Why Wanee?
Because Music Matters


by Adam Scholer

I went to Wanee Fest, and after returning, I realized that I was not only entertained, but I learned a few things. I figured out that Jerry Garcia is not dead. Yes, the flesh and blood that made up the “fat man in a T-shirt” is gone like a streak locomotive, but his spirit and essence are alive in the music of Dark Star Orchestra, and that is where a musician lives, even after he checks out to the great gig in the sky. I learned that anyone who is under the impression that the Allman Brothers Band did their best stuff in the ’70s and ’80s is stuck in those decades, and is missing some of the greatest performances and jam sessions going. In short, I learned that the ABB sounds better than ever, and Gov’t Mule and Dark Star Orchestra are a show unto themselves. Later, I’ll give you 13 good reasons why if you missed Wanee you shouldn’t have and why you should not make the same mistake next year. I know one closet hippie that will be there - even if the weather turns cold again and I nearly freeze to death in my tent. The Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park is a wonderful piece of property and a fun venue for shows. For those of you who want to skip the narrative and only hear about the music, here it goes.
      
The opening acts certainly were not minor in their performance. Oteil and the Peacemakers set a tone that ensured us we were in for a two-day treat. Max Creek had fun and so did anyone who did not wander off in search of something to eat or a souvenir shirt. Ekoostik Hookah, a band I had never heard or heard of, gave the crowd no reason to think they didn’t belong in this stacked lineup. Derek Trucks never disappoints - whether he is jamming with his boys or next to Warren Haynes with the Allman Brothers Band, he makes one feel like a voyeur watching him make love to his guitar. Trucks will certainly end up in the top ten of all-time greats, and will make a lasting mark that is his alone. He has essentially worked his way through the puberty years of playing and is fully embracing manhood in terms of his guitar work.
      
And then Robert Randolph took the stage – wow! If the venue were an auditorium, he would have blown the doors off of it. He certainly shook the trees and tents in the campground! Galactic was great, keeping the jam going and serving as a bridge to Gov’t Mule and the Brothers. On the Mushroom stage in the woods, a whole different show was coming off. Yellowman gave us a reggae fix, singing and goofing with the crowd. I can’t say I fell in love with it, but I am a Dead Head, so don’t take my word for it. Dark Star was simply phenomenal. They don’t just sound like the Dead, they entertain like the Dead. They don’t play music, they share it. Their second set on Saturday went a solid two hours, and I was dancing every minute of it. Tea Leaf Green is definitely a band worth following. They are out of California, and I am glad they made the trip to play Wanee. For a while they had us all “living between the earth and sky.” Returning to the main stage, I caught John Popper along with DJ Logic. I am not an expert, but I can say that the mixing and scratching over the top of the blues and rock simply doesn’t work. I appreciate Popper trying a new sound, but it was more noise than music. Later, seeing Popper minus the machine, that was cool.
      
And then we get to the Mule. Warren Haynes is the man. His performance of Steely Dan’s “Dirty Work” and the Beatles “She Said” would have made both bands proud. “Banks of the Deep End” reminded us all of better days for Warren, when Woody was still rockin.’ “Soulshine” was performed to perfection and the long jams mesmerized the some 8,000 fans. It was a shame we didn’t see Warren in the All-Star Jam Saturday night, but it was cold and he has to be the hardest working man in rock today appearing with the Dead, the Mule, the Brothers and Phil and Friends. Haynes morphs smoothly into each different role and offers world-class guitar work and a voice that is a mixture of honey and gravel.
      
Gregg Allman and the ABB are flat-out entertaining. The first night was a greatest hits type of set, and the second was anything but. Since quitting alcohol and cigarettes, Gregg sounds like he is 25 again. The entire group was in perfect sync and the jams went on for a sweet eternity. Other aspects of the weekend that warrant a mention: the vendors at the show came off like a mix of Shakedown Street and the mall. Still there was plenty of cool stuff to check out and maybe spend some hard earned cash on. As one concertgoer put it, the only booth selling anything worth a shit was Hittin’ the Note - he was mostly right. HTN offered the usual fare of books, shirts, magazines, and cups, but the Allman Brothers Instant Live CDs and the compilation CD entitled …alive Down South are certainly worth the price. Great tunes by great bands that won’t have you reaching for the eject button too soon.
      
The thirteen reasons to go? Twelve of them are the bands that poured all of their energy out for the sake of entertaining. The thirteenth reason is why I drove from Miami half way across the state and sleep for two nights under the stars in forty degree weather - because music matters. Until next year, I’ll see you at the shows - keep on truckin’ and doing whatever it is you do to make your miracle happen everyday. (A special thanks to JL for the behind-the-scenes glimpse – to be standing ten feet from Warren Haynes as he performed gave me goose bumps.)


Wanee Festival: Old Folks At Home

by Brian Shupe

       The surface of the river is calm and still. By first glance you would think the water wasn't moving at all. Then something catches your eye. You aren't sure what it is, but something moves just enough to pick it out from the beautiful backdrop. As you look closer on the Suwannee you see that while the surface seems still, the body of the river is steady rolling along. Almost as if that thin layer of water on the surface is the place where two different worlds share some common ground.

The Venue: The Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park is a sprawling piece of heaven set among towering oak and cypress trees just 1 1/2 hours west of Jacksonville, FL. While most of the property is developed into sectioned camping sites designed for RV camping, with power and water, the Suwannee River snakes through one camping section and small Rees Lake is nested into another, allowing you to find camping sites that please the naturalist approach as well. Layer this all with a thin icing of spanish moss and you are sure to enjoy the beauty of Mother Nature....southern style.

Activities like horseback riding, fishing, and canoe trips insist you enjoy a weekend of camping in this park. They even have washers and dryers by the bathhouses if you need to catch up on your laundry, proving the campers have access to a great many modern day conveniences...including two full size concert halls with lighting rigs, full PA, and even tiered seating in the amphitheater! Sure you can camp here for fun but this place was built with music in mind!

The main stage, or Peach Stage for this event, is centrally located with a huge lawn area and vendors set up down the length of one side. The real jewel though, is the Spirit Of The Suwannee amphitheater (dubbed the Mushroom Stage). The amphitheater is nestled under a beautiful tapestry of green created by a natural foliage ceiling of towering oak trees that pepper the stadium seating as you wind your way down to the stage. It is truly an appropriate setting to enjoy great music.

The only odd thing about the venue was the way they utilize one way traffic patterns to ensure security and monitor concert goers. The logistics of having a whole campground as one big concert hall (check that... two big concert halls) is daunting to say the least. Once the two stages were up and running traveling back and forth was easy and fun. Located between the two stages was vendors market, where dozens of people sold everything from T-shirts to sculptures.

The Music: The first day’s music started out with Oteil & The Peacemakers on the main stage. This band seems to be based on solid soulful melodies. Thoughtful compositions like “My Blue Eyed Savior” and propelling rhythms like the ones in “Check Yourself” keep your toes tapping and leave you something to think about long after the music has stopped. With band mates Mark Kimbrell (guitar), Paul Henson (vocals), Matt Slocum (keyboards) and Chris Fryar (drums) this mixture of soul-funk jazz is a refreshing taste.

The two most surprising acts would have to be Tea Leaf Green and The John Popper Project, for different reasons. Tea Leaf Green, a quartet from San Francisco , look like they could become the new “high intensity - yet mellow vibe” band on the horizon. Consummate composer, lyricist, and harpist John Popper has set his sites on territories unknown with his current effort. Teamed with DJ Logic on turntables, Tad Kinchla on bass, and drummer Marcus Bleecker, The John Popper Project seems to be stretching out organically while still finding their footprint on stage. Too soon to tell where this endeavor will end up, but if they can find a groove that approaches the enthusiastic interest people showed toward seeing them live, they may be on to something.

Long time festival veterans Ekoustik Hooka, Max Creek, and Dark Star Orchestra brought familiar sounds to the weekend event. Relative newcomers Yellowman, Galactic, and Robert Randolph & the Family Band proved once again why they are fast becoming easy scheduling choices when picking a stage to find yourself in front of for the next few hours.

Scheduling conflict was the mid afternoon topic of choice both days as the two “can’t miss” artists went up on stage almost simultaneously. As dusk settled over the Florida swamplands, The Derek Trucks Band’s melodies danced amongst the trees of the amphitheater while Gov’t Mule staked a claim on the main stage. Each night the same decision needed to be made and neither band pulled any punches, both brought special guests on stage to sit in. Robert Randolph and Susan Tedeschi joined DTB and Ron Holloway slipped into both DTB and Mule’s sets like quicksilver.

Both nights were closed out by The Allman Brothers Band in fine form. Much like that old river, their music just rolled over you with sweet familiarity. But every once in a while, something in the music would catch your attention, a particular phrasing took a different track, or the drummers would double clutch the beat. When the band reached the end of the second set, closing out the festival on Saturday night, while everyone was preparing their exits off the stage on an abnormally cold spring night, Butch alone remained firmly in place, gently tapping out the introductory beat that has become a staple for the Allman Brothers. Underneath all the "Thank You's" and audience cheers you could barely hear the opening cadence to an unplanned Mountain Jam seeping out from Butch's drum kit and slowly bringing the musicians back to the tune. It is times like this when it seems the music has a whole other world lying beneath its familiar surface….. if you’re just able to pick it out from its lush surroundings.



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