The Lehigh University student, music group, The Progressive Shamanists, performed at the Lehigh University community living facility, known as the German House at 212 Warren Square, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on Saturday, April 2, 1982, starting at 10:00 PM. At the time of the performance the group called themselves The Phoenix and only later changed the name to The Progressive Shamanists. The band opened with the Police song, Message In A Bottle, to an audience of approximately fifty spectators jammed into a small living room at the facility. As the group formed in late January, early February in 1982 the band members, Rob Prigge, Rob Kowtko and Greg Pichler, vigorously practiced at a seasonal residence, owned by Kowtko's father in the Poconos. The group met at the seasonal residence on a weekly basis on the weekend. In fact the practice sessions for the founding members became so involved that Pichler failed a mid-term exam in a Physics class over the course of the 1982 Spring semester, earning only a 48 out of 100. It was the only exam Pichler failed at Lehigh University. In any event what resulted was a balance of both popular cover songs as well as original songs by the members of the group, covering over one-and-a-half hours of music.

The Progressive Shamanists' only indoor performance in front of an audience, while the members were actively taking classes at the University, was in fact at the German House. The group planned to play an outdoor concert on the lawn adjacent to the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity two weeks following their performance at the German House, however, the open-air concert immediately drew a complaint to the authorities and the Bethlehem police arrived shortly in to the first set, demanding the group cease disturbing the peace.

The performance at the German House includes the good, the bad and the truly awful. The group's performance of Pichler's original song, Love Gave Me the Answers, was truly awful as all three group members made egregious mistakes. Kowtko frequently played the wrong chords, while at the same time Prigge lost the beat, while at the same time Pichler forgot the lyrics to my own song. Further, Kowtko failed to raise the key an interval in the song, Summertime Blues, remaining in G Major over the course of the entire song, while Pichler correctly transitioned the key to A Major at the appropriate point in the song.

The group's more respectable renditions include When The Music's Over (The Doors), the second rendition of Who Do You Love (The Doors), (The Phoenix performed Who Do You Love twice that evening; the second was cut off when the cassette ran out of magnetic tape), I Saw Her Standing There (Lennon/McCartney), You Really Got Me (Ray Davies), Playing It Cook (Kowtko), Do What You Like (Ginger Baker), Twenty-One Years (GE Pichler) and She's Not There (Rod Argent). In fact Rob Prigge's drum solo on the song, Do What You Like, is masterful and spine tingling.

All of the members of the group undertook the lead vocal duties at some point in the concert. Kowtko sang the lead vocal part on the songs he wrote as well as all of the renditions of material by The Doors. Pichler sang the lead vocal part on the songs I contributed as well as the Beatles song, I Saw Her Standing There, the Jim McGuinn, David Crosby song, I See You, and the Ginger Baker song, Do What You Lile. Prigge sand the lead vocal parts on the Kinks medley, You Really Got Me, All Day and All of the Night.

In addition to taking lead vocal roles all three members contributed to backing vocal parts when not responsible for the lead vocal part on a number of songs. The crowd was largely unfamiliar with the group's original material with the except of my song, Twenty-One Years, which Pichler had performed a number of times at the fraternity house across the street at 227 Warren Square as a member of the fraternity group, The Shrooms.

Music Contributions

The Phoenix at the time of the performance were:

• Rob Prigge: percussion
• Rob Kowtko: keyboards
• Greg Pichler: guitar, vocals

Credits

The video includes still photo images of the legendary voice-over artist, Mel Blanc, and Tau Epsilon Phi, fraternity brothers Glen Wilke and Michael P. Quaranta.

List of Tracks

The list of songs from the performance in the order the group performed it includes:

1. 00:00:02 (Track 1) Message In A Bottle (Sting)
2. 00:03:47 (Track 2) Break on Through (The Doors)
3. 00:08:09 (Track 3) She's Gone (GE Pichler)
4. 00:12:40 (Track 4) Incidental I
5. 00:12:45 (Track 5) Who Do You Love (Ellas McDaniel a.k.a. Bo Diddley)
6. 00:18:20 (Track 6) Incidental II
7. 00:18:47 (Track 7) Love Gave Me The Answers (GE Pichler)
8. 00:22:55 (Track 8) I Saw Her Standing There (Lennon/McCartney)
9. 00:25:39 (Track 9) Fire In The Night (Kowtko)
10. 00:32:51 (Track 10) You Really Got Me (Ray Davies)
11. 00:38:42 (Track 11) Playing It Cool (Kowtko)
12. 00:43:59 (Track 12) Do What You Like (Ginge Baker)
13. 00:56:08 (Track 13) I See You (Jim McGuinn, David Crosby)
14. 01:03:00 (Track 14) The Time Is Right // Grasshopper Boogie (R Kowtko, Greg Pichler, R Prigge)
15. 01:10:08 (Track 15) Foxy Lady (Jimi Hendrix)
16. 01:14:02 (Track 16) Summertime Blues (P Townsend)
17. 01:17:01 (Track 17) Twenty-One Years (GE Pichler)
18. 01:24:09 (Track 18) When The Music's Over (The Doors)
19. 01:33:59 (Track 19) She's Not There (Rod Argent)
20. 01:38:54 (Track 20) Who Do You Love (Ellas McDaniel a.k.a. Bo Diddley)

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