(photo by Nate Rosing)

Bonnaroo Celebrates Ten Years

words by Nate Rosing
all photos courtesy of Chuck Madden, except where noted

**************************************

It wasn’t really all that long ago that the multi-day, camping-style music festival seemed to be destined for doom, thanks to one such festival in the summer of 1999. In what was supposed to be a gathering to celebrate and honor one of the first of its kind thirty years earlier, Woodstock ’99 appeared to be the beginning of the end. I’m sure there were many factors that played a part in the unfortunate failure of this event, but perhaps none were greater than a certain band who egged on fans to “break stuff.” Only knowing what I could see as I watched in utter disbelief from a television, I was left feeling uneasy and disgusted by the sight of tired and angry festival goers setting fire to and destroying anything and everything in sight. Of course the worst part of it all was hearing about the numerous young and defenseless women who were raped and gangbanged in the midst of large crowds as band plowed through their sets onstage.

Eventually someone, or a group of someones for that matter, got it right not long after, resulting in the current phase of the music festival craze that you still see going strong today. I only vaguely remember hearing of this thing called “Bonnaroo” back in 2002, and though I was familiar with a lot of the bands playing, I knew next to nothing about the promoters, the actual festival itself and what kind of people it would draw. I couldn’t help but wonder if this “Bonnaroo” would be another failed attempt to bring people together for three days of peace, love and rock and roll. Now here we are ten years later with hundreds, maybe even thousands, of music festivals taking place each year – just in the United States alone - and thankfully none (that I am aware of) have come close to being another Woodstock ’99.

**************************************

On the morning of Thursday, June 9th, I departed for Bonnaroo, my fifth trip to Manchester, Tennessee for the festival, the third in a row covering for BrokenMic.com. As I made my way south through the state of my old Kentucky home, the familiar sights of rolling bluegrass hills and horse farms were just about the only thing to be seen for miles at times. The music of two bands on this year’s bill – My Morning Jacket and Ben Sollee, both of whom are Kentucky natives – provided me with the company I so desperately needed, as I was once again traveling alone.

I arrived to Manchester mid-afternoon – a little bit later than I had hoped – but fortunately both press check-in at a nearby hotel and getting onto the Bonnaroo farm were as quick and as painless as I’ve ever seen. In years past, I’ve waited anywhere from one to about nine hours in traffic, and couldn’t believe my eyes (and my clock) as it only took fifteen minutes of waiting in standstill traffic to get through the tollbooth checkpoints, which I accredit to the gates being opened one day earlier this year. 

From the tollbooths I would be directed to somewhere on the 700-acre campground, where a sectioned off field named after a television or movie character would become my home for the next several days. Having been here four times before, I sighed in utter disbelief the very moment that I could see I was being directed to an area simply known as “BFE.” I guess being camped here in Camp Jeff Spicoli wasn’t all bad though. I had about a twenty minute walk to get to the concert area called “Centeroo”, and the three females from Mississippi camped next to me were both attractive and friendly, and even lent a hand to help set up my tent, as well as offering me some shade underneath their canopy.

My location was also nice because of how easy it was to find, much thanks to a big white truck, a green canopy, an orange Texas Longhorn flag and where the cars lined up with the port-o-lets at the end of a gravel road. For those of you not familiar with camping at a music festival like this, you need to take notice of the kinds of things I’ve just mentioned because it can be extremely difficult to find your tent late at night when there’s no lights around and thousands of cars and tents surrounding you. In fact at my very first Bonnaroo in 2005, I spent four hours one night just looking for my tent. Eventually I found it but only because the sun had already come up for the day.

After getting situated in Camp Spicoli and becoming familiar with my surroundings, there was very little time to waste, as the first band on my list would soon be hitting the stage. However, while making my way down what is known as “Shakedown Street”, a road packed with vendors selling everything from food and clothing to glass bowls and things to fill those glass bowls with, I was sidetracked by a man selling “chocolate candies” that I later found out to be no good, if you know what I mean.

Continuing on to Centeroo, my eyes lit up on the first sight of the main stage (the What Stage) and giant rainbow arc, which was brighter than ever and decked out with a disco ball and giant top hat with a feather. When the sun would go down at night, the arc would light up and shoot laser beam lights out into the sky. It wasn’t just the arc that looked so glorious either. Everything on the festival grounds was immaculate, like the giant tower that had a cuckoo clock sitting on top that shot out smoke and chimed every hour. Just walking around and taking in all the scenery, it was clear that Bonnaroo’s organizers had gone all out for their tenth anniversary celebration. You needn’t even take a gander at the artist lineup to see this.

(photo by Nate Rosing)

On the first day alone, which for me lasted between the hours of 6 pm and 1 am, I witnessed sets from nine different bands and a few comedians as well. I only caught pieces of indie buzz bands Best Coast, The Walkmen and Sleigh Bells, and even actor Donald Glover (who was rapping under the moniker “Childish Gambino”), but all four brought in crowds that were both larger and more enthusiastic than I’ve ever seen on the first day of the festival. Just walking around Centeroo on Thursday night, it was clear that most of the 85,000 or so in attendance had arrived a day earlier.

Though the four previously mentioned bands all put on pretty good shows and had their audiences dancing, clapping and singing along for most of their sets, none were quite able to match what I found in the performances I saw from Freelance Whales, School of Seven Bells, Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, Civil Twilight and even J. Cole.

The multi-part harmonies and experimentation of Brooklyn indie pop band Freelance Whales provided me with an uplifting energy I was hoping to find in the beginning of my Bonnaroo experience, while the sweet and sexy crooning of School of Seven Bells’ Alejandra Deheza made me fall head over heels for her and her band. Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band kicked off their set in the On Tap Lounge with their rendition of the classic “When the Saints Go Marching In”, while the Rev himself later showcased his guitar skills by playing two different songs at the same time. Civil Twilight, who brought a sound reminiscent of 90′s British alt-pop, fired the crowd up as their lead singer repeatedly sang the words “Is there anybody out there?” during one song. Though I’m typically not a fan of rap music, Jay-Z protege J. Cole brought just enough during his set to convert me at least for the time being, though I’m sure what really helped was when he pulled out covers of Tupac’s “I Ain’t Mad at Cha” and “Hail Mary.”

My first night of Bonnaroo ended with the 420 Comedy Blaze in the Comedy Theatre, which was my first time inside the venue since 2005. The legendary Cheech Marin was hosting this little shindig that featured SNL star Jay Pharoah, comedian Ralphie May and the stars of Comedy Central’s Workaholics. I didn’t stick around for the entire show, but I was able to see a brief stand-up set from the Workaholics’ Adam DeVine, who talked about tight buttholes and asked us what drugs we’d be doing this weekend. The other two stars of Workaholics, Blake Anderson and Anders Holm, would later join their co-star to perform skits about Anders drinking problem and to sing a song with each other called “You’re My Best Friend.” And God bless Cheech Marin, he even sang “Mexican American” for us.

**************************************

My second day of Bonnaroo begins with the typical spiel that is the 11:30 am press orientation, where ground rules are laid for us media types. Afterwards, I meet up with CityBeat contributor and local musician, Ric Hickey (Sparrow Bellows/Speed Hickeys), and his friends Chuck Madden (a photographer who willingly wanted to include his photos in my review, thanks Chuck!) and freelance writer Greg Gaston, who is contributing to both Crawdaddy and Relix magazines this weekend. I’m very happy to see these guys again because it’s nice to have a few friends when you’re in the middle of a crowd of 85,000 people.

The four of us make our way over to the Sonic Stage for one of the very first sets of the day, a band simply billed as the New Orleans Allstars, featuring Ivan Neville, Jamie McLean, Terrence Higgins and Kirk Joseph. It’s barely past noon, but hearing this funky jazz collective, you would’ve thought it was 2 am on Bourbon Street, as they ripped their way through covers of The Temptations “Shakey Ground” and Robert Palmer’s “Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley.”

None of us catch that entire performance, as we know plenty more is to come throughout the weekend, so we head back to the press tent to get ready for the first press conference of the weekend, which absolutely blows my mind because of the stars on the panel. Hey, I’m a fan too!

Seated from left to right, and a mere ten feet away from me, are none other than Bela Fleck, Justin Townes Earle, Abigail Washburn, Warren Haynes, Grace Potter, Lewis Black and Slug from Atmosphere. I won’t give you a play-by-play of the press conference but I will briefly mention some of the things these stars talked about.

Bela mentioned that he enjoyed the musical variety Bonnaroo has to offer and how the Flecktones don’t neatly fit into any one category. Justin talked about his newfound sobriety, losing his boots the last time he was here and how playing a festival can be intimidating because you notice the crowd moving around from stage to stage. Abigail, who is actually Bela’s wife, talked about her love of playing music in any venue, even in the Bonnaroo campgrounds, where in 2007 she jammed with John Paul Jones, a “dude” from of Montreal and Robyn Hitchcock. She also plugged the throat-singing Mongolian folk/metal band Hanggai, who were playing their first U.S. show at the festival this weekend.

Grace, looking hotter than the scorching sun, mentions she’s wearing romper shorts so the photographers won’t be able to get any cooch shots. On a serious note though, she talks about the importance of staying hydrated at a festival like this, and how she feels about essentially being a poster child for Bonnaroo because of a recent tour she did titled the Bonnaroo Buzz Tour. Slug (whose real name is Sean Daley) talks about the hip-hop scene at Bonnaroo, the open-mindedness of the fans and his happiness to finally have his name on the same shirt as Eminem. Warren talked about one of his favorite Bonnaroo moments, which was Gov’t Mule’s late night performance in 2007 when they invited numerous guests up to play like Bob Weir, Luther and Cody Dickinson, the members of Hot Tuna and Michael Franti.

With both Warren and Lewis on the panel for today, what Q&A session would be complete without talking about the “bottle incident” of 2007. During that same aforementioned Gov’t Mule show, the two got together pre-show to discuss Lewis’s involvement in the show, where he would come onstage mid-song, and only pretend to stop the show. A drunken fan must have mistaken him for a crew member actually stopping the show, so in disgust, the fans launches a water bottle at the stage, nailing Lewis in the head. During the press conference, Warren says that now the fan has that on his conscience, while Lewis simply adds, “or his resume.” Lewis doesn’t really say anything of value at the press conference today, mentioning that “comics aren’t supposed to be in a fucking tent” and occasionally letting the expletives fly.

Here are some other quotes heard at the press conference:

“I think the reason Bonnaroo is so open-minded is because it started as a jam band festival, and when the jam band movement started, my only complaint was that it needs to be more open-minded. It needs to include other genres; bluegrass, jazz, blues, hip-hop, reggae, whatever. The only thing that you need to be a jam band is to improvise and have an open-mind set. Open-mindedness is the key.” – Warren Haynes

“If Bonnaroo is the pinnacle opportunity for showing live music and experiencing that and sharing it with others, than that’s the kind of platform I wanna be on.” - Grace Potter

“There’s a vibe at festivals, especially one like this, that’s real communal and (I don’t wanna sound like I’m preaching), but to be able to see a bunch of people who don’t know each other from ‘Adam’ come together using their voice together, this is as close to church as a lot of us are gonna get.” – Slug from Atmosphere

After the press conference, Ric, Chuck, Greg and I head our seperate ways, where I arrive to the Which Stage just as Bela Fleck & the Flecktones are starting. I’m not the biggest Flecktones fan, but I was so psyched to have the opportunity to finally see them, which included original member Howard Levy on harmonica, and fiddle player Casey Driessen. Though the band was without saxophonist Jeff Coffin (who’s now a full-time member of the Dave Matthews Band) Levy and Driessen more than made up for the missing Coffin parts, trading solos back and forth throughout the hour and ten minute set. To be completely honest, the one song I was hoping they would play, they did (“Big Country”) and they played it fairly early on too. You can check out that performance right here. It was during that song that I had my first real memorable musical moment of the entire festival up until this point. It was also during this time that I somehow literally ran into Frontier Folk Nebraska drummer Nate Wagner and his girlfriend, just passing through the crowd of tens of thousands of people. It was great to see you Nate and I hope you guys had a great time!

After the Flecktones set, I began making my way down a dirt road, though I had no idea where I was headed. I let the music be my guide, and that’s when I was directed towards the Sonic Stage, where Greensky Bluegrass were churning out the most bad-ass cover of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It.” Unfortunately just a little while later, I only caught glimpses of the Warren Haynes Band, a newly assembled band featuring an all-star cast of Haynes, Ruthie Foster, Terrence Higgins, Nigel Hall and Ron Holloway. Much of what I heard came from Warren’s latest album, Man In Motion, which is a throwback to the early blues and soul eras and his influences like Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, The Four Tops and Albert King.

As stacked as the rest of Friday was, I have to say that large crowds left me feeling a bit underwhelmed during the performances of The Decemberists, Ray LaMontange & the Pariah Dogs, My Morning Jacket and headliners Arcade Fire. Though all four sounded excellent from my vantage point, and I certainly had numerous bouts of getting lost in songs like Ray LaMontagne’s “Jolene” and My Morning Jacket’s “Golden”, in all my years of attending Bonnaroo I’ve found that my least favorite shows are the biggest bands because I’m always left feeling like I’m standing a mile away from the stage, and for whatever reason, that just completely kills the vibe of the show for me.

Even with all the big names that performed on Friday, nothing gave me as much pleasure as seeing Cincinnati’s very own Walk the Moon play to a packed crowd in the Cafe Where tent earlier in the day. Very few fans were sporting the usual face paint, but seeing so many sing along to songs like “Anna Sun” totally made up for it. Nicholas Petricca and his bandmates were soaked in sweat and seemingly wore out from the wear and tear of being on the road, but they powered through their Bonnaroo debut, leaving the festival, I’m sure, with plenty new fans. Congratulations guys!

**************************************

On Saturday morning, I meet up with the guys back in the media compound for a set in the press tent from singer/songwriter Tristen, but not before Greg, Chuck and I head back to their campsite to get into the right frame of mind for the day. We end up missing her set but catch glimpses of Naomi Shelton on the Which Stage, whose backing band, The Gospel Queens, sounded at times like Booker T & the MG’s; Mongolia’s Hanggai, who were more of a gypsy punk band than folk-metal, and Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, whom I couldn’t believe were playing this early in the day based on their energetic, funky set.

I spend much of the early afternoon with Greg, checking out performances from Abigail Washburn & the Village on the Sonic Stage, Deer Tick and Old Crow Medicine Show, who (as expected) rocked a version of “Wagon Wheel” with numerous guests including who I can only assume was David Rawlings. However, none could match the feeling I was left with from The Low Anthem. Their sound was a little too quiet and relaxing for some but I was so desperately in search of just a thing, as I needed a break from the deathly heat. The rising indie-folk stars from Rhode Island were armed with all kinds of stringed instruments and horns, and even a singing saw. For as a big a stage as they were playing on, they managed to turn their show into an intimate affair, with all the members huddling around one microphone at times, before ending their set with a cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Bird On A Wire.”

From there it was back to the press tent for the second of three press conferences I would attend this weekend, which sees an odd pairing of Stephen Stills and Richie Furay of Buffalo Springfield, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Ben & Jerry’s founder Jerry Greenfield, Nicole Atkins and legendary producer Daniel Lanois. Again, I’ll just provide some brief notes of the Q&A below.

Stills and Furay talked about Buffalo Springfield being back together after 43 years, being part of the festival scene at its infancy in the 60′s, and how they would be playing to one of the biggest crowds of their careers and also to a lot of people who’d never seen any of the band members perform in any capacity. Jabbar talked about a film he was promoting, called On The Shoulders of Giants, a story of the 1920′s basketball team the Harlem Rens, and the film’s connection (and his personal connection) to jazz music. The Ben & Jerry’s founder, noticeably showing his enthusiasm at all times just to be here at Bonnaroo, talked about their latest flavor called Bonnaroo Buzz (a mix of coffee, whiskey, chocolate and caramel) and how their Cherry Garcia flavor ties in with the culture of the 60′s.

Nicole, a returning Roo vet who is playing three times throughout the weekend, is also on-site as a reporter for Paste Magazine, and is not hesistant to share that (as a journalist) she likes to inquire about an artist’s seduction tips and favorite ways to stretch. Lanois, who has produced some of the greatest albums of all-time, including a bunch from the U2 catalogue like The Joshua Tree and The Unforgettable Fire, talks about the differences between being onstage in front of an audience and recording in what he likes to refer to as “the laboratory.”

Again, here are some quotes overheard at the press conference:

“The good thing about an event like this is that you get up onstage and deliver your music in your own kind of way. If the energy calls for an extended solo or groove, we can do that. There’s something powerful about the spirit of the moment.” – Daniel Lanois

“I think it’s a great smorgasboard for music…I’m all for what this is about.” - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Bonnaroo

It’s not even 5 pm, I have already seen seven bands today and yet I feel like my day is just beginning. Based on the schedule, this would be the longest of my four days here, though by the day’s end I learned that things don’t always pan out the way you plan them here at Bonnaroo.

Next up on my schedule was a solo performance from Bruce Hornsby, who I couldn’t believe was playing on one the smallest stages the festival has to offer. As someone who is not a die-hard fan of his but more so than just a casual fan, but also knowing of his many talents, I was quite surprised to find him play his thirty minute set on a number of handmade dulcimers as opposed to the piano. Among the songs chosen from his repertoire was “Prairie Dog Town”, which he dedicated to adult film star Ron Jeremy, who has been at the festival all weekend.

After Hornsby’s set I made my way to the far corner of the Centeroo grounds, and the Other Tent, for a band I wasn’t too familiar with called DeVotchKa, a gypsy-folk band from Denver. Their set was scheduled for 5:15 pm but that time had come and gone and the band was nowhere in sight. I decided I’d stay anyways, and lucky for myself and all those in attendance, Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hutz (who was curating the tent) came out and notified the crowd it would be just a little longer but to pass the time, he would perform some songs on the acoustic guitar for us. After fifteen minutes or so, and now thirty minutes past their scheduled time, DeVotchKa finally took the stage, although I wouldn’t get to see as much of them as I had hoped because Mumford & Sons were on at 6:15 pm. Fortunately for me, DeVotchKa played my favorite song called “We’re Leaving.”

Knowing that I had been let down by some performances a day earlier because of my distaste for huge crowds that seem to go on for miles, I tried everything in my power not to be let down as I knew Mumford & Sons would be a huge draw and one of my favorites of the whole weekend. While it did work this time, and they brought in one of the largest crowds I was in the entire weekend, little did I know that they’d draw a much noticeable more amount of people than even the reunited Buffalo Springfield, who played directly after them.

By festival’s end, both Mumford & Sons and Buffalo Springfield were among the best performances I had witnessed in my five years of attending Bonnaroo. Marcus Mumford and his bandmates, playing just their second Bonnaroo performance ever, had the 50,000 or so in attendance eating them up by the spoonful. With the sun beginning to set on the Mumford crowd, folks of all ages were moving about, and clapping and singing along to every last word of hit songs like ”The Cave” and “Little Lion Man.” As expected, they brought out several new songs like “Lover’s Eyes” and “Lover of the Night” but nothing could prepare any of us for the memorable performance of their closing number, the traditional song ”Amazing Grace”, which featured such guests as Jerry Douglas and David Mayfield, as well as the members of Old Crow Medicine Show and The Apache Relay.

(photo by Nate Rosing)

Just as Buffalo Springfield were getting set to take the stage, several bolts of lightning (although there was no thunder) were flashing all around the Bonnaroo grounds, possibly scaring much of the crowd away from the show, even before it had begun. The storm we all thought would come brought this kind of weird, lurky feeling to the Which Stage area, which in a way, carried over to Buffalo Springfield’s performance. For whatever reason, the Which Stage has always dealt with terrible sound issues, and unfortunately for many of those that were unable to make it anywhere near the stage, they were forced to just leave the show, simply because they could not hear a thing. I was lucky enough to be away from the crowd but close enough in the media area, where I could see both the stage and the newly-added large video screen.

I consider myself a pretty big Neil Young fan; he is one of my favorite songwriter’s of all-time, but I’m not really that familiar with the complete works of Buffalo Springfield, aside from a few songs like “Mr. Soul”, “Broken Arrow”, “Rock & Roll Woman” and the obvious “For What It’s Worth.” However, it was so clear that most of those who had showed up for this show only came to hear that one song and whatever songs they may pull from the Young or Stills catalogs. That’s fine and all, I mean I did enjoy them closing the set with sing-alongs to “For What It’s Worth” and a version of “Rockin’ in the Free World” that seemed to go on forever, but the show as a whole, for me, was just one of those out of body experiences. The combination of music and the things that were on my mind at the time, like where I’m at in my life and wherever I may be headed to, provided me with the sobering spiritual awakening I probably needed at this very moment.

I didn’t really catch much of anything else the rest of the night, as all of the day’s activities were starting to catch up with me. Like I said earlier, I’m not really that into rap music, so rather than deal with the massive crowd that would be gathering at the What Stage for Eminem, I opted to watch the simulcast on a television back in the media compound. As much as I hate the subject matter Eminem includes in his songs, whether it’s sexism, racism or bigotry, I thought he was a decent entertainer and I actually enjoyed hearing songs like “Cleanin’ Out My Closet”, “The Way I Am”, “Stan” and his medley of “My Name Is”, “The Real Slim Shady” and “Without Me.” My only real complaint of his show would be that, which is based on being able to see close up shots of him and his entourage on a televsion, is that it was all too obvious that he was lip-syncing at times and whoever his female backing singer was sounded an awful lot like Dido, though it was infact not her.

My night was soon coming to a close, but not before I would catch the first part of only one of two String Cheese Incident performances this year, and whatever I could make of the Dr. John/Meters/Allen Toussaint collaboration for the album Destively Bonnaroo. Well, I didn’t last much longer, as I only caught the first few songs of String Cheese, which included opening with the Grateful Dead’s “Tennessee Jed.” I was merely a passer-by on my way back to camp, when I stopped to listen to Dr. John and company playing “What Goes Around (Comes Around).”

**************************************

Before you know it the last day of Bonnaroo is upon you, and it appears you’ve barely had a moment to sit back and take it all in. Just like the previous day, I again meet up with my media friends backstage in the press tent, but this time for a panel featuring the creators of Bonnaroo.

Ashely Capps (of AC Entertainment), Jonathan Mayers (Superfly Productions), Buck Williams (Progressive Global Agency) and Patrick Jordan (Red Light Management) spoke on various points of the festival, from its creation ten years ago, where in the first year alone, they sold 60,000 tickets in just eighteen days by word of mouth alone, to the growth of the festival and what they can improve on for the following year. And get this. Even before there was a Bonnaroo, there was a music festival in 1999 called Itchycoo, held on the very same grounds that Bonnaroo sits today. Bands that performed at that festival included Grand Funk Railroad, Styx, Christopher Cross, Steppenwolf and Starship. While these gentlemen spend most of their days as businessmen, they are music lovers at heart, and it was pretty cool to see that common interest over the past few days and hear them talk about the formation of the festival we’ve all come to know and love.

As I typically do, I try to make the last day of Bonnaroo a day where I catch up on some much needed rest by checking out longer sets from fewer bands. Like The Low Anthem the day before, The Head & the Heart provided me with that soft, relaxing mix of indie pop and folk rock, as they powered their way through the heat, and possibly sleep deprivation, as they had performed at Covington’s Madison Theater just the night before. Meanwhile, Mavis Staples served as a practitioner for the Lord in an early afternoon worship service at the What Stage, where she ran through old and new hits like “I’ll Take You There”, “You Are Not Alone” and a cover of The Band’s “The Weight” featuring Patty Griffin and Buddy Miller.

From there it was over to That Tent for what I could catch of the remaining Ryan Bingham & Dead Horses set, which was maybe three or four songs, none of which I recognized. After Bingham finished, there wasn’t really anything on my list I was desperate to see, but it didn’t really matter much anyways, as the heat would once again suck every last ounce of energy I had left in my body. That sent me back to the media compound for some much needed air-conditioning and ice cold water, but before I knew it, I was back out there in the trenches fighting to make it through the day.

Bruce Hornsby was up next for me, for the second time in two days, but this time playing his “official” Bonnaroo showcase with his band The Noisemakers. I actually missed the first bit of his set and hadn’t yet heard what he played, so I’ll be pretty upset if I missed “Mandolin Rain” or “The Way It Is.” Though I was late, I managed to get a spot up front and close enough to the stage to see Bruce jumping around from the piano (on “Rainbow’s Cadillac”) to accordion (“Jacob’s Ladder”) and to dulcimer (“Prairie Dog Town”). But the greatest moment of this show, and one of the few out-of-body experiences I had throughout the weekend, was when Hornsby and his band were playing the Don Henley hit “The End of the Innocence”, which Hornsby co-wrote with him.

It’s a song that takes me back to my childhood and a time where I’d be riding in the car with my dad, who often played those soft rock/adult contemporary radio stations. I never looked too deeply into the song’s lyrics and what it was actually written about, and as it turns out, it’s about the search for the lost innocence of childhood and coming to terms with the responsibilites and challenges for those facing middle-age. I just turned thirty years old a couple months back, and I’m certainly not halfway through my life (at least I hope), but the truth is I am getting older and I’m still not sure where all of this is leading to. Most of my high school friends are well off in their careers and love lives, and I often feel like I’m still stuck at the starting line.

With room to catch just a few more performances this year, I opted for Iron & Wine, what I could catch of both Robert Plant & the Band of Joy and Explosions in the Sky, and part of Widespread Panic’s closing set. Iron & Wine’s 4:30 pm slot on the second largest stage, the Which Stage, was open to mixed reviews, leaving those in disgust who prefer the stripped-down songs and intimacy of lead songwriter Sam Beam. I personally didn’t even get into this band until I heard their latest record, Kiss Each Other Clean, so comparing the band of old to the 11-piece ensemble they had on this day just couldn’t be done.

Knowing that I had to stick it out for Robert Plant and Explosions in the Sky, I first made my way back to the media compound for a quick bite to eat, where I watched the live simulcast of the Gregg Allman show that was going on elsewhere at That Tent. Allman, who much to my surprise was playing guitar for most of his set, ran through songs from his most recent disc, Low Country Blues, as well as performing Allman classics like “Statesboro Blues”, “Melissa”, “One Way Out” and even Jackson Browne’s “These Days.”

There was no greater joy for myself, and surely for many others, than seeing the legendary Robert Plant walk out onstage at 6 pm. The Golden God was still rockin’ that same lion mane he’s always had, but just a little more grey now. Just as expected, Plant and his Band of Joy, featuring Buddy Miller and Patty Griffin, opened with a barely-recognizable version of the Zep classic “Black Dog”, while several other Zep tunes, all now with a rootsy, Americana sound, were thrown into the mix like “What Is and What Should Never Be”, “Black Country Woman”, “Misty Mountain Hop”, “Ramble On” and the show closer, “Gallows Pole.” 

Plant and his band played for an hour-and-a-half, though I only stuck around for about the first hour, fortunately landing a spot up front against the guardrail, though slightly to the right of the stage underneath the large video screen. You know I hate when bands draw the largest crowds on the biggest stages and I’m stuck in the very back, and knowing this myself, there was nothing that could keep me from being underwhelmed once again, even though I jetted out of the show early.

As great as it was to actually see and hear Robert Plant singing the words to songs I grew up on, the material from their self-titled album was equally as impressive. Darrell Scott and Buddy Miller shined brightly on the guitar during songs like Los Lobos’ “Angel Dance”, Richard Thompson’s “House of Cards” and Low’s ”Monkey”, while the voice of Patty Griffin brought quivers and chills on songs such as “Ocean of Tears” and “Please Read the Letter.” But perhaps one of the better moments of their set for me was when Plant was in fact not singing at all. I had another one of those spiritual awakenings during their cover of Red Hayes “A Satisfied Mind”, which was sung by Darrell Scott. I’ll simply just post some of the lyrics below for you to figure it out on your own:

“Money can’t buy back your youth when you’re old, or a friend when you’re loney or a love that’s grown cold…the wealthiest person is a pauper at times, compared to the man with a satisfied mind…”

“When life has ended and my time has run out, my friends and my loved ones, I’ll leave, there’s no doubt…but one thing’s for certain, when it comes my time, I’ll leave this old world with a satisfied mind…

It wasn’t as hard as you might think to leave Robert Plant’s set, which actually sounds really stupid now that I see it typed out onto a computer. But in all honesty, at the moment, it wasn’t a hard decision for me because Explosions in the Sky were already into their set, all the way across Centeroo at This Tent. Having a media pass is dire in situations like this because I was able to completely avoid the massive crowd that had gathered for The Strokes on the Which Stage, by walking along a backroad behind the Which Stage that led straight to This Tent.

I arrived at the right moment for this show, just in time to see roughly the last hour of one of my favorite bands at the festival. I know it’s cliche to describe Explosions in the Sky by using words and phrases like “epic”, “sonic soundscapes” and ”vast dynamics” but I guess it’s just hard to put their sound into words. I think instrumental music has the opportunity to be the most powerful kind of music, as long as the right band is doing it.

Explosions in the Sky don’t have lyrics to their songs, and they don’t write their songs to be short, catchy gems for radio. What makes their music so powerful and their live shows so life changing, is the fact that even just a few notes can stir up all kinds of emotions just inside one person. Now take thousands of people listening to and experiencing this whole thing together, and you have the exact reason why the word “inspiring” is even a word. As I was listening to this band, sometimes with my eyes closed but some times watching the sun as it set, I could go back and relive just about any moment in my life. I could see those experiences, I could feel those exact feelings, I could taste my life.

Although I really wanted my Bonnaroo weekend to end with that moment right there, there was still music to be heard, though I only briefly caught a bit of the SuperJam on the live simulcast back in the press compound. Dr. John was joined by The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, My Morning Jacket’s Patrick Hallahan, an assortment of a few others and several female backing singers, and even Cincinnati boy Brian Olive, who churned out a great sax solo on “St. James Infirmary.”

Widespread Panic, the band whose fanbase Bonnaroo was built around and the band that has played the festival more than any other, would be the last band to perform this year. I wasn’t quite sure if I was going to leave the festival at this point or just sleep through the night and leave in the morning, so I only caught some brief moments of their set, like Bruce Hornsby joining them for “Red Hot Mama” and the closing jam session of “Chilly Water” into “Love Tractor.”

Having not seen my buddies Ric, Chuck and Greg in a few hours, and unaware of their plans, I headed back to the media compound one last time to meet up with and say goodbye to Ric, Chuck and Greg (though he was already gone) but Ric and Chuck were working hard to get their work done and turned in on time. By this time of night, the music had just ended and Centeroo would be closing soon, so I made my way back down Shakedown Street and back to camp for one last night underneath the Tennessee stars.

As I sit here writing this, now five days after the festival has ended, I am left with the buzz of it all, at least for a few more days. I can still feel the “bouncy mud”, I can hear the generators buzzing in camp, the hoots and hollers as I stroll down Shakedown Street, and hell, I can even still smell the port-o-lets.

I’m still trying to put together the pieces of my entire Bonnaroo experience this year, and I can’t help but think that there’s some deeper meaning to it all. A “High Fidelity” moment if you will, a “what does it all mean?” I think this year’s Bonnaroo for me was about coming to the realization that I am getting older and that life doesn’t last forever, but also understanding my responsibilities and what I have to do as an adult. I still have plenty of time left but so many loved ones around me do not. I’ve always tried to live life as if each moment is my last, but in doing so, I haven’t even really begun my life. I’m thirty years old and I haven’t even stepped foot on the road of a career or sharing my life with another.

**************************************

What would Bonnaroo be without celeb sightings, guest appearances and cover songs?

Among the celebrities spotted at this year’s Bonnaroo were adult film star Ron Jeremy; American Idol runner-up David Archuleta; country superstar Faith Hill (who introduced Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine to the stage); Bonnaroo alumn and husband of performer Karen Elson, Jack White; actor and comedian J.B. Smoove; and Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio.

Several artists sat in with others throughout the weekend, among them were Bruce Hornsby with Widespread Panic; Buddy Miller and Patty Griffin with Mavis Staples; Ben Sollee with The Low Anthem and Justin Townes Earle; Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hutz with DeVotchKa; the Preservation Hall Jazz Band with My Morning Jacket; and of course, the final song of Mumford & Sons set featuring Jerry Douglas, David Mayfield and the members of Old Crow Medicine Show and The Apache Relay.

Some of the notable covers throughout the weekend include Alison Krauss and Loretta Lynn both doing “Man of Constant Sorrow”; Best Coast doing Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter”; Big Boi doing Queen’s “We Will Rock You”; The Black Keys doing The Kinks “Act Nice and Gentle”; Grace Potter doing Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit”; Greensky Bluegrass doing Michael Jackson’s “Beat It”; Loretta Lynn doing Patsy Cline’s “Crazy”; The Low Anthem doing Leonard Cohen’s “Bird on a Wire”; Mavis Staples doing “The Weight” and CCR’s “Wrote a Song for Everyone”; Ray LaMontagne doing Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried”, Neil Young’s “Down by the River” and Pink Floyd’s “Breathe”; the Scissor Sister’s doing Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”; String Cheese Incident doing the Grateful Dead’s “Tennessee Jed” and U2′s “Mysterious Ways” and The Sword doing ZZ Top’s “Cheap Sunglasses.”

*those listed are not all the guest appearances or cover songs that took place this year

**************************************

I wanted to end my Bonnaroo write-up by sharing a few things…

As a member of the media at Bonnaroo three years in a row, I’ve only now just realized how spoiled we really are. We have access twenty-four hours a day to air-conditioned tents and an almost-endless supply of ice cold water, whereas the general festival goer has to fight just to obtain a drink of water from the watering stations, or for shade underneath a tree or a spot inside one of a very few air-conditioned tents in the Centeroo grounds. We have seen three young and faithful Bonnaroo attendees pass away over the past two years. David Matthew Sloan, age 29, passed away on the last day of the 2010 festival due to complications of heat exhaustion, while Beth Myers, age 32, and Christopher Yoder, age 24, both took place this year. Christopher passed away from hypothermia, while heat exhaustion appears to be the cause of Myers death, although toxicology reports are still pending. I don’t have all the details surrounding these tragedies, but (and I’m talking to you, festival organizer’s) please, please, please, please do everything you can to get more shade, air-conditioned venues and water stations for the general festival goer at Bonnaroo. It just doesn’t sit with me very well that I have easy access to such things around the clock.

On that note, I wanted to talk about some of the changes made this year…

First off, the RFID chip in the plastic wristbands and the scanning system to get into Centeroo. Judging by long lines, it was clear we were all having issues getting used to this new system on day one, including the volunteer workers and security team members. However, as the festival progressed, it appeared everyone got used to this, resulting in shorter times standing in line. As for the lines, it was about time that we finally saw some organization to it all, with the use of barriers that made me feel like I was standing in line at an amusement park.

Secondly, the sand - or the ground as a whole for that matter. I was surprised to see such little grass in the fields of the main stages and even low-traffic areas, but what was even more surprising was the over-bearing use of sand in places that seemed to not call for it at all. The use of sod grass in various places throughout the grounds was a great addition but I think we could’ve seen more of it. Lastly, it’s time to fix those muddy trenches going back and forth from the What and Which stages. Rather than place one wooden skid over each trench, that will see at least 85,000 people walk over it throughout the weekend, but god knows how many times, maybe build some type of bridge or raised platform. It doesn’t even have to be that nice or that high, and I’m sure it can’t be that expensive.

**************************************

Nate’s Top 5 Bonnaroo Sets

1. Robert Plant & the Band of Joy
2. Explosions in the Sky
3. Mumford & Sons
4. Buffalo Springfield
5. Arcade Fire