TRICKSTER HISTORY (TRICKSTORY)
The Zen Tricksters are:
Jeff Mattson-lead guitar, vocals
Klyph Black-bass, vocals
Tom Circosta-rhythm guitar, vocals

Formed 24 years ago, the Zen Tricksters' mission is to blend jamming originals with tasty Dead nuggets to create sets you only dreamed about hearing. Phil Lesh was so impressed with the band's ability to jam in the studio that he tapped two members to be part of his Phil & Friends collective. In an interview with Kenny T of radio station KGLT in 2000, Phil said, "The Tricksters are more than just a cover band. They have their own stuff and they are brilliant, their stuff is brilliant. They are great players!" The Zen Tricksters are the quintessential jamband. They are as adept at performing in an acoustic format as in an electric one. Based in New York, they play nearly 200 dates a year while touring throughout the United States and Canada. They recently finished a tour in Nagoya, Yokohama, and Tokyo with Relix Japan. It is generally safe to say that the Tricksters are "currently on tour" somewhere in the United States.

The band has three studio CDs, The Holy Fool, recorded in 1996, A Love Surreal, 1999, and the brand new Shaking Off the Weirdness, 2003. This CD features ten original tunes, including new titles such as High Horse and Sleepwalking, plus staples of their live shows Light of Life and The One. It also boasts a colorful roster of special guests including former Trickster and current member of The Dead and Phil Lesh & Friends, Rob Barraco, Buddy Cage from the New Riders of the Purple Sage, Jason Crosby, former ZT who also plays with Oteil & the Peacemakers and Susan Tedeschi, and Tom "Banjo" Hanway. The Tricksters play many local New York area gigs, but inevitably winds up back on the road again. This is their life and it is what they love. Jeff is very proud of the fact that he has never made his living in any other way but music. “Road life,” he says “very much embodies the yin-yang of life. You trade the long hours of traveling and tedium day after day for the supreme pleasure and sheer love of making your own kind of live music night after night.” That is quite obvious at any Zen Trickster show--you can hear their love of their art in every performance they give.

The Zen Tricksters are into their third decade as a performing band. Their performances have ranged from the Big Apple Bluegrass Festival to the Seattle Hemp Festival. Over the years they have made quite a name for themselves playing such noted events as the Oregon Country Fair and the Pig Nic, New York's Gathering of the Vibes (this year makes all eight years of its existence), California's High Sierra Festival, the Seattle and Eugene Hemp Festivals, and the Poconos' Gathering on the Mountain. They were a staple act at New York's venerable Wetlands Preserve, closed in 2001, and played there more times than any other band in existence! They have shared the stage many times with the David Nelson Band, most recently at several festivals during the summer of 2002, and pedal steel guitar player, Barry Sless, who also played on A Love Surreal, is a virtual Trickster. They have played with Peter Rowan, Vassar Clements, Derek Trucks, Mike Gordon, Tom Constanten, String Cheese Incident, and Kenny Kosek on several occasions, and have also shared the stage with the JGB, Suzanne Vega, the Jefferson Starship, the David Grisman Quintet, and more. Their music has been used on MTV, WABC's Alias, and WB's Felicity. The Zen Tricksters are proud to be a Homegrown Music Net member band.