Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

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rmarceleno
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Post by rmarceleno »

oakland 77 is the best one ever. it changed my life when i got my copy. i could close my eyes and picture the whole gig in my head
(as i was only eight in 77). got to see pf in 94 but the oakland tapes give you a taste of what it was all about back in the day. long live PINK FLOYD!!!
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Post by Mystek »

Very nice replies ! but ...no one know why they played Carful With That Axe, Eugene in Okland 09.05.77? I am very dissapointed :( Is it possible that it is only joke from guy who release this bootleg ? Sound quality of Careful is very different from rest of show.
Maybe someone was on this concert ?
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by MCPink »

Hello years later. I was at the Ft Worth, Texas show May 1, 1977 and they were just starting to get into a groove on the In The Flesh tour when they starting hitting the cities with rowdy crowds such as Ft Worth and they lost whatever groove they had going until later in the tour. I have heard all of the master tapes and have good digital copies of most. I remember thinking that night it was the greatest show ever but when I first heard the master tape I wondered if I was at the same show. Now I have a greater appreciation for the tapes. As for Careful with that Axe, they only played it in Oakland and I remember a story went with that nights performance which led to the song being played such as a guest artist who accompanied them, but the tape does not reveal anything that I can ascertain. I will look into my notes and see what I find from 42 years ago, lol. Too bad they not release a live album from that tour because I thought it was their best material even if it was not their best performances, maybe with a little creative editing they could release the “Lost Tour Tapes” album. Cheers from across the pond! MC
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by MCPink »

I listened to that show again today and did notice that the crowd seemed a little more mellow, so maybe Roger and the others simply decided to reward them with a third and unprecedented 3rd encore. The crowd also seemed to appreciate “Careful With That Axe, Eugene” as well. They certainly were not like a lot of the crowds at some of the larger venues in the US or the one they faced in Montreal when firecrackers and general crowd noise set Roger Waters into a cursing rage at the audience 30 minutes into the show. That tape is one of the worst quality shows especially from that point on when they just seemed to be going through the motions to get it over with as soon as possible.
Last edited by twcc on Thu May 09, 2019 6:43 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: EDIT by twcc to satisfy the forum rules
MoreOrLess
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by MoreOrLess »

I always made a bit of a vague assumption that playing Careful With That Axe was due to the shows location, close to San Francisco so they went back to an older more psychedelic track as a bit of a reference to that.

Honestly I haven't heard enough of the 77 Tour recently to get a complete picture of it. The Fort Worth show definitely remains a favourite of mine, I spose partly because the recording has a very pleasant airy sound to it without being distant, doesn't quite has the energy of the latter gigs more clearly moreso than the euro dates I'v heard.

Honestly I find the Montreal show one of the most interesting of the tour myself, sound isn't perfect and definitely harsher on the ear than the likes of Fort Worth and Oakland but really I think that's inline with the show as a whole. If anything I think a bit of ill feeling and aggression in the band fit a lot of the material, especially Animals and the second half of Shine On, the soloing between Gilmour and White there for me is some of the Floyd's best ever work.
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Post by DrNakano »

rmarceleno wrote: Fri Oct 15, 2004 2:10 am oakland 77 is the best one ever. it changed my life when i got my copy. i could close my eyes and picture the whole gig in my head
(as i was only eight in 77). got to see pf in 94 but the oakland tapes give you a taste of what it was all about back in the day. long live PINK FLOYD!!!
Yeah I think it's phenomenal, especially the songs from Animals which sound so much more emotional and expressive than the studio counterparts IMO.

As for CWTAE, I would guess it was a way to reward loyal fans who had followed them since long before their rise to the stratosphere, and played that night only to reward a much more receptive and patient crowd than they generally encountered on the In The Flesh tour...
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space triangle
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by space triangle »

Well,I have one theory:

One of the most popular Floyd urban legend states that "Careful With That Axe, Eugene" was a reference to Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia, who famously lost a portion of his right-hand middle finger in a childhood wood-chopping accident. Thus, the title refers to Garcia's older brother (who was responsible for the accident), wryly instructing him to be more careful with his "axe". Grateful Dead was the most popular band from San Francisco Bay Area, so live Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977 was just in the honour of Jerry Garcia and and that unlucky event. :-({|=
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by ZiggyZipgun »

space triangle wrote: Wed Jan 22, 2020 6:10 pmWell, I have one theory...
Careful With That Axe, Clifford Ramon "Tiff" Garcia? :-;
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by space triangle »

I would like to see Gilmour screaming on the 'Careful With That Axe Eugene' instead of Roger! :D

Can anyone ask David to do an CWTAE lockdown-cover? 8)
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by nosaj »

I had read many, many years ago (sorry no source, just faulty memory) that it was a special one off because of strong relationship with San Francisco area (since 1967) to please some friends they made on the coast (e.g. Jim Ladd, etc.)
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by Kerry King »

Bill Graham ran the show in the Bay area and he likely welcomed the floyd with elaborate hospitality. The musicians wanted to give something special in return. Plus, SF/Oakland/Berkeley has some of the best music audiences in the world. The band undoubtedly felt the love. A psychedelic nugget from the 60s seems entirely appropriate in grateful dead country.
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by space triangle »

Would you vote 'Careful With That Axe Eugene' as the scariest song ever? <.8.>
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by DarkSideFreak »

space triangle wrote: Fri Sep 18, 2020 9:44 am Would you vote 'Careful With That Axe Eugene' as the scariest song ever? <.8.>
I'd tie it with "The Tell-Tale Heart" from the first Alan Parsons Project album (NOT the 1987 remix, but the original, unadultered 1976 mix ). But yeah, definitely up there.
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by cigar73 »

I’ve always wondered about that performance of Careful. Was it just off the cuff? If it was it was very good considering. Not ‘72 quality but excellent nonetheless.
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Re: Careful With That Axe Eugene in Oakland, May 9, 1977

Post by Kerry King »

DarkSideFreak wrote: Thu Oct 08, 2020 9:52 am
space triangle wrote: Fri Sep 18, 2020 9:44 am Would you vote 'Careful With That Axe Eugene' as the scariest song ever? <.8.>
I'd tie it with "The Tell-Tale Heart" from the first Alan Parsons Project album (NOT the 1987 remix, but the original, unadultered 1976 mix ). But yeah, definitely up there.
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