Hot Tuna …………..Smokin”…
2006 in Louisville, Kentucky (Headliners)

Nearly forty years in the making, the tandem of bass playing guru and guitar sensation Jorma Kaukonen
have conquered many musical obstacles while on their chosen path for musical immortality.  Gone are the blonde mane provocatively adorned with leather hats and assorted headbands that were the chosen attire for Jack during the ubiquitous days of the counter culture.  Jorma has also dispatched the curly locks of yore and the Scandinavian “chick” magnate connotations for a more cosmopolitan appearance while both ponder over the arrival of middle age.  The anthemic tunes of the past are more of a footnote in “rock n roll” trivia as they pursue the quest to bring American “roots”, i.e., traditional “blues” to the masses. The rebellion of social moraes that was so synonymous with the life & times of the sixties has now passed into San Francisco folklore as both are revered and emulated on a consistent basis just as they were when performing free concerts in the Panhandle during the euphoric “daze” of Jefferson Airplane.  Who would have known the longevity and appeal of Hot Tuna when living adjacent to Golden Gate Park and frequenting the haunts of the storied section known as Haight Ashbury.

The nuances of Jack Casady, the deft guitar skills of Jorma, Kaukonen, the textured tunes with influences of Reverend Gary Davis, Howlin’ Wolf and other “blues” giants of the past  resonating from the walls of Headliners in Louisville, Kentucky would conjure memories of psychedelia and the carefree lifestyle of the Victorian abodes amidst the hills close to The Great Highway.  Now augmented by the presence of Barry Mitterhoff on mandolin, Hot Tuna rambled into the metropolitan Louisville area on July 6th and three hours later, left yet another historic impact and performance on 400 amazed, pleased and satisfied fans of these Hall Of Fame players.  Since the late sixties, it has been the goal of most aspiring minstrels to reach the level and consistency of guitar Gods such as Jack & Jorma and the subsequent pantheons of musical immortals.

Who would have known that a faction band from the seminal psychedelic “Big Five, i.e., Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother & The Holding Company, Quicksilver messenger Service, The Grateful Dead & The Charlatans would evolve into a 37 year sojourn and continue to explore, define and appease the masses of baby boomers that have followed them for the entirety of their career. Technology continues to advance at a rapid rate, neoteric icons rise and fall faster than the popularity of our president, yet legacies that are synonymous with bands that have been able to adjust and endure are but a precious few.

Peers with known impact and sensationalism have succumbed to the trappings of the genre and for those who have managed to survive, they become an endangered specie of their generation, a single pearl in a mountain of sea shells.  The years have been kind to Jack & Jorma as both are healthy, happy and still in search of the perfect performance.

Memories of The Fillmore Auditorium, The Fillmore East, The Fillmore West, The Avalon Ballroom, The Matrix, The Ark, The Aragon Ballroom, The Agora Theatre, all the hallowed haunts of fame and fortune for the bands of the Chet Helms & Bill Graham era..

The youthful cherubic faces of flower children in Golden Gate Park and those drifting around the mansion at 2400 Fulton Street have given way to a more weathered, educated and survival oriented fan base in 2006 but the enthusiasm remains as in the past.

The set list is irrelevant when attending a performance by Hot Tuna as it’s not the tune that marks the occasion, it’s the link to The Golden Age and the chance to see two of the finest musicians of the last fifty years on this planet.

Embarking on any road trip to a festival, a gathering or a concert involving these two pillars of the genre makes anything they play acceptable….it’s not the catalogue that floats this musical ship, it’s Jack & Jorma.

It never gets better than this…….as it should be.
Cheers
Don Aters – Haight Street Music News