In an attempt to further narrow the provenance of the cab in question: As Rob's first photo (post 7 of this thread) shows, some tie-dye was still in use in '73, along with the open-faced cabs that later became the norm. I just looked at a pic of the system at Boston Music Hall 11/30/73 (Grateful Dead Gear, p140) , and there are no 4Xs or tie-dye present. So, GD use of Rick's cab would seem to date to between '71 or so (I think that's the earliest pix I've seen them in; I may be wrong there) and mid-'73 - which I think we can all agree was a fine time to be used!
Peter
Peter, thank you for your posting. For clarification and full disclosure I am summarizing here several statements I have already made as to the provenance of this Alembic "Tie Dye" 4x12 speaker cabinet:
1) Please note the 1st sentence of my post. I said: "I have an original Alembic speaker cabinet from the Grateful Dead's wall of sound PROJECT", I DID NOT say it was from "The Wall Of Sound as such." My view may disagree with more linear thinking that seeks to define "The Wall Of Sound as such" more strictly to a date certain final version that they toured with or other criteria???
2) Nor can I say that the GD ever actually played using this particular cabinet, only that it was produced by Alembic during that Pre-1974 Wall project development period.
3) I do not know what Grateful Dead's arrangement was with Alembic or if GD actually owned everything Alembic produced related to the "wall project" during that time? Alembic may have produced and sold these cabinets to their other customers during that period.
4) As Sonicus wrote at length in reply#37, apparently there were so many variations of these cabinets made by firms other than Alembic that it is almost impossible to ascertain the provenance objectively with a reasonable degree of certainty. I can only attest that during that period in Marin County when we were playing music, 1966-1973, other than the GD, we never encountered anything like these Alembic cabinets, they were unconventional and unique in our circles at that time. This includes the period when I worked for the Sons of Champlin between 1970-1972.
Thanx again, Rick
Rick, you seem to be taking offense where none is intended; as I said, I was trying to narrow the possible range of time of your cab's advent. But let me respond to your comments one by one:
1. The Wall Of Sound is a term used by pretty much everybody to refer a specific system - albeit a fluid one - used during a specific time span. By your usage, we have to include the tiny, nameless cab in front of Pig's organ at Magoo's in '65 as part of "the Wall Of Sound Project".
2. To say it was from the Wall Of Sound - by either definition - is to say it was used by the Grateful Dead, as that was their system. The pic you posted of such a cab by Keith reinforces that impression.
3. No, and (I believe) yes.
4. "it is almost impossible to ascertain the provenance objectively with a reasonable degree of certainty." This is, of course, true. I was assuming, however (and perhaps this is just an artifact of my training as an historian and archivist) that getting as close as possible was a good thing; I sincerely apologize if I was mistaken. I will refrain from further comment on your thread, and again - good luck with the sale, and I wish buying it was an option for me.
Peter
