New Riders of the Purple Sage

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New Riders of the Purple Sage
General information
Genre (s) Country rock
founding 1969, 2005
resolution 1997
Founding members
John Dawson (1969-1997)
Singing, guitar, mandolin
David Nelson (until 1981)
Jerry García (until 1971)
Phil Lesh (until 1970)
Mickey Hart (until 1970)
Current occupation
Vocals, guitar
 David Nelson (1969–1981, from 2005)
Buddy Cage (1971–1977, 1980–1982, from 2005)
Vocals, guitar
 Michael Falzarano (from 2005)
bass
 Ronnie Penque (from 2005)
Drums
 Johnny Markowski (from 2005)
former members
Vocals, guitar, bass
 Dave Torbert (1970-1975)
Vocals, bass
 Skip Battin (1975-1977)
bass
 Stephen A. Love (1977–1978)
Drums, percussion
Spencer Dryden (1970-1978)
Vocals, guitar
 Gary Vogensen (1985-1997)
Vocals, guitar
 Allen Kemp (1978-1984)
Vocals, drums
 Patrick Shanahan (1978-1981)
Pedal steel guitar
 Bobby Black (1978-1980)
bass
 Bill Wolf (1981-1987)
Drums, percussion
 Val Fuentes (1982-1988)
bass
 Michale White (1987-1989)
Drums
 Greg Lagardo (1988-1989)
bass
 Fred Campbell (1990-1991)
Vocals, guitar, mandolin,
lap steel , violin , banjo
Rusty Gauthier (1982-1997)

The New Riders of the Purple Sage (named after a western by Zane Gray ) is an American country rock band.

Career

It was created in Marin County (California) in 1969 . Jerry García , Mickey Hart and Phil Lesh came from the Grateful Dead , soon followed by John "Marmaduke" Dawson and David Nelson .

The NRPS initially played as the opening act for the Grateful Dead and got a record deal in 1970. Hart and Lesh left the band, Dave Torbert and Spencer Dryden from Jefferson Airplane came . The debut album The New Riders of the Purple Sage came out in 1971 and featured a mixture of West Coast and Country . After the album was released, Garcia also left the band, Buddy Cage came as a replacement.

This was followed by the albums Powerglide (1972) and Gypsy Cowboy (1973) and the single I Don't Need No Doctor . The 73 production The Adventures of Panama Red , on which Buffy Sainte-Marie and the Memphis Horns played as guests, even achieved gold status.

After the live album Home, Home on the Road (1974), Torbert switched to Kingfish . Instead, Skip Battin (ex- Byrds ) joined the NRPS, who first appeared on the 1975 country album Brujo . On Oh What a Mighty Time (1975), in which Sly Stone also played, the NRPS combined country, gospel and rock music . The 76 LP New Riders consisted to a large extent of cover versions.

Before Who Are Those Guys (1977) Battin left, who was replaced by Stephen Love. The album produced by Bob Johnston got rather bad reviews, which continued with the following albums Marin County Line (1978) and Feelin 'Alright (1980). On Feelin 'Alright Love and Dryden were no longer part of the band, but Allen Kemp and Patrick Shanahan had come.

After the failure of Feelin 'Alright , David Nelson and the briefly returned Buddy Cage got out in 1982 . John Dawson, who remained as the last original member, found a reliable partner in the multi-instrumentalist Rusty Gauthier, who remained with the New Riders until the end. The new line-up with Dawson, Gauthier, Kemp, Val Fuentes and Bill Wolf created a more rocky sound. A live recording from this time, which served the band in their unsuccessful search for a new record company, was later released on CD.

There were no new recordings by the New Riders for the time being, but the NRPS defended their reputation as a live attraction in smaller clubs in the 80s. After further personnel changes, from 1985 Dawson, Gauthier and Gary Vogensen formed the core of the NRPS. The line-up of the rhythm section on bass and drums remained changeable. In 1989 a new studio album was finally released, with the programmatic title Keep On Keepin 'On . The unspectacular country rock could not convince again.

It was not until 1992 that the New Riders were at their best again. On the CD Midnight Moonlight , the New Riders presented their own old pieces such as Louisiana Lady or Glendale Train in acoustic folk-country garb, partly with Cajun flair, in addition to new material . The album, on which David Nelson has a guest appearance, lives mainly from Rusty Gauthier's instrumental versatility. Two years later, the New Riders, now reduced to a trio, released a live album with highlights from a Japan tour in August 1993. In May 1997, Dawson finally finished the New Riders chapter and moved to Mexico , where he retired as an English teacher.

Even after the dissolution of the NRPS, Dawson occasionally returned to the stage for reunion concerts and Rusty Gauthier was also seen performing under the band name in the meantime. In 2001 band archivist Rob Bleetstein managed to get Dawson, Nelson and Cage (together with Bill Laymon and Brent Ramponi) on stage for a joint reunion appearance. In September 2002, the New Riders received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Doobie Awards in New York.

Since 2003 the New Riders have been releasing old concert recordings on CD in the Live Archive CD Series in loose succession.

Shortly before the band became active again, former drummer Spencer Dryden died on January 10, 2005 in Penngrove, California. As of October 2005, the reunited New Riders of the Purple Sage returned with the line-up David Nelson, Buddy Cage, Michael Falzarano (from Hot Tuna ; guitar, vocals), Johnny Markowski (drums, vocals) and Ronnie Penque (bass, vocals) Backstage. John Dawson did not take part for health reasons, but gave his okay. Michael Falzarano took over his vocal parts. With Where I Come From a new studio album was created in 2009, which was followed by another at 17 Pine Avenue in 2012. In particular, the death of founding member John "Marmaduke" Dawson on July 21, 2009 has filled the current band members with great sadness. The homepage said: "His songs have inspired us in many ways. His energy, passion and commitment to the New Riders brought us all so much joy."

Discography

(Various "best of" compilations are not taken into account)

  • New Riders of the Purple Sage (1971; Columbia)
  • Powerglide (1972; Columbia)
  • Gypsy Cowboy (1972; Columbia)
  • The Adventures of Panama Red (1973; Columbia)
  • Home, Home on the Road (1974; Columbia)
  • Brujo (1974; Columbia)
  • Oh, What a Mighty Time (1975; Columbia)
  • New Riders (1976; MCA)
  • Who Are Those Guys? (1977; MCA)
  • Marin County Line (1977; MCA)
  • Feelin 'Alright (1981; A&M)
  • Vintage NRPS (1986; Relix), contains previously unreleased live recordings from 1971
  • Before Time Began (1986; Relix), contains previously unreleased demos and outtakes from 1968 and 1969
  • Keep On Keepin 'On (1989; MU)
  • Midnight Moonlight (1992; Relix)
  • Live on Stage (1993; Relix), contains previously unpublished live recordings from 1975
  • Live in Japan (1994; Relix), live album, recorded in 1993
  • Live (1995; Avenue / Rhino), contains previously unreleased live recordings from 1982
  • Worcester, MA 4/4/73 (2003; Kufala), previously unpublished concert recording from 1973
  • Boston Music Hall: December 5, 1972 (2003; Kufala), previously unpublished concert recording from 1972
  • Veneta, Oregon: August 27, 1972 (2004; Kufala), previously unpublished concert recording from 1972
  • Friday June 13, 1975: Armadillo World Headquarters (2005, Kufala), previously unpublished concert recording from 1975
  • SUNY, Stonybrook, NY, 3/17/73 (2007; Kufala), complete concert recording from March 17, 1973 at the State University of New York, Stony Brook
  • Wanted: Live at Turkey Trot (2007; Fa-Ka-Wee), live album, recorded in 2006, also released on DVD
  • Live New Years Eve 2006 (2007; ArSeaEm)
  • Where I Come From (2009; Woodstock)
  • Winterland, San Francisco, CA, 12/31/77 (2009; Kufala; live album)
  • 17 Pine Avenue (2012; Woodstock)
  • Glendale Train (2013; Smokin '), live recordings from the concert on October 30, 1971 at the Taft Auditorium in Cincinnati, Ohio (also released as LP on the label "Let Them Eat")
  • Live At Highland Brewing Company On 2012-10-25 (full concert recording)

Web links