Roll Call: MMJ - Midnight Ramble - 10/16/10

[Penny Lane]

This thread is so spiritual. I love it.
Great reports. Jann wenner, it's about f-in time for a cover!!

[tdb810]

This is so fantastic!  I love that you got a setlist on your birthday Liz!  So happy for all you guys and gals, and see you all...um...


[size=22]TOMORROW[/size]
Insane....

[kydiddle]

It was a magical night!  We were literally looking down @ the band from the loft behind them.  Such a cool view!  Had an awesome time rockin out w/ brooke, woodnymph, bold & his friend greg & some cool kids who came in from colorado just for he ramble!

Awesome story #3 (bold & greg rockin out by/with jim, woodnymph gettin in):  After the mmj set, a woman who we were chatted w/ while waitin to get in came up into the loft, grab-hugged brooke's arm & was like, " you girls are doing a great job rocking out up here!  I was watching you & you know all the words..."  she also said she loved mmj  :)

Carl reached up & shook a couple of our hands after their set.  And i got a selist!

The music was fantastic!  Standouts for me were, oh, all of them.  Haha.  Carl played sax on Nashville To Ky.  sexy. Loved the version of shakedown street w/ donald fagan on keys & lead vocals.  Boogied down to that  :D.

Such a great vibe in that place.  So good to meet so many of you & look forward to seeing you again his week!

Excellent birthday, eric & headhunter - thanks guys.  We will def chat @ mcgees!

What a great birthday present for you!!!!!

Reading these posts made me a little teary-eyed. So glad everyone had an amazing time. :)

[ericm]

I am SO happy for all you good folks who made it to the ramble.
Can't wait to hear more when I see ya at McGees.

Can't wait to get to McGees-- NEVER been so excited for a Monday.   :D

Took the words right out of my mouth Jeff!

Couldn't be there but felt I was there in spirit. So glad for all of you who got to experience this.

Definitely want to hear some more details first hand at McGees.

Liz strikes again with a setlst and on your birthday. How cool is that! 8-)  

[CTdeadhead]

From Twiiter, cool!

[br00ke]

just made it back to brooklyn .. gorgeous drive back while still buzzing from last night's show. i can't believe i get to do it all again tomorrow!!

my favorite part last night .. i think it was during smokin' .. jim turned around and it felt like we head-banged it out together. we were so close!!!!! an amazing experience for sure & so great to meet you guys  :)

[dstunbound]

I'm so jealous, this sounds like a musical event of epic proportions. Glad everyone had a great time.

Did anyone get any pics inside?

[woodnymph]

CAN NOT HABLA. SI SENORITAS Y SENIORS. FTW.

:o :o :o :o :o

Woodstock might have to become a place of residence for me.............

 

br00ke, ynwa, I'M NOT WORTHY!!! You gals made the night, it was your magick mojos that helped pull all the strings! and it was all you crazy cats that made it happen, thank you toooooo! it was so awesome to meet you all before the terminal fiveality *group hug!!!*

oh and br00ke thanks for the story-telling, i'm not online a whole super bunch on the road and appreciate story-sharing! and sorry i couldn't reply to posts the day of the ramble, i just woke up and signed on for 10 mins or so and took off into the Catskills! WHAT GORGEOUS WEATHER-- I will have to post a couple pics eventually!

I have more to write but I'm at camp again tonight after a long rendezvous with the city! And gotta ready up the t5 wagon for a good night's rest before an early start into the city again tomorrow! Oh what will the morrow bring.....

Just thanks everyone for your great awesome sweetness! You all made it so special!!  [smiley=grin.gif] [smiley=grin.gif] [smiley=vrolijk_26.gif]

[bold992006]

News ArchivePublished: 2010/10/17

My Morning Jacket, Danny Louis and Donald Fagen Ramble with Levon HelmMy Morning Jacket opened for Levon Helm last night. The performance took place right outside Woodstock, NY in Helm's studio/performance space as part of his series of Midnight Rambles. In preparation for its multi-night run at Terminal 5—where the band will run through all five of its albums in their entirety—MMJ dusted off some earlier songs like "The Way That He Sings" and "Nashville To Kentucky." The band also offered "Wonderful (The Way I Feel)," a song the band plans to record for its next studio record.
In addition to his steady touring band, Helm's backing group included Steely Dan frontman Donald Fagen. The Woodstock-area resident is currently married to the mother of Helm's daughter, Amy, and has regularly performed with The Band drummer over the past two years. In addition, Gov't Mule keyboardist Danny Louis, who also lives in the area, sat in a various points throughout the night. As expected, My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James joined The Levon Helm Band on The Band's "It Makes No Difference," a song MMJ recorded for a tribute album a few years ago. The members of My Morning Jacket also sat in on a sing-along version of "The Weight" that found Patrick Hallahan move from his drum kit to the microphone.
Jim James also joined Helm onstage in San Francisco this past August for an event tied to Outside Lands. MMJ will perform its first album The Tennessee Fire in its entirety at at Terminal 5 tomorrow.

[br00ke]

jim james singing it makes no difference w/ levon's band .. video

[ynwa]

OMG!!! LAST NIGHT WAS EPIC! LIFE CHANGING.... I AM SPEACHLESS... OR SHALL I SAY WORDLESS. I FEEL SO BLESSED   :)

YES!!!

oh yeah - the bagpipes were a huge hit too!  (i think it was) the same woman who grab-hugged br00ke's arm was totally lovin it while staniding in line  :)

[ynwa]

truely one of the coolest concert experiences ever.  i felt like i was @ a friend's house party & they had awesome bands playing.  literally they were right there, not a bad seat/spot in the place (but i think we had the sweetest spot of all).  small, intimate, good vibes all around.

i loved watching patrick watch levon's set.  he was totally digging it!

trish & eric - the setlist gods did smile down upon me again.  so effing cool  :)

woodnymph!!!!  so so so happy you got in - that was karma workin in your favor, girl!

some awesome pics - br00ke & woodnymph are in the 5th one - hello ladies!!!  way to rep the forum:
http://encoremag.com/new-york/articles/9260/photos-levon-helms-midnight-ramble

no cameras allowed inside for us regular folk.  luckily, there were some pros there to document.  the pics looking down on the band - that's where we were!! i literally had to move over a little & restrain myself from dancing too hard so as to not bump him while he shot thoese pics   ;D  8-)

still in la-la land from saturday.  cannot wait til later.  i am getting zero work done today  :D

[br00ke]

i loved watching patrick watch levon's set.  he was totally digging it!

YES .. i loved that!!! patrick was having a great time + looking sharp in his suit.

good find on the pix. i think there will be some more up from levon's own people at a later date. i'm really hoping to find a pic that has all of us behind the band but most pix i've seen from those shows are tight shots of the band only (which makes sense)

oh and liz .. that woman we made friends with, i later saw her up and dancing herself. i like to think we helped inspired her to ditch the sitting and shake it  :)

[ynwa]

i loved watching patrick watch levon's set.  he was totally digging it!

YES .. i loved that!!! patrick was having a great time + looking sharp in his suit.

good find on the pix. i think there will be some more up from levon's own people at a later date. i'm really hoping to find a pic that has all of us behind the band but most pix i've seen from those shows are tight shots of the band only (which makes sense)

oh and liz .. that woman we made friends with, i later saw her up and dancing herself. i like to think we helped inspired her to ditch the sitting and shake it  :)

yes, he did look very snazzy!

i've been doing the same thing - hoping we end up in a photo somewhere.  well, so long as we don't look completely spastic.  who am kidding - i WAS completely spastic.  hahaha

that's awesome our friend was up & dancing too, i didn't see that.  of course we inspired her  ;)  i'm sure she is a mmj fan now too.  she loved their set!    

[bold992006]

jim james singing it makes no difference w/ levon's band .. video

I put this up at first too...but its actually from San Fran..not the ramble..still awesome!

[br00ke]

jim james singing it makes no difference w/ levon's band .. video

I put this up at first too...but its actually from San Fran..not the ramble..still awesome!

touché .. you are correct! sorta mis-leading to throw it up with the ramble article (if your not paying attention, which i clearly wasn't ;))

[br00ke]

rolling stone article about the show is up with pictures

It was well past midnight when Levon Helm called opening act My Morning Jacket back to the stage to close out their epic concert with a euphoric rendition of "The Weight," featuring Helm, Jim James and Steely Dan's Donald Fagen swapping lead vocals. It was the perfect way to Saturday's majestic Midnight Ramble, part of a regular series of concerts held in a barn at Helm's Woodstock, N.Y. home, and featuring a rotating cast of local musicians and special guests. Helm recently had a procedure to remove a growth on his vocal chords, and yet he belted out the "Go down Miss Moses" verse like it was 1968, and was beaming uncontrollably.

Four and a half hours earlier My Morning Jacket took the stage in the tiny barn, which was filled to capacity with fans shocked they were about to see an arena-level band play to a crowd of about 250 people. Opening with a tender acoustic version of "Golden," the group played an hour-long set that drew from every one of their five albums, just two days before they begin playing them in sequence at New York's Terminal 5. By the second song, "I'm Amazed," they plugged in and rocked out as if they were at Madison Square Garden. "Can you believe we're all here?" frontman Jim James asked the crowd midway through the set. "To say it's an honor would be an understatement. If you've been here before you know what a gift from god it is. If if you haven't, you're about to get your mind blown."

It was evident from the opening moments of "Ophelia" that Jim James was right. Although Helm is still recovering from the throat surgery and preserving his voice, on this Band chestnut he let loose. For most of the night he stayed behind the drum kit and let his incredible band — which includes his daughter Amy Helm, Donald Fagen, guitarist Larry Campell and his wife Teresa Williams — handle the singing. One of the great joys of the Midnight Rambles is to watch the seventy-year old Helm flawlessly play the drums as he grins from ear to ear. My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan sat about four feet behind the kit all night, watching Helm's every move.

The set list was, in many ways, a journey through the Great American Songbook. Forty-three years ago Bob Dylan gave the Band a musical history lesson during the early Basement Tapes sessions, teaching them material ranging from from the Carter Family to the Impressions. Although Levon was absent from most of those sessions, his shows draw from the same songbook — though it has now been updated to include everything from Steely Dan to the Grateful Dead and, of course, the Band. Fagen, who spent behind the piano on the far left side of the stage, took lead on a jazzy "Shakedown Street," Steely Dan's "Black Friday" and the Band's "King Harvest (Has Surely Come)." He's described these shows as the most musically rewarding thing he does, and his presence elevated the evening to an even higher level.

The group was lead by Larry Campbell, whose tenure as Bob Dylan's guitarist from 1997 to 2004 coincides with the greatest period of the Never Ending Tour. He played on far bigger stages in those days, but it's easy to tell he prefers the musical freedom Dylan's former drummer gives him. He sang lead on a killer "Chest Fever," which he proceeded with a long guitar solo. Teresa Williams sang a delicate "Long Black Veil," while guest Happy Traum (introduced as the "unofficial musical mayor of Woodstock") reached way back to the 1930's with a sing-along version of Blind Boy Fuller's "Step It Up and Go."

Jim James spent most of the show sitting on a staircase near the back corner of the stage, mesmerized, and occasionally playing air drums. Near the end of the set he was called back onstage to sing "It Makes No Difference," which he covered on a Band tribute album three years ago. Summoning the spirit of Rick Danko, James belted much of the song out with his eyes closed. It was easily one of the night's high points. Afterward, James stuck around near the stage as the audience and musicians began to filter out. "That was so emotional," James told Rolling Stone. "Rick Danko is one of my favorite singers and musicians. That song has always meant a lot to me. Playing it here tonight is beyond anything I thought could have happened in my life. When I saw the light shining down on Levon here I thought we were all in heaven. This is as good as life can get."

[bold992006]

rolling stone article about the show is up with pictures

It was well past midnight when Levon Helm called opening act My Morning Jacket back to the stage to close out their epic concert with a euphoric rendition of "The Weight," featuring Helm, Jim James and Steely Dan's Donald Fagen swapping lead vocals. It was the perfect way to Saturday's majestic Midnight Ramble, part of a regular series of concerts held in a barn at Helm's Woodstock, N.Y. home, and featuring a rotating cast of local musicians and special guests. Helm recently had a procedure to remove a growth on his vocal chords, and yet he belted out the "Go down Miss Moses" verse like it was 1968, and was beaming uncontrollably.

Four and a half hours earlier My Morning Jacket took the stage in the tiny barn, which was filled to capacity with fans shocked they were about to see an arena-level band play to a crowd of about 250 people. Opening with a tender acoustic version of "Golden," the group played an hour-long set that drew from every one of their five albums, just two days before they begin playing them in sequence at New York's Terminal 5. By the second song, "I'm Amazed," they plugged in and rocked out as if they were at Madison Square Garden. "Can you believe we're all here?" frontman Jim James asked the crowd midway through the set. "To say it's an honor would be an understatement. If you've been here before you know what a gift from god it is. If if you haven't, you're about to get your mind blown."

It was evident from the opening moments of "Ophelia" that Jim James was right. Although Helm is still recovering from the throat surgery and preserving his voice, on this Band chestnut he let loose. For most of the night he stayed behind the drum kit and let his incredible band — which includes his daughter Amy Helm, Donald Fagen, guitarist Larry Campell and his wife Teresa Williams — handle the singing. One of the great joys of the Midnight Rambles is to watch the seventy-year old Helm flawlessly play the drums as he grins from ear to ear. My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan sat about four feet behind the kit all night, watching Helm's every move.

The set list was, in many ways, a journey through the Great American Songbook. Forty-three years ago Bob Dylan gave the Band a musical history lesson during the early Basement Tapes sessions, teaching them material ranging from from the Carter Family to the Impressions. Although Levon was absent from most of those sessions, his shows draw from the same songbook — though it has now been updated to include everything from Steely Dan to the Grateful Dead and, of course, the Band. Fagen, who spent behind the piano on the far left side of the stage, took lead on a jazzy "Shakedown Street," Steely Dan's "Black Friday" and the Band's "King Harvest (Has Surely Come)." He's described these shows as the most musically rewarding thing he does, and his presence elevated the evening to an even higher level.

The group was lead by Larry Campbell, whose tenure as Bob Dylan's guitarist from 1997 to 2004 coincides with the greatest period of the Never Ending Tour. He played on far bigger stages in those days, but it's easy to tell he prefers the musical freedom Dylan's former drummer gives him. He sang lead on a killer "Chest Fever," which he proceeded with a long guitar solo. Teresa Williams sang a delicate "Long Black Veil," while guest Happy Traum (introduced as the "unofficial musical mayor of Woodstock") reached way back to the 1930's with a sing-along version of Blind Boy Fuller's "Step It Up and Go."

Jim James spent most of the show sitting on a staircase near the back corner of the stage, mesmerized, and occasionally playing air drums. Near the end of the set he was called back onstage to sing "It Makes No Difference," which he covered on a Band tribute album three years ago. Summoning the spirit of Rick Danko, James belted much of the song out with his eyes closed. It was easily one of the night's high points. Afterward, James stuck around near the stage as the audience and musicians began to filter out. "That was so emotional," James told Rolling Stone. "Rick Danko is one of my favorite singers and musicians. That song has always meant a lot to me. Playing it here tonight is beyond anything I thought could have happened in my life. When I saw the light shining down on Levon here I thought we were all in heaven. This is as good as life can get."

there a few pictures in that article that showed some blurred out people where we were standing...but you can't make them out really...cool pix though..love the one of Jim and Levon.

[pagerage]

additional RS article ;)

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/51942/224517

[woodnymph]

SWEET MANNA HOW SUPREME!!! Just saw these last few posts today!!! What a great article.... captures the essence!! Great to see it in the Rolling Stone, too!! Wow... br00ke I need another pinch or two, it's happening again!!!

And Mike it was so cool to meet with you and hang out + share in this sacred event!!!!

Til next time!!! [smiley=beer.gif]