Live Thunderchicken was recorded live at the Wetlands Preserve in New York City on July 29, 1993. The CD was released in advance of
the Hatters' Atlantic debut
The Madcap Adventures of the Avocado Overlord. Two of the ten songs included in
Live Thunderchicken were also on that album. The standout track is definitely "Sip of Your Wine," which features harmonica by
Blues Traveler's
John Popper. The Hatters hoped their affinity with other East Coast jam bands would help them succeed in the major-label game. Unfortunately, it never happened, and the band disbanded in the late-1990s. "The Naked Song" from 1995's You Will Be You did receive some minor radio attention. The Hatters were an above average jam band with roots more in the
Allman Brothers than the
Grateful Dead, and fitting somewhere between
Allgood and Moe. Because of the
Popper collaboration,
Live Thunderchicken should be where collectors or archivists begin to understand
the Hatters. ~ JT Griffith