The Best Gigs Ever Part 3

The Sky River Rock Festival – Seattle (area) 1967, ’68, ’69. How much fun was this festival? Only the most spectacular fun you could have playing for enormous audiences in spectacular natural settings with none (thank God) of the interest or industry meddling with an honest response to that moment in time. It wasn’t at the same spot precisely each time and the bands didn’t stay in the same places each year, but the hospitality, particularly outside of Seattle proper was unparalleled.

   The catered food in town or the food at the site (primarily fresh caught salmon and corn on the cob roasted and served by local Native Americans) was to die for. And the gratitude of the crowds was genuine, they were truly grateful that what Rolling Stone among others demeaned as “2nd string or local bands” were there in the middle of a wilderness partying down.

   Best of all for me was the wider than usual (for the time) eclectic mix of bands – watching the New Lost City Ramblers play for a sea of Northwestern hippies (a more robust breed than their big city counterparts) dancing, waving and shouting approval at music so quietly simple and elegantly played.        

   The following morning the Kaleidoscope took the stage and played… as the sun rose… a lengthy version of 7/8 Suite which was our emerging jazz/eastern fusion number. Just as the first rays hit the green hills (and the mass of stirring people) I began to play a sort of blues psychedelic “solo” over the accelerating rhythm of the drums and bass which picked up very slowly and I played a little more frantically as it progressed.

   This was the arrangement the song always began with, and while I was impressed with the light show that accompanied it, I really didn’t give it any thought. Later in the day, I was approached by Tracy Schwarz from the Ramblers, who was very complimentary about the solo I played, and the sound, and ended up asking me where I had learned to play. And I told him principally from playing along with New Lost City Rambler records!

   That was just one of the many fine moments.

It seemed that everybody was a star there and it was a wonderful illusion. We played there all 3 years, yet I could find no mention of the fact  on any of the websites concerning it. And yes, one night I stayed at the site and danced (sort of) in the mud, if only to keep from freezing.

   Maybe only in retrospect, but it was fun!

Each time we hit the stage a barrage of joints and pills in sheets would come flying at us and our roadies would run about snatching them up and putting them in bags. One year colored or flavored rolling papers were particularly in style and a rainbow of little missiles would launch between numbers – particularly a lot of chocolate flavored ones.