Review of 9/8/07 Zen Tricksters Acoustic Trio Show at the Waterhole, Saranac Lake, NY

I'd long heard about the Zen Tricksters, but never had the opportunity to 
see this Long Island based band live.  It was a real treat to attend the 
Trickster's Acoustic Trio show upstairs at the Waterhole in Saranac Lake.  
Band members Donna Jean Godchaux and Mookie Siegel are currently touring 
with David Nelson and the New Riders of the Purple Sage, leaving guitarists 
Jeff Mattson and Tom Circosta, and Bassist Klyph Black some free time to 
gig as an acoustic outfit. 

The results are excellent.  By the looks of it, the audience ranged from 
21 to 60+ years old, and everyone left smiling. The band promptly took the 
stage at 9 pm, and jumped right in to a rousing mix of originals and tasty 
interpretations of classic folk/rock/ bluegrass songs in the vein of the 
Grateful Dead's early 1980's acoustic album, Reckoning, or EmmyLou Harris' 
Live at the Ryman.  Along the way, they covered songs by Bob Dylan, Los Lobos, 
David Bromberg, The New Riders, Peter Rowan, Commander Cody, and of course, 
the Dead. 

Mattson handles most of the lead guitar work, with Circosta driving the rhythm.   
But far from being simply a rhythm guitarist, (and he is a very good one) 
Circosta lit up parts of nearly every song for some sparkling lead of his own.  
At times, the two guitarists' notes intertwined so completely it was hard to 
keep track of who was playing what.  Through it all, Black thumped away, at 
times powerfully, at times more discreetly, but always melodically on the 
low end.  

Without a drummer, the tight timing of the group was quite notable. Their extended 
jams fell apart and came back together magically, and years of playing and 
singing together were evidenced by flawless precision throughout the show.
The traditional Dark Hollow, with a high bluegrass harmony, a sweet rendition 
of John Dawson's Louisiana Lady, Weather Report Suite, and lastly a lively 
version of Rowan's Midnight Moonlight were all highlights of the first set.
During the intermission, the band members mingled with the crowd, talking music 
shop and signing autographs. Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (that cigarette), an old country 
staple, made famous among country-rock fans by Commander Cody and his Lost Planet 
Airmen, kicked off a high energy second set.  A folk standard, The Banks of the 
Ohio followed, much to everyone's delight.  A blues number, Nobody Knows You When 
You're Down and Out, was followed by Jack Straw, then The Thrill is Gone, a 
Darnel / Hawkins number that B.B. King is most commonly associated with.  Extended 
jams during original songs Sleepwalking and Drownin'  gave fans ample time for dancing.  
Everyone sang along with a sweet renditions of Ripple and Me & Bobby McGee; Black's 
harmonies were exquisite. 

As the Witching Hour approached, a rousing Evangeline gave way to CSN&Y's Love and 
Only Love to conclude the almost four hour show.  The Tricksters gave such an all-out 
performance that it seemed the crowd was too polite to ask for an encore. Being more 
than 25 years removed from the late night party crowd, I wondered if I'd feel at ease 
attending the Waterhole show.  The upstairs music venue was sparkling clean and nicely lit.  
The bartender kept me supplied with straight cranberry juice at a buck a glass, and cold 
drinking water was provided free of charge all night.  It was plain that everyone was 
there to listen to music and dance, which made for a very enjoyable evening.  The fifteen 
dollar ticket was more than reasonably price for a show of such quality; here's hoping 
Lazar Bear Productions will continue touring acts to Saranac Lake.  Thanks, Les

Relix Magazine, February/March 2007
For Rex: The Black Tie-Dye Ball

by Mike Greenhaus

It's one thing for a concert to produce a live album, but it's a 
whole 'nuther thing for a single show to kick-start an actual band. 
But one Rex Foundation benefit accomplished just that, rolling The 
Zen Tricksters, Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay and a number of additional 
Grateful Dead family members into a new all-star group later dubbed 
Kettle Joe's Psychedelic Swamp Revue. A year later, the Rex Foundation 
has released the meat of that performance, which also featured appearances 
from Dead deities like David Nelson, Tom Constanten, Mike Falzarano, 
Greg Anton and Rob Barraco, as a two-disc set. Mickey Hart even stops 
by at the start of the show, adding vocals and, um, cowbell to "Iko Iko" 
before handing over his reins to Zen Tricksters frontman, Jeff Mattson. 
While the album includes a number of classic rock chestnuts, including 
a touching version of the Dead's "Ripple" and Constanten's trippy take 
on the Doors' "People are Strange," For Rex: The Black Tie-Dye Ball 
truly finds its feet through enwer songs by Mattson and Barraco, resetting 
Jerry Garcia's spirit in a decidedly modern context. 

Glide Magazine, October 4, 2006
For Rex: The Black Tie-Dye Ball, The Zen Tricksters w/Special Guests

by Kenny Bohlin

Last fall a group of musicians came together for a benefit for the 
Rex Foundation (named for a Grateful Dead roadie who died tragically in 
a car accident back in 1976). The black tie event held at the concert 
hall for the New York Society for Ethical Culture featured an artist 
collective comprised of Grateful Dead members and mercenaries, but was 
primarily based around the foundation of the Zen Tricksters. The music 
created was inevitably Dead like, but what's captured here is invigoratingly 
new and fresh as a daisy. 

Familiar Dead style covers invoking audience sing-a-longs are scattered 
throughout the night (“Iko Iko,” “Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad,” 
“People are Strange”) and Dead show staples (“Music Never Stopped,” 
“Ripple”) round out the sets. But the rest of the show is a new take 
on that old formula. There's certainly more jam for your buck - 
some of it spacey, some of it bluegrass - but when the band really 
comes together, they hit on all cylinders. 

The old heads will find a pretty accurate take on the Grateful Dead 
sound with this release, instantly recognizable by someone in the know. 
For those too young to have actually seen the fat man rock, it's a 
good place to get an idea of what it was like. The magic is still 
resonating out there, ready to be plucked out and played. These guys 
are all experts at plucking it out, and that can be pretty rare 
nowadays. So rare, a majority of this one-off has morphed into a new 
touring unit entitled Kettle Joe's Psychedelic Swamp Revue. 


Relix Magazine, February/March 2006
Soundcheck: Live Reviews - compiled by Dean Budnick

New York, NY, Society for Ethical Culture, November 12 Rex Foundation Black Tie-Dye Ball

by Mike Greenhaus

  Someone once described the experience of attending a Grateful Dead concert as a
mixture between seeing a baseball game and going to church. So it's fitting that 
The Rex Foundation hosted its New York Black Tie-Dye fall fundraiser at the 
Society for Ethical Culture, a pew-filled room created to foster a spiritual sense 
of community. For patrons with deep pockets, the evening's festivities began with 
a pre-concert meet-and-greet featuring chief preacher Mickey Hart and Dead-family 
deacons like Donna Jean Godchauz-MacKay, Rob Barraco, David Nelson, Tom Constanten, 
Michael Falzarano (Hot Tuna), Greg Anton (Zero, Heart of Gold Band) and David MacKay 
(Heart of Gold Band). After a few words from Hart, the evening's activities shifted 
upstairs where The Zen Tricksters served as the house band for a guest-laden, two-set 
jamfest. Hart also provided the evening's invocation, adding vocals and cowbell to an 
all-star version of "Iko Iko," before--rather quickly--slipping into the night.
   No matter: as the evening unfolded, The Zen Tricksters proved to be the event's true 
guiding light, weaving a ministry of guests into its set, including the two-keyboardist 
attack of Constanten and former Trickster Barraco. Highlights from the Dead catalogue 
included a touching "Ripple," "The Music Never Stopped," and "Goin' Down the Road 
Feeling Bad," at which point Relix publisher and Rex honcho Steve Bernstein 
brought perennial concertgoer Dancing Will onstage. During his brief tenure in the 
Grateful Dead, Constanten's quirky, psychedellic sound remained relatively muted but, 
on this night, he fashioned himself as a slightly trippier Ray Manzarek (though his 
vocals on the Doors' "People are Strange" proved to be anything but holy). Since first 
linking up with The Zen Tricksters at the Gathering of the Vibes in August, Godchaux-MacKay 
has also meshed well with Jeff Mattson's eerily on-point Garcia interpretations. If the 
evening proved one thing it's that the church of Garcia is still alive, if indeed split 
into several denominaitons.

Good Times Magazine, Issue 898, October 5 - 18, 2004

The Zen Tricksters - An All-American Jam Band

by Dan Brown

   Since first appearing on the scene as New York's first and most well-
known jam band, The Zen Tricksters have grown to become international touring
and recording artists. October marks the 25th anniversary of the band, and to 
kick off what will be a year-long celebration, ZT will perform a show at The
Downtown on October 22.
   This celebration of a quarter century of music will find the band revisiting
their past on stage with appearances from several former members. The show will
highlight The Zen Tricksters and their music in its present form while offering
the fans a taste of what they can expect from the band as they begin the next
25 years of their career.
   The band that would become The Zen Tricksters began in 1979 as The Volunteers. 
Their live set was mostly made up of songs from the Grateful Dead, a band that
has inspired and remains an influence for founding member Jeff Mattson to this day.
   "I had gotten the bug about the Grateful Dead about the same time that I
started playing guitar," Mattson recalls. "And, as with so many Deadheads, "I had
this tunnel vision. I was obsessd, so that sort of mirrored my development as a
guitar player. Even the very first band I played in did some Grateful Dead songs."
   No matter what the climate of the club scene has been or where the trends in 
pop music have gone, The Zen Tricksters have stayed true to themselves and the
jam band style. In the early '80s, Long Island was booming with rock clubs, and
there was an ample supply of good bands to fill the demand for live music. The
lion's share of the bands were cashing in on the new wave boom and covering arena
rock anthems. The Volunteers offered an alternative and created a niche for them-
selves by appealing to the large loyal following of the Dead, as well as lovers 
of the jam band experience.
   "The Dead have always had their biggest following - even more so than in
California in some ways - in New York," Mattson reasons. "So there were always
people hungry for that."
   In 1988, a falling out between band members led to Mattson and a couple of the
Volunteers faithful, who by then were doing a mainly original music set, to
regroup as The Zen Tricksters. Mattson is the last remaining original member from
The Volunteers lineup, and is joined by Klyph Black (bass, vocals, dobro, lap steel),
Tom Circosta (guitar, vocals, piano), and Joe Ciarvella (drums).
   The Zen Tricksters relased their first full-length disc, The Holy Fool, in 1996.
The band returned to the studio to release A Love Surreal in 1999. A copy of A Love 
Surreal made it into the hands of Phil Lesh, who was moved enough by what he heard
to enlist Mattson and former ZT keyboard player Rob Barraco to be a part of his 
Phil & Friends project. Mattson remembers meeting Lesh and getting the Dead bassist's
thoughts on the Tricksters' sound.
   "He was really blown away by our ability to jam in the studio," Mattson  says.
"He claimed that the Dead were never really adept at that, They couldn't ever get to
that place in the studio, only in a live situation." After a 10-day rehearsal schedule,
Mattson and Barraco joined Lesh and his band for three dates at the Warfield Theater
in San Francisco.
   Mattson and the Tricksters play roughly 180 shows a year in North America, and the
group has also brought its  jam band show to the stages of Japan. The band has played 
on bills with everyone from Derek Trucks to Stanley Jordan, and has shared the stage 
with a list of major artists that includes Suzanne Vega, The Jerry Garcia Band and 
Jefferson Starship.
   Over the band's 25-year history, there have been numberous personnel changes. In
the years leading up to Joe Ciarvella joining the group in the Spring of 2004, the
Tricksters found themselves hard-pressed to find a drummer that fit - so Black,
Circosta and Mattson decided to work as a trio. In 2003, they released Shaking Off
The Weirdness and spent a good part of the year touring as an acoustic act.
   "People were very surprised at the fullness of the sound," Tom Circosta remembers.
"It was really something that was unique. We used to have to explain to people that
'this isn't your mother's acoustic show.' This was a jam band that could jam as well
as anybody, even though it was just two acoustic guitars and a bass. And because of that,
we got to play some of the bigger venues."
   Operating outside of the system has helped The Zen Tricksters sustain a national fan 
base without the backing of a major label. Mattson credits the success to constant touring 
and internet downloading sites.
   "We sell a lot of our CDs on the Internet, through www.homegrownmusic.net," Mattson
says. That is the 2004 version of indie distribution. Stores are becoming less and less 
important. So anybody in the world who wants to buy The Zen Tricksters' music is only two
clicks away."
   The band allows fans to record their shows, while making live recordings available 
free of charge via the net. As to whether giving so much away might be hurting the
band's ability to sell their studio recordings, Mattson sees downloading as more of an
opportunity than a detriment.
   "If you're smart, you realize that it's doing you more good than harm," he reasons.
"For those lost dollars, you're getting new fans hearing your music and coming to your
shows. And it isn't like they aren't going to buy your CD because they have a live recording
of your show. It's more important to get your music out there. It sounds cliched, but it's 
all about the music."
   Visit the ZT online at www.zentricksters.com and learn about how to get their records, 
as well as to find out where to see one of the great jam bands live.

Long Island Entertainment News, October 2004
The Zen Tricksters Celebrate their 25th Anniversary at the Downtown

by Brian Weinstein

   Back in 1979, live music was alive and thriving in several rock clubs
around Long Island. Rock fans could go to one of the many bars around the
Island and treat themselves to hearing cover bands or bands with original
material, all before the rise of MTV and "video clubs."
   One of the bands around during that era was a group of young men named
The Volunteers who played original tunes mixed with Grateful Dead covers.
Going through several personnel changes, the band had a parting of the ways
in 1989, and four of the members went on to form The Zen Tricksters, who are
preparing to celebrate their 25-year anniversary at the Downtown in Farmingdale
on Friday, October 22.
   "It's a long history," says Tricksters lead guitarist and vocalist Jeff 
Mattson, with a laugh. Mattson has been a member of the band since the beginning. 
"For the first ten years or so, we mostly just played in the New York area,
primarily on Long Island. As we got into the 90's, we started to tour and branch
out. We went through upstate New York and New England, eventually to the South,
the West Coast and ever since then, we've been touring the entire country and
Canada. A few years ago we went to Japan for a tour."
   One of the most interesting aspects of The Zen Tricksters is their revolving-
door lineup, as members of the band have joined and left at various times over 
the past 25 years.
   "People have come and gone over the years, so there's been a pretty large
group of people who have been in the band from one point to another," said
Mattson. "In a way, that's been a really interesting thing. The band's aesthetic
has stayed the same. Our playing music is based on a lot of collective improvi-
sation and we've kept that consistent. But when you bring a new person into the
band, and they have that freedom [to improvise], it's going to influence the sound
of the band," said Mattson. "The sound has changed and evolved over the years.
It can be a set-back, sometimes it's an improvement."
   Another factor that The Zen Tricksters have had to deal with over the past 25
years is their reputation as a "Grateful Dead cover band," despite the fact that
the band has played original material from day one.
   "It's been a double-edged sword because on one hand you have people coming to
our shows who have never seen us and they come back because of how well [we play]"
said Mattson. "But by the same token, in the music industry, as far as getting a
major record contract or playing certain venues, there's been a certain backlash
where people think we're just a Grateful Dead cover band."
   Despite the backlash, Mattson said The Zen Tricksters will definitely continue
to hold on to their Grateful Dead roots.
   "We'll always play Dead songs because they're great songs," said Mattson.
"They need to be played."
   Mattson and the rest of the current Tricksters are sure to get some help playing
these tunes at The Downtown come October 22. The large number of current and former
Tricksters may be quite an advantage for the band and fans alike. Mattson said he's 
looking forward to seeing old friends at The Downtown show and can't wait to go all
out in true Zen Tricksters fashion.
   There's no opening acts, so it's going to be us all night," said Mattson. "There's
going to be plenty, plenty, plenty Zen Tricksters music. And we're going to have a 
lot of alumni come down, sitting in, playing songs we haven't played in years, seeing
old faces. It's going to be a real celebration of our history."

Relix Magazine, April/May 2004
An Interview with Jeff Mattson of The Zen Tricksters

by Benjamin Bruce

BB: What's the current lineup?

JM: "It's me on lead guitar, Klyph Black on bass and Tom Circosta on guitar and
piano. We are in the process of auditioning a new permanent drummer."

BB: How long have the Tricksters been around?

JM: "We started out as the Volunteers, in 1979, so in October this year it will
be 25 years."

BB: Where did you get the name Zen Tricksters?

JM: "The art of playing this type of improvisational music is very much a Zen
state of consciousness, at its best. The Tricksters, we don't take ourselves
too seriously. We like to have fun, and it's also a nod to the Merry Pranksters,
who were a big influence."

BB: You have a unique perspective. What changes have you watched occur 
within the scene?

JM: "When we started out, jamming was a dirty word. The three-minute song was
it and there were no guitar solos at all. We've seen it grow up, it's been a
wonderful kind of renaissance. You have everything from the funk jambands to
the bluegrass-y jambands and the techno-oriented ones and that's great. All
born out of that love for the extended musical journey and exploration."

BB: Are you looking to release another album of original music [previous releases
include The Holy Fool, A Love Surreal, and Shaking Off the Weirdness]?

JM: "Absolutely. We're focused on finding a new permanent drummer, taking
this very slowly and seriously to make sure we get the right person. We already 
have new material that we're playing and working out. We'll get them up to speed,
then have the whole spring and summer to get out there and do a lot of playing.
We can shoot for recording an album in the fall."

Revolving Door Aug/Sept 2003 Issue #60

by Stu Fox


Guitarists Jeff Mattson and Tom Circosta join bassist and guitarist Klyph 
Black in churning out some gorgeous acoustic tapestries on their latest CD. 
The album roars out of the gate with a stone killer opening track, "Talk of 
the Town," and the percolating vibrations of this groove-infested rocker are 
magnified by Buddy Cage's animated pedal steel guitar and former band mate 
Rob Barraco's twisting piano melodies. Jason Crosby's sparkling fiddle work 
highlights the intricate instrumental progressions of "Light of Life" and the 
band lays into some country rock rhythms during "All Night Long Blues." Black 
handles the vocal chores on "Waiting for a Sign" and his introspective lyrics 
cast a sweeping vibe over the imposing ballad.

The musicians stretch out into rocking jams on "Sleepwalking" and fire into 
some tantalizing guitar interplay during the bluesy "Last Ten Years." Barraco 
helps expand the slow rolling cadences of "The One," and the trio cooks up a 
bouncy 1970's feeling during the country rocker "No One Said It'd Be Easy." 
The Tricksters push out into their most adventurous sound waves with the 
experimental excursions of "High Horse" and the album concludes with a short 
instrumental number called "The Dean Street Mess Around."

This CD unveils a musical slice of the Zen Tricksters that many people haven't 
heard before. The electricity of their psychedelic sound waves are somewhat 
tempered by the acoustic format, but the lysergic animation that radiates through 
"High Horse" is as powerful as any amplified flashes they could generate by plugging 
in their instruments. The band heats up plenty of righteous grooves on the album and 
the intricate layering of acoustic guitars patterns on "Talk of the Town," and "Last 
Ten Years" are highly intoxicating pieces of work.

Seven Days July 9-16, 2003 Vol. 8 No. 46

Burlington, VT

by Ethan Covey

The Zen Tricksters are one of New England's most accomplished jam bands. 
A quarter-century into their career - that's half a decade longer than Phish, 
dudes - the New York group has settled into a position at the top of the 
groove crop with its own unique sound. That said, the Tricksters have always 
dealt with a barrage of comparisons to the Grateful Dead; hell, they started 
as a Dead cover band. But influences aside, the band's homages are far less 
blatant and embarrassing than those of most meandering, patchouli-soaked 
pickers.

With tunes that spin a summery mix of sweet harmonies, plucked acoustic 
guitars, fiddles and vaguely psychedelic lyrics, the band sticks close 
to the folky side of music. But the trio also has a clear game plan that 
does not simply bow to traditional jam clichés. Instead of bastardizing 
the blues or getting lost in pointless, dead-end soloing, the Tricksters 
stick to a lighthearted Americana that would surely earn Jerry's stamp 
of approval.

Shaking Off the Weirdness, the Tricksters' latest recording, is a collection 
of feel-good folk, subtle country twang and light-handed blues improv. The 
10 original tunes have a timeless quality that makes them sound like a lost 
recording of a Woodstock pow-wow as much as a current collection from a band 
of retro-grooving rockers. Opener “Talk of the Town” is a gritty blues stomp 
with blistering barrelhouse piano. The instrumental “Light of Life” begins 
with a bouncy acoustic guitar lick that sounds frighteningly like standard 
soul-baring singer-songwriter fare, but it is saved by a flurry of nifty fiddle 
licks. “No One Said It'd Be Easy” is a shuffling folk-pop cut with tight, 
three-part harmonies and a hummable chorus.

Elsewhere, the Tricksters stick to the rootsy psych-folk that they have mastered. 
Rarely does the band try anything new, and the lyrics occasionally dissolve 
into hokey hippiedom, but the songs in general are impressive - it's refreshing 
to hear a band so confident in its output. Though Shaking Off the Weirdness is 
not without its low points, the album should be required listening for any 
jam-god wannabe.

Dirty Linen Issue #107 August/September 2003

by Dan Willging

   The third album from Long Island's Zen Tricksters shows that they are
holding up their end of the jamband scene just fine, thank you. In their
third decade of performing, ZT are now a mere trio, yet devoid of the
typical sparse trio-type sound. Rather, with special guests steel guitarist
Buddy Cage (New Riders of the Purple Sage), alumnus pianist Rob Barraco
(Phil Lesh), and fiddler Jason Crosby (Oteil & the Peacemakers), ZT recall
the frenzied acoustic spirit of Hot Tuna and the improv personality of the
Dead. In doing so, ZT keep it unplugged, exhibiting a keen freshness that
makes them their own entity. Guitarist Jeff Mattson drives with well-
articulated fingerpicking, while the jams with Barraco weave and swirl
about like tempest-tossed atmospheric bodies dancing together. Whether
it's the stomp-down "Talk of the Town," the bluesy shuffle "Last Ten Years,"
or the early jazz-inspired "The Dean Street Mess Around," there's no
shortage of shifting textures. The Men from Zen are all about it.

  
Sing Out! Vol. 47 #2 Summer 2003

   Jam bands like the Zen Tricksters seem to go against the musical grain. Whereas 
most bands keep their songs in the three-to-four minute range, the Tricksters 
don't mind expanding the structure to seven, eight, or even nine minutes. And 
most bands reserve a spot for a brief guitar solo, but the Tricksters save lots 
of time for everybody in the band to solo. Lyrically, the Tricksters, like the 
Grateful Dead, shun the realistic in search of something a bit less tangible, 
a bit more esoteric. The Tricksters, it seems, break the majority of American 
rock 'n' roll rules, and for reasons best explained by a trained sociologist, 
their fans love them all the more for it.
   While Jeff Mattson, Klyph Black, and Tom Circosta began as a Dead copy band a 
long, long time ago, Shaking Off the Weirdness never makes you want to call them 
“copy cats.” Their acoustic arrangements are much more cohesive, and the jams on 
pieces like “Sleepwalking” never meander off into space. A number of guests also 
bolster the band's jam-quotient, as when fiddler Jason Crosby joins on the ethereal 
“Light of Life.” Like a number of other practitioners of the art known as “jam band,” 
all of the Tricksters write, which is a great way of guaranteeing variety. Fans will 
be grateful for Shaking Off the Weirdness, and thankful that even though the 
Zen Tricksters promote a number of un-American values - doing your own thing, working 
when you feel like it, and living on the road - they have so far escaped the Justice 
Department's net.-- RL

Skratch Magazine #86 August, 2003
by Tom "Tearaway" Schulte

SHAKING OFF THE WEIRDNESS is a solid album from The Zen Tricksters. Special guests 
on the album include Buddy Cage (New Riders of the Purple Sage, Phil Lesh & Friends) 
and Jason Crosby (Susan Tedeschi), both ex-Zen Tricksters. The group began nearly a 
quarter-century ago and now delivers its bluesy rock with a style and grace that comes 
from experience and maturity. Fans of Little Feat, Phish, The Grateful Dead, and Blues 
Traveler will take to this disc. 

 All Music Guide May 20, 2003

by Jesse Jarnow

Much of the Zen Tricksters' vocabulary - both musical and literal - 
is drawn from the musical universe of the Grateful Dead. Considering 
the fact that the Tricksters have spent the better part of the last 
20 years as one of the country's premier Dead cover bands, that's not 
a surprise. What is surprising, however, is how effective their original 
material it is. Sure, much of the band's sound is firmly in the mode of 
their main influence, but it is delightfully free of rhythmic lumber of 
the Dead. Indeed, the Tricksters seem to have taken the lessons of the 
Dead's best periods of the late '60s and early '70s and stripped them 
down. "The One" sounds like a jazzier version of a Jerry Garcia ballad 
from American Beauty, while "Talk of the Town" hones in on jazzier elements. 
The band's jamming is affable and comfortable, sticking mostly to acoustic 
sounds. Refreshingly, the Tricksters pull it off without sounding like a 
tribute act.

Sound Waves Magazine Volume 13, #8
by Dave Bulbeck

Okay, this is the long awaited acoustic CD from the Tricksters trio - 
Jeff Matson, Klyph Black, Tom Circosta.

Overall this is a brilliant CD. It opens with "Talk Of The Town". This has 
a blues / boogie rhythm, Buddy Cage contributing pedal steel and Rob Barraco 
on piano. The song has great pace and excellent bass. Cage's pedal steel 
enhances the tune greatly. There is slide guitar in there and excellent 
vocals. There is some nice picking in the middle and the whole tune segues 
into a freeform instrumental with psych fuzz guitar which reminds me of some 
of the sounds on "Baron Von Tolbooth". This becomes a long meandering jam. 
'My generosities over when my pockets are clean' - nice opener.

This is followed by "Light Of Life" by Klyph. This has a String Cheese sound 
with mountain / country feel. Some great fiddle playing by Jason Crosby takes 
this tune to new heights while the rhythm is kept going with bouncing bass and 
clean guitar picking.


"All Night Long Blues" follows - a traditional sounding tune. Nice dobro slide 
and picking - brought a big smile to my face. Wonderful.

"Waiting For A Sign" is a nice gentle tune with great vocals and picking. Jason 
Crosby appears again, this time on baritone fiddle, adding a new dimension of 
flowing counterpoint backing the guitars. '..leave that world behind you now - 
caught inside that spinning wheel, waiting for a change…'

"Sleepwalking" is an upbeat song from Jeff Matson. Rob Barraco, on piano, adds 
a filigree backing. The vocals are enhanced by the inclusion of Wendy Lanter 
ane (sic) song is so sweet. '…have I slept through the rising of the sun? I'm 
sleepwalking again'. The tune builds from the vocals as guitar and piano take 
the lead for the bridge then peaks and falls back for the end of the lyrics. 
Another nice one!

"Last Ten Years" is a plodding, gentle tune. It's a kind of 'road' song - very 
pleasant. Here we have Lil' Cliff Bernard on harp giving this song a great blues 
sound.

"The One" is a nice, simple tune with narrative lyrics - very philosophical! 
'…I can see so clear that you were the one' - thanks Jeff. With addition of 
Barraco piano this tune reminds me of "Ripple" and "China Doll" by The Dead.
"No One Said It Would Be Easy" is a gutsy, guitar orientated tune with close 
harmonies. There is a delicate acoustic guitar break. It's a song about the 
addiction of love and the passing of time.

"High Horse" is next. I have listened to this many times and still find new 
meanings. Jeff has really worked at these lyrics. This is a story of sadness 
and fear as a man seeks the love of a lady. But, as she says to him, 'this 
crown you wear is more cross than you can bear' This is a complex, interesting 
song. It is kept going with steady, rhythmic percussion while guitars dance in 
the instrumental break. The pace slows down for the final refrain - '..a statue 
of a hero keeps vigil in the square - no one knows who put it there - but people 
love a fountain and birds live in its hair'. I need to listen to this some more!

The final track on the CD is a beautiful ragtime tune called "The Dean Street 
Mess Around". Jason Crosby, Rob Barraco and Cliff Bernard take fiddle, piano and 
blues harp solos throughout. There are fine guitar breaks too. This is a superb 
tune to end the CD. I could just imagine the Tricksters sitting on the back porch, 
watching the sun go down, with a bottle of Jack Daniels and I would be there - for 
sure!

This is a wonderful acoustic CD. I have the other two CDs and have heard lots of 
electric shows over the years + recent acoustic shows. This has to be the Zen 
Tricksters' finest achievement to date.

Relix April-May, 2003 Volume 30 #2
by Mick Skidmore

The Tricksters remain one of the most enduring and dependable jambands
on the scene. Over two decades they've put their own improvisational
twist on the music of the Dead and '60s psychedelia as well as
simultaneously developing a cache of original material. This latest
album shows why they've lasted. An exciting acoustic exploration
with some dazzling instrumental work, the intricate instrumental
"Light of Life" has guest Jason Crosby on fiddle while "Talk of the
Town" is a gutsy country rocker with a classic groove. Like many of 
the songs, it shows the band's ability at fusing the old and the new.
The track also features sweet steel from New Riders' steel ace
Buddy Cage. There's confidence and maturity to this album; it's
one they should be proud of and a delight to hear.

John Dwork - author of Deadhead's Taping Compendium,
former publisher of Dupree's Diamond News, concert promoter
Peak Experience Productions, co-founder of the Gathering of the Vibes


I was delighted to find the new album waiting for me. Congratulations! 
VERY well done..I think it’s your best to date. The mix is good, the 
vocals clear, the words are substantive and fun, the playing is sharp 
(though I still would love to see you release a live, electric version of 
Light of Life some day).


WCUW 91.3 Grateful Radio, Worcester, MA
hosted by George Jodaitis

Zen Tricksters- Shaking off the Weirdness
I think this is the best release overall from the Trickster's 
showcasing their acoustic talents. CD features their strong 
playing and good songwriting skills, with guest musicians 
Jason Crosby adding some nice fiddle work on "Light of Life" 
and Buddy Cage's pedal steel on "Talk of the Town" the strongest 
track on the CD. It has a nice consistent feel and flow to it 
and the extended pieces "High Horse" and "Talk of the Town" 
stretch out nicely and highlight the bands abilities. "All 
Night Long Blues" is another standout and "Dean Street Mess 
Around" is a great cut to end with, reminiscent of a Jorma-style 
acoustic blues number. Its also great to hear Rob sitting in 
with his former bandmates and adding his hand throughout this 
release. I have been playing it, infact I already had a copy 
before you sent one.


Outsight Communications, March, 2003 edition, Detroit, MI
The Zen Tricksters

Shaking Off the Weirdness
Zebra Tango

Shaking off the Weirdness is a solid album from The Zen 
Tricksters. Special guests on the album include Buddy Cage 
(New Riders of the Purple Sage, Phil Lesh & Friends) and Jason 
Crosby (Susan Tedeschi), both ex-Zen Tricksters. The group began 
nearly a quarter-century ago and now delivers its bluesy rock 
with a style and grace that comes from experience and maturity. 
Fans of Little Feat and Phish, Grateful Dead and Blues Traveler 
will take to this disc. 
(EDITOR'S NOTE: The author mistakenly has Buddy Cage as both a former ZT and member of Phil Lesh & Friends. 
He meant, of course, Rob Barraco, and kind of combined those two.)

The Weekender, January 29, 2003. Wilkes-Barre, PA
'Shaking Off the Weirdness' Zen Tricksters

by Kevin Krieger

   If you're not familiar with the Zen Tricksters, then you
haven't been paying attention to the music scene around
Northeastern PA. Entering their 24th year, the band
continues to conjure up tasty and playful melodies wrapped
around some down home licks, and regularly brings their
talents to local clubs.
   Essentially a trio, (Jeff Mattson on guitar and vocals, 
Klyph Black on bass and vocals, and Tom Circosta on guitar 
and vocals) their latest Zebra Tango Records release "Shaking
Off the Weirdness," brings a roundtable of guests to the affair.
The tracks are fleshed out with piano, fiddle, pedal steel,
percussion, and blues harp. Songwriting chores are pretty much
evenly distributed among the three players, but somehow the style
comes through consistently. It's nice to see a triad of musical
minds all going in the same direction for once.
   Breaking the Tricksters' music down, one can find elements of
Cajun, bluegrass, jazz, country, rock and the essential jam-band
vibe. The group is better known for their interpretations of
Grateful Dead songs, but over their long career, they've
developed a sound of their own, not to mention a dedicated following.
While the Dead influence is obviously the guiding force, the songs
on "Weirdness" gain more from Garcia/Grisman collaborations than 
the full GD band.
   Songs like "Talk of the Town" and "Sleepwalking" are polished
to perfection and at the same time, given room to expand. The
Tricksters don't record "ditties." They delve into the rhythms
and find new melody lines among the notes. The instrumental
"Light of Life" and the closing effort, "The Dean Street Mess
Around" sound like part of the soundtrack to any Saturday night
episode of Garrison Keillor's "Lake Wobegone." There's an easy,
relaxed feeling that invites you in to get comfortable and just
listen.
   With three vocalists in the band, there's no shortage of
harmonies. "Waiting for a Sign" is especially rife with the
mesh of voices. No one voice stands out, but on several tracks
("Sleepwalking," "The One") Mattson's voice bears an uncanny
resemblance to Jackson Browne.
   The album's centerpiece comes with the nearly 10-minute "High
Horse." The song is an acoustic guitar workout that harkens back 
to the moody strains of Dire Straits or Buffalo Springfield. The 
interplay between the instruments will hold your attention through
the entire track.
   Overall, this is not music for every taste. But without being
a confirmed Deadhead, there's still something to enjoy. Support the 
local scnene - check out the Tricksters and catch them live on their
next visit. It's time well spent.

Bass Player Magazine, March 2003
BP Recommends

The Zen Tricksters Shaking Off the Weirdness (Zebra Tango):
This heartfelt set of acoustic music from these jam-band stalwarts
boasts an impressive roster of talented guest artists. Versatile
bassist Klyph Black also contributes guitar, vocals, and even
Dobro on the rollicking "All Night Long Blues." (JH)

Centre Daily Times, 2/14/03. State College, PA
CD Review: 'Shaking Off' Weirdly Resembles the Dead by Cole Hons
Details: The Grateful Dead may be history, but, thanks to endlessly
touring bands like The Zen Tricksters, the Dead's groovy, mellow
spirit is alive and kicking.

The Zen Tricksters have been at it for 24 years now, and they've got 
the hippy-shake boogie down pat. This New York trio has it all- -
the rootsy, soft spoken songs, the noodling guitars, the propensity
for free-form jams and the mediocre vocals arranged in tight harmony.
They obviously love playing music, and being free with it, and
venturing into that whole jazzy rock exploration thing, and they do it
well.

Also like the Dead, The Zen Tricksters show a great love and mastery
of several wholly American musical forms, many of which are showcased
on their newest release, "Shaking Off the Weirdness." The sounds on
this largely acoustic record range from bluesy swamp boogie to country 
twang to psychedelic rock to Dixieland swing. The band deftly maneuvers
through all of this sonic territory with confidence and skill, though
in a fairly predictable way.

But these guys aren't completely dated. On the instrumental track
"Light of Life," featuring guest musician Jason Crosby on fiddle, The
Tricksters give a musical nod to that new generation hippy icon Dave
Matthews, exploring weird time signatures and stop-start rhythms
you'd never have heard in the '60s or '70s. And to be fair, the
sheer musicality of many performances on this record creates a classic,
timeless quality that transcends any question of stylistic relevance.

The weakest aspect of this record is the blandness of the lyrics.
They're sung very ernestly, and I'm sure that when they're addressed
to a crowd full of gyrating dudes and dudettes on the dance floor of a
smoky bar, they sound just fine. But worn out cliches like "some things
never change" and "it's funny how time slips away" are hard to
swallow on record.

Maybe the Tricksters should do what the Dead did and hook up with
a lyric writer. After all, it was Robert Hunter's words that made
Jerry Garcia and Co. more than just a band of wildly experimental
psychedelic roots-rockers. His lyrics transformed the band into the
premier troubadour poets of their time and helped them to become
symbols of an entire sibculture of America. I think he's still alive,
actually. Maybe they ought to look him up.

Meanwhile, I'm sure they'll keep on truckin'.

Song Reviews from Shaking Off the Weirdness
by Jen Devincenzo, Associate Producer, Philzone.com, January 7, 2003



Talk of the Town - the most positive song I've heard since Night of a 
Thousand Stars. 

Light of Life - I listened to Light of Life while the sun was 
pouring in through my window but I think you could get the same effects 
that I got while listening to this instrumental on a rainy cold night.
Really beautiful composition.(sort of reminded me of dancing in the sun 
somewhere like angels camp.)

All Night Long Blues - this is definitely the one that I found myself 
singing along with by the end. Kicking work by Klyph on the dobro!!

Waiting for a Sign - Positively the most touching song imho. The violin I
think can sometimes mimic the soul so often and I think Jason Crosby really
nailed it here.

Sleepwalking - I think that this was lyrically my favorite song on the
album. Well, gather ye rosebuds while ye may / For you may nevermore stand
this way / In this garden among the vines that climb into the sky... that's
what got me. The bridge is a beaut too!

Last Ten Years - I like the bluesy feel!

The One - the harmonies on this are so gripping and seemingly effortless.

No One Said It'd be Easy - Beautiful guitar solo!!!!

High Horse - I loved this one. It's loaded with imagery! While it has a
higher level of intimacy, it reminds me of storytelling like Crosby's Cowboy
Movie..and the banjo and guitar exchanges are wildly beautiful.


Dean Street Mess Around - Sets my head in a swirly late night rag timey
joint - a little sawdust on the floor...maybe a barmaid with her hair in a
bun and an apron on shuffling around taking the last call while an old
couple swirls around on the wooden floor. I thought Rob's piano was
particularly wonderful...and the way that the instruments just seem to
communicate and converse with one another on an uninterrupted fluid plane.

Good Times Magazine Issue 840, July 16-29, 2002
6/1/02 Zen Tricksters at The Stephen Talkhouse by "Blue" Lou Margiore



ening for Richie Havens was the unequivocal Zen Tricksters.
For over 20 years this band of gypsies has been strumming
along, turning heads, making friends and creating a
following that musicians can only dream and fantasize
about. Lead guitarist Jeff Mattson and bass player Klyph
Black, respectively, swap vocals and are the veritable backbone
of this truly amazing crew. When's the last time you heard a
band that played such a broad array of covers like "Shakedown
Street," "Expressway to Your Heart," and "On a Night Like This"
with the fervor and fire of the original artists? If you call
yourself a music lover and have not witnessed these boys you
are, for sure, ripping yourself off.
July 10, 2002 Jambands.com
The Gathering of the Vibes, Mariaville, NY 7/4-7/02 by Dan Alford


Entire Review
Exerpts of the Tricksters Review:

For the 2002 Gathering, festival organizers Terrapin Presents 
changed the venue to Mariaville, NY home to the Harley Davidson 
Reunion, Camp Creek and last August’s Summit festival, and in doing 
so cut the crowds in half. They also added a day to include Independence 
Day, and brought in the powerhouse quintet Phil Lesh and Friends, the 
band playing two full sets on both Friday and Saturday nights. Other 
acts included a number of old friends of the Tribe, such as The Zen Tricksters, 
Strangefolk, Reid Genauer (formerly of Strangefolk), Aaron Katz Band 
(of Percy Hill), Deep Banana Blackout and Les Claypool’s Frog Brigade, 
which was inaugurated at GOTV 2000. Of course, two members of what is 
widely known as the Phil Lesh Quintet are also Vibes alumni, Rob Barraco 
having played for many years as a Zen Trickster, and Warren Haynes having 
played both a solo acoustic set and with Gov’t Mule. Also on the docket were 
Soulive (third year) and SKB, both of whose sets were rained out last year. 
Is it clear yet? The Gathering of the Vibes is about family. 
Thursday 7/4: 

Early in the day perennial Gathering favorites The Zen Tricksters really 
started the festival with an excellent set that drew in a large crowd of 
those not caught in traffic and showed off their musical range. Opening 
with the instrumental Light of Life > Just Another Storm, the set included 
tightly wrought compositions as well as lengthy cover jams, including 
Here Comes Sunshine and GDTRFB. To close an amazing, heartfelt Wharf Rat 
that snuck up from behind led into a crowd pleasing Summertime Blues, 
followed by Scarlet Begonias back into a vicious closing of Light of Life. 
By the end, it was clear that the vibe was just right.

December 14, 2001 Milestones
A Review by Jed Metzger from Jan/Feb 2002 Revolving Door #43


A quick change brought the Zen Tricksters to the stage. The
volume went up and the dancing got hotter. They took the
stage jamming into an uptempo original tune (ed. note: it was 
Arise) into a great version of Iko Iko. The place was sweaty 
and they played until close without a break mixing strong
original material with classic Dead. This is a band that
likes to jam, it is their strength and the Scarlet/Fire
was a prime example. The guys, like the Dead, are an ugly
band to look at but they put the tunes out there with
energy. Tight and danceable, always a good time no matter
what the weather, they make their own sunshine.

7/1/01 Words from the Philzone
excerpt from upcoming issue of Downbeat Magazine

Downbeat: How did Rob Barraco come to be a part of the band, 
and what does he bring to the mix? 

Phil: In 1999, I wanted to get a band together for some gigs at 
the Warfield. So I was looking for some musicians, and someone gave 
me a Zen Tricksters album, and I really enjoyed their music. I 
thought their tunes were beautifully constructed. I especially like 
Jeff (the guitar player) and Rob. 

Rob knows the Grateful Dead music better than I do. I've actually 
had to ask him about details that I had forgotten about some of the 
older songs. He brings a kind of jazzier background to the mix. I 
really wanted that because I wanted a keyboardist who could do tunes 
that weren't songs, per se, but rather vehicles for improvisation. 

4.20.01 Bowery Ballroom. New York, NY
Show Review by Donna, Gypsy Bob, Marissa, and Bonnie

     Any 4/20 show is bound to raise magical expectations. On this most 
auspicious of dates, the Zen Tricksters provided an eager crowd with 
every nuance that their name implies. A rich and full three-set 
performance at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City ranged from 
lingering sensations of crystalline clarity to moments of joyful 
affirmation as well as playful surprises.
     In a neighborhood that's clearly seen better days, this venue 
offers a bright musical beacon. You enter from street level and descend 
to a lounge that features a substantial bar, restrooms, and merch 
concession. A decent feed from the soundboard is patched through, so 
if you wish to remain seated with plenty of breathing room, you can 
still enjoy the on-stage performance. Upstairs awaits the main concert 
space, with its unobstructed sightlines and delicious acoustics.  No 
tables or chairs inhibit your free movement-there's just a bar and 
plenty of room to boogie.  Further upstairs, a balcony wraps around 
the dance floor, accommodating a soundboard, bar, a smattering of 
tables and chairs, and a pair of alcoves with sofas. The variety of 
options guarantees that no matter where your head is at, you'll find 
a comfortable space to hang. In a city with all too many overcrowded 
and undersized venues, it's no wonder that the Bowery Ballroom garnered 
raves in a recent City Guide Internet survey.
     In the course of their two decades as a band, the Zen Tricksters 
have acquired a well-deserved following of devoted fans. Under the 
committed leadership of their remarkably gifted guitarist, Jeff Mattson, 
the band has emerged as a formidable musical force. Mattson's skills 
as a singer and songwriter, abetted by the prowess of his bandmates, 
elevate these troubadours from the simplistic dimension of Grateful-Dead-
tribute-band into another animal altogether-something powerful and vital 
and altogether vibrant. Their full-tilt renditions of the beloved anthems 
excite an affectionate chorus of WOO-HOOs from the audience, and their 
inspired original songs offer a perfect transition between the nostalgia 
of happy times past and the living, breathing promise of the present.
     A virtually palpable wave of anticipation surged through the crowd 
as the Tricksters took the stage for the first of three incredible sets. 
Jeff Mattson and rhythm guitarist Tom Circosta picked up their acoustic 
axes, with sensitive and intuitive accompaniment from the rhythm section, 
Klyph Black on bass and Dave Diamond at the skins. In addition to able 
assistance from guest keyboardist Pete Levin, this special occasion 
elicited an always-welcome appearance by Tom (Banjo) Hanway. An 
exhilarating  "Iko-Iko" set the tone for a fun-filled set. The next two 
selections--"Mother Found A Gun", an old Zen original that has evolved 
into a crowd-pleasing classic, and "The Race Is On", an old-time 
standard rendered in an absolutely rockin' rendition--were followed 
by a reverent version of "Dire Wolf."
     If you're a veteran of Trickster shows, you're acquainted with 
their seamless segues between  original material and all your familiar 
favorites. "Where You Want to Be," a moving tune written by the amazingly 
versatile Dave Diamond, was followed by one of the most spiritual 
renditions of "Sitting in Limbo" I've ever heard. The song was enhanced 
by Wendy Lanter on vocals. Surprise guest musicians frequently materialize 
at Zen Trickster shows, and this event was no exception. Accompanying the 
Zens on the next three tunes were Mike Falzarano (Hot Tuna) on guitar 
and vocals, Tom Hanway on banjo, Kerry Kearny on dobro, and Charlie Wolf 
on blues harp. Mike delivered a raw and edgy vocal on "Big Railroad 
Blues," during which the interplay between musicians was remarkable. 
Trading solos, pickin' and grinnin' and having a grand old time, this 
assemblage of talent was the fertile foundation for Klyph's "Down the 
Road," a rocking blues number delivered in Mr. Black's inimitable vocal 
style.  The masterful Tom Circosta followed up with a soulful rendition 
of "Me & Bobby McGee" that left the crowd awestruck. The special guests 
bid fare-thee-well, leaving the Zens to reach the pinnacle with "Box of 
Rain," followed by "The Maker," and "Arise."  It doesn't get any better 
than this.
     The second set was everything the discerning fan could wish for. A 
white-hot "The Music Never Stopped" drove the crowd into a frenzy and 
set the stage for an explosive "Eyes of the World." Even the most 
adamant Dead Head purist would have been stunned by this version. True 
to the roots, it transcended the original with all the characteristic 
verve that the Zen Tricksters bring to their interpretations of the 
classics. I'm going to be 51 in July-I've seen it all, and it was NEVER 
as good as this! The band segued into "Goin' Down Slow", a Mattson 
original that echoes the best moods from "Riders on the Storm" and 
"Morning Dew." Its melody is haunting and captivating, and it guides 
you from the surreal into a "Viola Lee"-style jam that leaves you 
utterly breathless. The set culminated with a taste of feedback that 
led into a "Scarlet/Fire" that simply made all your dreams come true. 
Any hopes you may have cherished regarding a Great Night Out were 
realized then and there. 
     The third set kicked off long after most of The City That Never 
Sleeps had packed it in. An experimental atmosphere prevailed as the 
band launched into a repertoire novelty, the Rolling Stones' "Let's 
Spend the Night Together," rendered irresistible by a hot and tight 
jam. Its successor, "Unbroken Chain," provided a proving ground for 
the vocal talents of bassist Klyph Black. The melody's demands can 
destroy the unworthy, but Black's stalwart rendition more than 
justified the dare, as did a spirited rendition of "Alligator," which 

emanated a raw psychedelic energy. At 2:55 AM, the show came to a 
blissful conclusion with Dave Diamond's jazzy, edgy original, "Comin' 
Back to You." 
     If you're into jam band music, do yourself a favor and come out 
to see this band. If you're a refugee from the extended family, welcome 
home! It's not like it used to be--it's new and evolving and better 
than ever. Climb on board and enjoy the ride-we're waiting for you! 
See you there!


Feb.-April, 2001, Geoff Wilbur's Renegade
Review of A Love Surreal by Pam West

    Imagine if the Grateful Dead and Phish formed a partnership with
the late John Coltrane and Miles Davis, and you might gain some
insight into the music of this innovative band. Their mix of
exploratory improvisation blended with rock, blues and folk elements
takes the term "jam band" to new heights. However, unlike many of
this ilk, these clever troubadours remain cognizant of the
importance of song structure, melody and content. As "out there" as
they may get at times, they never lose sight of their audience and
service to the song.
    Many of the album's ten tracks deal with varying degrees of
spiritual and personal growth, enlightenment and reflection. The
music, in turn, embraces those concepts like a well worn glove.

    For these searching for the "road less travelled" there are
many treasures to be found within the music of the Zen Tricksters.

Tricksters Light Up The Iron Horse
March 29, 2001 The Iron Horse, Northampton, MA
A review by David Siegel, Massachusetts Collegian Staff

    Last Thursday night, the Zen Tricksters brought their jams to 
the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton. To a decent crowd for a 
Thursday night, this well traveled six-piece jamband played an almost 
two and a half hour set. The Zen Tricksters bring to their setlists 
a superb mix of well orchestrated jammed out originals with mostly 
Grateful Dead covers, played to perfection. On this night, we were 
treated to a total of six Dead songs and a rare Bob Dylan cover. The 
set began with a song called "Never Say Die," which demonstrated the 
band's ability to meld a tight, focused song into a long streaming jam. 
This song gracefully transformed into "Meow Man," a jazzier tune that 
showcases Jeff Mattson's smooth guitar soloing. Although Mattson did 
the majority of the soloing on this night, he was complemented 
brilliantly by Klyph Black on a thumping bass, Dave Diamond on drums 
and vocals, Jason Crosby on keys and a killer electric fiddle and last, 
but not least, Tom Circosta on rhythm guitar and backup vocals. Next up 
was the first cover of the night, Bob Dylan's "Absolutely Sweet Marie," 
played to a tee with great three-part harmonies throughout the choruses. 
"Sweet Marie" led into a sweet triplicate of Dead songs. Getting the 
crowd jamming with a solid "Eyes of the World," with Mattson demonstrating 
his very "Jerry-esque" voice, the Tricksters segued into "Drowin'," and 
finally into a frenzied "Throwing Stones" with the crowd joining in for 
portions of the chorus. The Zen Tricksters formed in 1979, as a 
combination of two Grateful Dead cover bands, the Volunteers and Timberwolf 
both out of New York City. For over twenty years, they have been traveling, 
the majority of the time in the Northeast, as well as recording four 
original albums in studio. They have gained the reputation of being one of 
the nation's leading Dead cover bands alongside the likes of Shakedown 
Street and Dark Star Orchestra. In 1999, guitarist Jeff Mattson had the 
opportunity of a lifetime as he was asked to play with Phil Lesh and Friends 
at San Francisco's famed Warfield Theater. The band's set progressed almost 
effortlessly with a few more originals before hitting a climax with a 
concrete rendition of "Playing in the Band," with an extended train wrecking 
jam culminating with a nice transition into a great original* named "Forever 
Young," with yet another long graceful guitar solo by Mattson. The set 
was ended with a sweet "Viola Lee Blues," bringing the crowd down another 
jaw-dropping transition back into the chorus after an extended jam. For 
their first encore, the band returned onstage for a slow "Mr. Soul" before 
finally satisfying the crowd with the well-requested "Bird Song," another 
well-loved Dead song. Venturing off of the UMass campus on this wet and 
dreary night, I was pleasantly surprised with what I heard throughout the 
night. Their excellent showmanship and awareness of each other made for a 
tremendous performance. They plan on heading down South after this short 
stint in the Bay State, but they promise they will be back for a series of 
festivals throughout the summer. Be sure to catch them!
*Zen Trickster note: While we were extremely flattered by Mr. Siegel
crediting us with "Forever Young," we were obliged to point out to
him that it was actually Bob Dylan's orginal and not ours.

January 4, 2001, The Trocadero, Philadelphia, PA
A Fan Review by Grady from REVOLVING DOOR #33, March, 2001

    I saw the Zen Tricksters Thursday night, January 4th, at the small,
cozy Trocadero in Philadelphia, PA. Sick is the most appropriate word
to describe this show's complete aesthetic value. It was one of the best,
most spiritually uplifting experiences I have ever had. The music was
phenominal, there were four attractive girls dancing around me the
whole night (they were drunk, too), and the vibe was killer. There
were maybe only a hundred fans in attendance by the time the Tricksters
left the stage. The Ally, a slightly inexperienced-sounding "out-there"
band, opened and there were about twice the amount of fans present
when they were playing than when the Tricksters exited. I didn't
really dance at all for the Ally because, one, I couldn't get into
them--there wasn't much of a groove, just a deep, loud, constant bass
that one felt as opposed to heard, and two, I was saving my energy for
the Tricksters. I wasn't expecting the Tricksters to put on such a sick
show, but they came out and blew me and the crowd away with their insane
jamming. They opened with one of their originals called Arise, which 
segued into the sick opening licks of Samson and Delilah. Arise was 
great, as was Samson. Ramble on Rose came next, followed by another
original, In A World Of..., both played well. Easy Wind followed and
was an easy highlight of the show. It was just amazing. It got my
emotional juices flowing big time and got the crowd in the groove
that the Dead always provided. Next came another ZT original, Warm
Heart, which segued into a jam, then into Terrapin Station which was
played note for note perfectly, and played with heart, soul, and
enthusiasm. The chorus lines of Terrapin!! And Terrapin Station!!
and Inspiration!! were sung beautifully by their lead man, Jeff
Mattson. He looks like a middle-aged Jerry and sure plays like a 
fresh, young one. Terrapin segues into another awesome Jam, then
right into a rockin' Throwing Stones, then into a hot ZT original,
Meow Man. Next, a devilishly hot Hell in a Bucket was cast by the
band, highlighted by rhythm guitarist Tom Circosta's Bobby-esque
voice wailing out intense vocals. Then, a surprisingly upbeat and
inspired Loser was played, followed by three fantastic, mind-boggling 
ZT originals, Sacrifice, I'm Ready*, and Light of Life. This terrific
trifecta of soul-satisfying songs was played excellently and included
some fine jamming by each member. Eclectic electric keyboardist/
violinist/trumpeter Jason Crosby shined during these songs. He plays
his violin masterfully with the grace of a dolphin commanding the
musical waves of a sonic ocean. The last song played that night was
an emotionally-charged Sugar Magnolia. The high emotional level was
due in part to the fact that the four drunk girls had screamed for
its performance the whole night. But the main reason was the
response that the crowd gave the band the entire night. The Tricksters
just rode the intense emotional wave that the crowd provided and
hit the apex during the last song. The whole show was fused with a
mystical, musical melange of rock, jazz, and, most notably, blues.
One song was, in fact, a simple blues ditty that was transformed
into an eruptive blues explosion due to the band's great jamming.
The entire night served as more than just another jam band concert
for me and, in my opinion, for the rest of the crowd. It elevated
my internal emotions to a level that I did not have when I entered
the venue. It was a revelation of how great music really is and
how strong its effect can be on an individual and large groups of
people. A hot, steamy bath of musical bliss, this Tricksters show
was great and contained no trickery by the band. They revealed all
of their talents that night on stage and proved that they are more 
than worthy of being seen again.
*ZT Note: Thanks very much Grady, but we have to admit that Muddy 
Waters, and not the Zen Tricksters, wrote I'm Ready.

Zen Tricksters Carry on the Grateful Dead Spirit
by Rex Rutkoski, August 8, 2000

    In the search for a name, the Zen Tricksters have embraced an inspired 
choice. Let guitarist-vocalist Jeff Mattson, a founder, explain: "We like
to think our music is very much about being in the moment. You can't be
thinking about what you're doing and doing it really well when you play
this improvisional music."
    They want to get to a place, he says, where these is a group mind and
a collective consciousness where the music plays the band. "If you are
thinking about it, it's not really there. You want to empty your head
so the music comes through you," Mattson adds.
    That takes care of the "Zen" part. Now, what about the "Tricksters"?
Simple answer, Mattson says. "The trick is not taking yourself too 
seriously and having fun with it."
    Audiences across America are seeing how these lofty concepts translate 
on stage. Word-of-mouth suggests it can be a heady experience. 
    Mattson formed the Tricksters in 1989 from the remains of a Grateful
Dead cover band called The Volunteers that was popular in the New York 
area. Mattson wanted to focus more on original music--music that was close 
to his heart, he says--and to record. The Grateful Dead's Phil Lesh liked
what he heard and invited the musicians to join him on some of his "Phil
Lesh and Friends" concerts.
    The Zen Tricksters can be found on the jam-band circuit inviting 
listeners with an adventurous ear. "We appeal to an adventurous sort of
person, a person who doesn't want to see the same super tight show every
time," he says. Every time you see the Tricksters, you see a different
show, he promises. "It's different songs in a different order played
completely differently. It's kind of jazz in a rock contect," he explains.
    The live experience is really what it's all about for him, says Mattson. 
"Though we made a CD we tried to capture the live feel. Performing live
is being in the zone and being spontaneously creative, putting yourself on
a line out there and trying to express what you're feeling inside in a 
musical fashion in the moment." So when you come to a Zen Tricksters show,
here's what to expect, according to Mattson: "Some good tunes played well
with lots of exploratory jamming." He smiles.
    Ah, the jam! In a good jam everybody has to be listening to each other, 

he says. "A good jam would be something that is greater than the sum of
its parts, where a musical idea is formed that's more than any one
individual envisions. You have four and, in the future in this band, five
musicians going at it at the same time. As long as everybody is tuned in
with each other, you get something beyond what you could have imagined. 
It's four very different personalities coalescing." And, yes, he agrees,
there can be a thin line between an inspired jam and one that is over-
indulgent.
    "You can't make it happen. You can be as open to it as possible and
be as fluent and fluid as possible, but there are times when it's just 
not there. And you run the risk of having several minutes of exploratory 
noodling." The audience for this type of music, though, is forgiving, he 
says. "They will give you some leeway there because they know you're trying. 
The audience is very important in all this too. You get the energy back 
from them when it's happening. You feel it coming back from the audience 
really strong. We feed off that and they feed from what is coming from the 
stage." Mattson says he enjoys mining that energy on the festival circuit. 
"It gives you a chance to hopefully play on a nice day outdoors, as opposed 
to a dark, smoky indoor place (he laughs). And it gives you a chance to play 
for a very large crowd, exposing yourself to people who may not have seen 
you before."
    Mattson senses that the entire jam-band scene that currently is
thriving was a reaction to the break-up of the Grateful Dead after
Jerry Garcia passed away. "All those folks were looking for a place
to continue, not that there weren't any jam bands before that," he



says. "A lot of other bands began to get a chance in the spotlight," 
he says. "Before primarily it was Phish and the Dead and a few other
bands. Now people are going to see jam bands everywhere."
    It all gets back to that adventurous spirit to which Mattson has
made the reference. "Yes, these people are willing to go with the flow
and see where the music goes and dance. And they don't need a solid
disco beat to dance (he laughs). They can dance to much more free-form
things."
    The music of the Grateful Dead has been such a touchstone for many 
because it was so good, Mattson says.  "It did fill a void that nobody
else was really filling. Most rock tours consisted of a band doing
primarily the same show every night. "The Dead, as much as they had a
reputation for jamming, and that certainly was valid, also have very good
songs. That sort of gets overlooked." They were great songwriters, he
reminds. "They were great songs, very well constructed and very melodic 
tunes. And there were excellent musicians playing them with very
individually defined styles for each instrument. And they had something
that was pretty unique."
    Mattson, himself a Deadhead, attended upwards of 200 Dead shows. "I
met just about all the members over the years," he says. The opportunity
to work with Phil Lesh was no less than a wonderful experience. "It was
kind of a dream come true for someone who had been a fan of his and the
Dead for so many years," he adds. There was much to learn from Lesh, he
says. "The way to structure jams and stuff like that, wre among them. He
was really into having like non-stop sets, so every song would have a
musical bridge between it from song to song. We would do that on a
smaller scale, but it was interesting to see how the thing took shape
when you made the whole set that way. We do that frequently ourselves
now. We play for an hour and a half without stopping, creating these 
improvised instrumental segues."
    The Zen Tricksters' latest, and second, album is "A Love Surreal."
It follows their 1996 debut album, "The Holy Fool." "In both CDs we
are trying to get our tunes down to some kind of representative fashion,"
says Mattson. "But we also wanted to try to capture at least some of
what really happens on stage as far as spontaneous jamming. There are
a few long cuts on both of them that may be a little shorter than what
happens on stage. But all of us are playing at the same time in the
studio getting that spontaneous jam."
    That's what caught Phil Lesh's attention and caused him to call the 
band, he informs. "He said he was very impressed with our ability to
jam in the studio. He claimed the Dead had not been able to do that to 
his satisfaction." 
    The Tricksters' music has been used in interesting ways beyond the
stage. MTV's show, "Making the Video," used the band's "Where You Want
to Be," off "A Love Surreal" as background. And some of the band's
songs have been employed on the television drama "Felicity."
    "We haven't even begun to explore our possibilities," says Mattson.
"Our creativity comes from a spiritual place. It's one of the mysteries.
It comes from a spiritual place and you only have to see how you feel.
If you made some good music, there's a joy and calm that comes with
that."

RELIX
Bay Area Bits
Vol. 27, No. 3

The Art of the Zen: by J.C. Juanis
    The Zen Tricksters have been performing for the past 21 years. Last
year, Trickster members guitarist Jeff Mattson and keyboardist Rob Barraco
performed several Bay Area shows as part of Phil Lesh and Friends. Barraco
has gone on to be a regular member of the ad hoc band, so it's safe to say
that the group's fortunes have changed for the better since its last San
Francisco performance.
    At a recent Zen Tricksters show, Grateful Dead Radio host David Gans and
local jam band sensation Taos Hum joined the group. Gans has enjoyed
performing his original folk-tinged songs in recent years, and he was joined
by The Zen Tricksters for the Dead's Bird Song and his self-penned Western
swing nugget Crazy Crazy Crazy. His music is steeped in the fabric of
Americana as solo renditions of River and Drown, The Minstrel, and An
American Family displayed.
    The Zen Tricksters may be the best Grateful Dead-oriented band
performing today. Besides the aforementioned Mattson and Barraco, the Band
also features bassist Klyph Black and drummer Joe Chirco. Black, in
particular, has a knack for whipping up a crowd in a hurry, as his
incendiary version of the classic Hard to Handle amply demonstrated. For a
quartet, The Zen Tricksters cover an enormous amount of musical ground.
Mattson's fiery guitar playing blended magnificently with the band's solid
rhythm section and the place literally shook as the group performed such
time-honored classics as Shakedown Street, Dark Star, and an incredible,
show-stopping Comes a Time. The jamming was relentless as Mattson and
Company explored the outer boundaries of jazz and space, finally settling in
on a cool version of Eleanor Rigby. For the finale, Gans joined The Zen
Tricksters for another solid jam that culminated with a rousing Scarlet
Begonias.

RELIX
Bay Area Bits
Vol. 25, No. 3

Getting To Terrapin: The Maritime Hall Celebrated 
Mardi Gras with a high octane show featuring the Zen Tricksters,
David Gans and Puddle Junction Puddle Junction is a five-piece band
hailing from Chico, CA that has developed quite a grassroots following.  
Led by charsmatic vocalist, Doug Stein, Puddle Junction's sound 
incorporates '60's psychedelia, country, blues and good old rock 'n' roll.  
Its recent release, Reinvent The Wheel, features a wonderful 
blend of all these styles and more.  Guitarist Brian Asher and keyboardist 
Rob Lamonica weave a hypnotic groove, which was warmly received.  Asher, 
in particular, is quite a twanger, and his guitar gymnastics are one of 
the reasons for the band's success. 
    The Zen Tricksters may just be the finest Grateful Dead-influenced 
band playing today.  Legendary for its improvisational shows on the East 
Coast, the group was afforded a hero's welcome at the Maritime Hall.  
Led by guitarist Jeff Mattson, the Zen Tricksters mix Grateful Dead classics 
with tasty original material in the Bay Rock style.  The musical interplay 
between Klyph Black (bass), Rob Barraco (keyboards) and Joe Chirco (drums) - 
was simply astonishing.  At times it was hard to believe that there were 
just four musicians on stage.  Mattson displayed considerable prowess on 
the guitar on such nuggets as "Fire on the Mountain," "Rubin and Cherise," 
"That's What Love Will Make You Do" and "Terrapin Station."  The later was 
particularly eerie, as Mattson played the song's seldom performed, 
live segment "At A Siding."  A Mardi Gras parade set to "Iko Iko" began 
the second set, complete with stilt walkers, fire eaters and a dinosaur 
float.
    Earlier in the evening, the Zen Tricksters backed David Gans during 
the finale of his set for rousing renditions of "Hooker River" and 
"Crazy, Crazy, Crazy."

					-J.C. Juanis

DUPREE'S DIAMOND NEWS
The Grateful Dead New Year's Eve Tradition Lives on...
Issue 37


Click Here


GOOD TIMES
Long Island Sounds
Issue No. 722 Dec.26 1997-Jan.12 1998



   Believe it or not, the Zen Tricksters have been together in one form or
another for almost 20 years - started when the New Riders of the Purple
Sage always toured with The Dead and Garcia played pedal steel instead of
Buddy Cage.  Ther has been much said and written about the Tricksters as
being a Grateful Dead cover band.  Well that might be true to some degree
to the small and shallow minded but the truth is that this unit takes Dead
Music as well as Generational Music to a different plateau; Not Ken
Kesey's, not Stanley Owsley's and not to Mother McCree's Uptown Jug
Champions.  But to the Tricksters' peak that they alone conquered, staked
out, and own.. They truly have a deep rooted love and affection for this
type of American Traditional Music and it is represented and evidenced in
their original inerpretations of such.
   The sweet smells of patchouli, chompa and sage filtered through the air
as the boys opened their 4 hour set with the Traditional "Deep Elum Blues"
onto the original "That's All" with lead guitarist Jeff Mattson handling
vocals througha classic Dead ditty "Jack-a-roe."  Up next was a speacial
treat.  Bassist, Klyph Black traded his 5 string bass with a dobro and
kicked out his self penned original "Down the Road."  Sprung from a Heart
core of hyper driven elegance and relentless intensity.  His hypnotizing
slide work finds few equals in its' chronicling of exhaustion.  Following
Klyph's rendition of the Pig Pen anthem "Operator" Mattson took back the
spotlight with vocals on "Lazy River Road."
   Rounding out the Tricksters are drummer, Joe Chirco who is a tight
percussionist with the inborn instincts of a metronome.. He has truly
developed some fearsome chops and his use of tricky time signatures and
solos is incredible.  Keyboardist, Rob "Bittersweet" Barraco can easily
sculpt a feeling of awe with his control over phrasing combined with his
laid-back authority.
   Featured this evening was the "Speed of Light" Show.  Their employ of

film, imager, art with a heavy dose of imagination brought the Tricksters
to the next level of Nirvana.  Reminiscent of the Fillmore's Pig Joshua,
and Joe's Light Shows, they added sensitivity and depth to this holistic
musical experience - Sight, sound and smell.
   After a short intermission, ZT returned with the next portion of the
performance.  "Bird Song" segued into "Cassady" (about Neal Cassady, an
original member of the Beats, then part of the Merry Pranksters) and back
to "Bird Song," which drew us in and enveloped us for about 20 minutes.
"Help on the Way" through "Slipknot" and "Franklin's Tower" brought most
to a legal pseudo sexual narcotic trance.  The Tricksters showed what was
in the very depths of their soul - Raw spiritual energy and erotic
liberation.
   Their performance, as I said was 4 hours, and combined various
originals with Dead obscurities and hits, that included "Ther Other One,"
"Viola Lee Blues," "Days Between," "Terrapin Station," Mason's Children"
to name but a few.  As it was with the Dead and appears to be with the
Zent Tricksters, it's not the recording but rather the concert that forms
the essential musical document.  Moment vs. Artifact characterize the mood
of jam oriented style and drifting in and out of belladonic ether while
spacing out on great vibes, great lights and familiar smells.  Tasteful
feedback on "Space Jam" along with the Dead Classic "Goin' Down the Raod
Feeling Bad" was a fond tribute to the "Fat Man" and proper closing to the
praise of genail counter culture and psychedelia.  Be aware people, the
Zen Tricksters are here to hear.

				-Blue Lou Margiore


NEWS & RECORD
Guitarist has Deadheads doing double takes


     Jeff Mattson hears it all the time.
     "Hey, Jerrreeeee," they yell.
     Reluctantly, Mattson always turns around.  He knows they're
talking to him.  It's his beard, his frizzy brown hair pulled back in a
Jeffersonaian ponytail and his glasses perched on the edge of his nose.
     Mattson looks like that famous guitarist with the missing middle
finger, a young Jerry Garcia before the black T-shirt uniform and the
daily diet of cigarettes and ice cream.
     But that's just the beginning.  Mattson plays lead guitar with the
Zen Tricksters, one of the country's best Grateful Dead cover bands.  And
he plays and sounds so much like Garcia, it'll make any Deadhead do a
double take.
     Really.  It's uncanny.  See for yourself at Saturdays's Smilefest
as Hodgkin Valley Farm.
     The tinny voice.  The runs on the guitar.  The beard. The hair.
The glasses.  It'll make many remember the improvisational jams about
August West, the Do-da man or Jack Straw from Wichita.
     "I never thought consciously to look like him," says Mattson, 38,
from his home in NYC. "I did grow a beard, and I did have some
trepidations for that very reason.  But I thought, 'It's my face, I wanted
to grow it,' and like I said, the glasses are real.
     "But as far as the music goes, it's a complement," he says.  "I
was trying to get that essence.  That was my ideal.  When I first heard
Garcia play and saw the Dead in 1973, it was such a revelatory experience
for me.  I thought, 'Whoa, this is what I'm looking for.'"
     To many, the Zen Tricksters have found it.  John Dwork, editor of
Dupree's Diamond News, a national magazine highlighting psychedelic rock,
says the Tricksters capture the sound, style and the Dead's "magical
space" more than any other Grateful Dead tribute band around.
     And Mattson is a big par of that, Dwork says.  Mattson first saw
the Dead when he was 14 right after he started playing the guitar.  Then
for the next two decades, Mattson studied Garcia.  He saw 200 shows and
listened to countless tapes, over and over.
     That all has paid off.  You hear Mattson and the Zen Tricksters,
and you think 1971.  Especially when you hear them play something like the
Dead's "Scarlet Begonias," flowing into Bob Dylan's "Visions of Johanna,"
back out into the Dead's "Viola Lee Blues."
     "That's why we keep coming back for more," Mattson says.  "That's
why we drive 17 hours to play.  You get like junkies for that experience,
that natural high."
     Back in the 1980's, the Dead's Brent Mydland and Bill Kreutzmann
watched the Zen Tricksters from a backstage perch.  When Mattson came off,
Kreutzmann stopped him and said, "You can take our place when we die."
     Later Mickey Hart, one of the bands drummers, heard the Tricksters
playing on tape the Dead's version of "The Eleven." Hart asked, "Wait a
minute, isn't this us, 1969 Fillmore?"
     Mattson, thought, didn't meet Garcia until 1993.  He was in a
hotel bar.
     "I'm not like one to go up to people, but I thought, 'Well, this
is it, it's now or never' so I went up to him, shook his hand and told him
'Days Between'(a song) was best thing they've done in years, and he said,
'Yeah, yeah, we're real excited about it,'" Mattson Says.  It was
relatively short , but I'm so glad I did that."
     In August 1995, Garcia died at 53.  Five months later, the Dead
called it quits.
     "Since the demise of the Dead, we seem to be filling a gap that
needs to be filled," Mattson says. "I'm not saying we'll ever take the
place of the Dead, but people come up to us every night and say, 'I needed
that bad.  I needed to hear those songs.'"
     Play, Jeff, Play
                                   -Jeri Rowe






LONG ISLAND VOICE
LI Sounds
Volume 1 Number 7  5/29-6/04/97

     The Zen Tricksters, one of the country's most popular Dead cover
bands, have harvested a freshly eclectic, mixed bag on their first
all-original CD.
     The Disc opens with a decisively Dead feel; "Victim of
Circumstance" gracefully dances around leader Jeff Mattson's guitar lines,
its sharp and angular groove reminiscent of "Help on the Way."
     The Holy Fool is diverse: The Zen-men tumble into the
calypso bounce of "Arise," a song about youthful explorations and leaving
your mark.  They enter the high-steppin,' down home yee-haw of "Done is
Done," exploring the country rock realm so often traversed by Jerry and
the boys.  Keyboardist Rob Barraco steps forward on "Drowning," displaying
some soulful, rootsy organ blues, while harp-drenched passages spin into
infinity.  "Body Parts" gurgles and belches with that classic New Orleans
gumbo-funk offered by bands like the Radiators.  During "Lay Your Love,"
Klyph Black walks his bass and listeners into a gleefully thumping
eurhythmia, while Dave Diamond's resourceful drumming propels Zen into
that improvisational netherworld known as the jam.
     Other first-rate tracks round out the disc, all showcasing the
Tricksters' psychedelic, cosmic dance and Robert Hunter's lyrical

influence.                              -Ian D'Giff

RELIX
Too New To Be Known
February 1997

     The Zen Tricksters has been a constant live attraction on the 
New York music scene for many years and certainly deserves more 
recognition than it has received to date.  Live, the band has a powerful
Grateful Dead-influenced sound that couples exploratory jams with rich
melodies and a plethora of musical genres.  It has now captured the
essence of that sound in its long overdue first full-length CD, The

Holy Fool, in which the band makes no musical compromises and offers
plenty of musical pleasures.
     These days, the Tricksters is reduced to a four-piece lineup with
the absence of female vocalist Jennifer Markard, who guests on "Homesick."
The quartet, however has an extremely full and vital sound.  Not only are
they competent players, they have that little extra something that makes
them special.  Witness the jazzy flair of "Drownin" or the funk filled
excursions in "Victim Of Circumstance."
     The Tricksters show off its musical prowess in the lifting "Shine
Your Light" and its grittier side with the muscular ten and a half minute
"Lay Your Love.:  The two most striking things about the album though, are
the strength of each of its dozen songs and the musical empathy between the
band.  Highly recommended. 


NEWSDAY
Sunday, Jan. 19, 1997

     Thanks to their prior incarnation as The Volunteers, a Grateful
Dead cover band, the Zen Tricksters became a wildly popular local
attraction.  Eventually, they incorporated their Dead influences into
their own original rock-jazz-blues sound.
     Their long-awaited all-original debut, "The Holy Fool," reveals
far-ranging influences and musicianship.  Moving beyond the Dead's shadow,
the quartet creates a sound that could just as easily be compared with
Steely Dan's "Victim of Circumstance" or Paul Simon's "Graceland"
"Arise" features Caribbean rhythms closely connecting to African roots.
"Body Parts," with its clever word play, is a roaring blues track.  
     The Dead's spirit still makes itself known, whether through
melodic jams, familiar phrasing or mystical lyricism, but the Dead's
free-spirited bluegrass roots are set aside for a funkier groove.  The
band members blare on their respective instruments, raging even in the
slow-grooved "Drownin".  Far from cover band land, this is the big league.
- Robbie Woliver

THE BERGEN RECORD
New life after Dead tribute
January 3, 1997
     Instead of the usual publicity photo, the Zen Tricksters offer a
line drawing -a series of squiggles, actually- that looks like amateurish
scribble.  Slowly, however, it grows on you - like the band itself.
     The Zen Tricksters at first might turn you off:  Once a Grateful
Dead cover band known as the Volunteers, the Long Island quartet now
divides its performances between Dead tunes and originals.  The members
are so musically adept and creative, however, that even tribute haters can
appreciate the schizoid approach.
     the fulcrum is Jeff Mattson, 38, who founded the Volunteers in
1979.  Back from a two-week Colorado tour, Mattson spoke by phone about
the band last week.
     "Anyone familiar with the Dead sound will recognize the
influences," the singer guitarist said. "But it's definitely not a band
trying to sound like the Dead."
     Their idols are more of a launching point for Mattson, keyboardist
Rob Barraco, bassist Klyph Black, and drummer Dave Diamond, he said.  The
reinvented result, pressed onto the band's first album, "The Holy Fool,"
is spirited, original music that melds jazz, rock, and blues with country
and fold.  Although you often hear Jerry Garcia in the grooves. Steely Dan
comes to mind just as easily.
     "I've never had a real job in my life, so I'm not complaining
about playing the Grateful Dead," Mattson said.  "It's a vehicle, really,
for us to improvise our own songs-there are no rigid parts to play.  And
it does supplement our livelihoods.
     "But we're trying to make our own way now, doing our own thing.
With the CD out, we're hoping to get credibility outside the Dead world."
     Not that the band members have entirely abandoned Garcia, Bob
Weir, and the rest of their muses - no devotee can.  Keeping a tradition
alive, the Zen Tricksters perform at Grateful Dead-style New Year's Eve
shows, complete with Father Time, Baby New Year (in a tie-dyed diaper),
and a midnight version of "Sugar Magnolia."
     Sometimes the band divides its performances between originals and
covers, or it leans toward one or the other, depending on the audience
reaction.  For their first gig at the Stone Pony, the Tricksters focused
primarily on original material. Saturdays night's show at Wetlands could
feature and even split, Mattson said.
     Like the Dead, the Zen Tricksters can sometimes launch into
extended jams, sometimes for more than a half-hour.  "Depends on the time,
depends on the night, if it feels right," Mattson said.


     "One of the things about the Dead was that you never knew what you
were going to get.  There was always that sense of danger," he added.
"With Billy Joel, you're going to get the same thing you got the night
before."
     "I'm committed to being a little more consistent.  But we never do
the same show twice.  Like the man said:  You pays your money, you takes
your chances."
- Jerry DeMarco



The Musicians' Exchange
November 1996
     The Zen Tricksters have just released their debut CD, titled The
Holy Fool, and they celebrated the event with a release party at the Long
Island Brewing Company.  If I had to pick any one show of theirs to
attend, this was it.  I entered the show a skeptic; I exited a fan.  This
band is, in a word, incredible.  I knew going in that the Zen Tricksters

is comprised of highly skilled and creative musicians, but I wasn't
prepared for (nor was I expecting) the eruption of creativity that flowed
from this group.
     Guitarist Jeff Mattson may derive much of his inspiration from
Jerry Garcia, but that's only the tip of the iceberg.  It's evident that
he possesses an almost encyclopedic knowledge of music and the technical

ability to adapt and blend diverse styles in a way that makes his guitar
playing a multi-tongued voice of musical expression.  In a word,
fantastic.
     That same term applies to keyboardist Rob Barraco, although
"otherworldly" might be a bit more apt.  This individual does for the
keyboard what Picasso did for the canvas, no hype.  He's one of the best
players I've heard anywhere, ever.  No hype, just simple fact.
     Bassist Klyph Black builds a foundation for the group with his
blues-based anchoring.  While he doesn't impress me as much of an
innovator, he brings a rootsy feel to the bands music that's a vital
element in the mix.
     Drummer Dave Diamond is one of the best all-around musicians I've
ever met.  A unique guitarist and songwriter in his own right, he brings a


lyrical quality to the drums that is seldom heard.  Knowing Diamond from
his tenure in Wide Awake and remembering his approach to the drums at that
point in time.  I was amazed to discover how deep an influence jazz played
in his musical makeup with the Tricksters.
     These four musicians put their combined instrumental and vocal
talents to work on material that let the band's strengths shine dazzlingly
bright.  The mixture of folk, country, blues, jazz and pure
experimentalism proved to be combustible.  The performance left the ground
early on in the set and pretty much stayed that way for the duration.  For
me, the highlight was "Lay Your Love," a song penned by Dave Diamond that
I became familiar with through his other band, Satya.  This is a song
perfectly suited to the Zen Tricksters, and the band made full use of its
possibilities.  For more than 10 minutes, the Tricksters traded more
musical ideas between them than stock shares on a typical day on Wall
Street.  Other picks were "Hoodoo," kind of a swamp-rock type of affair,
"Body Parts" and "Shine Your Light."
     I left the Long Island Brewing Company with a copy of the CD,
drove immediately home and played it; not once but three times in
succession.  Like the live performance, the album is something to
experience.  With the type of music the Zen Tricksters are making, and the
large audience it's bound to appeal to, I'd wager that here's one more
Long Island band that's poised for a break through.
-Roy Abrams

Dupree's Diamond News
     You've read many times in this magazine about how good the New
York-based Zen Tricksters are at playing Grateful Dead music.  Well, they
manage to crank out some pretty serious jams in concert on their own tunes
as well.  Their debut studio CD, The Holy Fool features 12 of these
self-penned songs.  When folks talk about The Tricksters, the incredible
Garcia-like guitar work of Jeff Mattson always seems to come up first.
But on "The Holy Fool," keyboardist Rob Barraco's incredible talent
shines equally large - he is arguably one of the finest keyboardists in
rock and roll today.  Do not miss this band when it lands in your town.
Close your eyes when the Tricksters are jamming and you'd swear you're at
the Fillmore in 1970!