You know the story. Favorite band splits. Leaves masses of fans heartbroken. Briefly dabbles in reunions and then vanishes for 8 years before they play a basement in Jersey and then reunite in public for the first time in 9 years the following year where they MELT FACES.
1988-1999: God Street Wine forms & then rules. In '98‚ members Jon Bevo & Tomo decide they aren't having fun anymore‚ but the rest of the guys want to continue. Keyboardist Pete Levin & drummer Aubrey Dayle join the band for their summer tour.
1999: God Street Wine call it quits with three‚ hot‚ sweaty‚ Wetlands shows.
2001: September: GSW reunites to play as a farewell to the Wetlands Preserve‚ who was set to close it's doors for good (sadness) because rich people don't like hippies hanging out on their street.
...crickets ...crickets ...crickets...
2008: GSW fan (aka Wino)‚ David Katz looks for a GSW page on Facebook. Realizing that there were none -- he starts his own‚ "Bring Back God Street Wine" (a clever play on GSW song‚ "Bring Back the News"). Little by little‚ the group became a living shrine and must-visit for any Wino seeking their GSW fix (the group currently boasts 1600+ members). Band members started to join in on the fun. Photos‚ videos‚ & links to new archive recordings were amassed. Old friends were reconnected. It was great‚ but people still wanted to see some fresh shows!
2009: May 30th: GSW play a special Memorial Day of Music: A Love Ducharme‚ dedicated to their long time fan‚ first taper‚ and dear friend‚ Paul Ducharme‚ who had recently passed away. GSW's day set was in a Ridgewood‚ NJ park. The night show took place in their friend Steph Rein's basement in suburban Wyckoff‚ NJ. Black mold and all!
2010: January/February-ish: GSW release all of their albums for free download on their web site. In addition‚ the fabulous Bedroom Sessions‚ a collection of 31 songs recorded in their Ossining house‚ originally used as a demo for Geffen Records‚ is added to the Internet Archive for free download.
March: GSW announce they will be playing two July shows at the Gramercy Theater in NYC to benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The shows were the brainchild of Michael Weiss‚ former GSW Tour/Stage Manager‚ Lights‚ Road Beast‚ & poker partner. Michael was diagnosed with MS in the spring of 2004.
Despite NO advertising being done for these shows (other than word of mouth and Facebook) -- password-protected tickets for both shows sold out in less than a half hour. Winos who didn't score tickets were pissed. GSW added 2 more shows the following weekend at Irving Plaza.
Since disbanding‚ the members of God Street Wine have gotten married and become fathers (interesting note: GSW now have enough children between them to form their own soccer team). Dan & Bevo are heavies in the technology field‚ Aaron's a music teacher‚ Lo wrote a couple of Rock Operas and is a student at Princeton‚ and Tomo has toured internationally with Damien Rice & Lisa Hannigan. They've all blended back into society pretty well‚ considering they are Super-Duper Awesome Rockstar Gods. And the reunion shows of 2010 only prove that they've still got it in 'em! Watch how they react when asked about a Reunion Tour -- there's a certain morbid curiosity in their eyes. Somewhere inside‚ they still crave it. Thankfully‚ it sounds like Winos will be getting their fix a little more regularly in the future -- and we can't wait!

State of Mind Presents: God Street Wine - Brung Back from State of Mind on Vimeo.