Nothin’ you can sing that can’t be sung….”---Lennon & McCartney
Being almost a decade older than your average hippie in 1967, I might have cast a wary eye at the lively proceedings emanating from Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. Be-ins, love-ins, Wavy Gravy and his Diggers doling out free food to a growing gaggle of runaways begged the question; how will this dubious business wind up? You can’t subsidize an army of freeloaders forever.
I loved the art, of course, the new music, the alternative newspapers and comic books, the cool clothes, but I thought the young hippies naive and unrealistic, operating on a wing and a prayer fueled by grass and LSD. Sooner or later the Gravy Train had to run out of coal. Being a curmudgeonly 27, I dismissed out of hand the power of Love.
I am not an overly emotional guy, a hugger soft around the edges, but I’m getting better. In ‘67 I would no more think of attending a love-in than I would of showing up at a professional wrestling match between Dick The Bruiser and Yukon Eric. Love-ins were silly and ineffective. You had to hit the streets with pitchforks and torches to make the federal government listen. What’s Love got to do with it?
But the hippie wave crested higher and higher and when it hit dry land there was no choice but to wake up and smell the sandalwood. Their methods were effective, society stopped edging away and turned to take a second look. One day, frat boys who had been throwing bricks through head shop windows started buying bellbottoms and the game was on. If there’s anything that will alter one’s perceptions and put them on the Road to Change, it’s the opportunity to be Cool. Not only does everybody want to be Cool, they most assuredly do not want to be Uncool, thought of as less than hip, shunned by the growing ranks of the Neocool. In the end, Love wins.
The other day I finally went to a love-in and now I get it. There were no posters or banners or anthems boosting Love but Love didn’t need any help. It was innate in the people who wound their way into the Subterranean Circus Grand Reunion, discovered old friends and lovers, wept, laughed, embraced, spoke a million words a minute trying to catch up. Love formed little clouds and swept over the venue, wrapping the guests in its vortex, enveloping previously immune souls in its vapors, building a wall around the perimeter from which there was no escape. Unemotional louts suddenly got silly, stoic nondancers jumped around like lunatics and the Heartwood Soundstage property became the Hugging Capital of the World.
In my travels across the terrain, I could barely get ten feet without a hug---and this in scary Covid times---from people I barely knew. The gratitude was palpable and rewarding and well worth the blood, sweat, tears and mere money the event demanded. And yes, Layne Hayford, I do know that you love me and that I was your greatest guy in the world for one day even if all that affection was slightly inspired by alcohol.
The barrage of emails and Facebook posts and phone calls (and thanks for yours, Harolyn) continues apace and I’m grateful for every one as well as for all of you who stopped to shake hands, hug and relate stories of your good old days at the Circus. After 81 years, I finally made it to a love-in. Fortunately, I waited for the greatest one of all.
Band Width
The same day 18 months ago that we first announced the Circus Reunion, Impostor Ron Thomas emailed to volunteer his band. I didn’t know whether that meant they’d play for free or for profit, but it was irrelevant. I had decided even before getting the message that I wanted to lead off the party with The Impostors (Ron, Mike Boulware, Rob Rothschild, Don David, Brad Bankstad and Michael Derry) with a string section comprised of Aaron Colverson, Steve Fine, Mattia Impoenti and Pamela Mireles) playing Beatles’ music and everyone was getting paid anyway. Maybe it’s just me, but the band seems to have slowed their songs down just a smidge and now sounds better than ever. Marty Jourard posted this and he’s right: “The version of ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ by The Impostors was amazing. Big time. String section, perfect Ringo drumming.” Hand that band a big cigar.
Cathy DeWitt and The Relics (Rob Rothschild, Bob McPeek, Fagan Arough, Dan Tampas, Janet Rucker, Michelle Ott, David Ottenberg and Brad Bangstad) were added to the bill after we failed to negotiate a contract with a HAIR group. We got the Age of Aquarius anyway from the Relics, though I almost missed it waiting a half-hour for my sandwich at Bingo’s deliberate Deli. Who’s running that place---Slow Walkin’ Jones? As you may have noticed, The Relics have a lot of members, which means a few of them can get hungover or arrested and noone will know the difference. By the end of their set, they had the crowd stirred up and finished with a bang. Cathy’s husband Rob, who had earlier played with The Impostors, stumbled off the stage and took a nap.
Okay, we’ll admit it. When you announce the Don David Band (Don, Mike Boulware, Pat Jarnigan and Thom Duncan) will be playing, anyone not in the know will yawn and take a bathroom break. I mean, come on, it’s like saying George and Sidney will sing now, but not very loud. The DDB needs a zippier name like Kato and the Murder Hornets or Bill Haley and The Comets. What latecomers don’t know, however, is that Don David and the boys hold the world’s record for playing every week in the same bar. Eighteen (count ‘em—18) years, and this is not a misprint. Somebody must be listening. Anyway, they did a terrific job and even impressed a serious music critic like Robert Simmons of Austin, Texas. For some reason, Rob Rothschild did not show up.
When I called local hero Nancy Luca in L.A., she immediately agreed to play at the party, and that was even before she knew she’d be paid. What can you say about a gal like that? She called back later and asked if she could get $50 for her guitar player and we explained this was not a charity performance. If Nancy is Batman, Anna Marie Kirkpatrick is clearly Robin; she can belt ‘em out with the best of them. Gregg McMillan, you can be Commissioner Gordon, but make sure you don’t take the stairs to the roof. Tommy Holtz, please don’t forget to grease the Batmobile. Larry Thompson, keep that utility belt filled with Snickers bars. Joe Loper….watch for Jokers and Penguins.
The crowd likely peaked by the end of the Nancy Luca Band performance, and they were dancing in the aisles, tapping their canes and wrestling with their walkers. Nancy is a perpetual motion machine, a musical dynamo, a Septuagenarian powderkeg and it’s obvious why. The girl can’t help it.
We met the man who calls himself Paco Paco awhile back at The Depot in McIntosh. Paco and his band, FATWOOD, were exclusively playing blues music and we were looking for something different. After a couple of later conversations, Paco convinced me he could play anything we wanted and returned a heady songlist. Not to mention, he planned to recruit old Circus customer and layabout Charlie Hargrett to bring his guitar, which would encourage anyone. Paco, with his new dusty Afro coif, was at his best. Brad Burns on guitar was a mean motor scooter and a bad go-getter. The coup de grace was Chelsea Nicole’s kickass “Mercedes Benz,” Jeff’s gift to Bill. The crowd for the finale had thinned just a bit but there was no lack of enthusiasm for FATWOOD’S resounding performance.
Just a bit about Tom Shed, who granted our final wish by moseying out at the end to grace the audience with Auld Lang Syne. Tom was always available for advice any time we called, showed up whenever we needed him and wouldn’t take a nickel for his trouble. His finale presentation raised voices, drew a few tears and not a soul was sitting when he finished. Many revelers just stood there full of wonder at the day, sorry it was over, reluctant to leave but sated by the experience. It really was a Grand Reunion after all, full of the things that lift men’s souls---cameraderie, brilliant memories, songs left behind, the power of reuniting. It was, after all the ultimate party. The audience was the cake and the music-makers were the icing.
Santa’s Helpers
You can’t have a love-in without a little help from your friends. Jeff Goldstein, the alter ego of both Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, was Heartwood’s point man for the affair. Jeff and I argued a lot. When I didn’t answer his phone calls, he stood in front of my house in a driving rainstorm waiting for me to come out. When I locked the doors and pulled the shades, he came down the chimney. When I opted for a private conversation with Dave Melosh, he bugged the room. Jeff Goldstein is not in the peak of health but he was insanely devoted to the Reunion and gave it all he had. The concert schedule, which is laughably incorrect at most places, remained on track at The Last Tango. Jeff scolded, jumped up and down and beleaguered poor Dave every time he veered left or right. “The path is THIS way!” insisted Jeff, who was usually correct. He might not be the guy you’d bring home to meet Mother, but he is the ally you’d want in the trenches. Skoal!
Speaking of allies---waiter, bring me a big plate of that Anna Marie Kirkpatrick, who sang her lungs out with the Nancy Luca Band and then dressed down and blackened a tooth or two to play Jeff Goldstein’s abandoned trailer-trash ex-wife prior to Jeff’s speech. Anna Marie might have seemed over the top to Jeff but he came by to tell me several of Heartwood’s younger employees were cringing, thinking she was the real Mrs. Goldstein. Set and match to AMK.
Oh, and garcon, add on a side dish of Jolene Jones, who sang, danced, played the harmonica and mandolin, then yodeled out “Dale Evans Made A Cowgirl Out Of Me” with her Patchwork band on Friday night and followed up by manning the medical tent at Heartwood for 13 straight hours on Saturday. Just to make us feel bad, on Sunday she did her usual routine of climbing the UF stadium steps. Waiter, I need another gallon of water.
For dessert, let’s have some of that Lemon Meringue Gina Hawkins. You probably never notice them because you get up late, but if you arrive at the crack of dawn some day you can espy Gina and her faithful band of volunteers, shovels and pickaxes over a shoulder, marching off to the job singing, “Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It’s Off To Work We Go!” If Gina looks a little like Snow White, don’t be fooled, she runs a tight ship and avoids poison fruit.
Did we forget the digestif? Let’s order the Perrin Penniman, an after-dinner delight. Perrin circled the Heartwood landscape dispensing home-made flowers and hugs to one and all. Ms. Penniman is a force of nature who travels at warp speed and takes no prisoners. Don’t want a hug? Too bad, it’s impossible to argue and she’s bigger and craftier than you.
There are more, of course, people like Dave Melosh’s right-hand-woman, Monica, Princess of the North and always-busy Frank Kolosky, the hardest working man in show business. Blake Harrison worked untold hours on the blacklight room and our own quartet, Julie Osborne, Laura Benedetti and Sharon & Gary Byrne toiled in graceful anonymity. Heartwood’s lovely and talented production manager Julia Schack never stopped moving. It’s impossible to cite all the workers’ names but they know who they are and how much we appreciate their contributions to the day. Laurels also to moviemaker Bob Simmons, 81, who jumped around filming the stage shenanigans with his ally Matt Clarke, then running inside to do more interviews. We think Bob got back to Austin but his phone is lost in the Atlanta airport and he could be on the tarmac peeking in baggage compartments.
Finally, thank you all for coming. Before we started, we knew you, the audience, would be the stars of the show and of course that’s the way it worked out. You all practiced the old religion….you knew the love you take is equal to the love you make. We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when, but we’ll meet again some sunny day.
I love you all.
Comments
Paco Paco: “Bill, you and Jeff had all the right ideas and collectively they were brought to fruition. It was one of the most beautiful events I’ve ever been involved in. Thank you for bringing us on board, it was truly an unforgettable day.”
Jean McCallister McMillan: “You and your team created a new epic memory for everyone in attendance. I want to mention what a great job the camera operator did of tracking the action on the big screen. It was nice seeing the closeup shots.”
Gregg McMillan: “Unbelievable production for a beautiful event. Thank you so much. I was thrilled to be asked to join in. It has brought it back for me once again. Thank you to all and I’m honored to have stepped on that stage. The talent was, as the Beatles say, ‘way beyond compare.’ Thank you, Bill.”
Perrin Cullu Penniman: “I can’t hear or walk or talk quite yet today so that means it was a blast! My heart is full of love. Thank you, Bill! WOW, just WOW!”
Robert Pearce: Thank you Bill Killeen for providing the inspiration and energy to initiate the event. It was really good to see you again after 40 years. Making waterbed frames for the Circus helped inspire me to continue on with my woodworking aspirations as a livelihood. Thank you again.”
Patricia Walker McKennee: “Not enough words to thank you for all you did, gave and continue to do, Bill Killeen. It was a magnificent event, cherished by those who came and missed forever by those who didn’t. All that was because of the rare and special person you are. You are much loved by everyone and put me at the top of the list.”
Allen Cheuvront: “Thank you for your hard work and resources. You created a once-in-a-lifetime event. Your generosity and energy have made memories which will last for the rest of our lives. Good job Bill and cohorts.”
Kathy Hargrett: “Great party!!! Thanks for a great time with great music and wonderful people!!! The Hogtown vibe lives on!!!”
Jill Rosier: “How often in life do you get to hug your schoolgirl crushes? Nailed it! Thanks, Bill and Will, can’t wait to see the movie.”
Tracey Dyga Gillet: “It was a beautiful day filled with fantastic music. Loved the cool blacklight room! The crowd was filled with 60s and 70s hippies at their finest. Great job pulling it all together Bill Killeen.”
David Atherton: “The Last Tango was an event I looked forward to since I first heard about it. I knew Heartwood would be the perfect venue. Saturday was the fulfillment of everything I was anticipating. Thank you, Bill. Sub Circus is a forever memory. Three cheers to Dave. Heartwood is on its way to the same place in Gainesville.”
Through The Eyes Of Youth
Just in case you think the remarks above are from a bunch of sentimental old coots, the following is a letter from a young Heartwood employee named Adam Rosenthal to his boss, Dave Melosh:
“I wanted to extend my sincere gratitude for the opportunity to work at Heartwood this past Saturday; I haven’t had that much fun in a long time. It wasn’t just the amazing team, it was the amazing guests.
Greeting everyone at the door and not just seeing the excitement on their faces but hearing it in their voices let me know I was helping facilitate something special. For some, this was truly time travel.
I saw guests run into friends they hadn’t seen in years, even decades, because of how the grind in life can make those closest to us drift away. I heard stories told with such enthusiasm and detail that I could tell they were reliving them and I felt I was experiencing it along with them. When I looked into the crowd, I could see more life in seated guests than in today’s youth on the dance floor.
At the end of the night as I was helping collect chairs and making sure everyone was taken care of, guests thanked me for a truly great evening. I wish I could impart to the whole Heartwood team the gratitude that was beaming, how the flames of their souls were stoked because of all our hard work.
Personally, this was something I needed to experience myself. If it weren’t for the trappings of life, this is something my parents would fit in with. For one night I was able to connect with them again, too.
Anytime I can help bring out the hearts at Heartwood, I want to be there to help. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
Anybody think this kid will have trouble finding a job?
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ALL PHOTOS BY JOHN MORAN WITH ONE EXCEPTION (The picture which includes the Reunion screen is from Gina Hawkins) |
That’s all, folks….
