Mountain Jam 2011

Mule with Luther Dickinson (guitar), Cody Dickinson (electric washboard), Hook Herrera (harp)
Mountain Jam Festival VII
Hunter Mountain Ski Lodge
Catskills, NY
Google map
Festival schedule

This year was stellar. The bands rocked, the company rolled, and even the weather cooperated. The only thing missing was our pal Mic who was locked into a training gig with his new job. This year joining Glenn and I was Twiggy and Sue thanks to a small donation to the cause in the form of a wedding gift. ;)

New this year was an extra day of music allowing us to make it down a day earlier than about 90% of the gen pop crowd. It was a chilly evening so we opted to stick with the gigs inside Colonel's Hall - The London Souls, Soulive, and Big Gigantic. The London Souls rocked it hard followed by Eric Krasno who more than impressed with Soulive as they rolled through a jazz funk tribute to the Beatles.


Friday's line-up was impressive. Tim Reynolds threw down and definitely impressed. For those of you not in the loop, Tim is the lead guitarist with the Dave Matthews Band. Eric Krasno sat in with Toubab Krewe and then later rejoined Soulive for an afternoon set. We also squeezed in a few songs by Chris Barron (The Spin Doctors) on the Awareness Stage.


The evening headliner this year was not Gov't Mule but Warren Haynes with his solo project. Not bad at all though my preference is definitely with the heavier side he brings to MULE.




Now for me, Friday's highlight was the Late Night Set with Lotus. Running non-stop from midnight to about 3:15am these guys know how to kick it. This was my third time seeing Lotus but this 3 hour face melt was definitely the first time that I was catching them in their element. Again, for those of you interested in what they're all about, cause instrumental electronic jam band just doesn't begin to describe, check them out here.




Saturday was again something to get excited about. The Avett Brothers, Charlie Hunter, Zach Deputy, North Mississippi Allstars Duo, and of course Gov't Mule's one and only tour date of the year.



Mule. What a night. Warren said things would get crazy and they did. The first set came out strong with Railroad Boy and ending with War Pigs. The second set was a mix of covers starting off with Floyd's Money and Have a Cigar starring Ron Holloway on sax and Matt Abts on vocals for Cigar. Then the Dickinson brothers stepped up on stage with Hook Herrara on harp for a couple of bluesy tracks. Sweet. Warren then calmed the crowd down a bit with a cover of the Stones' Angie before ending the evening with a few more Mule tracks. A great set for what will likely be their only gig for 2011.




Top the night off with a Late Night Set with Umphrey's McGee and it just doesn't get a whole lot better than this. Joining Umph on their 3 hour tour was John Oates for a few tracks, Zach Deputy, and they even pulled off a switch between Ryan Stasik (bass) and the bass player from The New Deal who were also playing a Late Night Set over in Colonel's Hall. Well done.



Sunday. Day 4 and still more on the menu. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals pulled off another high energy stage show which the crowd (and especially the males) absolutely loved. Finally headlining the night was Jim James' My Morning Jacket. This is one band that you have to see live. Jim was all over the stage, a rolling ball of energy creating a huge stage presence. Loved it.




Finally, I leave you with the people of Mountain Jam. Equally as entertaining as the bands themselves. Enjoy.

Mountain Jam 2010

Mountain Jam Festival VI
Hunter Mountain Ski Lodge
Catskills, NY
Google map
Festival schedule

After our successful adventure to last year's Mountain Jam V, Steve and I were pumped to see what Warren had in store for 2010. The line-up this year was looking stellar. Aside from the usual two nights of Gov't Mule (as if six hours of Warren jamming with occasional guests wasn't enough) the highlights for me were the Drive-By Truckers, Derek Trucks, Grace Potter, Les Claypool, Michael Franti, Lettuce, Jackie Greene, Jay Farrar (Son Volt) and of course the grand finale birthday special with Levon Helm et al. including Donald Fagen and Steve Earle.

Once again knowing sleep would not come easy, we hit road early Thursday evening and heading due south for the Catskills via our favorite Walmart sleepover stop in Cobleskill, NY.



Joining us on the mountain this year was our old high school buddy Glenn (Eskimo). While Steve and I were leisurely driving down from Ottawa, Glenn was flying from London, England crossing British Airways' picket lines and holding his breath through the deadly volcanic ash. Despite the obstacles Glenn arrived right on time and only managed to miss the setting up of the tent in our VIP camping area.

And then the music started...


Equally entertaining as the musicians on stages are the folks that gather around the mountain side and camp out in the hills. Here's just a small flavor...





As per usual Warren Haynes shared the stage with many of the other artists performing at Hunter Mountain - Grace Potter, Les Claypool, Derek Trucks, Patterson Hood, Ray LaMontagne, Jackie Greene, Dave Mason, Matisyahu, Lettuce, and of course the grand finale with Levon Helm and all his special guests (Steve Earle, Donald Fagen, Allison Moorer, and Sam Bush). A right musical marathon guitar god, Warren is one of a kind.

Of note, Grace Potter was a definite highlight of the weekend. The icing on the cake was when she stepped up to join Gov't Mule on Fleetwood Mac's "Gold Dust Woman". Grace and Warren belted out an incredibly soulful version of a Stevie Nicks classic. Grace's sensuality was pouring over the edge of the stage. Warren's... um, not so much. Here's a youtube clip from the 2008 Jammys - good but not nearly as perfected as it was that night on Hunter Mountain.





A three hour birthday party for Levon Helm wrapped up the weekend. Levon was in top form playing drums and occasionally singing lead vocals on what was mainly a long list of classic songs from The Band. He as all smiles and showed his appreciation at the end of each song to each and every person that dropped by to pay their respects.

Here's a tidbit for you - Levon grew up on an Arkansas cotton farm in a tiny hamlet called Turkey Scratch. Seriously.

Anyhow the weekend was another huge success all around. Great weather, great company, and a great selection of bands. Again VIP was the way to go. Hands down. And the slight adjustments and tweaks to the VIP package did not go unnoticed. Awesome job guys.

Finally a massive thank you Warren and Gov't Mule.
Left to right... Warren Haynes, Matt Abts, Jorgen Carlsson, Danny Louis.