Like snowflakes, but nowhere near as delicate or pristinely beautiful, no two Flipper shows were ever the same. Some, as drummer Steve DePace remembers, would devolve into 45 minutes of inner band fighting — he recalls guitarist Ted Falconi and bassist Bruce Loose wrestling on stage on one particular night — and 10 minutes of the group riffing off its best-known song, "Sex Bomb."

Then, there was the time that a woman walked up onstage while singer Bruce Loose had his back turned and kicked him square between the legs, setting off a huge fight that reminded DePace of a saloon melee in a Western movie. Stranger still, there was another show where two punks had sex right in front of DePace's drum kit as Flipper played on. It was just all part of the Flipper experience for DePace.

"A lot of people would complain, and I'd hear them say, 'Flipper sucks,' and then they'd be back the next night," laughs DePace.

Made up of ex-Negative Trend members DePace and bassist/vocalist Will Shatter, plus bassist/vocalist Bruce Loose and guitar phenomenon Ted Falconi, Flipper existed from the late '70s to 1993. In between, the band lost the enigmatic Shatter to a heroin overdose but now, it has gained ex-Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, as Flipper is back up and running with a new DVD and a flood of unreleased material just waiting to see the light of day.

The DVD set, from MVD Visual, is called "Flipper Live: Target Video 77 1980-81" and it contains two distinctly different shows that reveal, in graphic detail, just how distinct each Flipper show was from every other show the band ever put on. The first took place at Berkeley Square in 1980 and was a sloppy, drunken hootenanny that, purportedly, proudly boasts the only footage of Flipper playing its classic "The Wheel."

The second sees Flipper opening for industrial giants Throbbing Gristle at San Francisco's Kezar Pavillion, where the NBA's San Francisco Warriors once played, and here, Flipper rumbles its way, in nihilistic fashion, through a doom-laden concert that is both ugly and beautiful, and utterly hypnotic to witness.

DePace recalls it being "a very chaotic show" and credits Joe Rees of Target Video and Klaus Flouride for cleaning up the video and what was initially terrible audio quality from it in order to make this DVD.

Notorious for its false starts, wrong notes and surreal shows, Flipper was the punk band "everybody loved to hate," says DePace. And yet Flipper had some famous fans. Nirvana's Kurt Cobain cited them as an influence, and DePace says that Henry Rollins once told him that Negative Trend impacted him as a youth growing up in Washington, D.C. And Moby once joined a reconstituted Flipper for a rendition of "Sex Bomb" at a Paper magazine party.

Watch for a story on the band in Goldmine magazine and on www.goldminemag.com in the coming weeks. Believe me, you don't want to miss it. DePace and company have some great stories.

To learn more about Flipper, visit www.myspace.com/flipper, or go to www.mvdb2b.com to get the DVD set, which is due out Feb. 19. The day before the release, on Feb. 18 at 6 p.m., the band will play an in-store at the legendary Amoeba Records in San Francisco. Visit www.amoeba.com to get the lowdown.

Born ramblin' men, the Allman Brothers Band will always be ramblin' men. And a ramblin' they will go in 2008, the venerable Southern rock institution's 39th year as a barnstorming tour act.

Led once again by the sage Gregg Allman on keyboards and vocals, the Allman Brothers Band kick off its tour by hosting its own Wanee Festival in Live Oak, Fla. Then, it's off to New York for a 15-show residency — "Mayhem in Manhatten" as it's called — at the Beacon Theatre that starts May 5. After that stretch of shows, the Allman Brothers Band will perform at the Bonnaroo Festival June 14, followed by a summer full of show dates. Tickets to the Beacon Theatre shows go on sale this Saturday, Feb. 9. The residency has become an annual thing for the Allmans, who started doing it in 1989.

The present lineup includes Butch Trucks on drums and tympani, Jaimoe on drums, and the twin-guitar tandem of Warren Haynes on vocals and lead and slide guitar and Derek Trucks on lead and slide guitar. Oteil Burbridge on bass and Marc Quinones on congas percussion round out the band.

Formed March 26, 1969 in Jacksonville, Fla., the Allman Brothers Band, members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, is, simply put, one of the best live acts in rock history.

This year's Wanee Festival sports a great lineup. Gov't Mule will be there, as will Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi's "Soul Stew Revival," Levon Helm, Oteil & The Peacemakers, Bob Weir & Ratdog, moe and JJ Grey & Mofro.

For more information, go to www.waneefestival.com. And for the latest news on the Allman Brothers, including tour news, visit www.allmanbrothersband.com.

The "Black Sheep" of the Goldmine family has returned from exile in the form of The Doughboys, the stomping garage-rock combo from New Jersey that featured acclaimed singer-songwriter Richard X. Heyman.

Several years ago, the band reunited and now, they have a new album called "Is It Now?" From that highly anticipated release comes "Black Sheep," a single touted by underground tastemaker and former Sopranos goon Little Steven Van Zandt as "the coolest song in the world." For proof, see the Underground Garage site at http://www.littlestevenundergroundgarage.com/homepage.html and then genuflect at the altar of his amazing show.

Van Zandt isn't the only Sirius DJ championing The Doughboys. Take it from Kid Leo, the Mighty Manfred, Genya Ravan, Bill Kelly and Andrew Loog Oldham, this song is pure nitroglycerine. And Oldham — the old Rolling Stones producer — should know a thing or two about red-hot bluesy garage-rock.

Looking for an RIYL recommendation? "Black Sheep" is what a street fight between The Pretty Things and The Stooges would sound like. It's got hooks as sharp as switchblades, and it'll cut you if you look at it funny.

Here's a little history: the Doughboys count among its members one Myke Scavone, who went on to front Ram Jam, who begat the classic "Black Betty," which begat Ezekial, who begat Abraham ... all right, so the Old Testament isn't my thing.

Go back through your issues of the last couple of years and you'll find a Goldmine feature on Ram Jam. Or, you can read it here at www.richardxheyman.com or www.myspace.com/richardxheyman.

Word is getting out about The Doughboys resurgence. They recently headlined the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, N.J., a performance that was carried live on the radio station "The Hawk" in Atlantic City. In May, they'll play with none other than The Electric Prunes in Philadelphia.

Here's the roll call for The Doughboys: In addition to Heyman and Scavone, there is Mike Caruso on bass and Gar Francis, also known as Plainfield Slim (dude played on Billy Idol's recording of "Mony, Mony").

To see some live footage of the band, go to www.myspace.com/rrnj. Tell 'em Goldmine sent you. You'll be glad you did.

"So, you had better do as you are told/You better listen to the radio" — Elvis Costello

Today, Goldmine enters a whole new era as the magazine you grew up with begins airing its own Internet radio station. So, do as Elvis says and tune in, or he'll come over to your house with The Brodsky Quartet and give you the beating of a lifetime.

We're still in the planning stages regarding programming but look for a radio show run by yours truly coming soon. It'll feature interviews with artists from today and yesterday, perhaps a review or two of some new releases, and some hopefully enlightening conversations with vinyl record dealers and other hobby experts. We'll get 'em to provide some hot tips on what various records are worth and what to look for when doing some serious crate digging.

As far as the music goes, we're going to be presenting an eclectic roster of songs, with the focus set squarely on the classic rock we all grew up with. Unlike commercial radio, we're going to be going deep into albums to get the best cuts, not just the ones spoon fed to you on your radio dial. Expect a mix of blues, prog-rock, a smattering of punk, and, of course, the great classic-rocks cuts you love. Just go to www.goldminemag.com, and find the logo above.

So, give us a listen, and feel free to send me your comments or thoughts on what we can do to make the experience more enjoyable for you.

With an election year approaching, what better time for a Presidents Of The United States Of America revival?

Yes, the same good-natured, kung fu-loving, funny men of '90s alternative-rock — the same ones who brought you "Peaches" and "Lump" — are back, and man, could America use a laugh.

The inauguration is March 11, when PUSA drops These Are Good Times People on Fugitive Records, an offshoot of EMI. The first single is "Mixed Up SOB," and it promises to be a bouncy bit of infectious party pop. And just to show they've been paying attention to the indie scene of the new millennium, there's a Shins-like quality to "Loose Balloon."

This is not insignificant news here people. Their debut has sold 4.5 million copies. Remember the days when record companies could push those kind of numbers?

These days, the lineup includes original members Chris Ballew, vocalist and basitar (half guitar, half bass), and drummer Jason Finn, as well as new guitbass player Andrew McKeag.

A world tour begins in March. For more information, visit www.presidentsrock.com and/or http://www.myspace.com/thepresidentsoftheunitedstatesofamerica.

Jazz was music critic Ralph J. Gleason's passion, but the man who co-founded Rolling Stone magazine with Jann Wenner was keenly interested in the connection between song, society and culture, and that got him into some hot water.

During the turbulent '60s, Gleason's fascination with the protest movements of the time exposed him to more a rock-oriented crowd, and his writings reflected a change in the wind.

According to his son, Toby (pictured at right), Gleason's penchant for mixing politics and music in his music column for the San Francisco Chronicle drew the ire of his editors. "They were always saying, 'You're a music critic. Write about music. Don't write about stuff that's not music,'" recalls Toby. "He felt that since music was just part of a socio-cultural development, that it was all the same thing."

Gleason's stances didn't win him any friends at the White House either. Reportedly, Toby says, he made President Richard Nixon's third published enemies list. Gleason was actually quite proud of that.

"He actually called it I believe in a television news interview the highest honor this country could bestow upon him and the only one an honest man would accept," says Toby.

Though Gleason did help found Rolling Stone and did serve as associate editor, Toby explains that his dad was "not strongly influential in the content of the magazine. He was instrumental, if you'll pardon the pun, in getting the magazine the record business advertising in its initial stages, which was responsible for its survival. And certainly, to the reading public, he was intimately intertwined in the creation and history of early Rolling Stone, but it was always Jann's thing. If anything, what my father hoped to do was guide Jann."

Gleason was highly regarded as a music critic and also, was a noted television producer. It was he who pulled the strings that made A Night At The Family Dog possible. Not familiar with that show?
It aired in 1970 and featured amazing performances from Santana, the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane at the legendary San Francisco music venue The Family Dog. Eagle Rock Entertainment has released concert footage from that show in a DVD called "Ralph J. Gleason Presents A Night At The Family Dog."

Toby says his dad loved the show, and so does Toby.

"He thought it was fabulous, as do I," says Toby. "It's a great show. It is actually just about my favorite performances of every band — not necessarily of Santana; I'm a big fan of Santana, and he did later performances that I also liked, but for the time, it's one of the best performances of each band. It's Carlos when, gosh, he was a speck. He's like 12 years old — not really, but he looks really, really young."

Another highlight of the DVD is the presence of Ron "Pigpen" McKernan playing keyboards with The Grateful Dead. He would later die, and the Dead would abandon much of its blues character while opting for a more jammy, bluegrass feel.

For more information about the DVD, visit www.eaglerockent.com. And to read more about the concert, which was originally closed to the public, read the Jan. 4 issue of Goldmine.

What were some amazing concerts you witnessed? Respond to this blog and we'll discuss.