In the eastern foothills of New York’s Hudson Valley and Catskill Mountains lies the building blocks of rock and roll.
Every year I make a pilgrimage to Woodstock paying homage to the iconic place that symbolized counterculture, unity and peace amidst a time of the Vietnam War and social unrest. Back to my musical roots.
A perennial highlight of the family sojourn is a concert at the late Band drummer Levon Helm’s intimate, majestic, acoustically pristine Levon Helms Studios. This year’s show featured English folk/blues/rock impresario Richard Thompson. He put on a spellbinding masterclass of exquisite acoustic guitar work, extended sets, gems from his new album, and warm storytelling. Singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier’s opening set was a revelation filled with humor, raw honesty and vulnerability.
Over the years we’ve seen barn-burning performances here by Jorma Kaukonen, Hot Tuna, The Weight Band (comprised of ex-Band members and studio sidemen), Josh Kaufman, Mark Erelli, and The Midnight Ramble Band.
My history with Levon and The Band goes back to The Summer Jam at Watkins Glen. In July of 1973 I was among 650,000 hippies who descended on a racetrack in upstate New York to experience The Band, Grateful Dead, and Allman Brothers together for a glorious weekend. Tickets were $10 but most of us got in for free. I ventured there on a wing and a prayer to experience a glorious weekend of music. All three legendary bands turned their sound checks the day before the big show into a magical jam.
On a dreary winter Monday in 1975, while working and studying at Boston University, I spotted a 3×5 file card pinned to a message board in the Student Center:
Tonight
Two Tickets
The Band and Bob Dylan
Boston Garden 6 PM
$75
I couldn’t pass this up. At 5 we hurried to our lovable, creaky, acoustically unsound “Gahden.” We arrived a few minutes late. They were already into “Most Likely You Go My Way (And I’ll Go Mine)”. The air crackling. We gave our tickets to the usher who said with a wink: “Follow me. I think you’ll like your seats.”
Sixth row center. This Monday quickly turned from mundane to magical.
They lit it up as The Band brilliantly provided a rock backdrop to Dylan standards. The tight harmonies of Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Levon on songs like “It Ain’t Me Babe” and “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” were the perfect complement to Dylan’s raspy vocals.
When we’re in Woodstock we stay on a goat farm run by teachers. On the pen is the quietly hopeful soul searching quote by Jack Kerouac about soft spring nights from his autobiographical novel Big Sur.
The trip always includes paying homage to Levon and Rick at their graves in Woodstock Cemetery. Fans leave drum sticks, guitar picks, flags, joints and stones with peace signs.
At the end of a dusty unmarked country road just outside of town sits Big Pink. This is the house where The Band and Dylan lived, away from the hustle of the music business, recorded The Basement Tapes. You can stay there and soak in the vibe for about $1,000 a night.
This year we took a side “trip” off U.S. 9 to the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors. The museum is a sanctuary to psychedelia showcasing the visionary art and spiritual exploration of founding artists Alex Grey and Allyson Grey, as well as rotating contributors like M.C. Escher and Joe Coleman. The experience is meditative inspired by illuminating paintings, symbols, architecture, gardens and Tibetan rhythms. I let the evolving piece Net of Being wash over me. It was transcendent.
Visiting the region brings me back to my childhood in the Catskills. As a kid I spent summer family vacations and went to camps down the road in the Borscht Belt. I also worked on the activities staff of a few hotels there.
My responsibilities included rumba lessons at poolside. Kick turn, kick turn, kick turn. Bingo, softball games, cabana boy for tips, working the spotlight and curtain for the musical acts and shtick in the nightclub. It was schmoozing mostly. I remember one of my lines as emcee was “First prize is aerial photos of Kate Smith.”
“If you pour some music on whatever’s wrong, it’ll sure help out.”
— Levon Helm
Rim shot
There’s a bitter legal battle underway over control of Levon’s Barn. Daughter Amy Helm has made this a thriving cultural and Woodstock community fixture honoring her father’s legacy. This is a money grab by shareholder Brian Parillo after he gained 60% control of the owning company. He removed Amy, the face of the Barn, from management. Shows have been postponed and several staffers resigned. The Barn is a part of American music.
I stand with Amy.
Steve Steinberg lives in Danvers and is an adjunct professor in Endicott College’s Gerrish School of Business Graduate Program. He is a frequent contributor to The Salem News.