Hangin with Bob Weir

[volkfolk]

I watched this the other night. The songs selection wasn't bad. Cassidy,
Lazy River Road, Black Throated Wind, Two Djinn, Corrina, Playin, and OMSN.
Two "interview" sections, and a lot of shamelss hawking of "Weir Here"

Amy Scott might be one of the most annoying VJ's ever. She managed to get
more information wrong in her 10 or so minutes of talking than one would
think possible. One really glaring one was

"This next song was a thirty year classic that was actually written by Jerry
Garcia and Robert Hunter. However Bob Weir has taken it and made it his
own." Thirty year classic. Wasn't it more like a 13 year classic? You would
think that VH-1 would have somebody checking basic stuff like when a song
was written

And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer I
have ever seen. I have never been a huge Ratdog fan, and I think that Jay
Lane may well be the reason why.. If Ratdog had a Molo quality drummer,
Ratdog would be way better IMO

Scot

[mjd]

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer I
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

[bill c]

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer I
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

[Bzl.]

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous

drummer

Post by bill c
I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

I agree.

[volkfolk]

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

Scot

[JC Martin]

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that. Dave can
swing somewhat when he's playing jazz (though by no means did he play
jazz very well), but when he's playing rock...no dynamics and no
looseness in his approach to the kit. Back when he played in Sausage,
that was a perfect gig for him. Banger's paradise.

-JC

[JimK]

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that. Dave can
swing somewhat when he's playing jazz (though by no means did he play
jazz very well), but when he's playing rock...no dynamics and no
looseness in his approach to the kit. Back when he played in Sausage,
that was a perfect gig for him. Banger's paradise.
-JC

Dave? Dave's not here!

(tm: Cheech & Chong)

JimK

[JC Martin]

Post by JimK

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that. Dave can
swing somewhat when he's playing jazz (though by no means did he play
jazz very well), but when he's playing rock...no dynamics and no
looseness in his approach to the kit. Back when he played in Sausage,
that was a perfect gig for him. Banger's paradise.
-JC

Dave? Dave's not here!
(tm: Cheech & Chong)

Whoops. I meant Jay. I was thinking of Dave Ellis for some reason.

Peet time.

-JC

[wyeknot]

[a] Dave can
swing somewhat when he's playing jazz [b] (though by no means did he play
jazz very well), [c] but when he's playing rock...no dynamics and no
looseness in his approach to the kit.

Did anyone else read [a] and completely, nearly verbatum, anticipate [b]
and even have feeling [c] was right around the corner??? ;-)

Matt

[b***@nyx.net]

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that.

Did you get any sense of Karan's take on Jay Lane as Ratdog's drummer?

[JC Martin]

Post by b***@nyx.net

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that.

Did you get any sense of Karan's take on Jay Lane as Ratdog's drummer?

You think he'd tell me Jay sucks? Nah.

I've talked with Mark enough about music to have a feel for what he sees
as ideal musicianship. I know when Mark joined Ratdog, he wasn't really
into that style of drummer (kind of a precise proggy feel that Jay
has) nor was he a big jazz fan outside of the classics (though my wife
and I went to an Elvin Jones gig with him years back). I seriously
could have never seen him enjoyin' playing with a soprano sax player,
that's for sure. But then, I imagine his musical sensibilities have
changed quite a bit over the years. When I do talk to him, which hasn't
been much the last few years unfortunately, it's all positive
generally...as it should be. It's a great gig after all. Certainly,
it's gotta be nice to be given the opportunity to grow as a musician.

-JC

[Rogues Island's finest]

Post by JC Martin

Post by b***@nyx.net

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that.

Did you get any sense of Karan's take on Jay Lane as Ratdog's drummer?

You think he'd tell me Jay sucks? Nah.

Forget all that, can you ask him how he feels about Green Day?

Mark

[b***@nyx.net]

Post by JC Martin

Post by b***@nyx.net

Post by JC Martin

Post by volkfolk

Post by bill c

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
And Neil and others are so right. Jay Lane is the most ponderous drummer

I

Post by mjd

Post by volkfolk
have ever seen.

You hit the nail on the head here. I keep watching this, trying my
damndest to get into Ratdog a bit more - I always liked Bob - but that
drummer is just a complete load. He has absolutely zero spark or
energy. I'm not a big fan of sax in this kind of music either, so that
is also turning me off. But the drummer - oy! Come on Bob, get
someone in there who can hit the damn skins a bit...

jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

My impression is that Jay Lane was bored out of his mind. Certainly his is a
capable drummer, but good drums drive the music (even on a ballad) He just
didn't look into it

He's just a poor stylistic fit. I've even told Mark that.

Did you get any sense of Karan's take on Jay Lane as Ratdog's drummer?

You think he'd tell me Jay sucks? Nah.

Not directly, of course not. That's why I said "sense". It would be
interesting to hear his take, though. It would be a bummer to be
playing up there every night with a drummer whose style you don't like.

Post by JC Martin
I've talked with Mark enough about music to have a feel for what he sees
as ideal musicianship. I know when Mark joined Ratdog, he wasn't really
into that style of drummer (kind of a precise proggy feel that Jay
has) nor was he a big jazz fan outside of the classics (though my wife
and I went to an Elvin Jones gig with him years back). I seriously
could have never seen him enjoyin' playing with a soprano sax player,
that's for sure. But then, I imagine his musical sensibilities have
changed quite a bit over the years. When I do talk to him, which hasn't
been much the last few years unfortunately, it's all positive
generally...as it should be. It's a great gig after all. Certainly,
it's gotta be nice to be given the opportunity to grow as a musician.
-JC

[mjd]

Post by bill c
jay lane was the original drummer in primus and sausage, as well as with the
charlie hunter trio.
lately he's moonlighted with les's frog brigade, so you'd be hard pressed to
find a drummer
who can hit the skins the way he can in the right setting. personally, i
think its more a weir problem.
his arrangements and his shows in general just don't have the same
complexity as say phil's do. i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

I'm not familiar with his work prior to Ratdog, so it's probably unfair
to judge based on so little, and I agree - Ratdog isn't exactly setting
the world on fire for me, but - I have to say from what I saw, Lane in
particular was just so bland. And I beg to differ - I think the
drummer can spark the band more than the other way around. Over the
course of all the (mostly 80s era) GD shows I saw, the drummers were
always the ones that could make or break a show for me. When they were
on and kicking, the band cooked. When they were flat, lifeless, out of
synch with each other, the whole show was flat. I blame that mainly on
Mickey, because when Bill was alone from 71-74 he was always tight,
nimble, and sparkling.

[volkfolk]

Post by bill c
i
don't see how you can expect the drummer to have "spark" or energy when
there really isn't any spark
to the music in general.

A band is only as good as it's drummer

HTH,

Scot

[Jim]

I watched this the other night as well and I can say I was thoroughly
impressed with RatDog. I haven't heard them in like 10 years and they
are much, much better now than I remember. That Lazy River Road was
fucking awesome.

That VJ was an absolute tool. And why the fuck were the playing that
loud ass music during the "interview" section?

I loved watching Bob fuck up the lyrics. Reminds me of the good ol'
days. :)

The drummer was not noticeable. So that could be good or bad, depending
on your drummer interest. He provided a beat and stayed out of the way.
The sax was great. I love some good sax though.

All in all, I'm glad I caught it. Bob's interview was out there and the
music was good. That's all I was hoping for.

Can't wait to see Bob at Merlefest.

Jim

[Jim]

Post by Jim
I watched this the other night as well and I can say I was thoroughly
impressed with RatDog. I haven't heard them in like 10 years and they
are much, much better now than I remember. That Lazy River Road was
fucking awesome.
That VJ was an absolute tool. And why the fuck were the playing that
loud ass music during the "interview" section?
I loved watching Bob fuck up the lyrics. Reminds me of the good ol'
days. :)
The drummer was not noticeable. So that could be good or bad, depending
on your drummer interest. He provided a beat and stayed out of the way.
The sax was great. I love some good sax though.
All in all, I'm glad I caught it. Bob's interview was out there and the
music was good. That's all I was hoping for.
Can't wait to see Bob at Merlefest.
Jim

I forgot to mention the best part of this. After the special (it only
ran 1:40), they had some time to kill, so they showed the intro to the
Grateful Dead Movie and then some videos. I had never seen the Hell in
the Bucket video and I have to say that was the funniest fucking 5
minutes I've experienced in a long, long time. I was crying on the
sofa. Yellow wife beater shirt with a purple jacket! Priceless. Man,
that was some high comedy let me tell you. For fans of Bill Simmons,
that was easily a 95 or a 96 on the Unintentional Comedy Scale. I need
to find a copy of this somewhere.

And some people wonder why we tease Bobby. I used to just tease him for
his shorts and polo shirts. This is a whole 'nother level.

Jim

[marklaw]

Post by Jim
I had never seen the Hell in
the Bucket video and I have to say that was the funniest fucking 5
minutes I've experienced in a long, long time. I was crying on the
sofa. Yellow wife beater shirt with a purple jacket! Priceless.

Not to mention the duck. AFLAK!

[The Lord of Eltingville]

Post by Jim

Post by Jim
I watched this the other night as well and I can say I was thoroughly
impressed with RatDog. I haven't heard them in like 10 years and they
are much, much better now than I remember. That Lazy River Road was
fucking awesome.
That VJ was an absolute tool. And why the fuck were the playing that
loud ass music during the "interview" section?
I loved watching Bob fuck up the lyrics. Reminds me of the good ol'
days. :)
The drummer was not noticeable. So that could be good or bad, depending
on your drummer interest. He provided a beat and stayed out of the way.
The sax was great. I love some good sax though.
All in all, I'm glad I caught it. Bob's interview was out there and the
music was good. That's all I was hoping for.
Can't wait to see Bob at Merlefest.
Jim

I forgot to mention the best part of this. After the special (it only
ran 1:40), they had some time to kill, so they showed the intro to the
Grateful Dead Movie and then some videos. I had never seen the Hell in
the Bucket video and I have to say that was the funniest fucking 5
minutes I've experienced in a long, long time. I was crying on the
sofa. Yellow wife beater shirt with a purple jacket! Priceless. Man,
that was some high comedy let me tell you. For fans of Bill Simmons,
that was easily a 95 or a 96 on the Unintentional Comedy Scale. I need
to find a copy of this somewhere.
And some people wonder why we tease Bobby. I used to just tease him for
his shorts and polo shirts. This is a whole 'nother level.

And don't forget about the duck...

[JC Martin]

Post by Jim

Post by Jim
I watched this the other night as well and I can say I was thoroughly
impressed with RatDog. I haven't heard them in like 10 years and they
are much, much better now than I remember. That Lazy River Road was
fucking awesome.
That VJ was an absolute tool. And why the fuck were the playing that
loud ass music during the "interview" section?
I loved watching Bob fuck up the lyrics. Reminds me of the good ol'
days. :)
The drummer was not noticeable. So that could be good or bad,
depending on your drummer interest. He provided a beat and stayed out
of the way. The sax was great. I love some good sax though.
All in all, I'm glad I caught it. Bob's interview was out there and
the music was good. That's all I was hoping for.
Can't wait to see Bob at Merlefest.
Jim

I forgot to mention the best part of this. After the special (it only
ran 1:40), they had some time to kill, so they showed the intro to the
Grateful Dead Movie and then some videos. I had never seen the Hell in
the Bucket video and I have to say that was the funniest fucking 5
minutes I've experienced in a long, long time. I was crying on the
sofa. Yellow wife beater shirt with a purple jacket! Priceless. Man,
that was some high comedy let me tell you. For fans of Bill Simmons,
that was easily a 95 or a 96 on the Unintentional Comedy Scale. I need
to find a copy of this somewhere.

Mmm...I haven't watched the video in question in a long time, but my
recollection of it was that the video was purposely comical and
seemingly making fun of the video format of the time. Good stuff.

-JC

[Jim]

Post by JC Martin
Mmm...I haven't watched the video in question in a long time, but my
recollection of it was that the video was purposely comical and
seemingly making fun of the video format of the time. Good stuff.
-JC

I don't know about that. That sounds more like revisionist thinking.
If it's true, kudos to them. If not, kudos to them anyway for making
arguably the funniest fucking music video of all time.

Jim

[The Lord of Eltingville]

Post by Jim

Post by JC Martin
Mmm...I haven't watched the video in question in a long time, but my
recollection of it was that the video was purposely comical and
seemingly making fun of the video format of the time. Good stuff.
-JC

I don't know about that. That sounds more like revisionist thinking.
If it's true, kudos to them. If not, kudos to them anyway for making
arguably the funniest fucking music video of all time.

Oh no... It pales in comparison to The Vinnie Vincent Invasion's "Boyz
Are Gonna Rock" video. They somehow managed to jam every hairmetal
cliche, including a guy engulfed in flames running across the stage for
no reason before the amps all explode, into about 3 minutes.

A year or so after the video had turned into a frequent source of
amusement to me and a couple of friends, I was working for an L.A. based
band and found myself hanging out one morning with the manager/owner
(Bill) of a rehearsal place in No. Hollywood, called The Alley. We'd
been talking for a while when a tiny, little guy walked into the room --
he probably would have been dwarfed by Prince, if they'd been standing
together.

Bill chatted with him for a minute while I tried to remember where I'd
seen him before. Finally, he told the visitor that I was working with
one of the bands who'd recently rented space for a tour rehearsal. He
stuck his hand out, and as I was shaking it, Bill said, "Ted, this is
Vinnie Vincent."

I burst out laughing while trying to say the usual "nice to meet you"
thing and quickly excused myself and bid a hasty retreat to the band's
room.

On my way out later in the afternoon, I spotted Bill in one of the
hallways and walked over to sheepishly apologize for my behavior. He
laughed and said it was a pretty common reaction when people were
introduced to Vinnie and not to sweat it as he never caught on to what
was happening. Sure enough, I ran into Vinnie a few more times before
the band moved to SIR, and he was always quite friendly, and never once
brought up our introduction.