Update April 11, 2001

Greetings from The Phil Zone!

Stuff n' Nonsense

We have had many requests for Phil Lesh & Friends merchandise from people who were unable to purchase them at our shows. In fact, our small office staff has been known to grab something out of storage and ship it to phans who asked really nicely.

We also often have merchandise left over from tour, and now seems to be a good time to start up our online store. We researched many options and decided to try MusicToday to run it. They are fully equipped to handle all customer service questions; but we don't want to be out of the loop, so please let us know if there are any issues that weren't resolved to your satisfaction.

Your input is welcome at ThePhilZoneQuest@aol.com; we may not be able to answer all emails but we will make sure that you are taken care of. Please check out our "Stuff n' Nonsense" available now.

Special Plans

Phil Lesh & Friends are excited about visiting the Southern region during our Here Come Sunshine Tour.  Phil has some very special plans for the tour's opening night run at the Sunrise Music Theater in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, incorporating the visionary themes that will carry us through the Summer tour.  At selected shows during the tour Phil will be reading stanzas from the "Invocation to the Sun", the Prologue to Nikos Kazantzakis' epic poem "The Odyssey: A Modern Sequel" (click here to read the poem). We invite you to accompany us on our ongoing Odyssey, where our search for the chaos lurking behind the veil of order promises to immerse you in an electrifying experience for both mind and body

Venues

Many of you have asked how we choose venues. Tours are scheduled many months in advance, requiring many hours of detailed planning to bring our band to your neighborhood. Many of the more popular venues can be difficult to book on the dates we need them, especially in the busier touring seasons. For example, the Tower Theater had booked Mark Knopfler months ago on the dates we hoped for. You may be assured though, that  we are bringing the most cutting edge sound system and specially designed lights (and of course, John Cutler and Candance Brightman to run them).Production values are one of the most important aspects of Phil Lesh & Friends; new venues bring new challenges and the better informed we are before a show about challenges, the better equipped we will be to handle them. Phil does feel that it is an important part of the adventure for the band as well as for the audience to venture into new venues. There is comfort but also predictability about going to the same venues all the time. It is a challenge and much more work for the band and crew to inaugurate new venues but the rewards can be commensurate with the effort expended. Security is always an important part of a show for many reasons. We have been informed about overzealous security at certain venues and we are working with the promoters in advance to make sure that this will not be an issue. As part of Here Come Sunshine Tour coverage, we will share both the history and uniqueness of many of the venues and persons behind the production of the different places that we will be performing.  Speaking of venues, here is a link to some of the ancient Greek Theaters that sadly we will not be performing this time out:
www.drjclassics.com/drj/lectures/theater/greektheater.htm

Unbroken Chain Foundation Auctions

We have resumed our Unbroken Chain Foundation charity auctions on E-Bay. Some of the items offered will be pairs of tickets to our shows at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia, PA, Convention Hall in Asbury Park, NJ, and at the Roseland Ballroom in New Your City, as well as other special items including picking a song and other fun stuff.  For more information point your web browser to: http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/unbrokenchainfoundation

Caveat Emptor

While we're on the subject of tickets, it has been brought to our attention that individuals have been offering tickets through E-Bay and other sources that offer fans the chance to purchase tickets with "Phat VIP passes", or offering "Front Row Tickets" for General Admission shows. If the offer sounds too good to be true, the chances are that it is.

Do The Drip

We are very pleased to announce that Phil Lesh will be making an appearance on Saturday, April 28th at the American Red Cross Blood Center, 700 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, from 11AM to 2PM.  The center is located across the street from the Electric Factory so we look forward to your community support. You may schedule an appointment now by calling 1-800-GIVE LIFE (locally) or 215-451-4000 (for phans calling from out of town).  For more information point your web browser to:
www.pleasegiveblood.org/Donorctrs/MUSSER.HTM

In The News

"This is alchemy, this is more than chemistry," explained Phil in the current issue of Rolling Stone Magazine describing the joy of playing with Phil Lesh & Friends. "I haven't experienced this since the peak of the Grateful Dead. And I wouldn't say that lightly." Phil later remarked: "It's like surfing on a solar wind, somebody says a little idea, and someone else will take us into a whole other corner of the universe."  See the whole article here:
www.phillesh.net/philzonepages/friends_stuff/rollingstone-010412.html

Our resident sunshine expert Jimmy Herring provides a career-spanning interview with Michael Buffalo Smith in the current issue of Gritz Magazine. Herring describes playing with Phil: "Phil is just so open to everything. I mean he is just wide open. The weirder you play, the more he likes it. I'll play something, and Phil will go, "What is that?" (Laughs) And I'll say. "I don't really know. "  You can read the whole interview at:
http://www.gritz.net/jimmyherring.html

In The Studio

Besides playing with Phil Lesh & Friends, The Allman Brothers Band, and his upcoming The New School of Gov't Mule, Warren Haynes has continued his Gov't Mule recording project that is a tribute to the late Allan Woody.  One of the several already completed songs is "Forest of Fennario," an adaptation of Robert Hunter’s "Lay of The Sunflower," that was first publicly performed by Phil Lesh & Friends this past New Year’s Eve. Several weeks ago, Phil Lesh & Friends resident audio wizard John Cutler traveled to New York to engineer a session that included Phish bassist Mike Gordon. Besides Mule founders Warren Haynes and drummer Matt Abts, the project includes musical appearances by: Phil Lesh, David Grisman, Rob Barraco, Jack Bruce, Les Claypool, Chris Squire, Dave Schools, Tony Levins, Jack Casady, John Scofield, Bernie Worrell, Derek Trucks, Gregg Allman, and Alphonso Johnson. We can't wait to hear it. For more information check out: www.mule.net

Our mountain man, John Molo, recently finished up an East Coast tour with his high-energy, groove band ensemble, Modereko. Modereko features John D'Earth (trumpet), Bobby Read, saxophone and woodwinds), and Tim Kobza, (guitar and bass). The group, who takes it's name from the first two letters of each band member's last name, will release their debut album on May 8th on the Blue Thumb label. John Molo has also found time to record with rock music legend Delaney Bramlett in Los Angeles. Learn more about Mt. St. Molo's other projects by checking out:  www.johnmolo.com

We have lots of fun stuff in the works including offering a fantastic show recorded February 18^th at the Maritime Hall for free download.  Please check www.phillesh.net for the most up to date information. Want to contact us?  We'd love to hear from you.  ThePhilZoneQuest@aol.com.

We look forward to seeing all of you out there in The Phil Zone.

J.C. Juanis

See previous March 13th, 2001 Hotline message here.
January 26th, 2001 Hotline message here.