I was scanning the San Francisco skyline through a chain-link fence and swigging wine from a plastic cup when I realized I was at one of the cooler shows I'd ever been to.
By this point, Old Crow Medicine Show and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros had finished their hour-long sets and Mumford & Sons was waiting somewhere backstage.
It was the Railroad Revival Tour, and it wasn't just the lineup that made it pleasant; it was the creative spirit behind the trek: Three bands cutting up the American Southwest (From Oakland to New Orleans) for one week, traveling exclusively in vintage railcars:
The Railroad Revival train is 1,500-feet long and consists of 15 vintage railcars from the 1950s and '60s, pulled by two locomotives. The bands will eat, sleep, and record on the train as they travel ... The bands will have equal billing and equal time on stage, in an environment that encourages creativity and cross-pollination. The entire tour will be the focus of a documentary that captures the spirit of the journey and gives intimate insights into the creative process.
I Google-mapped the Oakland event before the show, and what I discovered was an empty plot of land pinned between a wasteland of rail lines and massive metal docks that serve the barges that drop off their loads in the East Bay. It was gritty and industrial in every way; nothing polished about it.
It wasn't until I actually showed up at the venue that I realized the waterfront locale was back-dropped by the San Francisco skyline, which became steadily more beautiful as the daylight slipped away.
The Bands
Old Crow Medicine show was everything you want out of a bluegrass band. If you've only heard Wagon Wheel, do yourself a worthwhile favor and listen to this one before bed tonight.
I had some personal reservations about Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, even though I quite enjoy the chorus in "Home." The truth is that I prefer the YouTube version by the little girl and her dad, mostly because they come off as cute and playful, rather than phony and indie-Jesus-esque, longing to be worshiped. Here's the thing though: they were incredible; pleasant in every way. It was a perfect wine-sipping set that washed my preconceived judgments.
A quick side-note about wine: They served Berryessa Gap Zinfandel, which comes from my hometown of Winters, California. I was blown away and filled with small-town pride by this realization, and am led to believe they served similarly local wine throughout the tour, although I'm not so sure about the grape quality in Marfa, Texas.
After annihilating two cups of Zinfandel, I walked around the premises, scoping out the old-fashioned steam-engine trains that were on display.
The chugging and honking of operational Amtrak trains could be heard beyond the fenced-off expanse of West Oakland grass. Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard songs hummed lightly in the background.
By this point I could have rolled home on my BART train fully content with my evening, but then it came time for Mumford & Sons to take the stage.
They opened with "Sigh No More," which is the first track on their only full album. While it's technically just one song, it actually feels like two separate pieces, the ladder half of which snapped me (and everybody else) into a beautiful hypnosis that lasted the entire set: "Love it will not betray, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free. Be more like the man you were meant to be."
They plowed forward with a blend of familiar songs and unfinished new ones. Dynamically, they contrasted the most delicate of low moments with the thrashiest of highs. The soft bits managed to feel raw, while the heavy moments managed to maintain a cleanliness. It's a quality few bands manage, but this band does, and the subsequent feel has the ability to firmly grip a crowd. It was entirely appropriate for this tour.
Railroad Revival, to me, is a marriage of old-time grit and modern artistry. These three bands have taken the time to plan a logistically difficult tour that aims to reflect the cross-country troubadouring of old-timers like Woody Guthrie while also fostering an environment of collaboration and creativity; the tangible end result being a musical documentary to be shared with fans.
I can only speculate on whether or not the rail-line tour benefited the environment. I plan on looking into it, partly because of a recent conversation I had with bluegrass band The Devil Makes Three, who told me they have increasingly contemplated rail travel as gas prices inch higher.
The Railroad Revival Tour was not only a perfect concoction of musical talent; it was a beautifully thought-out idea all around; nothing status quo about it.
The bands didn't even sell personal merch. They only sold Railroad Revival gear with all bands listed as footnotes. It was a team effort in all respects. More of an old-style road trip than a business-like tour. It was a beautiful thing and I feel lucky to have been in attendance.
I can only hope something similarly artistic and memorable was produced inside those railcars during the tour. I'll wait excitedly for the documentary. In the meantime, here's a new one that Mumford & Sons is working on:
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This article makes me wonder much than I was already wondering to be in one of these shows.But,living in Brazil makes it impossible to me.
Wow,thanks for this new song video.Loved it.
I've seen a lot of shows and never spent so much money. I saw Dylan and Paul Simon in Duluth--the first show Dylan had played anywhere near his hometown in years and years--for $40. John Prine in a symphony hall with a couple hundred people and acoustics that you wouldn't believe in SLC for $45. I've seen The Grateful Dead, WSP, Leftover Salmon, D. Grisman, Greg Brown, Ralph Stanley, Patty Griffin, Lucinda Williams, M. Franti--you name them--play set after set, just grooving with the audience as long as we were able to groove. Never more than $30. Often free. Greg Brown is notorious for dragging his guitar into the local bars after shows and playing with the locals until last call. Where I come from, that's what real musicians do. I suppose I'm just an old timer out of touch with the $$$$$ factor that's taken over the music world. I certainly didn't spend $55 planning on being squeezed in with 8,000 people on a gravel lot. No room to dance unless you were way the hell back. And there is no way my 11-y-o would have had a good time. Anyway, it is what it is.
Also to call OCMS music Bluegrass is totally wrong. Old Crow is not bluegrass, maybe Neo-grass or New Olde Tyme. We here on the East Coast would appreciate the designation. Please just because a hipster puts a fiddle or a banjo in a song does not make it Bluegrass....as this movement grows, please invent something appropriate to the Music that comes before and call it that, but Bluegrass? Blasphemy...They tried to call Bill Monroe's music HillBilly Jazz...Then it ended up being what he called it himself....Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys.....If anything recall that OCMS is a medicine show, which means they sell Elixir, who knows whats in it, but you drank it if you call them Bluegrass. If you ever want to hear real Bluegrass hit me up and Ill share with you the Oh! playlist. I know I know OCMS plays the Oprey, and Prairie Home Companion, and Winfield Festival, but so does Steve Earle, Tom Waits and Taylor Swift...not bluegrass. Sounds fun otherwise, nice piece.
You've obviously got plenty more knowledge than I do on the specifics of the genre, so if I write on the topic in the future, I may tap your knowledge for a quote or two.
My musical road is long, if you ever want to talk shop, absolutely feel free, You can find me on facebook, so let connect, I added you here on HuPo.
I used to play with Ketch and Critter back in the early 90's in Ithaca, NY, before they left for Nashville and formed OCMS, I have basement tapes of us jamming. We are still good friends if we cross paths. My whole purpose was not to sound know it all but get the correct moment for this new-wave of Traditional Americana music that is coming on in masse. True Bluegrass is a very specific musical art form that has very specific criteria to meet, everything else is a different genre, and without a doubt OCMS has some of that vein, but as said does not hit the specifics of Bluegrass, that someone such as myself who once performed prior to Old Bill Monroe taking the stage, hold to dearly. Heck even that mid-70's bands that carried the torch of the genre didnt even get to be called Bluegrass, Like Hot-Rise or Lonesome River Band, they got the title New-Grass...so if ever lets chat and ill share what I can...
And if you're into it, could you think of a modern-day-twist kind of name for these five bands:
1. Avett Brothers
2. Old Crow
3. Mumford and Sons
4. Trampled by Turtles
5. Devil Makes Three
Thanks! I'm hoping get the blog posted tonight or tomorrow and I think it would be a nice supplement to have some of your input.
Sounds good, I'm at work now and get off at 5pm home by 6:30....I can certainly address anything you might like to know about bluegrass. Purhaps you can consider a credit to me as a contributor if in fact you use any of the information I provide you?
How do we connect a get off of comment communication and write directly?
As for sharing a playlist...due to DRM I dont think i can send you a bunch of music via email...So maybe I can send you a group of Youtube links to videos of bluegrass examples?
you can use my profile name and add @gmail for my regular email...hope to hear from you, very open to assisting you.
I could listen to "The Cave" all day long!