LSD Recordings

[wolftigerrosebud]

Anyone have recordings of yourself playing while you're tripping? I just found an old one... It ain't half bad.

[Octal]

It's all the same notes, whether you're tripping or not, whether you're Jerry or not.

[wolftigerrosebud]

I dunno, man. My playing sounded a lot clearer when I was tripping. Like the notes were just pouring out.

[Adam Deckard]

It is interesting how little feedback this thread is getting considering the audience and their heroes.

I tried this one time, the strings were shaking and i could tell it wasnt happening... So we put down our instruments and went and saw Alice in Wonderland in 3D...

[paulinnc]

Never played tripping, I got into guitar after I cleaned up, however I used to have this insane Beatles bootleg import tape that was a bunch of demos and stuff for the white album and a bunch of John losing his mind in the studio and recording some super weird stuff.

[1960strat]

Never played tripping, I got into guitar after I cleaned up, however I used to have this insane Beatles bootleg import tape that was a bunch of demos and stuff for the white album and a bunch of John losing his mind in the studio and recording some super weird stuff.

I would love to hear that!

[vwjodyme]

i wasn't into guitar as much back in the day (more into hand drums), but i could see it going either way for me. either be totally into it and be one with the guitar or get easily distracted by something else
i do occasionally get into some serious space jams in my music room nowadays

[WildEye]

I was recorded playing the first time I tripped - Forgot I had a guitar lesson that night. The teacher would record the lessons on a cassette to take home with you. He was trying to teach me "come together". I was out of my mind and it didn't go well at all. At the end of the lesson he suggested that I might want to rethink being a guitarist:)....

Man I would kill to have that tape....

BTW I'm not saying he was wrong but 25+yrs later and I still haven't given up (playing)

And I have to add an edit>>> I would love to hear that beatles bootleg as well if anybody has it....

[jeffm725]

Are you talking actual gigs while tripping? OR just screwing around jamming while tripping?

2 very different things. The problem (for me at least) is that there is a level of professionalism that may or not be able to be maintained when doing it at gigs. Tripping by nature is an unknown quantity.You never know how it is going to hit you at a certain moment, so there always exists the possibility of being a little too out there to maintain whatever level of professionalism necessary in your individual scene.

As far as experimenting on your own, or in a private environment. Yeah, there can be interesting things obtained by the change in consciousness. It also can be a load of hooey, again depending on a lot of factors....

[vwjodyme]

i read somewhere the dead walked off stage after only playing one song at one of the acid tests because they were too far out there...they didn't think anyone noticed

[rugger]

i read somewhere the dead walked off stage after only playing one song at one of the acid tests because they were too far out there...they didn't think anyone noticed

Not surprising at all considering the whole premise of the Acid Tests were for them to play in a completely free an open environment. If that meant not playing, they didn't play. In other words, they played if they felt like it.

There is a pretty candid print interview with Jerry floating around that centers around his views and use of hallucinogens. He talks a bit about the Acid Tests and playing while tripping. I believe he said something to the effect that playing in that state wasn't ideal in that it does weird things to your perception of time.

It's a long, but interesting read if you can track it down.

John in San Diego

[hippieguy1954]

I totally agree about the professionalism involved with gigging and how that could/will be a friggin disaster, lol (except for the rare occasion of a gig for tripping)

I tried trippin with an acustic near by and a couple of friends , but couldn't really do anything with it besides hold it, look at it, and make those noises by sliding my finger nails up and down the strings. I put it down. About 4 or 5 hours later (if I remember right) I tryed it again and started actually being able to play it, though it still felt a little odd. I think I played like two short but very cool Dead riffs (sections of Dark Star) over and over for about the next 2 hours or so and loved every minute of it until I got tired of hearing it lol.

I wouldn't even think of doing it at a gig.

[mttourpro]

Are you talking actual gigs while tripping? OR just screwing around jamming while tripping?

2 very different things. The problem (for me at least) is that there is a level of professionalism that may or not be able to be maintained when doing it at gigs. Tripping by nature is an unknown quantity.You never know how it is going to hit you at a certain moment, so there always exists the possibility of being a little too out there to maintain whatever level of professionalism necessary in your individual scene.

As far as experimenting on your own, or in a private environment. Yeah, there can be interesting things obtained by the change in consciousness. It also can be a load of hooey, again depending on a lot of factors....

Strongly agree with all of this.

While I have never recorded while "enhanced", we do an annual gig/party (the past 10 years for me) where it's pretty much assumed there will be "enhancements"---the first time I played this party, we all did it---I'll never forget the way keyboard just woud not stop bending and undulating---damn thing just wouldn't stay still! The one guitar player, after 3 tunes just turned around and stared at me for about 5 minutes during Deal and then needed baby-sat (by my current guitar player) for the rest of the night. He had way too much, way too fast. Not good.

I was at a gig where the guitar player and bass player of another band each did a pinky print---somehow the guitar player excelled (or at least palyed well enough) while the bass player was nearly hospitalized after he got done running around and rolling on the ground and such thinking he was going to be murdered or something. It was a bit humorous for a while and then I became concerned for him...Another bass player stepped in to help out or they'da been done real early. Again, not good.

I have done it quite a few times in my first band but not ever (with the exceptions of this annual party) in the past 10 years I think. At this point, it's too much of a pain in the ass to deal with given that who wants to work so hard or stress so much to keep everything just right when the point is to have fun and NOT have to worry about chord changes and time, etc.

All that said, I do think that playing with just a wee bit of enhancement has it's place, but I wouldn't do it at a paying gig where it really mattered about how we played.
Like everything else, it is a learned "skill"---not for beginners. I guess YMMV.

[tcsned]

That has always been a mixed bag for me - sometimes it went pretty well, other times were trainwrecks. Singing was always the worst - can't keep lyrics straight and laughing fits are pretty impossible to sign through. I quit doing that at gigs some time ago, I didn't think it was fair to someone paying money to see us. Some great jams in the woods with friends though.

[Rojack01]

Maybe 12 years ago i was rehearsing with my band and we all dropped some kinda weak white blotter, Could sing at all! But at one point while we were jamming I realized that I was playing WAY better then I normally do. Almost as soon as I realized what was going on, I was back to my old self. I had forgotten everything but the music. as soon as my ego realized it, it was over.