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Warning: very long obsessive drivel from a non-California based surf fan.
Thanks for indulging me, this was my first DD show.
Dick Dale plus 2/3 of Slacktone 8-May-2003 Iowa City Iowa
I parked about a block away from the venue (Gabe's Oasis) and as soon as I
left my car I heard some drummer going nuts. The stage at Gabe's is on the
2nd floor and they had the back door open. I wondered if that was indeed
Dusty Watson sound checking? This had me smiling already. I went into the
club and headed for the bathroom. As I was standing there doing my business,
I hear the loudest, most evilest, bad-ass, low E string double picking I've
ever heard. It shook the building! Okay, no doubt the big man is in the
house. I had brought ear plugs but was debating with myself about wearing
them, but that settled it. In they would go.
While waiting to go upstairs I admired the graffiti on the wall. I smiled
again as I read "Boss Fucking Martians, Seattle WA" scribbled in ball point
pen on the wall. They have been to Gabes twice in the past year or so (I
missed 'em both times).
Once upstairs I had to check out the gear. It struck me how much stuff DD
brings with him. There were road cases everywhere. I have never seen so many
Showmans in one place in my life. DD was playing two, yes, two blonde Dual
Showmans with the black face cosmetics (with white knobs). He had his reverb
unit suspended from the ceiling by a rope. Sam Bolle also was playing
through 2 Showmans, one a genuine black face, and another just like Dicks.
Both guys had wireless units. Four speaker cabinets, two on each side of the
drum kit. On each side there was a 2x15" and what looked like a 1x18" bass
cab. He also brought along 2 acoustic guitars WITH their own Fender amps,
multiple fans, trumpet, tuners, and a complete drum kit for Dusty. Plus a
complete traveling merchandise center (plastic drawers duct taped together).
$20 a CD though...ouch. Not surprisingly he had I think four roadies along
for the ride. Quite the entourage. (One guy was filming the event)
The opening band, The Diplomats of Solid Sound, are a 4 piece from Iowa
City: bass, drums, guitar, and Hammond organ. The guitar player was also in
the Iowa City garage band The Bent Scepters, who I saw last year at Gabes
open for Los Straits. They are kind of a funky/soul/Booker T and the MG's
type of band. Very fun to watch and listen too. The drummer and organ player
were very good. Gear: Epiphone hollowbody guitar through a Deluxe Reverb,
Hammond XK-2 Organ through an old Gibson amp, gold Gretch drum kit, Fender
Jazz bass through a very small Sunn amp and rack.
After the stage was setup, I saw Dusty and Sam arrive and get ready. At the
last minute DD comes through the back door behind the drum kit out of the
pouring rain. He's got his trademark black Harley leather jacket, headband,
etc. The crowd, which was easily 150-200 people, go crazy. I managed to get
right up in front of the stage. While I'm watching DD put on "The Beast" on
the side of the stage, I catch Dusty yelling and pointing at me from behind
his kit. He's pointing at my Nebulas T-shirt which I proudly wore that night
(Dusty told me later that he spotted a Nebulas T-shirt at the previous
nights show in Omaha, Nebraska!!! Was that you Kevin??) Then the Dickster
rips into Nitro from behind the stage and strolls out in dramatic form and
we were off. He runs out and stands right in front of me mere inches away. I
was freaking thrilled!! Then his guitar strap pops off...not missing a beat
he tries unsuccessfully to put it back on. I reach out and hold his guitar
while the guy next to me puts the strap back on while DD is furiously
pounding away. I touched The Beast!!! Dick flashes us smiles. Man was that
cool.
So I'm seeing and hearing the man, the myth, and the legend for the first
time. And he is really rocking, with Sam and Dusty driving him along. It was
really really great, I have to say. I was struck right away by a couple of
things. First, the Dickster has still got incredible chops and his tone was
spot on killer. He sounded exactly like his CD's. His guitar growls and
screams...the guys shreds. Its impossible for me to try and cop licks from
him because his strings are upside down. My mind can't transpose his
fingerings in real-time! And his hands are just huge, he's got big fat
fingers. I can't believe he's so nimble and quick. Its also very obvious
that the guy is a "Showman" himself, and sees himself as an entertainer. He
hams it up, thats for sure. He seemed to be really enjoying himself.
As others have mentioned, its not a surf show. He plays House of The Rising
Sun, some blues type numbers, Folsom Prison Blues, plays the trumpet, does
some acoustic stuff, does a Louis Armstrong impression, wanders through the
crowd during Smoke On The Water, etc. Again, he's really trying hard to be
an all-round entertainer. However, I was just floored by the surf tunes he
did play, and the general fire power he packed. Yes, I wish there would have
been more surfy stuff, but still I was just happy to be there and witness
the show. He did a medly of surf and I caught parts of Shake'n Stomp, The
Wedge, and songs from his 90's CDs. He did a great version of Pipeline. My
shouts of "The Victor" were fruitless however. Still it was a thrill to hear
stuff like The Wedge come ripping out from his guitar. Killer, killer tone.
He had some technical problems where his guitar cut in and out a few times.
He had his roadies scrambling to fix it. But, being the pro, he just smiled
and shrugged, and just cued Sam and Dusty to go nuts while he changed
cables. So I got to witness an intense drum solo from Dusty. I can't stress
enough how cool it was to see Dusty and Sam. Sam was on and played very
energetically and agressively through a gold sparkle P-Bass covered with DD
and Ramones stickers. And Dusty was well, Dusty. People always rave about
Dusty so I new it would be good. They were right. Fantastic. He plays very
loud!
Others warned me about DD's penchant for rambling between numbers. He didn't
do that this night...he did have some crowd chatter, but nothing excessive.
But yes he was hitting on the ladies. He licked his guitar pick and stuck it
on some hottie's forehead, bit another young lady on the arm, and supposedly
kissed another when wandering around the crowd. It was mildly creepy but the
girls themselves seemed to dig it (???). But Dusty was there to do a
"ba-dum-bum-bum" after every innuendo from Dick. He told the girls in the
crowd to email him and tell him how great he was, and to send him pictures.
This wasn't as lecherous as it sounds as he was smiling and winking while
saying it, mainly playing it up for humorous effect (lets hope). When the
show ended those girls were instantly up on the stage though talking to DD
and Sam. Weird.
Overall it was a great show, as long as you were not expecting all the surf
classics. As a band, they really seemed to play together well. They made
frequent eye contact and flashed lots of smiles. Very cool. They all seemed
to be having a lot of fun. I did think DD should have introduced Dusty and
Sam since they were a very important part of the show.
After the show DD signed stuff and chatted with the crowd. I brought a CD
cover for him to sign. But, again, he was busy chatting to some young ladies
(telling them "its all in your mind how old your are"), so when I told him
"Happy Birthday" he thought I wanted him to write that on the cover. He got
as far as "Ha" when he realized I was wishing him a Happy Birthday. Ha-ha.
We both had a laugh about that. Coincidently, that night it was Sam's
birthday too. Another guy in the crowd had brought a mint copy of his 1962
"Surfer's Choice" to sign. Dick was very proudly showing that one around to
the girls.
I finally got a chance to meet Dusty and chatted with him for a few minutes.
As everyone has stated, he is a first class nice guy. He told me about their
speeding ticket, and just the night before, their Suburban had been broken
into during the Omaha show. They took all of DD's electronic toys from the
car: DVD player, CD player, Playstation, etc, etc. That sucked. Dusty said
progress was going slow on the Slacktone DVD. He hadn't had enough time to
listen to all of the recordings so he wasn't sure if there was enough stuff
to use yet. He was also talking to young kid wearing a Queers T-Shirt. Dusty
told him he had just recorded a split with The Queers and this caused a huge
reaction by the kid. He was freaking. Later, I told the kid to check out
Slacktone and www.DustyWatson.com, so I may have made another convert from
punk to surf. Dusty also said that Sam literally flew back from Europe (on
tour with Agent Orange), jumped in a rental car, drove to Dusty's house, and
then out to Dick's place for a 2 hour rehearsal. That was basically all the
preparation he had. You coudn't tell. He said Sam was freaking at first,
trying to listen to the CD's to learn parts. But Dusty told him not to
bother as DD doesn't play things the same way twice. Ha-ha.
On the way out I caught Sam in the stairwell. I told him I was a huge
Slacktone fan. He thanked me and said he was a very big Slacktone fan as
well! He said he couldn't believe he was in Slacktone, and how lucky he was,
and that he was constantly amazed at Dave Wronski's guitar playing! I wished
him a Happy Birthday and thanked him again.
Well, if you are still reading this, you should win some kind of award. A
truly great night. And on top of that, earlier that day I picked up my
Showman from the tech. New caps, some bad wiring fixed, and a new
opti-coupler-thingy for killer tremolo! I've got some practicing to do!!!
BN
PS. This was the first time I wore ear plugs at a show. I bought a pair of
"Hearos", the 9 decibel reducer model for listening to loud music. Actually,
they market them as "ear filters", not plugs. I could not tell I was wearing
them, and I heard everything very well. And, when I took them out, my ears
were not ringing AT ALL. Usually when I walk out of a show its like a
freight train in my head. This time it was nothing. Highly recommended. I
got them at Musician's Friend. Check 'em out. (Dusty was also wearing
plugs).
PPS: Overheard comments by audience members before the show: "Yeah dude,
Dick taught Jimi Hendrix to play guitar upside down". "I saw the Bomboras
play in LA and they weren't really that good". "I wonder if the drummer is
Dick's son." "Dude, Dick Dale is going to take your fucking head
off...better make some ear plugs out of this beer bottle label" (and they
did). Dick-heads indeed....
dude: it seems like you had a great first time with old
DD...he's a legend!
cheers,
DP
--- Brian Neal <> wrote:
> Warning: very long obsessive drivel from a non-California
> based surf fan.
> Thanks for indulging me, this was my first DD show.
>
> Dick Dale plus 2/3 of Slacktone 8-May-2003 Iowa City Iowa
>
> I parked about a block away from the venue (Gabe's Oasis)
> and as soon as I
> left my car I heard some drummer going nuts. The stage at
> Gabe's is on the
> 2nd floor and they had the back door open. I wondered if
> that was indeed
> Dusty Watson sound checking? This had me smiling already.
> I went into the
> club and headed for the bathroom. As I was standing there
> doing my business,
> I hear the loudest, most evilest, bad-ass, low E string
> double picking I've
> ever heard. It shook the building! Okay, no doubt the big
> man is in the
> house. I had brought ear plugs but was debating with
> myself about wearing
> them, but that settled it. In they would go.
>
> While waiting to go upstairs I admired the graffiti on
> the wall. I smiled
> again as I read "Boss Fucking Martians, Seattle WA"
> scribbled in ball point
> pen on the wall. They have been to Gabes twice in the
> past year or so (I
> missed 'em both times).
>
> Once upstairs I had to check out the gear. It struck me
> how much stuff DD
> brings with him. There were road cases everywhere. I have
> never seen so many
> Showmans in one place in my life. DD was playing two,
> yes, two blonde Dual
> Showmans with the black face cosmetics (with white
> knobs). He had his reverb
> unit suspended from the ceiling by a rope. Sam Bolle also
> was playing
> through 2 Showmans, one a genuine black face, and another
> just like Dicks.
> Both guys had wireless units. Four speaker cabinets, two
> on each side of the
> drum kit. On each side there was a 2x15" and what looked
> like a 1x18" bass
> cab. He also brought along 2 acoustic guitars WITH their
> own Fender amps,
> multiple fans, trumpet, tuners, and a complete drum kit
> for Dusty. Plus a
> complete traveling merchandise center (plastic drawers
> duct taped together).
> $20 a CD though...ouch. Not surprisingly he had I think
> four roadies along
> for the ride. Quite the entourage. (One guy was filming
> the event)
>
> The opening band, The Diplomats of Solid Sound, are a 4
> piece from Iowa
> City: bass, drums, guitar, and Hammond organ. The guitar
> player was also in
> the Iowa City garage band The Bent Scepters, who I saw
> last year at Gabes
> open for Los Straits. They are kind of a
> funky/soul/Booker T and the MG's
> type of band. Very fun to watch and listen too. The
> drummer and organ player
> were very good. Gear: Epiphone hollowbody guitar through
> a Deluxe Reverb,
> Hammond XK-2 Organ through an old Gibson amp, gold Gretch
> drum kit, Fender
> Jazz bass through a very small Sunn amp and rack.
>
> After the stage was setup, I saw Dusty and Sam arrive and
> get ready. At the
> last minute DD comes through the back door behind the
> drum kit out of the
> pouring rain. He's got his trademark black Harley leather
> jacket, headband,
> etc. The crowd, which was easily 150-200 people, go
> crazy. I managed to get
> right up in front of the stage. While I'm watching DD put
> on "The Beast" on
> the side of the stage, I catch Dusty yelling and pointing
> at me from behind
> his kit. He's pointing at my Nebulas T-shirt which I
> proudly wore that night
> (Dusty told me later that he spotted a Nebulas T-shirt at
> the previous
> nights show in Omaha, Nebraska!!! Was that you Kevin??)
> Then the Dickster
> rips into Nitro from behind the stage and strolls out in
> dramatic form and
> we were off. He runs out and stands right in front of me
> mere inches away. I
> was freaking thrilled!! Then his guitar strap pops
> off...not missing a beat
> he tries unsuccessfully to put it back on. I reach out
> and hold his guitar
> while the guy next to me puts the strap back on while DD
> is furiously
> pounding away. I touched The Beast!!! Dick flashes us
> smiles. Man was that
> cool.
>
> So I'm seeing and hearing the man, the myth, and the
> legend for the first
> time. And he is really rocking, with Sam and Dusty
> driving him along. It was
> really really great, I have to say. I was struck right
> away by a couple of
> things. First, the Dickster has still got incredible
> chops and his tone was
> spot on killer. He sounded exactly like his CD's. His
> guitar growls and
> screams...the guys shreds. Its impossible for me to try
> and cop licks from
> him because his strings are upside down. My mind can't
> transpose his
> fingerings in real-time! And his hands are just huge,
> he's got big fat
> fingers. I can't believe he's so nimble and quick. Its
> also very obvious
> that the guy is a "Showman" himself, and sees himself as
> an entertainer. He
> hams it up, thats for sure. He seemed to be really
> enjoying himself.
>
> As others have mentioned, its not a surf show. He plays
> House of The Rising
> Sun, some blues type numbers, Folsom Prison Blues, plays
> the trumpet, does
> some acoustic stuff, does a Louis Armstrong impression,
> wanders through the
> crowd during Smoke On The Water, etc. Again, he's really
> trying hard to be
> an all-round entertainer. However, I was just floored by
> the surf tunes he
> did play, and the general fire power he packed. Yes, I
> wish there would have
> been more surfy stuff, but still I was just happy to be
> there and witness
> the show. He did a medly of surf and I caught parts of
> Shake'n Stomp, The
> Wedge, and songs from his 90's CDs. He did a great
> version of Pipeline. My
> shouts of "The Victor" were fruitless however. Still it
> was a thrill to hear
> stuff like The Wedge come ripping out from his guitar.
> Killer, killer tone.
>
> He had some technical problems where his guitar cut in
> and out a few times.
> He had his roadies scrambling to fix it. But, being the
> pro, he just smiled
> and shrugged, and just cued Sam and Dusty to go nuts
> while he changed
> cables. So I got to witness an intense drum solo from
> Dusty. I can't stress
> enough how cool it was to see Dusty and Sam. Sam was on
> and played very
> energetically and agressively through a gold sparkle
> P-Bass covered with DD
> and Ramones stickers. And Dusty was well, Dusty. People
> always rave about
> Dusty so I new it would be good. They were right.
> Fantastic. He plays very
> loud!
>
> Others warned me about DD's penchant for rambling between
> numbers. He didn't
> do that this night...he did have some crowd chatter, but
> nothing excessive.
> But yes he was hitting on the ladies. He licked his
> guitar pick and stuck it
> on some hottie's forehead, bit another young lady on the
> arm, and supposedly
> kissed another when wandering around the crowd. It was
> mildly creepy but the
> girls themselves seemed to dig it (???). But Dusty was
> there to do a
> "ba-dum-bum-bum" after every innuendo from Dick. He told
> the girls in the
> crowd to email him and tell him how great he was, and to
> send him pictures.
> This wasn't as lecherous as it sounds as he was smiling
> and winking while
> saying it, mainly playing it up for humorous effect (lets
> hope). When the
> show ended those girls were instantly up on the stage
> though talking to DD
> and Sam. Weird.
>
> Overall it was a great show, as long as you were not
> expecting all the surf
> classics. As a band, they really seemed to play together
> well. They made
> frequent eye contact and flashed lots of smiles. Very
> cool. They all seemed
>
=== message truncated ===
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