Hi Alan:

Unfortunately the paywall blocks my access to the article.

In the scheme of things, it probably does not matter, but I'm almost certain that Pete Buck was not on stage for the finale.

Good job,Alan.

This must be emotionally overwhelming for the musicians who were onstage when Col. Bruce collapsed.

While this was often a part of the act,and they couldn't have known he was dying,knowing now what happened...well,it's so sad for everyone involved.

RIP Col. Bruce and my thoughts are with his family and friends...particularly the musicians and audience members...a tragedy.

[Edited on 5/3/2017 by dadof2]

Unfortunately the paywall blocks my access to the article.

Google often gets you past the WSJ paywall. Not sure what their arrangement is, but right now it's not letting me access it either. Maybe it's too new of a story? But typically you can copy the title from the WSJ article, go to Google News and paste it in a search, and then click the link from Google search results back to the WSJ article and it works. 95% of the time.

In any event, I look forward to reading Alan's WSJ piece at some point.

I feel especially bad for Popper, Warren, Jimmy, and Vince. Who were basically playing for 4+ minutes while Bruce was dying on the floor in front of them. And Taz Niederaurer is going to need some serious therapy. It appeared he had to take a half a step to the side in the middle of his solo to make room for Bruce on the floor. I don't mean to be insensitive or take part in the ghastliness of it, but I really truly feel sorry for those 5 guys. That's a tough one to get yourself over mentally about the coulda woulda shoulda. But really there was absolutely no way they could've known that given Bruce's on-stage history, so I hope they're not beating themselves up about it. The whole thing sucks, of course. It's been a real chitty week.

Terrific piece, Alan.

Much respect

Unfortunately the paywall blocks my access to the article.

Google often gets you past the WSJ paywall. Not sure what their arrangement is, but right now it's not letting me access it either. Maybe it's too new of a story? But typically you can copy the title from the WSJ article, go to Google News and paste it in a search, and then click the link from Google search results back to the WSJ article and it works. 95% of the time.

In any event, I look forward to reading Alan's WSJ piece at some point.

I feel especially bad for Popper, Warren, Jimmy, and Vince. Who were basically playing for 4+ minutes while Bruce was dying on the floor in front of them. And Taz Niederaurer is going to need some serious therapy. It appeared he had to take a half a step to the side in the middle of his solo to make room for Bruce on the floor. I don't mean to be insensitive or take part in the ghastliness of it, but I really truly feel sorry for those 5 guys. That's a tough one to get yourself over mentally about the coulda woulda shoulda. But really there was absolutely no way they could've known that given Bruce's on-stage history, so I hope they're not beating themselves up about it. The whole thing sucks, of course. It's been a real chitty week.

There is absolutely no need for anybody to second guess themselves or to bother with hindsight what-if-ness. One of the most recent articles I've read quotes a Crawford Long Hospital ER nurse as saying that if the Col. had been brought in immediately, it wouldn't have made any difference.

Donna and I had 6 hours in the car yesterday to bat this thing around. Up in the balcony, we were probably among the few who got a real good look at all of this. The music was loud. The stage was full of people. When it dawned on us that this was no stage antic - had we dialed 911 - the operator would never have been able to even hear us (or us them).

Personally, I have a hard time buying into the "it's how he wanted to go" philosophy. I feel that Bruce still had music to make and shows to play. Yet at the same time, this is a very story book ending to a story book character. It has been said that Bruce could not have scripted this better had he tried.

Brock, you're correct - Peter Buck was not on stage for the finale. Another myth dispelled - Billy Bob Thornton wasn't there.

Edit: Yeah, the WSJ story is blocked unless you're a subscriber. Bummer.

[Edited on 5/3/2017 by Rusty]

Well said, Rusty. Much better than I.

Nobody will miss Bruce more than me, but I can't buy in to the fact this was a sad and tragic event.

For those of us who were there, it was certainly traumatic, but nobody should feel bad for Bruce. We should all be lucky to pass away in such a state of pure euphoria and joy, our souls ready for the next world.

I not only believe it's how he wanted to go, I almost feel like he planned it in a way. John Fishman, drummer for Phish, wrote a great piece that I will post here that perfectly reflects my views on the subject.

In that piece, Fishman quotes an old interview from the Hampton Grease Band days that includes this....

"See, our main ambition in life aside from growing a bosom on top of our heads is to die on stage and when we die on stage that will be when we ultimately reach Grease."

Mission accomplished.

Thanks all. I forgot about the Paywall. They have closed the Google loophole, but you can go right through social media, so if you're on Facebook or Twitter, I've linked there. I spoke to Warren, JB, Chuck and Sipe. Will also post some more from them on my blog, and the whole story for those who can't see it. Stay tuned.

Nice, Rob. I've been waiting for somebody to find a quote from him about his intention to die on stage. Didn't think it would go back to the HGB though!

I find myself having to force myself to think about it in terms like Fishman put it in. It's difficult. I do think the Fox show was the pinnacle of Bruce's career, in many many ways. I've only seen Bruce in the Fox or venues that size or larger as a special guest sit-in, or as an opening band that the majority of the ticketholders skips. Monday night he was the headliner and guest of honor. And he didn't exit in the middle, but rather made it to the very end. Except the show never ended for Bruce.

And think if Bruce had lived another 15 years, and the possibility or probability of another trip through obscurity and weekly gigs at a 75 seat room, before finally checking out. He did it his way, and went out on top. Give him credit. But goddam it sucks for the rest of us.

Thanks all. I forgot about the Paywall. They have closed the Google loophole, but you can go right through social media, so if you're on Facebook or Twitter, I've linked there. I spoke to Warren, JB, Chuck and Sipe. Will also post some more from them on my blog, and the whole story for those who can't see it. Stay tuned.

Thanks, Alan. Got to it through your FB page. Best 'article' on what happened that I've read. And yours and Fishman's eulogies were also the best I've seen.

Hophead once told me a Bruce story - and I hope I get it right, but probably won't. But as I recall how the story goes, Hophead and Bruce went to a Braves game together at the old Fulton County Stadium during the Braves final season there before moving across the street to Turner Field. TBS/SportSouth broadcasted most of the games back then, and during the final season they would try to get any celebs (or quasi-celebs, as the case may be) on air to ask them about any special remembrances of Fulton County Stadium. Apparently they got Bruce that night, and he started telling some cockamamie story live on air about somebody being buried behind 2nd base.

I've never seen an actual video of it. And I have no clue if it is even real or more Bruce-lore to add to the collection. But I'd love for somebody to get somebody from Time-Warner archives to review Braves games from the 1996 season and find and post it to Youtube. I hope Hophead is doing okay.

Sorry to thread-jack, Alan. Again, terrific article in the WSJ and eulogy/obit on your blog. I've re-read it several times. It helps. Also loved your Relix article on your 1992 introduction to Bruce and ARU. I could have almost plagiarized it from my personal experience, except for me it was 1990 with a co-headline show with Steve Morse solo rather than the Dregs. Steve's set was sandwiched between two full-length ARU sets, and then they played a few songs together at the end. Insane.

[Edited on 5/4/2017 by Zambi]

I do get what Rob and Zambi are saying. I get it. Rob is also right about feeling traumatized by witnessing this.
As I was driving out of the Georgian Terrace on Tuesday morning I saw Matt Slocum walk by. He just had a vacant look in his eyes. I wanted to stop the car and get out and go to him ... but I had no idea what to say. I know the musicians are the most affected by this, but us mortals are feeling the loss as well. It's certainly something we'll all have to get through.

Nice work, Alan. Thank you.

I highly recommend watching all of this.

Thanks all. I forgot about the Paywall. They have closed the Google loophole, but you can go right through social media, so if you're on Facebook or Twitter, I've linked there. I spoke to Warren, JB, Chuck and Sipe. Will also post some more from them on my blog, and the whole story for those who can't see it. Stay tuned.

Thanks, Alan. Got to it through your FB page. Best 'article' on what happened that I've read. And yours and Fishman's eulogies were also the best I've seen.

Hophead once told me a Bruce story - and I hope I get it right, but probably won't. But as I recall how the story goes, Hophead and Bruce went to a Braves game together at the old Fulton County Stadium during the Braves final season there before moving across the street to Turner Field. TBS/SportSouth broadcasted most of the games back then, and during the final season they would try to get any celebs (or quasi-celebs, as the case may be) on air to ask them about any special remembrances of Fulton County Stadium. Apparently they got Bruce that night, and he started telling some cockamamie story live on air about somebody being buried behind 2nd base.

I've never seen an actual video of it. And I have no clue if it is even real or more Bruce-lore to add to the collection. But I'd love for somebody to get somebody from Time-Warner archives to review Braves games from the 1996 season and find and post it to Youtube. I hope Hophead is doing okay.

Sorry to thread-jack, Alan. Again, terrific article in the WSJ and eulogy/obit on your blog. I've re-read it several times. It helps. Also loved your Relix article on your 1992 introduction to Bruce and ARU. I could have almost plagiarized it from my personal experience, except for me it was 1990 with a co-headline show with Steve Morse solo rather than the Dregs. Steve's set was sandwiched between two full-length ARU sets, and then they played a few songs together at the end. Insane.

[Edited on 5/4/2017 by Zambi]

Andrew,

He mentions the burial at 2nd base in this hilarious interview:

He mentions the burial at 2nd base in this hilarious interview:

Ryan, awesome find! But really, you couldn't tell me it was at the 9-minute mark of an 11 minute interview? Lol.

Bacon or toothpaste? Too much.

That was great.

Ok, found it! Best of all, we now have a date and it was on Fox national tv during the pre-game. Doesn't Fox own WSJ? Alan - can the WSJ pull any strings to get a recording of it from the Fox archives? You know, for, err, writer's research purposes? [not being serious.]

From: https://allmanbrothersband.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=XForum&file=viewthread&fid=126&tid=88262&page=1&orderdate=

Hophead's story:

As has been mentioned elsewhere in this thread, Col. Bruce is a real baseball fanatic -- in fact it was he who got me started on Fantasy Baseball back in 1991 when I joined the Warren C. Giles League of Gentlemen.

I've got great season tickets to the Braves (28 years now) and I enjoy taking Bruce with to the game. The usher on my aisle is Walter Banks, the celebrity usher for the owner's box and the only one I've ever met who can go toe to toe with Bruce on baseball stats.

Bruce was at the very first game ever played in Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, an exhibition game featuring the Milwaukee Braves a year before they moved to Atlanta. Tommy Aaron (Hank's brother) hit the very first home run ever in the brand new ballpark.

The very LAST game ever played in AFC Stadium was in 1996, after Turner Field had been built as the then Olympic Stadium. The game was extra special because it was Game 5 of the 1996 World Series. In that game Andy Pettitte shut out John Smoltz as the Yankees won, 1-0. The final out at the stadium was made when Yankees outfielder Paul O'Neill robbed Luis Polonia of a potential game-tying extra base hit.

I invited Bruce to go to this game with me because I sensed some sort of cosmic congruence. How many people in that stadium (other than Walter and Bruce) had been to both the first and last games? I'm thinking less than a handful.

We got there early to watch batting practice and to enjoy all the pregame hoopla -- and there was plenty of it! Sitting right behind the owners box, there were TV cameras and television personalities all around us. At one point Walter spoke with this gorgeous blonde with a microphone and pointed to Bruce and me. She was looking for a good pregame interview and who better than the guy who had been to both first and last games at the stadium?

Before the segment began, she prepped us for the upcoming spot on the Fox Network -- and Bruce went off on some kind of tangent ... like Bruce does ... and she said, "Oh no, don't do that on camera!" He promised he wouldn't.

A moment later the fingers counted down, the red light on the camera lit, and the poor lady began her interview with Bruce. Everything seemed OK at first. Then Bruce went off again. He told the lady that his family was from the neighborhood where the stadium was built and his uncle was buried directly under second base. I've never seen such a look of pure horror on an on-camera personality. She dropped Bruce like a hot potato and had the microphone in my face no time. I finished up the interview without incident, but I could see her imagining a career down in flames ...

The next day I got recognized in Northpoint Mall by some lady who'd seen the pregame, and I thought that was cool. But Bruce got several calls, including one from Belgium and another from Japan -- apparently that pregame interview had gone out on satellite.

I have this on tape and have watched it several times. Hooray for the Colonel!

[Edited on 5/4/2017 by Zambi]

Hey Alan,

Your "reporting" on this amazing event has really helped me process the loss. I was watching the live stream and agree with the no second-guessing. From where I sat I thought the Colonel was just having a good time.

Sincere thanks to you Alan. As a long time fan of this community I find your words an essential part of this musical experience. Thank you for your diligence in reporting and your very real and authentic love of the scene.

Nobody will miss Bruce more than me, but I can't buy in to the fact this was a sad and tragic event.

For those of us who were there, it was certainly traumatic, but nobody should feel bad for Bruce. We should all be lucky to pass away in such a state of pure euphoria and joy, our souls ready for the next world.

I not only believe it's how he wanted to go, I almost feel like he planned it in a way. John Fishman, drummer for Phish, wrote a great piece that I will post here that perfectly reflects my views on the subject.

In that piece, Fishman quotes an old interview from the Hampton Grease Band days that includes this....

"See, our main ambition in life aside from growing a bosom on top of our heads is to die on stage and when we die on stage that will be when we ultimately reach Grease."

Mission accomplished.

Rob, I've thought of you frequently through this entire chapter of insane happenings. I fully agree with everything you said. After watching the event and finding out the sad news that Bruce had passed I found myself not really surprised and not really sad. By that I mean no disrespect. I just feel like I finished a great book, closed the cover and sat back with a comfortable warmth running through my body and a sad, contented smile on my lips.

May we all find Grease.

You're welcome and thank you all back.

I was very upset all day Monday about having decided to not go down for this, for personal reasons - I felt like I needed to be with my family after some significant travel by my wife and I separately, including playing a song with Chuck in DC on Friday. (Which was incredible, but a separate story.) So it's a strange twist of fate that I ended up chronicling it. Maybe I was meant to not be there so I could have a tiny bit of emotional distance. It was very intense talking to everyone the other day.

Thank you for that Fox interview! Wow. Classic Bruce. As I said in my personal memorial, "Bruce was one of the greatest truth tellers I’ve ever known. Quite a few times over the years, a conversation with him clarified my thinking about a position or shifted my perception about a person or a situation.... Yet he could talk shit with the best of them."

He mentions the burial at 2nd base in this hilarious interview:

Ryan, awesome find! But really, you couldn't tell me it was at the 9-minute mark of an 11 minute interview? Lol.

Bacon or toothpaste? Too much.

That was great.

Ha, hell man, I figured you would be interested in the whole thing! 😉

Found the article here (p4):

https://www.phantasytour.com/bands/wsp/threads/4305458/rest-in-peace-bruce

Very nice Alan. Glad it's you who tells Bruce's story to the greater world.

The article is now trending #4 on the WSJ most read list. Wonder how many folks might be tempted to look into who this guy was based upon this article ? Mr. Paul, well done.

The article is now trending #4 on the WSJ most read list. Wonder how many folks might be tempted to look into who this guy was based upon this article ? Mr. Paul, well done.

Only the guy who turned a book about the Allman Brothers into a bestseller would be able to achieve this.

Another fantastic piece of writing by Alan, kudos for putting the Colonel's legacy into the national spotlight in such a nice way.

Be it a Tweet or a book, it's always a joy to read your work, despite the situation, or especially in the current circumstances.

Thank you very much guys.

Seeing that Bruce was #4 most read story all day on WSJ.com, just above Elon Musk, tripped me out. One of my proudest moments, along with reviewing a Gatemouth Brown album for People, leading to a beautiful picture of Gate running in there.

I just wish I could call Bruce and point this out to him! It would crack him up and please him to no end.

Thank you for writing about Col. Bruce Hampton. He was an excellent musician and put on one of the best shows I have ever seen. He was also very nice.

Seeing that Bruce was #4 most read story all day on WSJ.com, just above Elon Musk, tripped me out.

Like most commentary sections below online articles, there's a few curmudgeon's on that one who you know if they just had a chance to spend some time with Bruce would likely change their tune about the guy in a heartbeat.

That physical opportunity is gone, of course, but the amount of archived material available these days is there to anoint new disciples. In this sense, technology certainly giveth and not taketh away!

The wife and I get the WSJ, I had missed the news about Bruce but my wife was scanning the paper and said something about the ABB, of course I looked at the article. It's a beautiful piece Alan. Sad but I have to agree with the post that Bruce may have been ok going out on top, maybe he did have a euphoric ending. I've always said I want the AFE ABB Mountain Jam playing in my ears with my last breaths. Bruce had Turn on your Love Light. RIP Bruce.

figured this ought to go somewhere so here it is--first is a review of the reunion show of the Hampton grease band from a few years back:

http://glennphillips.myfreesites.net/hampton-grease-band-reunion-show

and a pretty detailed history of the hgb, fyi:
http://glennphillips.myfreesites.net/hampton-grease-band

hope these links work.

and a pretty detailed history of the hgb, fyi:
http://glennphillips.myfreesites.net/hampton-grease-band
/a>

Thanks for that, Pat. I've been looking for the liner notes to the 1990s reissue of Music to Eat, and it's no longer on Glenn's Angelfire web-page. I guess Google sent me to the wrong Glenn Phillips web-site, b/c it was nowhere to be found. It's a great story, even if a bit biased toward's Glenn's perspective (and no fault in that).

Here's the AJC article on same:
http://www.ajc.com/entertainment/new-serving-grease-band-eat/x4El5ZWpsUHTQMmINvUMzM/

Well done Alan!

And here is another piece on Bruce from my other favorite ABB biographer, Scott Freeman. Not sure if you saw it Alan:

http://artsatl.com/remembrance-colonel-bruce-hampton-gave-greatest-gift/

Some insane stories about Bruce in Scott's piece.

Thanks Tim. I had not seen that.