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headlining a sold-out jam festival in tennessee
TL • weekend, the tiny town of Manchester, Tennessee (pop-
110 ulation 8700) will become (temporarily) that state's
fourth largest city as more than 75,000 music fans arrive for the
first ever Bonnaroo Music Festival.
With most of the biggest acts on the jam band scene—including
Athens band Widespread Panic, Trey Anastasio (of Phish), String
Cheese Incident, Phil Lesh & Friends, Gov't Mule, Galactic, Karl
Denson s Tiny Universe, North Mississippi All-Stars and many, many
more—*he festival is shaping up to be something of a hippie dream
come true But with Ween. Jim White, The Blind Boys Of Alabama,
Blackalicious, Amon Tobin and other great acts from the worlds of
rock, country, gospel, hip hop and electromca, the festival promises
something for even the most eclectic musical taste.
So just what the hell is a "bonnaroo" anyway?
"'Bonnaroo' is a Creole word and it means a really, really good
thing," says promoter Jonathan Mayers, of New Orleans Superfly
Presents. "We definitely think we've got that here."
Fans of the Crescent City sound will recognize the name
from the Dr. John album Desitively Bonnaroo. and
for years the doctor has referred to his horn
sections as "the bonnaroo horns."
Set in a rural area on a private farm,
the Bonnaroo Festival has drawn some
inevitable comparisons to another
huge musical gathering
"People are talking about this
thing like its historic.' says
Georgia Theatre soundman Matt
DeFilipis. ‘like it's the biggest
thing since Woodstock or some
thing." Maybe so, but don't
expect a free for all in Tennessee
The promoters are taking serious
precautions to make certain that
only those with tickets make it onto
the farm.
"We want this to be a memorable
and enjoyable experience for everyone
and we want to make this an annual event,
says Mayers We have to ensure that folks
without tickets stay home "
Concertgoers can expect at least two ticket checkpoints
on the highway before entering the festival property. Cars will be
turned away if passengers are found without tickets. No foot traffic
will be allowed on the road either The concert site will open a day
early to deal with inevitable traffic backlogs.
Inside, expect a large security team including what Frank Keller
of Alpha A Omega mounted patrols is calling "the largest private
peace time cavalry ever organized." That's not to say, however, that
Superfly expects security problems On the contrary the promoters
are planning on a loose, relaxed atmosphere.
"We re using the same security team that Phish used for their Big
Cypress millennium event " says Mayors. "They understand the
nature of thi* crowd and know what to expect
Mayers is counting on that nature to preclude any ugly scenes
like those that occurred at the 1999 Woodstock Festival, which was
marred by noting, violence and sexual assaults.
"The fanbase is just different," he says "It's hard to compare
limp Bizkit to Stnng Cheese Incident "
Mayers also says that the degree of corporate sponsorship and
pricing of concessions would be dramatically different than at
Woodstock '99 or other large festivals. All tickets for the event were
sold without the aid of Ticketmaster or other ticketing agencies,
depending instead on the event's website (bonnaroo.com) and those
of select bands, including Widespread Panic. Panic just released the
a live, three-disc, 27-song Live In The Classic City album last week
on Sanctuary/Widespread Records. The collection was recorded in
Athens in April 2000 at the Classic Center.
"We wanted everything to be a bargain, from the ticket pnees to
bottled water" Mayers says. "And we only wanted companies
involved that understand the crowd and would enhance the experi
ence." So instead of a Budweiser tent or Domino's Pizza, folks
should expect Greenpeace and Ben & Jerry's political action groups.
Musically, the Bonnaroo Festival may indeed prove to be histone.
The sheer quality of the artists and the diverse genres represented
deserve the excitement they’re commanding. The possibilities for
collaboration seem endless.
"The artists have really embraced this thing,"
says Mayers. "A good majority will be staying
for the entire weekend, even if they're only
scheduled for one night."
Phil Lesh and Bob Weir of the
Grateful Dead, added to the lineup
only after tickets were sold out, will
be making a rare appearance
together—something they've done
just a handful of times since the
1995 death of Jerry Garcia.
Former Primus frontman Les
Claypool has put together a spe
cial band just for Bonnaroo,
Colonel Les Claypool's Bucket Of
Bernie Brains (with veteran key
boardist Bernie Worrell guitarist
Buckethead and drummer Brain).
Guitarist Keller Williams will play with
String Cheese Incident Who knows who
else will get together?
A lot of these artists have collaborated in
the past," says Mayers "There will be a lot of
es."
The farm area will have four stages with live bands playing on
them throughout the afternoon and evenings. With music scheduled
from just after noon until at least four each morning, attendees will
have ample opportunity to see the more than 45 participating acts.
The promoters are urging everyone to pace themselves and use
common sense. An email to ticketholders advises to drink plenty of
water and get enough sleep That sleep thing might be tough for
some though. The late night parties are going to be sick!" says
another Georgia Theatre technician Corey Smith. "Galactic, moe
Karl Denson and Kellei Williams Incident all night? Oh my god!"
Smith s attitude seems typical of those luckv enough to be going
to Bonnaroo The promoters think the attitude is warranted Asked if
there were anything he d most like to tell attendees. Mayers
responds; "Come out. Respect yourself respect others, respect the
land and have a great time. This is going to be a lot of fun."
Henry Oionne
bonnaroo festival weekend schedule:
Friday, june 21
Widespread Pome
Gcw't Mule
im Ooypool* s Frog Brigade
Keller Wilbarm & The Siring Cheese Incident
Korl Denson's Tiny Universe
Dirty Dozen Bros* Band
Soukve
Amon tabm (DJ Set)
Utaphrey s McGee
Acoustic Syndicate
DJ logic {DJ S*)
Jim Wh»te
Donna The BuHaio
Saturday, june 22
Widespread Pome
The Stnng Cheese Incident
Ben Harper
moe
Galocfcc
Jock Johnson
Jurasvc 5
Colonel Claypool s Bucket of Bernie Broms
The Disco Biscuits
Block olioout
Robert Randolph & The Family Band
Cut Chemist (DJ Set)
John Butler Tno
Col Bruce Hampton A The Code Talkers
Particle
The It Rascals Brass Band
Drums & hrbo
Llama
Sunday, june 23
Trey Anoslosio
Phil Lesh A Friends (With Bob Weir)
Weer.
Galactic
North Mississippi Afivlon
Norah Jones
Corey Horns
Z Tnp (DJ Set)
Blind Boys at Alabama
Campbei Brothers
Mofro
Rano
Gabe Dixon Bond
Dome Peoples
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