[ebick]

I frequent a forum on Zappa.com and someone posted that they went to a show where Garcia opened for Zappa. I was about to call bullshit on him, but then I searched setlist.com and found this.....

08/18/84 (Sat) UIC Pavilion - Chicago, IL

Set 1: Cats Under The Stars, Get Out Of My Life Woman, I'll Take A Melody, Run For The Roses, Gomorrah, Midnight Moonlight, E: Deal

Comment: Frank Zappa closed.
Lineup: Jerry Garcia Band: Jerry Garcia, DeeDee Dickerson, John Kahn, David Kemper, Jaclyn LaBranch, Melvin Seals

08/18/84 (Sat) UIC Pavilion - Chicago, IL

Set 1: Zoot Allures, More Trouble Every Day, Penguin In Bondage, Hot Plate Heaven At The Green Hotel, City Of Tiny Lights, You Are What You Is, Mudd Club, The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing, Dumb All Over, He's So Gay, Bobby Brown, Keep It Greasey, Honey Don't You Want A Man Like Me?, Carol You Fool, Chana In De Bushwop, Let's Move To Cleveland, Cosmik Debris, Sharleena, Ride My Face To Chicago, The Illinois Enema Bandit


Lineup: Frank Zappa, Ike Willis, Ray White, Scott Thunes, Chad Wackerman, Alan Zavod, Bobby Martin.

Anyone here go to that? I'm pretty surprised about this.

[Tennessee Jedi]

Did they ever met jam hang together ? Any interaction ?
That would be a great show to go to.

[jackr]

Zappa was pure genius. Insane writer, great guitar player. Many of his songs are not to my taste but I really appreciate his work.

[ebick]

Did they ever met jam hang together ? Any interaction ?
That would be a great show to go to.

Hard to believe the answer would be yes. I've been a hard core Zappa fan for a long time, and these are the things I know or have come to believe:

Drugs: Jerry, no problem, Zappa, Hard-core against

Zappa's opinion about the Dead.......don't really know.....one would think "anti" because of the drug-related culture, but in his music, he took shots at DeadHeads, never directly at the Dead or any of it's members, giving the indication that there was some level of respect.

I looked at dates around this for both JGB & FZ, this appears to have been a one-shot deal.

[Crazy 9.5 Fingers]

Their personal interaction would be very interesting to hear about if it happened. Both were so intelligent and articulate but their diametrically opposed views of narcotic indulgence could make for a heated discussion or two.

[strumminsix]

Seems more likely to be a double bill than an opening act sorta thing... But I could be wrong!

[tigerstrat]

A few of my friends went to that show and told me how Jerry was so wasted (1984 was maybe Jerry's most smacked out year) and sloppy that Zappa obliquely mocked him in his own set by cooking up a "Deal" jam (JGB's encore) that absolutely shredded.

[Tennessee Jedi]

Musical mockery hurts the most,too.

[jonarobb]

I went to this show, this whole Garcia tour was blistering with Jerry absolutely firing on all cylinders. The show right before this one on Long Island sticks out as one the hottest Garcia shows I've ever seen.

I stuck around for the beginning of Zappa's set in hopes that they might play together but word travelled fast that Jerry had already split.

Here's a link to the show if you want to stream it:

http://tela.sugarmegs.org/_asxtela/jgb1984-08-18.asx

[Chuckles]

Zappa's opinion about the Dead.......don't really know.....one would think "anti" because of the drug-related culture, but in his music, he took shots at DeadHeads, never directly at the Dead or any of it's members, giving the indication that there was some level of respect.

We're Turning Again, from FZ meets the Mothers of Prevention 1985):

Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again
Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again

They took a whole bunch of acid
So they could see where it's at
(It's over there, over there,
Over there, over there
And under here also)
Doont, da-doodem doodem!
They lived on a whole bunch of nothing
They thought they looked very good
They'd never ever worry
They were always in a hurry
To convince themselves that what they were
Was really very groovy
Yes, they believed in all the papers
And the magazines that defined their folklore
They could never laugh
At who or what they thought they were
Or even what they thought
They sorta oughta be
They were totally empty
(Totally empty)
And their lives were really useless
So what the fuck?
They didn't have no sense of humor
(Oodly-oodly-yeah!)
Now they got nothing left
To laugh about
Including themselves

Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again
Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again

Bprr . . . bprr . . . the year 1967
Drug-crazed youth discovered vagrancy as a way of life
EWW-WW!
Dey were mellow
Dey were yellow
Dey were wearing smelly blankets
Dey looked like DONOVAN fans
(HU-UR-DE-EE
GU-UR-DE-EE)
Dey walkin' 'round
With stupid flowers
In dey hair an' evvywhere
Dey tried to stuff 'em up de guns
Of all the cops and other servants of the law
(LA LA-LA-LA LA-LA)
Who tried to push 'em around
And later mowed 'em down
But they were full of all that shit
That they believed in
(PHEW!)
So what the fuck?
(WHAT THE FUCK?)
Now I seen 'em tightenin' up dey headbands
On the weekend and dey get loaded
When dey came to town
Dey walk around in GREEMICH VILLAGE
To buy posters dey could hang up
In dem smelly little secret
Black light bedrooms
On LONN-ISLAND
Singin': "JIMI COME BACK!"
Now come back and regulate de boy's FURZ-tone
Yo' HAZE was so PURPLE
It caused your AXIS to be BOLD AS LOVE
(JIMI-JIMI-JIMI-JIMI-JIMI FEED BACK)
Now Jimi gimme some feedback
Come back and feed back on my knapsack
You can feed back the fuzz tone from your WAH-WAH
While you bend down
And set your stuff on FIRE

Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again
Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again

We can turn it around
We can do it again
We can go back in time
Through the canyons of your mind
On the EVE O' DESTRUCTION
We can act like we are something really special
WOOOH, we'll just jump in the bath-tub
With that other guy JIM
And make him be more careful
We can visit Big Mama
And whap her on the back
When she eats her sandwich
(LA LA LA LA)
We can take care of Janis
When she gets so depressed
She can't take it no more
We can laugh at Keith Moon's jokes
(HA HA HA HA HA)
And the colour TV
(HA HA)
He threw out de windum
Fum de second flew-ah!
(YEAAHHHHHH!)
Everybody come back
No one can do it like you used to
If you listen to the radio
And what they play today
You can tell right away:
All those assholes really need you!

Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again
Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again

Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again
Turn turn
Turn turn
We're turning again

[Tennessee Jedi]

Jeez , I wonder how he really feels !

Damn Hippie's !

[ebick]

Zappa's opinion about the Dead.......don't really know.....one would think "anti" because of the drug-related culture, but in his music, he took shots at DeadHeads, never directly at the Dead or any of it's members, giving the indication that there was some level of respect.

We're Turning Again, from FZ meets the Mothers of Prevention 1985):

Yeah, like I said, I don't anything there that's a shot at the band......

I also think about Teenage Wind

It's a miserable Friday night;
I'm so lonely
And nobody'll give me a ride
To the Grateful Dead concert... Oh rats!

I got to be free
Free as the wind
Free is the way I got to be
Maybe I'm lost
Maybe I sinned
I got to be
Totally free
Our parents don't love us
Our teachers they say
Things that are boring
So we're running away
And we will be free
And people will see
That when we are free
That's the way we should be
Nothing left to do but get out the 'ol glue (Sniff it good now. ..)
Our parents don't love us
Our teachers they say
Things that are boring
So we're running away
And we will be free
And people will see
That when we are free
That's the way we should be

(WE MUST BE FREE!)
The glue! The glue! I can't find the glue!
(WE MUST BE FREE AS THE WIND)
If I was at the concert now, I'd be RIPPED!
(WE WERE FREE WHEN WE WERE BORN!)
I could tighten my headband for an extra rush
During Jerry's guitar solo
Then I could go to a midnite show of 200 MOTELS!
(WE WERE BORN FREE, BUT, NOW WE ARE NOT FREE ANYMORE!)
"Opal, you hot little bitch!"
"You can take this pin n' hang it in yer ass!"
"You ain't the devil!"
"Where's my waitress?"
BUT WE WANNA BE FREE
AN'WERE GONNA BE FREE
YES, WE WANT TO BE FREE
AND WE'RE GONNA BE FREE ...did you know that
FREE IS WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE TO PAY FOR NOTHING OR DO NOTHING

[ebick]

and there's always this:

Who Needs The Peace Corps?

What's there to live for?
Who needs the peace corps?
Think I'll just DROP OUT
I'll go to Frisco
Buy a wig & sleep
On Owsley's floor

Walked past the wig store
Danced at the Fillmore
I'm completely stoned
I'm hippy & I'm trippy
I'm a gypsy on my own
I'll stay a week & get the crabs &
Take a bus back home
I'm really just a phony
But forgive me
'Cause I'm stoned

Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Psychedelic dungeons
Popping up on every street
GO TO SAN FRANCISCO . . .

How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya Frisco!
How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya
Oh, my hair is getting good in the back!

Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Psychedelic dungeons
Popping up on every street
GO TO SAN FRANCISCO . . .

Hotcha!

First I'll buy some beads
And then perhaps a leather band
To go around my head
Some feathers and bells
And a book of Indian lore
I will ask the Chamber Of Commerce
How to get to Haight Street
And smoke an awful lot of dope
I will wander around barefoot
I will have a psychedelic gleam in my eye at all times
I will love everyone
I will love the police as they kick the shit out of me on the street
I will sleep . . .
I will, I will go to a house
That's, that's what I will do
I will go to a house
Where there's a rock & roll band
'Cause the groups all live togetherAnd I will join a rock & roll band
I will be their road manager
And I will stay there with them
And I will get the crabs
But I won't care
Because . . .

[mttourpro]

Frank was definitely an equal opportunity critic. He could be very harsh and he left out very few from his critiques--most were in fact, pretty scathing.
He did not look fondly on the whole hippie/drug thing, that's for sure.

As for that show with JGB. My buddy was there and he had also obtained a jean jacket with Frank and Jerry's profiles back to back on the back of the jacket. I always wanted that jacket.

[Django]

I was at that show and dug both bands as a long time fan of both. I too wondered if they would jam but it was obvious they were two very different types of musicians.
Afterwards the comparison I made was that JGB made you feel invited and a part of it (in my head anyway), while Zappa's band made you feel like an outsider watching someone who was not connected to you at all.
I saw Zappa a couple times during that same summer and his set list didn't change up much. I did hear the most amazing keyboard solo from the Zappa band.
As a note of interest, Chicago had a huge free celebration that day, which was a good thing because I got lost in a neighborhood that a Chicagoan friend said the police wouldn't even go into (I know, I know) witout SWAT backup after the show. I was driving in areas with smashed TV sets and burned out cars, going down alleys and the like but never saw anyone. Makes me wonder if I would have been so lucky on another, less exhausting day.