Who were Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions?
Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions was a folk/bluegrass band made up of Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, Tom Stone, Dave Parker, and Michael Garbett. The band was formed in early 1964, when Garcia, Weir, and McKernan met at a local music store and decided to jam together. They soon recruited Stone, Parker, and Garbett, who were also frequent customers at the store. The band named themselves after a character from an old song called "The Ballad of Mother McCree", which they often performed. The band's repertoire included songs by Chuck Berry, Jesse Fuller, Sam "Lightning" Hopkins, Will Shade, and other blues and folk artists, as well as original compositions by Garcia and Weir.
What was jug band music?
Jug band music is a type of folk music that uses traditional musical instruments such as guitar, mandolin, and banjo, combined with homemade instruments, including washtub bass, washboard, kazoo, and, eponymously, a jug, played by blowing into it as if it were a brass instrument. Jug bands were popular in the 1920s and 1930s, especially in the southern states of the US. They played a variety of musical styles, such as blues, ragtime, jazz, country, and gospel. Some of the most famous jug bands of that era were the Memphis Jug Band, the Dixieland Jug Blowers, and Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers.
In the 1960s, jug band music enjoyed somewhat of a resurgence as part of the American folk music revival. Jug bands of the 1960s often played popular music from the earlier jug band era, along with more contemporary folk and blues songs. Some of the notable jug bands of that period were Jim Kweskin & The Jug Band (featuring Geoff Muldaur and Maria Muldaur), The Even Dozen Jug Band (featuring John Sebastian and Stefan Grossman), The Lovin' Spoonful (formed by Sebastian after leaving The Even Dozen), and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.
How did Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions perform?
Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions performed regularly at local venues such as The Tangent (a folk music coffee house operated by Stanford Medical Center doctors), Kepler's Books (a bookstore that hosted live music events), and The Peninsula School (a progressive private school where Garcia taught guitar lessons). The band also played at parties, weddings, and other private functions. They were known for their energetic and humorous style of playing, which often involved improvisation and audience participation. They also experimented with different musical genres and instruments, such as electric guitar and harmonica.
The performances of Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions were recorded by Stanford University students Pete Wanger and Wayne Ott. They played the recordings on the folk music show Live from the Top of the Tangent which was broadcast on Stanford's FM radio station KZSU. The tapes were thought to be lost to history until Pete Wanger and his brother Michael found them in the attic of their mother's house after she died in 1997. They found enough material there for a whole album. The recordings were subsequently mastered for CD by Grateful Dead recording engineer Jeffrey Norman. Michael Wanger wrote the liner notes for the CD.
How did Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions influence the Grateful Dead?
Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions was a precursor of the rock group the Grateful Dead, and included three future members of that band â Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan. The jug band experience helped them develop their musical skills, tastes, and personalities, which would later shape the sound and style of the Dead. Some of the songs that Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions played would also become part of the Grateful Dead's repertoire, such as "Overseas Stomp" (also known as "Lindy"), "Ain't It Crazy" (a.k.a. "The Rub"), "On the Road Again", "The Monkey and the Engineer", and "Beat It On Down the Line".
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions disbanded, as Garcia, Weir, and McKernan decided to switch to electric instruments and form a new band called The Warlocks, along with Bill Kreutzmann and Phil Lesh. The Warlocks soon changed their name to the Grateful Dead, and became one of the pioneers of the psychedelic rock movement. The Grateful Dead went on to have a long and successful career, spanning over three decades and producing dozens of albums and hundreds of live shows. They also amassed a loyal and devoted fan base, known as Deadheads, who followed them around the country and beyond.
Where can I listen to Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions?
The album Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions was released in 1999 by Grateful Dead Records. It contains 14 tracks, recorded live at the Top of the Tangent in Palo Alto in July 1964. The album is available on CD and digital platforms, such as Spotify and Amazon. You can also listen to some of the songs on YouTube. The album is a rare and valuable document of the early days of the Grateful Dead, and a testament to their folk roots and jug band influences.
If you are a fan of the Grateful Dead, or just curious about their musical origins, you should definitely check out Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. You will discover a different side of Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and enjoy some fun and lively jug band music.
a104e7fe7e