In episode 10 of Hooked on Creek, I review Max Creek’s performance on September 12, 1982, at Sunny Meadow Farm in Riverton, Connecticut.
A live recording of this entire Max Creek performance is available to stream or download here.
Episode 10 transcription
You’re listening to Hooked on Creek, a podcast celebrating the music of Max Creek. I am your host, Korre Johnson, and you are listening to episode 10.
Hey everyone, thanks so much for joining me on episode 10 of Hooked on Creek. In this episode, I am going to discuss Max Creek’s performance on September 12, 1982, at Sunny Meadow Farm, in Riverton, Connecticut. You can find a direct link to stream or download the entire Max Creek show I am reviewing in the episode show notes, or simply head over to hookedoncreek.com. And while you are there, click the contact link and let me know what you think. I am always looking for recommendations on topics to cover or Max Creek shows to feature in this podcast. Alright, now let’s get started.
In the afternoon of September 12, 1982, at Sunny Meadow Farm, in Riverton, Connecticut, Max Creek performed an incredible single set of music. When I first discovered this show, I thought it was interesting that the show notes on archive.org indicated this was a “No Nukes” show. And while I don’t know much about the context surrounding this performance, this live recording does include some playful banter among the band about nukes as they prepared to start the show, which I think is interesting.
Alright, now the show begins with a luscious version of Gypsy Blue that unfolds to reveal some beautiful jamming on this classic Creek tune. The interplay between Mark, Scott and John as they exchange riffs across the keys, guitar and bass throughout this song is simply elegant, and when layered over the song’s entrancing drumming and percussive rhythms, the song feels like 10,000 velvet-covered hammers delicately pressing against your mind, shaping a cosmic vision fueled by John’s lyrics. About nine minutes into the song, the jam begins to expand and feel weightless, dropping you in a free fall through musical bliss. But then four minutes later, the cord is pulled, the parachute opens and the jam begins to take a more structure form as Scott guides us to a safe landing, leading the song’s transition into a full-throttled version of Promised Land.
And while Promised Land is a song familiar to fans of the Grateful Dead (they performed it 425 times between 1971 and 1995), the song was originally written by Chuck Berry and released on his 1964 album St. Louis to Liverpool. Apparently, Chuck Berry wrote the song Promised Land while he was in prison between 1960 and 1963 after being arrested in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1959 on charges relating to transporting a 14-year-old girl across state lines for “immoral purposes.”
In this version of Promised Land, Amy “Barefoot” Fazzano takes over lead vocals and delivers the goods on this old Chuck Berry tune. In my view, Amy Barefoot is such a special ingredient that is pivotal to appreciating the full flavor of Max Creek during this era of the band. Now, Amy joined Max Creek as a vocalist in 1976 and prior to joining the band, she had been a bartender at Mad Murphy’s, one of the clubs in Hartford where Max Creek played. As the story goes, she was invited to join the band by Mark who heard her singing while she was doing post-concert cleaning following a Creek gig. Listening to this song, you can hear Amy and the band are clearly having a lot of fun. It overflows with energy.
After Promised Land ends, while the band is preparing for their next song, somewhere off mic we hear a young child yell, “Mommy”, which I think is incredible cute, and perhaps fitting for an afternoon show. OK, so after Promised Land, Mark leads the band through a cover of the old traditional song Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man.
When I looked up the history of this song, I learned it is rooted in an old English song from the 1830s called The Roving Journeyman that had in one of its early adaptations a line about a gamboling man. But in that version of the song, gambol is spelled g-a-m-b-o-l, which means to skip or run around playfully. But then after the song came across the Atlantic to America around 1900, the lyrics to the song were adapted to tell the story of gambling man, but with gamble spelled g-a-m-b-l-e. Interesting how songs evolve like that.
Now, when I think of some of the all-time great actors of our time, people like Jack Nicholson, Robert De Niro or Tom Hanks, who are able to portray characters with such authenticity on film, I wonder if there is a parallel comparison for musical storytellers who portray characters in their songs. If so, I think Mark is among the best, and he certainly shines during this performance of Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man.
After Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man concludes, John leads the band through a gorgeous cover of the John Stewart song July, You’re a Woman.
And then Scott leads the band through a steaming-hot cover of Loose Lucy, which you heard earlier during the introduction to this podcast episode. Paired next to each other, these two songs, July, You’re a Woman followed by Loose Lucy, feel like two sides of the same coin, offering a broad and colorful view of love, lust and affection.
Of course, Loose Lucy is a Grateful Dead song released on their 1973 album From the Mars Hotel. Interestingly, the song was part of the Grateful Dead’s live performances in 1973 and 1974, but then disappeared for 16 years until it reappeared on March 14, 1990, after a hiatus of 979 shows. From then on, the Dead played Loose Lucy fairly regularly through 1995. So Max Creek performing this song in 1982, in the midst of that long hiatus, certainly must have been a treat for the Deadhead’s in the audience. And I think you will enjoy it now, as well.
And from here, things start to get really interesting as the band delivers a face-melting version of the Grateful Dead’s Estimated Prophet, a song released on the Dead’s 1977 album Terrapin Station. Max Creek’s performance on this date only refers to this stretch of music as Estimated Prophet, but I think one could make the case that what comes after Loose Lucy is an Estimated Prophet > Space. But between you and me, I am glad it’s not listed that way.
Clocking in nearly 19 minutes long, this version of Estimated Prophet is a beast. As the song builds, Scott’s guitar playing becomes increasingly fluid and exploratory. Bob Gosselin on drums and Rob Fried on percussion masterfully execute the odd time signature of the song while Mark’s delicate work on the keys builds an ambiance that feels surreal and John’s throbbing bass pulls this heavy song forward through the thick psychedelic soundscape. And all this occurs before the song slips through the wormhole and reconfigures itself on some distant planet. And here, far way from home, surrounded by the strange and absurd, we are reminded that nothing is what it seems. Buckle up. This song is a trip.
And then, from what seem like out of nowhere, the music pulls itself back together and the opening notes of Greatest Story Ever Told come roaring at you like an angry bear. First performed by the Grateful Dead in early 1971, Greatest Story Ever Told actually made its studio album debut on Bob Weir’s solo album Ace in 1972.
But back on September 12, 1982, at Sunny Meadow Farm, in Riverton, Connecticut, Max Creek throws down a jam-heavy version of Greatest Story Ever Told that is simply delightful. This performance of Greatest Story Ever Told is a perfect example of how Max Creek can cover a song and really make it their own.
After delivering that stratospheric version of Greatest Story Ever Told, for the encore, Max Creek performs a crowd-pleasing cover of I Saw Her Standing There, which of course is a Beatles song from their 1963 debut album Please Please Me.
Now looking back over the entire show, the band only played one original song in this performance, and that was Gypsy Blue, a song Max Creek included in their 1982 album Drink the Stars. And while the band had a lot original material to play at this stage in their career, it was still pretty common for Max Creek to feature a fair number of Grateful Dead songs in the sets. And that is perfectly fine with me.
OK, now lets hear a few songs from this magnificent Max Creek show. I am going to go ahead and play the first three songs from this show. So you’re going to hear Gypsy Blue, followed by Promised Land and then Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man.
And that concludes my review of Max Creek’s performance on September 12, 1982, at Sunny Meadow Farm, in Riverton, Connecticut. I highly recommend you check it out. You can stream or download this Max Creek show on archive.org. And if you have feedback about this episode or recommendations for future episodes, visit hookedoncreek.com and click the contact link to send me a message. Thanks for tuning in!