A memoir of 25 years (1975-2000) spent working in the world of records & music in Seattle, with occasional side trips into writings on Led Zeppelin and other adventures from my musical life
And my first Mangrove post (Gaelic Park 8/26/71) after I moved from blogspot to the Substack platform. It includes a few details of how the Dead's manager, Sam Cutler, went after tapers and folks selling bootleg albums in 1971. Another great field recording, this one produced by Marty Weinberg. https://zencowpoke.substack.com/p/grateful-dead-gaelic-park-bronx-ny
Amen to the Dead ca. 1971 - they were absolutely on fire and it's my favorite era of the band.
Interesting to hear about their efforts to thwart bootlegging - I think I was under the impression that they always condoned taping & trading shows, if not bootlegging for profit. They were smart - and ahead of their time - to eventually allow taping and encourage Deadheads to trade recordings rather than buy bootlegs.
Led Zep's manager Peter Grant was notorious for doing what Sam Cutler did in your story - going into the crowd and actually busting bootleggers or people selling unauthorized merch of any kind. At one show in Vancouver BC Grant found a guy with a mic in the crowd, smashed the mic, and then discovered that the guy was from the Canadian government and his equipment was for checking db levels!
One of the great ironies of the universe, to me anyway, is that for most of my life I was not allowed to record or film rock shows - and occasionally got busted for doing so - and now with digital ticketing you can't even get IN to the damn show without a device that records and films in high quality in your pocket!
Great piece, Hugh. I had a bunch of Grateful Dead bootleg LPs in the 70s. My favorite was the 8-6-71 Hollywood Palladium show, with the charming pig-nosed Garcia on the cover. I wrote about that show a year or so ago. Sweet Rob Bertrando field recording.
Thanks! And yes, that pig-nosed Garcia image is another piece by William Stout, very cool! I look forward to hearing this show, I love a great audience recording and in many cases prefer that to an un-mixed soundboard.
In 1984, I was literally walking up to Rolling Stone Records, my favorite record store in Chicago - most likely with the intent to buy some bootlegs - when the FBI busted them. They pushed all the customers out the door (this was lunch hour in downtown Chicago, so the place was packed) and then locked it behind them. It was the same deal you describe - the store was open again the next day as if nothing had happened, but all the boots were gone.
I can remember dozens of bootlegs at our university bookstore in 1973. Hit or miss on the quality - Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Janis Joplin and on and on.
It's hard to imagine an era when the FBI actually had the time, money, and interest to expend on raiding record stores for bootlegs. It seems so quaint now! I love that you've kept the paper "provenance" to go along with these tales of federal scare tactics.
And my first Mangrove post (Gaelic Park 8/26/71) after I moved from blogspot to the Substack platform. It includes a few details of how the Dead's manager, Sam Cutler, went after tapers and folks selling bootleg albums in 1971. Another great field recording, this one produced by Marty Weinberg. https://zencowpoke.substack.com/p/grateful-dead-gaelic-park-bronx-ny
Amen to the Dead ca. 1971 - they were absolutely on fire and it's my favorite era of the band.
Interesting to hear about their efforts to thwart bootlegging - I think I was under the impression that they always condoned taping & trading shows, if not bootlegging for profit. They were smart - and ahead of their time - to eventually allow taping and encourage Deadheads to trade recordings rather than buy bootlegs.
Led Zep's manager Peter Grant was notorious for doing what Sam Cutler did in your story - going into the crowd and actually busting bootleggers or people selling unauthorized merch of any kind. At one show in Vancouver BC Grant found a guy with a mic in the crowd, smashed the mic, and then discovered that the guy was from the Canadian government and his equipment was for checking db levels!
One of the great ironies of the universe, to me anyway, is that for most of my life I was not allowed to record or film rock shows - and occasionally got busted for doing so - and now with digital ticketing you can't even get IN to the damn show without a device that records and films in high quality in your pocket!
Yes, ‘71 Dead is a blast. So many kick-ass shows. And I love the story about the Canadian government guy—damn funny.
Great piece, Hugh. I had a bunch of Grateful Dead bootleg LPs in the 70s. My favorite was the 8-6-71 Hollywood Palladium show, with the charming pig-nosed Garcia on the cover. I wrote about that show a year or so ago. Sweet Rob Bertrando field recording.
https://open.substack.com/pub/zencowpoke/p/grateful-deadhollywood-palladium?r=7iwom&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Thanks! And yes, that pig-nosed Garcia image is another piece by William Stout, very cool! I look forward to hearing this show, I love a great audience recording and in many cases prefer that to an un-mixed soundboard.
In 1984, I was literally walking up to Rolling Stone Records, my favorite record store in Chicago - most likely with the intent to buy some bootlegs - when the FBI busted them. They pushed all the customers out the door (this was lunch hour in downtown Chicago, so the place was packed) and then locked it behind them. It was the same deal you describe - the store was open again the next day as if nothing had happened, but all the boots were gone.
Yep, they weren't messing around back then. I wonder how many copies of "Live At Leeds" they confiscated from Rolling Stone Records? Lol!
Hahaha - I wonder, too!
I can remember dozens of bootlegs at our university bookstore in 1973. Hit or miss on the quality - Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Janis Joplin and on and on.
Good to know the difference between a pirate and a bootleg- thanks.
It's hard to imagine an era when the FBI actually had the time, money, and interest to expend on raiding record stores for bootlegs. It seems so quaint now! I love that you've kept the paper "provenance" to go along with these tales of federal scare tactics.