could it be without Jerry Garcia? Still, the band plays very well, and the set list is pretty awesome. The 3 CD/2 DVD set still manages to capture the old magic, especially during nearly 14-minute long mellow acid trip of “Mountains of the Moon,” and the funky as hell time signature of “Estimated Prophet,” which reminded me of a time during the early ‘80’s when my buddy Randy Merryman, an amazing engineer and producer, talked my friends in The Silver Travis Band into learn- ing the song. Talk about expanding your hori- zons. The setlist goes like this: China Cat Sun-
flower > I Know You Rider, Estimated Prophet, Built to Last, Samson and Delilah, Mountains of the Moon > Throwing Stones, Truckin,’ Cassidy, Althea, Terrapin Station > Drums > Space > Unbroken Chain > Days Be- tween > Not Fade Away, Touch of Gray, Attics of My Life. Fare Thee Well serves its purpose well as a
celebration 50 years on the road, and an out- standing tribute to the memory of Jerry Gar- cia.
- Michael Buffalo Smith
Brothers Comatose City Painted Gold (Swamp Jam) I am so glad my
friends Jared and Lindsey Knights told me about this band. I have been
missing out big time. Brothers Comatose bring to mind the acoustic Americana-slash- folk music sounds of bands like Devil Makes Three, Yonder Mountain String Band and Trampled By Turtles. The opening track of this, their third
album is called “Brothers,” and comes out of
the chute with the driving fiddle. banjo and guitar we all love, and the lyric is a happy cel- ebration of their music and how it brought brothers Ben and Alex Morrison together with a common goal. “Angeline” is another up-tempo hoe-down of a song that features the Brothers great harmonies and musical abilities. The title track, “City Painted Gold” tells the
story of the band’s long time home, San Fran- cisco and all of the changes the Haight-As- bury district has undergone lately with the influx of corporate America. “We wrote this album living in San Francisco as it was chang- ing from a weird, art friendly mecca to a place that only super-rich tech workers could af- ford,” says Ben. “Things started changing – venues were closing down, and artist and mu- sician friends moved away. What is San Fran- cisco without its weirdos?” “Tops of the Trees” is another truly great
song, with it’s beautiful fiddle and vocal har- monies, and “She’s a Hurricane” is a fun, country romp about a girl who must obvi- ously be named “Windy.” (Sorry guys.) Great song. And “The Way the West Was One” strikes me as country-punk, with a great lyric about the taming of the Wild West. “Black Light Moon” and “Valarie” are both
good songs, the latter being a pretty love song that, as it turns out, is one of my favorites on the record. “Dance Upon Your Grave,” how- ever, is not a love song. The set closer, “Yohio,” somehow reminds me of early Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Just a great, melodic song about hitting the road and not looking back. It’s a fitting closer for an outstanding album. City Painted Gold is the best yet from Broth- ers Comatose. Buffalo says “check it out.”
-Michael Buffalo Smith
Mike Zito & the Wheel Keep Coming Back (Ruf Records) Mike Zito is quickly becoming one of my
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