(you'll have to forgive the typos)
That's a text exchange between me (in green, on the right) and my wife (on the left), who came to the Festival on Sunday, specifically to see Tom Morello.
I had been running around Fort Adams, taking pictures and doing live breaks and such. I really don't get to hang out with my wife (or anyone). But I did try to join up with her whenever I had a few minutes.
I happened to be near the Harbor Stage when I got her text saying that Jackson Browne was on stage with Tom Morello. I got over there in time to catch them do the most rocking version of "This Land Is Your Land" you'll ever hear.
I positioned myself way in the back, middle, near the sound guy, so I could get an overview of the crowd and perhaps pick out my wife.
Little did I know, I was about to get a very clear view of the crowd.
For the finale, Morello invited the entire audience up on stage, much to the chagrin of security.
I'm not great at estimating crowd size, but I'm going to guess there were a good 100 folks on stage with Tom, singing out loud, singing out strong.
And, as you've surmised from the text, my wife was on stage too.
It was a pretty wild scene, made wilder by the fact that, while being a rebel is fun, it does sometimes create a safety hazard. Mid-song, security and officers of the law started kicking people off stage, forcibly having to remove some of them. It made for quite a visual.
As you can imagine, it was all captured on video. You can see a few of the Youtube videos made by folks in the audience, and on stage. It's totally worth your while to hear how engaging and passionate Morello is, and what delight he took in his mischief.
My wife was energized too. Later, after we had met up and talked about her adventure, she sent me another text as I headed back into the Fort:
"I might leave you to become a revolutionary woman!"
Photos by my wife.
Hear the original on Youtube.
See the view from the crowd on Youtube.
See the view from the stage, on Youtube.
You know, I was slightly embarrassed when I thought about high-fiving you on my way out of the tent after this show. I'm a pretty reserved person, after all. But, I was so energized by Tom Morello's performance, by raising a fist to "Union Town", by his guitar hero antics during Ghost of Tom Joad, by asking us to "jump the f-- up", and by his cheekiness in getting "us" on stage. It was by far my favorite set of the weekend. I'm pretty sure I told you "it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive"!
ReplyDeleteBut, after reading about it, and watching it again, I'm not embarrassed, and I'm really, really happy for your wife that she got on stage. What a memory to take away from the weekend!!
-Sue