Chad Taylor reminisces on Instagram Options

[dangum]

Chad Taylor has always been an excellent re-counter of Live history. He has posted a few memories on his Instagram page over the past few weeks, so I thought it would be a good place to collate them here and any future posts.

September 19, 1986 - York City Municipal Skating Rink, York, PA

Thirty-Six years ago today, our band performed our first gig with Ed Kowalczyk. Then, we were still called First Aid, and tickets to the under-21 dance were only $4. Sponsorship was provided by Little Sicily Pizzeria.

I recall performing “This Time” by INXS because our sound engineer, Mike Scarinzi, started singing backing vocals from the mixing console. We were just a group of kids in a cover band trying to figure out how to play our instruments. We rented a professional PA system and did our best to perform the songs with intensity and integrity.

Dahlheimer was a stand-out on his bass. And Gracey, without so much as a drum lesson, did a pretty great job driving the band forward. Kowalczyk’s voice hadn’t matured yet, and I struggled to play the few chords I knew. We were ONLY 15 years old.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CisxSSwJFAM/

[dangum]

On October 2, 2010, The Gracious Few performed at The State Theatre in Falls Church, VA. Needing a break from our musical history, we were determined not to play the songs of LIVE or Candlebox. Yet, somehow, the band pulled off an 18-song setlist despite having only released our debut album a month earlier. There were only thirteen songs on the album, all written in a few condensed weeks and recorded by Jerry Harrison (Talking Heads, Modern Lovers) and Karl Derfler (Tom Waits).

Utilizing a helpful trick borrowed from The Rolling Stones, we performed the single "Honest Man" during a stripped-down acoustic portion of the show called "The Front Porch." And later reprised the radio single with a full electric jam that could last as long as twelve minutes, depending on the energy of the evening.

We also showcased the song "Great Houses," written in tribute to Morphine and later recorded with Dana Colley, the legendary band's foundational baritone saxophonist.

The setlists for TGF varied greatly as we frequently covered songs made famous by local artists—rehearsed at soundcheck and only performed once. But the Depeche Mode song "It's No Good" seemed to stick with us after making its way into the set at the previous show in Baltimore.

I recently had dinner with Kevin Martin, and many of our laughs were centered around the fun we had making this band groove in hot, sweaty nightclubs. Excellent memories surround this fascinating moment of our lives!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjOHWzUr1pg/