Hey everyone,

Mushroom just played their first show in 10 years with their original keyboard player Graham Connah (last show with Graham was August 1999),

here's a live video of one song from a show at the Starry Plough in Berkeley on July 2nd 2009 with Graham Connah, Matt Cunitiz, Erik Pearson, Dave Brandt, Ned Doherty, and Pat Thomas


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20M3T_6A3B4

we've gone thru the archives and unearthed two vintage Mushroom live videos - the first one features Eddie Gale on trumpet - and was filmed during a live recording session for the Mushroom with Eddie Gale "Joint Happening":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z9dz9mxlaU
the other video shows one of Alison Faith Levy's very first performances with  Mushroom (when she was playing keyboards with Mushroom):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mym2qi0m5dg

http://www.jambase.com/Articles/8914/COOK'S-CORNER-25-SUPER-SIZED-FOR-SUMMER
oh well, I thought I could cut and paste the actual review into this blog, but I can't.
click on the link above and just scroll down a couple of inches, there's a couple of interesting quotes about the sound of our early days live in San Francisco.

well, things are coming together nicely for the forthcoming shows of Mushroom performing The Who's (Pete Townshend's) 1971 rock opera "Lifehouse" - which got trimmed down and became the Who's Next album.
Our friend Patty is doing a great job as Roger Daltrey, while Erik and Josh are handling the Pete Townshend parts (vocals and guitar), Ned is John Entwhistle, Pat Thomas is Keith Moon,and Matt Cunitiz is handling keyboards, so I guess that makes him Nicky Hopkins on some songs and Pete on others!
mark down these dates:
Saturday Feb 21st - the Make Out Room in san francisco
Friday March 6th - the Starry Plough in berkeley
there will also be a radio broadcast on the evening of Wed March 4th on KPFA radio (during David Gans' "Deadhead Hour" show). this you should be able to listen to "on-line" if you don't live around the Bay Area - also this show gets rebroadcast on many other radio stations around the country, so check into it.
 
 
 
 
 

In early 1971 or so, when Pete Townshend and the Who were tired of performing Tommy - Pete began writing a new "rock opera" called Lifehouse - that was planned to be a double album and a movie. It had less of a plot (story-line) than Tommy - was sort of science fiction in nature (or least it took place in the future - including something called "the grid" - which we now know as the World Wide Web). Anyway, Pete wrote (and demo'd) nearly a double album's worth of great songs for Lifehouse - but was unable to convince the rest of The Who of the exact nature of what the whole thing was supposed to be about.

Many of the songs were recorded by The Who - but most of it was tossed to the side and the single album became known as "Who's Next" - perhaps the greatest Who album ever.  Meanwhile some of the other songs were released as singles or turned up years later on the "Odds and Sods" out-takes compilation.

Vocalist Patty Spiglanin recently joined forces with Mushroom and a couple of weeks ago - we did a test run at a live show at the Starry Plough - where we performed "Love Ain't For Keeping" from Who's Next (Lifehouse).

we've now decided to move forth and learn most of the Who's Next / Lifehouse material and in early 2009 will be performing in selected venues around the Bay Area - our version of Pete Townshend's "Lifehouse" project with Patty on vocals.

stay tuned.

thanks to our friend Davis at Ear Candle Productions, there’s a groovy new Mushroom live video that you can download and check it out for free - it’s taken from a recent live show and is about 7 minutes long, if you’ve never seen Mushroom live - here’s your chance:

In July - Mushroom released a new CD titled "Joint Happening" featuring Eddie Gale of Blue Note Records recording fame on trumpet.  Mushroom played two CD release parties that month - but sadly, Eddie was ill and was unable to make those shows.  So - now back in good health and in fine form, Mushroom joins forces with Eddie Gale for two special nights in December 2007.  On thursday night December 6th, tune into Derk Richardson's show on KPFA Radio 94.1 FM for a live radio broadcast of Mushroom with Eddie Gale, then on thursday night December 13th - go to the Starry Plough in Berkeley to see Mushroom with Eddie Gale, plus special guests: Emily Jane White and Willow Willow - will also perform sets that night.