Keith Richards and the X-pensive Winos
Universal Amphitheatre
Los Angeles, CA
January 23, 1993
Mike Millard Master DAT via JEMS
The Lost and Found Mike the MICrophone Tapes Volume 93

Recording Gear: AKG 451E Microphones (CK-1 cardioid capsules) > Panasonic SV-250 DAT Recorder

JEMS 2021 Transfer: Mike Millard Master DAT > Sony DTC-690 DAT Recorder > Sound Devices USBPre 2 > Audacity 2.0 capture > iZotope RX7 > convert 16/48 to 16/44.1 > iZotope Ozone 8 > Audacity > TLH > FLAC

01 Somethin' Else (Eddie Cochran cover)
02 How I Wish
03 Wicked As It Seems
04 Gimme Shelter
05 999
06 Runnin' Too Deep
07 Locked Away
08 Time Is On My Side
09 Will But You Won't
10 Words Of Wonder
11 Hate It When You Leave
12 Before They Make Me Run
13 Eileen
14 Bodytalks
15 Whip It Up
16 I Could Have Stood Up To You
17 Happy
18 Take It So Hard

Known Faults: Portions of the recording are in mono as explained below.

Introduction to the Lost and Found Mike the MICrophone Series

Welcome to JEMS’ Lost and Found Mike the MICrophone series presenting recordings made by legendary taper Mike Millard, AKA Mike the MICrophone, best known for his masters of Led Zeppelin done in and around Los Angeles circa 1975-77. For the complete details on how tapes in this series came to be lost and found again, as well as JEMS' long history with Mike Millard, please refer to the notes in Vol. One: http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=500680.

Until 2020, the Lost and Found series presented fresh transfers of previously unavailable first-generation copies made by Mike himself for friends like Stan Gutoski of JEMS, Jim R, Bill C. and Barry G. These sources were upgrades to circulating copies and in most instances marked the only time verified first generation Millard sources had been directly digitized in the torrent era.

That all changed with the discovery of many of Mike Millard’s original master tapes.

Yes, you read that correctly, Mike Millard’s master cassettes, long rumored to be destroyed or lost, have been found. Not all of them but many, and with them a much more complete picture has emerged of what Millard recorded between his first show in late 1973 and his last in early 1992.

The reason the rediscovery of his master tapes is such a revelation is that we’ve been told for decades they were gone. Internet myths suggest Millard destroyed his master tapes before taking his own life, an imprudent detail likely concocted based on the assumption that because his master tapes never surfaced and Mike’s mental state was troubled he would do something rash WITH HIS LIFE’S WORK. There’s also a version of the story where Mike’s family dumps the tapes after he dies. Why would they do that?

The truth is Mike’s masters remained in his bedroom for many years after his death in 1994. We know at least a few of Millard’s friends and acquaintances contacted his mother Lia inquiring about the tapes at the time to no avail. But in the early 2000s, longtime Millard friend Rob S was the one she knew and trusted enough to preserve Mike’s work.

The full back story on how Mike’s master tapes were saved can be found in the notes for Vol. 18 Pink Floyd, which was the first release in our series transferred from Millard’s original master tapes:

http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=667745&hit=1
http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=667750&hit=1

Keith Richards and the X-pensive Winos, Universal Amphitheatre, Los Angeles, CA, January 23, 1993

As previewed last week, Volume 93 is a notable entry in the Lost and Found series. Mike's recording of Keith Richards and the Expensive Winos at the Universal Amphitheatre on January 23, 1993 is the last confirmed Millard recording we have tracked down to date. Is it his last recording? Possibly, but we're not ready to state that as a fact quite yet. It is also the first DAT master we've discovered in the collection that was recorded by Mike himself.

Millard didn't own a portable DAT recorder, but his friend Ed F did and Mike recorded the show for Ed using his own AKG mics and Ed's Panasonic SV-250 DAT recorder, imported from Japan. Ed and Mike recorded concerts together before (Dylan '78), and on occasions when Mike's Nakamichi was in the shop for repairs, he would borrow Ed's Uher cassette deck. As we have noted before, there were also occasions where Mike loaned his gear to others, so beyond Mike's own masters, there are recordings done with Mike's gear but not by him. We'll get to those at some point in the future.

Richards was on tour in support of the second Expensive Winos project, Main Offender, and the set mixes songs from that album and the band's debut, Talk Is Cheap, along with covers and select Rolling Stones material.

Mike's taping location is unknown, but as you'll hear on the tape he was surrounded by the kind of people tapers dread, loud, obnoxious and physical. You'll hear interactions between Mike and some of the folks seated near him and they aren't entirely friendly. Worse still, about halfway through the show, Mike has an equipment issue which results in the full loss of one channel and a massive level drop in the other.

The result made the recording almost unlistenable, but through software mastering we were able to amplify and restore the low channel, which leaves a large chunk of the show in mono but listenable for the first time. Samples provided.

What's a bit surprising listening to this Richards solo performance 28 years later is how tame it sounds. This is not the shambolic New Barbarians, but a relatively well-rehearsed and, by Keef standards, polished show. It is certainly lacking a bit of edge and urgency, but should appeal to fans just the same.

As our archive of Mike the Mike recordings stops in 1993, the next volumes in our series will return to recordings from throughout his taping career, including what we hope are a few especially tasty entries as we build up to our milestone 100th release in a few weeks.

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JEMS is proud to partner with Rob, Jim R, Ed F, Barry G and many others to release Millard's historic recordings and to help set the record straight about the man himself.

We can’t thank Rob enough for reconnecting with Jim and putting his trust in our Millard reissue campaign. He kept Mike’s precious tapes under wraps for two decades, but once Rob learned of our methods and stewardship, he agreed to contribute the Millard DATs and cassettes to the program. Our releases would not be nearly as compelling without Jim’s memories, photos and other background contributions. As many of you have noted, the stories offer an entertaining complement to Mike’s incredible audio documents.

Special thanks this week to Ed F for saving and sharing his DAT tapes and to mjk5510 for his on-going leadership of the Lost and Found series.

Finally, cheers to the late, great Mike the MICrophone. His work never ceases to impress. May he rest in peace.

BK for JEMS

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