The May 3 NOLA show is also notable for being the first time "Rita May" (Dylan-Levy) had been heard in public.
The song was a Desire outtake, later released as a single's B side of RTR's live "Memphis Blues Again." The latter song was recorded at a Fort Worth gig.
On "Rita May", Bob and I sang it as a duet, with me covering Emmylou's harmony part, as I did with all the Desire material on RTR.
I did a double take ... this is THE Rob Stoner! Way cool. I know you're in Ray's first Dylan book (and on the cover, which I designed as well as the rest of the book for Ray) but it's cool that you're dropping in here.
You just illuminated something I've thought about through the years ... do you happen to know if Emmylou was invited on either Thunder tour? If not, I wonder why not?
Regardless, your harmonies on these Desire songs on the road were great.
Thank you for sharing this. I loved the TV concert and have a grey area CD of the entire concert as well as Hard Rain on vinyl and CD. It is great to have another good quality record of that tour. I also have the UK 'Rita May' picture sleeve single, do it is great to have the only live version, to date.
I just happened to watch the Oct 1976 SNL episode Kinky Friedman guested on and completely forgot he'd just come off Rolling Thunder. Not sure if the jacket he was wearing was the Nudie jacket Bob gave him.
Thanks for telling the back story to "Sweet Amarillo," Ray. Old Crow Medicine Show played Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa during the Dylan and the Beats conference in 2022. Before playing the song, Ketch Secor shared the anecdote about being contacted by Dylan's office and offered another outtake from the Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid sessions. But he added that, after releasing "Sweet Amarillo," the band received a cease and desist order from lawyers representing the actual person who wrote the song! Secor just left the story hanging there, but now I see the bigger picture.
Fascinating! Old Crow (and Darius Rucker and Cassidy Rae and others) certainly received no cease-and-desist from one of Dylan's more famous outtakes, "Wagon Wheel." Thank goodness! A nice little book could be written just on the story behind that bootleg fragment that became an iconic tune for disparate artists.
Thanks, Ray. I'm really enjoying this whole series. The other thing about that soundboard, out very early after it was made, was it was the only time those of us who couldn't catch Rolling Thunder got to hear the whole show - the full-on Guam band intro, Neuwirth at the helm round-the-horn with everybody's songs (including Donna Weiss) before the Bob section of the show. (Kinky on Joan Baez: she sends my penis to Venus every night when she comes out here onstage.)
Every other bootleg we ever heard was the Dylan concert, not surprisingly, but that really made New Orleans stand out. Part of my random collection which I've been dissipating here and there to friends, is a T-shirt from a diner called Rita Mae's. A funny wink-wink inside joke for the tiny number of us that would get it. 😎
Having a shirt from a place named Rita Mae's reminds me of the time my wife and I were traveling in the southwest and I insisted on visiting Albuquerque, just to get some "fried eggs and country ham" at a diner there. Tip of the hat to Neil.
One of my favorite '76 posts yet. Can't believe I'd never heard the Tom Waits story. It does sound pretty presumptous of the RTR crew to take over.
I'm going to share “Okay, Roger, hit the beaches.” with my musician friends when they encounter an indifferent or hostile crowd. Hilarious.
p.s. on my wedding day back in '95, I forgot 2 key things: how I was getting to the wedding venue (not wanting to drive since I'd booked a limo for our getaway), and what I was eating. My buddy Daren Wang (www.myhandbasket.com on ye Substack) quickly jumped in to drive me there and ran thru McDonald's drive thru on the way for a quick bite on the way. Like Joan's roadies, I was charmed that someone thought of what I had not planned!
The May 3 NOLA show is also notable for being the first time "Rita May" (Dylan-Levy) had been heard in public.
The song was a Desire outtake, later released as a single's B side of RTR's live "Memphis Blues Again." The latter song was recorded at a Fort Worth gig.
On "Rita May", Bob and I sang it as a duet, with me covering Emmylou's harmony part, as I did with all the Desire material on RTR.
I did a double take ... this is THE Rob Stoner! Way cool. I know you're in Ray's first Dylan book (and on the cover, which I designed as well as the rest of the book for Ray) but it's cool that you're dropping in here.
You just illuminated something I've thought about through the years ... do you happen to know if Emmylou was invited on either Thunder tour? If not, I wonder why not?
Regardless, your harmonies on these Desire songs on the road were great.
She had other commitments. Her lp was on the charts. Glad you like the job I did subbing for her.
Thank you for sharing this. I loved the TV concert and have a grey area CD of the entire concert as well as Hard Rain on vinyl and CD. It is great to have another good quality record of that tour. I also have the UK 'Rita May' picture sleeve single, do it is great to have the only live version, to date.
I just happened to watch the Oct 1976 SNL episode Kinky Friedman guested on and completely forgot he'd just come off Rolling Thunder. Not sure if the jacket he was wearing was the Nudie jacket Bob gave him.
Thanks for telling the back story to "Sweet Amarillo," Ray. Old Crow Medicine Show played Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa during the Dylan and the Beats conference in 2022. Before playing the song, Ketch Secor shared the anecdote about being contacted by Dylan's office and offered another outtake from the Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid sessions. But he added that, after releasing "Sweet Amarillo," the band received a cease and desist order from lawyers representing the actual person who wrote the song! Secor just left the story hanging there, but now I see the bigger picture.
That's an interesting twist!
Fascinating! Old Crow (and Darius Rucker and Cassidy Rae and others) certainly received no cease-and-desist from one of Dylan's more famous outtakes, "Wagon Wheel." Thank goodness! A nice little book could be written just on the story behind that bootleg fragment that became an iconic tune for disparate artists.
Ha ha I wrote that response before I read the article ... I see the write-up about "Wagon Wheel" therein.
I've got the show on the 'Friends and other Strangers' boot, is that the one to have?
Thanks, Ray. I'm really enjoying this whole series. The other thing about that soundboard, out very early after it was made, was it was the only time those of us who couldn't catch Rolling Thunder got to hear the whole show - the full-on Guam band intro, Neuwirth at the helm round-the-horn with everybody's songs (including Donna Weiss) before the Bob section of the show. (Kinky on Joan Baez: she sends my penis to Venus every night when she comes out here onstage.)
Every other bootleg we ever heard was the Dylan concert, not surprisingly, but that really made New Orleans stand out. Part of my random collection which I've been dissipating here and there to friends, is a T-shirt from a diner called Rita Mae's. A funny wink-wink inside joke for the tiny number of us that would get it. 😎
Geoff
Having a shirt from a place named Rita Mae's reminds me of the time my wife and I were traveling in the southwest and I insisted on visiting Albuquerque, just to get some "fried eggs and country ham" at a diner there. Tip of the hat to Neil.
One of my favorite '76 posts yet. Can't believe I'd never heard the Tom Waits story. It does sound pretty presumptous of the RTR crew to take over.
I'm going to share “Okay, Roger, hit the beaches.” with my musician friends when they encounter an indifferent or hostile crowd. Hilarious.
p.s. on my wedding day back in '95, I forgot 2 key things: how I was getting to the wedding venue (not wanting to drive since I'd booked a limo for our getaway), and what I was eating. My buddy Daren Wang (www.myhandbasket.com on ye Substack) quickly jumped in to drive me there and ran thru McDonald's drive thru on the way for a quick bite on the way. Like Joan's roadies, I was charmed that someone thought of what I had not planned!
Thanks so much. I Always feel like I'm right there when I read your posts.
Thanks Ray, Fascinating account of highs & lows in New Orleans with much-appreciated sound board. The Idiot Wind is terrific.
Great tips! That Sweet Amarillo is so full of personality