About a year ago, I asked former Earthride/Weed is Weed frontman and former Spirit Caravan bassist Dave Sherman to list out his five favorite Spirit Caravan tracks for a special Wino Wednesday post. He did not disappoint, and included in his list was “Sea Legs” from 1999′s classic Jug Fulla Sun debut full-length. Sherman noted in his pick that in the lyrics, Wino was talking about him and drummer Gary Isom with the line, “A well done iguana and a real heavy gnome.”

The line has stuck with me ever since, one of those things that floats in the head and comes and goes, so I decided for this week’s Wino Wednesday to grab a clip of Spirit Caravan doing “Sea Legs” and focus on the lyrics to the song. I didn’t type these out myself, but as you can see, that above quote is far from the only golden line in here. Between the talk of magic crafts and sacred trees, the “two-wheeled sled of molten chrome” and escaping the deluge, it comes through loud and clear that Wino took his motorcycle pretty seriously at the time. Right on.

Here are the words:

Sea Legs
From the warm unknown into the cold beyond
Message of spirit is what’s drivin’ me on
Climbing through the sea
On a magic craft from a sacred tree
Sea legs, earthfin
Bolt and hammer gonna do them in
I’ve got a two-wheeled sled of molten chrome
A well done iguana and a real heavy gnome
Gliding over fear, the opposite of beyond is here
From the paradise driven
To escape the deluge
Revealed the mysteries given
In exchange for refuge
Climbing through the sea
In my side car rides my Atlantean queen
Trick it out!

And here’s Wino, Sherman and Isom performing “Sea Legs” live in Cleveland, Ohio, an astounding 13 years ago. Have a great Wino Wednesday:

Spirit Caravan, “Sea Legs” Live in Cleveland, OH, 2000

As Shine, the trio that would soon become Spirit Caravan released a demo tape (want) and a self-titled 7″. The three-piece of guitarist/vocalist Scott “Wino” Weinrich, bassist Dave Sherman and drummer Gary Isom came together in 1995 in the wake of Wino‘s splitting up The Obsessed following the issue of their final studio album, The Church Within, in ’94. Shine was immediately a different kind of band, and throughout the next decade-plus in Spirit Caravan and The Hidden Hand and on into his contributions to Shrinebuilder and Premonition 13, Wino would continue to establish and refine his particular form of heavy, influencing others even as “his sound” seemed always to be changing.

The song “No Hope Goat Farm” — captured live in the video below on April 12, 1997 in Washington D.C. — didn’t appear on either of Shine‘s releases, but would show up as the closer of 1999′s Spirit Caravan debut, Jug Fulla Sun, an album that stands as one of the best heavy records ever made and the touchstone for Wino‘s work post-The Obsessed and Saint Vitus. It’s kind of a rough video, in terms of quality, but one has to remember that HD cameras in cellphones were still a ways off 16 years ago. I’m just happy someone was there to tape the show at all, and when it comes to stuff like this, I consider audio and video fidelity to be a marker of the era. Hopefully you agree.

Looking ahead into 2013, I don’t know what the year will bring for Wino releases. Saint Vitus are touring Europe in the Spring with Mos Generator (awesome) and The Obsessed have been confirmed for Maryland Deathfest in May alongside Pentagram and Pagan Altar and Wino was jamming just this past tour on stage with dudes from Saviours and Nick Oliveri, so whatever comes, there’s plenty in the works for 2013′s Wino Wednesdays and beyond.

Till then, hope you enjoy “No Hope Goat Farm” and have a great Wino Wednesday:

A decade later, “Spirit Caravan” would show up as the leadoff track on the band Spirit Caravan‘s second album, Elusive Truth (2001), but its first appearance was on a Hellhound Records sampler called What the Hell, and it’s from that version, performed by The Obsessed – because Shine/Spirit Caravan didn’t exist yet — that this clip is taken.

Those interested can also find The Obsessed‘s version on the 1999 compilation, Incarnate, which was released on Southern Lord. That’s probably easier to come by than What the Hell itself, which was a label promo sampler and also featured (as you can see in the liner, photographed and included in the video) the likes of Count Raven and Pigmy Love Circus. This recording of the track — not to mention the video encoding — is kind of raw, but still gives you some idea of the song and what it’s all about. Of course, Wino‘s tone is at the forefront in the track’s appeal.

Basically, I just thought it was something cool to kick off Wino Wednesday for 2013. Hope you enjoy and have a great many to come:

I actually watched this whole April 2002 set from Spirit Caravan before I decided to post it. That didn’t make for the most productive morning ever at work, but it was kind of cool to see the trio’s performance in its 67-minute entirety. I’ve posted clips from this tour before for Wino Wednesday, but never a whole show from so late in the band’s tenure. You’ll forgive me I hope for not knowing if this was their last run, but if not, it was damn close. After ripping it up on bass the whole set (and vocals for a couple songs), Dave Sherman says they’ll be back next year, but of course that didn’t turn out to be the case.

Sherman would release the first Earthride full-length, Taming of the Demons, just months after this gig (their self-titled EP came out in 2000), and Gary Isom would float around for the next several years, playing drums in Valkyrie before joining forces for a time with Pentagram and reuniting with Sherman in Weed is Weed, and Wino would hardly miss a beat, releasing the debut album from his next trio The Hidden Hand, Divine Propaganda, in 2003. Spirit Caravan ended their tenure with the So Mortal Be single before MeteorCity‘s The Last Embrace compilation put the cap on their discography, but if you’ve gotta go out, a tour with Place of Skulls and Throttlerod is a decent way to do it.

So enjoy the show below, presented in full by Lepers TV, who taped it at the Creepy Crawl for local access, and as always, have a great Wino Wednesday:

It shames me to say it, but there was no Wino Wednesday last week. Can you believe it? I don’t really have an excuse for my behavior — or, I suppose, lack of behavior — but I wanted to make up for it right off the bat this week and get back on the winning track with some live Spirit Caravan. As we come ever closer to a full year of Wino Wednesdays, it seems only right to make up for the lost time.

They’re not HD (I don’t think anything was a decade ago except rich people’s lives), but below you’ll find four clips of the trio Spirit Caravan — Wino on guitar/vocals, Dave Sherman (Earthride) on bass and Gary Isom (everybody) on drums — killing it live in North Carolina. This show was filmed about a month before the band called it quits following the release of their So Mortal Be single, and it’s among the latest into their tenure that I’ve seen. I don’t know what the situation was like in the band at this point, but the songs still sound awesome.

For a bonus, they even start the third part with a take on “Mourning” from The Obsessed‘s The Church Within, and while I’m not going to advocate for watching it out of order and missing out on the full 20 minutes, that’s pretty badass. However you approach it, hope you dig and as always, have a happy Wino Wednesday:

This Independence Day, won’t you rock the fuck out with some Spirit Caravan?

After all, I’m hard pressed to come up with a better United States ambassador to the rest of the world (and beyond) than Wino. He’s all of the best aspects of American rock and roll with none of that pesky imperialism that always makes everyone hate us so much. I’m thinking, second term, President Obama makes it official: Wino for Secretary of Doom.

Because while your relationship with the country may be and probably is problematic unless you have your head up your ass, your relationship with Spirit Caravan need not be. You don’t get to see much of Gary Isom drumming in this clip — and really only a bit of Dave Sherman on bass — but the thought of the trio doing “Dreamwheel” at the very first Stoner Hands of Doom fest was the most American thing I could find that wasn’t also needless war or sugar-laced everything.

“Dreamwheel” comes off the 1999 EP of the same name. The EP arrived in November, and this was shot Aug. 14, so the song would’ve been pretty new to the crowd. Dreamwheel also marked the beginning of Spirit Caravan‘s association with MeteorCity, who’d also put out their The Last Embrace swansong compilation in 2003, while Tolotta Records (owned by Joe Lally of Fugazi) issued the full-lengths: 1999′s Jug Fulla Sun and 2001′s Elusive Truth.

If you’re in the States, I hope you have a safe and enjoyable July 4, and wherever you might be, I hope you have a Happy Wino Wednesday:

He’s one of doom’s most indomitable and inimitable personalities, and as the frontman of Earthride, Dave Sherman (generally just say “Sherm” and anyone who’s met him will know immediately who you’re talking about), has become a living embodiment of the Maryland doom scene. Recently, he’s also been making a splash live with the outfit Weed is Weed, which reunites him with his former Spirit Caravan bandmate, Gary Isom.

Spirit Caravan only released two full-lengths in their time, 1999′s Jug Fulla Sun and 2001′s Elusive Truth, but the trio that began as Shine left a legacy and influence behind that has endured in the Maryland scene and well beyond. Though the band’s three members — Scott “Wino” Weinrich on vocals/guitar, Sherman on bass and Isom on drums — have each moved on to other projects (in addition to playing guitar in Weed is Weed, Isom also drummed in Pentagram for a stretch and has been in numerous other regional doom acts), their career has remained in part defined by what they did together as Spirit Caravan. Naturally that lessens as time goes on, but it remains true nonetheless.

Those new to the band who’d take on listening would do well to check out the 2CD 2003 MeteorCity compilation, The Last Embrace, which collects both full-lengths as well as previously unreleased material and stuff from 7″s and compilations. Sherman, who aside from being The Riff Made Flesh also happens to be a great dude, was kind enough to pick out his five favorite Spirit Caravan tracks for a very special Wino Wednesday this week.

Some are live, some are studio versions, but here’s a clip for each of Sherm‘s picks, along with a few words of explanation from the man himself. Right on:

Dave Sherman’s Spirit Caravan Picks:

1. “Powertime.” The first song I co-wrote with Wino.

2. “Sea Legs.” I love this song because Wino sings about… Gary and I. A well-done iguana and a real heavy gnome.

3. “Dreamwheel.” It’s so positive of a song – the dream keeps on rollin’!

4. “Lost Sun Dance.” The band’s first song we learned.

5. “Kill Ugly Naked.” I know it is an Obsessed cover, but not many people heard it until Spirit Caravan put it on Jug Fulla Sun!!!

Among the quintessential songs from the Spirit Caravan era, “Lost Sun Dance” appeared first on the band’s original self-titled 7″ when they were still known as Shine. That version also appears on the excellent two-disc MeteorCity compilation, The Last Embrace, but this one was re-recorded by Spirit Caravan for their 1999 full-length debut, Jug Fulla Sun, released by Joe Lally of Fugazi on his Tolotta Records imprint.

I could probably post each track from Jug Fulla Sun individually and call it “quintessential” — and, let’s be honest, I probably will as the Wednesdays go on — but what stands out most about “Lost Sun Dance” to me is the balance it hits between tonal warmth and a kind of colder exterior. That contrast has become a key element in the ongoing development of Wino‘s blues, and the stomp here of Dave Sherman‘s bass and Gary Isom‘s drumming underscores how special this band really was in their day.

Man, I swear to Robot Jeebus that solo is talking.

Happy Wino Wednesday:

This is nearly as close to “what it’s all about” as it gets. For this week’s Wino Wednesday, we find the trio Spirit Caravan absolutely nailing Black Sabbath‘s “Wicked World.” The track didn’t originally appear on the British version of the self-titled Sabbath debut, but it was on the American edition of the album, which is obviously what Wino, bassist Dave Sherman and drummer Gary Isom would’ve encountered at the time.

The track is them performing the song live, and it’s taken from the first Sucking the ’70s compilation on Small Stone Records. I humbly submit that it’s better than at least 97 percent of what appears on both Nativity in Black tribute discs, and among the most honest Sabbath covers put to tape. Considering the legacy Spirit Caravan left behind them in their too-short tenure, it’s fitting.

Although, with that solo, just about anything would be fitting.

Anyway, enjoy. Hope you have a great Wino Wednesday:

Among the most potent of heavy rock power trios, Spirit Caravan began as Shine and was Scott “Wino” Weinrich‘s next project post-The Obsessed‘s reunion in the 1990s. The band was Weinrich alongside bassist Dave Sherman, who went on to form Earthride, and drummer Gary Isom, who’s played with everyone from Pentagram at Valkyrie at this point and is currently playing guitar in Weed is Weed, which is fronted by Sherman. Their 1999 full-length, Jug Fulla Sun, is one of the greatest albums ever released — period.

The clip below finds Spirit Caravan of that era (they also released the Dreamwheel EP in ’99) playing in Copenhagen, Denmark, in November 2000. What’s interesting about this show is that as you watch it, you can see there’s almost nobody there. The YouTube video information — provided by user TNTFreedooM — sheds some light on what the situation was:

Because of Motörhead playing Copenhagen the same night, and Megadeth the night before, only 11 people showed up, but the band did not care as you can see in their performance. During the show another 10 people came. Before the show Wino said to me, “We don’t care, we’ll just play a private show for you.”

…Which is why he’s Wino. Enjoy “Black Flower” and “Healing Tongue” on this Wino Wednesday:

Here’s a quick tip for those of you on either side of the buying and selling of goods via the webunets: USE A FUCKING PADDED ENVELOPE.

Doesn’t seem like too much to ask, right? And perhaps you’re thinking to yourself, “What the hell does it matter? I sandwiched the disc between two pieces of cardboard and sent it in a regular envelope, it should be fine.” NO. It makes a difference, and two pieces of cardboard is not the same as bubblewrap. This should be kindergarten level shit, but apparently it needs to be said.

And I say “apparently” because twice in the last month have I received packages of CDs — one off eBay and another from the StonerRock.com message board (not the All that is Heavy webstore, with which I’ve had no such issues) — where, after dashing to the mailbox and rejoicing at seeing the wanted package, I’ve opened it up and found the jewel cases smashed all to hell.

No problem, right? I’ve got extra jewel cases, and a switch is easy enough. But hey, maybe after paying $35+ for a copy of Spirit Caravan‘s rare-as-fuck Jug Fulla Sun, I’d like to get it without the back liner ripped because broken shards of jewel case plastic punctured it? Same fucking thing happened with the Man’s Ruin issue of Brant Bjork‘s Jalamanta a couple weeks ago, so clearly, for the good of the internet buying community at large, I need to repeat myself: USE A FUCKING PADDED ENVELOPE.

This concludes this public service announcement. Remember kids, padded envelopes save lives, or at very least make you seem like much less of an asshole to the people buying out-of-print albums from you.

NOTE: Nothing went according to my evil plan. The post below is from Friday. I scheduled it to go up while I was gone (along with two others that now need to be rewritten) and nothing happened. Stupid internet, making me look like a jerk once again. This was saved as a text file, and this video rules so I figured no one would mind, even two days later.

If all (or at least some) goes according to my evil plan, by the time you read this I’ll be well on my way to spending a weekend with some family friends just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Via recommendations I spied on StonerRock.com, I’m planning on hitting up The Sound Garden in Fell’s Point, so hopefully I’ll come back with a decent bit of buried treasure. In the meantime, to honor this most crabtacular of states, I present this live Spirit Caravan video from 2006 — and here I thought they were broken up by then.

In case you forgot, the trio is Wino on guitar and vocals, bassist Dave “Sherm” Sherman (whose band Earthride is playing Krug’s Place in Fredericksburg Saturday night with Ol’ Scratch and Admiral Browning; unfortunately I won’t be there) and drummer Gary Isom, who just did those shows with Pentagram and has been in Valkyrie and countless other bands. Cool shit. Here’s “Cosmic Artifact.” Enjoy your weekend.