Geoff Gould  : Good Evening!  My name is Geoff Gould, I'm the coordinator of
the Grateful Dead Forum here on AOL. Tonight, our special guest is Gary
Duncan,  founding member, and guitarist with Quicksilver  Messenger Service.
He's got a new album out, "Shape Shifter" as well

Welcome Gary

Gary Duncan   : Hi Geoff - it's windy tonight in Cyberspace

Geoff Gould  : from Tbonebald:
Question   : How was it to come out of the same scene as such bands as Big
Brother, the Dead, and the Airplane and be just as talented, but not reach
the kind of fame that they gained?

Gary Duncan   : Probably karma

Geoff Gould  : Tell me about your album
 
Gary Duncan   : It's a double cd -- called Shapeshifter -- on  Pymander
Records -- recorded over the last 8 years.
 
Question   : Gary: Will you be performing in the S.F. Bay Area anytime soon?
If so, when and where?

Gary Duncan   : Yeah -- depending on how well this CD does -- we  should be
doing a lot of shows worldwide,  hopefully
 
Question   : Who are some of the other musicians on your new CD?
 
Gary Duncan   : Greg Errico from Sly and The Family Stone -- on  drums,
Michael Lewis from Quicksilver on  keyboards, David Freiberg from Quicksilver
on vocals, Bobby Vega on bass,  Norbert Stachel on saxophone, Lee Oskar from
War on harp, Dave Sommerville from the Diamonds on vocals, Tony Menjovar from
Malo on percussion,  and a varied  cast of characters
 
Question   : Do you have a current, permanent band? Who's in it?
 
Gary Duncan   : It's pretty much the same depending on how much I get paid to
play.

Question   : How much of the material did you write? Who else  contributed
songs? Any standouts?
 
Gary Duncan   : Everything but three tunes -- Michael Lewis, Greg Errico,
Norbert Stachel, contributed.  As far as standouts, I'll let you be the judge
of that. 
 
Question   : do you have a guitar collection?
Gary Duncan   : Yeah, I have three guitars.  A Gibson Les Paul Custom, an
Adamas electric acoustic, and a  Gibson Chet Atkins steel string.
 
Geoff Gould  : which is your main axe? 
 
Gary Duncan   : The Gibson Les Paul.
 
Question   : Are you touring anytime soon with your current band..?
 
Gary Duncan   : Not at the moment .
 
Question   : Gary, is there a tape archive (a la G. Dead) of live
 Quicksilver material?  If so, you should definitely release some, I'm sure
it would do  well.

Gary Duncan   : Yes -- there is somewhat of an archive, but I haven't had the
time to go through it all. Unfortunately, we weren't recorded live that many
 times.
 
Question   : Do you keep in touch with Nick Gravenites? (I think  he's a
genius) Got anything to say  about him?
 
Gary Duncan   : I see him occasionally, I agree he is definitely a genius,
and was a great influence on me when I was younger.
 
Question   : are there any plans to release older qms material that's still
in the vaults?

Gary Duncan   : Not at the moment.
 
Question   : In which state did you first did your very first gig?

Gary Duncan   : Nevada was the first gig I ever played as a  professional.
 The first gig I did with Quicksilver was at the Committee.
 
Question   : Were you in a High Scool Band...?
 
Gary Duncan   : I was in a band -- during the two years I spent in high
school, but it wasn't the high school band.
 
Question   : What was it like playing with the Dead back in the 60's? Were
you part of Kesey's group?   I imagine it was a lot of fun.

Gary Duncan   : That's a hard question to answer, it was great playing with
the Dead, except it's hard to  remember anything that happened in the 60's.
I knew Ken Kesey but I don't know if I was part of  his group anymore than
anybody else was
 
Geoff Gould  : Tell me about how you came to play with the Dead  after Bill
Graham died
 
Gary Duncan   : I received a call from the Grateful Dead the day Bill  was
killed, asking me to sit in with the Dead in the Oakland Coliseum that night,
along with Carlos.  It was an impromptu thing but we've all known each other
so long we don't really need to rehearse.
 
Geoff Gould  : seeing as this was more recent than the 60's, what do you
remember about this gig?!  ;>

Gary Duncan   : Very little, Kesey was there too.
 
Geoff Gould  : an audience member wants to know about the equipment you used
on Happy Trails
 
Gary Duncan   : Gibson L5 with two twins.
 
Question   : How do you feel about the "popular" music scene  today?
 
Gary Duncan   : Anything to do with music, popular or not, in times like
these is a godsend.

Question   : How old were you when you first started playin' guitar, and how
old were you when you  first played with Jerry?
 
Gary Duncan   : I started playing guitar when I was 13.  I started  playing
professionally when I was 15.  I first played with Jerry when I was about 19.
 
Question   : Gary: Will you be performing at the new Family Dog in  S.F.?
 
Gary Duncan   : The Family Dog is definitely one of the places I  would love
to play, hopefully that will happen.
 
Question   : Gary: Whereabouts are you living these days?
 
Gary Duncan   : East Bay.
 
Question   : Does the new music have a Quicksilver sound or is it something
different?
 
Gary Duncan   : The new album is not Quicksilver Messenger Service,
Quicksilver Messenger Service essentially no longer exists.  This is Gary
Duncan Quicksilver 96, it has a similar sound in some instances because I'm
singing and playing  guitar and I wrote most of the songs.  But like I said
before, you'll have to be the judge of that.
 
Geoff Gould  : Someone asked about what Dino Valenti up to.  He died  this
last year, and I had a question:   Is it true that Dino Valenti used to be
named Chet Powers, and wrote "Get Together"?

Gary Duncan   :His name was Chester William Powers, Jr.  Dino wrote Get
Together before I met him.

Question   : Gary: What is your approach to songwriting? Do you  just sit
down and say "I think I'll write a song now"; or do you improvise, hoping
something good'll come out of it?
 
Gary Duncan   : My approach to songwriting or any other creative  forces
which may choose to seek me out is basically, I just sit there and let it go
through me and then listen to it later.  Some times I like it, sometimes I
don't .
 
Question   : what do you miss most about the 60's
 
Gary Duncan   : Being 21.
 
Question   : Does Jerry's death still affect you emotionally?

Gary Duncan   : Jerry's death never affected me emotionally, but I have my
own way of perceiving death.  I don't feel as if Jerry is gone, he is only
now among  the uncreated, which means that he is only standing one step to
the left, and two steps forward.
 
Question   : I know you were influenced by Bo Diddley, who were  other major
influences for you growing up?
 
Gary Duncan   : Oscar Brown, Jr., James Brown, Ken Nordine, John Coltrane,
Miles Davis, Stan Getz, Thelonius Monk, and god bless him my favorite guitar
player Freddie King.
 
Question   : Where and how did the title of your band come up?
 
Gary Duncan   : It came from a little habit I have of changing shape around
the house when nobody's looking.
 
Question   : The new album has a lot of jazz and funk on it,  why weren't you
doing any of that twenty five years ago?  Not interested or outvoted by the
rest of the band?

Gary Duncan   : I wasn't good enough.

Question   : How did you meet John Cippolina and the other members  of QMS?
 
Gary Duncan   : I met John Cipollina in the basement of a lady's house in
North Beach named Chris Brooks.  That's where I met all the other members.
 
Question   : Gary can you tell us what you've been doing since the Peace by
Piece album came out
 
Gary Duncan   : Staying alive and working on this record.
 
Question   : Gary, Congrats on the new album, sounds great! When was the live
song recorded?
 
Gary Duncan   : When I was in Katmandu -- and don't ask me when it was cause
I don't remember.

Question   : Did you self-produce your new CD? Where was it recorded?
 
Gary Duncan   : Myself, Michael Lewis and Greg Errico produced Shapeshifter.
 It was recorded at the Power Lounge Studio in San Rafael, and Studio 89 in
 Hollywood.
 
Question   : Were you and Cipollina friends or rivals?
 
Gary Duncan   : Cipollina and I were always friends.  If anything John was a
teacher, definitely never a rival, at least not for me.
 
Question   : are you happy/proud of the way the rock & roll hall of fame has
recognized john or are you disappointed??
 
Gary Duncan   : I think its great, John deserves the recognition, I  am not
disappointed in the least, besides my amps never looked as cool as his
anyway.
 
Question   : Where you influenced at all by Hendrix?
 
Gary Duncan   : Everyone was influenced by Jimi Hendrix, even people  who
don't play.
 
Question   : How can we get the new CD?  Will it be in record stores?
 
Gary Duncan   : The Grateful Dead Forum, the Quicksilver web page, Village
Music in Mill Valley,  it should be in the big chain stores soon.

Question   : what is your fondest memory of Jerry?
 
Gary Duncan   : Jerry would say to me in his best Long John Silver voice
"Captain, Sir, the men and I were wondering if we might be put in charge of
torturing  the prisoners - arghhh.
 
Geoff Gould  : And now for our last question:
Question   : The new album is very jazzy. Do you thing you'll continue to
move in this direction?

Gary Duncan   : Jazz has always been an inspiration to me, I don't consider
myself a jazz musician except for the fact that I improvise practically
everything.  In light of that, who knows what direction the music will go in.
 As long as I'm alive and moving forward the music will change and move
forward along with me.
 
Geoff Gould  : I'd like to thank Gary for coming tonight

Let's have a big round of applause for Gary!

Gary Duncan   : Thanks to everyone who's here or not here, that  includes
Jerry, Dino, Nicky, Bill and Miles Davis, and John.  If I left anybody out,
I'm  sure I'll find out about it.
 
Geoff Gould  : Party in the Rose Garden!

We bid you goodnight!

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