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Listen to Steve Kimock Band's Eudemonic on JamBase Rhapsody!
Words by Andy Dorfmann :: Images by Tony Stack
Zero :: 03.09 - 03.11 :: Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom :: Denver, CO
It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing
Zero :: 03.11 |
This past weekend in Denver, CO at Jay Bianchi's archetypal jam band nightclub Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom, Steve Kimock on guitars (SKB, KVHW, Zero, The Other Ones) and Greg Anton on drums (Zero, Gregg's Eggs, Heart of Gold Band) rekindled the Zero flame with some old band mates and a few new faces and burned down the house for a three-night run on a cold March weekend. They were joined by Martin Fierro (Zero, Legion of Mary, Jerry Garcia Band) on sax, Pete Sears (Zero, Jefferson Starship, Hot Tuna) on keys, Liam Hanrahan (Zero) on bass, Judge Murphy (Zero) vocals, John Morgan Kimock (The Octave Below) on drums, Arnie Green (The Arnie J Green Band) vocals and guitar, and special guest Donna Jean Godchaux Mackay (Grateful Dead, Heart of Gold Band) on vocals. For many long-suffering Zero fans like myself, it was a weekend that we dared not dream of, let alone expect. The last time these musicians performed together under the Zero moniker was nearly six years ago at the venerable old Maritime Hall in San Francisco. Zero was created, it is said, in a studio up in Marin county by Anton and Kimock in 1984. Kimock and Anton first met through the short-lived Heart of Gold Band aggregation, which not coincidently was started by Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux and John Cipollina, who later joined Zero.
Zero, a staple of the Bay Area music scene from 1984 until 2000, evolved into an eclectic blend of rock, jazz, and funk, infused with various other musical influences. They are the penultimate live improvisational rock band. I first discovered Zero in the mid-nineties and first saw them live in 1997. Since that time, Kimock's career has followed an interesting path, including the last years of Zero as a touring band, the short-lived but remarkable KVHW, his stints with various Grateful Dead-related bands, and his more recent project, the Steve Kimock Band (SKB). SKB has been an evolving project and has included just about all the various former members of Zero and many other musicians, but never Greg Anton. These shows were, as the song goes, a "Chance in a Million," and for those in attendance, it was like winning the lottery. Fans came from all over the country - from the Bay Area, the Northeast, the Northwest, the South, and the Midwest, and from many points in-between. We were rewarded with some of the most exciting, breathtaking, passionate, and downright fun music that anyone could have expected. It wasn't always the most precise or structured, but that looseness and willingness to take risks paid off with some very big rewards.
Night One – Thursday March 9th, 2006 – Here Goes Nothin'
Steve Kimock - Zero :: 03.11 |
The crowd was a bit thin on Thursday night, but the atmosphere was electric and the excitement palpable. The Zero faithful had assembled and were joined by quite a few Denver locals, some of whom were too young to have ever seen Zero play in its heyday. They opened the historic run by rewarding those who came out with the classic combination of "Cole's Law" > "Tangled Hangers." This is a coupling of two of Kimock's greatest instrumental compositions, and he has played them in many of his projects. These versions did not disappoint. "Cole's" was lovely and soaring, and the transition between them was so long and twisting that one almost forgot what was coming next. They brought back an old instrumental chestnut, "Smell's Like Girls Drums," that was a real treat for the truly longtime Zero fans, and they brought out Judge Murphy for "Catalina" and "Ermaline," two of the many songs with lyrics by Robert Hunter. Murphy's voice was in fine bluesy form as he raised those old tunes from the dustbins to life again in the cold, crisp Denver night. The second set was a bit more on the mellow side and was a showcase for some interesting covers old and new, but it began with the fiery "Sun, Sun, Sun," a Zero classic based loosely on an old Spanish folk song. Fierro and Kimock wound their way through blistering solos, and those of us in the crowd sang along with the Spanish words. They continued with Dylan's "Watching the River Flow" and Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry," sung by Arnie Green, a local Denver musician and luthier with a beautiful voice and a nice tone on the guitar. They closed the set with a medley of "Willin'," a drum duet by Anton and the young Kimock, and the rock standard "Mercury Blues." They came back for a two-song encore of Santo and Johnny's "Sleepwalk" and the Fierro-penned "Anorexia." It was an auspicious opening night for this astounding run of shows. The musicians were clearly having the time of their lives, and so were the fans.
Night 2 - Friday March 10th, 2006 - The Plot Thickens – Kimock's Tour de Force
Zero :: 03.11 |
Friday night, the place was packed. At the start of the show on Friday night, Kimock came to the microphone and said that he had some bad news. Donna Jean had fallen ill and would not be able to perform that night. He reported that she promised to be there the next night, "If I have to come naked with my hair on fire." So he related to us that he would start out with something meditative to send healing energy. With that, Kimock took us on an amazing journey with his new fretless jazz master guitar through an instrumental version of the Hunter-Garcia masterpiece "Stella Blue." I've seen Kimock perform this several times over the years, but never with the passion, emotion, and poignancy of this night. These jaded old eyes welled up with tears as he played. It seemed as if every hurt and rejected soul in the universe could be healed and redeemed by that soulful and lovely melody played with such a haunting and lovely tone. When it was over, I wondered just how they could possibly top that. In reality, it was only the start of a truly memorable night. The rest of the set wound through the Funky Meter's cover "Rigor Mortis" and the Zero song "Kissin' the Boo Boo." Both were played admirably and featured fine playing by Liam Hanrahan on bass. I should mention that many longtime fans were disappointed that former Zero and KVHW bassist Bobby Vega was not on the bill this time. By this point in the run, however, Hanrahan was strutting his stuff and impressing the crowd with both his solo playing and his ability to snake the bass lines around Kimock's guitar leads. While he did not make anyone forget how great the Kimock-Vega combination was in its day, he showed what a fine player he is and established himself as an outstanding member of Zero. He had a unique and very high-energy presence on stage and helped keep things moving along.
Zero :: 03.11 |
Zero surprised us next with a cover of The Band song "Makes No Difference." It was magical as Arnie Green sang these sad yet hopeful lyrics about unrequited love and redemption. A good indication of how much fun they were having was that Kimock himself stepped up to a microphone and sang backup vocals! Now that is a rare occurrence. The second set on Friday night was a tour de force for Zero and especially for the guitar wizardry and mastery of Steve Kimock. From the opening blazing version of "Baby Baby" with one of his patented "mutron" (envelope filter) solos through the old Zero tunes "Tear Tags off Mattresses," "Gregg's Eggs," and "Nancy Germany" (a special treat for us older fans), Zero blew the roof off the Masterpiece Ballroom, and Kimock led the charge with his passionate, incendiary playing. The set ended with one of my all-time favorite Robert Hunter penned Zero tunes, "Home on the Range," another song about failure and redemption that ended with a thundering climax led by Pete Sears on the keyboards. Sears, who can be personified as the quintessence of cool behind his dark Fedora and sports jacket, played extremely well throughout the run, backing up and supporting when that was needed and taking interesting solos when he was called upon to do so. This was one of the finest sets of music I have ever seen or heard, by Zero or any other band.
Night 3 - Saturday March 11th, 2006 – Forever Is Nowhere
Zero :: 03.11 |
Over the years, Zero music has been associated with a sort of Zen meditative state in which nothing becomes everything. When everything is just right, listeners and players reach a sort of bliss state. Saturday seemed to be that sort of night. Kimock and Anton pulled out all the stops as Donna Jean joined them on stage for several numbers, including the Garcia-Hunter staple "Gomorrah," Marley's "Stir It Up," and even the song that the Grateful Dead made famous "Going Down The Road Feelin' Bad." Her presence on stage was serene and almost regal. For many of us, it was surreal to see her on stage as we fondly remembered the old days when she graced the stage with the Grateful Dead. It was like a dream come true for this old Deadhead. She, like many of us, clearly was bowled over by the strength and passion of Kimock's playing in this configuration. The old Zero-Hunter songs "Chance in a Million," "Horses," and "Catalina" brought back more than a few wonderful memories for band and fans alike, but the real highlights of the evening were the return of the great Zero instrumentals like "Forever Is Nowhere," "Golden Road," "Tongue 'n Groove," and "It's Up To You." While some of the songs have been played in the last few years by Kimock or Anton in their own projects, the shear grace and power of Zero was most evident on these numbers. The evening ended with a soaring rendition of the oft-covered Hendrix classic "Little Wing," followed surprisingly by the instrumental coda to the Derek and the Dominoes hit "Layla." It was an epic show to close out the historic weekend of music.
Zero :: 03.11 |
This run of shows in Denver was a resounding success on many levels. It was so wonderful to see Greg Anton pounding the skins, and he was clearly having a ball playing with his old pals Steve Kimock and Martin Fierro. Martin played with his usual sense of musicality and reckless abandon, and of course added his trademark humor and good cheer to the event. Another bonus was watching the elder Kimock watch his talented young son play drums behind him. John Morgan Kimock will no doubt be a force to be reckoned with over the coming years. He seems to have inherited his father's love and passion for music as well as a good dose of talent as well. Some longtime fans of Zero, and Steve Kimock in particular, have been less than enthusiastic about some of his recent efforts, seeing them as either too sterile or just too serious. In the words of the great Duke Ellington, "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing.” Zero, undeniably, has got that swing.
JamBase | Denver
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