It’s tough duty, but someone indeed needed to do it. Someone needed to drive up to the Britt Festival in Jacksonville, Ore., and see Lucinda Williams on Thursday. Then they needed to ride a motorcycle down to Yosemite and catch the Strawberry Music Festival over the weekend.
That someone would be me.
I wish I could report that there were no glitches to my wonderful plan. However, I got stung by a bee right above the left eye while going about 65 mph on a country road south of Orland. It hit me right at the moment Bob Dylan sang into my ears the words, “I know when the time is right to strike” from the tune “Moonlight” off “Love and Theft.”
When I relayed this story to my friend Brett at Strawberry, he responded, “Gosh, maybe Dylan is Jesus. Maybe he just came back as a folk singer.” “But,” someone else retorted, “Wouldn’t the Son of God come back with a better voice?”
Before I endure another strike to the eye, let me state plainly my belief that Bob Dylan is the single greatest songwriter of our time. And contrary to one of my previous posts, he’s a damn fine actor as well.
Lucinda Williams (photo courtesy rollingstone.com)
And speaking of bees, Lucinda Williams has a great new song that she performed Thursday at Britt called “Honey Bee.” “My sweet little honey bee, I’m so glad you stung me.” The album is due for release Oct. 14.
Lucinda had her power band with her and performed such adrenaline tunes as “Real Life Bleeding Fingers and Broken Guitar Strings,” “Come On,” and “Essence.” It was a complete contrast to her last performance at Britt (even though she mentioned, “This is my first time here”), which was slow and acoustic. She also played such gems as “Pineola,” “Out of Touch,” “Car Wheels on a Gravel Road” and “Joy.”
Maybe this tells it all: She closed with AC-DC’s “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Want to Rock and Roll).”
The Waifs
Two bands opened for Lucinda — the Waifs and the Avett Brothers. The Waifs were my favorite act of the day with their incredible voices, outstanding Americana tunes (even though they’re Australian) and stellar, yet understated playing.
The Avett Brothers were also a whole bunch of fun. They’re sort of punk rock meets Bill Monroe. Abe Lincoln beards, polyester pants, cheap ties, jumping around, screaming, guitar, banjo, standup bass and cello. The brothers (who harmonize fantastically well and write stellar songs) play a bass drum and high-hat cymbal while simultaneously playing guitar and banjo.
The Avetts also played at Strawberry and I observed the same thing from the audience there as I did at Britt — people laughing and smiling as they enjoyed the raw energy and humor of this group. I’d go see them again in a second.
It was my first Fall Strawberry (the festival happens every Memorial and Labor Day weekend). The festival weathered a scare in the spring that it was going to lose its location at Camp Mather near the Hetch Hetchy entrance of Yosemite. Most longtime Strawberry fans couldn’t imagine the festival being anywhere else other than under the tall pines of this beautiful setting.
I caught great sets by Sam Bush and the Canadian vocal group Chic Gamine. Fans of female vocal harmony groups like Kitka should definitely check out Chic Gamine. It’s more American roots than Eastern European folk like Kitka, but it’s quality stuff.
Apparently I missed a high-powered Friday with songwriter Hayes Carll, the Knitters with Dave Alvin, and Mavis Staples. Oh, well, you can’t see it all.
I’ll be back soon with some of the performances that are a little closer to home.
