My first big gig with the Rounders was opening for The Allman Bros.-'71: The gig was in a Big hall in NYC.Capacity 4-5000.The Allmans were at the height of their popularity-Duane and Berry Oakley hadn't killed themselves yet-and the place was sold out.We didn't have much time for a sound check so we went to the dressing rooms and said Hi! to the Bros.Time to play-We start with "Reuben's Train". It went pretty good-We got decent applause-but Peter and Steve apparently had never played with monitors before.They thought they were too loud and started backing off the mikes. The sound board was up in the center of the balcony and the sound man had no idea what was goinng on onstage.Instead of turning down the monitors,he started dumping the instrument mikes.The lower the instruments sounded,the further they backed off until they were three feet from the mikes.The sound man.was in the balcony,waving his arms and jumping up and down.It sounded like shit. The crowd got ugly.They started booing and shouting:"Allman Brothers!!"Get the Fuck off the Stage!!"etc. We kept going and they started throwing things.It was about then that I discovered that old 360 Bass amp was a good thing to hide behind.We finished up and got paid.The Allmans were great!Smoked the place! . Alice Cooper The Incredible String Band at Cornell Univ. Buffalo,N.Y. Returning from Buffalo to N.Y.C.,we drove down the N.Y.State Turnpike.Michael McCarty,Richard and I were driving a car we had borrowed in New Hampshire.About half way there Michael got tired and couldn't drive anymore.I took over even tho I didn't have a license yet and Michael went to sleep in the back seat.A little while later we passed a cop car hiding on the median-He pulled out behind us and pulled me over.Studded tires out of season.I woke up Michael and asked what to do since I didn't have a license.He said to say that I was him and I had lost my wallet.The cop asked for my licence and I told him I had lost my wallet.He told me to get in the cop car with him.He asked my name and I told him"Michael McCarty"-He entered it into the computer and asked my birth date"Uhhh......"-"You dont know your birth date??"- "OK,You got me"and I gave him my name and said I had a New Hampshire license and I really had lost my wallet."Sure kid,let's see what's in the trunk." We had all the instruments in there and right on top was my backpack and the first thing he found was my wallet. "Is this this the one you lost?Let's see what else we can find."He starts pulling out the cases,opening them up and going through them.We're all out on the pavement,watching,but we KNEW we didn't have anything for him to find.Way down on the bottom he finds Rube's fiddle.This was strange because Rube drove his own van and he always carried all his gear.The cop opens the case and right on top was a clear plastic bag with about 15 tabs of Orange Sunshine LSD in it.The sight of that bright orange went through us like an electric shock.The cop picks it up and puts it aside and picks up a wad of newspaper that was under it.He opens it up and there's a ball of hashish an inch and a half in diameter.In N.Y.State at that time we would get at least 5 years in the State Pen for that amount of those drugs.He holds it up,sniffs it,And asks"What's this??" Michael pipes up"That's Violin bow rosin."We all say"Yeah,Rosin!!"and make like we're sawing on a fiddle.He looks at us and you could see the gears turning in his head,like he's thinking"I don't think I believe them,but if I drag them down to the station and it really IS bow rosin,I'll never hear the end of it."He wraps the hash back up in the paper,puts it back in the case,puts the Acid back on top of it and closes the case.We load the trunk back up while he writes me a ticket for no drivers license(I never paid it.)and lets us go.We stop at the next rest area and figuring that Rube owed us a big one,we got the hash out and smoked half of it before we got back to N.Y.C The Chicken Box---on Nantucket. Some of the Rounders opening acts: Bonnie Raitt+Joseph Spence at the Stonehenge in Ipswitch Mass NRBQ The Charlie Daniels+Jerry Corbitt Band at My Father's Mustache in Roslyn NY. .Europe- 72 Hog Farm On the plane Helsinki Sweden Stockholm Skaarpnak Flygfaalt Camper Copenhagen--Christiania!! Amsterdam- Paradiso-Slim the Roadie-Maelkie Way Dordrecht Rotterdam-P.McCartney Texel On the Road- 72- 78 Boston Mass. The Bus-The Silver Slug-so called because it would creep up hills leaving an oily trail.It was a 1952 GMC PD4103-an ex-Greyhound Silverside Highway bus.It smoked alot,was noisy inthe lower gears but when you got it up to about 70 MPH it would smooth out and just hum along.It had a 4 speed crash box-you had to double-clutch-and a GMC 671-E series(2 valve head)2 stroke diesel motor-affectionally called by motorheads the"Screamin'Jimmy"because it developed maximum torque at high RPM-up against the governor(2100 RPM)-it would literally scream. We bought it from a church school in Mass. for $1200-it needed a battery and starter-and we ripped the seats out.The first trip I remember was from NYC to Boston-Rube insisted that we get Richard and Weber off the streets of the Village before they killed themselves-we just had matresses on the floor.Weber gave Rube some methadone he had and Rube spent the trip barfing out the door.We eventually built seats(that folded out into beds),a card table,an equipment rack for the big stuff and the instruments (the rest of the equipment went down below in the"Possum Bellies"which also served as a quiet sleeping rack when the party upstairs got too wild.),and permanent beds-the back bed was 7.5 'X 7'. Vermont The Hoop Snake-On a fairly regular basis,Weber would show up to the gig too fucked up to play.We would tell him he wouldn't get paid unless he was entertaining.How 'bout the Hoop Snake?He would bitch and moan and ask for a young female from the audience to assist him(none ever volunteered),then whip off his pants,lay on the stage and attempt to suck his own dick.He never actually achieved this feat,but it was definitely entertaining.The response from the bar owners,employees and patrons was usually a mixture of shock,disgust and horror.At the Gazebo in Putney Vt.,the owner was too traumatized to even fire us.He was speechless. There was a bunch of guys in Vermont that started a club called"The Witnesses"and followed us around to gigs and would yell for"HoopSnake!!"trying to recruit new club members.At the Squeeze Inn in Tahlequah,Okla.,they were used to drunk indians, bar brawls, etc. Weber did the Hooper and the bar owner walked by and couldn't believe that this was happening in his bar.His automatic response was to pour a pitcher of beer on Weber's upturned butt crack. Manhattan Transfer-Some Ivy League College in N.J.-- There's nothing like splitting the bill with an animal act.We had been travelling around the East Coast with the Hog Farm.Amazon Linda was riding on our bus.She was about 19;yrs old--6' tall;--and was built like ,,,,well,,, an Amazon.. We were on just before Manhattan Transfer and we followed a Chimpanzee act.The monkey(With the prodding of his trainer)did all of the standard stuff--Wear a dress,Smoke a cigarette,Ride a bicycle- - For the grand finale;the trainer called for a volunteer from the audience to have their picture taken.Since Linda was just backstage and willing(the trainer may have had"Urges")she was picked to be photographed by the monkey.All she had on was a tube top and Mini Skirt(Barefoot,no undies).The poor chimp looked thru the viewfinder -- she smiled and squeezed her tit--The chimp looked up over the camera and the trainer smacked him with the prod--"AIM!"---The monkey refocussed-- She smiled, lifted her skirt and flashed her Snatch---He looked up over the camera and the trainer smacked him harder with the prod--AIM!!!!!!---The monkey reluctantly refocussed---She smiles and flashes again and the monkey throws down the camera and charges at her.She screams and runs offstage;The trainer yanks the chimp by the choke chain---- flogging the poor thing-Right in front of a thousand people ---Screaming"BAD MONKEY!!!!BAD MONKEY!!!"----End of show. Tough act to follow!! Francis the Roller Skating Mule. The Great Bondini Have Moicy! Fooey Fooey- Hurley had put his basic tracks down early and had gotten progressively drunker as the day wore on and Jeff did his basics. By the time they decided to record Fooey Fooey he was blotto. Jeff had to play guitar while Hurley tried to sing into the mike. We did several takes but Michael fucked them up by either weaving away from the mike or babbling through Jeff and Jill's vocal ending. "Fuck This!! This Sucks!! Yer all a bunch o' Assholes!! I need more Whiskey!!!" Jeffrey took things in hand. He made Michael lean on him while they sang the song. At the end, he stopped playing guitar, grabbed Snock, held his hand over his mouth while he and Jill sang the ending. Vermont----Cold!!Cisco inCassel's barn--John Raskin--Chelsea ,Vt.--Hot plates,Percodan,Etc. Alleged Chicago Wyoming-Rock Springs Oregon-Milwaukee-Norma Zagreb I had never been to California before so I was kinda excited. As we drove the bus over Siskiyou Summit on I- 5, it was raining on the Oregon side. As soon as we crossed the border,the sun was came out and we drove through the mountains into the warm, sunny valley. SanFrancisco-Marin Co.-Suzi Deixler Seattle-Medicine Show-Grand Central-Warren Saari- Ace Toilets --- We were playing in Seattle-The Rainbow,I think...-Rose DeArmas had the hots for Jill and invited Jeff and Jill to stay at her house.Jeff knew what was going on and said they would stay there if she would let us park the bus in her driveway.Not really a good idea- on the bus was Weber, Richard, Morgan, Kustom, Duarte, Lonesome, and I was driving- but she agreed.We had the bus parked,plugged in,gone thru her refrigerator ,medicine chest,etc,and were watching TV,listening to the stereo by the time they got there.Jeffrey came in last wearing his long suede coat and didn't sit down.Wayne starts right in:"It's about time you got here,Jeffrey,Let's have some Whiskey!!""I don't have any Whiskey!!"and he goes into the bathroom.When he comes out,Wayne starts in again--"I know you have Whiskey,Jeff!" "No I don't! Honest!!"This goes on for awhile-- "All this bullshit makes me have to shit!"sez Jeff and he goes back into the bathroom.When he comes out it starts all over again.Jeff sez he has to "shit again" and goes back to the bathroom.We hear this loud CRASH! It turns out that Jeff had a fifth of Whiskey under his coat the whole time and not wanting to share,(With that crew there, it wouldn't have lasted five minutes.) kept going to the bathroom and guzzling an inch or two.The last time in,the bottle slipped out of his hand and fell into the toilet and rather than the bottle breaking,it shattered the toilet bowl.Jeff shut off the water and started cleaning up the mess and I figured this was a good time to break out the quart of Everclear I had stashed and we all(except Jeff,Jill and Rose)retired to the bus. It was about 4:00 AM.We had been drinking straight shots of E'clear for a couple of hours-Richard,Weber and Morgan had passed out but the rest of us were pretty buzzed when Jeff comes in the door-Shaved,showered,with a clean white pair of coveralls on. "Boys,I feel guilt!We can't leave poor Rose without a toilet.Something must be done!--I have a Plan!!"He turned around and on the back of his coveralls he had stencilled in red magic marker in"Embroidery"script--"Ace Toilets" "Boys,,We have a toilet to get!" 'I aint gonna miss this one!"sez Wayne.Everybody piles into Jill's Travelall-I begged off,feeling rather ill.Around 6:30 they com roaring up the driveway.I look out the window and in the grey light of dawn I see Jeff and Wayne carrying a toilet in the front door.I got the story:They drove around Seattle--Not much open that time on a Saturday night--The places that were,the 7-11,etc.,weren't any help- so they gave up.On the way home they passed a laundromat-not open yet but the door was open and the lights on.Jeff walks in and sez to the guy opening up: "I'm here about the toilet." "Oh! My partner must have called you.It's right in here."Jeff looks at it for awhile.It seemed that the tank leaked a little bit.Jeff shakes his head and sez: Tsk,Tsk.It looks like I'm going to have to take this one back to the shop!Here,Give me a hand."The guy comes up with some wrenches,helps him unbolt it and carry it out to the car. It didn't quite fit on the hole in Rose's bathroom floor but it worked just fine.