Might this have been the last time Larry Crane was on stage with the band?

Interesting...

JM really was in a bad place, mentally and emotionally, around this time.

Do we know why the Brothers of Darkland County release was postponed/shelved?

Yeah, my favourite things on the box were, undoubtedly, the alternate L.U.V. and also the different Our Country, which I'd never heard before. I suspect -although I'd never wish to second guess JM - that the box was primarily aimed at music critics. Not us.

Anyway, a couple more questions for anyone that might know:

1) Is there a story behind Jackie O? Certainly a strange arrangement...even more so when you consider John Prine's involvement.

2) Why does the Uh Huh record have two different covers? (The one with the painted JM and devilish-looking angels flying around him, and the blue cover of JM smoking).

3) Does anyone know which songs Dave Grissom played on on Big Daddy? I'm thinking the title track and To Live, but I may be way off.

Some great points there. I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking that the Rural Route box was a missed opportunity; from the point if view of a longtime fan, it's hard to get excited about that release.

I would've killed for a 4 disc set of rarities, outtakes and live tracks. I really don't know who the box is aimed at.

Thanks walktall; such a pleasure to talk with a knowledgeable JM fan.

Sometimes I do wonder if JM is at all aware that there are guys like us who would snap up archival releases and rare stuff. I get the sense he mostly feels somewhat underappreciated.

I'll check out the guitars101 forum for boots but I don't do torrents yet. I mostly collect actual silver disc bootlegs. Further thanks for the links to the vintage articles; will check 'em later when back in the house...and I'm looking forward to hearing Angie and March of the Forgotten Seven. You're a star, man.

Will be downloading this tonight if the file is still up. Thanks walktall.

I've been getting heavily into the great Playstation3 racing simulation game Gran Turismo recently; while I'm spinnin' round those tracks I've been blasting some JM records for the first time in a little while. I started with No Better than This and worked backwards right through every record to American Fool. The 2005 remasters sound absolutely awesome; I even listened to the '87 The Little Bastard's Birthday Party bootleg and the Lausanne, Switzerland bootleg from '88.

Some thoughts sprung to mind as I listened:

1) Isn't it odd that the first record post-Lisa Germano kicks off with a Miriam Sturm solo piece? Could this have been a subtle 'screw you' to Lisa G after she left the band?

2) What's the deal with Kenny's drums being replaced by a drum machine on L.U.V. ? I seem to remember that Mellencamp and Aronoff had a full blown fistfight during the '94 Dance Naked recording; did I read this in a Rolling Stone interview from '94? I think it was the article that went into detail about a stalker outside Belmont Mall who was unhealthily obsessed with Lisa G.

3) Do your ever think we'll see documentary footage from any album recording sessions ala Springsteen's Darkness and Born to Run box sets? I'm guessing there must he quite a bit of footage from Belmont Mall rehearsals. Is there anything like this on YouTube or circulating amongst JM collectors? This is probably the holy frail for me and my JM buddies over here.

4) I was lucky enough to get my hands on a dvd of highlights from the 4th July Deer Creek Indiana show via eBay a few years back; it cuts out quite a few of my favourites such as Martha Say, Minutes to Memories and Play Guitar, as well as the really cool drum intro on Live and Happiness. Is the whole show out there in video form? I have the audio bootleg already but would love to watch the whole show.

5) I'm not Running Anymore is, surely, John's worst ever song lol. Disagree? Would be interested in your opinions here...

6) How can I get hold of the two rejected songs from the '98 Columbia debut? Angie and The March of the Forgotten Seven are their titles I think.

7) Are there any places you guys go online to access JM live shows, rarities, etc?

8 ) JM really landed on his feet when they got Dane Clark in. What a job the guy had following Kenny. Dane C is just awesome; Death Letter is just a great piece of rocknroll drumming.

9) Do you ever think we'll see John, Toby, Mike, Larry and Kenny share a stage again? Even just once? Or a one off Bam-Bam rock record with this line up? Stranger things have happened...I think record companies might be really interested in such a proposition.

10) Chances of JM ever touring the UK again?



Okay, I'm done. Excuse any typos above, please...this touchscreen predictive text thing drives me insane.

Greetings from Glasgow, Scotland. Keep on rockin, guys.

Nobody has any great shows from the last ten years or so...?

Hey guys/gals,

I'm looking for great shows in good quality to download from, say, the last 12 or 13 years. In particular tge '99 and 01/02 tours.

Would love to get my hands on great recordings of Gimme Shelter and the '02 arrangements of Paper in Fire and The Full Catastrophe, among others.

Would also love a recent rendition of Circling Around the Moon in great quality...


Any info greatly appreciated.

I imported the region1 DVD via amazon and had a blast watching it. Loved the little bit with JM on the street after the end credits. Crumblin' Down is awesome, as always, on this dvd.

Maybe about time we had an archival release on dvd featuring Kenny, Toby, Dave Grissom, Lisa G and John Cascella though...

Blasting this one in the car is always a treat...badass stuff, man.

What a great album, from start to finish. My favourite album cover, too.

"Death Letter" was absolutely kickin' this tour. Great drums from Dane C.

Thanks Walktall.

Awesome, thanks Walktall.

Ideally I'm after any great soundboard recordings from 1999 onwards!