Warehouse?? The flood zone in Virginia?

[Trippin Hillbilly]

Hey Guys..

I was bored so I thought i'd look something up.....does anyone know what warehouse dave is talking about? If there is an explanation already then ignore me but this is what I was thinking:

If you have a look at the early and mid 90's shows, Dmb played alot of shows at The Flood Zone in Virginia...
The flood zone has been refered to as an old warehouse on the corner of 18th and Main......hmmm

Also, the Flood Zone 'petered out' at around '96 or '97 after a series of assaults and fights , the city closed the venue...
Have a look a this: http://www.floodzone.com/index.html
Now, if we read an extract from the warehouse lyrics:

This I admit
Seems so full
Hard to believe an end to it
Warehouse is bare
Nothing at all inside of it
Walls and halls have disappeared

Could it be possible that dave was talking about the flood zone? Or do I just have too much time on my hands? he he...
Anyway, let me know what ya'll think

[taylordb]

I thought I remember reading it was a reference to a place the band use to rehearse at in Charlottesville, VA

[jsgksu]

This is taken from the Nancies.org Frequently asked questions file:
2.12 Is there a real "Warehouse?"

There is. The Warehouse (also known as The Pink Warehouse) is located on South Street in Charlottesville, just two blocks from the Downtown Mall on Main Street. Many figures in DMB history have resided or spent time in the Warehouse, including Dave's original manager, Ross Hoffman. When Dave was first writing songs and learning how to perform, he would visit Ross in the Library, a large and unusual apartment on the top floor of the Warehouse. It is widely believed that the song "Warehouse" is a lament for the days when Dave would perform with an audience of one in the Warehouse. (Others have argued that Trax (see section 2.9) also fits the bill, as it was once used as a warehouse. But this is not popularly believed.)

Here is the link for the FAQ: http://www.nancies.org/about/faq/dmbfaq51.txt
It also explains the Trax, Flood Zone and Miller's.

[Trippin Hillbilly]

DAMMIT! Hehe...oh well, i tried....thanks for the info!

[DropD-MB]

I would say that the Floodzone is not the "Warehouse" that Dave refers to in Warehouse.. Only because Dave wrote those lyrics long before 1996 or 1997(Floodzone Closed Down). Can anyone back me up?

[mbgreen]

Yeah pretty much. As much as I dislike nancies discussion forum, they have all the faq stuff nailed. Any little questions you could possibly have about the band are probably addressed in their faq. Oh, and of course dave wrote warehouse before floodzone closed. It was on Recently...and they played it for a long time before that. Check out antsmarching.org's song tour for any questions about songs and origin dates.

[DropD-MB]

I know he was playing warehouse in 92', not sure about 91'.

[KevinGTArch]

There is. The Warehouse (also known as The Pink Warehouse) is located on South Street in Charlottesville, just two blocks from the Downtown Mall on Main Street. Many figures in DMB history have resided or spent time in the Warehouse, including Dave's original manager, Ross Hoffman. When Dave was first writing songs and learning how to perform, he would visit Ross in the Library, a large and unusual apartment on the top floor of the Warehouse. It is widely believed that the song "Warehouse" is a lament for the days when Dave would perform with an audience of one in the Warehouse. (Others have argued that Trax (see section 2.9) also fits the bill, as it was once used as a warehouse. But this is not popularly believed.)

While no one can REALLY be sure what inspires Dave's lyrics this is the most likely explanation. If you read the book "Step Into The Light" by Morgan Delancey he also shares this exact story about the "pink warehouse". It's been awhile since I've read the book but I believe it even goes farther to say that for a short time, when the band was beginning to take off, Dave moved into the Warehouse with Ross Hoffman for a period of exhaustive song writing. Apparently the band had been playing a handful of Dave's originals (I'll Back You Up, Recently, Song That Jane Likes) and covers - Warehouse was one of the songs in the new batch produced during Dave's stay.

I recommend reading the book. It's an easy read and really has a lot of great background information on the band.

Kevin

[DropD-MB]

I read that book back in 98 or 99. Really informative. I also have another book not sure what its called though...its basically the same thing as Step into the light.