Jul

20

Hallelujah  

Jeff Buckley

Well I heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don’t really care for music, do ya?
Well it goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Well Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
she tied you to her kitchen chair
And she broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Well baby I’ve been here before
I’ve seen this room and I’ve walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew ya
I’ve seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march
It’s a cold and it’s a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Well there was a time when you let me know
What’s really going on below
But now you never show that to me do you?
And remember when I moved in you?
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Well maybe there’s a God above
But all I’ve ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who’d OUT DREW YA
And it’s not a cry that you hear at night
It’s not somebody who’s seen the light
It’s a cold and it’s a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
 

 

Jun

21

The following are just some random thoughts I jotted down at the festival…

If you love music Bonnoroo is a great place to be. At least 16 hours a day (and more) the festival is alive with music. From the Which stage grounds which can hold 30,000+ people to the smaller tents that can handle a hundred or so there is always music happening somewhere. Bluegrass, rock, jam bands, and just about every other genre in between. With headliners like Pearl Jam to lesser known, but extremely talented acts like Jypsi you can always find some great music to listen to. Get up shoulder to shoulder in the mosh pits (no moshing going on), or sit out on the grass the festival is a veritable no worries, no hurries type of atmosphere.

If you get music’d out (I never did), there is a cinema, a comedy tent, and numerous other things to amuse yourself with. Get tired and you can walk (or stumble) back to the campground and crash for awhile. You can always find a spot to crash out on the massive fields with little worry of being trampled.

For any lover of music Bonnaroo is a worthy life experience to have.

Bonnaroo - Give Peace a Chance

I did not camp at Bonnorroo. I would suspect from the size of the day parking lot relative to the cavernous campground that less than 5% of those attending did not camp. In any event I spent somewhere between 35 and 40 hours inside the venue over the four days. I also need to preface that there was beer being sold, a great deal of pot smoking, lots of tobacco smokers (too many), and of course the facilities were less than desirable port-o-potties that got a bit dicey as the day wore on. Having said all of this I was struck that the entire time I was in the venue I did not see a single altercation. For that matter I did not even witness a single argument. When you consider that there were 85,000 people sharing 1200 acres of camping and festival grounds this is really quite remarkable.

Jypsi blows me away 

Bonnaroo Saturday 2:54pm
Some of the best and most intimate acts can be found in the far reaches of the festival. About 300 yards directly behind the cavernous Which stage is the Blueroom Cafe. An awesome Alt Bluegrass (if this isn’t such a classification there is now) band named Jypsi played. Three beautiful and talented woman that looked more like the Go-Go’s gone punk. They and their three male band members served up a mixture of up tempo bluegrass and covers that any music lover would enjoy. Their guitarist picked his acoustic like a banjo player and also had a great voice. For me this was by far the best small act I saw at the festival. These type of small acts are a great means for getting exposure to the lesser known musicians and just a wonderful experience for music fans.

BB and Lucile

BB King at 82 may not be mobile on stage but he and Lucile are still the king and queen of the Blues. It was great to see all the young people and the reverence and exuburance they paid him.

The Church of Steel Guitar

Sunday 1:15pm The Lee Brothers
Starting off the day with some high energy steel guitar. Those who ventured out at this early hour (by Bonnaroo standards) received quite a treat.

Susan Tedeschi Rocks

Sunday 3pm - Susan Tedeschi on the Sonic Stage. One of my favorite singers. I have listened to her for quite a while. The intimate Sonic stage was a perfect venue to see her up close. Her big soulful voice and blues riffs made for a short but well spent 30 minute set. While the other stages can overwhelm this stage, with Susan it was very easy to stay focussed on her.

Music Nirvana

Watching Pearl Jam on Saturday night I was just blown away. I thought how are Robert Plant and Allison Krauss going to top this performance? Well, on Sunday I cut one of my favorite bands (O.A.R) short to get up close to Allison and Robert. They exceeded every expectation I had. The covered some Zeppelin tunes. Imagine a fiddle solo on Blackdog. Hey, maybe it was not Jimmy Page but he rocked the house. Bluegrass music will never be the seem.

Only 359 days until Bonnaroo 2009

Jun

13

The flight from Seattle to Nashville, 3 hours and 50 minutes. The drive on day one from Murfreesboro to parking at the venue, 5 hours and 15 minutes. That is 30 miles. You can do the math.

We heard the traffic situation has actually improved in recent years. 

 

Mar

26

There is a great group of singers on this years American Idol. David Cook may not win but you can believe that he is going to be a star with the same success that Chris Daughtry (finished 4th in season 5).

Tonight he did the Elton John classic, Norma Jean, put his own unique spin on it and pulled it off in a way that you had to listen to to believe.

Feb

5

I am listening to Benny Goodman and his Orchestra live at Carnegie Hall 1938. Man this is some great stuff. This is a 1938 recording so the sound cannot compare to fidelity circa 2008, but when you consider this is a live, historic gig it is just some amazing stuff. Wow.

To be able to be in the audience for this would have been something. He ended up with this gig based on a publicity stunt put on by his then publicist Wynn Nathanson. He played to a packed house. Members of Count Basie and Duke Ellington’s bands sat in for some of the numbers. His band included Harry James, Gene Krupa, Martha Tilton. I would have loved to have been in Manhattan that night for the show. The best seats going for $2.75 (a chunk of change in ‘38)

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