Dave's Picks Vol. 50: Palladium, New York City, NY 5/3/77
Reviewer: WolfmansBrother - favoritefavoritefavoritefavorite - February 11, 2008 - Online Review
Subject: setting me on fire
left the orchestra section during ship of fools and arrived in the loge for the basso profundo MNS - it's the best of the tour so far, i think, and the balcony is shakin' to its raging outro leading. i sit to take a short break, too.
yet another night of the first set seeming to spill over. first half of this second set is well-played, indeed, but the sugaree is the INSANE highlight, and keith and jerry are battling it out. one of the strongest estimateds of tour and i, for one, am happy for the FOTD break. the second half belongs to jerry - eyes is short but stellar and bridges to yet another rip-your-heart-out wharf rat, and NFA showcases some down in the weeds jamming. we're stomping and clapping and grinning our faces off, and then joint is jumping for sure as they close it down. another fine UJB encore sends me out the door, so very deeply in love with this band and its music. is there anything better than being a deadhead?
Is there anything better than being a Dead Head when one of your favorite shows is officially released in its entirety? We'll double down on your sentiments WolfmansBrother, with DAVE'S PICK VOLUME 50: PALLADIUM, NEW YORK CITY, NY 5/3/77, and we'll bring the fire extinguisher to cool you off after you listen to Betty Cantor-Jackson's complete recording. Don't want the party to end? We'll stoke those embers with a few hot tracks from the first set of 5/4/77. Dave's Picks Subscribers score the monstrous second set from 5/4/77 featuring "Scarlet>Fire," "Terrapin," 'Playing In The Band," "Comes A Time," and more. Woowee!
Limited to 25,000 numbered copies, this release has been mastered to HDCD specs by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering.
Oro & Anchor Beer
I knew you would be happy to hear that news. Good news all around , people get jobs and people get beer.
Anchor Woohoo
Excited to hear about Anchor, they were my first "good" beer. Graduated to Killian's Red, then eventually Sam's (that was living when you had cash to buy a bottle of that). I moved to Sea in '97 and couldn't believe the town had over 10, TEN breweries! Now, one on every block (right next to the SixBucks). Almost all of them are good too, but I'd still drink an anchor any day.
Holy sh!t I didn't get hey now'ed? Have tried to post in a while
Woohoo indeed!
Only hope they can break through the stranglehold of the distribution douchebags and we can get some here…no offense, but I think we have enough hazy sour farmhouse milk dbl IPA with apricot, real pine needles and grapefruit. How bout just some good ole fashion Ales, Porters, and Stouts por favor!
Big Anchor Fan in MD
One of the first good beers I had also. There's a good documentary with footage of Fritz Maytag describing how he came to own and operate the brewery and the traditions he inherited as a result.
If you go back 45 years almost everything in the US was either bland or tasted, well.. bad. Wonder bread, twinkies, percolated coffee and coffee in general, beer, meat and potatoes were the standard food with just salt and pepper.
Then, the foodie and drinkie revolution began, and we could suddenly taste in technicolor. I always counted Anchor Steam as the first micro brewery and maybe they were, or more likely they were one of the last small original breweries that were not put out of business, consolidated or bought out as the corporate giants took over everything. By 1975 everything was giant, more or less the same and for certain bland and tasteless. Schlitz, Old German, Iron City, PBR of course Bud and so many more were more or less mirror images of each other and filled the shelves. Does anyone remember the Schiltz Malt Liquor Bull (or malt liquor in general). The flavorless IPA's of the 70's.
And then there was American coffee.. yukky.
All this began to change about the same time the Grateful Dead started doing those college tours. Coincidence? I am beginning to think it all started after Phil got back from Europe and Heinekens started appearing in bars and on the shelves. If that's the case, Thanks Phil!
Edit: I found that piece of the documentary mentioned above. Youtube dot com frontslash watch?v=0zc4p9Uwa_s
It's worth the ten minutes it takes to watch it. If you listen carefully halfway through you might be able to hear some Phil bombs in the background or maybe it's that quart of Liberty Ale I found buried in the back of the fridge talking. Perhaps it was really Phil that brought on the craft brewing revolution.. it started in San Francisco, Phil must have been involved.
Oro
Thanks!
Lost a dosin posts to the former HN regime. Still trying to figure how much stuff and which types of posts get thru.
The thought of 3-D audio is impressive. My old sytem can still send sound behind my ears, but that has to do, I think, with audio mastering and the impressive new software that is being used. Even my 10 year hdtv's speakers can occasionally throw off an impressive sound stage. It will make me rewind just to hear it again.
Again, All i can say is Thank You Bear!!! You truly started the wheels moving to get us where we are today.
Cheers!!!
Re: Sudden Burst of Flavor
As a child of the 80s, I trust Jim's statement of blandness in tastes until the mid-80s, partly because I read an astounding article about the role of the tobacco companies in the changes in diet and unhealthiness over the last 40 years or so. Why would tobacco companies have anything to do with that? Well, RJR at that time owned Nabisco and Philip Morris bought Kraft Foods. More terrifying is that the tobacco companies do not view themselves as tobacco companies, rather as flavor companies. They spent millions and millions on making the best tasting cigarettes and flavor additives to food. Flavor became the big thing, and these "flavor companies" created all the stuff that is killing us in new and fascinating ways. They created the Snackwells as a "healthy sweet snack", and they became an unfortunate phenomenon, selling out everywhere as people ate them by the boxload, believing mass consumption of something "healthy" would be extra healthy. Instead diabetes rates skyrocketed. Flavor additives literally make us crave foods, like smokers craving a cigarette, not just from the nicotine.
I grew up in Winston-Salem, NC, heart of tobacco country, with RJR headquartered there for well over a century, and descended from tobacco farmers. In 2nd grade we took a field trip to the RJR/Nabisco headquarters. In the lobby, they asked for a show of hands of all those whose parents smoked. A large portion of us raised our hands, and to each of us was given an experimental black pack of Winstons, which was the cancer stick of choice for both my parents. I didn't think much of it at the time, partly because at the end of the tour, we got to choose our favorite Nabisco cookie or cracker. I was all about the Fig Newtons. I wonder if I would have liked Fig Newtons 10 years earlier?
Oh, and this reminds me of the anti-MSG campaigns of the late-80s-90s, and how an irony of the Popeye's Chicken Sandwich craze from a few years ago was that their chicken sandwich, which is, in fact, the best tasting chicken sandwich I've ever had, is loaded with MSG. No wonder they call it Make So Good. But also, terrifying. Even more terrifying is how actually eating healthier is even more expensive at the grocery store. Sorry, for the weird rabbit hole dive...
6/5/69 Fillmore West
This would be a great release, as a one off or part of a bigger box set.
If...
it comes in a box...get your hands out of it.
my long-distance runner comes home for spring-break and announces to my wife and I that there is NOTHING to eat in this house, ONLY ingredients. sorry bud, and that's the way it will stay.
thnx alvarhanso for the reminder
stay well everyone!
Music is well said to be the speech of angels.....
Yo, rockers!!!
Danehead-
Based solely on what I've heard---and remember, my hearing is a little damaged from 50 years of high volume rock and roll----the 6/12 show will require some tweaking to get it release worthy. The 13th---if the entire recording is as i heard---will probably not require a lot of tweaking..............
Speaking of tweaking the music----the big elephant in the room (and there's so many lol) is 9/20/70. The acoustic set---maybe the best, most interesting acoustic set they ever played (hey, where else are you going to hear an acoustic Truckin' and maybe the best New Speedway ever)---would require minimal tweaking.
However, on every version I've heard (and I've heard tons) there's some issues with the electric set. I'm not a techie so I can't put that into better terms. The most recent version I heard----from the GEMS network---is pretty good, but there's still......that issue. Even so, I bet most folks would accept it as an official release.
As long as the phantasmagorical Dark Star suite from the 19th was the bonus disc............
Naturally, all just one man's opinion, and remember to check out Corvallis.......
Music is the refuge of souls ulcerated by happiness.......
Rock on!
Doc
If the king loves music, there is little wrong in the land......
Sad but true Alvar
Scary, horrible shit!
And if that doesn’t scare ya, start looking into why the government subsidies the sugar industry so much…
alvarhanso
I was recruited hard by rjr after graduating from wake forest.
Interesting thing about Winston-Salem, is the speed of the town. I grew up in a town where everyone drives 5-10 mph above speed limit. This has grown immensely worse as we've had and continue to have massive explosion of foreigners (people from other states) move here because of the job creating machine/region where I live. These people from the northeast and west work hard to weave and race through traffic. In Winston-Salem with all that old deep tobacco money, everyone drove 5 mph below the speed limit. Made me even calm down and leave an extra 5-10 early minutes to get where I was going. Love Winston-Salem.
Now, I get in the right lane, hit cruise control at the designated speed limit and wait to be a witness of a major accident. I almost killed a motorcyclist a few years back. Checked mirrors and blind spot and then proceeded to change lanes, as I started to change lanes a motorcyclist flew by me doing over an 100 mph. All of a sudden hear a loud whining sound and he was by me before I could even adjust. Startled the crap out of me.
Moral of this stupid story is politicians need to stop growth agenda until infrastructure investments made.
Sometimes the life expectancy of older folks is longer than younger folks.
Boxin Phish
I am up for 9/20/1970 also. Still hopin box will be more of October 1974 Winterland.
Read an article of the first person banned from the Sphere; band from the Sphere, wow. It is a Phish fan who was the first person to rip a bong and immediately post it on line. It was on 4/20, go figure. What was ban for, pulling a tube or posting online. I am sure at least 100,000 have smoked in the Sphere, probably way more than that.
Serendipity?
Went out twice today. First time in the AM, Hawaii ‘70 was on the Sirius channel. After noon, Alaska ‘80 was on.
It’s an odd pairing for a box, but I’ll probable be in.
Sphere bong....
....I'm bringing mine anyways. Stick it to da man!
VGuy Sphere Bong
Last Friday these four dudes in front of us chain-smoked joints the entire show, no problem there, and then one of them lit up a cig, and security pounced. Good luck. Last time I did a bong in a theater was at a Leon Redbone show in a small theater some time in the late seventies. Let 'er rip!
Last One
Last Bong hit (Lil Red) at a show was the "Ticket to New Years" Show. So, a little over 36 years ago. But that was because I knew you could bring one into a show in California. Now it would be a rolled one or a pipe...locally.
At the NYE 1986 run, I bought Lil Red at a head shop - probably the psychedelic shop, a 6 inch bong. I still have Lil Red and occasionally use it.
Vguy knock em dead.
ConeKid Hempishere...nice. I read it as my brain would naturally, as Hemisphere. Took me a second to read correctly. Where is Keithfan when we need him?!
Anyone have or remember the 6 shooter. A bong bowl with six individual bowls to fill. Made it easy for my posse to load and pass around and around and around.
LAST ONE/FIRST ONE
Does everyone remember their first purchase with a credit card? Mine was a big bong and a cassette tape of The Wailers' "Babylon by Bus"........ Bill's Unclaimed Freight store in Indy. Went to the parking lot, put the tape in, loaded the bowl (maybe that order was reversed}, and off I went.........1978
Everything we do is intentional
I absolutely believe that. They payed way more intentional attention than we can fully understand. They were/are forever Grateful Dead. Was speaking to a head friend of mine just this past week about how they busted stuff out. Referenced Box of Rain at Hampton 1986, which he was there. Had to go back to Deadbase to see the notes. It was 777 shows since the last Box of Rain. Was that coincidence? (An O'mage to that every going battle). I think not. Even GD had their list out. The last time played was 1973-07-03, Watkins Glenn.
Edit: Love Babylon by Bus. Still listen to it 1 o2 times a year.
Bongs are us
Lol, man, I did alotttt of crazy shit but never smuggled in a bong lol
Aaa the lap of luxury!
Hey Gary, was Lil Red one of them what they called portable, or “airplane” bongs? (Ok, airplane I did do back when they still allowed smoking!)
Bout 6” long, not even an inch diameter, sorta dark red plastic with brighter red plastic end caps so you could seal it up and go mobile. Not big hits, but could be quite stealth with the right lungs lol. Used to do oneys out the window at my folks. My XR 7 speakers had big heavy front covers on a hinge with just enough room on the bottom to stash “lil red”.
They’d just walk in without knocking, and with the wall of sound, couldn’t hear em comin. One time pops comes in so just able to stash the tube, but I had to hold my hit and nod that I’d be right out to move driveways cars.
Kids, lol
Yep, Gary, it’s all one! Cept maybe the Dark Matter?
Saw a cool show on that recently, wild sheet Mon!
Six shooter…pshaw! My old buddy Joe Gondeek worked in a shop and used to make real nice bongs with a spinning bowl piece that did a dozen, and dammed if that crazy bastard couldn’t suck em all down himself lol, just reflexed coughed thinking about it. Old BOO469 can tell ya all bout Joe.
In short, if you took three of anything, he’d have to do five!
Probably give Neal a run in the energy department, even without help.
Dude had so much energy his heart exploded (from genetic issue) at age 38!
Super nice and fun guy! Miss ya brother, shit ain’t been the same….
Boo could tell ya quite a story about those two front row Crochefester 77 lol.
Fortunately, today with edibles, and vapes, it’s pretty easy to get right!
Can’t wait to hear Mr Vs inside report. And
“Where’s that confounded box? Has anybody seen the box? “
Edit: 86 Box O breakout, I was there. And here I thought they’d broke that out just for me ; ) I coulda swore the big eye above the stage spoke directly to me lol (watch the move the Stoned Age and the BOC concert and you’ll get that joke)
DBL Edit: oh yeah, where isss Kiethfan, PF, Angry Jack, That Mike and ? other good folks scarred off by the mean old HN goblins. Jump in folks, the water feels fine now!
The Bong You Say
Late '70s in Ft. Collins had friend whose brother owned U.S. Bongs (fancy plastic models mostly) and they had one in every room of the party house. He would get sent a prototype almost every month. My first good glass one an Odyssey Glass MIB (mini ice bong). When the glass pedestal broke off in clumsy cleaning I epoxied it into a glass ash tray which lasted a long time. Toker 2s were too expensive so went plastic after that. Became a wood pipe smoker eventually and made a few as well. Favorite a tulip wood hash pipe.
Cheers
Bong Art
Was working at a job in Vail, upscale Beaver Dam road.
Back before legalization etc
Weird dude in general, real extra white and pasty lol
had this big grand stairway lined with unused cheap plastic bongs of different colors. Kinda cool cept you’d think for art, especially rich folk art, he’d get some nice blown glass etc lol. He also had the first pair of Maggie speakers I ever heard. “Hey, what are those funny room dividers” lol
l8tr 2day
Bust out the 2nd disk of the "Movie". Some great additional playin, think it is an hour and 1/2.
Here is the official ban:
The official letter, which was posted to social media, stated, “On April 20, 2024, you posted an Instagram video of yourself smoking inside the Sphere with the caption ‘first bong hit to ever be ripped in the @spherevegas @phish.’ You knowingly violated the guest code of conduct by visibly smoking inside the venue. Sphere Entertainment Co. will not tolerate actions that threaten the safety and security of our guests and employees.”
After identifying the cause, the letter went on to list the venues where the individual is no longer welcome: “In light of your conduct, you are hereby indefinitely banned from Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Beacon Theatre, The Chicago Theatre, Sphere and any other MSG Venue (the ‘MSG Venues’). You are not to enter into or remain in any of the MSG venues at any time in the future. If you enter any of the MSG Venues, including, with respect to Madson Square Garden, the box office, Chase Square and the concierge areas, law enforcement will be contacted to ensure your expulsion and you will be subject to the penalties.”
stealth bong, checks out
I had one of those stealth deals Oro
For my friend and I it was our main bong in high school, simply bc our parents were on to us and would ruthlessly search our rooms. But this thing (just as you describe down to the dark red color) could be hidden almost anywhere. We were always together so we'd just leave it at one another's house. I'd tape it to the underside of my desk, he had an old stuffed animal and he put in in there.
We used to put crushed ice into it bc if you used water you'd typically splash yourself on the lips, which was foul. We called it "The Monster" since 1) it was anything but (made us laugh) and also 2) from some stoned incident where we hid it and couldn't find it, then we finally found it, it fell from the top of some tall cabinet and scared us both.
Also had a similar incident with getting surprised, this case by friend's mom. Just as he'd just taken the longest, biggest hit he could, she popped into the pool area. If she'd looked to the right she'd have seen him bong-flagrante, but she walked for long enough with turning her head that it allowed him to pick up the pool brush and hold 'the monster' in his other hand. He made like he was about to start cleaning the pool and when she did finally look over at us she never noticed the bong in his palm. I don't know how he held that hit in, she must have yammered at us for 45 seconds before finally biffing off
Lil Red
Was not the airplane bong of which you speak. I have to dig in a closet to get it, want to measure it precisely. Hope to grab it tomorrow. I know one thing, she has been a lil go-getter. Many the amount of pounds (?) she has pulled.
Brought it out after appendix rupture because after I got back home and tried to pull one, I was using 15" bong cut down from 24". I had a chest tube inserted in the hospital (tube was out), so I should have known I couldnt do that. So brought out red and everything was fine. Used her several years. Then brought big boy out and could actually pull through him, so I changed back. But dang the number of people that have hit her, that doesnt sound right... When you try to clean her, she has ageless resin attached chemically to her.
There was more to post, but short term memory beginning to struggle. Oh well, big boy come here. About to play second disk from the GDMOVIE!!!
You know maybe she was one of those airplane bongs now that I think of it. Probably knowing my dumbass, was "what is this cap thing for?" Probably chunked it. But everything sounds right about the dimension. It has a solid 1" square for the base, and a little less than an inch in diameter. Rats, now this rabbit hole is costing time to search.
Weighing the Anchor (news)
Good gawd, people! No sooner had I finished mourning the demise of Anchor Steam - oh so tasty Anchor Steam - like it was a member of my family (which it was) when the news came that Bela Lugosi would start brewing it again!
Very happy with that news, although I'm not sure I have the new owner's name right...
Just back from paddling 40 miles on the Green River and seeing some amazing interaction between vultures and herons (nesting in adjacent trees; 2 herons, ~20 vultures) and an osprey with a fish in its talons dogged by an eagle, causing the osprey to drop the fish just yards from our pack rafts... Good sheet!!
ForensicDoc: blessings on your wife's health.
All the rest of you: blessings for the Jer 1974 photo musings. Some one had it right: those Oct '74 shows were mutli-track, so no DP for them. Which kinda points to a box, eh? (Just using my Canadian accent there....)
The Good Doc is correct: there are many hot shows in the Vault. We get too hung up on shows with reputations and overlook by definition those that don't circulate.
Put it this way: I'm offering to shut up forever if they just hand over the most recently discovered '68 tapes. Any takers??
Love, HF
Multiple paragraph posts are back baby!....
....hey now!
Wish I'd something more to say.
Breathe. Breathe in the air.
I have something more to say....
....new Widespead Panic release on the horizon.
Future releases
It's also important, in my estimation, not get get hung up on complete shows or immaculate sound quality when considering future releases. Many great live recordings of all sorts of artists, from the 1960's and beyond are neither of those things, but they are still indispensible. Check out Magic Sam Live.
More Pipe Dreams
Back in the day, you didn’t always have to buy ready-mades:
In 1970, before my senior year in high school, I spent the summer at a biology program at UT Austin. After liberating a 250 ml Erlenmeyer distilling flask, a glass funnel, and some tubing from the lab I worked in, I picked up a round screen at Oat Willie’s, and, voilà, the sweetest ice-water-pipe was born. When taken on a roadtrip, it did tend to tip over in the floorboard and add it’s unique fragrance to the driving experience for a while. Lasted through several years of intensive use before it apparently jumped out of the backseat and smashed into a fond memory on the pavement.
The next year as a freshman at Duke (missed 4/24/71 by about 5 months), my best friend Joe Frazer, a pole vaulter, had a 6-foot bong he’d made from a broken pole, corncob pipe head and duct tape. Not exactly compact like Lil Red, but holy shit!, one hit from that sucker’d take off the top of your head and then some. Ahh, those were the days.
Ding-Dong the wicked Hay Now is dead (maybe)?
Pipes And Such
Don't have a bong anymore. My son doesn't smoke, so I'm a 99% solitary toker. Currently smoking a Bertha pipe.
What's a Bertha pipe, you ask?
Go to Genius Pipe website. Click on limited pipes. Go to the one marked Passion, and there are 3 different styles. I bought 2 different ones, for when one is in the cleaning stage. These are awesome little pipes with a sliding cover, so you can easily transport a loaded bowl. Easy to clean, and the screens they sell stay seated well in the bowl.
Best part of all, I get to look at Bertha while I'm toking.
Speaking of things that make the day better, I currently have 200 mikes of mind candy sitting on my tongue.
It's gonna be a great day y'all!
Peace
Sweet Passion
Thanks for the steer TNJohn. It's amazing how far smoke-ware has come in 50+ years. Genius Pipe's Passion series checks all the boxes. I'll take one of each. . . No need to remind you to have a nice day! Savor the sights and sounds. Onward.
Seat belts fastened ?
Looking at the time stamp etc, guessing ole TNJohns prolly ready for 12/6/73 Dark Star about now lol, put yer seatbelt on son and enjoy the ride Wa Whooooo!
OBEAH, nice! Always enjoy a good tale…
Yeah, HF, all kinds of great shows left. Whole lot more even than what Doc thinks is good lol
We Have Ignition
Dick's 29 Lakeland, FL sounding absolutely primo right now.
Any suggestions for next listen? I'm having trouble deciding. I'll check back in after a good walk.
got pipes
One of the more wild/weird pipes I had required two people; and yes we used to drive around with it. It had a decent round base with a nice sized bowl. It was kinda after the hookah thought/design. Instead, it had one long tube coming out of it, attached to a face mask. I can remember Driving around the neighborhood (hiding) wearing a face mask. You had to breath until you suck the bowl down. It was enough you had to open the mask just to get some air. Usually, one bowl was enough.
Shout out to old, guess now defunct, Mary Jane's Head Shop, Nashville.
Halaskawaii Box
What will the artwork look like?
Alaska version of the PNW artwork with palm trees.
Testes: one, two...
THREE?!?
I got through? Really?
Ok, I am ready to tread these waters again.
Got wake of the flood redo at Silver Platters store
the other day
Serendipity
11 1 73 disc on a road trip today
Nice. Really nice.
Also set 1 of 9 6 83
All of 7 27 73
So tasty
And Husker Du zen arcade
Anniversary show 6/8/75 El Camino Park
49 years ago I was over at El Camino Park in Palo Alto to see Jerry Garcia, Kingfish and the Rowan Brothers. What a blast! The Dead played in this park on 6/1/67. My brothers friend made the poster for the show, you can see it online. Fun times!
Gary and the 6' bong
(sounds like a disney movie)
We sold these at the store. One night a kid came in, he's holding it,,,, I repeat he is holding it. Ask me if he be able to light this by himself!?!
I look and think you're holding it!!! Can you reach the bottom?
But instead, I suggested one of them long bbq lighters.
He smiled and said yeah,,, I'll take it!
TN John,,, Bertha pipe cute, 120 bucks!
For travel (which I don't use too much, since I don't go anywhere) those cheap silicon pipes with lids.
They're like 10 bucks, flex in your pocket when you sit and if you leave screen out, doesn't show up on metal detector.
We have a local gas blower who blows these very nice sherlocks. When I worked at the store I could get them for 10-15 bucks. We sold them at the store for 40. Big bowl, nice holding shape. Have about 6 extra in my sock draw.
But I still have my little metal pipe from 1980,,,, great for hash!!! (hash and glass not so good together)
Now the moment of truth,,,, will this go thru?
50 years in a heartbeat
Holy Smokes, just returned from 50th college reunion and the conversation here? Pipes and Bongs. College where I first ran in to smoking in a chillum, pretty rough. Bongwater was horrible stuff... back in high school daze, we would tap stands of bamboo for the big ones near where I was, make our own bongs which became an art form... cured properly, they would last a good while, more durable than glass, much more pleasing than plastic, they were hand crafted and decorated. Lightweight for camping too. LiveDead, then Workingmans played often frosh year, poor roommates didn't know what hit them.
pipes, bowls and hookahs
Back in the day (early 70's) these cats I knew snuck a 4 stem hookah into the Led Zepplin show at Tampa stadium. Talk about a trip, it turned into a community 50 yard line bowl for everybody who could muster up the lung power to hit it. It was crazy to see folks throwing in buds and chunks of hash into it. That was a fun show for sure. Orange Barrel and hash, what a rush.
On the way home we had a bowl with a suction cup on the bottom of it and a long soft plastic tube coming from the bowl. Monster hits.
Had a Chong bowl, but it was confiscated at a show, Foghat/Mountain if I recall correctly.
My favorite bong was a little "glass head" that I had, about 9 inches tall with a shotgun hole and a removeable metal bowl with stem. Still have that one although the old copd lungs can't hit it anymore.
Now I have two glass bowls that I use, one for use when the other is being cleaned. Works good and helps with what ails ya
My very first bong was a plastic blue 24" thing that starting tasting nasty soon after it was lit. Things have really come a long way from those metal bowls we use to use, to the glass we get now. Remember you could add chambers to those old piece metal pipes, keep your smokables inside the chamber, gummed it up good for a head rush later.
Ah memories, we shall enjoy them.
Silicone
Not being preachy, but be careful with those silicone pipes. There is a difference between silicon and silicone.
My company makes silicone based polymers, and those are some pretty heavy duty chemicals we use.
I'll stick with metal or glass, even if I have to pay more.
Peace