Look...there's nostalgia that's revisionist and nostalgia that conjures up relevance and reflective recollections. Of course, that's mostly up to who you were, who you are, and what you have become. My wife and I spent a fine four hours last Friday at the Genesee Theater dipping into our past and finding it still sweet both to the senses and the intellect.
Since I'm over 60 now I don't care very much what anyone thinks of the things in my life that have sustained my spirit over the years. We read books that were written hundreds of years ago, see plays that have been performed throughout the centuries, view paintings and sculptures from antiquity. Why would it be so strange that the song-poems of our own youth may hold truths and inspiration that are alive and of value to this day?
None of the bands, Canned Heat, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Quicksilver Messenger Service, The Jefferson Airplane (the "Starship" moniker is for legal purposes only in my book), or my beloved Country Joe McDonald have all their original parts. But the music, the art, is not totally about the specific individuals, but about their spirit and legacy and what slight vision of truth we may obtain. At times we strain in our culture to honor the brave, the innovators. But this night was indeed a night of honor for the entities that are continued in these bands.
I'm probably an odd one, but the Quicksilver Messenger Service's first album and "Electric Music For the Mind and Body" and "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die" from Country Joe and the Fish were among the first entries on my IPOD. I listen to them all the time as I have for 40 + years. So this night was not a journey to a forgotten, cobwebbed past, but a chance to hear live the music that still touches my soul.
It was pretty obvious that most of the older members of all the bands have known each other for years and still look to each other for those bonds that have only grown stronger despite the sure pace of time. And there was no pity or regret about the members of the bands who have already left us; they were honored by the love that showed forth in the performances.
So what was especially good, memorable? Well...depending on one's age and the point in life where this music entered one's existence, there could be as many choices as there were songs and banter. Canned Heat boogied without Big Bear Bob Hite, but no one sat still for a single moment. I was incredibly impressed by Sam Andrew of Big Brother who was so obviously still entranced in the rapture of their songs as he spun the licks as if it were decades ago today. The young lady, Sara Ramos, I believe, who stood in for Janis, had not just the pipes, but also the respect that no doubt brought her to play w/Andrew, Ablin, and Getz, honoring Janis and that special, too short time past. David Freiberg, as only he can do, took Quicksilver's "Fresh Air" and "Pride of Man" and served them up to us all with energy and gusto as Gary Duncan played as only he can. Paul Kanter's choice of "Eskimo Blue Day" was stunning as Kathy Richardson gave us the strident tones needed in the polemic.
But, as always, if there are any "heroes" of the Woodstock experience it is Country Joe McDonald who stands out. If there is a true patriot among us from that time, it is he. I remember when I was overseas in the Army how we listened to he and the Fish and all but prayed for an end to the war and that we were grateful that he and others stood up for the soldiers and sailors who we were at that time. How many people know how much work he has done, and continues to do, for veterans of all our foolish wars? I met him at the opening of a club in Chicago several years ago. I said to him, "Joe, I hope you have had a good life. We listened to your music in the service and it helped sustain us. You are a true patriot." And humble as is his wont, and slightly embarrassed, he said, "Well...I tried to do what I could." And in between sets, he made the a statement that reflected what was really happening at the time of Woodstock. He read the names of all the young men and women from the county in New York state where Yasgur's farm sat who were killed in the Vietnam War. I guess I had forgotten how young we once were; the far majority of the ages of the dead were 19 or 20.
But I wasn't sad and didn't leave with regret. I left with the tunes running through my head, looking forward to hearing the songs again and again and again until it's my turn.
Genesee Theatre @
- Waukegan @
,IL @
- Fri, Jul 31, 2009 @
Favorite moment: When Country Joe sang the song "Janis" that he wrote about his relationship with the late Janis Joplin. @
Setlist: Canned Heat did Goin' Up To The Country; On The Road Again, and Let's Get Together. Big Brother and the Holding Company did Down On Me, Combination of the Two, Piece of My Heart, and Ball'n'Chain. Quicksilver Messenger Service did Fresh Air, Pride of Man, and Mona. The Jefferson Starship did Somebody to Love, D.C.B.A, and Eskimo Blue Day. Country Joe did Janis and Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine. And members of all the bands jammed on The Grateful Dead's Let Your Love Light Shine. @
Opening act(s): All the bands were headliners. @