TEN RULES OF THE ROAD I LEARNED AT MY FIRST CONCERT: AN ORDINARY GUY'S LIFETIME OF LIVE ROCK & ROLL - Ordinary Guy, Extraordinary Concerts!

Ordinary Guy, Extraoridnay Concerts:

• Elton John's 60th Birthday
• John Belushi joins the Dead on stage
• Springsteen & The Last Great Show
• The (next to) Last Play at Shea
• CSNY reunite after a quarter century
• A concert in a parking lot
• the Grateful Dead during a tornado
• Meeting a band while driving on 43rd Street
• A Stills, Betts, Santana guitar jam
• the largest concert in New Jersey history
• U2's emotional tribute to 9/11
• McCartney, Springsteen, Van Zandt - on stage together
• and countless more

BUY IT HERE IN THE US!

Rave reviews for TEN RULES OF THE ROAD I LEARNED AT MY FIRST CONCERT:

- a 4.50 star rating on Amazon!

- a 4.56 star rating on Goodreads!

Here's just a sample of what folks are saying about TEN RULES OF THE ROAD I LEARNED AT MY FIRST CONCERT:

- "As a fan of rock shows myself, this book written by a fellow fan was fun to read, and reminded me of many of my own long-forgotten concert stories. Definitely recommended." 

 -"Insightful, poignant and just plain joyful." 

- "Truly a book for music fans of the 70’ s onward. Love the personal thoughts of sharing the music with his wife and kids." 

 - It was a lot of fun to hear about the author's experiences from the time of his first concert to sharing those experiences with his teenage boys. There is a lot of truth in his "rules" 

 - "The book is well-written and a fun reminder of my younger days. Just an enjoyable read!" 

 - "A hero for our times - he sees great shows, learns about life, and gets the girl. What's not to like?" 

 - "The author takes you on a tale of wonder through the ups and downs of going to concerts." 

- "I would recommend this book for anybody who loves live music - especially those, like me, who enjoy the anticipating and reliving almost as much as actually being at the concert." 

 - "I've got to say that Speedy's book is a little known gem and a real joy to read... the author's genuine love of live music comes through wonderfully." 

 - "Excellent account of the rock concert experience from 1976 to today. Very well written and extremely entertaining." 

- "Great for anyone who loves live music... Lots of fun anecdotes and details that really make you feel like you're sitting with someone, listening to stories about concerts."

- "It's a love letter to live music."

- "If you grew up in the 1960s or 1970s and enjoyed going to.rock concerts, then Speedy's story is your story. This tale reminds you of the best and worst parts of attending concerts, and captures the magic of those moments when the music was truly transcendent. Well written, engaging and filled with truth is stranger than fiction moments, Ten Rules is a must read for any rock music fan."

BUY IT HERE IN THE US:

The Rules:

Rule #1: You Can’t Get Good Seats, But The Scalpers Can

Rule #2: Expect The Unexpected On The Way To Or From The Show

Rule #3: No Concert Ever Starts On Time

Rule #4: Rejoice - There Is No Opening Act

Rule #5: Rock Concerts Are Rarely Played At A Venue Meant For Music

Rule #6: Enjoy The Special Guests - They’re a Rare Event

Rule #7: The Set List - The Bad News - The Band Will Never Play Everything You Want To Hear

Rule #8: The Set List - The Good News - The Band Will Always Play An Unanticipated Tune You’ll Never Forget

Rule #9: Elvis Has Left The Building - Once The Houselights Come On, The Show Is Over

Rule #10: Don’t Miss The Moment - Go To Every Show You Can

BUY IT HERE IN THE US:

- Only $6.99 for the Kindle Edition

- Only $12.99 for the paperback 

- And always FREE on Kindle Unlimited! 

 Also available in Kindle in: UK, DE, FR, ES, IT, NL, JP, BR, CA, MX, AU, and IN 

Also available in Paperback in: UK DE FR ES IT JP

Van Morrison - 1997-04-05 - Clearwater, FL (Ex Aud)

Van Morrison

1997-04-05

Ruth Eckerd Hall

Clearwater, FL

Excellent Audience Recordings'

320 kbps

Artwork Included 

CD 1:

01. Symphony Sid

02. Did Ye Get Healed

03. It's All In The Game / Make It Real One More Time

04. Days Like This

05. Fire In The Belly

06. Domino > A Shot Of Rhythm And Blues

07. So Quiet In Here > That's Where It's At

08. Troubadours

09. Rough God Goes Riding

10. How Long Has This Been Going On

11. Here Comes The Night

CD 2:

01. It Once Was My Life

02. Into The Mystic

03. Real Real Gone

04. Vanlose Stairway > Trans-Euro Train

05. Summertime In England

06. Wonderful Remark

07. Cleaning Windows > Be Bop a Lula

08. Have I Told You Lately

09. The Healing Game

Van Morrison - 1997-04-05 - Clearwater, FL (Ex Aud)

Van The Man 1997 - Back To Back - #1: In March 1997, Van Morrison released his 26th studio album, entitled The HEaling Game.  The disc went to 310 on the British charts and #32 on the Billboard charts in the US, receiving favorable critcal reviews.  This 4 part Back To Back set captures VAn on tour in support of his latest album at the Rith Eckard Hall in Clearwater, Florida. Download this excellenta udience recording of teh fiorst night in Clearwater on April 5, 1997, 25 years ago today, then come back the next 3 days for parts 2 to 4 of this set.

How We Choose What We Post At So Many Roads

I wanted to take a minute to explain how we decide on what to post here at So Many Roads/. I consider 4 things in deciding what bands and concerts to post:

• Sound Quality: Basically, no show gets posted unless the sound quality is top notch. Over 90% of what we post at So Many Roads are soundboard or FM broadcasts. When I first started this site almost 13 years ago, I took the advice of Tunzmaster Dino, from the legendary D&P’s Bootleg Tunzworld, that no one wants to hear a show that sounds like it was recorded in your bathroom with the water running. Sound quality is king. And sound quality should never be confused with file type.  Just because a show is captured on FLAC files doesn't automatically mean it sounds good.  Dino's drunken rant on Guitars 101 on the FLAC vs MP3 debate is the stuff of legends! In any event, while we have increased the number of audience recordings over the years, we do our best to make sure they sound great. Maybe 1 or 2% of the time, we’ll post a less than great sounding show for historical or sentimental reasons, but mostly, we’re bringing you a soundboard or broadcast quality show.


• The Date: Given that this blog has evolved to feature a "this date in history” approach, the show we post each day has to be from that day! So, if its November 14, then we’ll find a concert from November 214 from some year between 1955 and today. When you see posts like our re-post days or some other type of announcement, it means I couldn’t find a show from that day that I felt was worth posting.

• The Theme: Some years ago, we thought it woukd be fun - and make this blog unique - if each month of posts reflected some theme. For example, we have months featuring "Back To Back" concerts, like this month, or ones featuring a particular decade, or ones even centered around an event, like Woodstock.  Having a theme does help fiocus what we post, thoug of course, it does restrict which shows we can choose.

• My Taste In Music: In the end, I post shows that feature the music I enjoy. You'll see lots of shows at So Many Roads from the Grateful Dead, Paul McCartney, CSNY, Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, the Allman Brothers, etc. because that’s what I listen to every day. I’m not a fan of heavy metal, grunge or progressive rock, so you don’t see any posts from bands that play those styles of music. I like the blues, but in small doses, which is why you only get occasional posts from artists such as Muddy Waters, Robert Cray or Stevie Ray Vaughn. I’m into live music, not studio outtakes, so you’ll see very few of the latter type of posts here at So Many Roads. I know that my musical tastes may differ from others, which is why I link to sites such as The New JDP, Arizona Jones, The Ultimate Bootleg Experience, and Heavybootz, just to name a few, where you can often find music I may not post. By the way, the number of times I post a band usually reflects how much I enjoy their music but not always. You would see far more Beatles posts, for example, but unfortunately, there are far too few high quality concert recordings available. Same goes for The Band from the Robbie Robertson era, Rockpile. Marshall Crenshaw and Derek & The Dominos, just to name a few. In the end, given that we've posted shows from almost 200 bands, I think we've covered a wide spectrum of rock & roll.

Hope all the above helps. Thanks for visiting So Many Roads and enjoy the tunz.

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-04 - Worcester, MA (SBD)

Grateful Dead 

1987-04-04

The Centrum

Worcester, MA

Soundboard Recording

320 kbps

Artwork Included

1st Set:

01. Tuning

02. Touch Of Grey >

03. Greatest Story Ever Told

04. Althea

05. El Paso

06. Tennessee Jed

07. Cassidy

08. Never Trust A Woman

09. Box Of Rain

10. The Promised Land

2nd Set:

01. Iko Iko

02. Playing In The Band >

03. Comes A Time >

04. Willie And The Hand Jive >

05. Drums >

06. Space >

07. Truckin' >

08. Playing In The Band reprise >

09. Morning Dew

Encore:

01. Encore Break

02. One More Saturday Night 

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-04 - Worcester, MA (SBD)

Grateful Dead 1987 - Back to Back - #3:  As promised, here's the 3rd and final post in our Back To Back To Back set featuring the Grateful Dead in 1987. This one is a soundboard recording from April 4, 1987, 35 years ago today. 

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-03 - Worcester, MA (SBD)

Grateful Dead 

1987-04-03

The Centrum

Worcester, MA

Soundboard Recording

320 kbps

Artwork Included

1st Set:

01. Tuning

02. Hell In A Bucket >

03. Sugaree

04. C. C. Rider

05. It Must Have Been The Roses

06. It's All Over Now

07. Big Railroad Blues

08. Let It Grow >

09. Don't Ease Me In

2nd Set:

01. Tuning

02. China Cat Sunflower >

03. I Know You Rider

04. Man Smart (Woman Smarter) >

05. Crazy Fingers >

06. Samson And Delilah >

07. Drums >

08. Space >

09. The Other One >

10. Wharf Rat >

11. Throwing Stones >

12. Not Fade Away

Encore:

01. Encore Break

02. U.S. Blues

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-03 - Worcester, MA (SBD) 

Grateful Dead 1987 - Back to Back - #2:  As promised, here's part 2 of our Back To Back to Back set featuring the Grateful Dead in 1987. This one is a soundboard recording from April 3, 1987, 35 years ago today. Stop back tomorrow for the 3rd and final part of this set.

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-02 - Worcester, MA (SBD)

Grateful Dead 

1987-04-02

The Centrum

Worcester, MA

Soundboard Recording

320 kbps

Artwork Included

1st Set:

01. Tuning

02. Cold Rain And Snow >

03. New Minglewood Blues

04. Dupree's Diamond Blues

05. Far From Me

06. Me And My Uncle >

07. Mexicali Blues

08. When Push Comes To Shove

09. Beat It On Down The Line

10. Bird Song >

11. The Music Never Stopped

2nd Set:

01. Scarlet Begonias >

02. Fire On The Mountain >

03. Looks Like Rain >

04. Eyes Of The World >

05. Drums >

06. Space >

07. Gimme Some Lovin' >

08. The Wheel >

09. Black Peter >

10. Around And Around >

11. Good Lovin'

Encore:

01. Encore Break

02. Black Muddy River

Grateful Dead - 1987-04-02 - Worcester, MA (SBD) 

Grateful Dead 1987 - Back To Back - #1: As long time followers of this blog know, we have posted a host of shows from the Grateful Dead from 1987, the year Jerry Garcia made a miraculous recovery from a diabetic coma. It was also the year the band found a new wave of popularity thanks to the video for Touch of Gray, which received extensive airplay on MTv. While 1987 may not have been the Dead’s best year musically, the euphoria surrounding each show, as we all celebrated Jerry’s return, may be unmatched in the band’s long history. Here's the first in a 3 part Back to Back set, a soundboard recording that captures the Dead in Worcester on April 2, 1987, 35 years ago today.  Download this one, then come back tomorrow and the next day for the rest of this set.

Re-Post Day: Aptil 1

As long time followers of So Many Roads know, our blog takes a "this day in history" approach to selecting shows. In other words, if it's January 1, than the concert we post took place on January 1, sometime between 1950 and the present day. 

Every now and then, a day rolls by and we don't have a new show associated with that date. Some times we've gotten around that by posting my monthly column on that day. Other times, we've used some other type of informational post. 

Well, in the spirit of trying something new, this time around, since I don't have a new show to post on April 1, I've re-posted download links for many of the prior shows we posted on that date. Those shows are listed below. All you have to do is search for the show you want - just copy and paste it from the list below into the search box in the upper corner of the blog - and when you get there, you'll find a new link! 

Enjoy The Tunz!

• Allman Brothers - 1994-04-01 - New York, NY (Ex Aud)
• Grateful Dead - 1980-04-01 - Capitol Theatre, Passaic NJ (SBD)
• Grateful Dead - 1991-04-01 - Greensboro, NC (SBD)
• Gov't Mule - 2000-04-01 - Detroit, MI (SBD)
• Neil Young - 1993-04-01 - Portland, OR (SBD)
• Paul McCartney - 1990-04-01 - Berkeley, CA (SBD)
• Van Morrison - 1991-04-01 - Utrecht Netherlands (FM)
• Willie Nelson with Leon Russell - 1979-04-01 - Capitol Theatre, NJ (FM)