auditorium with the mighty Howlin’ Wolf

23 April 1967

The light show was Aurora Glory Alice.

The Diggers. There were two leaders of this organization. One died of a heroin overdose in the 1980s. The other became a leading man in films. It seems like every documentary voice over I hear is by Peter Coyote.

25 April 1967 Live in studio performance at KQED “Come Up The Years” San Francisco

When Janis saw this shot she said, “Gosh, Sam, you are such a fan.”

Hey, I knew where the camera was at all times… and so did she.

25-27 April 1967 Matrix

28-29 April 1967 California Hall with Willie Mae Big Mama Thornton The Weeds

5-7 May 1967 Avalon Ballroom

11 May 1967 The Fillmore Vanguard Records throws a party for the release of an LP by Country Joe and the Fish.

12-13 May 1967 California Hall

25 May 1967 Carousel Ballroom San Francisco

26-27 May 1967 The Fillmore with Steve Miller

30 May 1967 Haight Ashbury Legal Organization Benefit Winterland

Jefferson Airplane Quicksilver Messenger Service The Charlatans Grateful Dead

31 May 1967 Filming Petulia The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco

Peter auditioning for Hard Days Night, part two.

It was fun getting to know Julie Christie and Richard Chamberlain who turned out to be a decent man and not at all “plastic,” deadly term of opprobrium in those days.

We filmed right in the Fairmont lobby.

The theme in the film for this event was driving safety, so we performed Road Block.

The director was Richard Lester. He had worked with other musicians, so he knew what to expect.

2-3 June 1967 California Hall

8-11 June 1967 Avalon Ballroom

Canned Heat, still a great band. We play with them frequently.

One of my favorite phoographs of Janis.

10-11 June 1967

17-18 June 1967 The Monterey Pop Festival

I was so in love with Rita Bergman. She was the flower in the sun. She was the one to call on me. She was the farewell.

Singing Road Block.

What a thrill this was.

Some guys will do anything to get a little reverb.

Ravi Shankar, Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix were the people I wanted to see and they didn’t disappoint.

Janis was great. We all felt good and happy to be there.

21 June 1967 Polo Field Golden Gate Park San Francisco Summer Solstice Festival Embarcadero & Lombard Streets

24 June 1967 The Avalon

25 June 1967 The Fillmore with Gabor Szabo and Jimi Hendrix

27 June 1967 Benefit for Lick-Wilmerding School Avalon Ballroom

28 June 1967 Western Front San Francisco

29 June 1967 California Hall

29 June-2 July 1967 Avalon Ballroom

30 June 1967 Napa Fairgrounds Napa California

James Gurley, one of the most interesting people I have ever known.

Next week part three. See you then.

Sam Andrew

Ooops, there I go again.

Big Brother and the Holding Company

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Big Brother and the Holding Company, part one. 1965-1966

Posted on April 8, 2012 by J L tagged.

1965 – 1966

Since I was 14 or so, I have been in one kind of a musical group or another. Guitar groups.

Vocal groups.

The Cool Notes Okinawa Japan.

At the University of San Francisco I played trumpet, saxophone and a lot of typewriter, because I edited the literary magazine.

Things were coalescing.

We were listening to Skip James, Ma Rainey, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Victoria Spivey, Mance Lipscomb, Bessie Smith, Mississippi John Hurt, LaVern Baker, Joe Turner.

And Peter Albin was playing like John Lee Hooker.

Big Brother and the Holding Company 1965-2012 …and counting… Golden Anniversary soon. This is our history.

Peter and I started playing as Big Brother in this house… 1090 Page Street San Francisco. 1965.

The image below might be the earliest photograph we have of all of our friends. See anyone you know there ? If you know everyone there, call me immediately.

People I know in this photograph: Peter Albin, Sam Andrew, Rita Bergman, Mike Ferguson, Dave Getz, Martin Gorak, Hongo Gurley, James Gurley, Nancy Gurley, Phil Hammond, Chet Helms, Lori Helms, Dan Hicks, David Homage, George Hunter, Janis Joplin, Alton Kelley, Mortimer Lindner (veterinarian), James Moylanin, Richie Olsen, Paula Preston, Sancho (the family dog), Mike Wilhelm.

Chet Helms, our big brother.

Our first promotional photograph. We are in the cable car barn. San Francisco, 1966.

Chet Helms, Sam Andrew, Peter Albin, Chuck Jones, James Gurley.

November 1965 We play a gig on Clement Street, but we are not called Big Brother yet.

Later in November 1965 We play in the Panhandle of Golden Gate Park as Big Brother and the Holding Company.

Mike Ferguson and Lynn Hughes.

10 January 1966 We held auditions at The Matrix on Fillmore Street, San Francisco.

15 January 1966 Our first public performance. Open Theatre Berkeley.

Lynn Hughes actually auditioned for us at one point. Here she is with Jesse Cahn.

21-23 January 1966 Longshoreman’s Hall San Francisco

12 February 1966 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

19 February 1966

George Conger, Ritchie Olsen, George Hunter.

26 February 1966 The Family Dog at the Fillmore.

Darby Slick wrote this. I was TEACHING the lesson. Jerry Garcia and I were both guitar teachers at this point.

Chet Helms and James Gurley in one of Herb Greene’s beautiful photographs.

One of our glamour poses. Not glamor, glamour, please.

1=6 March 1966 The Matrix Chet was our brother and the Matrix was our mother.

12 March 1966 The Matrix

18-20 March 1966 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

19 March 1966 The Firehouse

James Gurley.

1 April 1966 Harmon Gymnasium Berkeley Delano Grape Strikers Benefit

2 April 1966

2 April 1966 Geary Temple

4-6 April 1966 Matrix

9 April 1966 Longshoreman’s Hall.

29-30 April 1966 Avalon Ballroom

Peter Albin learning his craft.

6 May 1966

It was a big thrill to see our name in the San Francisco Chronicle.

13-14 May 1966 Red Dog Saloon Virginia City Nevada

21 May 1966 Muir Beach Marin County

That was fun, to be finding our way, not sure of where we were going.

Janis was a trouper. She was a real musician and she supported the band as much as we supported her.

21 May 1966 Avalon Ballroom

27-28 May 1966 Red Dog Saloon Virginia City Nevada

Hairy ?

30 May 1966 Winterland San Francisco

3-4 June 1966 Avalon Ballroom

10-11 June 1966 Red Dog Saloon Virginia City

Janis and Dorothy Joplin.

19 June 1966 Timothy Leary Benefit at the St. Francis Hotel San Francisco

24-25 June 1966 Avalon Ballroom Janis Joplin’s first engagement with Big Brother unless Chet made a special place for her at the Avalon on 10 June. I can’t remember.

We did all kinds of gigs. This one was for our friend Dennis Nolan.

Dennis drew this poster. One of my favorites.

I’ve done a few paintings of this band.

1 July 1966 Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco

Rodney Albin, another big brother. Rodney once asked us to turn down… at gunpoint. The only way you can make guitar players turn down, despite an old joke that says otherwise.

2 July 1966 Monterey Fairgrounds

8-9 July 1966 Red Dog Saloon Virginia City

14 July 1966 Fillmore

15-16 July 1966 This one didn’t happen.

Nancy Gurley and her son Hongo who grew to be a fine man. Nancy was a free spirit.

22 July 1966

Lisa Law did some plein air photography of Big Brother out in the San Geronimo Valley of Marin County.

28 July 1966 California Hall San Francisco

29-30 July 1966 Garden Auditorium Pacific National Exhibition Vancouver British Columbia

29-30-31 July 1966

Ken Babbs in control at The Trips Festival.

Playing in Golden Gate Park. It always seemed to be sunny and blue.

2-3-4- August 1966 Losers South

5-6 August 1966 Avalon Ballroom

Sancho, often misspelled “Soncho,” put his pawprint on this poster.

Keeping an eye on things at The Mojo Navigator which was the first psychedelic rock magazine.

7 August 1966 with Grateful Dead, Grass Roots, Sunshine, Jook Savages, PH Phactor, Si Perkoff Jazz Quintet, San Francisco Mime Troupe.

12 August 1966 afternoon show in the Park.

12-13 August 1966 Avalon Ballroom

Figuring out what we’re going to do when we sign with Mainstream Records.

Chicago ! Our first big road trip. We were there from 25 August to 19 September 1966.

16 September 1966 Chicago Sun Times

I saw Howlin’ Wolf, Junior Wells, Muddy Waters, and a lot of other good people up close and personal. Wolf said to me, “You have more soul than I have on my shoe.” First time I heard that expression.

19 September 1966

Stanley Mouse did this beautiful work on my guitar.

23-24 September 1966 Avalon Ballroom. Wolf canceled this gig, so Grass Roots replaced him.

Another beautiful work by Dennis Nolan.

6 October 1966 The Ark Sausalito, California. We also played in Golden Gate Park that afternoon.

The Ark Sausalito, California

The Charles van Damme, alias, The Ark a few years later.

7-8 October 1966 Avalon Ballroom Sutter and Van Ness, San Francisco, California.

13-14 October 1966

15-16 October 1966

Backstage in our elegant dressing room.

22 October 1967 Winterland San Francisco

On one of our pilgrimages to Fritz Maytag’s Anchor Steam Brewery in San Francisco.

We played 1-6 November 1966 at The Matrix.

and 4 November 1966 at The Ark, Sausalito.

Drinking Champagne and being happy backstage.

The artists then were so exuberant and industrious that they would often do two, three or four posters for the same event. The creative juices were flowing.

11 November 1966 We taped a “POW” TV show in San Francisco and played the Trip Room in Sacramento.

We always had a lot of fun at Sokol Hall which was right down the street from 1090 Page where Peter and I started the band.

12 November 1966 Sokol Hall 739 Page Street San Francisco.

Peter Albin wears satin.

13 November 1966 Avalon Ballroom

19 November 1966 The Barn Scotts Valley Santa Cruz

23 November 1966 California Hall 625 Polk Street San Francisco, California.

25-26 November 1966 The Avalon Ballroom Isn’t this a beautiful poster ?

3 December 1966 Wilbur Hall Stanford University A Happening in the Wilburness

9-10 December 1966 Avalon Ballroom

16-17 December 1966 Winterland San Francisco

18 December 1966 We played the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

25 December 1966 We had a Christmas party at our house in Lagunitas. Lisa Law took this photograph of us by the kitchen door.

26 December 1966 The Ark Sausalito

27 December 1966 Avalon Ballroom

31 December 1966 Kezar Pavilion Golden Gate Park

Next week, part two. See you then !

Sam Andrew

Big Brother and the Holding Company

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April Fools.

Posted on April 1, 2012 by J L tagged.

1 April 2012

But if you had been able to anticipate the grand march of human progress and poetic feeling by fifty years, and asked her to sing

You made me love you, I didn’t want to do it. I didn’t want to do it,

she would have asked a policeman to remove you to a third class carriage. (George Bernard Shaw, writing about his mother).

Lord, what fools these mortals be.

1090 Page Street San Francisco

This was what it cost to see Peter Albin and me play in 1965.

When I first walked into 1090 Page Street in the spring of that year, these are the lines that I declaimed from the staircase down into the Victorian gloom of the foyer:

Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote

The droghte of Marche hath perced to the roote,

And bathed every veyne in swich licour,

Of which vertu engendred is the flour;

Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth

Inspired hath in every holt and heeth

The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne

Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,

And smale fowles maken melodye,

That slepen al the night with open ye,

So priketh hem nature in hir corages:

Than longen folk to goon on pilgrimages.

What do you want ? I had been an English major and was now studying linguistics in graduate school at UC Berkeley.

When this prologue is pronounced more or less the way it would be spoken in the fifteenth century, the rhythm and the music of the lines can be overwhelming.

In 1582, Charles IX, king of France, introduced the Gregorian Calendar into his country, and New Year’s Day was moved from 1 April to 1 January.

Many people, even in France, only learned of this change years later. Some are still not sure about it.

The first day of April seems like a far better time to start a new year than the first day of January.

Actually, to me, the first day of September would be best. This is the beginning of the year in many cultures.

The people who were too ignorant or too stubborn to accept 1 January as the new new year were labeled “fools” by everyone else and were mocked with fool errands, fool invitations and fool parties.

The butts of these pranks were called “poissons d’avril,” April fish.

A young fish is easily caught.

So, on the first of April, it was common to hook a paper fish on the back of someone as a joke.

You think he noticed it ?

In the 18th century, this lovely custom reached England, and was introduced into the American colonies by the English and the French. Here is a visual and literal pun on “poison” (poison) and “fish” (poisson).

Below is a ticket to see the “washing of the lions,” something that never happened, so this is an April fools trick in earnest.

In Scotland they take “butts” of jokes literally, so April Fools is devoted to spoofs involving the buttocks and is called Tally Day.

The origins of the “Kick Me” sign can be blamed on the Scots.

In Rome, this holiday was called Festival of Hilaria and it celebrated the return of the god Attis on 25 March, which was also called Roman Laughing Day. Hilaria was also called Cybele.

Another Hilaria in South America: OK, children, tell this pupil Aldo what are the requirements for being a congresswoman? To be Peruvian by birth and older than 25.

The Huli Festival in India comes on 31 March and is a celebration of Spring. People play jokes on each other and smear colors on their friends.

Perhaps because the cold winter is ebbing and the beautiful spring is springing, in many cultures there are lighthearted feasts around this time. One of them is the Jewish Purim which fell on 7 March this year at sundown.

Queen Esther Palin… April Fools !

Japanese style:

Things that happened on April first:

On 1 April 527, Flavius Petrus Sabbatius Justinianus became the emperor of Byzantium (Constantinople, Istanbul), the eastern part of the Roman Empire.

In 1578 on April first, William Harvey discoverer of the circulation of the blood, was born.

The ruins of Pompei were found on 1 April 1748.

On April Fools Day 1778, so the story goes, a New Orleans businessman Oliver Pollock created the $ symbol.

Another possible and much more interesting and ancient origin of the dollar sign is a kind of map made by the Phoenicians of the Pillars of Hercules. This was the Greek name of the promontories on the entrance to the straits of Gibraltar. When the Lebanese traders sailed by these eminences on their way out into the giant Atlantic ocean, the map they made of their threading the pillars was like a dollar sign. The Phoenicians were nothing if not a commercial race, so they took this map to heart.

King Ferdinand was able to make Gibraltar part of the Spanish estates in 1492 and he adopted the symbol of the pillars of Hercules. Later, King Charles V used it in his coat of arms and the symbol in combination with two hemispheres was printed on coins made of the silver and gold that was brought from America by the counquistadores. These coins then spread to America and Europe and the symbol adopted as a currency symbol.

Edmond Rostand who wrote Cyrano de Bergerac was born 1 April 1868.

Paul Gauguin the painter left Marseilles for Tahiti on 1 April 1891.

One fool that should have been kept in jail: 1 April 1924 Hitler was sentenced to five years labor, but General Ludendorff, a coconspirator in the Munich Putsch was acquitted. Herr Schickelgruber used his jail time to write a book.

Louis Marx introduced the Yo-Yo on April Fools 1929, the same day that Luis Buñuel released Un Chien Andalou. By the way, “yoyo” spelled backwards is “oyoy.”