Journey On

My wife and I went out tonight to the Avalon Theater to see Arlo Guthrie live on his "Journey On" tour. This was good for me because I have been slowly crawling out of a very deep mental abyss which started maybe a score of days ago. My wife has been very kind to me indeed. So I'm glad I could atone a bit and join her in "going to town". She really had a good time. And she's not into folk singers. She likes blues. But Arlo did some stuff that suited her. A Leadbelly tune. And an excellent rendition of St. James Infirmary. Damn Arlo was good. He had an ensemble of seven behind him. It was interesting how his band backed him up. They kept the theme of Arlo being a solo act. Often they were quietly sitting out because Arlo was being Arlo. He had three ladies, a sister group, who were his back up chorus. A drummer and bass player. His son Abe on keyboards, and an incredible lead guitar player on fender tele who played violin nicely on slow songs. Arlo also played piano on maybe six songs, instead of guitar. He used 4 different guitars, all acoustic. I hadn't listened to Arlo in thirty years. He sounded just like he did way back when. He talked before every song in warm, comic, introductions, and we found ourselves laughing out loud. He did a long funny story leading up to "Coming into Los Angeleez". Which I loved. He talked about his wife of 42 years. He played tribute to Hoyt Axton who was his dear friend. To Leadbelly. To Janus Ian. But most of all, he played tribute to his father, Woody. Near the end of the concert, he sang "This Land is Your Land". He would sing a verse, then stop and talk and explain something about Woody. Then do another verse and stop and talk again, on and off for five verses. He said he "learned" the song in fifth grade like many of us did. He went home and got out his 3/4 scale Gibson guitar which his father had given him on his fifth birthday and tried to play the song. His father saw this and went and got out some old papers. He showed Arlo some verses that would not have been "allowed" in the grade school songbook. I didn't buy tickets to Arlo so that I could hear "City of New Orleans" live. Which he did at the piano, by the way. I wanted to touch a legacy. I wanted to be near an icon. I got exactly what I wanted and more. This guy is a real live genuine legend. And thanks to my wife we were in the second row center and the first row seats in front of us were empty! And the 400 seat room was sold out. So just call me star struck if you like. I was ten feet away from Woody Guthrie's son and grandson for a nice two hour concert. Two nights from now wife and I are going out again to live music. This time a local geezer country rock band. Of great players and great guys (and girl). There will be friends and relatives there. And people that like me. And people that I want to like me. Somehow I care again. Thank goodness for my wife. Thank goodness for music. Thank goodness for Spring. Thank goodness I can Journey On.