Tea Leaf Green, San Francisco Bay- 11/26
Margot Main
2002-11-06
"It's too cold," "it's too late," "it's too expensive," the whiner's
complained about Tea Leaf Green's announcement they would be having their
Halloween Tea Party and Costume Ball on a boat, cruising the San Francisco
Bay, after the String Cheese Show on October 26, 2002. It wasn't cold (by
Alaskan standards), it ended early (4:00am) and it didn't cost more than a
couple of healthy six packs. Tea Leaf Green's "Sex in the 70's" Halloween
theme party was as much a grooving treat as it was tasty jam filled fun. Charlie's Angels, mini-skirt with knee socks and platform shoes cheerleader,
spandex babes, easy spirited hippy chicks, disco balled Don's as well as
velvet/polyester/sunglass wearing lounge lizards and pimp daddies boarded
the love party boat. The private party spent the late evening into early
morning hours cocktailing, dancing and schwirling pick up lines. Anchors
hoisted; the Tea Party began.
The band successfully completed their first national tour and now has over
10,000 miles under their individual belts. This experience was very
noticeable as they showed no ego and just dived head first into the warm-up
jam before nailing their first song. "Sex in the 70's" powered up while the
bar line swelled. The band was flat-out on top of their groove. Scott
Rager (drums) and Ben Chambers (bass) started carving out low-down wet and
funky rhythm. Josh Clark (guitar) and Trevor Garrod (keys) were totally
Cali-rock surfers; every note being played exactly where it was suppose to
be.
The light show added dramatics to a sparkling "Jubilee" and swank to the
very danceable "Asphalt Funk." A smooth "Ride Together," with Jordan
Feinstein from Funky Beulah on keys, played as the party boat cruised past
the bashful San Francisco skyline. Ben Chambers' shadow, bopping to his
deft bass beat, shown through one of the projection screens and made for a
pleasant unexpected addition to the overall aesthetics of the show. A
jumping "Hot Dog" was followed by a shot of "Tequila." The small
performance area was surrounded by tightly packed fans digging the groove.
During the set break, a lot of people retreated to the upper deck to
continue the dance trance with the DJ. Or, some simply chose to sit and
hang with friends and take in the almost surreal city outline. Ripe and
fresh lovers snuggled under the star lit San Francisco night sky. And, then
it happened. The moment was shattered - LAST CALL.
Tea Leaf Green started up the second set with a raging "Gasaholic" augmented
by Lou Andrade from SFunk on saxophone. He stayed with the band for a time
warping funk jam which segued into an altered state of mind enhancement with
"Panspermic De-evolution." Clark was tearing up his guitar and was glowing
so brightly he almost clashed with the moon. Surprising everyone, the band
started covering Snoop Dog's "What's My Name" before rolling into a
synchronal "Planet of Green Love". From "Deep River" on top of "Wet Spot"
and "Country Seduction" right into "Baseball Jam," Rager's drums and
Garrod's keys seem to rumble around each other. Garrod has an uncanny
ability to add and subtract key notes just as breaks call for them. Clark's
grip on the throat of his guitar was steaming as his fingers blended
outta-control chord combos. Chambers was a "slave to the groove" and
groovers gladly sucked down his backbeat.
But, alas, the party had to come to an end. Tea Leaf Green unwound the
crowd with a delectably mellow "Freedom". The boat docked as they finished
their set with "Plateface in the Moonlight." Nobody wanted to say goodbye;
but, the party people disembarked; satisfied with the night's ghoulish fun
web.
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