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    marye
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    Okay, ol' Les opened for Phil one time and has become something of a staple on the jamfest circuit, so I think it's fair to have a topic for him...

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  • grdaed73
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    i'm with you, marye
    until about 2 yrs ago, never really paid them much attention, i do remember a friend trying to get me to listen to this awesome group and played "winona's brown beaver" for me, it was on the radio back in the early 90s, and i said yeah sounds funny but too hard for me! then i heard les on gov't mules "deep end" concert and my interest was tweaked, guy singing about seperating your body for your mind needs to be looked into. my oldest son is a big primus fan, so i grab all his cd's, gave em' a listen and i liked. then he came in concert and let me tellya, this guy puts on a goood show, he just wails on that bass. but like he told buckethead, don't worry chicks don't go to see primus.... there's another one, buckethead... so not my demographic:)
  • marye
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    thanks GrayFolded!
    very good info for the bewildered but awestruck like me!
  • GrayFolded
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    Let me first say this...........
    Next to Led Zeppelin and the Grateful Dead, Primus is THE band in my Top 3 All-Time........ I have seen Primus and the various incarnation's of Les around 30 times or so.......Me and my friend got to meet Les, Buckethead and Bernie Worrell in Detroit after the show several years ago and scored some kick ass autographs....... Les is on a different planet.......His playing style, songwriting (brilliant) and stage persona is right up there with the greats...... It's funny, cause the crowds back in the day (Mid 90's) would MOSH insanely, run around in circles and just plain go nuts.......Now it seems some of the Hippe scence has made its way to Les and the shows are a little more tame.....At least here in the Mid-West...... Go here for all your Live Primus needs..........http://www.primuslive.com Or just pick up "Suck on This".....It was there first "album" and is all Live from Berkely, Ca.... They GO FUCKING NUTS FOR THE ENTIRE ALBUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm not joking....Pick it up......... The DVD filmed here in Chicago from 2004 is also TOP-NOTCH.....It was one of 2 ALBUM shows they did when Primus reformed as the original line-up earlier this decade.....The DVD is 2 sets and the second set is the ENTIRE "Frizzle Fry" record.......I misssed this show since Phish was playing their final Alpine Valley show that same night (My final Phish show). But I had caught their first Album show years back when they played the entire "Sailing the Seas of Cheese" record during the second set........ To say the least Primus will go down as one of the most original bands I have ever seen or heard..... PRIMUS SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dead to the Core www.myspace.com/bongwizard
  • marye
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    um, guys...
    let's give this topic back to Les, and put the recommendations for Other Bands in the topic I have now, somewhat belatedly, created for the purpose: http://www.dead.net/forum/recommendations-other-bands-local-and-otherwise Thanks!
  • rollout
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    Jhana
    If you are looking for some local unsigned talent while you are waiting for the boys to play, check these guys out! You will not be disappointed. They play at Presidio Yacht Club in Sausalito, Friday, June 6 and Saturday June 24. Get a preview at: www.myspace.com/acommonvision
  • rockitmarty
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    Sunglasses and beards!
    ZZ Top is still rockin after all these years! It’s good to see that they’re still coming out with new material. Is anyone going to get their new dvd Live From Texas? It comes out June 23rd. http://www.amazon.com/Live-Texas-ZZ-Top/dp/B0018M6J72/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF… I hear it should be pretty good with their old stuff like Cheap Sunglasses and even some new stuff too. Marty Fontana
  • LiveNationChicago1
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    Phil & Friends
    Awesome show coming up in chicago... thought i'd let everyone know Phil & Friends w/ The Levon Helm Band Friday June 13th @ Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY APRIL 4th at www.livenation.com im there.
  • Superdave
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    Les Claypool does Animals
    Les has some pretty out there stuff. I will mention , having seen him numerous times, that he is an awesome bass player- Awesome. The second thing I'll mention is the performance he did of Pink Floyd's Animals. I'm a huge, Floyd fan, and totally am a bit snobby to anyone trying to play their stuff. However, my favroite Floyd album was done so well by Les, so powerful, so dark, just blew me away. He stays respectfully true to what Animals is all about, but also adds a bit of his flavor to most of the musical work (listen to the bass freakout in Sheep). This is a cd to get, or some music to beg borrow or steal.
  • JoeBurke
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    les -v- lesh
    i remember (vaguely, of course) les opening for phil at the greek ... i'd heard some of the claypool/primus stuff before and was really excited to see two of my fave bassists on the same stage ... sadly most of the tie-dyed crowd paid little if any attnetion to les (with guest appearance form buckethead) ... too bad because these guys can really lay it down ...
  • GRTUD
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    Luv Les
    The Primus DVD "Hallucino-Genetics Live 2004" is excellent. If anyone not familiar with Les wants to get a good vibe about what's up with him, I'd suggest this as a good starting point. Personally I didn't care for The Frog Brigade but Les' incarnations are like the weather here on the east coast - if you don't like it, wait ten minutes and something different will emerge. "If the forms of this world die, which is more real, the me that dies or the me that's infinite? Can I trust my habitual mind, or do I need to learn to look beneath those things?"
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Okay, ol' Les opened for Phil one time and has become something of a staple on the jamfest circuit, so I think it's fair to have a topic for him...
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... but I like him anyway. When Primus was in its heyday, the fanbase was teenage boys and I was pushing 50. I know little of that culture except that I've gleaned along the way that "Primus sucks!" means anything but. But one time when I was working the Bammies (and, as I recall, vaguely charged earlier in the evening with hustling Primus and Buckethead, about all of whom I was and am pretty clueless, from Point A to Point B) I happened to wander out to the front of the stage when they were playing. Les was in full maniacal rant, the band was really hot, and I was like "Holy bleep!" Not that this got me on the Primus bus, but it made me real happy when Les opened for Phil at the Greek, an occasion on which the crowd seemed equally divided between love and hate as to what he was up to. I was definitely in the love camp, even though the music is on the weird end of my tastes. Subsequently I picked up a couple live albums (they're around here someplace, having to do with the Frog Brigade or some such), which have cryptic song titles and some incredible jams. So anyway, I figure if I post this topic someone with a clue might come along and explain it all.
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The Primus DVD "Hallucino-Genetics Live 2004" is excellent. If anyone not familiar with Les wants to get a good vibe about what's up with him, I'd suggest this as a good starting point. Personally I didn't care for The Frog Brigade but Les' incarnations are like the weather here on the east coast - if you don't like it, wait ten minutes and something different will emerge. "If the forms of this world die, which is more real, the me that dies or the me that's infinite? Can I trust my habitual mind, or do I need to learn to look beneath those things?"
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i remember (vaguely, of course) les opening for phil at the greek ... i'd heard some of the claypool/primus stuff before and was really excited to see two of my fave bassists on the same stage ... sadly most of the tie-dyed crowd paid little if any attnetion to les (with guest appearance form buckethead) ... too bad because these guys can really lay it down ...
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Les has some pretty out there stuff. I will mention , having seen him numerous times, that he is an awesome bass player- Awesome. The second thing I'll mention is the performance he did of Pink Floyd's Animals. I'm a huge, Floyd fan, and totally am a bit snobby to anyone trying to play their stuff. However, my favroite Floyd album was done so well by Les, so powerful, so dark, just blew me away. He stays respectfully true to what Animals is all about, but also adds a bit of his flavor to most of the musical work (listen to the bass freakout in Sheep). This is a cd to get, or some music to beg borrow or steal.
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Awesome show coming up in chicago... thought i'd let everyone know Phil & Friends w/ The Levon Helm Band Friday June 13th @ Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY APRIL 4th at www.livenation.com im there.
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ZZ Top is still rockin after all these years! It’s good to see that they’re still coming out with new material. Is anyone going to get their new dvd Live From Texas? It comes out June 23rd. http://www.amazon.com/Live-Texas-ZZ-Top/dp/B0018M6J72/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF… I hear it should be pretty good with their old stuff like Cheap Sunglasses and even some new stuff too. Marty Fontana
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If you are looking for some local unsigned talent while you are waiting for the boys to play, check these guys out! You will not be disappointed. They play at Presidio Yacht Club in Sausalito, Friday, June 6 and Saturday June 24. Get a preview at: www.myspace.com/acommonvision
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Next to Led Zeppelin and the Grateful Dead, Primus is THE band in my Top 3 All-Time........ I have seen Primus and the various incarnation's of Les around 30 times or so.......Me and my friend got to meet Les, Buckethead and Bernie Worrell in Detroit after the show several years ago and scored some kick ass autographs....... Les is on a different planet.......His playing style, songwriting (brilliant) and stage persona is right up there with the greats...... It's funny, cause the crowds back in the day (Mid 90's) would MOSH insanely, run around in circles and just plain go nuts.......Now it seems some of the Hippe scence has made its way to Les and the shows are a little more tame.....At least here in the Mid-West...... Go here for all your Live Primus needs..........http://www.primuslive.com Or just pick up "Suck on This".....It was there first "album" and is all Live from Berkely, Ca.... They GO FUCKING NUTS FOR THE ENTIRE ALBUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm not joking....Pick it up......... The DVD filmed here in Chicago from 2004 is also TOP-NOTCH.....It was one of 2 ALBUM shows they did when Primus reformed as the original line-up earlier this decade.....The DVD is 2 sets and the second set is the ENTIRE "Frizzle Fry" record.......I misssed this show since Phish was playing their final Alpine Valley show that same night (My final Phish show). But I had caught their first Album show years back when they played the entire "Sailing the Seas of Cheese" record during the second set........ To say the least Primus will go down as one of the most original bands I have ever seen or heard..... PRIMUS SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dead to the Core www.myspace.com/bongwizard
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very good info for the bewildered but awestruck like me!
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until about 2 yrs ago, never really paid them much attention, i do remember a friend trying to get me to listen to this awesome group and played "winona's brown beaver" for me, it was on the radio back in the early 90s, and i said yeah sounds funny but too hard for me! then i heard les on gov't mules "deep end" concert and my interest was tweaked, guy singing about seperating your body for your mind needs to be looked into. my oldest son is a big primus fan, so i grab all his cd's, gave em' a listen and i liked. then he came in concert and let me tellya, this guy puts on a goood show, he just wails on that bass. but like he told buckethead, don't worry chicks don't go to see primus.... there's another one, buckethead... so not my demographic:)
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I didn't know this was here! Claypool is an amazing musician. Mary and I have seen all of his projects live at least once, others countless times. He puts on an incredible show. Outside of Lupo's in Providence, RI one night a friend of mine was shit faced and talking to Les, he had no idea that it was him. If I remember correctly he asked him if he liked to watch frogs masterbate. Anyhow, Claypool liked him. Anybody want to trade some Primus? Any other Claypool project? I've got a bunch. Cd's, boots on disc and tape. Let me know... Thanks for the heads up Marye.
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So, in case you dont know, Les is doing a tour this March called THE ODDITY FAIRE and playing with the faire is a fine selection of supporting cast. Especially if you happen to be in LA where MUTAYTOR will be performing. If you have been to BURNING MAN, you may be familiar with this troupe. At any rate, the website is definitly worth checking out. This will be a most awesome show at the new revamped Palladium. And I wont have to drive, yeah. Les and Mutaytor, wow a double whammy big bang for your buck kinda nite. Wicked Cool..........lesclaypool.com and mutaytor.com
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Which would be a great show, too bad livenation is handling the show. At 40% service charge, Not happening. I wish the Bands Would step up to the plate in the battle against these takeovers. It has gotten beyond BAD.
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I was introduced to my first Primus show in 1995 and saw them in a very small bar in Cincy. Ever since that first moment of seeing Les live, I have been completely captivated by all of his music. We go see him every chance that we get and I even went to see the Frog Brigade when I was 8 months pregnant with my first son. (He is now 5 and loves Les.) I think I own almost every studio album that he has ever made and you can buy live shows on his web site for both Primus and C2B3. Les's bass playing is amazing and his wacky lyrics keep me coming back for more. He is an amazingly talented musician, artist, and even author. You should check out his novel South Of The Pumphouse. It is typical Les-fishing, drugs, and crazy times. The novel is actually very good and I read it in one afternoon. One thing that I love about Les is that he will play with anyone and loves to experiment. The Oysterhead line up is fantastic- Les, Trey, and Stuart! It is definately one of my favorite albums combining a bunch of crazy musical styles to create a SUPER jam band. As far as Primus goes, it is not surprising to find out that the Dead was Ler's favorite band and they had a lot of influence on his willingness to experiment and just jam. PRIMUS SUCKS! I guess that's all for now but Les is currently touring-Just check out his web site for info.
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It's not absolutely clear to me whether the man himself will be in attendance, but fwiw: Les Claypool Listening Party Saturday, March 14, 6-8pm East Bay Express and Rasputin Music Present Les Claypool Listening Party At Godspeed 5532 San Pablo Ave., Oakland Preview Les Claypool's Of Fungi And Foe three days before the album drops, courtesy of Rasputin Music. The event will feature: Drink specials until 8pm Prizes and giveaways Signed Booklet with purchase of album. (Quantities are limited). Pre-sales brought to you by Rasputin Records. RasputinMusic.com Godspeed. 5532 San Pablo Ave.. Emeryville. 510-547-1331. Godspeed.biz
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Is fish ON! There is nothing like hearing everywhere you grew up in the bay area right there in the songs......One of the most underated bands of all time is Primus....cept you know what?Ler told me once that they aren't underated at all, cuz dude.....they are still playing!!!!! Check out Gathering of the Vibes...Primus is back again and they SUCK! _____________________________________________ Will you come with me? Once in awhile you can get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right!
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The Primus reunion is here....and if you like the band and the Deadhead type mentalitty you shouldn't miss the Gathering of the Vibes this year.

Vibes 2010 Line-Up from Vibe Tribe on Vimeo.

Gathering of the Vibes 2010 Line-Up. Sunday Headliner coming soon.

_____________________________________________ Will you come with me? Once in awhile you can get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right!
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Plain and simple. I love Primus! Les Claypool in general is a huge influence on the jam band scene now a days. I'm stoked to see that Primus has gotten back together and plans to release a new album
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I caught his set at Bonnaroo last year and it was the surprise highlight of the weekend. His band was two percussionists, a random horn playing/multi instrumentalist, and Les. It was sick. Some of the most amazing music- composed and jammed out and just all around unique. Missed Primus at Bonnaroo this year cause of MMJ though. J.T. Gossard http://thehallucinogenicbible.blogspot.com/
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Absolutely love the Colonel!! First heard Primus when "Frizzle Fry" was released. Seemed a combination of everything that i wanted to hear at that time; tasteful drumming, textural guitars, skewed lyrics and dosed vocals. (Still don't know why i passed over a copy of the Blind Illusion vinyl before then; guess i didn't have enough money and wasn't sure who they were!! Cover was kinda bad, so....!!). Later began to realise a common linkage with some of my other favourites; Zappa, Dead Kennedys, King Crimson, Isley Brothers, Tom Waits, XTC, The Residents, Possessed!!! ("Seven Churches" was awesome at that time, still is! ahh, the heady days of Death Metal!). Saw him live loads of times (remember catching him in London with Primus during the Pork Soda era; he was coming back from Denmark Street (musical instrument alley!!), to the gig at the terribly now sadly defunct Astoria Theatre; in the cold, wearing a particularly loud hawaiian shirt. Signed my ticket and with a "well, take it easy, man!" vanished inside). I loved all of his projects too. Always worth checking out (only downer for me was Primus's "Anti-Pop" which i thought was dreadful and disjointed). Glad to see he's back to enjoying himself musically; the new material sounds mighty fine, "Jilly's On Smack" in particular. Here's to many more years to come. Just one thing though; The Oddity Faire really wasn't. Apart from the always impeccable Secret Chiefs 3, there really wasn't any weirdness or oddness on display. Kinda limp really. No matter, the man is corker. A Top Cat, Top Banana and we're glad to have you around.
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I saw Primus at the Fox in Atlanta in the mid 90s. I think the band that opened for them was Helmet. They melted the place
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who can forget, jerry died that next morning. Helmet was so loud ears bleed and some one got on stage and stole Les hat during a money solo. Les came back after the hat was returned anda said " among the thousand of you in the audience there has to emerge one dick to almost ruin it for you all." that place raged that night.
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In reply to by jackazz flatts

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Saw Primus the day after the Fox show. The day Jerry died. It was an amazing show. Seen them the past couple of tours and Primus stretches their songs out now and goes into some pretty kick ass jams.

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I was 5 at the time of this show so didn't make that one. To be honest, I've still never listened to them like I would other bands, let alone the dead, but I certainly understood how genius of a musicial Les Claypool was (as well as the surrounding cast).

When I noticed they would be playing the night before Furthur @ All Good 2013, I was pretty pumped but little did I know how incredible they would be. I left that set just in awe, and it will always be among the top performance's I was present for. 2 years later

All Good came back again with none othe than Primus as a headline and to the surpise of none, it was just a 10/10 all around. I still never listen to their music regularly, but if there's a primus show I can attend (or Les Claypool is playing somewhere), then I am all the way in and always will be.

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I've definitely been digging this group! I think it's a perfect blend of weird Claypool vibes and total future-Beatles magic. And Sean Lennon is a wicked guitar player!! If you've ever wondered what The Beatles might have sounded like if they were still around, check them out.

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I was 17 in 1988 in S.F. and I go into this record store and theyre playing primus on stores stereo , I just stood there in utter awe!! I couldnt wait to get to the teller fast enough to ask about the band playing. She says oh its just some band that is hungry down the street so we are selling these tapes for a buck or anything you can donate.
And away I went with some frizzle fry for a buck followed by some vitamin A for another buck on Haight. Got lost in Golden Gate Park , ended up in a tree with a homeless group of kids as the next day started this awesome layer of mystic fog swept across the park and I started hearing this twinkle of music so we walked towards the sound in and out of this magical cloud and I stumble across the DEAD having a reunion freebee with the Airplane and like no one was there so I walk up to the stage have a seat get lost again and when I looked back there were thousands of peolple. Insane!! But not as insane as when I caught the bus going back to Treasure Island Naval Base ( Job Corps) the damn thing dematerialised as we were on the bridge, to my left was my friend who thought he was in a dungeons and dragons game as a character named Zorgen ( not a nice guy) and to my right was my Metallicca loving metal head buddy clicking his tongue like a typewriter humming tunes we had just heard at the show. The bus driver yelling at me "Are you going to get off now!!" Oh ya!! I was already off.

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The Primus reunion is here....and if you like the band and the Deadhead type mentalitty you shouldn't miss the Gathering of the Vibes this year.