Thanks to those at Vault Radio for playing the track from a Devil's Kitchen tape that I didn't even know existed, and also those in 'Feedback' land for their 'Devil's Kitchen'comments. It was a surprise and a pleasure to hear my old band on the site. The band imploded in mid-1970 from the weight of touring (we once played a show in Cincy with The Grateful Dead and the 'LEMON PIPERS of 'Green Tambourine' fame!), breaking up after running into the usual stuff that gets in the way. The song 'Ridden Many a Mile' was actually titled 'EL HASHO'; like many tunes of the day, it had short, image-laden vocals as an excuse for a long jam. It was meant to have a Spanish flavor, and the John Cippolina-like sound--thanks for the comparisons!--of course STEM FROM MY USE OF THE BIGSBY VIBRATO LEVER ON THE GIBSON MODEL 355 I PLAYED...I went through a short phase where I really whammied on that thing, mostly just for that tune!
Weirdly enough--it WAS the 60's-- I later did a very short stint on bass with the last throes of QMS--Bill Graham and Dave Mason's Road Manager Ron Litz got me that gig-- and to this day speak with QMS's original bassist Freiburg on occasion. Then I played with Norman Greenbaum, the 'Spirit in the Sky' man, on his follow-up single 'California Earthquake', and for quite a while with Mickey Hart and Robert Hunter on two of their solo projects, 'Rolling Thunder', and 'Tales of the Great Rum Runners'.
I have been playing in bands, teaching college, and , primarily, running a regional sound company (offering the latest Yamaha digital mixer) since I emerged from the, shall we say, purple haze of the 60's and 70's. Would like to hear from the other members, Bret, Bob, and Steve!