Wilmington, North Carolina -- Legendary singer/song writer James Taylor came home to North Carolina on Tuesday to do what he does best: connect with the audience as he sang while playing his guitar. One of the most famous songs by this grammy-winning artist is "Carolina In My Mind," and he certainly planted Obama's uplifting message of hope in North Carolinians' minds.
Wilmington was the last stop of James Taylor's Vote For Change Tour of North Carolina. 900 tickets were given away within 15 minutes on Friday near the county board of elections office where early voting was held. The ticket showed that the doors would open at 5:00 pm, but by the time the doors finally opened around 5:30 pm, the line was snaking around many times over, spilling into the street. Despite the long wait, everyone in line was upbeat and happy to see their favorite folk rock singer in a free concert on a gorgeous autumn day.
Although the majority of those in line were Obama supporters in full Obama gear, some were not. The very first group in line refused to talk to me when I told them I wrote for the Huffington Post. The burly man waved me away and told me to get to the back of the line. The next person in line was an undecided voter who came for the music. I asked if she would vote for Obama if James Taylor urged to do so. She said she didn't know.
I struck a conversation with Dottie Covington, an enthusiastic Obama supporter and a huge James Taylor fan, who was born and raised in Wilmington. I asked her about whether Wilmington was changing. "Well," she said, "I am a proud Southern woman. And I love the good ol' boys. But they have become too disrespectful. The old conservatism has become too negative and too disrespectful. All my family members are Republicans, but I changed my party affiliation to Democrat so that I could vote for Obama during the primary. And talk about Obama being elitist? Excuse me? A biracial child of a single mother in the 60's, who put himself through school and achieved so much! Again, I love being a Southern woman, but Southerners are not all one type. I am proud to be from the South, but I am also a proud Barack Obama supporter. We need change. This is the man who can bring all of us together."
By the time everyone was seated inside the theater, there was also an audience of about 200 on the outside of the fence, sitting on lawn chairs and blankets. The anticipation was clearly building. First came a prayer led by a minister, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Then, Jessica Levy, the field organizer for the nearby Brunswick County, reminded the audience to vote early, to volunteer, and to start talking to others. Next up was Jim Morgan, the chairman of the New Hanover Democratic Party, who emphasized that Obama is the historic candidate for a historic election.
Finally, James Taylor came onto the stage with his signature hat and humbly took a bow. He opened the concert with his rendition of "America the beautiful," sung as beautifully as only James Taylor can, with a touch of southern nostalgia and sensitivity. When he was done with his opening song, he stressed the importance of the feeling of community and Obama's ability to bring this feeling out in everyone. "Democracy," he said, "is the strongest when people are involved."
Next, Taylor sang one of his most famous songs, "Something In the Way She Moves," followed by "Sweet Baby James." The interaction between Taylor and the audience was spontaneous. He related the story of one bumper sticker he saw in 2004, which read, "Drunken Frat Boy Drives the Country into a Ditch." Taking a brief pause, he remarked how prescient that bumper sticker was. The audience laughed. Next came "You've Got a Friend," andTaylor interjected the words, "talking about Obama" between singing "You've got a friend, you've got a friend." The audience cheered and arose on their feet, clapping. Taylor continued to mix in the candidate's name with the lyrics of his most famous songs.
Between songs, the singer continued to urge his audience to go vote and to get involved in this historic election. He continued, "People who want to get involved, this is a crucial election, and Obama is the man to do it. Make a project out of someone you know. Put some Gunne Sax on, throw them over your shoulder, and take them to the polls."
Then he asked the audience to join him in singing his newest improvised song, "Go, Obama, go." By now both the singer and his audience were singing, almost chanting melodically.
"Go, Obama, go."
"Lift us up."
"Go, Obama, go."
"Lead the nation."
"Go, Obama, go."
"Yes, we can, oh, yeah"
"Go, Obama, go."
"He's the man."
"Go, Obama, go!"
"Oh, yes, he can."
"Go, Obama, go!"
"Lead us on, oh, right now."
Lastly, Taylor was joined by his wife on stage and sang "Carolina In My Mind." Everyone jumped on their feet and clapped with the beat. There was a thunderous applause at the end of the song. This is clearly the song that resonated the most with the audience, perhaps because North Carolina was, after all, the audience's home. And here was James Taylor singing and promoting Barack Obama in North Carolina, a traditionally conservative state, now a battleground state.
Taylor ended his night with the following words, "Let's not forget why we are here. We are here on the home stretch. Let's turn North Carolina blue. We want North Carolina to be the clincher." When he came back for an encore, Taylor led the audience in singing once again, "Go, Obama, go. Go, Obama go. Go, Obama, go."
The night ended as quietly as it started. The serenity of the whole event from the beginning to the end was striking. It was a picture perfect event for Barack Obama, but it could have also easily been mistaken for a peace rally.
As I was leaving, I wondered what the undecided voter and the McCain supporters from earlier were thinking now. It was clear that the singer and the concert were there to promote Barack Obama for president. Any McCain supporter would have felt out of place. However, the local campaign, just as the national campaign, emphasizes inclusiveness, so that is how the event was. It really seemed that everyone was welcome to join in the music.
There had been many reports from Fayetteville on the weekend, where voters were taunted by McCain supporters yelling and screaming from across the polling site, tires were slashed at the Obama rally, and yard signs were stolen and defaced. Against the ugliness of the past weekend, this uplifting, gentle, serene, quiet concert was just the antidote.
I just hope that we can keep James Taylor's piece of Carolina serenity, hope, and quiet humility in our minds from now until the election day.