Hell's Kitchen Radio #600: Freaky Mutant Crime

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What a delight it was celebrating my 600th show on Radio Valencia by hosting four musicians who helped shape the punk history in San Francisco. 

Who would have thought when I started my road in radio in the late 80s, that I would grow up to hosts legends of a music scene that was too young to enjoy when it was at its height, but came to love it deeply?

I have always followed my bliss. Music has always been my bliss. I'm not much of a fanboy...Ok, maybe for Ty Segall, but other than that I just really enjoy being around music and musicians, for the love of the art. I like talking music. I love reading about music. My favorite books about music are when the artist is talking about making the art. Keith Richard's book "Life" does this well.

37 years in radio (yikes!) has honored me with seeing some incredible live music, interviewing countless bands, and getting to know some of the finest people to grace a stage. I'm living the life! Monday night I was lucky to host four people who have made their mark on the San Francisco music scene, and will be doing so once again this coming Saturday at the newly reopened Mabuhay Gardens and On Broadway in North Beach.

Fritz and Brendan from The Mutants, Henry Rosenthal (Hank Rank) of Crime, and Ralph Spight of The Freak Accident spent the evening with me telling tales of the heyday of punk in the city, and the venue that sparked the magic. Music from these bands and other bands of the day are sprinkled throughout, all in preparation for a great night at the FabMab and On Broadway.

I am honored to be co-producing this show with Steve DePace of Flipper. Radio Valencia is co-presenting and will be spinning music throughout the night. And I'm your MC!!!

Tickets are almost gone for these two events, so please follow the links embedded in the posters to grab yours before they're gone.

Tune in Friday 8-10PM Pacific for a special on the upcoming live shows, featuring Steve DePace of Flipper, and members of BitchFit and False Flag.

Here's to 600 more shows on Radio Valencia!!!

jh

Hell's Kitchen Radio with John Hell
Mondays 8-10PM Pacific
Radio Valencia in SF
http://radiovalencia.fm

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The Catholics Are Attacking: Pop-O-Pies (The White EP - 1982)

Car Crash: Avengers (ST - 1983)

Wild: The Nuns (S/T - 1980)

White Punks on Dope: The Tubes (S/T - 1975)

B-Side: Sleepers (7" - 1980)
Plastic TV Land on Acid: Pope Paul Pot

San Francisco's Doomed: Crime (San Francisco's Doomed - 1978)
Rock 'N' Enemy No. 1: Crime (San Francisco's Doomed - 1978)

Murder By Guitar: Crime (Murder By Guitar 1976 - 1980)

Party!: The Mutants (Curse of the Easily Amused - Recorded in 1979, Released in 2026)
New Drug (Version 2): The Mutants ( Fun Terminal - 1979)

Noises and Numbers: The Mutants (Curse of the Easily Amused - Recorded in 1979, Released in 2026)

Fairytales: The Freak Accident (The Midnight Show - 2026)

Cat Bird Seat: The Freak Accident (The Midnight Show - 2026)

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific - Billy Strings and Robert Plant/Allison Krauss

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!! 

Time for some good ol' Americana and neo-Bluegrass!

First up is the recent Billy Strings set at Golden Gate Park from
August 1, 2025 where Billy and his band opened for
Dead and Company. This crowd was truly appreciative for this young phenom. If you don't know his story you need to get educated. The fact that he's still alive is pretty remarkable, let alone how talented he is in his playing, singing and songwriting. 

Lineage: Official Nugs Broadcast -> mp3

Our headliners tonight are the duo of Robert Plant and Allison Krauss from June 24, 2022 from Worthy Farm, Pilton UK - Glastonbury Festival. I love when Plant commented recently, when asked about his Led Zeppelin history, that he was proud of his time in that band, but he's a working artist and has a lot to continue offering the world. I could not agree more. Their "Raise the Roof" album is incredible, proving that Plant has a lot more in him. 

Lineage: BBC website VOD > yt-dlp full HD capture 1080p to mp4 to mp3

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific - King Buffalo and The Black Angels

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!! 

Powerful stuff in this weeks show. Two bands with driving rhythms and hypnotic beats. 

I'm going to start off with a power trio out of Rochester, New York: King Buffalo. They have a smattering of full length LPs and some EPs, each one building on the previous. They have toured with legendary bands such as Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, All Them Witches, The Sword, Clutch and Elder. If you know what those bands sound like, then you have a good idea of what you're in for here. Buckle up.

This show is from the Freak Valley Festival 2023 in Netphen, Germany, June 09, 2023

Lineage: LIVE Webcast -> Streamlink -> ffmpeg (edit) -> uncompressed .ts

Video: MPEG4 Video (H264) 1920x1080 16:9 5162 Kbps 50.00 fps

Audio: AAC (LC) 128 Kbps 48000 KHz stereo

Our headliners tonight are a band that I saw back up Roky Erickson at The Chapel in 2008. I loved what they brought to his music and have been following them peripherally up until recently when I took a deeper dive. And I'm happy I did.

The Black Angels out of Austin, Texas truly are connoisseurs of the Texas Psych sound. I can't help but get lost in what I'm hearing. I'm particularly excited about their first release, "Passover". And their most recent "Wilderness of Mirrors" has made me stop what I'm doing to listen more closely. I'm excited to see them at The Chapel on September 6th.

For tonight's show I chose Art Rock Festival, Saint-Brieuc, France on June 4, 2017. This is during the Death Song tour. 

Lineage: Codec: AAC

Channels:    Stereo

Bitrate:     16000 Bps / 128 kbps

Frequency:    48000 Hz

I know you're going to dig this!

Next week tune in for Billy Strings "opening" for Robert Plant and Allison Krauss.

Enjoy and please share.

jh

Hell's Kitchen Radio #580: 15 Years for Radio Valencia

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How is it possible that Radio Valencia is no 15 years old? I swear it was just yesterday that I was asked to start this station as a point of interest in a performance warehouse in the Mission. By the time I put the station together, along with Alec Bennett, Trademark Gunderson and Naomi Most, I had already been involved in about a half dozen other Bay Area community stations. 

I was willing to start Radio Valencia as long as I wasn't the one in charge. My goal was to have it operate as a cooperative. My hope was staff would work together in committees to make our station sound incredible and be active in the community.

I wish it has worked out that way.

Someone along the way came up with the concept of the "do-ocracy": if there is something you want to do at the station, then do it! 

This looks good on paper, but it can also mean if you only want to do your show and nothing else, that's fine too. 

This has been our undoing. We have had a number of really incredible people on staff over the years who have taken on a lot of work: scheduling, programming, engineering, but most of the staff we have had are only interested in hosting their shows. 

I really hate the "do-ocracy"

I'm glad to report that the music programming is some of the best I have heard on radio.

Today we have a steering committee, of which I sit on. We direct the actions of the station. We keep the lights on and the turntables spinning. 

Soon we are launching a new website (thanks to those who contributed to our fundraiser last winter), and a possible move to save overhead. Our current rent in our storefront location is too damn high! We also want to add more shows. Before COVID we had over 50 shows. Today we have 23. More shows = more money = more opportunities for RV to engage in the community. Cut down the rent overhead and we can bring in more staff who will pay less in dues, which will lead to a more robust on-air schedule, etc, etc, etc.

You get the idea.

I love having the station to play music and interview great people. I have loved being in our storefront on 22nd street since 2020. And these past 15 years have been mostly a real joy. If you read this far, what the hell is wrong with you? 

As for the music, I was thinking about playing music from each year we've been on the air, but then I figured why would do that? So, instead, I just did what I do and play great music that I think you need to hear. New music from Wet Leg, Ty Segall, LA Witch, Mark Growden, King Gizzard, and OSees. The rest of the night is me painting the aural landscape with sounds that will please your ears.

Enjoy and please share. And support your local San Francisco community radio station that continues to defy the odds.

jh

Hell's Kitchen Radio with John Hell
Mondays 8-10PM
Radio Valencia in SF
http://radiovalencia.fm

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IIBS: Charles Mingus (Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus 1964)

Dirt: Iggy and the Stooges (Fun House 1970)

Black Grease: The Black Angels (Passover 2006)
Slip Inside This House: 13th Floor Elevators (Easter Everywhere 1967)

Mangetout: Wet Leg (Moisturizer 2025) 
Fun Times in Babylon: Father John Misty (Fear Fun 2012)
Venus: The Shocking Blue (s/t 1970)

Dear Prudence: Siouxsie and the Banshees (Hyena 1983)

Another California Love Song: Ty Segall (Possession 2025)

Queen of the Underground: GOAT (Levitation Sessions 2023)

S.O.S.: LA Witch (Doggod 2025)

Legend of the Creation of Middle World: (Kyrgyzstan Session ft. Mark Growden 2025)

Volunteered Slavery: Roland Kirk (Volunteered Slavery 1969)

Ballad of the Soldiers Wife: Marianne Faithful and Chris Spedding (Lost in the Stars...Music of Kurt Weill 1985)

Sea of Doubt: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard (Phantom Island 2025)

Space Drugs: Spanish Moss (Kelp 2012)

Infected Chrome: OSees (Abomination Revealed At Last 2025)

Suzanne: Nina Simone (To Love Somebody 1969)

Puddin' A'Tain: The Alley Cats

From The First Hello To The Last Goodbye: Jane Morgan

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific - Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!! 

OK, so Ozzy died. Is this a shock? I can't imagine it is. He had Parkinson's for for the last decade or so, and this was brought on by all of his drug use. Hate to see him go though. What a powerhouse he was. I never got to see Black Sabbath or Ozzy live, unfortunately, but Black Sabbath was an early influence on me, starting around 17 when I got the Paranoid album. I wore that thing out.

I tell a story at the beginning of this show about driving around late a night listening to Black Sabbath and how it truly fucked with me. 

In celebration of the man, I have what I feel is Black Sabbath and their prime, live from Asbury Park, New Jersey, August 05, 1975. Live, there was no band coming anywhere near them. They were scary and raw. This show is a testament to the power and the glory that is the original lineup before Ozzy left to lead his successful solo career. 

Lineage: Soundboard **Remastered** by thir13en

The Black Sabbath show runs 1 hour 40 minutes, so to fill the remainder of the time I'll throw you what may have been Sabbath's biggest rock competitor of the day: Led Zeppelin. Instead of giving you something from their legendary 1975 tour, let's go back to a great BBC broadcast from 1971. Led Zeppelin III had recently been released and the band wads looking to get the word out. I may have to play this entire show on my Bootleg Bonanza in the near future. 

Lineage: BBC Radio 1 Original AM Broadcast -> MP3

You can find my mostly-complete-ish list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Join me for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific - Dinosaur Jr and Moon Duo

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!! 

Remember the 90s? I sure do. I don't reminisce that often; I let the music do that for me. When I think of music from the 90s Dinosaur Jr rises near the top for me: out of tune singing, angular and distorted guitar. They encapsulated everything that wasn't mainstream. J Mascis, Lou Barlow and Murph may have had that ups and downs, but the music was always original and driving. 

Lou Barlow left in 1989 and Murph left a few short years later. I stopped listening to them for a few years, as the sound band drifted away from what I had fallen for. Luckily by 2005 the original lineup reunited, recorded and returned to touring. 

Tonight I feature a show from November 12, 2019, with the original lineup, capturing songs from throughout their career. This a great show in terms of performance and sound quality. If you're a fan of Dinosaur Jr, or you're trying them on for the first time, you are sure to dig this.

Lineage: AAC 128 Kbps 48.0 KHz stereo

Following this set is a short BBC session from Portland's Moon Duo. This is a side project from Wooden Shjips' Ripley Johnson. If you're a fan of Wooden Shjips then I know you are going to love this shoort set fron July 16, 2013. Same driving rhythms and spacey, swirly guitar and vocals. 

Lineage: BBC iPlayer archive stream (aac, 320kbps/48k) > get_iplayer (.ts) > ffmpeg

Enjoy this and go see live music. Support your local clubs and buy the music.

Tune in every Tuesday 8-10PM Pacific for another dive into my love bootleg vault.

Next week I'll be paying tribute to the recently departed Ozzy Osbourne. I have a tasty Black Sabbath show from 1974 you are not going to want to miss.

Please share.

jh

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific - Destroy Boys & Sleater-Kinney

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Tuesdays 8-10PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!! 

It's been a while since I brought you some new live treats, so here's a bone for your chew on.

Check out the Stern Grove show from this past Sunday, June 29, 2025, featuring Destroy Boys and Sleater-Kinney. I took the audio from the official video stream, so it's high quality indeed!

Get your butts to Stern Grove and enjoy an annual summer treat.

This is the 88th year of free concerts in Stern Grove. Stern Grove is a recreational park in the Sunset district, with a natural amphitheatre. For the summer, there's a free weekly musical festival series with a diverse line-up. For Pride Weekend, Sleater-Kinney performed with Sacramento's Destroy Boys opening. 

First up is Destroy Boys, followed by our headliner: Sleater-Kinney

Lineage: Web > yt-dlp > MP4

Destroy Boys set list:

Shadow (I'm Breaking Down)
Crybaby
Drink
Plucked
Bad Guy
Should've Been Me
Muzzle
Boyfeel
Fences
You Hear Yes

Sleater-Kinney set list:

Price Tag
Bury Our Friends
Needlessly Wild
The End of You
Hunt You Down
The Future is Here
All Hands on the Bad One
Words and Guitar
Hell
A New Wave
One Beat
Turn It On
Don't Feel Right
Dig Me Out
Modern Girl
Untidy Creature
Far Away
>> Encore:
Judy Is a Punk [Ramones]
Holiday [Green Day]
Entertain

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - A Free For All

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

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Tonight it's a bit of a free for all. I have been playing full shows for a few years now, so tonight I thought I would do a show live in the studio and play a bunch of tunes that have been rocking (and jazzing, and funking and bluesing) up my world.

Tune in and give a listen to a taste of what I have to offer you.

In Memory of Elizabeth Reed: Allman Brothers - March 12, 2009

Moonage Daydream: David Bowie - September 5, 1974
I'm Losing You: The Faces - May 13, 1971
I've Been Loving You Too Long: Ike and Tina Turner - January 30, 1971

Papa's Got A Brand New Bag: James Brown - November 25, 1967

Mojo Pin: Jeff Buckley - June 24, 1995
There She Goes, My Beautiful World: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - July 11, 2009
On A Plain: Nirvana - November 19, 1991

Dancing Barefoot: Patti Smith - December 09, 2004
She: Ty Segall - January 16, 2018
Year of the Spider: Shannon and the Clams - October 08, 2022

Chunga's Revenge: Frank Zappa - July 3, 1980
40,000 Headmen: Traffic - January 26, 1973
Trampled Underfoot: Led Zeppelin - March 11, 1975

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Joanna Newsom (2011) and The Knitters (2005)

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

There's a special kind of music you're just not going to hear on commercial radio. Maybe those corporate types are just scared to take a risk? And such an easy risk to take. I guess this is what happens when you purchase your competition and don't feel the need to break new and exciting artists anymore?

The first artist up tonight isn't necessarily new, and she sure has gotten plenty of attention, but mostly from us here non-comm stations.

Joanna Newsom (cousin to our governor) has a very unique delivery with her voice and harp. I have really been drawn into her for the past few months and am excited to share her Austin City Limits set with you from August 1, 2011. 

Lineage: ATSC-> antenna-> computer capture card->mpeg2cut2->mpeg2repair->you

Our headliner tonight is such a treat. The Knitters are the sort-of-Western Swing version of LA's seminal punk band, X. They even cover a few of X's tunes with a bit of a Western style. Gotta love that. I have always enjoyed seeing X live, and seeing The Knitters is always a crazy and wild ride. This is a super fun show from the Showbox in Seattle, July 22, 2005, featuring the great quartet with Dave Alvin, whom I suspect is a major reason they went this direction. Both X and The Knitters still play. Go see them when they hit your town.

Lineage: Soundboard -> DAT(M) -> CDR(1) -> AIFF -> WavePad normalize and split tracks -> TLH convert to FLAC > mp3

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Miles Davis 1969

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

What can I ever say about Miles Davis that would be better than anything ever said about the man? Nothing. I've been listening to Miles since my teens. I'm confident it was my father who turned me onto him, even if he didn't know a lot more about him than the fine music he was hearing. 

Early on my Jazz listening was all about Blue Note Be-Bop, which Miles was the undisputed King (OK, there's Bird and Dizzy of course). I ate all that Blue Note era up! When I was at KFJC (88-97) I hosted a mid-day Jazz/Soul/Funk show on Fridays for a few years. That's when I started to do a lot of deep crate digging, driving me towards the late-60s and early 70s era Miles. WOW!

It was then that I read his autobiography "Miles". I have read that book three times and each time is better than the last! I ended up hosting a five part 15 hour Miles Davis special on KFJC. I don't feel like I even scratched the surface of what this artist created.

Tonight's show features the late, great sax player from Miles' second great quintet: Wayne Shorter. I could have chosen a show or two from his post-Miles fusion group Weather Report, but I what I'm playing for you tonight is really going to kick your ass.

You think you know Jazz? You don't Jazz until you have heard this right here.

Two shows from Miles' 1969 European tour, featuring Shorter on Sax, Chick Corea on piano/organ, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and Dave Holland on bass. The first show is from Festival Mondial du Jazz d'Antibes, La PinËde, Juan-les-Pins, France 7/26/69. The second show is from Folkets Hus, Stockholm 11/5/69. Most of the tracks are from the Bitches Brew era, and live they really come to life. The interplay between all players if beyond words.

I know you're going to dig this.

Lineage: Soundboard

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Ray Charles (1966) and Amy Winehouse (2007)

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

Looking through my catalogue of shows I try to put together a night that Bill Graham would be proud of. Let's see if I can find two artists who would have really enjoyed playing on the same bill together. I think I hit the jackpot tonight!

First up I have a classic set by one of the hottest artists of his day: Ray Charles! This show from October 22, 1966 at the Palais Sport in Paris is one of my favorite shows of his. And the quality is really top notch, especially for the time. I'm surprised this was never officially released. I'll need to look into that.

Every song is a smash.

Lineage: Soundboard > SHN > flac > mp3 320kbps

Our headliner tonight would be so humbled to be playing in the top spot, and it would not be false modesty. Amy Winehouse was never false. If anything she had imposter syndrome, which is bad enough. I really wish she found a way to get clean and healthy. My daughter, Little Lauson Hell really is quite obsessed with her, and I can understand why!

Check out this show from Glastonbury, June 22, 2007. She was on top of her game at this time in history. You'll note some fadeouts during this set. I had to get rid of the DJ chatter. This is a FM source.

Lineage: FM-MASTER - Grundig FineArts T-IR / AS-IR line-out > line-in SBLive! > HDD > WAV > normalized to 98%, than track splitting > FLAC level 8 > mp3 320kbps

I throw some Staples Singers in there between acts for some quality filler, from June 8, 1986 at the Chicago Blues Festival. What a solid act they were.

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Talking Heads (1977) and Television (1978) In Tribute

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

I really don't want to turn this show into a tribute show, but the first few weeks of this year have been tough. Let's celebrate these great artists while they're alive, shall we?

I've got two really brilliant shows tonight, featuring East Coast "Punk" bands in their early prime.

First up, Talking Heads from the Old Waldorf in San Francisco, December 3, 1977. This pristine FM-soundboard features a young band, still feeling their way, but with a boatload of confidence in their material. This show is almost exclusively from their first two LPs "More Songs About Buildings and Food" and "1977". 

Lineage: KSAN Fm Reel>Cd>Shn

Our headliner tonight is a band that I should have featured on here months ago. I hate that it took the death of front man Tom Verlaine for me to pull this out. I have a memory of working in grocery with a young lady years ago, who told me she had once dated Tom Verlaine. I'm guessing she was many years his junior at the time, but it was the name of the band that really struck me. 

Who named their band Television?

I picked up "Marquee Moon" soon after this. It had to be 1994 or 1995. I was probably 24 when I first took note of them. That album really was amazing, from the first listen, on. I was already into bands like Sonic Youth, and it was obvious to me where they got some of their early influences. Verlaine's and Richard Lloyd's angular guitar playing influenced my own. When I think of a band that deserves the honorarium "Godfathers of Alt-Rock", it's probably Television. Bands like Pavement, Sleater-Kinney, REM, The Gun Club, and Dream Syndicate come to mind right away.

I have quite a few Television shows going back to when Richard Hell was on bass (these are rare and the quality is not for airplay). The show tonight is a real gem. July 2, 1978 from the Earth Tavern in Portland, Oregon, following the April release of their second album "Adventure". This is an excellent soundboard recording with a lively crowd. The jams are really strong. 

Lineage: SBD Reel > DAT > FLAC (44.1) > mp3 (320 kbps)

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (In Tribute) - 1969

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

Shoot, two tributes in a row here on the Live Bootleg Bonanza. And this one really stings. I grew up loving Crosby, Stills and Nash, with and without Young. David Crosby's personality has always made me chuckle. I love that he was acutely aware that he was a cantankerous sort, and was OK with that. He knew his own misgivings and made peace with it many years ago.

I also love that he was such a huge fan of Jerry Garcia. I know after the 1970 "If I Could Only Remember My Name" sessions he wanted to join the Grateful Dead. He also knew there was absolutely no place for him in that band. It's like he was being a fanboy about it. 

I got to see him a week or so after he was released from prison in 1986, perform at the very first Bridge School benefit. Crosby was shaved bald and had a huge grin the whole show. I had just turned 16, and I went with one of the custodians from my high school that I used to hang out and get stoned with. I think the statute of limitations has run out on that one. HA!

I love that he was tweeting the day before he died. I almost have this sensation that he walked side-by-side with Death, as if to say "OK, let's go", stood up out of his chair and walked out the door. 

I hope he's rocking out with so many of his long lost musical friends. Maybe now he and Jerry can jam into eternity?

I start out tonight with some filler from a David and the Dorks show at the Matrix in San Francisco, recorded during Crosby's solo record sessions at Wally Heider studios in December 1970. This show features Crosby on guitar and vocals, Jerry Garcia on guitar and vocals, Phil Lesh on bass, Mickey Hart on drums. 

Lineage: KSAN-FM broadcast - Cyprus Remastered 2014

For the headlining show I want you to enjoy this really amazing, and very rare show, September 13, 1969, recorded by an audience member with perfect mic placement. CSN and Y were not even mentioned in the publicity for this small show at the Big Sur Folk Festival at Esalen. Joni Mitchell headlined. This show features Dallas Taylor on bass and Greg Reeves on drums.

The story goes that a guy and his girlfriend recorded this with a microphone on a wooden pole near the PA and they had a reel-to-reel (possibly an Ampex) tape recorder.

Lineage: Source: Audience > 3rd gen Reel > (unknown gen) DAT (48)

Transfer: DAT 60ES > M-Audio Audiophile USB > CD WAV > Goldwave - Resampling 44.1, minor edits and normalization to 100% > CD WAV tracking and Flac conversion

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around for my weekly music mix: Hell's Kitchen Radio, Mondays 8-10PM Pacific.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Jeff Beck (In Tribute) - 1968 and 1999

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

Yet another tribute on the show tonight. And here's an artist I featured back in November: Jeff Beck. Beck died on January 10th from bacterial meningitis. Yikes! So sad to see this guitar hero go. 

Beck was known for creating some very unique sounds from his guitar, most often not using a pick. As the same goes "often imitated, never duplicated", Beck was one of a kind. 

I'm starting off with three tracks from a great early show, featuring the Jeff Beck Group (Rod Stewart on vocals, Ron Wood on bass), from the Fillmore West, July 24, 1968.

Lineage: SBD > unknown > CDR > CDR > EAC > FLAC > dime download > Adobe Audition for clean up and retracking with Izotope ozone for phase correction > TLH Flac level 8

The headlining show tonight is one of sheer brilliance. If you love guitar like I love guitar, you'll be staring at your speaker for the duration of the program. From the bootleg "Plus Nobody Japan", this is Jeff Beck at his zenith (when wasn't he at his zenith?) May 25, 1999, live at Club Kanagawa Kennin,Kaikan, Japan. This outstanding soundboard features Tal Wilkenfeld - Bass, Jason Rebello - Keyboards, and Vinnie Colaiuta - Drums.

Lineage: Soundboard

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Buddy Guy and Junior Wells 1984

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

Monday night I'm paying tribute to my dad, Harvey, who passed away on December 26th following years suffering with Parkinson's Disease. My dad played a huge role in my life from an early age, and my love of music comes from him.

Some of the earliest music I can recall my dad playing was electric Blues, something that I still love to this day. My dad brought home the first Blues Brothers record "Briefcase Full of Blues" shortly after it was released in 1978, and we played that thing to death! I memorized every word, every lick, every drum break, every horn part, and eventually every pop and scratch! I eventually had to purchase a second copy.

My dad loved that record because he grew up knowing most of the originals, especially "Messin' with the Kid" by the artists I'm playing tonight: Buddy Guy and Junior Wells.

My dad spent a lot of time in the Blues and Jazz clubs of Detroit in the early to mid-1960s seeing some really great acts, including Guy and Wells. My dad could spin a tall tale now and then, so I could not say for certain which shows were true and which were some he just wished he saw, but I am certain of his love for the Blues, and Rock and Roll.

This show tonight is a features Guy and Wells in a small club in Cotati, California, September 20, 1984, just ten days before my 14th birthday. Ironically we didn't live that far from Cotati, and this show was shortly after my parents split up. If my dad knew this show was happening he would have made his way there for sure. Little Charlie and the Nightcats are the backing band for this show.

Lineage: Soundboard (no knowledge of the generation)

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around Monday 8-10PM Pacific for a two hour tribute to my dad, which I'll be playing a bunch of his favorite music, and telling stories about a one-of-a-kind soul. I hope you tune in.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza - Monday 6-8PM Pacific - Mudhoney (1992) & Sex Pistols (1978)

 

John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza

Monday's 6-8PM Pacific

http://radiovalencia.fm

DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW RIGHT HERE!!!

Let's face it, Punk ended in 1978 with the dissolution of the Sex Pistols. It's not that there weren't amazing bands that stuck it out after that, and bands who didn't come around after that, who were seriously influenced by the Sex Pistols. It's just that the original Punk nihilism died in 1978 when the band called it quits.

As much as I love The Clash (and I really do love them grandly), no one could hold a candle to who the Sex Pistols were and what they stood for. The irony of nihilism, and pissing people off just for the sake of doing so just wasn't the same once Johnny quit the band. And there was no way Steve Jones and Paul Cook were going to continue on with Sid Vicious, even with Ronnie Briggs singing. 

I've just completed reading "England's Dreaming", by Jon Savage. What a brilliant look at such an important moment in social, political and musical history. I strongly suggest you read both this book and "Please Kill Me", by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain. You might want to throw in Dee Dee Ramone's autobiography. 

This all inspired my show tonight. First up are one of my desert island bands: Mudhoney. I love them, deeply. This show must have been a blast to attend. Recorded April 19, 1992 in Dusseldorf, Germany at the Noise Now Festival. The band was drunk. They make fun of Peter Murphy (who hasn't?). Everyone had fun. This was during their tour for their first major label release "Piece of Cake" on Reprise Records; a record I really enjoyed, although it was a bit overproduced compared to their Sub Pop days. I'm pleased they released the demos from this record a few years back on "Pezado de Pastel".

Superfuzz Bigmuff made a huge impact on me when I first heard it in 1989. Really major. This is a band that kicked my ass, and I still pull them out often. When all my friends were getting into the Grunge bands of the 90s, I asked them point blank who would be remembered in 20 years (now 30+). And I told them Mudhoney will be remembered and respected more than most. They scoffed. We don't talk much these days.

Linage: Recorded by bobfather
Source 1 (Tracks 1, 15, 16): Master Video > FLAC
Source 2 (Tracks 2-14): FM Broadcast > Source: FM > TDK SA (analog tape) (can`t rememember which tape deck I had by that time) > nakamichi cr 7e (azimuth adjusted) > marantz dr 6000 > mac rip to disk > soundforge > flac
Mix: Audacity (trim and align both sources) > CDWAVE (splits) > Audacity (speed correcct tracks source 2) > FLAC > mp3

Our headliners tonight are the one and only Sex Pistols. This is from the legendary "let's get out of the country and see if we can tackle America" opening show of the American tour, January 5, 1978 in Atlanta, Georgia. It's hilarious that Malcom McLaren purposely kept the band away from the major cities (except San Francisco for their final show of the tour and their final show as a band), and instead sent them to towns in the deep south purposely to confront an aggressive audience who were skeptical of Punk and British Punk rockers in particular. 

There''s three songs tacked on at the end from December 11, 1977 in Maasbree, Scotland as filler. 

Again, read "England's Dreaming".

Lineage: Soundboard - Label: Big Music - BIG 046

You can find my mostly-complete list of live shows right here. Have a request? Leave a comment.

Support these bands. Buy their officially released music and merch, and never ever sell live bootlegs. These are for trade only.

Stick around Monday 8-midnight Pacific for my weekly music mix, Hell's Kitchen Radio. It's my 500th show on Radio Valencia tonight, and I have some fun lined up. Call  your friends, and tell my enemies John Hell is on the air.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

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