MORE JIMI ANECDOTES

 

Yeah, remember another time when we were at Buddy's house on Sunset Plaza Drive, about four blocks from the Whiskey? We went there after his Buddy Miles Express set was done. Buddy kept his stereo gear in a closet and he had us follow him over to the closet and very excitedly showed us an acetate of some studio sessions he and Jimi had just done and of course, forced us to listen to them.

 

While we were backstage at the Whiskey, All the horn players were really high and Buddy was drinking his 'special' drink from a mason jar, brandy, tea, honey and lemon. (just like when we met him at the old race track in Cardiff at the DEAD, QMS, GRAHAM BOND and BUDDY MILES EXPRESS show)

 

Jimi came into the Whisky with two fantastic-looking blond girls. He was wearing a canary-yellow suit and a yellow silk shirt with ruffles, (w/o ridges ha ha) and he seemed to float by us without his feet touching the ground, like the nun in the Blues Brothers movie.

 

We were so fucking blown away when Buddy introduced us that I couldn't speak and I think Rudy said "really great to meet you Mr. Hendrix."

 

JEFF BECK’S NO-CLASS ACT AT THE SHRINE AUDITORIUM

 

I seem to remember Rod on vocals, Ron Wood on bass, Jeff Beck on guitar, Nicky Hopkins on piano, Mick Waller on drums at that Shrine Auditorium gig.

 

Ten Years After had just finished their set with “Goin’ Home” and Jeff was up next with The Moody Blues as headliners.

 

The Shrine had a two-stage set up so there would not be long periods for setting up. After Alvin Lee ripped the joint, Jeff stood back stage and said, "fuck that shit, I'm not going on right after that" and left the auditorium in his hot rod.

 

That is when the Moodys went on as it looked like Jeff bailed on the gig. In the middle of the set the Moodys had just started “Nights in White Satin” when Jeff and company snuck back on stage like fucking burglars and Nicky was giving the band the notes to tune by, very loudly.

 

The entire crowd ran screaming from the Moodys stage to the Beck stage and they broke into, I think, “Ain't Superstitious.”

 

That was probably the single most DICKISH move ever perpetuated upon one rock band by another and it had its price for Jeff as he proceeded to blow the solos in “Beck's Bolero,” “Plynth” and “Hi-Ho Silver Lining,” and not just tiny little mistakes but fucking bombers.

 

God don't like no fuckin’ around with the ROCK and ROLL

INVADER FROM THE NORTH DISCOVERS SIN DIEGO BY THE SEA

 

MY RECOLLECTION

 

Some discussion was held about the time of the big move of the station from "under drugs" on Fifth Street to 7th and Ash across from the El Cortez Hotel.

 

I showed up in the summer of 68 at about 6:00 am. OB Jetty found out he was shipping out and called me and ordered my ass to Sin Diego as his departure would leave a slot open. He told me to call Buck as soon as I got into town so he could take me to the station.

 

Buck took me straight to Fifth street, we woke Ron up, introduced myself, Ron asked if I was the dude Steve told him about, I said yup and he walked into the studio and fired Johnny G, the guy everybody thought was a narc with the Tasters Choice in the briefcase and the wraparound shades.

 

Johnny G left, Ron asked me if I was familiar with a studio and did I know that board? I asked him, “how hard can it be? and “no.” Ron threw up his hands and went out the room, but the printed story (article attached in photos) said he just went back to sleep. I asked which switch controlled which turntable and mike and sat down and did my first show.

 

I only did the station ID at the top and bottom of the hours and no spots. Three hours in, someone asked me if I was following the log and playing the spots and I replied; “what log?” I knew that if I was sitting at home listening to three straight hours of commercial-free radio, I wouldn’t want to hear 30 minutes of prerecorded spots so I split up the spots into small batches, found instrumental tracks that fit what bag I was in and did two to three spots at a time about 20 minutes apart and caught up.

 

This is when I started to get my first requests for certain spots, the audience favorite was Aaron Ambulance, the Ambulance Company that would take you to the hospital of your choice, not just the nearest one.

 

The move, was I believe, that weekend, Ron working round the clock since he was the only one with the 1st class license and the era where we could say KPRI, under drugs came to an end.

 

Steve, Sandy, Rudy, Buck, Jack Jacobsen, Rick Cutler, Marguerite and I, all split from KPRI in late March or April of 69. Diane Feiner moved to SF a little later.

 

That wasn't my Torino parked in front of the station in the picture of our old studio as I had a dark purple Morris Minor Van that was custom painted by our friends in the MC club of the Red and White.

 

That space did cause Radio Unrest one afternoon when Fred Nurk was doing his best Channeling of Van Morrison and reading poetry as I watched and waited, that space became available.

 

I was watching the ON AIR sign for a break in the poem where Fred might switch the mike off for a second so I could move my Morris Minor Van, when someone zipped into the coveted (by me) space.

 

I broke out my usual string of “motherfucking, stupid square hillbilly fucking prick, taking my space yadda yadda” completely forgetting the poetry reading in progress. I looked up and the ‘ON AIR’ sign was still on. I thought Fred and I were gonna die. The look on his face was priceless, pure horror, Larry did not hear it but Karen and Joanne did."

 

Not my fault, I was excitable.