The "Other Side of Salmon"

Most folks go to a Leftover Salmon show for the music - certainly understandable. When they write about it later - or when they tell others what they saw and heard - the music is "front and center." But stopping there misses some of the coolest "stuff" about these guys... The following excerpts from LoSer Jan Trumbo's review of the Tucson show at The Rock on April 11, 1997, shows this "other side."

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...Tucson is not a bastion of LoS fever. I've never heard Salmon on the radio, until this week when KXCI, the local community station, got hooked up with them on this tour. They played the Rock again, a 21-and-over show. McGraw Gap opened when there were 50 people in the bar (one hour past the advertised 8 pm) and really got some people clicking their feet. This quartet of pickers is talented and can really take some tunes for a ride when they cook. They got an enthusiastic response from the audience, which built up to a couple of hundred while they played.

During McGraw Gap's set, Mark Vann strolled in, got himself a beer and leaned back on the bar to hear the Gap boys play. After a bit I decided I wanted to say hi, and went up to Mark and talked to him for a few minutes. He was very nice to talk to, and we talked a bit about the list and how we all stay in touch that way and groove together. He begged Internet ignorance but he really enjoys his Dad's participation, which of course keeps them hooked in.

The stage crew is setting up for LoS to start, and Vince comes in, barefoot with jeans and a blinding white T-shirt - this club uses blacklights. Quite an effective outfit here. My friend Face and I decide we should say hi to Vince. So we go pay our respects to Vince, who is also very nice to us and makes some time to talk while he's dealing with setting up. It only takes a couple of minutes of conversation before the first joke slips out from Vince, which of course I don't remember now (sorry, guys, but it was funny, ok?)

The place is now pretty full - we guessed 400 - just perfect, really. They could have squeezed another 50 on the dance floor and made us steamed sardines, but there was just enough room that in fact everybody could dance. From note 1 of xydeco at about 60 mph, half the crowd was up, and from note 10 the whole crowd was up. The crowd was mostly college with a good sprinkling of older geezers like me (pushing, er, 29.) Again, I doubt that many of the kids had heard of LoS before. We had our corner, stage right, great view.

Vince and LoS danced us through the first set, breathless. We all took a break, and came back for more. It only gets better in the second set. Some moments I swear Vince winked at me, he's grooving so much with the band and the audience. Damn they're good!

And this brings me right back to what I've been thinking for the last few days. I've been jamming on Euphoria, acquired 4 days earlier in Denver, CO (at ?? JR&H), Ask the Fish, the great 10/07/95 8x10 show that Marcie just blessed me with (thanks, Marcie, that show is truly great!) (and bumming that my Bridges to Bert seems to have disappeared, but heck, I'm sure it's enriching somebody else's life now) and I've been catching myself thinking "the reason these guys are so good is just that they *are* so good - such damn fine musicians in the first place!"

Their covers of traditional bluegrass where they bring such life and creativity to perfectly grand music are as enjoyable as their own contributions. They can breeze effortlessly from pure, staunch bluegrass to calypso, xydeco, insanity and mayhem with pure grace. They know it. They groove on it. We groove on it. They groove on us. We groove on them. The Bert is bridged.

Vince's talents transcend any particular style of music, he's got a pure showman streak in him. He's good at working the crowd, and it's a win-win situation. We're all in love. At least, we *should* be. I really don't think the 20-year-olds quite knew what they were seeing, but they knew they were having a good time.

There was not a single 'Feessttiivvaall' uttered all night. There were a couple of 'Paassttaa!'s bandied about, yours truly included. Those shouts came from the back of the bus - the older crowd, who got there early, got seats, and rocked down with the best abandon of the bunch (some of the youngsters are good at it too, bless them).

Afterwards, we're standing around decompressing and Vince is mixing with the crowd. I want to buy a T-shirt, I hope a rather direct subsidy of the band and a great t-shirt (got the Ask the Fish t-shsirt with the fish poem on the back). I went outside to cool off and the patio is empty except for Tye North and a young lady, seated at a table quietly talking. We are out enjoying the glorious Tucson nighttime, mid 70's, clear and lots of stars. I say hi to Tye and talk to him a bit too. I told him there was talk about him, specifically, on the list lately and he said something like "Really! They're talking about it, huh?!" with pleasure. He said they get about 50 pages every two months of the list archive and eveybody reads it. Tye is cool.

We ran into a guy from KXCI, the local station, who got analog board tapes. I'm going to try to get copies from him. Thanks!

Oh yeah, then there's Drew. Remind me to tell you about Drew, and the halo that lit up around his head when he stroked his mandolin or his fiddle. And how the audience grew to respond to it, and even to anticipate it. The whole show, the song selection, was mainstream rock-and-boogie (very well done), bluegrass, and easy on the Fish. They did Bridge for us, and they did Polka for us - of course, and thank you, Vince! And I'm sure they gained some new fans in Tucson.

I can't wait for Telluride. PAAAAAASSSSSSTTTTTTTAAAAAA!!!!!!!

- Jan Trumbo at large <TRUMBO@Opus1.COM>

Be sure to check out the Newbie-Tales section of this site for more of Jan's experiences. Oh yes, you forgot to tell us where to send the check! <grin>