Fire On The Mountain Friday – Special Guest Pick – Bob Minkin – Winterland 12/31/1977
This week our special guest is Bob Minkin. Forty one years ago Bob's first show was a Jerry Garcia Band gig at the Capitol Theater in New Jersey. Luckily for all of us on the bus he used to take along a camera to capture memories of the shows he attended. Bitten by the shutter bug while in high school – he began shooting professionally in the late 70's. We are greatful for the wonderful images he has taken over the years.
Bob picked "Fire On The Mountain" from Winterland, San Francisco, CA 12/31/77. He had this to share about the show.
I was 18, living in Brooklyn, NY and wanted to see the Dead on New Years Eve in San Francisco. 1977 was a consistently hot year for the band and I was itching to see them on their home turf. I took a Greyhound bus cross country solo, arriving in San Francisco on the night of December 28th in time for the three end-of-year shows.
'It was a psychedelic night for me as I walked into Winterland for a third time that week, for the final show of that run. The “Scarlet > Fire” pairing debuted earlier that year at Winterland so it was a pretty fresh number for me. This Fire was so tight, the band firing on all cylinders. Jerry’s “Wolf” guitar had that amazing fat, rich sound that soared on his solos.
Back in 1965 I’m sure none of the band members could have imagined that the music they were creating would become a lasting force in American culture, that has reached this 50 year milestone. We are fortunate they continue their legacy.
Thanks for sharing Bob and we'll see everyone next week for a new Fire Friday!
Bob recently came out with a new book, Live Dead, The Grateful Dead Photographed by Bob Minkin
You can check it out here: http://bit.ly/livedeadff