(Dixie) Dregs appreciation...

West guested on California Screamin'
I hadn't been keeping up with him, but from his site http://www.xen.com/:

Here are some of the highlights of my career so far:

• 4 Time Grammy Nominated Bass Player
• Played on over 20 Commercially released Albums
• Original bassist for The Dregs, Zazen, and The Mistakes
• Developer, Manager, Entrepreneur, and Executive in the Software Development business for over 20 years.

cacho wrote: Though I think the thread is turning into a Steve Morse Appreciation thread, hehe...

Agreed.  Let's here more about Rod Morgenstern, drummer par-excellence.  Second only to Simon Phillips (playing on Rutherford's Smallcreep's Day and Beck's There and Back) is Rod's machine-gun precision double-bass playing on several choice tracks...

Unfortunatly the Dregs are limited as Slarty says to shows around the Purple tours.  I was fortunate to see them in So Cal when the Namm show was out and it brought more than few musicans to the 500 strong crowd.  Just have to watch for the shows.

i have the "What if" album by Dixie Dregs, it contains the theme tune "Take it off the Top" Tommy Vance used for his Friday rock show, a regular tune-in for me in those days, really miss old Tommy...

I'll probably be repeating stuff I've said in other threads. 

This is was an essential band to get into when I first got in to prog.  What If really moved me.  Freefall, not quite as much as much at the time, though still an excellent album. 

Parts of Freefall were even used for some commercials spots on Ted Turner's first TV station WTBS, promoting things airing on the station.

All the studio albums are great, but they really ramp it up live.  I'd also highly recommend their Live At Mountreaux DVD from 1978. 

This is a band I have seen more times than I will ever be able to see another in my life. (Helps growing up and living in the Atlanta area.)  So many shows dating from the What If to Industry Standard era that I've lost count.  Bring 'Em Back Alive was my last show so far.  Even got to volunteer roadie for them when they played at a local community college back in the 70's. 

By the way, I'd place them in Eclectic rather than Jazz Rock/Fusion, though they were heavily influenced by Mahavishnu Orchestra and played a few MO covers in the beginning before I first saw them live.  If you take their music a whole it's Rock/Jazz/Classical/Bluegrass Fusion.

Also of note, Jerry Goodman, a former MO violinist has joined the band for a few albums and touring.  Steve Howe played an acoustic guitar duo with Steve Morse on Industry Standard.  Dweezil Zappa joined them on stage for a cover of Peaches En Regalia.  Though not a prog artist per se, Mark O'Connor has also filled the violin seat on Industry Standard and their live touring for that one.

They were known by the fans that I knew of as the Dregs even before they shortened it to that for the sake of commercial albums trying to gain a little commercial success, hence the (Dixie) in the thread title.  Don't be afraid of the Dixie, but on every album you will get one Bluegrass/Rock fusion tune.

Be sure and visit.

http://www.stevemorse.com/

 




Edited by Slartibartfast - March 04 2009 at 20:05

^what she said about Steve in DP, I'll have to second it all!

Saw him too in Deep Purple this year, 2 weeks ago, simply stunning guitarist, and like Raff said, a very, very nice guy.

Though I think the thread is turning into a Steve Morse Appreciation thread, hehe...

b_olariu wrote: Yes great band, usualy not mentioned in many fav top ten jazz bands, Dixie Dregs made me love them after I've heared What if from 1978, still their best and among the best from the'70's.

What if is one of my favs too!!!

Coast to coast by The Steve Morse Band is incredible too!!!

Yeah....great great band. I have to say ' Night of The Living Dregs", " What If.." " Dregs of the earth" opened up a new appreciation and direction of prog all those years ago. I had VDGG in one hand and DD in the other. I am happy to say I chose the latter

I didn't even know Dixie Dregs were in PA until just now, lol.
Don't really know their music to be honest, but I can at least say Steve Morse is pretty insane.
The man alternate picks all these insane arpeggios for christ sake, absolutely crazy.

Wow! What a coincidence, I just listened to Unsung Heroes today, and thought of opening up a Appreciation thread for them!

I'm not a big fan of them, though they're excellent musicians, all of them, specially Steve Morse, a very underappreciated guitarist.

My fave albums are: Unsung Heroes and Night of the Living Dregs

My fave song is Kat Food