Sandy Denny + John Martyn - Sundown Theatre, London, England, October 26, 1972

The perfect October double-bill? Yeah, maybe! What’s not perfect is the lamentably lo-fi recording quality of this tape, which I believe is the only audio representation of Sandy Denny and her friend John Martyn’s run of UK dates together in the fall of ‘72. And this is coming from your Doom & Gloom pal, who has listened to the worst VU bootlegs in existence (and enjoyed them, damn it!). So, uh, buyer beware?

But is this tape worth checking out? Don’t be silly, of course it is! The evening begins with Martyn surely scaring the folkie crowd, throwing them into the deep end right away with a long, effects-laden version of “Outside In,” sounding more like Pink Floyd than Steeleye Span. Things get a little more straightforward as the set progresses — until John gets to his dubbed-out jam on Skip James’ “Rather Be The Devil.” Righteous.

“I had a WEM Copicat which I was using to try and extend the sound of the fuzztone on the guitar so I could play the same note for half an hour if I felt like it, and twitch it now and again,” Martyn said of his gadgetry. “And of course it broke, as they do, and I bought the Echoplex and it sounded very nice, and completely by chance I found out that you could make rhythmic noises with it. I was actually looking for sustain. I wanted to sound like Pharoah Sanders …”

Sandy, meanwhile, had just released Sandy, her second LP, and plays a bunch of those tracks, including stirring solo renditions of “It’ll Take A Long Time,” “Sweet Rosemary” and “The Music Weaver.” Like I said, this is a very amateur recording — but part of the ummm pleasure (?) is hearing Denny’s powerful pipes come close to literally lacerating the tape, cutting through the darkness like the Queen of Light. The Lady could sing! Stick around to the end for a subtle, almost jazzy rendition of her signature tune, “Who Knows Where The Time Goes.” Magic. The main disappointment? That Sandy doesn’t invite John onstage to duet on her lovely cover of Dylan’s “Tomorrow Is A Long Time.” That would’ve been soooooooo good.

Sandy Denny - Beatgæst, October 1970

Beatgæst! Thanks to Records Crates United for pointing me in the direction of this new-to-me rarity — a guest DJ spot from the one and only Sandy Denny on Danish radio. Some very nice selections: Steeleye Span, the Stones, Dylan, Judy Collins, etc, all giving us a little glimpse into Sandy’s listening habits as she moved from Fairport to Fotheringay. The real draw, however, is just hearing her lovely speaking voice. I’ve never gotten into ASMR but if Sandy Denny was involved I’d probably have no choice.

Sign up for the Doom & Gloom From The Tomb Substack newsletter — Doom & Gloom delivered to your inbox every Friday!

Uncle Tupelo - Mississippi Nights, St. Louis, Missouri, April 30 / May 1, 1994

This is the ideal alt-country band. You may not like it, but this is what peak performance looks like. Yes, 30 years ago this week, Uncle Tupelo was breaking up in spectacular fashion, Jeff Tweedy and Jay Farrar glaring at each other from across the stage while playing some absolutely fantastic music. And — unlike every other band not named Galaxie 500 — they’ve never gotten back together. Was it all because of Ken Coomer’s shorts?!

“The tour did not go well,” Tweedy wrote of the band’s final trip around the U.S. “In February, at Cat’s Cradle in North Carolina, I almost punched Jay in the face. Not onstage, of course. The near fisticuffs happened after the show, in the club’s parking lot. I’m the one who lost my temper first. I was pissed because Jay wouldn’t sing harmonies on my songs. It was the thing that finally pushed me over the edge. I knew he was leaving, I knew this tour was primarily to tie up loose financial ends, but what the fuck, at least pretend you want to be there. You don’t have to like me or enjoy my company, but for the hour and change we’re onstage, could you at least do your job?”

Jay and Jeff both do their job on these sweet tapes of the last two Tupelo shows, with pretty much every song sounding like the greatest breakup anthem you’ve ever heard. Amazing what this band got done in the span of just a few years — the setlist is all killer, no filler, delivered with a lean/mean grace and ragged glory.

Listening to it this week took me back. I was just really getting into Uncle Tupelo at the time and was supremely bummed that they were breaking up — my infamous brother had seen them in late 1993 and I had hoped to catch ‘em the next time they came through. It was not to be! But sometime soon after the Mississippi Nights shows, I stumbled upon an early AOL chat room and convinced a stranger to send me a cassette of the last night. So it’s really a Doom & Gloom origin story! Bootlegs and the internet. If you’re out there, kind stranger — this is all your fault!

📸 Jim Leatherman