Postcards From Page Side: A Snapshot of Stu
This week, Hidden Track featured columnist, Brian Bavosa, sits down with JGB lead guitarist, Stu Allen to chat about life, love, this weekend’s Brooklyn Bowl sell-out shows, and of course, all things Jerry…
As the saying goes, “Seeing The Grateful Dead was like going to the circus. But, going to see the Jerry Garcia Band was like going to church.” Nothing could be closer to the truth in my eyes. And thanks to the “Keepers of the Flame,” the JGB, we have a chance to receive the sacrament often, as witnessed this past weekend at Brooklyn Bowl for two, sell-outs shows, and a nice chat with lead guitarist/vocalist, Stu Allen.
Allen was gracious enough to sit down with me on President’s Day over a few casual drinks to talk about the JGB’s shows this past weekend, about what makes him and the band tick, while addressing the most difficult of questions of what it’s like to be compared to the almighty – all answered in his slow, humble way – a fierce contrast to his inspired, emotional and flat-out rocking style of playing that surely channels Garcia, but trust me, he makes all his own. “Everyone’s got their own take on what Jerry and the Dead were doing. Even inside of that, everyone in the band has their own take on what they are doing,” he says. “With us (the JGB), we want to convey that vibe, but I don’t mind stepping outside of that and kind of pushing the envelope outside of that, depending on the crowd or whatever.”
For anyone that has ever loved or been inspired by Jerry Garcia, it’s been tough to get your true fill over the past 16 years. There has seemingly been an overwhelming branching off of bands to cover his music, whether it be your local Dead cover band, or Dark Star Orchestra, who are historically accurate in the renditions of shows, to the Bob Weir and Phil Lesh incarnations and collaborations such as the current touring Furthur. And then there is the JGB, which was founded by Garcia Band alumni and keyboardist, Melvin Seals, shortly after Jerry’s death in 1995.
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