At Wolfgang’s Vault, we’re constantly adding new material to our sites, and the Concert Video section is no exception.  As a special holiday treat, we’re offering an early glimpse of just one of the incredible new concerts we will be bringing you in 2012, this one from the recently acquired Metropolitan Archive – Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band live at the Capitol Theatre, 1978.

Beginning as a Vaudeville theatre in the 1920s, Passaic’s Capitol Theatre became renowned as a beloved music venue under the management of John Scher during the ‘70s and ‘80s, hosting a who’s-who of artists of the era.  The Metropolitan Archive contains many of these great performances captured on video, and as our restoration project continues, we will be adding these rarely-seen concerts to our site.

And who better to start with than the Boss?  While the video is in its rawest form, not yet enhanced in any way to improve audio or visual quality, it is still an outstanding document of Bruce and his band in top form, bringing a little holiday cheer to the Capitol Theatre.

This video, along with the entire concert from which it came, will be painstakingly restored and digitized to guarantee the best possible quality for online broadcast.  Check back with us in the New Year to see this and others from the Metropolitan Archive and all of our collections.

We are very grateful for the continued support of our online community, and we look forward to bringing you much more exciting content in the year to come.

Cheers!

[Merry Christmas from Passaic, NJ! is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

In the beginning, there were tapes — literally thousands of tapes of every format used in the capture of moving picture and sound from the last 50 years.  Some were in such a state that they may only have had one more play-back left in them before the footage they contained was stripped away forever, while many others suffered from dubious labeling practices, making it difficult to determine what sort of content they might hold, where it was filmed, or even when.  It has taken four years and millions of dollars to archive and restore this content so that it may be preserved and presented in the best possible form for your enjoyment, and we are proud to announce that the time has come for the great unveiling — the Concert Video section of Wolfgang’s Vault has arrived.

Bringing these aging concerts into the Internet era was painstaking work from beginning to end.  Utilizing the best facilities available, we sought to gently improve the quality of our video concerts without robbing them of their natural vintage flavor.  Once restored, each video was reviewed by our team of music experts to assess quality and catalog information about each performance, including exhaustive research to verify dates and venues of performances, as well as titles and cue points for each individual song — tens of thousands in all from the Bill Graham Archive, the King Biscuit Flower Hour, and the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals.

During the course of this process, we uncovered a huge spectrum of performances from some of the biggest names in music at legendary venues across the country: we found the Who at Tanglewood when Bill Graham brought the Fillmore East to Massachusetts, we found Ray Charles casually joining Aretha Franklin at the piano during the recording of her landmark live album at the Fillmore West, Lynyrd Skynyrd playing the Oakland Coliseum just a few short months before their tragic plane crash, even the Sex Pistols performing their last concert ever at Winterland — and that’s only the beginning.

We found hours of terrific concerts by lesser-known acts stretching all the way back to the ‘60s, and we have treated these with the same care and attention given to their more famous contemporaries.

Our goal is always to be as true to the live source recordings as possible, and we have maintained that commitment with our video content.  In exploring the Concert Video section, you will immediately notice a wide variety in recording quality, even in videos from the same era:

Excellent Audio and Video

Excellent Audio / Dark Video

Poor Audio / Dark Video

When considering these concerts in their historical context, we simply couldn’t justify not sharing some of them due to these flaws.

It is important to remember that most venues were not lit to maximize the quality of video recordings, and the equipment available at the time offered little to compensate; consequently some of the content appears quite dark as stage lights change or come down altogether between songs.

Luckily in most cases, the audio portions of these videos are spectacular, so using the music as our guide, we have included even concerts or portions thereof that are less than perfect visually.  Likewise, there are rare occasions where the audio suffers due to degradation or limitations of the recording method, or even simply from the unavoidable complications of live sound, but we have chosen to feature these portions as well.

We’ve also included some live concert ambiance whenever available — you’ll see the audience filing in and hear Bill Graham introducing the band; you’ll even get the rare glimpse backstage.

All of this has been carefully preserved and curated in an effort to bring you the most authentic live concert video available.

And because we love live music, all of this incredible archival footage inspired us to create new concert videos, too.  The best in indie rock from San Francisco’s annual Noise Pop Festival and Austin’s SXSW have been added to our already stellar collection of videos.

Plus, we’re adding more all the time with upcoming location shoots across the country, and with our Vault Sessions series, which offers a little peek inside the Vault with some of the best performers on tour from yesterday and today.

To showcase all of this outstanding material, the Concert Video section of Wolfgang’s Vault has been designed for easy browsing and sharing.  From any video page, you can share videos via Facebook or Twitter or simply by email, and registered users have the added benefit of saving their favorite videos to their MyVault page for easy access.

As you browse through the Concert Video section you may notice some familiar scenes along with the rarely and never-before-seen footage.  Wolfgang’s Vault owns the copyright to 98% of the content featured on the site, and we have licensed parts of these concerts for film and television, including productions by MTV, VH1, CMT, CBS, and A&E.

All copyrights have been filed with the Library of Congress, and the few videos that we do not own have been licensed from a third party.  Licensing is an important part of our business, so please contact us directly if you are interested in using some of this content in an upcoming project.

Once again, dear friends, we find ourselves at the beginning of something truly wonderful, and we are honored to share it with you, our faithful community.  In the coming weeks and months we will continue to add new videos and feature classic material from our collection.  We also understand that maintaining this vast archive is an on-going process, and we will be making improvements to existing content and site features along the way.

Please enjoy this latest addition to Wolfgang’s Vault, and thank you for your continued support.

Cheers,

Braden Towne
Director of Video Programming

Watch videos at Wolfgang’s Vault

[Announcing the Arrival of Concert Video is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

After a while, George Wein is ready to get the performances underway but, before diving in, he invites some musicians up to take a bow – and that’s when you learn you’ve been treated to an impromptu backstage jam session led by Doc Watson. Next week, here on Wolfgang’s Vault, you’ll be able to hear that set of music for the first time since July 27th, 1968.

Doc Watson at the 1968 Newport Folk Festival. Photo © by Elliott Landy

Over the past week or two, the crew around here has been getting that same feeling of pre-concert excitement as we work on the final preparations for the show’s release. We, too, have turned to some of our “neighbors in the audience” to discuss this set and, as of now, that includes you, too.

Our anticipation began during the original tape transfer project, when the engineers found a Doc Watson performance on that date’s multi-tracks even though he wasn’t scheduled to perform. After the transfer engineers logged the discovery, the audio next went to the Magic Shop in New York City where the entire year’s festival was mixed and mastered beautifully on a 16-channel analog console.

The spectacular quality of the recording eventually came in handy, as the musicians’ banter was critical for archivist Alan Bershaw’s research into the performance. After discerning names being called out during solos and in between songs, he painstakingly cross-referenced them with the musicians whose bands were appearing at the festival. In the end, he arrived at the unique configuration of Doc Watson on guitar, Bill Keith of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band on banjo, Howdy Forrester of Roy Acuff’s Smoky Mountain Boys on fiddle, ex-Kentucky Colonel Roger Bush on bass, and Joe Val of the Charles River Valley Boys on mandolin.

Furthermore, Bershaw, who has worked extensively with Dinky Dawson’s archive, recalled that Dawson’s wife Nancy was a longtime friend of Bill Keith. With her help, Bershaw was able to get in touch with Keith directly, who was more than generous with his time. Those communications also led to confirming the identity of Master of Ceremonies Fritz Richmond, who introduces many of the Newport performers that evening, and helped determine the musicians backing Joan Baez’ set. Keith also recalled giving Janis Joplin a lift to the festival grounds that day.

Bob Jones, staff member at the time for the Newport Folk Festival, also shared his memory of the backstage jam with us:

I believe that I drove Doc to Festival Field that evening; I am almost sure that his son, Merle, was with us. The stage was quite large and the group assembled behind these big stage flats probably about 30-40′ from the start of the seating, which in those days was all reserved seats. Bill and Joe were a big part of the Cambridge/Boston scene and the Acuff band was a big favorite of Doc’s due to the many appearances on the Grand Ole Opry. It was a bit of a change for a prelude to the concert as we usually did not have any program music at any of the Newport Festivals. I have no doubt that it was heard by much of the audience – Joe Val had that high tenor which probably was heard in Providence!

You’ll be able to listen to this unique and historical set next Friday, February 11th, but also be sure to check in this coming Tuesday as we’ll also be releasing sets performed at the ‘68 Festival by Theodore Bikel, Joan Baez, and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. We’re proud to bring you a slice of the festival’s heritage, which continues to present the best in traditional and contemporary music to this day (it was also recently announced that the Newport Folk & Jazz Festivals are going non-profit, with their charitable efforts benefiting musical education in New England-based public schools – you can stay current on news from the 2011 Festival via their website), and we hope you share our excitement.

Until next week, enjoy those pre-show jitters, perhaps with some previously released Newport Folk shows pumping out over your own PA system.

[Coming Soon: More 1968 Newport Folk is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

Today, we’ve released three new sets from this amazing benefit concert.

Crosby, Phil & Nash
David Crosby, Phil Lesh & Graham Nash (accompanied by Jeff Pevar and James Raymond) headlined the evening, playing old hits and some tunes from the Planet Earth Rock and Roll Orchestra era. Listen to the entire set here.

Jackson Browne
Browne played three beautiful songs accompanied by Jeff Pevar on guitar; they were also joined by Crosby & Nash for a song. Wavy Gravy introduces him with a classic story about when they were in jail together. Listen to the entire set here.

Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
Possibly the world’s most legendary troubadour, Elliott performed three engaging songs on his own — including a touching Dylan cover — before being joined by Bob Weir for a loose reading of “Friend of the Devil.” Listen to the entire set here.

Besides these three new releases, you can also listen to the sets from Odetta and Charlie Musselwhite recorded at this benefit concert. The remainder of the sets will be on the site next Friday, 10/15/2010.

Support the Seva Foundation

For nearly four decades, the Seva Foundation has served people around the world who are struggling for health, cultural survival, and sustainable communities. From a Sanskrit word meaning “selfless service,” Seva was co-founded in 1978 by Dr. Larry Brilliant, Dr. Nicole Grasse, Ram Dass (a.k.a. Richard Alpert, former LSD pioneer), and Hog Farmer and Woodstock icon Wavy Gravy (a.k.a. Hugh Romney), along with many dedicated individuals from the spiritual, music, and public health communities in and around Berkeley, California. Seva’s fundraising efforts have been directly responsible for restoring eyesight to millions of people suffering from cataract blindness in India, Nepal, Tibet, Cambodia, Bangladesh, and throughout the African continent. Additionally, Seva has created programs to support agricultural and refugee relocation work in Guatemala, and helps combat health issues among Native Americans.

[The Sing Out for Seva Benefit Concert is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

I don’t mean to ignore that Ani DiFranco set - indeed, I highly recommend it, and what better time to give it a listen than the day after its 14th anniversary? More recently, she also recorded a killer Daytrotter session. But I have a short attention span and it’s currently fixated on:

[When Doves Cry with Excitement is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

The even better news is that we’re kicking off Jazz Thursdays this month with new releases every week from the 1964 Newport Jazz Festival, which was  held over 4th of July weekend of that year. Here’s the schedule of the acts as well as when we plan to make them available for streaming and downloading through the Vault:

7/2/64 (WV release date of 7/8/10)

• Newport All-Stars

7/3/64 (WV release date of 7/15/10)

• Sister Rosetta Tharpe, George Russell Sextet, Count Basie & His Orchestra, Mose Allison, Joe Williams, Rod Levitt Octet, Stan Getz Quartet, Ethel Ennis

7/4/64 (WV release date of 7/22/10)

• Oscar Peterson Trio, Max Roach Quartet, J.J. Johnson Quartet, Dave Brubeck Quartet

7/5/64 (WV release date of 7/29/10)

• Freddie Hubbard, Ruby Braff, Ben Webster, Oscar Brown, Jackie Moms Mabely, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, Jimmy Smith

We thought this would be an excellent way to get Jazz Thursdays rolling, as the release schedule will lead right up to the 2010 CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival coming to Rhode Island from August 6th – August 8th. George Wein began the festival’s legacy in 1954 and it is still going strong, and that is something worth celebrating.

Of course, you don’t have to wait until next week to start digging in. There are plenty of gems to be heard in the Newport Jazz Collection already, including two superb new releases from this week: Ray Charles and George Wein’s Newport All-Stars, both recorded in 1960.

As always, thanks for listening. Enjoy the weekend, and long live jazz!

[Jazz Thursdays in the Vault is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

[Some Advice for All the Sisters is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

The Noise Pop Festival is one of the many American events that cram multiple performances into multiple showcases every night for about a week, bringing together some of the bigger names in indie rock with local San Francisco talent. Festivals like these provide an amazing opportunity to sample a wide variety of bands in a short time. Wolfgang’s Vault was on hand to record audio and video of the ‘07, ‘08 and ‘09 festivals and over the next two weeks we are adding 30 new shows from the 2009 collection.

Two indie rock legends make an appearance in this week’s three featured concerts; there’s also some modern day experimental punk and a young, up-and-coming San Francisco band that plays hometown-inspired psychedelic rock.

click to see more images from the Noise Pop website

Stephen Malkmus

If you don’t know who he is, you might recognize the name of his band, Pavement. If you’re not familiar with them, then you’re more or less hopeless. Sean Moeller (Mr. Daytrotter) has written one of my favorite descriptions of Malkmus (which is somewhat autobiographical as well):

His chicken scratch and gobbledy goo gets sharp and academic somehow, as if you can believe in much of it, consider it and then make a case for it being the work of someone wiser than the smart asses, even if much of the work is in direct conversation with or a result of the many-splendored things that the dumb asses do. Malkmus writes songs that feel mafia-esque – as if they’re filled with nicknames and inside information – that still come off as takes on that lifestyle through the eyes of Steve Miller or someone like him, only with a doctorate degree in pet peeves and idiosyncrasies, as well as a fetish for clever, smirking humor that everyone can get behind.

Got it? Good. That blurb is especially fitting for the set Malkmus performed at Noise Pop ‘09 where, with nothing more than a guitar and a microphone, his songwriting is the focus. For some more editorial on Malkmus and the Pavement reunion, check out Crawdaddy!…they’ll also be posting a new video from this show every day this week.

No Age (featuring Bob Mould)

click to see more images from the Noise Pop website

No Age is a punk duo from Los Angeles described on Sub Pop’s (their label’s) website as:

Spiritual heirs to both Thurston Moore’s wide-eyed experimentalism and the all-encompassing, stark DIY art-is-life aesthetic of the Crass collective, No Age is the kind of band that inspires its audience without affectation, without cynicism. Its live shows are an exploration of possibilities: a guitar laid over a resonating drum head, effect loops woven together like beautiful harmonies, pop songs as performance art, a duo that sounds like the gale force of rock history delivered through a wind tunnel.

Well, we have the audio to back up their claims about their live performances from the first eerie guitar drone at the beginning of “Every Artist Needs a Tragedy.” This show is extra special because Bob Mould of Hüsker Dü joins the band on stage later in the set for the songs “Miner” and “New Day Rising.” (Mould’s entire Noise Pop set will be released next Monday.)

Sleepy Sun

With just one album under their belt and a followup scheduled for release on June 1st of this year, Sleepy Sun is definitely a band you should keep your eye on. With beautiful harmonies, intertwining guitar lines drenched in fuzz, and spellbinding breakdowns, they are a throwback to an earlier time…they even sort of look and dance like hippies!

Other suggestions / Coming next week

You can check out the rest of the new Noise Pop shows here. Some of my other favorites include Port O’Brien (fishing boat rock [most definitely NOT to be confused with yacht rock]), Loch Lomond (orchestral beauty & campfire sing-alongs), Goblin Cock (far out heavy metal), and Laura Gibson (mellow singer-songwriter with a gripping voice and some psychedelic instrumental colorings).

Make sure to check back next Monday as well, when we’ll put up more Noise Pop ‘09 shows including an absolutely stunning set from St. Vincent, the aforementioned Bob Mould show, and recordings of the Morning Benders and the Mumlers.

[More Noise, More Pop, More Great Music is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

This is one we’ve been excited about for a while now. To commemorate what would have been The Godfather of Soul’s 77th birthday, we’ll be releasing a set recorded at the 1969 Newport Jazz Festival on Monday, May 3rd.  The show, which features 15 songs, smokes from start to finish…even the ballads make you want to boogie. Painstakingly restored and transferred from the original 1″ analog tape, the sound quality is spectacular and, we think, does this historical recording the justice it deserves.  Mark your calendar — James Brown Live in ‘69 will be available in it’s entirety on Wolfgang’s Vault on May 3rd, 2010.

[Say It Loud – James Brown Coming Soon is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]

FEATURED CONCERTS: The national marijuana holidaze are over, but we’re still jamming with featured shows from two of Jamaica’s finest exports. First up is one of the most popular shows on the site, a 1979 recording of Bob Marley and the Wailers. With almost two hours of the best reggae imaginable and a guest appearance by the Rolling Stones’ Ron Wood, it’s time to give this one another listen…play it in the office and your boss might even let you go home early. Or check out a 1979 set from the ex-Wailer Peter Tosh, who was touring in support of an album produced by The Glitter Twins. Small world, eh?

$4 DOWNLOADS: Our $4 deals for the weekend are also sure to keep you grooving. A show from Jimi Hendrix and the Band of Gypsys will melt your mind and take you on a cosmic trip through time and space. This Jefferson Starship performance was recorded on the eve of 1980 in front of a very small crowd and captures the band at the crossroads between their beloved psychedelia and the arena rock they would soon pursue. And a 1960 Dizzy Gillespie Quintent show will keep your toes tapping and fingers snapping. Keep your collection growing!

WVIP SIGN-UP SPECIAL: How do you make a sweet deal even sweeter?  From now through May 1st, we’re offering a free t-shirt to anyone who signs up for a WVIP membership. For $48 per year, you get high-quality unlimited streaming, $50 store credit, 30% discounts on all downloads, and 10% discounts on all store purchases. Sign up now and we’ll throw in a snazzy-looking WV t-shirt with the iconic flying eyeball.

NEW RELEASES: We also went a bit crazy within the ExtenDead Family this week with four new releases. Sets from Phil Lesh & Friends, RatDog, and Mickey Hart & Planet Drum show how well the band members could jam outside of their Grateful Dead comfort zone while still flexing their own unique musical muscles. There’s also a new set from moe. who, besides being an amazing jamband on their own, outdid themselves by playing with guests Bob Weir, Rob Wasserman and David Gans.

FEATURED PLAYLIST: Lastly, we’re celebrating Earth Day with a playlist of some great environmental-friendly songs. You’ll find sincerity, sarcasm, folk, rock, funk, and metal on this list, but one thing these artists share in common is that they’ve tried to change the world with their music. There’s only one Earth Day per year, but we hope some of these tunes get stuck in your head for a lot longer than that, acting as daily reminders to take care of our home.

[We’re Jammin’ is a post in From the Vault - The Wolfgang's Vault blog.]