Conference rdvax::grateful

    
    
    Rock the Halls with Flash Cadillac
    
    The Colorado Springs Symphony and Flash Cadillac will be doing 2 show
    in Colorado Springs this Dec. 7th and 8th.
    They will have a dance floor so " you can shake,rattle and roll"
    
    Tickets are on sale now, call 520-7470 for ticket info!
    
    Divide Dave 

    Hemp Rally at the University of New Hampshire on Sat May 6
    to be held behind the Field House Lot A area (tailgating area for
    homecoming/soccer field)
    All sorts of vendors etc will have booths set up for your browsing and
    shopping pleasure..start time uncertain, call the MUB for info

Here's who's playing at the Lowell Folk Fest this weekend:

Beau Jocque & the Zydeco Hi Rollers
Marcia Ball 
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (bluegrass)
The Legendary Orioles (doo-wop and soul)
Warner Williams (Piedmont blues)
Joe Derrane (Irish)
The Perfume River Musicians (Vietnamese)
Chuna McIntyre (Yupik Eskimo)
Jeff Little (Rockabilly)
Li'l Rascals Brass Band (New Orleans)
Karl & the Country Dutchmen (German Polka)
Stephan Landry, Norman and Benoit Legault and Micheal Faubert (Quebecois)
Ice (Cape Verdian)
Frank Ferrel (New England & the Maritimes)
Joe Cormier (Cape Breton fiddle)
Richard Wood (Candian Maritimes)
Mal Barsamian Ensemble with Richard Berberian (Armenian)
the Merikia (Greek)
Mariachi Guadalajara (Mexican)
Gospel Jubilee (featuring the Fabulous Bullock Bros. & Clarance Thompson Sr.
 and the New Spirits of Boston)

              Clarance Thompson Sr ????????? 

jwb's picks:  Marcia Ball, the Piedmont blues guy, the Vietnamese band,
Ice, Mariachi Guadalajara.

Beau Jocque, when I saw him in R.I. at the Cajun Fest, was resorting to 
whip-up-the-crowd type antics that turned me off.  Marcia, on the other hand,
generates excitement just being on stage :-)
What exactly is Peidmont blues, anyway?  Is this deep-fried Southern, or 
some corner of Maine? :-)
The Lowell Folk Fest usually books some sort of Carribean/reggaeish/Island/
soca band, and looks like this year's entry is Ice.  Never heard of 'em, 
but they'll probably be a fun time. (I know, Cape Verdi is nowhere near
the Carribean, but its Island/soca music anyway)
Mal Barsamian plays most every LFF. OK first few times, but pass this time.
Anyone ever hear of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver ?

Tomorrow's Boston Globe Calender will have a LFF section.  
LFF runs Friday night, all day/night on Sat., day on Sunday.

  Josh

    What does 'soca' mean?
    
    gary

Its a kind of Island music. :-)

Seriously, though, soca is a a kind of Brazilian dance music, I believe.
Caribean/South African bands will often play a mix of reggae, soca, etc.
I mean, it ain't Barry Manilow!!!  (thank Jah! :-)

Josh

>    What does 'soca' mean?

European football?

    >    What does 'soca' mean?
    >European football?
    
    ...pronounced by a bostonian

    for those of you looking for a way to ease the pain....
    
    BREAD AND PUPPETS!!!!!!!!!!!
    
    it's the weekend of the 26th in Glover VT...  camping in beautiful
    upstate vermont with a bunch of like minded souls...  drum circles,
    camping, vending, everyting you find at a deadshow without the dead...
    instead puppets...  some of them 20 feet tall!!!!  puppet shows,
    puppett parades, puppet workshops, puppets galore!  lots of fun too,
    some with a left-leaning political bend...  some just for the sake of
    art...
    
    should be fun... i'm looking to go up and meet up with Debess and
    family...  the puppets are free... camping is $10-15 per carload...
    i've got room in my car for anyone wanting to hitch a ride (i will
    leave work early on friday)...  it's up in Glover, which i believe is
    near highgate...  way up tere...  
    
    this will be a first for me, but Debess, and i believe Josh, and a
    couple others have been there before...  any additional commentary will
    have to come from them!  ast least til after i get back! :)
    
    					da ve

	da ve,
	
	got any addt'l info on campin? do you ma ke reservations? and do
	you ha ve a #?

    no reservations that i'm aware of...  the camping is dead-show type
    in that you are really in some farmers beanfield or something like
    that...  water tanks and portosans but not much else for facilities
    (read-bring everything)...  there is vending and apparently some 
    farm-stan type general store setups for ods and ends...  they're
    temporary though and only there for the festival so i can't vouch for
    what they might have in stock...  for interested parties, i will
    forward the mail i got from Debess as to where they will be trying to
    camp...  i dont want to post it though...  cuz i'm strange that way...
    :^)
    
    					da ve

hi all...

well, i had one of the best weekends i've had in a long time....  why?  cuz i 
found out where deadheads and kind people hang out when there's no show to 
go to...  Bread and Puppets!!!!!!  :^)

i've been trying to get up to this event for 4-5 years now and every year 
something has come up to keep me away...  NO MORE!!!!!  this is as cool, if 
not cooler, than a dead show... (yes, you read that right!)  i think it may 
have to become an annual event for me...

i didn't get to leave until late firday night so it was an all night drive 
up to Glover VT...  the northern kingdom is beautiful ANYWAYS, but seeing it 
in the orange glow of dawn is the best...  iu took a couple of little cat 
naps in rest areas as my head started bobbin' but i arrived at the camping 
area looking for Debess and co....  followed the signs for "H. PIDGEON" and was 
tehre before anyone woke up...  (H stands for "homing" of course :^)...  
they arose to the sight of me sitting by the  fire drinkin beers at 7:30...  
(justified at that hour by virtue of not really having gone to bed...  and 
the fact that it's always after noon SOMEPLACE... :^)  a nice communal 
breakfast with old friends and new and the discussion turned to the day 
ahead and the place itself...

camping area is primitive camping only...  they provide outhouses and 
firewood...  the outhouses were kept incredibly clean all weekend and with 
some 20,000 campers, things were mellow nad kind throughout...  lots of 
vending with lots of the same people and things you see at shows...  lots of 
drum circles...  i even got to play the diggeridoo for the first time! 
:^)  if i had a few more bux i'd have bought one...  fun instrument... :^)

the "side shows" started early...  about 11 am, and then run continuously 
until the circus starts...  there are at least 30 side shows...  some are 
puppet shows, some are more like "performance art"...  some are heavy, 
dealing with big social issues...  some are light and fun...  something for 
all ages...  the politcs expressed in the shows are decidedly left of center
though there is some common ground as well...  still, not the kind of place 
that NEwt would find to his liking...  not too many kindred souls for him 
and his ilk (the contract with america and newt were the subject of no smal 
amount of jibing)...

THE 19th ANNUAL BREAD AND PUPPETS DOMESTIC RESURRECTION CIRCUS!!!!!

dont' know ho wmany there have been since every year it's the "19th 
annual"...  kind reminds me of a friend of mine who celebrates the 
anniversary of his birthday...  he's been in his 20's for about 15 years now 
or something...  :^)

the circus...  yes, circus, sttarts around 3...  there's a large natural 
ampitheatre...  a "bowl" in the big grassy field that is the "stage" for 
this...  surrounding the bowl are tall poles bearing flags, banners etc...
very colorful...  the circus starts with music playing, horns honking, and a 
couple of hundred "puppeteers" in white running in with more flags and 
banners...  some riding on top of colorfully painted school busses (reminded 
me of "Further", the deads old bus)...  the show has jugglers, acrobats, 
stilt walkers, and huge puppets, 20 and 30 feet high...  the whole 
extravaganza lasts about 2 hours...  ranging from the polically oriented
to the hysterically funny. there's stuff for the kids and the grownups...

and then they ask for 300-500 volunteers to help them with the pageant...
:^)  the pageant has to be seen to be believed...  again, giant puppets...
a 30 foot tall mother earth...  an even larger headless man in a suit
("structural man")...  20 foot high animal puppets...  giant heads, birds, 
faces, moving scenery...  really spectacular stuff...  little dialogue
in the show...  they leave it for you to interpret it as you will...
in genral terms, Mother Earth is being worshipped by her followers...  they 
are taken over by a technological society...  mother earth is replaced by 
structural man and his industry...  industry chokles society...  the 
messsenger that comes to save us from ourselves is rebuked...  fire, 
oppression, and destruction fall upon us as the techno-society melts down 
and people forget who they are an what is important...  mother earth will 
not forget her own and thousands of doves bring happiness and peace back to 
her people as she re-enters to stop the madness and gather her people back 
into her arms.,..  mother earth has arms that must be 150' across!  it must 
take almost 200 people just to make her work...  she's HUGE as she flies 
peacfully across the field togather her children, literally, into her 
arms...  the techno society is (literally) in flames yet we are saved to try 
again...  incredibly amazing and very moving...  no description of the 
performance or the puppets will do justice...

all kinds of folks...  dead heads...  not dead heads...  naked women 
sunbathing...  almost naked men in make up and womens underwear...  gay 
people, kind people, happy people, searching people, white people, black 
people, green people...  just no mean people...  :^)

lots of cheap art to be had and shared...  lots of smiles and love and hugs 
and food and other good stuff too...

no aisle nazis!!!!  the event is free...  gneral admission...  voluntary 
donations are politely asked for...  camping is 15 or 20 depending on where 
you camp...  doesn't matter if you're there for 4 days or 1, ca,mping fees 
are the same $20...  no visible security though there were helpful folks 
there to get you through if you needed it...  no drunks, jerks, puking 
wonders...  lots of sweet smelling herbs in the air...

there's so much more to say than i can possibly enter here!  it truly has to 
be experienced to be believed...

next summer i doubt i'll be saying "i need a show"...  i think it will be 
"i need Bread and Puppets!"  :^) :^) :^)


					da ve

    sounds like a real good time....never haveing seen it, I think your
    descriptions were grate!!!
    
    rfb

Nice description of the scene, da ve.  I haven't been there in a while,
but you described it as I remembered it.  Did you get to check out the
"Museum" ?, in the big old barn thats at the far edge of the Circus campus,
kinda across the road from it all.  In there are puppets in huge diaramas
from past Circuses.

Josh

    i didn't get to see everything...  i saw a bit of the museum but it was
    *jammed* to the rafters (and those are some pretty high rafters let me
    tell you!)...  i bailed from the museum since it was hot and stuffy
    with the crowd...  much nicer out doors...
    
    next year, it's a four day trip for me...  friday to travel up and dig
    the scene after settling in...  saturday and sunday festival and scene
    days...  monday, the museum and a leisurely trip home...
    
    and maybe more DECheads next year eh????  :)
    
    				da ve

    
    Thankis for the write up da ve.  I haven't been in 7 years.  That is
    the kindest of folks I've ever found.  Warms the heart and puts life in
    perspective.
    
    	Mark

	yeah, da ve. sounds grate.
	we'll definitely hafta check it out next year.
	you're in charge of organizing!!  ;-)
	
	

    on another note, a very different sort of happening was the event of
    the weekend this weekend...
    
    the little shit is married!  :^)
    
    yep, they both showed up, they both said "i do" (and i bet they do
    too!), and they both apparently woke up with good sized hangovers the
    next day due to no small amount of revelry and celebration!!!
    
    Lisa and Dave tied the knot at Broadhurst (?) Castle in Geneva New
    York...  the place is supposed to be haunted, and one of the tables
    was apparently visited by the ghost... :^)
    
    i made the trip out with GerryG on saturday...  leaving Worcester we
    knew the weekend would be a good one...  as we drove to the highway we 
    saw a guy standing next to the road, under a tree, with NO PANTS ON!
    we decided that it was a good omen...  as Ger so eloquently put it,
    "if that isn't a harbinger of festivity, i don't know what is!"  :^) 
    
    well, our harbinger was no slouch...  this bit of festivity had all 
    the important things one looks for in a celebration...  beer swillin' 
    deadheads (though good beer was tough to come by in that particular 
    part of new york state)...  award winning footage documenting all those
    "candid" moments that brides DREAD...  embarrassing friends and 
    relatives...  a wedding coordinator, affectionately known as "Julie, 
    your cruise director"... loud poolside partiers annoying neighbors who 
    peered from windows sporting naught but boxer shorts and a puzzled 
    expression...  and intoxicated revelers who insisted on mooning the 
    poolside folks from the glass elevator...  after all, what's a party 
    without feathers, and partial nudity?  :^)
    
    but seriously folks...  it was beautiful...  Lisa sends her love to
    everyone and wishes she could have had us all there...  Phyllis also
    sends her regards and hugs...
    
    may the Goldberg's lives be filled with sweetness and light... :^)
    
    
    				da ve_scotch_sipping_beer_swilling_
    				dead_dancing_back_rub_giving_trouser_
    				dropping_reveler
    					 

    sounds GRATE!!!

    
    yes it was a real good time.  I especially thought the view from the
    peanut gallery during the ceremony to be tremendous. the chairs were
    set up to overlook Seneca Lake - with the lake in front of us and the
    castle and grounds surrounding us .. all is/was right with the world.
    
    and not too shabby a reception either :-)  sure was glad not to have to
    drive after 
    

RE:
>         <<< Note 87.11 by ALFA2::DWEST "paragon of avian virtue..." >>>
>       -< bread and puppets 19th annual domestic resurrection circus!! >-

>they arose to the sight of me sitting by the  fire drinkin beers at 7:30...  

	and what a welcome sight that was!!  I was up till about 4
	kinda waiting for the last of the "pigeons" to roost, sitting
	around the embers talking with my friend Steve about, what else,
	the Dead.  (I had gotten Steve a ticket to Highgate and he was
	just so thankful that he had gotten to see Jerry so recently).
	da ve never showed, but when I stumbled out of tent in the
	morning, there was his smiling face amongst my friends...

>i even got to play the diggeridoo for the first time! 
>:^)  if i had a few more bux i'd have bought one...  fun instrument... :^)

	I like that instrument alot myself - it reminds me of the Beam,
	the way it enters your body with an ohhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

>again...  incredibly amazing and very moving...  no description of the 
>performance or the puppets will do justice...

	I don't know da ve, it seems like your description is pretty
	right-on!  You got it!


>next summer i doubt i'll be saying "i need a show"...  i think it will be 
>"i need Bread and Puppets!"  :^) :^) :^)

	AlRight!  another convert!


	What da ve didn't mention was the incredible healing that 
	happened there - I would say that most of the folks with us
	were deadheads, unconnected by computers, probably together
	with other deadheads for the first time since Jerry's death...
	as we prepared for dinner and ate, da ve played and sang for
	us...late in the game, someone requested some Jerry, da ve
	played "Ripple" and we all sang and it felt so good.

	thanks da ve, for me and my family

	Debess

>    the little shit is married!  :^)
    
	on the order of services handed out, on the back, it read
	(something like):

	Please keep in your hearts all that are with us in spirit today:
		bunch o' names of dead relatives
			and
		Jerry Garcia, without whom we may never have met

	sweet, huh?

	Lisa also had some lyrics in her vows...can't remember
	exactly which ones though...

	Debess

    thnk *you* Debess...  and your whole family...  it was a healing
    weekend in many ways...  i still have to smile every time i think of
    it...
    
    					da ve

    
    i saw an ad on tv yesterday for a show called STOMP at one of the
    theatres in Boston...  i fergit which one...  it's only playing for a
    limited time...
    
    it's a percussion show...  apparently they use almost anything that can
    be hit to make noise...  the ad showed garbage cans and lids being hit
    by sticks in what seemed to be a choreographed bit...
    
    recently, our very own Little Shit (tm) Lisa Yetto sent mail giving 
    this show her highest recommendation and urging anyone within the sound
    of her voice to go and see this production...  if i still have Lisa's
    comments i'll try and post...
    
    in the meanwhile, does nayone else have the details on this???  i
    didn't catch them all when i saw the ad and i'm VERY interested... if
    anyone comes across them, please let me know!!!  and if i get them, i
    will post them as well...
    
    STOMP! in Beantown...  i gotta know...  i wanna go...
    
    					da ve

    
    
    ->  Haven't seen STOMP, but last Sat. night I saw "BLUE MAN GROUP"
        at the Charles Playhouse. 
    
    
    It was one of the coolest, most entertaining events I've ever attended.
    If you miss it, DON'T.
    
    It's performance art. Mostly percussion and weird, funny stuff. 
    This is a MUST SEE. Tix are 35 and 45. And worth it.
    
    Steve-O
    

    
      i've seen the blue dudes perform on good morning america earlier
    this year. they are too cool. they act like some type of curious
    alien species, playing percussion on such things as telescopic
    pvc pipes that changed in pitch as they were extended and contracted.
    
                                                               ^dave

    cool personal name ^dave!!!
    
    

    
    Anyone want to make a semi-organized trip to either blue man group or
    stomp or both?
    

    i'm interested in both, but time and money are factors...  are you
    stepping up to do the leg work gathering info?
    
    					da ve

    
    With enough interest, (I guess one person is enough!) I think I'd be
    willing to do it. Weekend or weekday?
    

Lisa Yetto's STOMP review:

Last night Dave and I went to see "Stomp".  I knew very little about them
except that they use "anything and everything" to make percussive sounds.
being a percussion freak I figured how could I not love it.  Well sh*t, let
me tell you for someone who only expected to love it my expectations were
sure surpassed!!  I wouldn't describe it a concert and it wasn't a play 
either but it was someplace in the middle and extremely entertaining!!
There were 8 performers and an elaborate set which at first reminded me
of a little haven for Oscar the Grouch.  Metal drums, garbage cans, pots
and pans were just some of the items comprising the floor to ceiling set
which members eventually climbed all over banging and clacking.  But they 
also brought in props to do numbers with, everything from newspapers to
kitchen sinks!  It was amazing, and funny too .... the way these performers
communicated with each other and with us non-verbally was incredible.
There was even a fair amount of character development, all without words!
I just sat there in awe - and I am still in awe.  I could go on for ever
about this show yet I find myself with strangely little to say.  Except 
GO!  I especially recommend it for kids (over 6 probably) if you have
any and were wondering.  There are 3 troops as I understand.  Two troops
travel and one is resident in NYC in the village somewhere.  Also, I
understand that it started in London so there may also be a troop still
there.  If you can definitely go!

    
    Question about stomp:
    
    Did people dance?
    

    no silly 
    
    they stomp their feet

    
    
    Hmmm...
    
    I definitely won't be able to go. I'm rhythm-impaired.
    
    (clap   clapclap     clap  cl clap       lcpa    stumble...fall)

    if you're going to call you might as well ask for info on both weekend
    and weeknight shows...  weeknights might be cheaper and oddly enough
    may even be easier for me to get to...  i also have another friend who
    lurks here occasionally who expressed interest offline about this...
    
    my suggestion would be to find out what's avaliable and report back...
    the a little group indecision making might be in order... :^)  or dare
    i suggest a vote?  :^)
    
    					da ve

    
    cool.
    
    I'll be back next week with more info. 
    

  Hmm...  My ten-year-old son and his best friend are insanely crazy for
  drums right now (taking drum & bass lessons between them).  Wonder if
  they'd like either Blue Man or Stomp [and if there's a matinee or early
  evening show that would suit their sleep schedules...].

  Could be perfect, will have to check it out.   - JayC.

    hey, now there's an idea!  a weekend matinee!!!

    
    
     Wow. STOMP sounds alot like BLUE MAN!
    
     I'm there.
    
    :-)
    

    
    Stomp is playing at the colonial theater until January 7th. That's this
    weekend. 
    
    Anyone wanna go tonight?
    
    (ok, so I'm a short-notice kinda guy.)
    
    

    >>Stomp is playing at the colonial theater until January 7th.
    
    If you have a chance to catch this, DO IT! We were given tix as a
    holiday gift and it was one of the most entertaining pieces of theater
    that I've seen. This troupe manages to turn everything from newspapers
    to matchboxes into musical instruments. What they do with old kitchen
    sinks has to be seen;-).
    
    Many parts of this are interactive, so be prepared to clap and stomp
    along with them. They'll be very helpful in helping you keep the
    beat;-)
    
    Mike

    
    Ok, I'm going to this. Is anyone else interested?
    
    By noon tomorrow, I should have ticket prices, availability,
    directions, etc.
    

  I gave my 10-year-old and his (percussion-crazed) best friend tickets for
  tomorrow's 2 PM matinee of Stomp...  Looking forward to it.
  
  (Plus my girlfriend gave me 2 tix to "Blue Man Group" on the 16th...
  Thanks to this string.)
  
  BTW, calling the tickets number for Stomp got me a direct line into
  Ticketmaster, no waiting (a first for me).  Hmm, wonder if that # would
  work during an insane-concert-crunch...   8)   - JayC.

    
    New Orleans Jazz Fest Schedule lineup follows in the next several
    notes..
    
    FRIDAY, APRIL 26
    
    Funky Meters, Phis, Frankie Ford, Terrance Simien, ReBirth Brass Band, 
    Iguanas, James Rivers,Kermit Ruffins & the Barbecue Swingers, Benny 
    Waters, Slim & the Supreme Angels, RobertParker, Deacon John,
    Continental  Drifters, Reginald Policard & the Haitian Compas
    Revue,Roland Stone,  Ronnie Kole, New Leviathan Oriental Foxtrot
    Orchestra, Mem Shannon and  theMembership, Tabby Thomas, Henry Gray,
    Hackberry Ramblers, Marc & Ann  Savoy w/Ken Smith, Pfister Sisters,
    Astral Project, John Rankin, Creole  Zydeco Farmers, Jon Cleary, Irene
    & the Mikes, Trombonee Tribute  featuring Benny Powell, Slide Hampton,
    Steve Turre, Freddie Lonzo and Lucien Barbarin, New Orleans Ragtime
    Orchestra, Soul Rebels  Brass Band, New Orleans Headstart Singing
    Angels, Frank Federico,  Trombone Shorty Brass Band, Chris Ardoin,
    Bobby Cure & Summertime Blues,  Evening Star String Band, Clyde Kerr,
    Jr., w/Samirah Evans, Tommy Yetta, Porgy Jones, Dynamic Smooth Family
    of Slidell, Brice Winston  w/Eleonor Winston, Y'Shua Manzy, Fuego, Doc
    Houlind of Denmark-tribute to  George Lewis, 9th Ward Hunters, Samba
    Children w/Curtis Pierre, Fortier  Sr. HS Choir, Robert Jardell, SUBR
    Jazz Ensemble, Greg Dawson &  Crosswinds, Jesuit Sr. HS Big Band,
    McDonough #15 #35 Choir, Dibert Elementary Folkloric Troupe, Greg
    Baber, Sidewalk Steppers SA&PC,  McDonough #15 Elementary Band & Dance
    Team, Charles Jackson & the Jackson  Travelers, Orleans Parish Talented
    in Theatre Students, Black Eagles  Mardi Gras Indians, Old World Tunes
    & Tales, Kennedy HS Marching Band,  Revolution SA&PC, Slewfoot,
    Calliope Puppet & Mask Theatre.

    
    SATURDAY, APRIL 27
    
    Wynton Marsalis, Al Hirt, The Allman Brothers Band, Buckwheat Zydeco, 
    Junior Wells, Charmaine Neville, Cyril Neville & Uptown Allstars,
    Walter  'Wolfman' Washington, The Heath Brothers, Dirty Dozen Brass
    Band, Wayne  Toups & Zydecajun, Ricky Dillard's New Generation, Samite
    of Uganda,  Sonny Landreth, Eddie Bo, Kent Johnson, Wanda Rouzan, The
    Crownseekers,  Michael White Quartet w/Thais Clark, D.L. Menard & the
    Louisiana Acres, Dead Eye Dick, Sid Selvidge, Willis Prudhomme & Zydeco
    Express, Herman  Ernest All-Star Band, Dash Rip Rock, Don Montoucet,
    June Gardner, Sammy  Berfect & Dimensions of Faith, Hadley Castille,
    Treme Brass Band, The  Mighty Sensations of Lake Charles, Jason
    Marsalis, Lump, Second Line  Jammers & O.G Steppers SA&PCs, David and
    Roselyn, Los Sagitarios, George French's N.O. Storyville Band, Peter
    Martin Trio, Joe Clay & the  Clements Brothers,Fred Kemp Quartet, NOCCA
    Jazz Ensemble, ejb, Percussin,  Inc., Paulin Brothers Brass
    Band,Acoustic Swiftness, Brownsville, Rampart  & Perdido Jazz Band,
    Jesse Dayton, St. Frances De Sales Golden Voices,  Jeanne Bose, Cajun
    Fiddler Band, Original Taylor Bunch, Perfect Gentlemen & Devastating
    Ladies SA&PC, Smitty Short Stoppers Brass Band,  Cajun French Music
    Assoc., Childrens Dance Team, Looney Tunes Brass Band,  Junior
    African-American Dance Ensemble, Judy Stock Avenue Steppers &  Original
    Step-n-style SA&PCs, New Orleans Free School Performers
    

    
    SUNDAY, APRIL 28
    
    Irma Thomas, George Benson, Lionel Hampton, Marcia Ball, Cowboy Mouth, 
    Sweet Honey in the Rock, DeeDee Bridewater, King Floyd, Carrie Smith, 
    Snooks Eaglin, Davell Crawford, Rockin' Dopsie, Jr., & the Zydeco 
    Twisters, Dottie Peoples & Peoples Choice Chorale, Nicholas Payton,
    Charles Neville & Diversity, Jean Knight, Gregg Stafford's Jazz 
    Hounds, Duke Dejan's Olympia Brass Band, Raymond A. Myles & the RAMs, 
    Luther Kent & Trick Bag, Sunpie Barnes & the Louisiana Sunspots, Reggie 
    Hall w/ Sadie Tee, All Belletto, Casa Samba, Allen Fontenot & the
    Country Cajuns, Pin Stripe Brass Band, Geno Delafose & French Rockin' 
    Boogie, Germaine Bazzle, Ingrid Lucia & Flying Neutrinos, Bryan Lee and 
    Jumpstreet Five, Ritmo Caribeno, Bob French Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, 
    Ben Hunter the Soul Avenger, New Black Eagle Jazz Band, Pipes & Drums 
    w/Caledonian Scottish Dancers, Mia X & Tru, UNOLV, Al & Essie Morris,
    Hazel & the Delta Ramblers, The Furious Five, Unknown Steppers and 
    Devastation SA&PCs, Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians, New Zion Trio 
    +1, Walter Mouton, Golden Arrows Mardi Gras Indians, John Boutte' 
    Friendly Five Gospel Singers, Louis Cottrell, Clickin' Chickens, Little
    Rascals Brass Band, Premiere, Becky Sharp, Olympia Aids &  Uptowners
    Hobo Clowns SA&PCs, SUNO Jazz Ensemble, Carrollton Hunters, The 
    Heritage School of Music Band, Jamal Batiste, New Birth Brass Band, 
    Angela the Yarnspinner, Producciones Mario Donate, Paul Taylor, The 
    Untouchables, Algiers Steppers & Lady Zulu SA&PCs, Blues in the
    Schools,  Adella, Adella the Storyteller.
    

    
    THURSDAY, MAY 2
    
    Boozoo Chavis, Indigo Girls, Eddie Palmieri, Chambers Brothers
    Renunion,  Dixie Hummingbirds, Ernie K-Doe, Michelle Shocked, Trout
    Fishing in  America, Dewey Redmon Quartet, Banu Gibson, Jessie Hill,
    Chris Duarte,  Zobop of Haiti, Bacoulou Folkloric Dance Company of
    Haiti, Tab Benoit w/  Faful Neal, Bruce Daigrepont, Basin Brothers,
    Coco Robicheaux, Kidd  Jordan-Al Fielder & IAQ, Larry McCray, Mamou,
    Milton Batiste's  Magnificent 7ths, Walter Payton w/Sharon Martin,
    Sonny Bourg's Bayou  Blues, Versia, Keith Claiborne, Richwell Ison/Kirk
    Ford Experience w/Rahssana Ison, Storyville Stompers Brass Band, The
    Original  Camelia Jazz Band, Don Vappie, Leviticus Gospel Choir, Tony
    Bazley  Quintet, Bad Oyster Band, Karl Koenig, Carlos Sanchez 'Amanecer 
    Flamenco', Tony Green Trio, The Cookie Family, Last Straws, Mas
    Mamones, Wallace Johnson, Bingmen, Ed Perkins, White Cloud Hunters
    Mardi  Gras Indians, Wayne Powell & Eternity with Praise, Piney Woods
    Remblers,  Kristi Guillory & Reveille, Gina Forsyth, Executive Steel
    Band, Flavor  Kings, Zavier University Jazz Lab Ensemble, New Orleans
    Jazz Professors, Hammon State Strawberry Jammers, Gregory Boyd, Carl 
    Mack, Bon Temps Roulez SA&PC, Gray Hawk, Ishangi Family, Bob Folse, 
    Avondale Community Choir, Philip Melancon.
    

    
    
    FRIDAY, MAY 3
    
    Dr. John, Buddy Guy, Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, Cassandra Wilson, 
    Beausoleil, subdudes, Clarence 'Frogman' Henry, George Porter, Jr. & 
    Runnin' Pardners, Joe Louis Walker, Steve Jordan w/Rio Jordan, 
    Christianaires, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, Anders Osberne, C.C.
    Adcock, Rosie Ledet, Alvin Batiste & the Jazztronauts, Michael Ray &
    the  Cosmic Krewe, Sam Brothers Zydeco, Sadie Goodson, Golden Eagles,
    Alvin  'Red' Tyler Quartet, Placide Adams' Original Dixieland Hall Jazz
    Band,  Jude Taylor & His Bruning Flame, Steve Masakowski, Doc Paulin's
    Dixieland Jazz Band, Pud Brown, Ronald James Chorale, Patrice  Fisher,
    Pigeon Town Steppers SA&PC, J. Mondue'd, Kumbuka Drum & Dance 
    Collective, Cool Riddums & Sista Teedy, One A-Chord, Lady Charlotte,
    Hot  Strings, Wild Peyotes, Hennedy HS Gospel Choir, Clancy Lewis
    w/Sheba  Kimbrough, Coushatta Dancers, Guardians of Flame, Local
    International Allstar Band, Chosen Few Brass Band, Oretha Castle Haley
    ES Choir, New  Orleans Jr. High All-City Jazz Band, Aline White & Co.,
    Big Nine &  Calendar Girls SA&PCs, Chakula Cha Jua Theatre Company,
    Rose Ann St.  Romain.
    

    
    
    SATURDAY, MAY 4
    
    Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Pete Fountain, Van Morrison, Allen 
    Toussaint, Jone Osborne, Lloyd Price, Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown,
    Better  than Ezra, Najee, Salif Keita, beau Jocque & the Zydeco
    Hi-Rollers, The  Dixie Cups, The Williams Brothers, Ivan Neville, John
    Mooney & Bluesiana, James Carter, Harry Connick, Sr., Kenny Neal, The
    Wild  Magnolias, Wallace Davenport, Oliver 'Who Shot the La La' Morgan,
    Chubby  Carrier, Elder Roma Wilson, Keith Frank, Treme Brass Band,
    Victor Goins,  Dukes of Dixieland, James Black Tribute Featuring Herlin
    Riley and  Shannon Powell, Al Johnson, The Soulful Heavenly Stars,
    Magnolia Sisters, Woodenhead, Pinettes Brass Band, Bamboula 2000,
    Doreen's Jazz New  Orleans, Belton Richard, Irie Vibrations, Young
    Tuxedo Brass Band, Kim  Carson, the C.P. Love Group, Paky Saavreda's
    Bandido, Little Freddie  King, Andrew Hall, Original Four, Jolly Bunch
    & Popular Ladies SA&PCs,  Julio & Caesar, Larry Sieberth w/Betty
    Shriley, Love Alive Fellowship  Choir, Ricardo Lewis Quintet,
    Boondoggles, All That, Luke Thompson & The  Green Valley Cut Ups, Great
    Bright Morning Star Choir, Dillard University  Jazz Band, Money
    Wasters, Nkrumah Better Boys & Original Black Magic Lady  Steppers
    SA&PCs, Zion Hill BC Voices of Zion Youth Choir, Collen Salley, 
    Crescent City Jumpers, Lightfoot, The Johnson Extensions, Lynette 
    Braxton, Mahogany Brass Band, Azikwa Children's Percussion Ensemble.
    

    
    
    SUNDAY, MAY 5
    
    The Neville Brothers, Dave Matthews Band, The Mighty Clouds of Joy, The 
    Radiators, Doc Cheatham, Chris Owens, Marva Wright, C.J. Chenier & the 
    Red Hot Louisiana Band, Ellis Marsalis, Kennie Barron Trio w/Frank 
    Morgan, Earl King, Lou Donaldson, Zachary Richard, Jonny Adams, Bobby 
    Rush, Zion Harmonizers, Katie Webster, Bobby Marchan, White Eagles
    Mardi Gras Indians, Little Queenie & Friends, Michael Ward w/Regina 
    Carter, Balfa Toujours, Leroy Jones, New Orleans Klezmer All-stars, Los 
    Babies del Merengue, Willie Tee, Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas,
    Shepherd  Band, Louisiana Repertory Jazz Ensemble w/Joe Muranyi,
    Algiers Brass  Band, Mohawks Mardi Gras Indians, Nasio, Vallie of
    Silent Men, Westbank  Steppers and Jetsetters SA&PCs, Black Menace,
    Cheeky Blakk, The Poor  Clares, Jo 'Cool' Davis, Wendell Brunious,
    Ironin Board Sam, Onward Brass  Band, Chris Clifton, Gospel Soul
    Children, Young Cheyenne Mardi Gras  Indians, Calliope Steppers &
    Double Nine Histeppers SA&PCs, Galatic, Culu  Dancers, Danny Collet,
    Eddie LeJeune, Innsbruck Jazz Workshop of Austria, Ancestro, Last
    Chance, Band, Scene Bosters, Original & Lady  Prince of Wales SA&PCs,
    Tornado Brass Band, John Lee & Heralds of Christ  w/Christine Myles,
    UNO Jazz Band, Eric McAlister, Perlita Street Kids,  High Steppers
    Brass Band, Young Mardi Gras Indians, Legacy, N.O. Men &  Ladies Buck
    Jumpers SA&PCs, N'Kafu Traditional African Dance.
    

    
    A few extracted names:
    
    Phis(h?) (This is listed as Phis, but corrected to Phish in phish.net)
    Robert Parker
    Wynton Marsalis
    The Allman Brothers
    George Benson
    Indigo Girls
    Bela Fleck
    A few of the Neville Brothers
    Van Morrison
    Jone (Joan?) Osborne
    The Dixie Cups
    All of The Neville Brothers
    The Radiators
    Dave Matthews band
    
    So who's going?  :)
    

    holy mackeral phishmon!  That's what I call a Festival!

    
    
    I'm going to seriously consider going, if I can get my friend from New
    O'lens to drive down with me. He's leaving in a few days for Mardi
    Gras, so I know he's willing to do the drive...  :)
    
    Of course, if I get there, I may never leave....  :)
    
    

    
    Holy Sh!t.
    
    That's bigger than big.  That's like, un-be-lieve-able!!!!!
    
    RAGE!!!
    
    Perhaps since the woodstock label isn't on it, this could be the real
    thing!

who's going?

uhmmm, Tim Grady?


PeterT

Nope.  That gig's over for me, sadly.

    chin up little buckaroo... :^)  that ain't all bad news...

ah, well, sorry to hear that Tim...

PeterT

  That's the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, right?
  
  If so - yeah, it's unbelievable, and it's that way *every year*.
  
  You can see the Blues/R&B conference (AKOFIN::AFTER_HOURS, topic 166?) for
  lineups from past years, and probably an eyewitness account or two.
  
  The music happens every day, all over, all at once.  They say even if you
  never stop to actually listen you can't get to it all.

  You can tell from the lineups, it's not a jazz festival at all, but a ton
  of local groups (dig those names) with invited "name" guests who fit into
  the New Orleans heritage of throw-every-culture-style-&-ingredient-into-a-
  pot-and-stir.
  
  Phish'll be a natural.  Not even sure if it's their first time, might've
  been there a previous year.  - JayC.

  (Whoops, that's DEMON::AFTER_HOURS for the blues/r&b take on it...)

	Any idea how you get tickets for the NO Jazz fest. My wife and I would
love to see Zachary Richard!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Chris

    beside dave matthews, I heard Ratodg will be in 'narlins too.....
    from the west coast hotline
    
    rfb

    
    Re: tickets, who's playing, accomodations, eating, etc...
    
    New Awlins Jazz & Heritage Fest:
    
    
    http://www.yatcom.com/neworl/jfest/jfesttop.html
    
    
    FWIW, it's one of the slowest web pages I've ever found...
    

    Yatcom is run by some guy down there as a sideline - it's real small
    time stuff, hence the slow access...probably runs on a itty bitty pc,
    on Un*x, apparently (the .html extension in the URL)
    
    FWIF, "Yat" is a New Orleans term for hick...from the way they speak,
    with a drawl, e.g. "Where Y'at?"
    
    A couple other New Orleans sites:
    
    Offbeat magazine - not as good as The Gambit, but it might be useful:
    
    	http://www.NeoSoft.com/~offbeat/
    
    The New Orleans Connection Home Page (probably better response, but not
    much):
    
    	http://www.noconnect.com/ 
    
    
    tim
    

hmm not sure if this is the right note, but anyway...

For those of you who have been patiently Waiting for the Man, the wait is
over!

Lou Reed and his band play the Boston Orpheum Theater, March 30. 

Tix on sale tomorrow - I guess through the new ticket selling system that
Don Law has, and not Ticketmaster?  Has anyone gotten tix through this yet?

Info gleaned from an excellent interview article in the Boston Globe on Tues.
bob, you're a V.U. fan aren't you?  Did you see this article?  Want a copy?

 Josh

>Tix on sale tomorrow - I guess through the new ticket selling system that
>Don Law has, and not Ticketmaster?  Has anyone gotten tix through this yet?

    No, it's still Ticketmaster.  Tix on sale Saturday morning at 10 a.m.

re                     <<< Note 87.65 by TEPTAE::WESTERVELT >>>

>    No, it's still Ticketmaster.  Tix on sale Saturday morning at 10 a.m.

Yes!!!    Then I have a shot at getting the front-row-center MEZZANINE seats
(front edge of the balcony) that I wanted (but screwed up on getting) for the 
Dylan shows.  (good for taping!)

NE1 else interested in going?  Should we get a block of tix?

Well I guess this means I'll go telemarking on Sunday, so I can get tix
tomorrow.  'Sposed to rain tomorrow anyway.

Josh

    count me in
    We're gonna have areal good time together

    
    I'd like to go too. Out of here 'til Monday though. Let me now who I
     owe, etc.
    
    I saw Lou on Letterman last night.. he's soo cool.
    
    Cath

	i'd go!! :-)

I called the Orphium about the Reed show.  Tix are 28.50 and 23.50 and go on 
sale at 10:00 on Saturday.  Now the big question - how is the best way to get
tickets?  I'm sure there will be a line at the Orphium, but I'm willing to go 
there.  The lady said that all Ticketmasters would be selling tickets.  Am I 
better off going into Boston or spending the morning on the phone?

Jim 

Dunno about getting tix but yes I am a Lou fan.  Mike Rogers is a big
Lou fan as well and he's been after me to get tix.

What I wanna know is, who is the opening act?  Luna (former Galaxy 500 and
Feelies personnel) are opening for Lou in SanFran.  Luna just toured here
but wonder whether they'll be back to open for their hero Lou?

That would be an incredible show.

bob

    I'm willing to stand in line in Acton, but I'd need the cash up
    front (can be deposited directly into DCU).   Not sure what the
    line would look like but it prolly won't be too bad.  What's the
    ticket limit?

    Tom

    Tom
    Meet me after work and I'll swing you some scoots, cool?

    sure man no prob.  whats a scoot.  and while we're at it,
    whats a cubit?  ;-)

I'll be on line at the Ticketmaster in Chelsford, right across from the Wang
Towers on Rt. 110.  I wanna tape on the front edge of the balcony.
I'll get 2, may three tix, so I can have some company up there? :-)

Josh

    a scoot is a dead president...a
    greenback.......moolah...scratch....cashola....you know
    the almighty dollah
    
    
    How much VU you think he'll do anyways?

    
    i was out friday afternoon. If someone has a ticket for me I'll get
    them the cash pronto..
    
    Cath

(Bele discussion moved here from OaITW note)

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are playing in Concord, NH  on Friday March 29.
Colonial Theater?  I forget.  Tix at Ticketmaster, I believe.

Back to Lou Reed - I was able to get 2 tix up in the balcony, Row F center.
Not quite the first row that I wanted, but at least Row F is a row up from 
the aisle that separates the first 4 balc. rows (perversly called "mezzanine"
in the Orpheum Theater) from the rest of the balc. 
Anyone interested in my extra?   I hope to be stealth taping.

  Josh

For the Reed show I got to the ticket machine at 10:01 and got next to last 
row in the balcony.  I had a sense for this when the guy behind the counter
said, "Wow!  Look at those tickets go" as I waited my turn to folk over my
cash.  But I'm in the door and the Orpheus really doesn't any truly bad seats.

Jim

    
    At the risk of appearing over anxious - is anyone in hre planning to 
    go to Bread & Puppet ?  John and I are going and we'd like to figure a
    way to meet up with people and get shown the ropes, as it were :-) 
    
    the url wasn't responding yesterday afternoon - i'm sure i'll get info
    there but was hoping some kind folks here would be going.
    
    carol

    
    carol! but of course! you (and everyone else) is welcome to come
    share our spot with us.  I wrote up some directions for 'Noky,
    and sent them to /danielle yesterday too...eventually I would
    have posted them in here, but I didn't want to seem, uh,
    over-anxious ;-)

    Debess

    here's a neat url for Bread & Puppet - there are probably lots
    of them :
    
    	http://www.pbpub.com/bread.htm

i'll be there too!!!   :^)

	can't wait.....

thanks for the URL!  i never really went looking for *them*
on the web!  :^)  they are so un-technological it never occurred
to me that they might be there...

				da ve

    So what's the exact date this year, can the secret be told here?

    Tom

no secret... august 24-25...

		da ve

    yeah - and i put in for vacay days around that for warm up and cool
    down time :-) 
    

>thanks for the URL!  i never really went looking for *them*
>on the web!  :^)  they are so un-technological it never occurred
>to me that they might be there...

	An AltaVista search for "bread and puppet" yields hits on 88 Web pages.

Mark

    yes - the alta vista search i did yielded about 30 sites - and half
    of those were unreachable early this a.m.  I was happy to 
    find this one

Bread & Puppets on the web.... yes, seems a bit incongruous...
next thing ya know, the Amish folk of Pennsylvania will have a web site :-)

 - Josh

re:         <<< Note 87.89 by QUOIN::BELKIN "but from that cup no more" >>>
>                  -< better to ask, "whats NOT on the web?" >-
>
>next thing ya know, the Amish folk of Pennsylvania will have a web site :-)

http://www.padutch.com/

:-)

yo, tim - line up THIS:  the Lowell Folk Festival is this weekend!

yeah, not exactly hard rock, but we're getting Beasoleil (premier Cajun band),
Marcia Ball (premier New Orleans boogie-woogie piano player), and 
Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson, who once opened up for Jerry when Jer played
acoustic at the Opera House.

 - Josh

	...and it's FREE! - where else can you hear such excellent live
	acts for free?

    Pardon my duplication - Chuck

Folk Festival in Pepperell on Saturday Aug 17...  
    
Headline is   James Montgomery,
along with    Les Sampou
              Daring Angels (from Girl's Night Out)
              Steve Hurl
              Bruce Marshall
              Alizon Lissance
  & others

Craft fair Noon till 7; music Noon till "dusk."

At Pepperell Town Field, at the rotary where 111 meets 113.

Stuff for kids:  make-a-craft; sing-along; create-a-mural

Food.

Rain or Shine, there is a structure to provide shelter from the storm.
    

	Bread and Puppet Circus '96

	arrived "limping" at the camping area (aka Pigeon Roost)
	well before nightfall on Friday.  Just as we were going up the
	last hill, we lost all our power to the point that the bus
	just stalled.  Had to back down the hill to someone's driveway
	and hope it would start again.  It eventually did, but it
	was real slow-going over that hill (guess we lost a cylinder?)

	decided there was nothin' left to do but smile, smile, smile
	(at least till we headed home) - so we set up our beautiful
	camp.  Carol and John Shep and da ve were already there before
	us and had staked out a site against the trees - by the time we
	set up, we had claimed a very nice area on the hill.

	at night, everyone was checking out the drum circles and the
	vending and I was getting changed into warmer clothes when
	Pete Kibling showed up.  I tried to walk around with Stella
	on a leash, but she kept getting attacked by other dogs on the
	loose - I finally gave up and came back to our fire.

	The first day, I checked out a series of side shows along the
	edge of the ampitheatre.  Didn't see any real exceptional ones -
	but Lara did get to play "background music" for Brother Blue.
	The next day, with recommendations from others, I saw several
	great side shows.

	The circus was delightful.  Not too heavy on the politics this
	year - their messages were masked with lighthearted theatrics.
	I'm glad, cause the circus should be fun.  Loved the "escaped
	tigers" coming down thru the crowd from all sides.  It was 
	pretty hot though, and I felt the negative effects of the sun
	as I sat there for a couple hours.  Drained.

	The pageant was one of the better ones that I've seen.  I was
	lucky to be sitting next to da ve, who seems to have a great
	knack for interpreting their symbols.  The pageant themes are
	pretty similar year-to-year, but they are different enough to
	keep you guessing.  Message aside, I just love to watch their
	creativity in progress.  It's amazing what they do, and the way
	they do it.  I especially loved the way they represented spirit -
	sideways heads with unconnnected sideways torsos - eerie to see
	them held up, looking like they were suspended in space, eerier still
	to see them laying on the ground, being put to sleep.

	Friday night, it was very rowdy.  Saturday seemed low-key, by
	comparison.  Although, I really can't talk, cause I stayed close
	to the roost and never really checked out the wild scenes this year.
	We had planned to leave on Sunday, but made the decision to wait
	till we could be sure some car part stores would be open during
	our drive home.  Sooooooooo, Sunday turned out to be a whole
	different day than I had anticipated!  Got Very Relaxed ;-) and
	enjoyed the scene from that perspective.  Skipped the circus and
	went swimming instead.  Ahhhhhh.  Went to the pageant again.
	Hung out at the camp.  Watched da ve go on the giant gyroscope ride!
	
	Made it home with almost no trouble.  Picked up Guntis' car at
	the Winnepesaukee exit on 93 - I was in back of him at the toll booth
	when the VW stalled again - they stopped all the other lanes and let
	me push him to the side.  We picnic'd in the shade and it started 
	again.  Then, when we got home, as I was preparing to unload my
	cooler, I couldn't get the refrigerator door open.  Finally tried
	the freezer.  There was a 6 inch hole in the bottom of the freezer
	and all the wrappers in the freezer were black - there had been a
	fire in my refrigerator!!  Yow!

	

    a fire ina refrig?????  somethin new everyday! %^)

    what a great time ...we'll definitely go back next year.  did you see
    the article in monday's globe about B&P ?
    
    One of the things I came away with is that  I am (we are)  more than my
    outer trappings - such as hair.  so i went ahead with my tentative plan
    to get my hair cut.  monday morning i had 14" of hair  cut off.  first
    time my hair has been this short (2" below ears) for 10 years.
    
    i think i like it.  i *THINK*
    

>    did you see the article in monday's globe about B&P ?

	oh NO!  it's getting too big already without publicity
	;-) ;-) ;-)
    
>    monday morning i had 14" of hair  cut off.  

	so, you did it!  my daughter just cut off a ton o' hair and
	everytime I look at her, she's swishing it from side to side -
	just loves the "lightness" of it!  How 'bout you carol?

	Debess
    

sorry for not throwing my two pennies worth in here yet, but, well,
things have been a little nutty lately...

the 19th annual bread and puppet domestic resurrection circus...
this event probably does as much, if not more, to rejuvenate me 
than anything else i've checked out in a long time...  a lot of the
same kinds of, what to call it?, "personal majik" i guess, happens
for me there that would happen for me at shows...  i suppose it isn't
too surprising since a lot of the same kinds of people are there,
and ultimately that's where the energy and power flows from... 
when there are thousands of people groovin' on such a life giving
vibe, it can't help but have an effect!

along the lines of what Carol said about her hair (can't wait to see
it and i have your folding table :^), we are much more than what our
outward appearances are, and B&P serves to remind me of that...
remind me of what's really important... reminds me that what i do and
how i live is not just a refelction of who i am, but it has an impact on
how i develop and evolve...

my first time there i found myself challenged to look at old things
in a new way... as a result i found that a lot of things in my life that i
was "stuck with" or "had to do" were really only "optional" and that 
there are other ways to live, think, etc... this year i find myself feeling
a challenge of sorts too, and it's not just to see things differently, but to
actually try and incorporate more into my daily life...  i'm not sure yet just
what that means or how to do it... :^)  but it's kind of like a seed that was
planted a while ago may be starting to grow after a long winter in the 
ground...

the side shows seemed to reflect a lot of the themes i found inthe pageant...
concepts on wage slavery, domination of the spirit and the country by the 
corporate infrastructure, how society values and rewards conformity 
while shuttling anything different off to the corners as an oddity to be
gawked at by the "real people" seemed to be there in many ways...
fortunately, there were also reaffirming bits that remind us of the 
"champions" of everyday life (like the "common woman" show)...  our
 history is a big part of who we are and todays society makes it very 
easy for us to forget the places that w really come from...  the earth... 
the sun...  the breezes...  hte grass... the trees...  to forget these things is to
lose a big part of who we are...  and the consequences of that can be tragic...

this year was a larger festival than last years also...  seemed to me that thre
was a much larger crowd...  and while i personally have nothing against 
"spiritual sport", i was a little dismayed to run into a lot more folks of the
dead show parking lot ilk...  and i don't mean food and t-shirt vendors...    
still every silver lining has it's cloud, and these folks are still just a small
part of what's happening there...  it still feels much more like a country fair
 and it's good to see so many families there....

the weather was awesome, and the company was fantastic!  good to see a few
familiar faces! :^)  an incredible show, unlike anything else you've ever
experienced!  (the same can be said for that human gyroscope ride!  wheeee! :^)
can't wait til next year!  might just have to go up on THURSDAY! ;^)

				da ve

    yes - the common woman show ... i saw that vignette about a half hour
    before walking over to find a spot for the circus event. I became
    overwhelmed with sadness and wonder all at once as i reflected on all
    the struggles that go unmentioned in our lives.  For me that skit
    really filled me to the edge and set me up for a magical day  

    
    for those that are interested and may not have heard:
    
    the annual Mass Cann (a Massachusetts based organization that
    works for the legalization fo Cannabis) pro hemp rally will
    be held on Boston Common on saturday september 21st...  lots of
    music, speakers, info and such...
    
    last years rally drew over 50,000 folks...  maybe you were one
    of them?  maybe you would like to be one this year?
    
    Mass Cann also has a pretty cool web site at
    www.crocker.com/~anderson/mc/
    
    					da ve

    this mandatory minimum thang HAS GOT TO STOP!!

    
    word has it that this years further fest is at Great Woods on July 1...
    
    i don't have word yet for an on-sale date....
    
    
    					da ve

random thoughts on this years Great Woods schedule:

rumour has it that morphine and Widespread Panic may be joining the
HORDE fest, at least for certain select dates (i've been dying to
check out widespread, hear they put on a fantastic show)

Bela Fleck with DMB sounds cool, though the last couple of DMB shows
we saw were heavily populated with under-13 teeny-boppers ... not a
big deal, unless you grow tired of many 13-year-olds approaching
you in the parking lot asking you to buy beer for 'em ... Bela Fleck
is another band i'd like to check out someday

Allman Brothers - two shows - very nice !

Further Fest - i've heard too many rumours already ... wouldn't
surprise me if Elvis the King showed up ... 

Lollapalooza - didn't they ban this festival from Great Woods the year
that every thrashing field mongrel decided to tear up the lawn and
burn down the perimeter fence ?  we were there, it felt like a scene
straight out of hell

Santana w/Rusted Root - July 25 - sounds like a cool show

Fruit of the Loom Tour - i fell off my chair when i read this 

ok enough rambling - here's the schedule someone sent me today:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wed  May  21: Mighty Mighty Bosstones/The Offspring w/L7, Bim Skala Bim,
              Tree and AFI -- on sale Fri, Apr 11 at 5 pm
Sat  May  31: KISS Concert 18 -- listen to KISS 108 for details
Fri  June  6: Indigo Girls w/Ulali -- on sale Thurs, Apr 10 at 7 pm
Sat  June  7: WBCN River Rave -- listen to WBCN for details
              [POLLSTAR has Morphine playing]
Sun  June  8: WBCN River Rave -- listen to WBCN for details
              [POLLSTAR has Morphine playing]
Wed  June 11: Moody Blues w/Great Woods Festival Orchestra
              -- on sale Sun, Apr 13 at noon
Thu  June 12: Dave Matthews Band w/Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
              -- on sale Sat, Apr 12 at 9 am
Fri  June 13: Dave Matthews Band w/Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
              -- on sale Sat, Apr 12 at 9 am
Sat  June 14: Ozzfest '97 featuring Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath
              (Ozzy Osbourne, Toni Iommi, Geezer Butler), Pantera,
              Type O Negative, Fear Factory, Machinehead,
              Powerman 5000 -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at 10 am
Sun  June 15: Yes -- on sale Sun, Apr 13 at noon
Mon  June 16: John Mellencamp -- on sale TBA
Fri  June 20: Allman Brothers Band -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at 9 am
Mon  June 23: Rush -- on sale Sat, Apr 26 at 9 am
Thu  June 26: No Doubt w/Weezer and face to face
              -- on sale Sat, Apr 12 at noon
Fri  June 27: Styx w/Pat Benatar -- on sale Sun, Apr 20 at noon
Sat  June 28: Lynyrd Skynyrd w/Paul Rodgers -- on sale Sun, Apr 20 at noon
Mon  June 30: Smokin' Grooves 1997 featuring Cypress Hill, Foxxy Brown,
              George Clinton (Parliament/Funkadelic and the Mothership)
              The Pharcyde, The Roots -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at noon
Tue  July  1: Furthur Festival featuring The Black Crowes, Ratdog
              (Bob Weir & Rob Wasserman), Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby,
              moe., and more -- on sale Sun, Apr 27 at noon
Tue  July  8: Lollapalooza '97 -- on sale TBA
Tue  July 15: Boston -- on sale Thurs, Apr 24 at 10 am
Fri  July 18: Tina Turner w/Cyndi Lauper -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at 11 am
Sat  July 19: Tina Turner w/Cyndi Lauper -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at 11 am
Sun  July 20: Counting Crows w/The Wallflowers -- on sale TBA
Tue  July 22: Lilith Fair featuring Sarah MacLachlan -- on sale TBA
Fri  July 25: Santana w/Rusted Root -- on sale TBA
Sat  July 26: Steve Miller Band w/Eric Johnson -- on sale Sat, May 3 at 10 am
Wed  July 30: Live -- on sale TBA
Thu  July 31: The Who -- on sale Sat, May 10 at 10 am
Sat  Aug.  2: Queensryche -- on sale Sat, Apr 19 at 1 pm
Fri  Aug.  8: HORDE Festival featuring Neil Young and Crazy Horse
              (Great Woods says Blues Traveler, too -- but I thought
              they weren't doing it this year) -- on sale TBA
Wed  Aug. 20: 311 -- on sale Sat, May 17 at noon
Fri  Aug. 22: Allman Brothers Band -- on sale Sun, May 4 at noon
Sat  Aug. 23: Bryan Adams -- on sale TBA
Sun  Aug. 24: Fruit of the Loom Tour (I'm not kidding) featuring
              Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr., Charlie Daniels Band,
              Jo Dee Messina -- on sale Sun, May 11 at noon
Sun  Sep.  7: Zenith Blues Music Festival featuring BB King w/
              Robert Cray Band, Tower of Power, Bluestime (J Geils
              and Magic Dick) -- on sale Sun, Apr 27 at noon
 
 

    
    Ticks for the Further Fest apparently go on sale April 27th at 1:00PM.
    

    and of course there's nothing about this on the Furthur page...

    > Lollapalooza - didn't they ban this festival from Great Woods the
    > year that every thrashing field mongrel decided to tear up the lawn
    > and burn down the perimeter fence ? 
    
    That would be 1992.
    
    After a two year breather during which the festival was held at an
    air base in Rhode Island, Lollapalooza was back at Great Woods in 1995.
    So, this will be its second appearance there since the 1992 mess.
    
    > we were there, it felt like a scene straight out of hell
    
    I thought it felt more like Lord of the Flies...  Pretty eerie...
    
                                - Paul

A friend just lent me the Bela Fleck and the Flecktone's 2CD live set
"Live Art" is the name of it me thinks.  Great stuff.  They had the 
URL listed (which has since changed to www.flecktones.com) and I checked
it out and found out that they'd be at Great Woods, opening for Dave Matthews.
I'm more interested in the Flecktones at the moment, but I haven't
heard as much DMB to make a judgement call, though obviously a few
people here like them.  Such a dilemma.  (Like I'll have money to spend on
it anyway...)
Someplace, either on the web or the CD is a picture of Bela with Dave Matthews,
so it looks like they know each other.  Oh, and the Flecktones will be with
John Coffin (?) at the gigs they do with DMB.

PeterT

  To us'n country music fans, lineups like this are painful to read...

> Sun  Aug. 24: Fruit of the Loom Tour (I'm not kidding) featuring
>               Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr., Charlie Daniels Band,
>               Jo Dee Messina -- on sale Sun, May 11 at noon

  Folks, this is not even a remote semblance of the best of country music,
  not yesterday, not today, not ever.
  
  On the brighter side, Don Was's Hank Williams (Sr.) project, as described
  in yesterday's Boston Globe, with Terence Blanchard & co., sounds like
  just the anti-commercial piss at the moon we true fans are lookin' fer.
    - JayC.

�  On the brighter side, Don Was's Hank Williams (Sr.) project, as described
�  in yesterday's Boston Globe, with Terence Blanchard & co., sounds like
�  just the anti-commercial piss at the moon we true fans are lookin' fer.
    
    There was a piece in Sunday's NYTimes Arts section about this...
    Was is basically making the Stones cool their heels in LA (where he
    was producing their new album) while he is off in [London?] working
    on his own...
    
    Might be accessible via the web, or I can probably dig it out of
    the trash, if yer interested...
    
    
    "fruit of the loom tour" sounds about right...  that lineup belongs
    in a pair of drawers...
    
    /b

Hey Jay.  Noticed something in the Globe a week or two ago about Alison
Krauss and her latest album.  It said something about how the Country stations
weren't playing it much and weren't sure how to deal with it.  Something
to the effect that it was "too bluegrassy".  And "bluegrass is pure poison
to classical Country stations".  Which I thought was kind of funny, since
I prefer bluegrass to country myself.  Any idea what the nitpick with 
bluegrass is?  I was thinking it might be something along the lines of 
'makes listeners realize what the music could be...' but that's a wee
bit cruel.  ;-)   Not trying to dis country music, you understand.

PeterT

    I'll bet modern "country" thinking is that bluegrass is too
    backwoodsy/downhome...
    
    kinda like how some folks regard the blues vs hip-hop/rap/etc...
    
    /b

    
    while i'm not Jay, nor do i play him on tv, i can take a stab at
    this...
    
    bluegrass tends to be relegated to it's own little "niche" due to 
    its form and instrumentation...  "country music" has grown in
    popularity due in large part to crossover influences from other musical
    forms (different instruments, song structures etc)... todays modern
    country music has bits of rock, blues, and  r&b in addition to the old
    balladeer type of heartbroken story songs of days gone by...
    
    bluegrass is a very specific type of "country music" and in some places
    isn't considered "country" at all, being relegated to its own
    category...  to be considered bluegrass (to a purist mind you, thre's
    room for argument and discussion on this form as well) the band would
    include some very specific instruments and exclude others......  fer
    instance, standard lineup would be a steel string guitar, 5 string
    banjo,, upright bass and mandolin...  it may also include a dobro....
    electric instruments are usually not considered "appropriate" for
    bluegrass while they are all the rage for country now...  i have seen 
    electric basses in bluegraa bands, but they tend to be the exception
    rather than the rule, and are still frowned upon in some circles...
    
    many country music stations take in amusing stance, shunning bluegrass
    as too rednecked, "hick music", or "traditional" rather than
    "contemporary"...  even though in many cases it's far and away better
    music than the bland, vanilla, "white bread" pablum that many of these
    stations spew forth daily...
    
    does that help?  :^)  sorry for the strong opinon at the end there, but
    too much of it , for me, still fits that description...
    
    			da ve_bluegrass_fan

    re: new country
    
    Garth Brooks is the Antichrist.
    
    - Dave

  Hey now Peter,
  (just came back from reading Phil Lesh's mail bag...  8)

> Any idea what the nitpick with bluegrass is?

  I was going to reply with something snide like, because bluegrass doesn't
  sound like a 70s rock retread (Billy Joel, Journey, CCR, Fleetwood Mac,
  Eagles, Jackson Browne... minus several IQ points) like most of the crap
  they *are* willing to play.
  
  But I can't improve on those last 3 replies (and your own snide comment  8).
    - JayC.
             P.S.  Alison supposedly is getting played on the new breed of
                   "Americana" stations (haven't checked any out yet).

    rap is the bastard child of r and b

hey, da ve, in your instrument selection, I think you forgot, fiddle.
Where would Alison Krauss and Union Station be without it?  Ok, 
she'd still be singing ;-)  Actually, if I have one gripe about Alison,
it's that on the few times I've seen her on something like Letterman,
she picks the songs that showcase her singing and downplay the violin.
In fact, she was on Letterman in the last week or two and, while she
was standing holding her fiddle, she never actually used it.  And by
all accounts I've heard (still don't have a AK and US album) she
can whale on the fiddle.  

PeterT

    yer right...  :^)  i did fergit the fiddle...
    
    and yes, Alison kicks serious butt on it....
    
    					da ve

>    and yes, Alison kicks serious butt on it....

  Yeah, she was winning regional fiddle competitions at age 14
  (7 years ago?)   - JayC.