Album tries to replicate festival
By JULIE BENDER
Assistant Scene Editor
The month was June. The place, Tennessee. There were 70,000 people who traveled from all over the country, an excruciatingly hot sun and no showers. Like recent Woodstock concerts, such an event would seem a breeding ground for riots and violence. This peaceful gathering defied all, however. The love of pure music soothed everything over.
This summer the first ever Bonnaroo festival was held in Manchester, Tenn. Amazingly, without any commercial advertisement, the festival sold out all 70,000 of its tickets in a matter of days by word of mouth only.
Although the event primarily showcased jam bands, the three days of music and camping included a range of acts, both new and old, encompassing all sorts of musical genres. Widespread Panic played two, multiple-hour sets, along with shows by the String Cheese Incident, Bela Fleck, Les Claypool's Frog Brigade, Ben Harper, moe., Jurassic 5, Norah Jones, Jack Johnson, Gov't Mule, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir and a final show closing the event by Trey Anastasio.
For all those who went to Bonnaroo, it was the climax of the summer. Being there amidst thousands of dread-locked hippies, more Volkswagen buses than were ever known to still be in existence, and all sorts of strange, mind enchantments being sold (chocolate-covered mushrooms, anyone?), it was an experience that will never be matched, except for perhaps another Bonnaroo.
The event was such a success that a two-disc album with recordings of 21 of the 53 acts that played Bonnaroo has been released. For those who want to forever remember the talent they saw that weekend, or for those who weren't there and want an earful of what the festival was all about, Live From Bonnaroo is where it's at.
The album kicks off with a Southern Baptist, hand-clapping jam. Widespread Panic's, "Tallboy," featuring Dottie Peoples has a piano backbeat that definitely "summons the holy ghost from the battlefield," as the ambling of Michael Houser's guitar filters through the gospel chorus. Sadly, Bonnaroo was one of Houser's last performances ever. He died this past August after a battle with cancer. The Live From Bonnaroo album is dedicated to his memory.
The second song on the album is a treat for all Grateful Dead fans. Former members of the Dead, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir come together and do an apropos rendition of "Tennessee Jed." "Tennessee, Tennessee, there ain't no place I'd rather be. Baby won't you carry me back to Tennessee." Sung in a voice remarkably like Jerry Garcia's, these words sum up the feeling of the whole festival.
Other songs included on disc one that radiate the feeling of Bonnaroo are the groove of Jack Johnson's "Rodeo Clowns," the cover of the Jethro Tull classic, "Locomotive Breath" by Les Claypool, and the smoothness of Norah Jones' gorgeous "Nightingale."
Disc Two gets off to a good start with Trey Anastasio jamming out on "Last Tube." Ben Harper is next with his combination of "Burn One Down" and "With My Own Two Hands." His gentle acoustics add a mellow flavor to the mix as he sings, "If you don't like my fire then don't come around, `cause I'm gonna burn one down," drawing cheers from the fans.
The String Cheese Incident, Bela Fleck, moe., the North Mississippi Allstars and a rare treat of the Blind Boys of Alabama singing "Amazing Grace" to the tune of "House of the Rising Sun," make this album completely eclectic.
Although Live From Bonnaroo doesn't quite live up to the experience of seeing the festival in person, it does a good job of highlighting the key parts of the weekend. Still, it was the special moments during the weekend that made the festival a true experience. No album can relate what it was like to dance in the rain to Bela Fleck or to watch as a cluster of fans grabbed sticks and bounced a makeshift drum beat off garbage cans. No album can relate the feeling of trying to find your tent site amidst 70,000 other very similar tent sites at 4 a.m.
Bonnaroo was an experience like none other. The CD is good, but live it was the best.
Contact Julie Bender at bender.10@nd.edu
All Scene Stories for Tuesday, November 5, 2002
