Alright, Day 1 of ALL collections, all the time! This one comes from my collection with a bit of a backstory. I have told the story of my friend Jim Utz going to the Tony Margherita Management office and borrowing about 50 Uncle Tupelo archive tapes(it is on a coffee creek post if you want to read the story). Tony & Bob from TMM had this KDHX session in the band archive but it was incomplete- 1 version edited for acoustic songs only, 1 cut off at 50 minutes. Then we were graciously loaned Doug Morris’ archive of cassettes and we digitized as many as possible before returning them. I think this is where this version came from. Digitized by Michael Pemberton or Steve Brothers. It’s nice to enjoy a complete version of this one.
Recorded by: Doug Morris Transfer to DAT by: Michael Pemberton or Steve Brothers Transfer from DAT by: Shayne Stacy Equipment used: Sony PCM-R500 and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
On This day in History is late today due to Migraine. UGH. So much to say about this one-
I have not recounted this story in a bit, so let’s share it again: Back in the early 90s, I was friends with Tony Margherita & Bob Andrews who managed Uncle Tupelo, The Bottle Rockets and many more. I had followed UT around and filmed/audio recorded over 10 shows in the span of a couple of years, including the 2 final shows in St. Louis. Since the band was defunct (and Wilco was not the HUGE band they are today), Tony let my good friend Jim stop by and pick up “a few” cassettes in late 1994. Jim goes to the office and calls me: J(whispering): Dude, there are like 50 tapes here. Do you have Coffee Creek? Me: No J: How about X(some other one) Me: No. Just grab them all and I will sort them out. So Jim grabs a box and shoves about 50 tapes in, and takes off. Bob and Tony were like :-O. Haha! Thanks guys.
This was one of the tapes in Tony and Bob’s archive that we did NOT pick up at the time. A while afterwards, we got access to more stuff from the band archive… either Michael Pemberton or Steve Brothers got this one after the Uncle Tupelo motherlode. It either came from there or from Doug Morris’ collection (R.I.P.).
Chicken Truck was The Bottle Rockets, before they were called The Bottle Rockets. Henneman/Parr/Parr/Ortman. Most of these songs made early Bottle Rockets albums, and the covers were staples at the time for both Chicken Truck AND Uncle Tupelo.
This is the only live recording of Chicken Truck I have ever seen.
Recorded by: Tony M, Doug M, or the band. Transfer by: Michael Pemberton or Steve Brothers
About 14 years ago, we were lucky enough to have an opportunity to digitize Doug Morris’ archive. Doug was a DJ at KDHX in St. Louis and also recorded concerts in the 80s/early 90s. This one is a multitrack soundboard tape from miss nights. Sounds excellent. I have a LOT more of Doug’s stuff sitting on archived DVDs that need to be finished up all these years later. We got the collection and fortunately we were able to share the tapes between a few of us friends to transfer. I got it right at the time that I was caring for my mom, so it made it difficult to get it all done.
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy Equipment used: Nakamichi CR5A & EMU 1212M capture card Sounds like Doug might have used a 4 track to do this one. This is an xfer from the master OR 1st gen tape, not sure which
Moving back over to the Uncle Tupelo archive that I digitized about 25 years ago. Here’s my story on that from a previous post:
Back in the early 90s, I was friends with Tony Margherita & Bob Andrews who managed Uncle Tupelo, The Bottle Rockets and many more. I had followed UT around and filmed/audio recorded over 10 shows in the span of a couple of years, including the 2 final shows in St. Louis. Since the band was defunct (and Wilco was not the HUGE band they are today), Tony let my good friend Jim stop by and pick up “a few” cassettes in late 1994. Jim goes to the office and calls me:
J(whispering): Dude, there are like 50 tapes here. Do you have Coffee Creek?
Me: No
J: How about X(some other one)
Me: No. Just grab them all and I will sort them out.
So Jim grabs a box and shoves about 50 tapes in, and takes off. Bob and Tony were like :-O. Haha! Thanks guys.
I am shocked that these are not online yet.
Thanks to michael Pemberton for the description/setlist below, and the flyer image from the show:
Before I Break (end)/ Graveyard Shift/ Sin City/ Wasn’t Born To Follow/ I Wanna Be Your Dog/ True To Life/ In The Street/ Song To Woody/ I Got Drunk (cut)
Partial soundboard recording.
Billed as an acoustic set, and the existing tape is all acoustic, but several attendees remember that they plugged in for much of the night. Contains the only known performance of Bob Dylan’s “Song to Woody.” Brian Henneman also played a few songs solo (no tape of his set has circulated), and it was at this show that he announced that Chicken Truck had broken up.
Recorded by: Tony Marghertia(?)
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: 1994 DAT transfer- Playback with consumer Aiwa belt drive deck (big regret)- Sony DTC690 using monster audio cables.
Equipment used: 2019 DAT to WAV transfer: Sony PCM-R500 — Audiophile 2496 card — WAV
Transfer Lineage: Band Archive Tape – My DAT (90 meter DAT in 32khz- big regret) – You
It’s late and I just got back from a business trip, but it looks like I can get today’s upload in before midnight.
Here is UT’s opening set for Firehose at Furst Rock. I saw Firehose for the first time (at Club Me) about 2 weeks after this. Great version of the Vertebrats’ “Left in the Dark” on this one.
Setlist (courtesy of the excellent factorybelt.net website):
Factory Belt/ That Year/ Left in the Dark/ So Called Friend/ Sauget Wind/ Screen Door/ Otherside/ Life Worth Livin’/ Flatness/ Cocaine Blues/ I Got Drunk/ A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall/ Graveyard Shift
Recorded by: Tony Marghertia(?)
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: 1994 DAT transfer- Playback with consumer Aiwa belt drive deck (big regret)- Sony DTC690 using monster audio cables.
Equipment used: 2019 DAT to WAV transfer: Sony PCM-R500 — Audiophile 2496 card — WAV
Transfer Lineage: Band Archive Tape – My DAT (90 meter DAT in 32khz- big regret) – You
Uncle Tupelo were from Belleville, Il, so the closest major city was St. Louis. They played many venues around town in the early days, but Cicero’s was their home base. Cicero’s was a legendary basement bar/venue below an italian restaurant. You’ll see a good chunk of classic UT shows coming from here.
Setlist (courtesy of the great factorybelt dot net website:
Otherside/ Sin City/ Graveyard Shift/ D.Boon/ Flatness/ Cocaine Blues/ Outdone/ Screen Door/ So Called Friend/ Baby, Please Don’t Go/ Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door/ Train/ Whiskey Bottle/ Fortunate Son/ Factory Belt/ Mercedes Benz/ No Matter What/ That Year/ Life Worth Livin’/ There Was A Time/ Mannish Boy (sort of)/ A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall/ Gimme, Gimme, Gimme
That’s right. Gimme Gimme Gimme by Black Flag, country style.
Recorded by: Tony Marghertia(?)
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: 1994 DAT transfer- Playback with consumer Aiwa belt drive deck (big regret)- Sony DTC690 using monster audio cables.
Equipment used: 2019 DAT to WAV transfer: Sony PCM-R500 — Audiophile 2496 card — WAV
Transfer Lineage: Band Archive Tape – My DAT (90 meter DAT in 32khz- big regret) – You
PS: I know that the DAT sleeve says 10/13/87, but the band did not have that many songs in 87, so the cassette must have been labeled with the wrong year.
This soundboard mix is probably the best mix out of all of the cicero’s shows. Unfortunately, it cuts at 90min. Photo is from closing night of the old basement location of Cicero’s- Jay Farrar made a surprise appearance with Brian Henneman and the Bottlerockets.
Recorded by: Tony Marghertia(?)
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: 1994 DAT transfer- Playback with consumer Aiwa belt drive deck (big regret)- Sony DTC690 using monster audio cables.
Equipment used: 2019 DAT to WAV transfer: Sony PCM-R500 — Audiophile 2496 card — WAV
Transfer Lineage: Band Archive Tape – My DAT (90 meter DAT in 32khz- big regret) – You
Factory Belt/ Flatness/ Gimme, Gimme, Gimme/ That Year/ Blues Die Hard/ D.Boon/ Fortunate Son/ Outdone/ Train/ Life Worth Livin’/ Cocaine Blues/ Do Re Mi/ Otherside/ Mercedes Benz/ So Called Friend/ Pickle River/ Screen Door/ Whiskey Bottle/ A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall/ Little Guitars/ Orange Blossom Special/ Good Times/ No Depression/ Maggie’s Farm/ Sauget Wind/ Cinnamon Girl/ I Got Drunk/ Graveyard Shift (cut)
This show is probably the most legendary of all of the Uncle Tupelo archive tapes. Like I mentioned before, Cicero’s was Uncle Tupelo’s “home base” in the late 80s, and they were famous (notorious) for drunken performances back then. This was rumored to be the pinnacle of great, drunken performances from back then. I mean, just check out that setlist! (setlist courtesy of the excellent factorybelt.net website).
And I know that this is a pic of The Old 97s, but it was the only one that I could find that showed the stage of the original Cicero’s.
Recorded by: Tony Marghertia(?)
Transferred by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: 1994 DAT transfer- Playback with consumer Aiwa belt drive deck (big regret)- Sony DTC690 using monster audio cables.
Equipment used: 2019 DAT to WAV transfer: Sony PCM-R500 — Audiophile 2496 card — WAV
Transfer Lineage: Band Archive Tape – My DAT (90 meter DAT in 32khz- big regret) – You
Setlist: So Called Friend/ Graveyard Shift/ Train/ John Hardy/ Factory Belt/ Life Worth Livin’/ Mr. Soul/ Whiskey Bottle/ D.Boon/ Outdone/ Weary Blues From Waiting/ Little Guitars/ Screen Door/ Otherside/ There Was A Time*/ Willin’/ A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall/ Flatness/ Dead Flowers/ That Year/ No Depression/ Mercedes Benz/ Wasn’t Born to Follow/ Baby, Please Don’t Go/ Cocaine Blues/ Do Re Mi/ Blues Die Hard/ ?/ I Wanna Be Your Dog/ I Got Drunk/ Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
* This refers to the early uptempo version of “Looking For A Way Out,” similar to the version on the “Sauget Wind” single.
Jim Utz messaged me the other day and asked about this one. I have no idea why it’s not on the archive, but it is probably time to do lossless transfers of all of those St. Louis masters. This one was done with the good Canopus setup and the audio is way too low. Yes, even though it looks like it suffers from generation loss, this really came off of a VHS from the VHS-C master tape. That’s how they look sometimes. Running the actual master through the AG1980 and the TBC-1000 would clean it up a bit.
Recorded by: Jim Utz Transfer by: Shayne Stacy Equipment used: JVC HR-S(9800 or 9911U) and Canopus ADVC300
Once again I am pillaging Jim Utz’ awesome collection of videos for today’s On This Date in History. I had a bunch of stuff to choose from today including an entire 5 band lineup of master videos from cafe colonial in 2016, but I did all locals yesterday so this one wins out. The rest will be posted over time. This video is pretty nice quality- good audio and video- but some people get in the way at times and obstruct the view.
Recorded by: Jim Utz Transfer by: Shayne Stacy Equipment used: JVC HR-S9911U and Canopus ADVC300
