Where the 60's Never Sleep Pt. 1

To visualize the never ending allure of the "Hippie Generation" of the late 1960's, one must visit 2 of its steadfast representatives, The Grateful Dead and Woodstock, New York. Minus the iconic lead singer and guitarist Jerry Garcia, who died in 1995, the remaining members just re-united, (now under the mantle of The Dead), for the first time in 5 years and hit the road on a mini-tour which brought me to Albany this past weekend. Although the fan base crosses all cultural and economic barriers, the one element that is a driving force behind the band known for its extensive tour calendar and ever-changing set list is the legion of "Deadheads", also known as "The Family" that paint the landscape of the event. Marked by generations and numbers of shows attended, the Deadhead in the purest form is a rare breed that consider a Dead tour as a lifeline and a reason to "go on tour" for months at a time, when the band where playing full seasons, as they did for 30 years, up until Jerry's death. Although the shows are fewer in number now, the following is no less compassionate. A traveling sideshow of dreads and flowered skirts, those "on tour" form a snapshot of the communal and experimental 60's a la Ken Kesey. A tailgate party, when at its best, is ripped from the pages of some hedonistic novel, with a natural, earthy beauty and euphoric youthful optimism wrapping you like a big group hug.
It is this time capsule tapestry that makes the live show what is is. A swirling mass of bodies becoming part of each extended jam that is signature Dead. Legendary guitarist with Government Mule and The Allman Brothers and the only man big enough to attempt to fill Jerry's shoes, Mr. Warren Haynes, puts it best in his lyrical tribute to the man he emulates in Patchwork Quilt:

But there's a banjo moon in a tie-dyed sky
Hippies dance and babies cry
Church bells ring as a silver-haired angel look down
And the blood of his music runs through the veins of our guitars
Bright lights, Dark Star

It's a patchwork quilt of a life
Can't stop the river
Just let it roll



STAY TUNED FOR PART 2 WOODSTOCK VISIT

Shakedown...The Dead Pre-Game in Albany

Sunshine, Smiles, Music...and A Message...New York's Push for Pot

Woodstock, New York 1969...I Mean 2009:-)

War Child Benefit-The Dakota Tavern

To truly understand the Cowboy Junkies, one would have had to listen to their legendary 1988 release The Trinity Session, an album that received such critical praise for not only its sound, but its method of recording. Taken in one day (well, almost...save for Mining for Gold) in late 1987, using only one mike and the awesome acoustics of The Church of the Holy Trinity in Toronto, the finished product was a unique and timeless recording that cut through the heavily produced late 1980s.
It was this album that affected me so strongly as a late teen that I compulsively played it for almost a year, introducing everyone I knew to the haunting vocals of Margo Timmins and methadone induced playing of brothers Michael and Peter and Alan Anton. Following each release through The Caution Horses, Black Eyed Man and Pale Sun, Crescent Moon, the Cowboy Junkies remained a strong musical escape for me through the mid-nineties, fluidly painting stories of places both distant and attached.
For some reason, it wasn't until this past Tuesday, 20 years since I cut the wrap on my vinyl copy of The Trinity Session, that I got to see them live and in grand fashion, well worth the wait. Thanks to War Child , a most worthy international organization, helping the most innocent casualties of war, an evening with not only the Junkies, but a well versed assembly of fellow Canadian musicians was brought to Toronto hippest gathering place, The Dakota Tavern in Toronto. From the minute my wife and friends and I arrived, I knew this would be an evening to remember. My expectations where truly exceeded, from the first note of the Cowboy Junkies, through the harmonies of the Skydiggers, the beautiful and angelic vocals provided with youthful exuberance by Ivey Mairi, the rollicking good time always offered straight up by Tom Wilson and band and the multi-instrumental genius of Guelph native Jeff Bird.
The best part of it all was that the closeness of the surroundings that not only made you feel that you where a spectator, but in a way, a part of the production. Everyone rubbing shoulders with everyone else, making new acquaintances and sharing the creation and appreciation of good music on level playing ground in an organic intertwined simbiance. I walked away with a fully signed copy of the bands first album "Whites Off Earth Now" and my good friend Shawn Creamer (also part owner of The Dakota) was able to get the OK from the band to get my camera in to produce these shots that I feel help capture the special quality of the evening and the one-of-a-kind warmth the Dakota exudes. Truly icing on the already stacked cake:-)
Thanks War Child, thanks Dakota (special hat tip to Shawn) and a big round of applause to all the performers for making my Tuesday night one I will not soon forget!

The One and Only....Cowboy Junkies

Finlayson/Maize...Ivey Mairi...the legendary Jeff Bird

Lee Harvey Osmond (Tom Wilson)...Ivy Mairi...select Skydiggers