Hip Me To The Jam Band "Scene"

[Dave Pierce]

The "ideal gigging situation" thread got me really thinking about "jam bands" (thanks Tony!). I went through a minor Deadhead phase in the 80s, and I dig some of their tunes. And I've seen Melvin Seals caress and slap around the B3 at the Boom Boom Room a few times (a must see if you haven't). Beyond that, though, I don't know much about "jam bands".

 

So, I turn once again to you all -- the wonderful resource that is the KC community.

 

If you could buy three albums, by three different bands, to introduce a guy to the scene, what three would they be?

 

I know, I know, it's a big scene and super diverse, etc. etc. But I'm just not going to buy 473 albums this week and listen to them before the end of the year. But I might buy three. In fact, if anyone answers this, I will buy three.

 

I just don't know which three. Yet. Help a brother out?

 

--Dave

 

Added later: I'm coming back to add that they don't necessarily have to be keyboard-heavy. I'm more interested in an introduction to the genre that will let me branch out and find what I like, while also trying to find local live shows to check out.

[Bridog6996]

"Jam band" is so diverse a "genre" that it's hard to pin down. There are bands that sound absolutely nothing like each other, yet still seem to get grouped into the "jam band" category. When a group gets labeled a "jam band" it usually simply means no more than there is improvisation involved, but it could encompass anything from electronica to bluegrass. Therefore, what you might like very much depends on your taste, and in my opinion there is no simple way to introduce someone to that scene. With that said, three artists and specific albums I like that are usually classified as jam bands are:

 

Medeski Martin and Wood - Friday Afternoon in the Universe

Sound Tribe Sector 9 - Peaceblaster

Benevento/Russo Duo - Best Reason to Buy the Sun

 

It couldn't hurt to check out some Phish either. Their earlier albums like Junta and Lawn Boy are pretty killer.

 

 

[scottasin]

First problem... you're looking to get into jambands, and then ask what album to buy... you're gonna want some live!

 

Personally, I'm a huge Phish fan, have been for a long time and finally got to see them this summer (and get to again for their tour opener at Cobo in Detroit, which is rumored to be the last show ever played there)...

 

If you're set on buying an album, I'd suggets Junta, Rift or Hoist... not the best production, but in my opinion, the best playing and song selection of their albums. Or you could buy a live Phish release, I'd suggest One of the Island Tour shows (4/2,3,4,5/98) which are downright funky (check out this version of

). If you're looking towards more of a rock feel, with less 'exploratory' and 'psychadelic' jamming which is a lot less accessable, any of the live phish releases from 94 or before would be great, or you could take advantage of their taping policy and download an unreleased show for free.

 

Here's a few individual songs that I love... try 'em out:

Down with disease (before the song was fully written, just a short jam with the same structure, the guitar solo destroys)

Harry Hood (my favorite single version of this song, a very uplifting jam)

Bathtub Gin

Tube (the song ends and then they pick back up the funk jam from the middle, which subsequently segues into...)

Slave to the Traffic Light

 

All of those are more jam based songs... for a taste of a great phish composition, check out Divided Sky.

 

EDIT: these are all LEGAL downloads, not pirated, so don't worry about that

[Bridog6996]

First problem... you're looking to get into jambands, and then ask what album to buy... you're gonna want some live!

 

Good point. Live performance is really at the heart of the whole jam band thing.

 

And +1 on Rift. In terms of studio albums, that would be the best Phish album to buy for someone wanting to see what they're all about. Well, you couldn't go wrong with Junta and Lawn Boy either, but I think Rift is my favorite.

[Dave Pierce]

Thanks guys, keep it coming!

 

I'm definitely going to check out some live shows. One of the reasons I want to hear some stuff first, is I want to take my wife to some live shows. I don't want to drag her off to a show that she'll end up being bored with, and I know her tastes fairly well, so listening first will help me narrow down the field...

 

--Dave

[B3_borne]

Try some Gov't Mule ...

[Jeff Klopmeyer]

If you could buy three albums, by three different bands, to introduce a guy to the scene, what three would they be?

 

None!

 

As has been pointed out, no self-respecting jam band does their best work on record. It's all about the live flow, the improvisation, the vibe and feel rather than the notes.

 

The ultimate jam band experience is probably the annual Bonnaroo Festival in Tennessee. The neat thing about it is that it's not at all tied to any specific genre of music. You get indie rock, jazz, reggae, metal, and so on. The only similarity seems to be a willingness to explore live music and make every show a unique event.

 

I think you can peruse a "best of Bonnaroo" recording somewhere, but I'd still advise to get out and check out some shows.

[To B3]

Big Fan of the scene too. And I think that the live albums are the ones that capture the spirit of the jam bands better.

 

First, the genre classification is a little subjective. So, mixing my personal taste with "obligatory" artists normally included on the genre, here goes my list (I swear Ill try not to be so obvious and leave the Dead and the Allmans, out, but as hours concours:)):

 

Gov´t Mule - The Deepest End

The Black Crowes - Freak´n roll, into the Fog

Traffic - Welcome To The Canteen (so much of what you´ll listen came from here)

 

So much more left out, but those are a good start. Classic, accessible, but yet, very, very representative of what a "band that jam" is all about, IMHO.

[Joe Muscara]

I love a lot of this stuff, but I don't know what to tell you except for the advice to go live. http://bt.etree.org has a bunch of stuff you can download from bands that allow that. Some bands have policies that don't allow trading online, to force more personal interaction. Allmans have that restriction, Gov't Mule and Derek Trucks Band do not.

 

Some bands are much more abstract and jammy (Disco Biscuits - who have a lot of synth stuff, which I have not seen in jam bands), some are more song oriented and leave the stretching to the solos (Little Feat, Black Crowes). Some are jazzy (MMW). The possibilities are endless.

 

Have fun!

[Dana.]

http://www.kkbox.com.tw/funky/album/60239.jpg

 

[Dave Pierce]

Huh. I'm actually familiar with most of these artists' names, and I like quite a few of them already. Maybe I don't need as much hipping as I thought I did.

 

I'm going to cruise over to the live music archive on archive.org and see what I find.

 

--Dave

[Dave Pierce]

Got some downloads queued up. Selected fairly randomly, based on what was available, and in MP3 (apparently there is some religion around not using MP3's?)...

 

Derek Trucks Band

Sound Tribe Sector 9

Benevento/Russo Duo

Phish (Nassau, 4/2/98)

 

That should keep me busy for a minute...

 

Thanks for all the input, guys, keep it coming!

 

--Dave

[Zydecat]

I like Donna the Buffalo - a real gumbo of styles with a 60's hippie message and vibe. Also really dug Melvin Seals with JGB, a Dead tribute band we saw at last year's Magnolia Fest in FL.

[ProfD]

Definitely check out Soulive.

 

Like other jam bands, studio recordings don't really capture their sound either.

 

While a guitarist is out front and a very tasteful player too, the band is led by a KB player.

[Phred]

+1 on Soulive . Not only is Neil a great keyboardist, but he handles the bass too.

[WWW]

In A Silent Way - Miles Davis

Dark Star- Grateful Dead (Live Dead)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Tonysounds]

If youre going to limit it to 3 just to get acquainted, Id go here:

 

Widespread Panic, Live in the Classic City (3cd live set with original guitarist Michael House, R.I.P., and a buy at less than $20!)

 

String Cheese Incident: Round The Wheel or Outside Inside

 

Govt Mule: Deja Voodoo or By A Thread (brand new this week)

 

Phish: Rift or Nectar

 

Santana: Sacred Fire

 

As pointed out, the best work of these bands is done live, but before you indulge in 15 minutes versions of songs you dont know, sometimes its good to learn about the band in a more concise format, and these are great introductions to these bands.

 

Rift, and to a certain extent Nectar, is a great rock record by these guys, with some excellent Hammond work. These albums arent proggy, but exhibit what made classic prog so great: arrangements, unusual structure, great playing. Of all the bands, Phish have the weakest lyrics, bordering on nonsense at times, but its about the music with this band.

 

SCIs Round The Wheel is a great intro to this band, as there are some latin grooves along with the traditional rock and bluegrass vibes. Kyle Hollingsworth is a fantastic keyboard player, and really is an exquisite pianist, very very underrated. Outside Inside was the first one I got (thanks to a review in Keyboard!), and is very good too.

 

Mules DejaVoodoo is their strongest studio record, with great songwriting and playing of course. Warren Haynes is an amazing guitarist and vocalist with just sick independence, and these songs are great. Ive only heard it a couple times (and the first was live over the weekend), but their new disc By A Thread is really really good, and rivals Deja Voodoo, at least so far.

 

Widespread Panics Live In The Classic City was the first music I heard by these guys, and it hooked me immediately. Their records are more introspective, and youll find you may have heard some of their more recent material on certain radio stations. This band is tricky: Ive had a harder time selling a lot of my friends on these guys as they really are jammy live, but they are a ferocious live unit, and their bassist Dave Schools is just a beast. They are almost 2 different bands live and in the studio. I love their records, but live they just really come out swinging. And this live package shows them in that light.

 

Santana is really one of the first jam bands, and have refined it, lost it, come back to it, and lost it a number of times. But if you dont have it, get Sacred Fire. Live, ferocious, full of great songs and monstrous playing by everyone, including Chester Thompson. Its the album before Supernatural which really changed things, but this album.simply fantastic.

 

 

And yes...I know this is more than 3. But you know me!

[Eric Iverson]

It's been a while since I've seen anything resembling an electric "jam band" live (although I have seen some acoustic jazz artists who, of course improvised on tunes). It's about time!!

I'm a guitarist who mostly plays in church bands (and bluegrass jams on mandolin), and I like doing it, but there's still part of me that loves to stretch out and go where it's going to go... where anything can happen.

In other words, I'm a mostly happy church mouse who wants to let his INNER RAT come out once in a while...... (no, no one's trying to rain on my parade, and say it's a sin to play lead - but the context is mostly vocal.)

[Garrafon]

String Cheese Incident for sure.

 

Donna Jean (of the Dead) and the Tricksters have some nifty tunes on their most recent album.

 

Other options (although not favs of mine):

Umphry's McGee (some good tunes)

Widespread Panic

[ProfD]

I figured Tony would recommend SCI, WP and Gov't Mule.

 

Also, check out Umphrey's McGee and Galactic as well.

 

For seasoned musos, a jam band could be the final frontier in terms of a creative outlet for songwriting, composition and live performance.

 

Funny thing is, those record deals that were elusive, never materialized and/or dried up due to changing times, could be on the table again if the band sounds great and builds a decent following.

 

There is a glimmer of hope before cover and wedding bands, corporate gigs and tuxedos.

 

Oops, Garrafon already recommended UMcG.

[Euntaek Kim]

Another +1 to Soulive. Loving their new album "Up Here"

[David R]

"Jamband," as has been mentioned, is such a wide umbrella, from the progginess of Umphrey's McGee to the disco and electronica of Disco Biscuits and Sound Tribe Sector 9, to the avant-jazz leanings of MMW and Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey. Some of the bands over the years have moved into different territory: MMW have often let go of the acid-groove-jazz of "Bubblehouse" and moved into more firmly avant territory (as on their Masada recording and the Radiolarians discs); The Slip have gone from jazzy-jammy territory to staunchly entrenched in the indie/alternative songwriter scene.

 

I second a lot of the recommendations here, and would toss Bruce Hornsby's Here Come The Noisemakers into the ring, as well as any live Steve Kimock.

[Joe Muscara]

Regarding WP, we just saw them the other weekend *open* for Allman Brothers. Warren sat in on several songs, I saw that Derek Trucks did at other stops on the tour, but not this one.

 

Anyway, Lori has mixed feelings about jam bands. She prefers more song oriented jam bands and not the far out jams you might get with Dead, MMW, and Phish. I was surprised to find that she enjoyed WP. I guess it's because they're a really tight band. Jimmy Herring is a hella guitar player and if you read his bio, every jam band has had or wanted him at some point or another.

 

(P.S. The final encore included almost everyone from both bands on stage. That was awesome!)

[Eric Iverson]

It might not be a bad idea to check out old Allman Bros. live records.

I remember the sea change in rock music when Cream came along and then the San Francisco bands.... now extended jams were cool!

 

I also remember reading that the Jefferson Airplane got into extended jams because they only knew 2 or 3 songs, and had to play a 45 minute set.. not sure if that's REALLY the case, or they were kidding!

 

I started playing guitar about that time, and we spent a lot more time jamming than learning songs... cool in a way, not so cool in another. Of course, there's no reason a musician can't learn to do BOTH!

 

[Dave Pierce]

Santana is really one of the first jam bands, and have refined it, lost it, come back to it, and lost it a number of times. But if you dont have it, get Sacred Fire. Live, ferocious, full of great songs and monstrous playing by everyone, including Chester Thompson. Its the album before Supernatural which really changed things, but this album.simply fantastic.

 

Well, being in a Santana Tribute Band, I'm familiar with Sacred Fire. We do a lot of the breaks from Black Magic Woman, although the overall vibe of our version is more like Abraxas, and we also do some breaks from the current live shows, that are not on Sacred Fire. We also do Make Somebody Happy in a style that's closer to Sacred Fire than Milagro. Our guitarist/bandleader even says some nice words during the intro, although usually in English. But I've heard him do so in Spanish when we were playing in Watsonville.

 

Funny, though, I never thought of Santana as a jam band. I suppose they do fit the criteria. Part of it is probably because I am in a tribute band -- for me this material is some of my least improvisational work. I'm expected to play many/most of the solos "just like the record". And I get why that's important for a tribute band and I try to do it. But not very "jammy" for me.

 

I'm loving all the responses here, I think I'm about to embark on a new "phase" of listening to stuff!

 

--Dave

 

[Bridog6996]

This is sort an aside, but if you're into Santana, "Carlos Santana and Buddy Miles: Live!" is a killer live album from the 70s. "Love Devotion Surrender" by Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin is pretty cool as well. Lots of heavyweights on that album, such as Billy Cobham, Larry Young, Don Alias, Armando Peraza, and Jan Hammer. Interestingly, Jan Hammer is credited with playing drums in the liner notes.

 

Provided you haven't already heard them, both albums are well worth checking out.

[Dave Pierce]

This is sort an aside, but if you're into Santana, "Carlos Santana and Buddy Miles: Live!" is a killer live album from the 70s. "Love Devotion Surrender" by Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin is pretty cool as well. Lots of heavyweights on that album, such as Billy Cobham, Larry Young, Don Alias, Armando Peraza, and Jan Hammer. Interestingly, Jan Hammer is credited with playing drums in the liner notes.

 

Provided you haven't already heard them, both albums are well worth checking out.

 

Good call. We use the ending to "Marbles" from that Buddy Miles collaboration as our ending to "She's Not There", but other than that I've never listened to it. I might even have it. And I do have Love Devotion Surrender, but haven't listened in a long time. I'll have to bust that out.

 

We actually have done the song "Love Devotion and Surrender" from the Welcome album with a guest female vocalist (followed, natch, by "The Game of Love").

 

--Dave

 

[Tonysounds]

This is sort an aside, but if you're into Santana, "Carlos Santana and Buddy Miles: Live!" is a killer live album from the 70s. "Love Devotion Surrender" by Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin is pretty cool as well. Lots of heavyweights on that album, such as Billy Cobham, Larry Young, Don Alias, Armando Peraza, and Jan Hammer. Interestingly, Jan Hammer is credited with playing drums in the liner notes.

 

Provided you haven't already heard them, both albums are well worth checking out.

 

Good call. We use the ending to "Marbles" from that Buddy Miles collaboration as our ending to "She's Not There", but other than that I've never listened to it. I might even have it. And I do have Love Devotion Surrender, but haven't listened in a long time. I'll have to bust that out.

 

We actually have done the song "Love Devotion and Surrender" from the Welcome album with a guest female vocalist (followed, natch, by "The Game of Love").

 

--Dave

 

Funny how these things work. I was in a Santana tribute that also did original material in that vein for 7years. Obviously the guitar players in our bands must listen to the same live bootlegs, videos, etc. as we used to do Marbles as the break out for She's Not There.

 

Santana truly was a jam band; how many versions of BMW and Oye como Va have you heard, and how many of them do the same breaks, same solos, etc.? They changed that stuff up all the time!

 

I love checking out different versions of Savor and T'oussaint; that's really where you see where the key guys are coming from!

[Dave Pierce]

Yeah, I love the different versions of T'oussaint too. I play it pretty Gregg Rolie though.

 

We don't do Savor, I should listen to some versions of that. I've also been lobbying for adding Se A Cabo to the list, we use the Se A Cabo ending for our ending of Corazon Espanado, but we don't do the whole song.

 

--Dave

[Garrafon]

If you have access to Sirius or XM satellite radio, they have a station called Jam On - check it out and you will be turned on to lots of good (and some not so good) stuff.

 

Some Trey Anastasio solo stuff is pretty cool too.

 

You can also go here: http://music.aol.com/radioguide/rock-radio

 

and click on the "jam bands" link (or any other link that suits your fancy) to get some free online music that suits the genre you're looking for.

 

There's even a "Piano Rock" station.