Howlin' Wolf "Wang-Dang-Doodle"
Hmmm, so Howlin' Wolf covering the Grateful Dead?
(No, I know it's the other way around...)
Anyway, that's today's bust-out. And it's not just a bust-out for the song, but also for the
artist. We also had rarities from Janis, Traffic, Bowie, John Lennon, and T. Rex. And it's hard to
complain about one of the best Stones jams or a great Marvin Gaye song. Yes, overall it's a pretty
good set. But as 1971 is the best year evah, a pretty good set is only slightly better than
average. The potential -- unrealized in recent years -- is for a 1971 show to be "knock your socks
off" fantastic.
Today's year gives me a chance to ponder what I think is one of 10@10's greatest omissions:
The New Riders of the Purple Sage. Their eponymous debut album has some wonderful gems;
just about anything from it would be a great contribution to a 1971 set. Between being a local
band, and their connections to the Grateful Dead, I would have thought that they'd be 10@10
regulars in the early '70s, despite their limited catalogue. But surprisingly, they've been no-shows
until Annalisa played one of my few requests:
Panama Red. I think their earlier work holds
up better, and their absence on 10@10, and KFOG in general, puzzles me.