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| Country Joe & The Fish, Berkeley's leading rock export, as they looked in 1967. L-R: Barry Melton, David Cohen, Chicken Hirsch, Joe McDonald, Bruce Barthol |
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, April-June 1967
At the beginning of 1966, concerts at the Fillmore Auditorium and Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco transformed live rock shows and the music business itself. Rock concerts went from mere personal appearances by entertainers popular with teenagers to full expressions of art, music and culture. The live rock concert business exploded. What we understand as a rock concert today can be traced directly to those early 1966 concerts at the Fillmore and Avalon.
The Fillmore and Avalon had concerts every weekend in 1966, but they weren't large venues. The Fillmore held about 1500, and the Avalon somewhat less. Yet the shows were generally crowded, though few of the bands had even made a record, much less scored a hit. It was a true underground rock scene, that rarest of birds in the rock sky. Not all of the fans came from just the Haight-Ashbury, either. Many came from the Peninsula, and many came from surrounding colleges and universities. No school could have had more Fillmore rock fans than the University of California at Berkeley, since the school was so large, and transbay access to the ballrooms was so easy. The Bay Bridge, following the path of the old Key System, took patrons straight from downtown Berkeley to the city, just a quick sprint away from the Fillmore district.
With so many rock fans in the city of Berkeley, it's no surprise that there was a growing rock scene there starting in 1966. The City and University were already centers of protest, long hair and rebellion, anyway--why not add some loud rock and roll to the mix? Yet live rock concerts had great difficulty taking hold in Berkeley, or anywhere nearby. But it wasn't for lack of trying. Some years ago--fourteen, actually--I began working up a list of concerts in Berkeley, Oakland and the rest of Alameda County. This post will focus on rock concerts in Berkeley and the East Bay from April through June 1967 (see below for links to prior posts). Anyone with any recollections, corrections, insights or clever speculation should include them in the Comments. Flashbacks actively encouraged.
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| The little bandshell and stage at Provo Park, as it appeared in 2009 |
Berkeley Rock Scene, Status Report: April 1967
Berkeley
was a prosperous college town with a flagship State University. Up until
the Beatles, however, Berkeley was the kind of place that casually
turned up its nose at rock and roll, implying that it was "kid stuff"
for unlettered teenagers. Berkeley had some folk clubs, and there was
some jazz, and both went well with protest, which was practically a
spectator sport. Some students followed the California Golden Bears
football or basketball team, but that was considered kid stuff, too.
The
biggest venue in town was the Berkeley Community Theater, a 3500 seat
auditorium on Grove Street (now Martin Luther King Jr Way), at Allston.
The Theater was the city auditorium, but it was also on the campus of
Berkeley High School. Not only was it really too large for the rock
market, but because it was on a campus, it often wasn't available on
school nights. There were some venues on the UC Campus, like Harmon Gym
or the new Pauley Ballroom, but they, too were restricted by the
institution. In any case, neither UC Berkeley nor Berkeley High needed
the money that came from booking shows, so it was tough for would-be
promoters. Similar to San Francisco, free concerts in the main city park and on the UC Campus formed a big part of the Berkeley rock scene.
This post will be part of a series looking at the evolution of live rock in Berkeley in 1967. Berkeley's first rock club, the New Orleans House, had opened in January. A folk club, The Jabberwock, at 2901 Telegraph (at Russell, across from the Co-Op market), sometimes booked rock bands, but they were mostly folk musicians who had bought an amplifier. The best known of those were Country Joe & The Fish, made up of former Jabberwock folkies. Since we have covered the history of both those venues, and Joe & The Fish, in great detail elsewhere, this chronicle will focus on the somewhat-larger-but-not-very venues where concerts were booked. In the East Bay, there were plenty of rock fans. The posts about 1967 rock concerts in Berkeley and the East Bay will focus on the struggle was finding a venue for the type of concerts that people wanted to see, like they did at the Fillmore or the Avalon.
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| Tiny Maple Hall in San Pablo, CA around 1951 |
April 1, 1967 Maple Hall, San Pablo, CA: Quicksilver Messenger Service (Saturday)
In late 1966, enterprising students at Berkeley High School had started booking their own rock bands around town. One venue they found was Maple Hall, in nearby San Pablo, yet still in another county (Contra Costa). Maple Hall held about 200 patrons. After a little while, the local Fillmore bands discovered they could book a gig there, too. So, for a little while, the Fillmore bands headlined at Maple Hall, usually supported by some of the Berkeley High bands.
San Pablo, CA is 10 miles and 20 minutes North of downtown Berkeley.
It is a tiny city almost entirely surrounded by the much larger city of
Richmond. In 1966, San Pablo would have had a population of about
18,000. Most Berkeley residents, much less college students, have no
idea San Pablo even exists. Driving North on San Pablo Avenue--which
Berkeley college students never did anyway--the little city of San Pablo
just seems to be part of Richmond. Maple Hall was part of San Pablo's
city hall complex. The original Maple
Hall had burned down in 1946, but prior to that it had hosted many
performers, as it was a significant venue for the "Music Row" that had
entertained Richmond shipyard workers during WW2. Bob Wills and many
others had played there. The address was probably 13381 San Pablo
Avenue, although Maple Hall apparently faced Church Lane.
Maple Hall had been rebuilt by 1950, and had returned to hosting music shows. The Berkeley High crowd discovered they could rent it, and started putting on shows there. College students didn't apparently attend Maple Hall shows, but the local Richmond residents did show up (in a Cream Puff War article, they are referred to as "greasers"). Bands like Quicksilver would soon find their Saturday nights filled with much bigger gigs. At this time, however, although Quicksilver was a regular Fillmore and Avalon headliner, the band members were still living hand-to-mouth. They happily took smaller local gigs when they were available.
Quicksilver Messenger Service was one of the pioneering Fillmore bands. In mid-1967, they still had not recorded but they were local underground heroes. At this time, Quicksilver was a quintet, with guitarist Jimmy Murray joining the "core four" who would play on the debut album--John Cipollina and Gary Duncan on guitars, David Freiberg on bass and Greg Elmore on drums. Duncan, Freiberg and Murray sang, and Murray played some harmonica. The 5-piece Quicksilver had harmony singing and was distinctly more "folk-rock" than what would be released on their 1968 Capitol Records debut.
Presumably some local bands opened for Quicksilver at Maple Hall.
April 7-8, 1967 Maple Hall, San Pablo, CA: Big Brother and The Holding Company/The Illusions/ Overbrook Express (Friday-Saturday)
Big Brother and The Holding Company were another pioneering Fillmore band. In June 1966, they had added singer Janis Joplin. The group had been signed to Mainstream Records, but had only released a few singles. Nonetheless, word had already gotten around about how powerful Janis was in person. The guitars of Sam Andrews and James Gurley gave a sharp psychedelic edge to the band, later captured on the album Cheap Thrills (Columbia 1968).
After these shows, the rock scene simply outgrew tiny Maple Hall. The building continued to present music, but major Fillmore rock bands were simply too big for the tiny San Pablo room. The Illusions and Overbrook Express were local bands about which I know almost nothing.
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| An April 21, 1967 Oakland Tribune article explains how the City of Berkeley approved free concerts in the downtown park |
April 9, 1967 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/others (Sunday) “Hippie Happening”
According to an article in the April 21, 1967 Oakland Tribune, local hippies planned an event in which Telegraph Avenue (at the foot of campus) was blocked off, and thousands of hippies congregated peacefully while various rock bands played. The city was not informed of this event in advance. The Loading Zone was certainly one of the bands, as Zone manager Ron Barnett was quoted in the article.
For the hippie rock bands in Berkeley, free concerts were about the only way to get heard. There was only one rock club (New Orleans House) and no regular concert venue like the Fillmore. So if a band couldn't snag an opening act at one of the rare local concerts, no potential fans were ever going to hear them. Thus free concerts at either Provo Park or Sproul Plaza was the best way to get heard. Of course, the city had never sanctioned free concerts in the park, but bands had just showed up and plugged in. Yet they had to be careful about publicizing these events, since they had no permission. The same was true for campus. Protest rallies were usually scheduled, but noisy rock band appearances hadn't officially been approved.
As a result of this "Happening," Berkeley officially approved concerts in Constitution Park, the city's main park. The hippies called it Provo Park, because, well, Berkeley (see April 23 '67 below). The bands were booked through the Berkeley Parks & Rec department, but the bands apparently had to provide their own PA.
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| Pauley Ballroom is on the second floor of the Student Union building at UC Berkeley. The Bear's Lair cafe is just below it. This 2010 view is from Lower Sproul Plaza. |
April 21, 1967 Pauley Ballroom, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/Second Coming/Dusty Miller & Symphony/Motor (Friday)
Pauley Ballroom was on the second floor of the Student Union building. It could hold about 1000 patrons. Student groups or promoters could rent Pauley for concerts. There were usually limits, such as only on weekend nights, and time limits for the shows (typically ending at midnight). Although the sound wasn't great thanks to low ceilings, it was convenient and accessible for rock gigs. Unfortunately, by definition it could never be a permanent rock venue.
The Loading Zone had been Oakland's first export to the Fillmore scene. The band had formed out of the ashes of a Berkeley band called The Marbles. In 1966, The Marbles had fallen apart, and they merged with the remnants of the jazzy Tom Paul Trio. Guitarists Steve Dowler and Pete Shapiro shared the front line with organist and singer Paul Fauerso. Loading Zone was the first of the ballroom bands to merge psychedelic rock with R&B, with long feedback-drenched solos on top of a funky beat. Ballroom crowds loved it, and Loading Zone showed promoters and musicians that it would work. They kicked open a door that was walked through by Sly And The Family Stone and then Tower Of Power. Their unheralded history is complex, but we have looked at it at great length.
The Loading Zone played numerous free concerts in Provo Park and Sproul Plaza, and then capitalized on it by playing gigs at Pauley Ballroom, New Orleans House and elsewhere. They were an excellent live band, and their psychedelic R&B was ahead of its time, so the strategy worked well. In any case, there wasn't really another method in Berkeley to build an audience, as they didn't have a record.
Motor and Second Coming performed regularly at New Orleans House, Berkeley's first and (in 1967) only rock club. Second Coming was led by guitarists Vic Smith and David Lieberman. Drummer John Francis Gunning had been pushed out of Country Joe & The Fish. Bassist Marc Pessar and organist Mike Lafferty rounded out the band. Guitarist Bob Zuckerman explained the story of Motor (personal email):
My old band Motor was formed in 1966 by myself on guitar and my friend Stu Feldman on bass. Our original lead singer was Paul Wright, drummer was Ralph (can’t remember his last name right now, I’ll get it to you with some stories later - ) and Greg Turman on lead guitar. Paul left the group, and we reverted to a 4 piece. We wrote almost all of our own material, which was heavily sarcastic/humorous/political, as well as a few rock standards, blues, etc. We performed every Sunday for about two years at the so called Provo Park along with the Loading Zone, and many other groups. Stu was the guy who did the bookings (bands, times, dates). We played at all of the stop the draft week rallies, people’s park rallies, as well as local clubs. The New Orleans House was one of our regulars.
Dusty Miller & Symphony are unknown to me. A "Dusty Miller" is a kind of garden flower, so it is not likely a person.
April 22, 1967 Berkeley Community Theater, Berkeley, CA: The Fugs/Allen Ginsberg (Saturday)
The Fugs weren't really a rock band, except insofar as their outrageousness was acceptable, or even appealing, to rock fans. Folk fans were far more squeamish about folk songs like "Kill For Peace." The Fugs had been formed by three East Village folksingers, Ed Sanders, Tuli Kupferberg and Ken Weaver, joined at various times by members of the Holy Modal Rounders and/or other Greenwich Village groups. The Fugs--yes, the name was meant to imply exactly what you think--had recorded two albums for the tiny ESP label.
The Fugs were popular in Berkeley, too, not least because they were tuned into the community. Apparently Allen Ginsberg appeared at the Berkeley Community Theater show, too, although that is hard to confirm. The Fugs played a free concert in Golden Gate Park on the following Monday (April 24), along with Country Joe & The Fish, to raise bail for some hippies who were busted for playing unauthorized music in the park.
April 23, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/New Delhi River Band/Motor/Notes From The Underground (Sunday) rained out
As a result of the friendly but unscheduled “happening” on 9 April (see above), the city agreed with Loading Zone manager Ron Barnett (quoted in the April 21 Tribune article) that the band just wanted a place to play. As a result, the city agreed to regular concerts in Provo Park, thus sanctioning what was already occurring.
However, there was extensive rain and the show was rescheduled for the next Sunday (April 30).
April 29, 1967 Hearst Gym, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Country Joe & The Fish/San Francisco Mime Troupe/Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band (Saturday) The Pretentious Folk Front present the First Annual Hippie Fair and Bazaar
This peculiarly-titled event was apparently to make up for some canceled Fish gigs in San Francisco. Hearst Gym was the smaller Women’s Gym near Bancroft and Bowditch. “The Pretentious Folk Front,” a nominal student organization (CGSB bassist Richard Saunders was a UC Student, and he was the “front”), was used to get access to University buildings. At least as late as the 1980s, student groups could get cheap access to University facilities, so often groups were "formed" in order to get the use of a room or venue (I was the Vice President of the Rhetoric Department Graduate Student Association, just sayin'). In the end, it appears the event was moved to Pauley Ballroom.
The Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band had formed at the Jabberwock out of the same casual ensemble that was the genesis of Country Joe & The Fish. The Instant Action Jug Band had regularly performed at the 'Wok around 1965. There were about a dozen potential members of the group, and on any given night whichever members did not have a gig or a date were ready to spring into action and perform. CGSB initially played Skiffle music, which was essentially New Orleans jug band music. It was string band music, but with more of a beat. The leaders were singer/guitarists Phil Marsh and "Dynamite" Annie Johnston (we have detailed the history of the CGSB at great length).
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| A view of the stage area from the back of Provo Park in Berkeley (2009) |
April 30, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/New Delhi River Band/Motor/Mad River (Sunday) free concert
After the rainout of April 23, the bands reconvened in Provo Park for the first officially sanctioned free concert. Notes From The Underground were replaced by Mad River, newly arrived from Yellow Springs, OH. Mad River was one of the most unique bands on the Berkeley scene. They had formed the general milieu of the very progressive Antioch College. Unlike almost every other '60s band, with their penchant for rambling jams, Mad River had carefully orchestrated parts, even though their feedback-driven sound suggested no preparation at all. The group had arrived in Berkeley in April 1967, and began gigging in Berkeley and San Francisco almost immediately. Due to an early meeting with popular writer Richard Brautigan, Mad River had an early affiliation with San Francisco’s radical Diggers group. At this time, the band lived together in an apartment on Blake Street near the Berkeley campus.
Mad River did not "jam the blues" the way other local bands did, nor was their music based on folk songs. Their music sounded closer to what would later be called progressive rock, but in a Berkeley psychedelic way. They were definitely an acquired taste, and they weren't fully appreciated until record collectors discovered their 1968 debut album on Capitol Records many years after they broke up. Mad River was yet another band who initially released a privately produced single as their first record.
May 1, 1967 Wheeler Auditorium, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Country Joe and The Fish/Paul Krassner (Monday) 7:45pm & 9:30pm
Wheeler Auditorium was one of the largest lecture halls on campus in this era, seating about 500 (Note to old Berkeley undergraduates—1 PSL had not been built at this time). This, too was a student event, in order to get access to Wheeler Hall (the group was Campus Movement for a New America). Paul Krassner was a popular satirist, in effect a sort of current-events-comedian.
In the interests of full disclosure, to the best of my recollection, both my undergraduate (A.B.) and graduate (M.A.) diploma ceremonies were in Wheeler Auditorium.
May 5, 1967 Pauley Ballroom, UC Berkeley, Berkely, CA: Loading Zone (Friday)
May 6, 1967 Greek Theatre, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Jefferson Airplane/Dick Gregory (Saturday)
The Greek Theatre was easily the largest venue on the UC Campus, but the University rarely let it be used for rock shows. By this time, the Jefferson Airplane were a hit national band with an album and singles on the charts, and Dick Gregory was a popular comedian in his own right, so the size of the venue (7500 capacity) was more appropriate. The Dick Gregory/Jefferson Airplane pairing had played Frost Amphitheater at Stanford University the night before.
Tiny print in the Airplane poster (above) notes that the concert was a benefit for Cal Camp. Concerts at UC facilities had to turn over profits to a designated charity (Cal Camp was a summer camp). Everyone involved--bands, crew, promoter--all got paid contracted amounts, so it was only a benefit in a narrow, formal sense.
Jefferson Airplane were the flagship of the "San Francisco Sound" and the Fillmore scene. Their second RCA album, Surrealistic Pillow, had been released in February 1967. It was their first album with Grace Slick. "Somebody To Love" was a massive hit, reaching #5 on the Billboard chart. The song was relatively uncompromising for AM radio, with Jack and Jorma playing aggressive lines and Grace belting it out. There was no goopy sweetener. The song, followed by June's "White Rabbit," was the clarion call for the Summer Of Love.
Dick Gregory was a successful comedian, satirist and author.
May 7, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/SF Mime Troupe (Sunday)
May 10, 1967 Pauley Ballroom, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone (Thursday)
UC Berkeley had an annual event called "The Beaux Arts Festival." Many other schools had similar events. I believe it was a celebration and display of the artistic achievements of the students. Music was part of the festival, and various musicians would play. I think this event was just a celebration dance. Note that Loading Zone had played for free in Provo Park the prior two weekends, and was now at a paying gig. This was a conscious strategy.
May 13, 1967 Wurster Hall, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Steve Miller Blues Band (Saturday) Beaux Arts Ball
Wurster Hall was the Architecture building at UC Berkeley, a vast expansive structure that had only been completed in 1966. I think the final celebration of the Beaux Arts Festival was here, since it was called "The Beaux Arts Ball." I assume that there was art on display and likely films, too, and the Steve Miller Blues Band played for dancing (see May 28 below for more about the Miller Blues Band).
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| An ad in the Berkeley Barb for the May 21, 1967 benefit at the Finnish Hall |
May 21, 1967 Finnish Brotherhood Hall, Berkeley, CA: Country Joe & The Fish/Loading Zone/Afro Blues Persuation/Motor/Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band/Haymarket Riot (Sunday)
This show was a benefit, although I’m not certain for what cause. Country Joe & The Fish were also billed at The Avalon this night. Since bands had little equipment (by modern standards), bands playing two gigs in a night was very plausible. The Finnish Brotherhood Hall, at 1970 Chesnut Street, just off University Avenue, had been built in 1932. It had been regularly used for concerts, but since it held only about 200 people, it rapidly became too small.
The Afro-Blues Persuasion was led by Ulysses Crockett, who played vibraphone and flute. The band played regularly at a coffee shop called Haight Levels in San Francisco, as well as around the East Bay. They played funky jazz, and at times some heavy players (like bassist Paul Jackson) played with the band. The group did release a few singles, and two archival live lps (from Haight Levels) were released in 2019. Ulysses Crockett went on to become an Alameda County Prosecutor and taught law.
Haymarket Riot was a Berkeley band that would evolve into the group Lazarus. Though not a major band, they did feature Peter and Steve Barsotti, who were two of Bill Graham's chief lieutenants from the 1970s onwards.
May 21, 1967 Gym, Willard Junior High School, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/New Delhi River Band/Haymarket Riot (Sunday)
Willard Junior High was at Telegraph and Stuart Street, just a few blocks from the Jabberwock. Plenty of hippie rock fans lived nearby. The bands were always trying to find a viable venue on Southside, but school auditoriums never seem to have done the trick.
The New Delhi River Band was Palo Alto's second psychedelic blues band. The band included David Nelson and Dave Torbert, later with the New Riders Of The Purple Sage. The band was very popular in the South Bay and Santa Cruz County, and had been kind of the "house band" at The Barn in Scotts Valley. They were trying to expand their footprint. They had played a number of free concerts and benefits with the Loading Zone, and were trying to extend that to paying gigs.
May 23, 1967 Lower Sproul Plaza, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Country Joe & The Fish (Tuesday) free concert
A Wire Service story about this event was picked up by a number of daily papers. The Oakland Tribune headline said “Band Cools Off Draft Protesters.” The Long Beach Independent-Press-Telegram (May 24, 1967) gleefully reported “Folk-rock music outdrew an anti-war rally on the Berkeley campus by about 40 to 1.” Apparently, about 60 listeners heard speakers on Upper (Main) Sproul while 2000 heard CJF in the plaza below. Vanguard Records had just released Country Joe & The Fish's debut album, Electric Music For The Mind And Body. It remains a psychedelic classic.
Most of the protests at UC Berkeley, an almost daily occurrence, took place in Sproul Plaza at the center of campus. An area just below Sproul, known as Lower Sproul, had a variety of student services including the Bear’s Lair Café and other amenities. Lower Sproul was still under development at this time.
Even when I attended Berkeley in the later 1970s, it was common for the University to encourage loud noontime rock concerts in Lower Sproul, and it was widely believed (with some justification) that this was to discourage protests in Sproul Plaza itself, since they would largely be drowned out. This may be one of the first instances of the University trying to use Lower Sproul concerts to defuse a protests in Upper Sproul. I wrote about the dynamics of free concerts and Lower Sproul in a prior post. In any case, with a new album out, Country Joe & The Fish were simply too large to play for free in Sproul anymore.
May 27, 1967 Pauley Ballroom, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/Second Coming/New Age (Saturday)
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| The Steve Miller Blues Band, Spring '67. L-R: Curley Cooke, Steve Miller, Tim Davis, Lonnie Turner (photog unknown, via Bruno Ceriotti's chronology site) |
May 28, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/Steve Miller Blues Band/Mad River/Purple Earthquake (Sunday) free concert
Steve Miller, from Madison, WI via Chicago and Texas, had relocated to Berkeley in October 1966. He recognized that there was a growing scene and that there weren't many good blues bands, so he imported some musicians from Madison. By December they knew 25 songs, and (in Miller's words) "in tune and tight," an implicit comment on other bands around at the time. The Steve Miller Blues Band shined at an Avalon audition, and soon were regular performers there. The band also played at New Orleans House, at free concerts in Provo Park, and any other gigs they could find.
At this time, the Steve Miller Blues Band was a quartet. James "Curley" Cooke was on guitar and Tim Davis played drums and sang, both from Madison. Bassist Lonnie Turner, previously of Berkeley's Second Coming, had been drafted on bass. Miller played lead guitar and sang, as well as playing pretty good harmonica.
Purple Earthquake was a Berkeley High School band. Ultimately they would evolve into the band Earth Quake, who would release two early-70s albums on A&M and then start their own successful Beserkely Records label. Guitarist Robbie Dunbar and bassist Stan Miller were already in Purple Earthquake, and they would remain members of the group all the way through 1980.
May 30, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: New Delhi River Band/Motor/Purple Earthquake (Tuesday) free concert
Weekend concerts at Provo Park were regular occurrences, but we only have records of them when there were eyewitnesses or (as in this case) a poster.
June 14, 1967 ASUC Building, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Psychedelic Poster Exhibition (Thursday)
While not a rock concert, this exhibition of rock concert poster art celebrated for the new UC Art Museum. Alton Kelly made a poster for it. The ASUC Building included Pauley Ballroom and The Bear’s Lair. ASUC stood for Associated Students of The University of California. All Berkeley students pronounce it “A-suck”, usually with relish.
There were almost no concerts in and around Berkeley during June of 1967. Two things to note:
- UC Berkeley would have been at the end of Spring Term, and the University typically frowned on concerts and events as the semester ended
- Bill Graham had put the Fillmore on a six-days-a-week schedule for the Summer of '67. The Avalon was open four nights (Thursday-Sunday) as well. San Francisco was awash in exciting rock concerts--mind you, the Monterey Pop Festival was June 16-18--so the more modest Berkeley events had no traction.
June 25, 1967 Provo Park, Berkeley, CA: Loading Zone/Steve Miller Blues Band/Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band/Motor (Sunday) free concert
Italian scholar Bruno Ceriotti has an extraordinarily detailed chronology of the Steve Miller Blues Band from this period, and he reported this great eyewitness account:
"At one of the Provo Park concerts I attended, the Steve Miller Blues Band was supposed to play, but they didn't show," an eyewitness recalls. "I'm guessing that it was June 25, 1967, because I would have gone to see Dynamite Annie [of Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band] perform, and it stayed light well into the evening. After the other bands had finished playing, everyone (hundreds were there) went home. The only people left were myself and three other guys playing Frisbee. After a while, a van pulled up and Steve and his band emerged and began to unload their equipment. We went over and told them that since there were only four of us, they didn't need to perform. Steve responded, 'We're going to play.' And play they did. Eventually, passers-by heard the music and a decent crowd developed, but for 15 minutes or so, the four of us had a free personal concert from Steve Miller. Only in Berkeley in the 60's could stuff like this happen."
By the end of June, the Steve Miller Blues Band had become a quintet. Organist Jim Peterman, drummer Tim Davis' former college roommate, had graduated from the University of Wisconsin and had flown out to join the band.
June 25, 1967 Pauley Ballroom, UC Berkeley Country Joe & The Fish/The New Age (Sunday)
The New Age were a unique psychedelic acoustic trio that had become popular at The Jabberwock. Guitarist Pat Kilroy had released a somewhat conventional folk record on Vanguard in 1966, called Light Of Day. He was now joined by Susan Graubard, who played flute and koto (a Japanese stringed instrument), and percussionist Jeffrey Lewis (who had replaced tabla player Bob Amacker). They played dreamy, ethereal music. It's easy to say now that a guitar/flute/congas combo is "typical New Age music," but in 1967, there was no such thing. The New Age were literally the pioneers of New Age music, even if they are obscure today. They recorded an album for Warner Brothers, but it was shelved when Pat Kilroy died of Hodgkin's Lymphoma on Christmas 1967. Switzerland's RD Records ultimately released the material in 2007.
"Colors For Susan," written by Joe McDonald and released on the second album (I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'- To-Die, Vanguard December '67) was written for Susan Graubard.
June 28, 1967 Oakland Auditorium, Oakland, CA: The Young Rascals/Country Joe and The Fish/The Sons of Champlin/The Sparrow/Grass Roots (Wednesday) Bill Quarry Presents
Bill Quarry's Teens N Twenties (TNT) production company was a major promoter in the East Bay, but they were focused more on high school students in the suburbs than the college and Fillmore underground market. Quarry's principal venue was a roller rink in San Leandro, called The Rollarena, where he booked concerts every Friday night. Mostly the bands playing the Rollarena and other TNT venues were cover bands that were good to dance to. Still, some good bands played the Rollarena on occasion, like Them and Buffalo Springfield. By mid-67, however, even the San Leandro kids were more interested in going to the Fillmore than down to the local Union Hall. They wanted to see cool underground bands, not their peers playing Rolling Stones songs. Quarry had tried putting on a big show with Eric Burdon and The Animals, at the huge new Oakland Coliseum Arena (on March 25 '67) but that had been a debacle.
The Oakland Auditorium Arena had been built in 1915, and had a capacity of 5,400 or more, depending on the configuration. It had some history--Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show had played there in 1915, Elvis Presley in '56 and '57 and so many others. TNT presented a big, multi-act show, headlined by the Young Rascals. The Young Rascals (later just The Rascals) were a New Jersey band who had hit it big merging rock with R&B, and had scored a giant hit in '66 with a cover of The Olympics' "Good Lovin." In support were some underground bands, like Country Joe & The Fish. The Sons Of Champlin were a Marin band backed by Kingston Trio manager Frank Werber, The Sparrow were from Toronto and lived in Sausalito and liked to jam the blues, while The Grass Roots were more of an LA band, led now by Creed Bratton and Rob Grill. The poster had Avalon-style lettering, and the promoter was "Bill Quarry" rather than the more teenage "TNT."
The Sparrow did not make the gig. They moved to Los Angeles, reconfigured themselves and became Steppenwolf, going on to absolutely huge success. They were replaced on the bill by another underground band, the Grateful Dead, who had just released their Warner Brothers debut in March of 1967. This was the Dead's first appearance at the Oakland Auditorium, a venue that would ultimately loom large in their history.
Status Report: Berkeley Rock Concert Scene, July 1967
San Francisco rock music was flying high, led by Jefferson Airplane. Berkeley's own Country Joe & The Fish had a popular new album, too. The Steve Miller Blues Band was rising quickly. So Berkeley music and musicians were playing an important role in the Fillmore scene, but Berkeley didn't really have a concert scene. The one steady contribution was the now-official free shows in Provo Park, where local bands could get heard. Once they got known, however, they weren't likely to play for free.
Other Posts in the East Bay Concert Series
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, September-December 1965 (Berkeley I)
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, January-March 1966 (Berkeley II)
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, April-June 1966 (Berkeley III)
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, July-September 1966 (Berkeley IV)
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, October-December 1966 (Berkeley V)
Berkeley and East Bay Concerts, January-March 1967 ('67 Berkeley III)
Provo Park, Berkeley Concerts, 1967-69
For the Berkeley, Oakland and East Bay Rock History Navigation Tracker, see here
Chicken On A Unicycle
