Oct 2, 2014

April 29, 1972: Musikhalle, Hamburg, Germany

This review is a rough translation from German: 

BLESSED ARE THE DEAD
The Californian rock group “Greatful Dead” in Hamburg

This concert by the Greatful Dead was fabulous, extraordinary, and decidedly outstanding overall . . . But strangely, the evening began very harmlessly, almost tame. Whoever had the image of the group firmly in mind, expecting something externally sensational, or at least picturesque, found himself disappointed. First of all he experienced self-evidently clever music.
Without airs and without delay, there a handful of musicians shows what they can do, and that is a lot. They provide an almost encyclopedic overview: this is available on the American pop, rock, country and blues scene. They perform it, and above all, they perform it as a group. This is not [often] experienced – [as] we have also more frequently [seen] in the glut of rock concerts in the past few weeks than the more sophisticated music-lover is fond of. Here is not a soloist in front of accompanying slaves, here all play music together. A technical system which, though it is not quiet, also remains clear in fortissimo, helps to make a vocal network of amazing balance and plausibility audible. Here everyone knows his role, and especially the new pianist Keith Godcheaux asserts himself [as] the most energetic in this otherwise rather guitar-heavy world. He gives the interplay color. He knows which country melodies to keep in rural trot with evenly pulsating eighths, when to give moderate blues themes pride and size with consistent hammered triplets.
In this first part of the concert he is a little reminiscent of Leon Russell in the Joe Cocker documentary “Mad Dogs and English Men.” Also he is musically always the lord of the overview, the heart of the action and a master in ability, finally taking the piano once again back to the pianist and placing chords so that they shine, glisten and thereby dynamically propel the piece forward. 
Of course, [there] are also the two guitarists, top guru Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir . . . and how Garcia's coyote-like howling guitar phrases and Godcheaux’s piano interjections complement each other, contrasting with each other, that is already a treat in itself. But the dominant impression is: The Group. Turned on with the effortless naturalness of the world, they, a bunch of young, young-at-heart professionals, between styles, make traditions to the present day. The simple happiness of the hillbilly era . . . they have equally on the pan as the new excursion into the countryside, which is so beautifully called “Green Rock.” They have already grown up with the rock and roll of Chuck Berry’s time. They easily heat [up] with the summoning shortcuts of the gospel church, make the simple basic rhythmic patterns of soul music subservient, and also dominate the blues at all paces. From the depths of the past they bring with a sure grip the country blues, in which everything is [an] archaic shape, is more spoken than sung, the irregular periods subordinate to the words’ meaning, and someone repeatedly grabs the harmonica. They also follow the blues’ development to urban districts, to Chicago, to Kansas City, to all geographic and idiomatic landscapes of this music.
Whoever listens closely, also hears how they constantly ask the old blues questions: “Will you miss me when I’m gone?”; how they constantly express the old blues certainties: “The sun will shine in my back door someday.” All this performed, without ever being didactic here, always as if they not only play, but also play in the beautiful old sense; for dancing of course, and for suburban bopping. Something Californian, hard to define, is located above each bar. The progressive is placated by urbanity. A clear blue sky also stretches over the underground, and to make music of this kind and to give themselves always seemed a little to me like a transatlantic response to the Swiss: “Be modern, but remain tasteful.”
This first part provoked respect and admiring astonishment. The very great enthusiasm had yet to come, because the musicians walked without risk along the narrow ridges that separate professionalism from the routine. This was different after the break.
Inspiration was joined to ability. The artists ventured successfully into the regions of free music, played a far-reaching free-jazz improvisation in which they now suddenly withdrew the sound of uncomplicated sunniness completely and together created a twenty-minute piece, whose sounds seemed carefully to listen to themselves. The muted colors set the tone, memories of the Gary Burton Quartet with Larry Coryell were alive in listeners. Here also was something peculiarly arranged, rhapsodically filling space, although here too complying with the freedom from the limits of tonality. Tempos, moods and rhythms change, but the virtue [is that] individual improvisations do not degenerate into soloists going it alone, but rather are more like threads emerging briefly in a fabric – it remains as the fixed laws of cadence and key. The Greatful Dead know that freedom is not fun without rules of the game, and then when the breathing and flowing solidifies into simple rock rhythms, and after long expressions [of] purely instrumental brilliance the vocal begins again, a refined simple melody strikes up, this pop-melody has its very specific and compelling function in a large sequence. The text quote: "Down by the riverside" speaks for itself.
The Greatful Dead are happiest when they are allowed to return back to simplicity and hard-won innocence.
The concert lasted four hours. The applause did not end. The rock-lovers of Hamburg stood on the chairs.

(by Werner Burkhardt, from the Muenchner Feuilleton (Munich), 5 May 1972)


There is also an older picture of Garcia with the caption: 
Jerry Garcia, spirit and music director of the Californian rock group Greatful Dead, currently on tour in Europe (see our report from Hamburg). The group plays in Munich on May 18. 

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Here is the original German article: 

SELIG SIND DIESE TOTEN
Die kalifornische Rockgruppe “Greatful Dead” in Hamburg

Fabelhaft ist diese Konzert der Greatful Dead gewesen, aussergewoehnlich und ganz entschieden alles ueberragend, was dieser rockreiche Fruehling an Gastspielen geboten hat. Doch seltsam: Sehr harmlos, beinahe zahm hat der Abend begonnen. Wer, das Image der Gruppe fest im Auge, etwas ausserlich Sensationelles, zumindest doch Pittoreskes erwartet hatte, sah sich enttauscht. Er erlebte zunaechst einmal Musik von gescheiter Selbstverstaendlichkeit.  
Ohne Allueren und ohne Verspaetung zeigt da eine Handvoll Musiker, was sie kann, und das ist eine Menge. Beinahe enzyklopaedisch vermitteln sie einen Ueberblick: Das gibt es auf der amerikanischen Pop-, Rock-, Country- und Blues-Szene. Sie fuehren es vor, und vor allem fuehren sie es als Gruppe vor. Hier steht nicht – und auch das haben wir bei der Schwemme von Rock-Konzerten in den vergangenen Wochen haeufiger, als dem anspruchsvolleren Musik-freund lieb ist – erlebt: Hier steht nicht ein Solist vor Begleitsklaven, hier musizieren alle gemeinsam. Eine technische Anlage, die zwar nicht leise ist, aber auch im Fortissimo durchsichtig bleibt, hilft, ein Stimmgeflecht von erstaunlicher Ausgewogenheit und Plausibilitaet hoerbar zu machen. Hier kennt jeder seine Rolle, und vor allem der neue Pianist Keith Godcheaux setzt sich in dieser doch sonst eher gitarrenlastigen Welt auf das energischste durch. Er gibt dem Interplay Farbe. Er weiss, welche Country-Melodien man durch gleichmaessig pulsierende Achtel im laendlichen Trab halten, wann man gemaessigteren Blues-Themen durch konsequentes Triolenhaemmern Stolz und Groesse verleihen muss.  
Ein wenig erinnert er in diesem ersten Konzertteil an Leon Russell in dem Joe-Cocker-Dokumentarfilm “Mad Dogs and English Men”. Auch er ist musikalisch immer der Herr des Ueberblicks, das Herz des Geschehens und ein Meister in der Faehigkeit, das Klavier endlich einmal wieder zum Pianistischen herzunehmen und Akkorde so zu legen, dass sie leuchten, gleissen und dabei das Stueck dynamisch vorankatapultieren.
Natuerlich stehen auch die beiden Gitarristen, Oberguru Jerry Garcia und Bob Weir, ihren toten Mann, und wie Garcias coyotenhaft heulende Gitarrenphrasen und Godcheauxs Pianoeinwuerfe sich ergaenzen, miteinander kontrastieren, das ist schon ein Genuss fuer sich. Doch der beherrschender Eindruck ist: Die Gruppe. Mit der unangestrengtesten Selbstverstaendlichkeit von der Welt schaltet sie, ein Haufen junger, junggebliebener Profis, zwischen den Stilen, macht sie Traditionen zur Gegenwart. Das schlichte Glueck aus der Hillbilly-Zeit von Anno dunnemals haben sie genauso auf der Pfanne wie die neuen Exkursion ins Laendliche, die man so schoen “Green Rock” nennt. Mit dem Rock and Roll aus der Chuck-Berry-Zeit sind sie ohnehin gross geworden. Muehelos heizen sie ein mit den Beschwoerungskuerzeln aus der Gospel-Kirche, machen sich die simplen rhythmischen Grundmuster der Soul-Musik dienstbar, und auch den Blues beherrschen sie in allen Gangarten. Aus den Tiefen der Vergangenheit holen sie mit sicherem Griff den Country-Blues, in dem alles archaisch eckig ist, eher gesprochen als gesungen wird, die unregelmaessigen Perioden sich dem Wortsinn unterordnen und immer wieder jemand zur Mundharmonika greift. Sie folgen der Blues-Entwicklung aber auch in staedtische Bezirke, nach Chicago, nach Kansas City, in alle geographischen und idiomatischen Landschaften dieser Musik.
Wer genau zuhoert, der hoert auch, wie sie staendig die alten Blues-Fragen stellen: “Wirst du mich auch vermissen, wenn ich weg bin?”; wie sie staendig die alten Blues-Gewissheiten aeussern: “Die Sonne wird auch bei mir einmal zur Hintertuer hereinscheinen.” All das fuehren sie vor, ohne je lehrhaft dabei zu werden, immer so, als ob sie nicht nur spielen, sondern im schoenen alten Sinn auch aufspielen; zum Tanz natuerlich und zum Vorstadtschwoof. Etwas schwer definierbar Kalifornisches liegt ueber jedem Takt. Das Progressive wird durch Urbanitaet gesaenftigt. Ein strahlend blauer Himmerl spannt sich auch ueber den Underground, und ein wenig ist mir diese Art zu musizieren und sich zu geben immer wie eine transatlantische Antwort auf schweizerisches Wesen erschienen: “Modern sein, aber geschmackvoll bleiben.”
Hochachtung und bewunderndes Staunen rief dieser erste Teil hervor. Die ganz grosse Begeisterung blieb noch aus, weil die Musikanten denn doch allzu risikolos auf dem schmalen Grate wandelten, der die Professionalitaet von der Routine trennt. Das wurde nach der Pause anders.
Zum Koennen gesellte sich die Inspiration. Die Kuenstler wagten sich erfolgreich in die Bezirke der freien Musik, spielten eine weit ausgreifende Free-Jazz-Improvisation, in der sie nun ploetzlich den Ton unkomplizierter Sonnigkeit vollkommen zuruecknahmen und Zwanzig-Minuten-Stuecke gemeinsam schufen, deren Klaenge sich bedachtsam selbst nachzuhorchen schienen. Die gedeckten Farben gaben den Ton an, Erinnerungen an das Gary-Burton-Quartet mit Larry Coryell wurden im Hoerer lebendig. Auch hier herrschte etwas eigentuemlich Vermitteltes rhapsodisch Raumgreifendes, obgleich hier wie dort die Freiheit vor den Grenzen der Tonalitaet einhaelt. Tempi, Stimmungen und Rhythmen wechseln, aber die Tugend, Einzelimprovisationen nicht zu solistischen Alleingaengen ausarten, sondern eher wie Faeden in einem Gewebe kurz hervortreten zu lassen – sie bleibt bestehen wie die festen Gesetze von Kadenz und Tonart. Die Greatful Dead wissen, dass Freiheit ohne Spielregeln keinen Spass macht, und wenn dann das Atmen und Fliessen sich zu schlichten Rock-Rhythmen verfestigt und nach langen Aeusserungen rein instrumentaler Brillanz die Singstimme wieder einsetzt, eine raffiniert einfache Melodie anstimmt, hat diese Pop-Melodie ihre ganz bestimmte und bezwingende Funktion in einem grossen Formablauf. Das Textzitat: “Down by the riverside” spricht fuer sich.
Am gluecklichsten sind die Greatful Dead, wenn sie zu Einfachheit und zur schwer errungenen Unschuld zurueckkehren duerfen.
Vier Stunden dauerte das Konzert. Der Beifall wollte nicht enden. Die Hamburger Rock-Freunde standen auf den Stuehlen.
WERNER BURKHARDT

Jerry Garcia, Spiritus und Musicus rector der kalifornischen Rock-Gruppe Greatful Dead, die zur Zeit auf Tournee in Europa ist (siehe unseren Bericht aus Hamburg). In Muenchen spielt die Gruppe am 18 Mai.


Here is a film from Gary Burton & Larry Coryell's performance in Berlin, 1967, mentioned in the review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7BKXtMCuRM

And here is a sample of the Joe Cocker/Leon Russell concert film from 1970, also mentioned:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5rMauzx5f4

 
Thanks to Uli Teute.

9 comments:

  1. The Feuilleton is a Munich newspaper, which here reviewed the Dead's Hamburg concert in advance of their appearance in Munich. (I don't think a review of the Munich show has been found.)

    The translation was a long and grueling process, since I don't know German. The computer translations were so mangled that many sentences I couldn't make any sense of; so what appears here is somewhat condensed, the most obscure phrases left out. This translation is only approximate guesswork - the phrasing's awkward, and I don't think the meaning is always correct - so I'm not confident about giving this a very close analytical reading.
    Umlauts were omitted in the German transcription. Corrections are welcome!

    Nonetheless, the outline is clear: the reviewer loved the show.
    He's impressed by the Dead's "encylopedic overview" of American music styles, mentioning the wide range of influences they bring in (from gospel, soul, blues, and country to Chuck Berry rock & free jazz). He particularly emphasizes their command of the blues - oddly, he writes as though they're playing hillbilly tunes & ancient country blues, which was not the case in '72. (Covers of Hank Williams and Jimmy Reed hardly qualify as the archaic "depths of the past"! But granted, 'I Know You Rider' and 'Big Railroad Blues' were indeed old traditional blues songs, though transformed in style.) They only played a few blues songs here, too, though I suppose he heard the music differently, or just liked that element a lot.

    He's also struck by how the group improvises together, playing as a unit rather than as a soloist & backing band - he compares them to threads in a fabric. Keith stands out for him, though - he devotes a paragraph to Keith's piano mastery, while Garcia's just briefly mentioned in one sentence for the "coyote howls" of his guitar and how well he plays with Keith!
    Though he liked the first set, he was really taken by the Dark Star suite, which he tries to describe. He admired the return to the simple pop melody of Sugar Magnolia after the long instrumental passages, and he appreciated its place within the larger musical sequence. Despite his love of Dark Star, he feels the Dead are "happiest" playing simple, "sunny" tunes. (I was struck by the phrase "hard-won innocence" - American reviewers have also used similar terms to describe the Dead's songs.)
    He knew some lyrics, quoting from I Know You Rider and Sugar Magnolia. He seems to emphasize the Dead as a band of traditional Americana music, rather than for their original songs. (Granted, it could be hard to tell the difference.) Some of his social musings on the Dead are very obscure to me, though.
    It sounds like the show was well-received by the audience!

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    1. there is a review of the munich show written by none other than " rainer langhans " ( google him .. it will give you an idea)
      one day i find it and send it ...

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  2. It may be odd that the reviewer compares Dark Star with the Gary Burton/Larry Coryell performance from five years earlier. (Already a distant era in jazz history.) That show made a big impression, though, as described in Stuart Nicholson's book Jazz-Rock:
    "The Burton Quartet had a profound effect in Germany following their appearance at the Berlin Jazz Days festival on November 5, 1967. The notoriously fickle Berlin audience gave Burton what Leonard Feather described as 'the culminating ovation of the entire festival... Rarely have I witnessed such a wild reaction to any group at any jazz festival.' That such a fusion between jazz and rock was even being contemplated by U.S. musicians came as a shock to German audiences and musicians. The German writer Alexander Schmidt has pointed out that Burton's concert turned the German jazz scene around 'more or less overnight,' while the guitarist Volker Kriegal later wrote, 'The filigree beauty of Gary Burton's music was miles away from the crudity of noisy rock 'n' roll bands. Gary's floating sounds conveyed a liberating, free and easy sense of living. What a difference to our jazz scene, which had keyed itself in between bitterly serious free jazz and conventional stiffness.'" (p.37)

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  3. I thought the author while making some odd statements came away from the show with a very real understanding of the music.Although I would disagree with his statement that they were happier playing the sunny tunes my feeling being they enjoyed the improvisational part of the second set the most.

    As for Mr. Burkhardt's bizarre comparison of Dark Star to a Gary Burton Quartet performance I would have to think the author took leave of his senses.The Lawrence Welk Orchestra has more in common with Gary Burton than the Grateful Dead.Gary Burton plays the vibraphone for goodness sake.

    In Germany in the middle to late sixties to mention just a few there were free jazz legends such as saxophonist Peter Brotzman,pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach and bassist Peter Kowald who were in their early to late 20's and I'm fairly certain were not influenced by Mr. Burton's music.These gentlemen along with a number of other German and European musicians formed one of the worlds greatest free jazz collectives in the Globe Unity Orchestra.As to what jazz scene Mr. Scmidt and Mr. Kreigal are referring to I can't even imagine.I would encourage anyone not familiar with Gary Burton's music to give the link provided by LIA a listen.I will say it again,Gary Burton plays the vibraphone.At what point can that be taken seriously.

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  4. Actually I wouldn't mind hearing Gary Burton join the Dead in Dark Star...

    But yes, comparing Dark Star with an old Gary Burton Quartet performance was a little strange. Obviously I don't know what the reviewer's jazz terms of reference were, or whether he was familiar with more recent free-jazz or fusion players, or if he would've compared the Dead to them anyway. Can't account for everyone's mental associations - maybe hearing a somewhat laid-back, "muted," flowing instrumental just brought vibes to his mind?

    (I admit some of the writers in my above comment were known Gary Burton fans - Mr. Feather wrote the liner notes for some of Burton's '60s albums; German guitarist Kriegel actually formed his own guitar/vibes jazz band in '68 in emulation of Burton's Quartet; and Mr. Schmitz's comment was written in the liner-notes to one of that band's albums! So naturally they might exaggerate his influence. Though I might also mention that Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea both recorded albums with Burton, so apparently he's taken seriously in some quarters...)

    The Feuilleton (the same paper that had this review) ran a review of the Berlin jazz festival in their Nov 7, 1967 issue, which I managed to find:
    http://www.brazil-on-guitar.de/gallery/pictures/1967_berlin.pdf
    Their brief description of the Burton/Coryell set (in a rough google translation) -
    "But who says "guitar", will sooner or later also have to say "Beat". The word fell and Joachim E. Berendt [who moderated the “Guitar Workshop” program of the festival] brought from the audience a violent "Yeah," as well as, probably on the part of purist jazz fans, a similar violent "Boo". The Gary Burton Quartet with the excellent guitarist Larry Coryell had been, however, dressed only in long-haired "flower-power". Their tonal, very gentle jazz proved to be less of the Rolling Stones, but rather from the Modern Jazz Quartet influenced; neither for Yeah nor for Boo was the occasion, and so it was agreed last but not least in the traditional way. Good to receive the conventional applause. It ended the Jazz Festival, one may take this symbolically, between protest and conservatism, a mirror of our current world."

    [the original:] "Aber wer “Gitarre” sagt, wird frueher oder spater auch “Beat” sagen muessen. Das Wort fiel und brachte Joachim E. Berendt aus dem Publikum ein heftiges “Yeah,” wie auch, wahrscheinlich von seiten puristischer Jazzfans, ein ahnlich heftigen “Buh” ein. Das Gary Burton Quartet mit dem vorzueglichen Gitarristen Larry Coryell hatte sich indes nur auf langmaehnige “flower-power” verkleidet. Ihr tonaler, sehr sanfter Jazz erwies sich als weniger von den Rolling Stones als vielmehr vom Modern Jazz Quartet beeinflusst; weder zum Yeah noch zum Buh bestand Anlass, und so einigte man sich zuguterletzt auf die herkoemmliche Art. Gutes zu empfangen, auf den konventionellen Applaus. Es endeten die Jazztage, man mag das symbolisch nehmen, zwischen Protest und Konservativismus, ein Spiegel unserer derzeitigen Welt."

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  5. I was having some fun at Mr. Burton's expense due to the instrument he played.As for Feather,Kreigel and Scmitz's comments lets just say they wildly exaggerated Burton's impact on the jazz scene in Germany or anywhere else.I understand Burton played with a number of top notch musicians.One of my favorites is Astor Piazzolla the creator of "nuevo tango" and master bandoneist who he recorded an album with in the '80's. It's just annoying being a jazz fan and having it constantly being misrepresented in all forms of media almost all of the time.It would have been nice to see Dark Star linked to someone who truly influenced the bands music such as Coltrane.I would think with better representation in the media jazz might be more popular or at least there would be a better understanding of the wide range of music that is called jazz.

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  6. "The Lawrence Welk Orchestra has more in common with Gary Burton than the Grateful Dead." Stop it.

    In truth, the Burton/Coryell group in 1967 really was one of the first to play a kind of jazz-rock fusion; subtle, at first, but still there. Over the next few years, Burton with other guitarists, would also incorporate country music, avant-garde (Carla Bley), and more direct rock/r&b rhythms into his sound. Sometimes he even attached a wah-wah to his vibraphone to make it sound more like an electric guitar (check "Vibrafinger" from the Good Vibes album, 1970). Did Gary Burton and Larry Coryell directly influence the Dead? I don't know; it doesn't really matter. They did lay groundwork for other bands to mix rock/jazz/country/avant-garde (hmm, seems familiar...), and, just as importantly, may have introduced such ideas to certain listeners such as this German writer, creating a context in which they might hear the Dead in 1972.

    Would it be appropriate to listen to a '72 "Dark Star" and be reminded of Gary Burton with Larry Coryell, Steve Swallow, and Roy Haynes? Yes, absolutely! Read his comments on "Dark Star" and listen to the Duster album, or the Fall '67 live recordings from the Burton Quartet's European tour with Miles Davis, Archie Shepp, and Roswell Rudd. I think he might just as well be describing Burton's music, too.

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  7. I agree that the Gary Burton Quartet with Larry Coryell had many musical qualities of the early 70s Grateful Dead, and they were an apt comparison. I would point out, however, that in the Fall of 1974, the Lawrence Welk Orchestra and the Garcia/Saunders Band had the same drummer (Paul Humphrey), so there's more in common there than you might think. Strictly speaking, in 1974 Humphrey was a long-term substitute for Welk's regular drummer, and he would joint the band "officially" around 1976. However, I think Humphrey was playing many or most of the TV shows by that time. At the same time, he was holding down the chair for Jerry and Merl until Ron Tutt would be available in December. According to legend, Humphrey would get off a plane in SFO on a Friday night, wearing the clothes he had worn earlier in the day for the Welk taping, and go right onstage with Jerry at the Keystone Berkeley.

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