Vault Radio: It's Quite a Trip

I've wanted to write about Vault Radio since I began this crazy blog adventure.

If you love live music...If you love classic rock, blues and soul music from the late 1960's and early 1970's...If you never got a chance to see Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, John Mayall, Led Zeppelin, Albert Collins, Jefferson Airplane and other rock and blues legends play live...If you always wanted to hear a concert at the Fillmore (West and East) or the Berkely Community Theater or Webster Hall or Madison Square Garden....If you love bootlegs but want to support the artists...then, go visit Vault Radio right now.

Vault Radio is the digital re-incarnation of Bill Graham. Graham, whose given name was Wolfgang Granjonca, produced more than 35,000 concerts through the late 1960's and mid 1970's. Graham recorded most of these concerts on tape, including seminal live performances by the Doors, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Otis Redding, Traffic, BB King, Paul Butterfield, Janis Joplin and others. This treasure trove of live music lay dormant in Graham's attic until 2003 when his music archive was acquired by Wolfgang's Vault, the owners of Vault Radio.

Today, Vault Radio is playing selected tracks from Graham's recorded concerts in an FM-quality, 128K digital radio stream. While Vault doesn't provide listeners with the option to fast forward through the playlist or select a specific artist or track -- how very lo-fi -- there is no denying the unique experience of listening to Aretha Franklin sing "Love the One You're With" from her 1971 concert at The Fillmore West. It is truly spine tingling.

So, dust off your old LPs, put on your bandana and bell bottoms and head off to Vault Radio. It's quite a trip.