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Steven Bernstein’s Gumbo Homecoming
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What We Talk About * Growing up in Berkeley during the '60s and '70s—how the city's unique musical culture, the Keystone Corner jazz scene, and a school improvisation program shaped Bernstein's musical identity * Why funk—not rock—was the lingua franca of Bay Area youth, and how Tower of Power loomed larger than The Beatles in that world * Arriving in New York in 1979 at the dawn of the punk-funk era (Defunkt, James White and the Blacks) and finding his musical home in the downtown scene * The origin story of Sex Mob—born not in rehearsals but in late-night residencies at the Knitting Factory and Tonic, playing for live audiences and letting their reactions shape the music * A surprise detour into Jimi Hendrix's brief Berkeley childhood—and a hint that a Hendrix project may be next on Bernstein's list
Playlist
- Laurie Anderson "Church of Panic" from Let X=X (Live) (Nonesuch Records)
- Sexmob "Banacek" from The Hard Way) (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
About Steven Bernstein
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