And man, oh man, it was a beautiful thing.
It's kind of hard to put into words why attending Bonnaroo is such a meaningful thing to me. What I can say, though, is that both years I've returned home on such high, so happy to be alive. Today, I woke up smiling, in a great mood and I stayed that way all day long. I felt energized. Spending the weekend at Bonnaroo, with 3 friends, listening to amazing music all day and all night, having a beer or two and just walking around outside somehow transformed me into this shining, happy, carefree spirit. Last year, I jokingly called it the "Bonnaroo high."
On a certain level, as I get older I think it's important to me to continue to try new and different things, to continue to test myself, live a little unconventionally and, really, just experience life. That's part of it, I guess. Also, music is such an important part of my life that it means a great deal to me to be able to see so much of it in one place in a few days' time. Discovering new music is amazing and mind expanding for me, so I really thrive on seeing so many diverse musical acts for the first and maybe only time. And it all happens outside, on "the Farm." And everyone there is so happy. As I said, it's a beautiful thing.
Friday, early afternoon, I drove down to Manchester by myself. Once I navigated traffic and a long line to get in, I walked around with a smile on my face, taking it all in. I had a beer at the craft beer tent (craft beers from all around the country) and browsed the vendors' tents. I was drawn to a stage nearby when I heard music playing. I walked up and began listening to Against Me!, a punk rock band with a transgender lead singer. And they were amazing. That, in essence, is Bonnaroo.
Later, I saw Moon Taxi and and Kaci Musgraves. Both from Nashville and both pretty good.
Saturday morning, I rushed around to get Jude and the boys off to Cheekwood, so I could meet my friends and drive down to Manchester again. I stopped by Bongo Java for quick cup of coffee and was crestfallen when I walked in and saw a long line. As I gave up and walked outside, I stopped to talk to a couple of friends. Suddenly, A.C. popped outside with a "Mood Elevator" in her hand, for me. She had seen my in line and thought I looked like I needed a cup of coffee, so she made it for me and brought it outside. It made my morning and started my weekend on the right note, for sure.
We drove to Holiday Marina, which is 20 minutes or so from Bonnaroo, and checked into to our motel rooms. Nothing to write home about, but perfect for us to stay in on Saturday night. We ate lunch at the Marina, then piled in my truck and drove to "the Farm." Once we got inside, it was music, music and more music, from 2 p.m. to 1 a.m. By the time we left, we all were exhausted. But we saw some great stuff - Son Little, Catfish and the Bottlemen (really good), Songhoy Blues, Trampled by Turtles (fabulous, as always), Bahamas, Bleachers (also really good), Sturgill Simpson, X Ambassador, Slayer (one of the most terrifying experiences of my life) and All Them Witches. Then, it was back to the Marina, where we crashed.
Sunday was a day of days. Epic. We ate breakfast, packed and arrived about noon. First, we saw Shakey Graves (awesome), then Hurray for the Riff Raff (very good), Madisen Ward and Mama Bear, His Golden Messenger and Bela Fleck/Abigail Washburn. That's when it got really interesting. I was prepared to go watch Jerry Douglas and his new band, when my friend, Derrick, suggested we go catch something different, something we wouldn't normally see in Nashville.
We wandered over to the "This" tent to watch an African band called The Very Best. And we were blown away by a show so good that I would have paid full price at Bonnaroo just to see them play. We were drawn into the middle of the crowd, up front, and we danced and danced and danced. Again, that's Bonnaroo, for me, anyway. Wandering up to see a band I've never heard of play a show I'll never forget. Amazing.
The Very Best, rocking the house.
Next, Derek and I stopped into "the Silent Disco," where a couple hundred people at a time don headphones and dance while a DJ spins the records that no one outside the tent can hear. From the outside looking in, it's kind of eerie to see all of these people dancing to a beat only they can hear through their headphones.
Later, we saw Mo and Rudimental. Then we packed it up and headed home.
And I'm already planning my trip to Bonnaroo next year.
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